Thus in proud triumph spoke the haughty foe :
"Lie there, black savage, now no neighbor's hand
Shall e'er inter thee in thy native land;

But hungry wolves thy wretched corpse shall tear,
The fishes of the flood, or fowls of air."

That moment flew poor GAZoo o'er the field,
The spear o'ertook him as his course he held ;'
Down sinks the warrior with a horrid sound,
And grim with blood, lies panting on the ground;
And while the hero pants upon the plain,
He lifts his hands, implores relief in vain :
"Now by thyself thy mercy I implore,
By those who such a valiant hero bore;
This forfeit life, intrepid LECLERC, spare,
And with soft pity listen to my pray❜r."

He speaks with tears, with tears he bathes the shore; "Die, savage negro, die, and plead no more;

We come for slaves, but now, our soldiers slain,
We'll show no mercy to the savage train."
He rais'd his sword aloft, as thus he said,
And buried in his breast the smoking blade.
The princes from this cruel slaughter far,
Rag'd on the right, and rul'd the dreadful war;
Deep groans proclaim their progress through the plain,
O'er hills of carnage, mountains of the slain;
Fight as they fly, and bathe with blood the ground,
And slay the trembling Christian foes around,
LOUVERTURE issues out the stern commands,
Nor trusts the war to less important hands;
The ruffians see him come with wild despair,
And haughty LECLERC now consents to fear.
Now crowds of ruffians by the prince were slain,
The cruel foes lay gasping on the plain;
The furious prince the van of battle led,

And by his sword twice fifty tyrants bled;
The ruffians fly, as from a lion's ire,

The village curs and trembling swains retire,
When o'er the slaughter'd bull they hear him roar,
And see his jaws distil with smoking gore,
All pale with fear at distance scatter'd round,
They shout incessant and the vales resound.
The foe dispers'd, their bravest soldiers kill'd,
Fierce as a torrent now he sweeps the field;
Still like a fury the brave prince proceeds,
Both armies wonder at his dreadful deeds;
Before his rage still flies the panting foe,
And many haughty powder'd heads lay low.
So the huge dolphin tempesting the main,
In shoals before him drives the scaly train;
Confus'dly heap'd, they seek their inmost caves,
Or pant and heave beneath the floating waves:
Thus in black waves each sable squadron rolls,
Cutting their foes and crushing out their souls,
As when a western whirlwind charg'd with storms,
Dispels the gather'd clouds, terrific forms,
The gust continu'd violent and strong,
Rolls sable clouds in heaps on heaps along ;
Now to the skies the foaming billows rears,

Now breaks the surge and wide the bottom bares.
Thus fierce the princes fight, for on this day
The fate of fathers, wives, and infants lay;
The flying tyrants shake the trembling ground,
The tumult thickens and the woods resound,
The sweat descends like dew, while shrieks arise
In peals profound, and thunder in the skies.
Long as imperial Sol increasing bright

O'er heav'n's clear azure spreads the golden light,
Commutual death the fate of war confounds,

Each adverse battle gor❜d with equal wounds:
But when he to the height of heav'n ascends,
The ruffians to their ships their footsteps bends;
They rush like lightning o'er the slip'ry plain,
All pale and panting seek their ships again;
When lo fierce LECLERC thunders his commands,
Thus strove to rally his pale flying bands;
With this reproach his flying host he warms:
"Oh! stain to honor, oh! disgrace to arms!
Forsake inglorious the contended plain,
This hand unaided shall the war sustain ;
The task be mine, this negro's strength to try,
Who slays our soldiers, makes our squadrons fly."
He calls aloud his flying troops from far,
Then turns and sternly waits the coming war.
A thousand thoughts confound the cruel chief,
He hop'd, he fear'd, his bosom swell'd with grief,
Pride, conscious valour, av'rice, rage and shame,
At once set all the tyrant in a flame.

He panting views, oppress'd with mighty woe,
An iron tempest passing from the foe;
He in wedg'd ranks his panting troops enclose,
They stop and round an iron harvest grows :
"I soldiers now, I will no more delay,

(He cries) but go where fortune leads the way,

Prepar❜d the bitterness of death to bear,

I'll meet this negro hand to hand in war,

No more these eyes shall view my army's shame,
Pursu'd and flying o'er the field of fame.
Oh! may I, may I, feel a martial fire,
To conquer, or triumphantly expire;
Yet watch the time when I defy the foe,

Move swift behind, and give the fatal blow:

This hand shall wipe our late disgrace away,

Our troops may sit spectators of the day."
He said, and saying, with an eager bound,

Rush'd from his men, and measur'd back the ground;
Leaves his lamenting soldiers in despair,

Springs thro' the storm of darts the prince to dare :
But the pale tyrants griev'd by fears oppress'd,
And sad forbodings work'd in every breast;

They saw with pain their chief o'ef match'd in might,
And curs'd the terms and the unequal fight;
Their dread increases as the prince drew near,
And LECLERC's looks augment the gen'ral fear.
Shudd'ring aghast he moves with silent pace,
A guilty paleness spreads o'er all his face;
With new born rage he now beholds the fray,
And forc'd by pride, the leader breaks his way;
Then from afar he beckons with his hand,
And loudly thus bespake the trembling band:
"To me, ye soldiers, the whole war resign,
All, all the fortune of the field be mine;
I claim, I claim the right in single fray,
To meet yon negro, and decide the day."
Back at the word the armies are compell'd,
And for the champions form an open field.
Now the great martial prince at LECLERC's name,
Fierce from the ranks, in all his terrors came ;
Leaves ev'ry second work of war behind,
Joy, filial love, and courage fill his mind ;'
He strides majestic, furious to engage
His father's foe: such the grim lion's rage,
Who viewing first his foes with scornful eyes,
Tho' all in arms the peopled city rise,
Stalks careless on, with unregarding pride,
Till, at the length, by some proud youth defy'd;

To his bold spear the savage turns alone,

He murmurs fury with a hollow groan;

He grins, he foams, he rolls his eyes around,
Lash'd by his tail his heaying sides resound;
He calls up all his rage, he grinds his teeth,
Resolv❜d on veng'ance, or resolv'd on death.
Thus flush'd with hope, and glorying in his might,
The gracious prince moves forward to the fight;
With vast gigantic strides he tow'rs on high,
And looks a second ATHOS in the sky,

Or ERYX that in heav'n his forehead shrouds,
Or father APPENINE, involv'd in clouds,
When with a depth of snow his brows are crown'd,
And all his nodding groves majestic wave around.
The spangled ruffian now prepares for fight,
In gilded arms magnificently bright;
In military purple, fring'd with gold,
With epaulets all beauteous to behold,
A radiant belt around his shoulders ty'd,
Sustain❜d the sword that glitter'd at his side,
His sattin vest, white as the winter snow,
Instar'd with beamy buttons in a row,
Meantime the soldiers studious of their might,
Grounded their arms, and all survey the fight;
Ev'n death stands still, and o'er the slip'ry plains
Thro' all the ranks, a solemn silence reigns.
Soon as the squadrons from the fight withdrew,
Forth rush th' intrepid combatants to view.
Proud LECLERC aim'd a meditated blow,
The hero shun'd the disappointed foe ;
Then lo the ruffian's agonizing eye
Beholds his troops, and longs for wings to fly ;
No force, no firmness, the pale tyrant shows,
He pants with dread, his color comes and goes;
Against his bosom beats his trembling heart,