SONG
,
WRITTEN
AT
MR.
THOMSON'S
REQUEST
,
AS
A
KIND
OF
INTRODUCTION
TO
HIS
IRISH
MELODIES
.
SWEET
power
of
song
!
that
canst
impart
To
lowland
swain
or
mountaineer
A
gladness
thrilling
through
the
heart
,
A
joy
so
tender
and
so
dear
!
Sweet
power
!
that
on
a
foreign
strand
Canst
the
rough
soldier's
bosom
move
With
feelings
of
his
native
land
,
As
gentle
as
an
infant's
love
!
Sweet
power
!
that
makest
youthful
heads
,
With
thistle
,
leek
or
shamrock
crowned
,
Nod
proudly
as
the
carol
sheds
Its
spirit
through
the
social
round
!
Sweet
power
!
that
cheerest
the
daily
toil
Of
cottage
maid
or
beldame
poor
,
The
ploughman
on
the
furrowed
soil
,
Or
herd-boy
on
the
lonely
moor
:
Or
he
by
bards
the
Shepherd
hight
,
Who
mourns
his
maiden's
broken
tie
,
Till
the
sweet
plaint
,
in
woe's
despite
,
Hath
made
a
bliss
of
agony
:
Sweet
power
of
song
!
thanks
flow
to
thee
From
every
kind
and
gentle
breast
!
Let
Erin's
—
Cambria's
minstrels
be
With
Burns's
tuneful
spirit
blest
!