HEF(0IC Ballads MONTGOMERY CiNH itCOMPANV LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. ®pp. ©ojpirig]^ Ifu. Slielf-..*M_k UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. HEEOIC BALLADS WITH POEMS OF WAR AND PATRIOTISM EDITED WITH NOTES BY •^ J ^ BOSTON, U.S.A.: PUBLISHED BY GINN & COMPANY. 1890. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1890, by GINN & COMPANY, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. All Rights Reserved. /^'3(nf Typographt bt J. S. CusHiNG & Co., Boston, U.S.A. PjiSSSWORK BY GiNN & CC, BOSTON, U.S.A. PEEFATOEY NOTE. The following selections are given, in all but a very- few instances, without abridgment. Where ' omissions have been made, it has been done with the view of better adapting the work to school use. It . is believed that all notes required for the full understanding of the poems have been subjoined. D. H. M. TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE 1. HoRATius Lord Macaulay 1 2. Virginia Lord Macaulay 29 3. The Armada Lord Macaulay 50 4. IvRY Lord Macaulay 59 5. Naseby Lord Macaulay 65 6. Bannock-Burn Robert Burns 71 7. Leonidas George Croly 73 8. BoADiCEA William Cowper 75 9. Marmion and Douglas Sir Walter Scott 78 10. Scotland's Maiden Martyr. . Anonymous 82 11. The Execution of Montrose . Professor Aytoun 87 12. Edinburgh after Flodden . . Professor Aytoun 98 13. The Heart of the Bruce .... Professor Aytoun 114 14. The Charge of the Light Brigade Alfred Tennyson 120 15. A Legend of Bregenz Adelaide A. Procter 129 16. Marco Bozzaris Fitz-Greene Halleck 135 17. The Nation's Dead .Anonymous 140 18. Song of the Cornish Men .... Robert Stephen Haxoker 142 19. The Relief of Lucknow Robert Trail Spence Lowell . . 144 20. Casabianca Mrs. Hemans 148 21. The Blue and the Gray Francis Miles Finch 151 22. Chevy-Chase ... Anonyjnous 154 23. The Ballad of Agincourt . . .Michael Drayton 165 24. The Bonnets of Bonnie Dundee Sir Walter Scott 171 25. The Destruction of Senna- cherib .'. Lord Byron 175 26. An Incident of the French Camp Robert Broivning 177 Vi TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE 27. Ye Mariners of England Thomas Campbell 179 28. Battle of the Baltic ... Thomas Campbell 181 29. George Nidiver Anonymous 184 30. Shan Van Vocht Anonymous 187 31. How they brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix . . Robert Browning 191 32. Battle-Hymn of the Re- public Julia Ward Howe 194 33. The Landing of the Pilgrims, ilfrs. Hemans 196 .34. Monterey Charles Fenno Hoffman 198 35. Our State John Greenleaf Whittier 200 36. Carmen Bellicosum Guy Humphrey McMaster 202 37. Eoll-Call Nathaniel Graham Shepherd. 205 38. The Battle-Field William Cullen Bryant 207 .39. Barbara Frietchie John Greenleaf Wliittier 209 40. The Burial of Sir John Moore Charles Wolfe 213 41. The Cumberland Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 215 42. The Private of the Buffs. . .Sir Francis Hastings Doyle. . 217 43. LocHiNVAR Sir Walter Scott 219 44. " Stonewall " Jackson's Way J. W. Palmer 222 45. The Old Sergeant Forceythe Willson 225 46. Barclay of Ury John Greenleaf Whittier 233 47. The Lord op Butrago J. G. Lockhart 238 48. The Cavalier's Escape Walter Thornbury 240 49. Song of Marion's Men William Cullen Bryant 242 50. Abraham Lincoln William Cullen Bryant 245 51. How HE SAVED St. Michael's . . Aiionymous 24G 52. Curfew must not ring To- night Rose A. Hartwick Thorpe. . . . 251 53. The Loss of the Birkenhead . /S'/r Francis Hastings Doyle. . 250 54. The Song of the Camp ... Bayard Taylor 259 55. The "Revenge " Alfred Tennyson 262 56. The Eve of Waterloo Lord Byron 270 57. Hohenlinden Thomas Campbell 273 58. The Happy Warrior William Wordsworth 275 59. Abraham Lincoln Tom Taylor 277 60. Commemoration Ode .James Russell L^owell. ....... 281 61. Song of the Sword Karl Theodor Korner. 286 TABLE OF CONTENTS. vii PAGE 62. Sheridan's Ride Thomas Buchanan Bead 289 63. The Place where Man SHOULD DIE Michael Joseph Barry 292 64. Concord Fight B. W. Emerson 294 65. Paul Revere's Ride Henry Wadsworth Longfelloio 295 66. Saxon Grit Bohert Collyer 301 67. Decoration T. W. Higginson 305 68. Sacrifice B. W. Emerson 307 Index to Notes 309 Index to Authors 317 HEROIC BALLADS. HORATIUS. A Lay made about the Year of the City CCCLX.^ I. Laes Porsena 2 of Clusium By the Nine Gods ^ he swore That the great house of Tarquin * Should suffer wrong no more. By the Nine Gods he swore it, And named a trysting ^ day, 1 About three hundred and sixty years after the founding of Rome, or 393 B.C. The scene of the lay is chiefly in Etruria and in Rome. 2 Lars Porsena (Por-se'na or Por'se-na) : Lars was an Etruscan title of honor and office corresponding to chief or lord. The Etruscans were an ancient people occupying Etruria, a territory in Italy north and west of Rome, the river Tiber being the eastern and southern boundary. Lars Porsena was the most powerful chief or king of the twelve Etruscan tribes. His capital was Clu'si-ura, about ninety miles northwest of Rome. 3 Nine Gods : little is known respecting the Etruscan deities. The Romans supposed them to have nine chief gods, who, like Jupiter, had the power of hurling thunderbolts. ^ Tarquin : Tarquin the Proud was the last king of Rome, 505 B.C. He robbed the people of their liberty, and his son, Sextus, committed an out- rage which caused a revolution by which the monarchy was overthrown and Tarquin banished. Tarquin applied to Lars Porsena for aid, and that chief raised an army to compel the Romans to reinstate the exiled despot. 5 Trysting day (tryst'ing) : an appointed day of meeting ; here, a day agreed on for the meeting of troops. HEEOIC BALLADS. And bade Ms messengers ride forth, East and west and south and north, To summon his array .^ n. East and west and south and north The messengers ride fast, And tower and town and cottage Have heard the trumpet's blast. Shame on the false Etruscan ^ Who lingers in his home When Porsena of Clusium Is on the march for Rome. III. The horsemen and the footmen Are pouring in amain,^ From many a stately market-place ; From many a fruitful plain; From many a lonely hamlet, Wliich, hid by beech and pine, Like an eagle's nest, hangs on the crest Of purple Apennine ; IV. From lordly Volaterrge,* Where scowls the far-famed hold ^ Array : the whole body of fighting-men bound to follow a chief. ^ Etruscan : an inhabitant of Etruria. 3 Amain: at full speed. 4 Volater'rse : a famous city of Etruria, standing on a commanding height. Its citadel, or "hold," was built, like its walls, of massive unce- mented stones. HORATIUS. 6 Piled by the hands of giants For godlike kings of old ; From sea-gu't Populonia,^ Whose sentinels descry Sardinia's snowy mountain-tops Fringing the southern skj ; / V. From the proud mart of Pisse,^ Queen of the western waves, Where ride Massilia's triremes ^ Heavy with fair-haired slaves ; From where sweet Clanis ^ wanders Through corn and vines and flowers ; From where Cortona ^ lifts to heaven Her diadem of towers. VI. Tall are the oaks whose acorns Drop in dark Auser's * rill ; Fat are the stags that champ ^ the boughs Of the Ciminian ^ hill ; Beyond all streams Clitumnus '' Is to the herdsman dear ; 1 Populo'nia, Pi'ssB, Corto'na : cities of Etniria. 2 Massil'ia : a Greek colony in Gaul, the modern Marseille, France. The tri'remes were vessels propelled by three banks of oars on each side, one bank or row above the other. The " fair-haired slaves " were natives of Gaul obtained from the interior of the country. 3 Clan'is : a river of Etruria emptying into the Tiber. 4 Au'ser : a stream of Northern Etruria, ° Champ : chew, c Cimin'ian hill : a hill in Etruria. ' Clitum'nus : a river of Umbria, a district joining Etruria on the east. The meadows of the river were famous for their milk-white herds of cattle. 4 HEEOIC BALLADS. Best of all pools the fowler loves The great Volsinian raere.