Alice Corbin

I hear America singing …

And the great prophet passed,

Serene, clear and untroubled

Into the silence vast.

When will the master-poet

Rise, with vision strong,

To mold her manifold music

Into a living song?

I hear America singing …

Beyond the beat and stress,

The chant of her shrill, unjaded,

Empiric loveliness.

Laughter, beyond mere scorning,

Wisdom surpassing wit,

Love, and the unscathed spirit,

These shall encompass it.