| Harriet Monroe, ed. (1860–1936). The New Poetry: An Anthology. 1917. |
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| 268. The Slave |
| | | By James Oppenheim |
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| THEY set the slave free, striking off his chains…. | |
| Then he was as much of a slave as ever. | |
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| He was still chained to servility, | |
| He was still manacled to indolence and sloth, | |
| He was still bound by fear and superstition, | 5 |
| By ignorance, suspicion, and savagery … | |
| His slavery was not in the chains, | |
| But in himself … | |
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| They can only set free men free … | |
| And there is no need of that: | 10 |
| Free men set themselves free. | |
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