^ vn. But now no stroke of woodman Is heard by Auser's rill ; No hunter tracks the stag's green path Up the Ciminian hill ; Unwatched along Clitumnus Grazes the milk-white steer; Unharmed the water fowl may dip In the Volsinian mere. vin. The harvests of Arretium,^ This year, old men shall reap, Tills year, young boys in Umbro ^ Shall plunge the struggling sheep ; And in the vats of Luna,^ This year, the must * shall foam Round the wliite feet of laugliing girls Whose sires have marched to Rome. IX. There be tliirty chosen prophets,^ The ^visest of the land, 1 Volsinian mere : a lake or sheet of stagnant water in Etruria. 2 Arre'ti-um and Lu'na : cities of Etruria. 3 Um'bro : probably the river of that name in Etruria ; as the men would all be engaged in the war against Rome, the boys would be left to wash the sheep at shearing time. 4 Must : the juice of grapes for wine. The grapes are thrown into a vat, and the juice pressed out by men or girls treading them with bare feet. 5 Prophets: these so-called "prophets " were sorcerers, who undertook HORATIUS. 5 Who alway by Lars Porsena Both morn and evening stand : Evening and morn the Thirty Have turned the verses ^ o'er, Traced from the right on linen white ^ By mighty seers of yore. X. And with one voice the Thirtv Have theii' glad answer given ; " Go forth, go forth, Lars Porsena : Go forth, beloved of Heaven ; Go, and return in glory To Clusium's royal dome; And hang round Nui*scia's ^ altars The golden shields of Rome." XI. And now hath every city Sent up her tale* of men ; The foot are fourecore thousand, The horse are thousands ten. Before the gates of Sutrium ^ Is met the great array. to discover the will of the gods by examining the entrails of victims offered in sacrifice, by the flight of birds, and other signs. 1 Verses: these were probably similar to those of the famous Sibylline books which a sibyl or prophetess sold to Tarquin, king of Rome, and which professed to foretell the future of the nation. They were consulted in all emergencies concerning the city. So Lars Porsena now consults his books of prophecy, to learn whether his expedition will prove successful. 2 The Etruscans wrote from right to left. 8 Nur'scia : perhaps the guardian deity of Clusium. ^ Tale: number or quota. s Sutrium: a town of Etruria. 6 HEEOIC BALLADS. A proud man was Lars Porsena Upon the trysting day. xn. For all the Etruscan armies Were ranged beneath his eye, ■ And many a banished Roman, And many a stout ally ; And with a mighty following To join the muster came The Tusculan Mamilius,^ Prince of the Latian name.^ XIII. But by the yellow Tiber Was tumult and affright : From all the spacious champaign ^ To Rome men took their flight. A mile around the city, The throng stopped up the ways ; A fearful sight it was to see Through two long nights and days. XIV. For droves of mules and asses Laden with skins * of wine, And endless flocks of goats and sheep. And endless herds of kine, 1 Mamirius : of Tusculum, a town of La'tium, a country south of Rome. Mamilius was son-in-law to Tarquin, the banished king. 2 Latian : relating to Latium, an ancient district of Italy ; Latin. 8 Champaign: a flat, open country; here, the great plain around Rome. 4 Skins of wine : bags made of goat or other skins, for carrying or hold- ing wine. HORATIUS. 7 And endless trains of wagons That creaked beneath the weight Of corn-sacks and of household goods, Choked every roaring gate.^ XV. Now, from the rock Tarpeian,^ Could the wan bui^ghei*s ^ spy The line of blazing ^-Lllages Red in the midnight sky. The Fathers of the City,* They sat all night and day, For ever}' houi' some horseman came With tidings of dismay. XVI. To eastward and to westward Have spread the Tuscan bands ; ^ Nor house, nor fence, nor dovecot In Crustumerium ^ stands. Verbenna " down to Ostia ^ Hath wasted all the plain ; Astur ^ hath stormed Janiculum,^^ And the stout guards are slain. 1 Gate : Rome was protected by walls and gates. 2 Rock Tarpe'ian: a high, precipitous rock in Rome; criminals were frequently thrown from it. 3 Burghers : citizens. ^ Fathers of the City : the senators or governing body of the city. 5 Tuscan bands : Tuscan is another name for Etruscan or Etrurian. 6 Crustumerium: a towu of the Sabine country not far from Rome, and belonging to it. " Verben'na : one of the Etruscan leaders under Lars Porsena. 8 Os'tia : the port of Rome, at the mouth of the Tiber. ^ As'tur : an Etruscan leader. 1'^ Janic'ulum : a fortified hill west of Rome, beyond the Tiber. It was 8 HEROIC BALLADS. xvn. I wis,^ in all the Senate, There was no heart so bold, But sore it ached, and fast it beat, When that ill news was told. Forthwith up rose the Consul,^ Up rose the Fathers all ; In haste they girded up their gowns,^ And hied ^ them to the wall. xvin. They held a council standing Before the River-Gate ; Short time was there, ye well may guess. For musing or debate. Out spake the Consul roundly : " The bridge must straight go down ; For, since Janiculum is lost, Nought else can save the town." XIX. Just then a scout came flying. All wild with haste and fear : " To arms ! to arms ! Sir Consul : ^ Lars Porsena is here." connected with the city by the only bridge then existing on the river, — a wooden structure built on piles (the Pons Sublicius). If the enemy sue-' ceeded in getting possession of the bridge, they would probably soon effect an entrance into Rome. 1 1 wis : an adverb, meaning certainly. 2 Consul : one of the two chief magistrates or governors of Rome who took the place of the expelled kings. 3 Gowns: the toga or gown, a loose, shawl-like garment, was the national dress of the Romans. 4 Hied: hastened. s Sir Consul : Sir, a title of respect. HORATIUS. 9 On the low hills to westward The Consul fixed his eye, And saw the swarthy storm of dust Rise fast along the sky. XX. And nearer fast and nearer Doth the red whirlwind come ; And louder still and still more loud, From underneath that rolling cloud, Is heard the trumpet's war-note proud. The trampling and the hum. And plainly and more plainly Now through the gloom appears. Far to left and far to right, In broken gleams of dark-blue light. The long array of helmets bright. The long array of spears. XXI. And plainly and more plainly. Above that glimmering line. Now might ye see the banners Of twelve fair cities ^ shine ; But the banner of proud Clusium Was liighest of them all. The terror of the Umbrian,^ The terror of the Gaul.^ 1 Twelve fair cities : the twelve chief cities of Etruria. 2 TJinbrian : the people of Umbria east of Etruria. 3 Gaul : a barbarous people that had conquered part of Xorthern Italy. 10 HEROIC BALLADS. xxn. And plainly and more plainly Now might the burghers know, By port ^ and vest,^ by horse and crest,^ Each warlike Lucumo.* There Cilnius ^ of Arretium On his fleet roan was seen ; And Astur^ of the fourfold shield/ Girt with the brand ^ none else may wield, Tolumnius ^ with the belt of gold, And dark Verbenna from the hold By reedy Thrasymene.^^ xxui. Fast by the royal standard, O'erlooking all the war, Lars Porsena of Clusium Sat in his ivory car.^^ By the right wheel rode Mamilius, Prince of the Latian name ; And by the left false Sextus,^ That wrought the deed of shame. 1 Port : mien or bearing. ^ Vest : an outer garment or vestment. 3 Crest : a plume or ornament surmounting a helmet. 4 Lu'cumo : the Etruscan name for a ruler or chief. 5 Cil'nius. 6 As'tur : who had stormed Janiculum ; see p. 7. "i Fourfold shield : a shield made of hide of four thicknesses. 8 Brand : a sword. ^ Tolum'nius. 10 Thrasyme'ne : but here pronounced Thras-i-meen' ; it is a lake of Etruria ; on its shores there was the fortification or stronghold of the chief Verbenna. 11 Ivory car: a war-chariot ornamented with ivory; it was usually drawn by four horses abreast. i2Sextus: the son of Tarquin the Proud; see note 3, p. 1. He caused HORATIUS. 