Memories of Virginia/President Tyler
LOOKING FORWARD.
To President Tyler.
Now listen to the voice again,
The voice of nineteen hundred seven,
Two worlds unite in harmony,
Under the starry flag of heaven.
The western flag of U. S. fame,
The flag that won on land and sea,
The flag of welcome to the world,
In this our year of jubilee.
Again the Britons seek the James,
Where English sons of noble sires,
Founded a colony to stand,
A monument to pioneers.
Again our French friends seek the York,
To visit the historic river,
Where echoes linger o'er the shore,
To welcome sons of France forever.
Again brave soldiers seek Old Point,
The Alpha harbor of renown,
Cast anchors in the Hampton Roads,
The river road to old Jamestown,
The harbor known to all the world,
Where naval skill changed war on sea,
Through Merrimac and Monitor,
The ironclads of history.
Two monsters of the sea that fought,
In eighteen hundred sixty-two,
In harbor of the pioneers,
Where Smith found shelter with his crew.
The Point of Comfort Matthews held,
Where British sons met Indian foe,
Where famous footsteps still are heard,
To echo back from Fort Monroe.
President Lyon G. Tyler
The harbor home of memories,
The gateway of the Old Dominion,
The mother of States and Presidents,
To guide American opinion.
Our History unique in fame,
Let us with pride baptize anew,
Found scholarships for future men,
From international point of view.
Found scholarships to pioneers,
To British men under the crown,
To men who built our flag of stars,
To French allies of old Yorktown.
Let founders' kin unite as one,
To monumentalize the past,
Honor the names two worlds revere,
To hold the chain of memory fast.
In memory of the founding sires,
To bind the present to the past,
Our anchor patriotic pride,
To hold the chain of friendship fast.
Cambridge and Williamsburg rejoice,
In this our year of jubilee;
Jamestown and Plymouth Rock unite,
In bonds of old fraternity.
May pride awake Greek-letter men,
From lake to gulf, from shore to shore,
The South to answer back the North,
We stand as in the days of yore.
May voices echo back the past,
Recalling birth of "Letter Day,"
Old Williamsburg the natal town,
Cradle of fraternity.
May echoes of the olden vows,
Be heard along the old York shore,
This opportunity be seized,
To hold the chain for evermore.
May sons return to cradle home,
To weld anew each generation,
The chain of friendship to unite,
Through bonds of higher education.
A new path opens to our view,
Through deeds of our own generation,
To mark the tercentennial year,
An "alliance of education."
To unite the New World with the Old,
Through art, the wealth of a nation,
Each scholarship competitive,
The prize of higher education.
Miss Smedley of Dominion kin,
True daughter of a cavalier,
Stands sponsor for a school of art,
To honor this memorial year.
The American National Institute,
In honor of the Revolution,
Amid environments of France,
Under the flag of our own nation.
Let Congress aid her noble work,
To honor allies of Yorktown,
A memorial to Lafayette,
A monument to Jefferson.
Knowledge is power to win and hold,
It is the birthright of the free,
Our sons' children of heritage,
The men of opportunity!
And as it was so it is now,
And so it will forever be,
Knowledge is path to great results,
It is the path of destiny.
The emblem of the Institute
We here present with loyal pride,
With kindest thanks to Count von Daur,
An allied friend with U. S. Bride.