"The South" (1862)
Poetry by Charlie Wildwood
Music by John Hill Hewitt, 1801-1890

1.
The bright rose of beauty, unnurtur'd by art,
And purity's lily doth thrive in thy heart,
While Honor hath crown'd thee with glory's bright ray,
And Flora hath deck'd thee with flowers of May
Oh, beautiful South! cherish'd home of my birth,
Thou fairest, thou loveliest land of the earth!
My heart, like the ivy still clings unto thee,
oh, beautiful, beautiful land of the free!

CHORUS
The South! the South! my own beautiful South!
Land of Chivalry! Home of Liberty!
Fondly I love thee, dear land of the South!
Dear land of the South! dear land of the South!

2.
Dear Liberty, Virtue and Truth most sublime,
The flowers that bloom in the sun smilling clime,
And those the base Tyrant would crash to the earth,
And mangle and bruise on the soil of their birth
All crimson thy land with the life-glowing flood,
And dabble his hands in thy heart's reeking blood!
But oh, by the God of the righteous and free,
Bright region! it never, no never shall be.

(CHORUS)

3.
Like swarms of foul demons, his minions came down,
And their war-rusted weapons insultingly frown,
To fright by fair fields with their bloody alarms,
And rob thee, dear land of all of thy charms,
But, thy free spirit still rides on the swift gale,
Like the eagle that sweeps o're the mountain and dale,
And thy seas, they rush forth with the courage of men,
To fight and to bleed and to conquer again.

(CHORUS)

4.
The tyrant with shackles would manacle thee,
Would strangle thy spirit, dear land of the free,
Would trample the banner of Right in the dust,
And yoke thee with iron, Proud Queen of the Just!
But the hearts of thy sons, unappalled by a fear,
As their swords leap up fiercely and flame in the air
Now swear that it never -- No! never shall be,
Bright Queen of the lovely -- Sweet home of the free!

(CHORUS)