11 XXIV. But when the face of Sextus Was seen among the foes, A yell that rent the firmament From all the town arose. . On the house-tops was no woman But spat towards him and hissed, No child but screamed out curses. And shook its little fist. XXV. But the Consul's brow was sad. And the Consul's speech was low, And darkly looked he at the wall. And darkly at the foe. the death of Lucrece, a noble Roman matron. Macaulay thus refers to Sextus in his " Battle of Lake Regillus " : — " Their leader was false Sextus, That wrought the deed of shame; With restless pace and haggard face To his last field he came. Men said he had strange visions, Which none beside might see; And that strange sounds were in his ears Which none might hear but he. A woman fair and stately. But pale as are the dead, Oft through the watches of the night Sat spinning by his bed. And as she plied the distaff, In a sweet voice and low, She sang of great old houses, And fights fought long ago. So spun she, and so sang she, Until the east was gray. Then pointed to her bleeding heart, And shrieked, and fled away." — " Battle of Lake Regillus," XII. {Lays of Ancient Rome). 12 HEROIC BALLADS. " Their van ^ will be upon us Before the bridge goes down ; And if they once may win the bridge, What hope to save the town ? " XXVI. Then out spake brave Horatius, The Captain of the Gate : ^ " To every man upon this earth Death cometh soon or late. And how can man die better Than facing fearful odds, For the ashes of liis fathers. And the temples of liis Gods, xxvn. " And for the tender mother Who dandled him to rest, And for the wife who nurses His baby at her breast. And for the holy maidens ^ Who feed the eternal flame. To save them from false Sextus That wrought the deed of shame ? 1 Van : the advance guard of an army. 2 The Captain of the Gate : Horatius had charge of the city gate at the entrance of the bridge leading to Janiculum. 3 The holy maidens : six maiden priestesses of Vesta, the goddess of the hearth and home. On her altar, representing not only the domestic hearth, but also the city of Rome as the common home, a perpetual fire — the emblem of love and of patriotism — was kept burning. It was the duty of these "maidens " to feed and watch this sacred fire. HORATIUS. 13 xxvrci. " Hew down the bridge, Sir Consul, With all the speed ye may ; I, with two more to help me. Will hold the foe in play.^ In yon strait ^ path a thousand May well be stopped by three. Now who will stand on either hand, And keep the bridge with me ? " xxrs. Then out spake Spurius Lartius ; ^ A Ramnian * proud was he : " Lo, I will stand at thy right hand. And keep the bridge with thee." And out spake strong Herminius ; ^ Of Titian ^ blood was he : " I mil abide on thy left side, And keep the bridge with thee." XXX. " Horatius," quoth ^ the Consul, " As thou sayest, so let it be." And straight against that great array Forth went the dauntless Three. 1 Hold the foe in play : keep them occupied. 2 Strait : narrow. 3 Spu'rius Lar'tius. 4 Ranmian : one of the three ancient patrician or ruling classes of Rome dating from its foundation by Romulus. 5 Hermin'ius. c Titian : one of the three ancient tribes of which the Ramnian was the first. 5" Quoth : said. 14 - HEEOIC BALLADS. For Romans in Rome's quarrel Spared neither land nor gold, Nor son nor wife, nor limb nor life, In the brave days of old. ^ XXXI. Then none was for a party ; Then all were for the state ; Then the great man helped the poor, And the poor man loved the great : Then lands were fairly portioned ; ^ Then spoils were fairly sold : ^ The Romans were like brothers In the brave days of old. xxxn. Now Roman is to Roman More hateful than a foe, And the Tribunes ^ beard the high, And the Fathers ^ grind the low. As we wax hot in faction,* In battle we wax cold: Wherefore men fight not as they fought In the brave days of old. xxxiri. Now while the Three were tightening Their harness ^ on their backs, 1 Lands, spoils : the lands and plunder taken in war. 2 Tribunes : officers appointed to protect the interests of the common people of Rome. They could veto any measure they thought harmful. 3 Fathers : see note 4, p. 7. * Faction: here, political dissension or discord. ° Harness: armor. HORATirS. The Consul was the foremost man To take in hand an axe : And Fathers mixed with Commons,^ Seized hatchet, bar, and crow,^ And smote upon the planks above, And loosed the props ^ below. Meanwhile the Tuscan army. Right glorious to behold, Came flashing back the noonday light, Rank behind rank, like surges bright Of a broad sea of gold. Four huncbed trumpets sounded A peal of warlike glee. As that great host, with measured tread, And spears advanced, and ensigns * spread. Rolled slowly towards the bridge's head, Where stood the dauntless Three. XXXT. The Three stood calm and silent. And looked upon the foes. And a great shout of laughter From all the vano-uard ^ rose : o And forth three chiefs came spurring Before that deep array ; 1 Commons : the common people. - Crow : crowbar. 3 Props : it was a wooden bridge. See note 10, •' Janiculum," p. 7. ^ Ensigns : banners. » Vanguard : the advance guard. 16 HEROIC BALLADS. To earth they sprang, their swords they drew And lifted high their shields, and flew To win the narrow way ; XXXVI. Annus ^ from green Tifernum,^ Lord of the Hill of Vines ; And Seius,^ whose eight hundred slaves Sicken in Ilva's * mines ; And Picus,^ long to Clusium Vassal ^ in peace and war, Who led to fight his Umbrian powers From that gray crag where, girt with towers, The fortress of Nequinum ^ lowers ^ O'er the pale waves of Nar.^ Stout Lartius hurled down Annus Into the stream beneath *, Herminius struck at Seius, And clove him to the teeth : At Picus brave Horatius Darted one fiery thrust ; And the proud Umbrian's gilded arms Clashed in the bloody dust. 1 Au'nus. 2 Tifer num : a town of Umbria, on the Tiber. 3 geius (Se'yus). 4 n'va : an island (the modern Elba) off the coast of Etruria, once noted for its iron mines. 5 Pi'cus. 6 Vassal : a dependent. 5" Nequi'num : a town of Umbria. s Lowers : having a gloomy or threatening look. ^ Nar : a river of Umbria. HORATIUS. 17 xxxvin. Then Ocnus^ of Falerii^ Rushed on the Roman Three ; And Lausulus^ of Urgo,* The Rover ^ of the sea; And Aruns^ of Volsinium,^ Who slew the great wild boar, The OTeat wild boar that had his den Aniidst the reeds of Cosa's^ fen,^ And wasted fields, and slaughtered men, Along Albinia's shore. ^^ XXXIX. Herminius smote down Aruns : Lartius laid Ocnus low : Right to the heart of Lausulus Horatius sent a blow. "Lie there," he cried, "fell^^ pirate \ No more, aghast and pale, From Ostia's walls the crowd shall mark The track of tliy destroying bark. No more Campania's ^ hinds ^^ shall fly To woods and caverns when they spy Thy thrice accursed sail." 1 Oc'nus. 2 Fa-le'ri-i : a town of Etruria. 6 Lausulus. 4 XJr'go: an island off tile coast of Etruria. 5 Rover : here used in the sense of pirate and kidnapper. 6 A'runs. ^ Volsin'ium : a city of Etruria. 8 Go'sa: a town of Etruria. ^ pen : a marsh. 1" Albi'nia : a river of Etruria. i^ Fell : cruel. 12 Campa'nia : a very fertile district of Italy, south of Rome, having Naples as its chief port. 13 Hinds : farm-laborers, peasants. 18 HEROIC BALLADS. XL. But now no sound of laughter Was heard among the foes. A wild and wrathful clamor From all the vanguard rose. Six spears' length from the entrance Halted that deep array, And for a space no man came forth To win the narrow way. XLI. But hark ! the cry is Astur : And lo I the ranks di^^dde ; And the great Lord of Luna Comes with his stately stride. Upon his ample shoulders Clangs loud the fourfold sliield, And in his hand he shakes the brand Which none but he can wield. XLII. He smiled on those bold Romans A smile serene and high ; He eyed the flinching Tuscans, And scorn was in his eye. Quoth he, " The she-wolf's litter i Stand savagely at bay : But will ye dare to follow. If Astur clears the way ? " 1 The she-wolf's litter : the Romans. The legend was that Romulus and RemuS; founders of the Roman people, were suckled by a she-wolf. HORATIUS. 