The tenfold thunders awful crash,
The sea of foam at your feet,
The play of the quivering sunbeam
On Niagara’s ample sheet.
Impress the soul with religious awe
As you gaze at the crystal flood ;
And as you drink their glories in,
You give the praise to God.
Source: R.A. Wade. A Poem on Niagara Falls. Louisville, Ky.: Sherrill, Turner & Co., 1874
View the book by Wade on the Hathi Trust site. It includes an essay by Wade entitled My Visit to the Falls starting on p. 19; this poem is included in the essay, in a section about going behind the flood of the Falls to Termination Rock.
Wade was from Paris, Tennessee