You will jog for the master race

Jul 17, 2013 13:40

Speaking of Nazis... I was surprised to find that the English phrase "master race" first appears in a long, long poem from 1855: "The Hireling and the Slave" by South Carolina Representative (as a member of the SC-based Nullifier Party) William John Grayson.

For these great ends hath Heaven’s supreme command
Brought the black savage from his native land,
Trains for each purpose his barbarian mind,
By slavery tamed, enlightened, and refined;
Instructs him, from a master-race, to draw
Wise modes of polity and forms of law,
Imbues his soul with faith, his heart with love,
Shapes all his life by dictates from above,
And, to a grateful world, resolves at last
The puzzling question of all ages past,
Revealing to the Christian’s gladdened eyes
How Gospel light may dawn from Libya’s skies,
Disperse the mists that darken and deprave,
And shine with power to civilize and save.

poetry, wordplay, history, religion

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