19 XLIII. Then, whirling up his broadsword With both hands to the height, He rushed against Horatius, And smote with all his might. With shield and blade Horatius Right deftly ^ turned the blow. The blow, though turned, came yet too nigh ; It missed his helm,^ but gashed his thigh : The Tuscans raised a joyful cry To see the red blood flow. XLIV. He reeled, and on Herminius He leaned one breathing-space ; Then, like a wild cat mad with wounds. Sprang right at Astur's face. Through teeth, and skull, and helmet So fierce a thrust he sped. The good sword stood a hand-breadth out Behind the Tuscan's head. XLV. And the great Lord of Luna Fell at that deadly stroke As falls on Mount Alvernus^ A thunder-smitten oak. Far o'er the crashing forest , 1 Deftly : dexterously. 2 Helm : helmet (here put for head) . 3 Mount Alver'nus : probably a poetic form of the name of some moun- tain near Rome. 20 HEROIC BALLADS. The giant arms lie spread ; And the pale augurs,^ muttering low, Gaze on the blasted head. XLVI. On Astur's throat Horatius Right firmly pressed his heel, And thrice and four times tugged amain ^ Ere he wrenched out the steel. " And see," he cried, " the welcome, Fair guests, that waits you here ! What noble Lucumo comes next To taste our Roman cheer ? " XLVII. But at this haughty challenge A sullen murmur ran. Mingled of wrath, and shame, and dread. Along that glittering van. There lacked not men of prowess. Nor men of lordly race ; For all Etruria's noblest Were round the fatal place. XLvin. But all Etruria's noblest Felt their hearts sink to see On the earth the bloody corpses. In the path the dauntless Three : 1 Augurs : a class of priests whose duty it was to foretell the future from various signs — especially from the flight of birds ; these were Etrurian augurs who had probably predicted the success of the expedition against Rome. 2 Amain : violently, with all his might. HORATIUS. 21 And, from the ghastly entrance Where those bold Romans stood, All shrank, like boys who unaware, Ranging the woods to start a hare. Come to the mouth of the dark lair Where, growling low, a fierce old bear Lies amidst bones and blood. XLIX. Was none who would be foremost To lead such dire attack : But those behind cried " Forward ! " And those before cried " Back ! " And backward now and forward Wavers the deep array ; And on the tossing sea of steel. To and fro the standards ^ reel ; And the victorious trumpet-peal Dies fitfully ^ away. L. Yet one man for one moment Stood out before the crowd ; Well known was he to all the Three, And they gave him greeting loud, " Now welcome, welcome, Sextus ! Now welcome to thy home ! Why dost thou stay, and turn away ? Here lies the road to Rome." 1 Standards : each division of the army had its banner or some figure, as a horse, eagle, etc., surmounting a tall staff, to designate it ; these were called standards, and it was a matter of military honor to keep them erect and not let them fall into the hands of the enemy. - Fitfully : unsteadily. 22 HEROIC BALLADS. LI. Thrice looked he at the city ; Thrice looked he at the dead ; And thrice caroe on in fury, And thrice turned back in dread : And, white with fear and hatred. Scowled at the narrow way Where, wallowing in a pool of blood, The bravest Tuscans lay. LH. But meanwhile axe and lever Have manfully been plied ; And now the bridge hangs tottering Above the boiling tide. " Come back, come back, Horatius ! " Loud cried the Fathers all. " Back, Lartius ! back, Herminius ! Back, ere the ruin fall ! " LHI. Back darted Spurius Lartius ; Herminius darted back : And, as they passed, beneath their feet They felt the timbers crack. But when they turned their faces. And on the farther shore Saw brave Horatius stand alone, They would have crossed once more. LIV. But with a crash like thunder Fell every loosened beam, HORATIUS. 28 And, like a dam, the mighty wreck Lay right athwart ^ the stream : And a long shout of triumph Rose from the walls of Rome, As to the highest turret-tops ^ Was splashed the yellow foam. LV. And, like a horse unbroken When first he feels the rein, The furious river struggled hard, And tossed his tawny mane. And burst the curb, and bounded, Rejoicing to be free. And whirling down, in fierce career, Battlement, and plank, and pier. Rushed headlong to the sea. LVI. Alone stood brave Horatius, But constant still in mind ; Thrice thirty thousand foes before, And the broad flood behind. " Down with him I " cried false Sextus, With a smile on his pale face. " Now yield thee," cried Lars Porsena, " Now yield thee to our grace." Lvn. Round turned he, as not deigning Those craven ^ ranks to see ; Nought spake he to Lars Porsena, 1 Athwart : across. - Turret-tops : tower-tops. 3 Craven : coward. 24 HEROIC BALLADS. To Sextus nought spake he ; But he saw on Palatinus ^ The white porch of his home ; And he spake to the noble river That rolls by the towers of Rome. Lvm. " O Tiber I father Tiber ! 2 To whom the Romans pray, A Roman's life, a Roman's arms. Take thou in charge this day ! " So he spake, and speaking sheathed The good sword by his side, And with his harness on his back. Plunged headlong in the tide. LIX. No sound of joy or sorrow Was heard from either bank ; But friends and foes in dumb surprise, With parted lips and straining eyes, Stood gazing where he sank ; And when above the surges They saw his crest appear, All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry, And even the ranks of Tuscany Could scarce forbear to cheer. 1 Palati'nus : one of the seven hills on which Rome was built. 2 Father Tiber : the Romans belieyed that every hill, wood, and stream had its guardian spirit or deity. Father Tiber (" father " is here an appel- lation of honor) was represented as a venerable man reclining on a couch. He holds an urn, from which issue the waters of the river bearing his name. HORATIUS. 25 LX. But fiercely ran the current, Swollen high by montlis of rain : And fast his blood was flowing ; And he was sore in pain, And heavy with his armor. And spent ^ A^dth changing blows : And oft they thought him sinking. But still again he rose. LXI. Never, I ween,^ did swimmer, In such an evil case,^ Struggle through such a raging flood Safe to the landing place : But his limbs were borne up bravely By the brave heart mtliin. And our good father Tiber Bore bravely up his chin.* Lxn. " Curse on him ! " quoth false Sextus ; "Will not the villain drown? But for this stay,* ere close of day * " Our ladye bare upp her chinne." — Ballad of Childe Waters. " Never heavier man and horse Stemmed a midnight torrent's force ; ******* Yet, through good heart and our Lady's grace, At length he gained the landing place." — Lay of the Last Minstrel, I. 1 Spent : exhausted with exchanging blows. - Ween : think or imagine. 3 Case . condition or plight. ^ Stay: check. 26 HEROIC BALLADS. We should have sacked ^ the town ! " " Heaven help him ! " quoth Lars Porsena, " And bring him safe to shore ; For such a gallant feat of arms Was never seen before." Lxin. And now he feels the bottom ; Now on dry earth he stands ; Now round him throng the Fathers To press his gory hands ; And now, with shouts and clapping, And noise of weeping loud, He enters through the River-Gate, Borne by the joyous crowd. LXIV. They gave him of the corn-land,^ That was of public right, As much as two strong oxen Could plough from morn till night ; And they made a molten image. And set it up on high. And there it stands unto tliis day To witness if I lie. LXV. It stands in the Comitium,^ Plain for all folk to see ; 1 Sacked : plundered. 2 Corn-land : the common land owned by all the inhabitants of the city. 3 Comi'tium : a part of the Forum, or great public square of Rome, where elections and other assemblies of the people were held. HORATIUS. 27 Horatius in his harness, Halting upon one knee : And underneath is written, In letters all of gold. How valiantly he kept the bridge In the brave days of old. LXTI. And still his name sounds stirring Unto the men of Rome, As the trumpet-blast that cries to them To charge the Volscian ^ home , And wives still i^ray to Juno^ For boys with hearts as bold As his who kept the bridge so well In the brave days of old. Lxvn. And in the nights of winter, When the cold north winds blow, And the long howling of the wolves Is heard amidst the snow ; When round the lonely cottage Roars loud the tempest's din, And the good logs of Algidus^ Roar louder yet within ; i Volscian : a hostile people of Latium, a district adjoining Rome on the south. - Juno : the wife of Jupiter, and " Queen of heaven." 