No more let barbarous Memphis boast...

No more let barbarous Memphis boast

Huge structures reared by servile hands —

A nation on the Atlantic coast

Fettered no more in foreign bands,

A nobler Pyramid displays

Than Egypt's tyranny could raise.

Columbia's sons, to extend the fame

Of their exploits to future years,

No marble from the quarry claim,

But, soaring to the starry spheres,

Materials seek in Jove's blue sky

To endure when brass and marble die!

Arrived among the shining host,

Fearless, the proud invaders spoil

From countless gems, in aether lost,

These Stars, to crown their mighty toil:

To heaven a Pyramid they rear

And point the summit with a star.

Old wasteful Time! though still you gain

Dominion o'er the brazen tower,

On This your teeth will gnaw in vain,

Finding its strength beyond their power:

While kindred stars in aether glow,

This Pyramid will shine below!