3 Al'gidus : a wooded mountain-range of Latium, about twelve miles southeast of Rome. 28 HEROIC BALLADS. LXVni. When the oldest cask ^ is opened, And the largest lamp is lit ; When the chestnuts glow in the embers, And the kid turns on the spit ; When young and old in circle Around the firebrands close ; When the girls are weaving baskets, And the lads are shaping bows ; LXIX. When the goodman mends his armor. And trims his helmet's plume ; When the goodwife's shuttle merrily Goes flashing through the loom ; With weeping and with laughter Still is the story told. How well Horatius kept the bridge In the brave days of old. Lord Macaulay. 1 Cask : cask of wine. VIRGINIA. 29 VIRGINIA. Fragments of a Lay sung in the Forum i on the Day whereon Lucius Sextius Sextinus Lateranus and Caius Licinius Calvus Stolo were elected Tribunes of the Commons the Fifth Time, in the Year of the City CCCLXXXII. Ye good men of the Commons, with loving hearts and true, Who stand by the bold Tribunes ^ that still have stood by you. Come, make a circle round me, and mark my tale with care, A tale of what Rome once hath borne, of what Rome yet may bear. This is no Grecian fable, of fountains running wine. Of maids with snaky tresses,^ or sailors turned to swine.* Here, in this very Forum, under the noonday sun, In sight of all the people, the bloody deed was done. Old men still creep among us who saw that fearful day. Just seventy years and seven ago, when the wicked Ten ^ bare sway. 1 Fo'rum : a large square in Rome where public meetings were held, and judicial and commercial business transacted. It was surrounded by courts of justice, temples, and many other magnificent public buildings. 2 See Horatius, p. 14. 3 Furies ; goddesses with snakes for hair. They took vengeance on those who shed blood without a cause. 4 Circe, the daughter of the Sun, was said to have the power by her magic of turning men into swine. See Homer's " Odyssey." 5 Ten : the ten magistrates who were chosen to rule the city of Rome, and to draw up a body of laws in 450. They behaved in the most tyranni- cal manner, and refused to resign when their term of office had expired. 30 HEROIC BALLADS. Of all the wicked Ten still the names are held ac- cursed, And of all the wicked Ten Appius Claudius ^ was the worst. He stalked along the Forum like King Tarquin ^ in his pride : Twelve axes ^ waited on him, six marching on a side ; The townsmen shrank to right and left, and eyed askance * with fear His lowering brow, his curling mouth, which always seemed to sneer : That brow of hate, that mouth of scorn, marks all the kindred still ; For never was there Claudius yet but wished the Com- mons ill : Nor lacks he fit attendance ; for close behind his heels. With outstretched chin and crouching pace, the client ^ Marcus steals, His loins girt up to run with speed, be the errand what it may, And the smile flickering on his cheek, for aught ^ his lord may say. Such varlets " pimp ^ and jest for hire among the lying Greeks : Such varlets still are paid to hoot when brave Licinius ^ speaks. 1 Ap'pius Clau'dius. 2 Tarquin : see Horatius, p. 1. 3 Each of the Ten was attended by twelve men (" lictors ") armed with rods and axes, * Askance : sideways. 5 Client : a dependent. 6 Aught : anything. '' Varlets : menials. 8 Pimp : to minister to the base passions of another. 9 Licin'ius: one of the tribunes of the people. VIRGINIA. 31 Where'er ye shed the honey, the buzzing flies will crowd ; Where'er ye fling the carrion, the raven's croak is loud ; Where'er down Tiber garbage floats, the greedy pike ye see ; And wheresoe'er such lord is found, such client still will be. Just then, as through one cloudless chink in a black stormy sky. Shines out the dewy morning-star, a fair young girl came by. With her small tablets ^ in her hand, and her satchel on her arm. Home she went bounding from the school, nor dreamed of shame or harm ; And past those di^eaded axes she innocently ran, With bright, frank brow that had not learned to blush at gaze of man ; And up the Sacred Street ^ she turned, and, as she danced along, She warbled gayly to herself lines of the good old song. How for a sport the princes came spurring from the camp, And found Lucrece,^ combing the fleece, under the mid- night lamp. 1 Tablets : small boards covered with a coat of wax, on which Roman school children wrote or ciphered with a pointed instrument. 2 Sacred Street : a celebrated street in Rome, on which stood the Temple of Peace. The Sacred Street led to the Forum. 3 Lucrece : a noble Roman matron who was foully wronged by Sextus, and who stabbed herself to the heart in consequence. 32 HEROIC BALLADS. The maiden sang as sings the lark, when up he darts his flight, From his nest in the green April corn, to meet the morning light ; And Appins heard her sweet young voice, and saw her sweet young face, And loved her with the accursed love of his accursed race,i And all along the Forum, and up the Sacred Street, His vulture eye pursued the trip of those small glancing feet. vfC *T» »ic 5jc 9^ 5|s Over the Alban mountains ^ the light of morning broke ; From all the roofs of the Seven Hills ^ curled the thin wreaths of smoke : The city gates were opened ; the Forum all alive With buyers and with sellers was humming like a hive : Blithely on brass and timber the craftsman's * stroke was ringing, And blithely o'er her panniers^ the market-girl was singing, And blithely young Virginia came smiling from her home: Ah! woe for young Virginia, the sweetest maid in Rome ! With her small tablets in her hand, and her satchel on her arm, 1 The Claudian family was noted for its oppression of the people. 2 Alban mountains : the mountains southeast of Rome ; usually spoken of in the singular as Mount Alban. 3 Rome was built on seven hills. ^ Craftsman : artisan or mechanic, fi Panniers : large, open baskets for vegetables and fruit. VIRGINIA. 33 Forth she went bounding to the school, nor dreamed of shame or harm. She crossed the Forum shining with stalls^ in alleys And just had reached the very spot whereon I stand this day, When up the varlet Marcus came ; not such as when ere while ^ He crouched behind his patron's heels with the true client smile : He came with lowering forehead, swollen features, and clenched fist, And strode across Virginia's path, and caught her by the wrist. Hard strove the frightened maiden, and screamed with look aghast; And at her scream from right and left the folk came running fast ; The money-changer Crispus, with his thin silver hairs, And Hanno from the stately booth glittering with Punic ^ wares. And the strong smith Mursena,* grasping a half-forged brand. And Volero ^ the fiesher,^ his cleaver in his hand. All came in wrath and wonder ; for all knew that fair child; And, as she passed them twice a day, all kissed their hands and smiled ; And the strong smith Muraena gave Marcus such a blow, 1 stalls : for the sale of market produce or merchandise. 2 Erewhile : a little while before. ^ ^urse na. ^ Vo'lero. 8 Pu'nic wares : goods from Carthage. ^ Flesher : a butcher. 34 HEROIC BALLADS. The caitiff ^ reeled three paces back, and let the maiden go- Yet glared he fiercely round him, and growled in harsh fell tone, " She's mine, and I will have her : I seek but for mine own: She is my slave, born in my house, and stolen away and sold, The year of the sore sickness, ere she was twelve hours old. *Twas in the sad September, the month of wail and fright, Two augurs ^ were borne forth that morn ; the Consul died ere night. I wait on Appius Claudius, I waited on his sire : Let him who works the client wrong beware the patron's ire ! " So spake the varlet Marcus ; and dread and silence came On all the people at the sound of the great Claudian name. For then there was no Tribune to speak the word of might. Which makes the rich man tremble, and guards the poor man's right. There was no brave Licinius, no honest Sextius ^ then ; But all the city, in great fear, obeyed the wicked Ten. 1 Caitiff : a mean, cowardly fellow. 2 Augurs : seers ; see Horatius, p. 20. 3 Sex'tius : he, like Licinius, was a tribune. VIRGINIA. 35 Yet ere the vaiiet Marcus again might seize the maid, Who clung tight to Mursena's skirt, and sobbed, and shrieked for aid. Forth through the throng of gazers the young Icilius ^ pressed, And stamped his foot, and rent his gown, and smote upon his breast. And sprang upon that column, by many a minstrel sung. Whereon three mouldering helmets, three rusting swords, are hung. And beckoned to the people, and in bold voice and clear Poured thick and fast the burning words which tyrants quake to hear, " Now, by your children's cradles, now by your fathers' graves. Be men to-day, Quirites,^ or be forever slaves ! For this did Servius^ give us laws? For this did Lucrece bleed? For this was the great vengeance ^ wrought on Tar- quin's evil seed? For this did those false sons ^ make red the axes of their sire? 1 Virginia was betrothed to Icil'ius. 2 Qui-ri'tes : a word used to designate the whole Roman people, both Patricians and Plebeians. 3 Ser'viiis : a just king, whose laws were highly esteemed. 4 Great vengeance : referring to the assassination of Sextus Tarquinius (see "Sextus," Horatius, p. 10), on account of his acts of bloodshed and rapine. With his death the whole line of tyrants of that family practically came to an end. 5 Bru'tus, the consul, ordered his two sons to be beheaded for conspiring to restore the tyrant Tarquin the Proud (see Horatius, p. 1) to power. 36 HEROIC BALLADS. For this did SQsevola's^ right hand hiss in the Tuscan fire? Shall the vile fox-earth ^ awe the race that stormed the lion's den? Shall we, who could not brook one lord, crouch to the wicked Ten? Oh for that ancient spirit which curbed the Senate's will! Oh for the tents which in old time whitened the Sacred Hill ! 3 In those brave days our fathers stood firmly side by side ; They faced the Marcian fury;* they tamed the Fabian^ pride : They drove the fiercest Quinctius^ an outcast forth from Rome ; They sent the haughtiest Claudius^ with shivered fasces ^ home. But what their care bequeathed us our madness flung away: 1 Scaevola (Seev'o-la) attempted to assassinate Porsena of Clusium (see Horatius, p. 1) ; when arrested he defied the magistrates, and thrusting his hand into a pan of burning coals held it there to show how he disdained the torture that awaited him. 2 Fox-earth: a fox-hole — a term of contempt for the cunning but cowardly Claudius. 3 Sacred Hill : a hill near Rome where the people gathered at the time when they revolted against the tyranny of their rulers. 4 Marcian fury : referring to the banishment of Marcius Coriolanus by the people on account of his disdain of their power. 5 Fabian: the soldiers of the general Cseso Fabius deprived him of a triumph by refusing to obey his orders and storm the enemy's camp. 6 Quinctius : the people banished him from Rome on account of his opposition to their cause, *" Claudius : in a riot which happened many years before, the haughty head of the Claudian house was mobbed by the people. 8 Fasces : the rods and axes of the lictors or guard of Claudius. VIRGINIA. 37 All the ripe fruit of threescore years was blighted in a day. Exult, ye proud Patricians ! ^ The hard-fought fight is o'er. We strove for honors — 'twas in vain: for freedom — 'tis no more. No crier to the polling ^ summons the eager throng ; No Tribune breathes the word of might that guards the weak from wrong. Our very hearts, that were so high, sink down beneath your will. Riches, and lands, and power, and state — ye have them : — keep them still. Still keep the holy fillets ; ^ still keep the purple gown,* The axes,^ and the curule chair,^ the car,^ and laurel crown.^ Still press ^ us for your cohorts,^^ and, when the fight is done, Still fill your garners ^^ from the soil which our good swords have won. Still, like a spreading ulcer, which leech-craft ^ may not cure, 1 Patricians: the aristocratic and governing class. 2 Polling: the place where votes were cast hy the people at elections. 3 Holy fillets : bands for the hair worn by the priesthood, all of whom were Patricians. 4 Purple gown : this was worn by the consuls and Patricians on solemn occasions. ^ Axes : the axes of the lictors (see p. 30) . 6 Curule chair: the chair of state, originally an emblem of royalty. "^ The car : or chariot was an indication of rank ; it was also used by the consuls as a triumphal car after a victory. 8 Laurel crown : this was worn by the consuls on occasion of celebrating a triumph over an enemy. Press : to force into military service. n Garners : granaries. 10 Cohorts : divisions of the army. 12 Leech-craft : medical skill. 38 HEROIC BALLADS. Let your foul usuance ^ eat away the substance of the poor. Still let your haggard debtors bear all their fathers bore ; Still let your dens of torment be noisome ^ as of yore ; No fire when Tiber freezes ; no air in dog-star^ heat; And store of rods for free-born backs, and holes* for free-born feet. Heap heavier still the fetters ; bar closer still the grate ; Patient as sheep we yield us up unto your cruel hate. But, by the Shades ^ beneath us, and by the Gods above, Add not unto your cruel hate your yet more cruel love ! Have ye not graceful ladies, whose spotless lineage springs From Consuls and High Pontiffs,^ and ancient Alban kings ? ^ Ladies, who deign not on our paths to set their tender feet, Who from their cars ^ look down with scorn upon the wondering street. Who in Corinthian mirrors ^ their own proud smiles behold, 1 TTsuance : usury. The usury laws were so severe that the person who borrowed money was practically entirely at the mercy of the lender, who not infrequently imprisoned him or even sold him into slavery. 2 Noisome : disgusting, destructive to health. 3 Dog-star : the same as dog-day. 4 Holes, etc. : stocks into which the feet of debtors were thrust and confined. 5 Shades : the spirits of the departed. 6 High Pontiffs : High Priests. ^ Alban kings : the earliest of the Italian kings, who reigned according to tradition at Alba Longa, the mother-city of Rome. ^ Cars : chariots. 9 Corinthian mirrors : Corinth was noted for its costly ornaments and works of art and luxury. VIRGINIA. 39 And breathe of Capuan odors,^ and shine with Spanish gold ? 2 Then leave the poor Plebeian ^ his single tie to life — . The sweet, sweet love of daughter, of sister and of wife, The gentle speech, the balm for all that his vexed soul endures, The kiss, in which he half forgets even such a yoke as yours. Still let the maiden's beauty swell the father's breast with pride ; Still let the bridegroom's arms infold an unpolluted bride. Spare us the inexpiable wrong, the unutterable shame. That turns the coward's heart to steel, the sluggard's blood to flame, Lest, when our latest hope is fled, ye taste of our de- spair, And learn by proof, in some wild hour, how much the wretched dare." ^ il£. ^ i]£. 2I& £^ ^ ^ 7fr Tp: Tpr Tfr Straightway Virginius * led the maid a little space aside. To where the reeking shambles ^ stood, piled up with horn and hide. Close to yon low dark archway, where, in a crimson • flood. Leaps down to the great sewer the gurgling stream of blood. 1 Capuan odors : Capua, a city a short distance from Naples ; it was celebrated for its riches and luxury. 2 Spanish gold : Spain was famous for its mines of precious metals. 3 Plebe'ian : a man without rank, one of the common people. 4 Virginius : the father of Virginia. ^ Shambles : a butcher's shop. 40 HEROIC BALLADS. Hard by, a flesher on a block bad laid bis whittle ^ down; Virginius caught the whittle up, and hid it in his gown. And then his eyes grew very dim, and his throat began to swell, And in a hoarse, changed voice he spake, " Farewell, sweet child ! Farewell ! Oh ! how I loved my darling ! Though stern I some- times be, To thee, thou know'st I was not so. Who could be so to thee ? And how my darling loved me ! How glad she was to hear My footstep on the threshold when I came back last year! And how she danced with pleasure to see my civic crown,2 And took my sword, and hung it up, and brought me forth my gown ! ^ Now all those things are over — yes, all thy pretty ways, Thy needlework, thy prattle, thy snatches of old lays ; * And none will grieve when I go forth, or smile when I return. Or watch beside the old man's bed, or weep upon his urn.^ 1 Whittle : a knife ; here, a hutcher-knife. 2 Civic crown : a crown composed of oak leaves, and given to a Roman soldier who had saved the life of another Roman in battle by killing his antagonist. 3 Gown: the toga, a white gown, the ordinary and distinctive dress of the Romans. 4 Lays : songs. 5 TJrn : the Romans burned the bodies of their dead and enclosed the ashes in a funeral urn. VIRGINIA. 41 The house that was the happiest within the Roman walls, The house that envied not the wealth of Capua's mar- ble halls, Now, for the brightness of thy smile, must have eternal gloom. And for the music of thy voice, the silence of the tomb. The time is come. See how he points his eager hand this way ! See how his eyes gloat on thy grief, like a kite's^ upon the prey ! With all his wit,^ he little deems,^ that, spurned, be- trayed, bereft, Thy father hath in his despair one fearful refuge left. He little deems that in this hand I clutch what still can save Thy gentle youth from taunts and blows, the portion of the slave; Yea, and from nameless evil, that passeth taunt and blow — Foul outrage which thou knowest not, which thou shalt never know. Then clasp me round the neck once more, and give me one more kiss ; And now, mine own dear little girl, there is no way but this." With that he lifted high the steel, and smote her in the side, And in her blood she sank to earth, and with one sob she died. 1 Kite : a rapacious bird of the falcon family. 2 Wit: intellect, sagacity. 3 Deems: thinks. 42 HEROIC BALLADS. Then, for a little moment, all people held their breath ; And through the crowded Forum was stillness as of death ; And in another moment brake forth from one and all A cry as if the Volscians were coming o'er the wall. Some with averted faces shrieking fled home amain ; Some ran to call a leech ; ^ and some ran to lift the slain : Some felt her lips and little wrist, if life might there be found ; And some tore up their garments fast, and strove to stanch the wound. In vain they ran, and felt, and stanched; for never truer blow That good right arm had dealt in fight against a Vols- cian foe. When Appius Claudius saw that deed, he shuddered and sank down. And hid his face some little space with the corner of his gown, Till, with white lips and bloodshot eyes, Virginius tottered nigh. And stood before the judgment-seat,^ and held the knife on high. "Oh! dwellers in the nether gloom,^ avengers of the slain,* By this dear blood I cry to you, do right between us twain ; 1 Leech : a physician. 2 Judgment-seat : the seat of the judges or magistrates of the city. 3 Nether gloom: the gloom of Hades, the lower world, or place of departed spirits. ^ Avengers of the slain : the Furies ; see p. 29. VIRGINIA. 43 And even as Appius Claudius hath dealt by me and mine, Deal you by Appius Claudius and all the Claudian line ! " So spake the slayer of his child, and turned, and went his way ; But first he cast one haggard glance to where the body lay, And writhed, and groaned a fearful groan, and then, with steadfast feet, Strode right across the market-place unto the Sacred Street. Then up sprang Appius Claudius : *' Stop him ; alive or dead ! Ten thousand pounds of copper ^ to the man who brings his head." He looked upon his clients ; but none would work his will. He looked upon his lictors; but they trembled, and stood still. And, as Virginius through the press his way in silence cleft, Ever the mighty multitude fell back to right and left. And he hath passed in safety unto his woful home. And there ta'en horse to tell the camp ^ what deeds are done in Rome. 1 Ten thousand pounds of copper : the earliest Roman coin was the as of copper, or copper and tin, and originally a pound Troy weight. 2 Rome was then apparently at war with the inhabitants of Veil, a city of Etruria about twelve miles distant. 44 HEROIC BALLADS. By this the flood of people was swollen from every side, And streets and porches round were filled with that o'erflowing tide ; And close around the body gathered a little train Of them that were the nearest and dearest to the slain. They brought a bier, and hung it with many a cypress ^ crown, And gently they uplifted her, and gently laid her down. The face of Appius Claudius wore the Claudian scowl and sneer, And in the Claudian note he cried, "What doth this rabble here ? Have they no crafts ^ to mind at home, that hitherward they stray ? Ho ! lictors, clear the market-place, and fetch the corpse away ! " The voice of grief and fury till then had not been loud ; But a deep sullen murmur wandered among the crowd, Like the moaning noise that goes before the wliirlwind on the deep. Or the growl of a fierce watch-dog but half-aroused from sleep. But when the lictors at that word, tall yeomen ^ all and strong. Each with his axe and sheaf of twigs, went down into the throng, Those old men say, who saAv that day of sorrow and of sin, 1 Cypress : an emblem of mourning for the dead. 2 Crafts : occupations, especially mechanical occupations. 3 Yeomen : countrymen ; here, equivalent to stalwart men. VIRGIXIA. 45 That in the Roman Forum was never such a din. The wailing, hooting, cursing, the howls of grief and hate, Were heard beyond the Pincian Hill,^ beyond the Latin Gate.2 But close around the body, where stood the little train Of them that were the nearest and dearest to the slain. No cries were there, but teeth set fast, low whispers and black frowns, And breaking up of benches, and girding up of gowns. 'Twas well the lictors might not pierce to where the maiden lay, Else sui'ely had they been all twelve torn limb from limb that day. Right glad they were to struggle back, blood streaming from their heads. With axes all in splinters, and raiment all in shreds. Then Appius Claudius gnawed his lip, and the blood left his cheek ; And thrice he beckoned with liis hand, and thrice he strove to speak ; And thrice the tossing Forum set up a frightful yell ; " See, see, thou dog ! Avhat thou hast done ; and hide thy shame in hell ! Thou that wouldst make our maidens slaves must first make slaves of men. Tribunes! Hurrah for Tribunes!^ Down with the wicked Ten ! " 1 Pincian Hill : a hill on the extreme north of Rome. 2 Latin Gate : a gate in the city wall on the southeast. 3 See p. 34, " For then there was no Tribune to speak the word of might, Which makes the rich man tremble, and guards the poor man's right." 46 HEROIC BALLADS. And straightway, thick as hailstones, came whizzing through the air Pebbles, and bricks, and potsherds,^ all round the curule chair : And upon Appius Claudius great fear and trembling came ; For never was a Claudius yet brave against aught but shame. Though the great houses ^ love us not, we own, to do them right. That the great houses, all save one, have borne them* well in fight. Still Caius of Corioli,^ his triumphs and his wrongs, His vengeance and his mercy, live in our camp-fire songs. Beneath the yoke of Furius ^ oft have Gaul and Tus- can ^ bowed ; And Rome may bear the pride of him of whom herself is proud. But evermore a Claudius shrinks from a stricken field. And changes color like a maid at sight of sword and shield. 1 Potsherds : fragments of pottery. 2 The great houses : the great or titled families. 3 Caius of Cori'oli: better known as Coriolanus. He was banished from Rome on account of the disdain with which he treated the magistrates. He then joined the enemies of Rome and marched to attack the city, but yielding finally to the entreaties of his wife and his mother, he withdrew without carrying out his design. 4 Fu'rius : Furius Camillus delivered Rome from the attacks of the Gauls. 5 Tuscan : an inhabitant of Etruria, a country lying to the west and north of the Tiber. Wars between the Tuscans and Romans were frequent VIRGINIA. 47 The Claudian triumphs all were won within the city towers ; The Claudian yoke was never pressed on any necks but ours. A Cossus,^ like a wild cat, springs ever at the face ; A Fabius ^ rushes like a boar against the shouting chase ; But the vile Claudian litter, raging with currish spite, Still yelps and snaps at those who run, still runs from those who smite. So now 'twas seen of Appius. When stones began to fly. He shook, and crouched, and wrung his hands, and smote upon his thigh. " Kind clients, honest lictors, stand by me in this fray ! Must I be torn in pieces ? Home, home, the nearest way ! " While yet he spake, and looked around with a bewil- dered stare. Four sturdy lictors put their necks beneath the curule chair ; And fourscore clients on the left, and fourscore on the right, Arraj'cd themselves with swords and staves,^ and loins girt up for fight. But, though without or staff or sword, so furious was the throng, 1 Cossus : this was the surname of a family, one of whom, Cornelius Cossus, had gained great renown in battle. 2 Fabius: the Fabian family was noted for courage and devotion to Rome. ^ Staves : the plural of staff. 48 HEKOIC BALLADS. That scarce the train with might and main could bring their lord along. Twelve times the crowd made at him ; five times they seized liis gown ; Small chance was his to rise again, if once they got him down : And sharper came the pelting ; and evermore the yell - " Tribunes ! we will have Tribunes ! " — rose with a louder swell : And the chau' tossed as tosses a bark with tattered sail When raves the Adriatic beneath an eastern gale, When the Calabrian sea-marks ^ are lost in clouds of spume,^ And the great Thunder-Cape ^ has donned his veil of inky gloom. One stone hit Appius in the mouth, and one beneath the ear : And ere he reached Mount Palatine,* he swooned Avith pain and fear. His cursed head, that he was wont to hold so high with pride. Now, like a drunken man's, hung down, and swayed from side to side ; And when his stout retainers had brought him to his door, 1 Calabrian sea-marks : rocky heights or other landmarks on the coast of Calabria, in Southeastern Italy. 2 Spume : froth, or foam. 3 Thunder-Cape: a rocky promontory on the coast of Greece, opposite Southeastern Italy. ■1 Mount Palatine : one of the seven hills of Rome. VIRGINIA. 49 His face and neck were all one cake of filth and clotted gore. As Appius Claudius ^ was that day, so may his grandson he I God send Rome one such other sight, and send me there to see ! Lord Macaulay. 1 Appius Claudius : The appeal of Virginius to the army (see p. 43, uote 2) led to the overthrow of the "Wicked Ten." The haughty Appius was cast into prison, where rage and shame caused him to kill himself. 50 HEROIC BALLADS. THE ARMADA.i Attend, all ye who list^ to hear our noble England's praise ; 1 Arma'da : an armed fleet. Before it sailed it was boastfully styled by the Spaniards the " Invincible Armada." The Armada was a fleet of 130 ships, carrying about 2500 cannon and 20,000 soldiers, which Philip II. of Spain sent to conquer England in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The Armada entered the English Channel the last of July, 1588. The ships were large, were all slow sailers, and were not easily managed. The English vessels were small, but efficient, and were under the com- mand of Lord Howard, Sir Francis Drake, and Lord Seymour. The Span- ish fleet was first seen off Plymouth, where Lord Howard and Drake were on the lookout for them. The fight began soon after the Armada passed that point on the way to Holland to get re-enforcements of soldiers before making the attempt to land on the English coast. The battle between the unwieldy ships of Spain and the small, quick-moving vessels of England was like a contest between a bear and a swarm of wasps. Followed in this way, the Armada put into the friendly French port of Calais. Thence the English drove them out by setting fire to several of their own vessels, and letting them drift at night among the enemy's fleet. The Spaniards, in alarm, cut their cables and put to sea. The English followed, and de- stroyed many vessels o& the coast of Holland, and if their ammunition had not given out, they would have utterly defeated the Armada in the North Sea. The dispirited Spaniards, finding the weather against them, determined to give up the attack on England and retreat to Spain. The storm pre- vented their going directly back, and they undertook to return by sailing round the north of Scotland and Ireland. Many of the ships were wrecked, with great loss of life, and only fifty-five out of the original one hundred and thirty vessels succeeded in reaching Spain. In the defence of England Catholics and Protestants had united, — it was a national triumph. In commemoration of it Queen Elizabeth ordered a medal to be struck, bear- ing the motto, " God blew with his wind, and they were scattered." 2 List : desire, wish. THE ARMADA. 51 I tell of the thrice famous deeds she wrought m ancient days, When that great fleet invincible against her bore in vain The richest spoils of Mexico, ^ the stoutest hearts of Spain. It was about the lovely close of a warm summer day. There came a gallant merchant-ship full sail to Plymouth Bay;2 Her crew hath seen Castile's^ black fleet,* beyond Aurigny's isle,^ At earliest twilight, on the waves lie heaving many a mile.^ At sunrise she escaped their van,^ by God's especial grace ; And the tall Pinta,^ till the noon had held her close in chase. Forthwith a guard at every gun was placed along the wall ; ^ 1 Spoils of Mexico : perhaps because the plunder of Mexico had enabled Spain to fit out the Armada. 2 Plymouth Bay, on the southwest coast of England. Here Lord How- ard and Sir Francis Drake, with a small fleet, were stationed, watching for the appearance of the Armada. 3 Castile : a political name for Spain, which was formed from the union of the two kingdoms of Castile and Aragon. 4 Black fleet : black is the common color for ships of all classes. 5 Aurigny's isle (0-reen-ye') : Alderney, one of the English Channel islands. 6 Many a mile : the Armada, when first seen, was said to be in the form of a crescent, and to extend about seven miles from tip to tip. '' Van : the foremost part of the fleet. 8 Pinta : one of the vessels of the Armada. 9 The wall : the sea-wall of Plymouth. 52 HEROIC BALLADS. The beacon ^ blazed upon the roof of Edgecumbe's lofty hall; 2 Many a light fishing bark put out to pry along the coast, And with loose rein and bloody spur rode inland many a post.^ With his white hair unbonneted,* the stout old sheriff comes ; Behind him march the halberdiers ; ^ before him sound the drums ; His yeomen^ round the market-cross^ make clear an ample space ; For there behooves him ^ to set up the standard ^ of Her Grace. ^^ And haughtily the trumpets peal, and gayly dance the bells. As slow upon the laboring wind the royal blazon ^^ swells. 1 Beacon : here, a signal-fire. 2 Edgecumbe's lofty hall: the residence of the Earl of Edgecumbe, on a height about seventeen miles northwest of Plymouth. Mount Edge- cumbe can be seen from the " Hoe " (Height) in Plymouth, where, accord- ing to tradition. Sir Francis Drake and Lord Howard were playing a game of bowls (or ten pins), when news of the approach of the Armada was brought. See Kingsley's " Westward, Ho ! " 3 Post : here, a special messenger, one sent to ride with all haste through the country and give the alarm. 4 TJnbonneted : the bonnet was originally a cap worn by men. 5 Halberdiers : guards armed with halberds, the halberd being a com- bined axe and spear. 6 Yeomen : countrymen, but here equivalent to stout followers. '' Market-cross : it was customary in early times to erect a stone cross in the market-place of the chief towns. The remains of such crosses may still be seen in several cities (e.g. Chichester) on the south coast of Eng- land. 8 Behooves him : it is his duty. 9 The standard : the great royal flag, having the arms of England on it. 10 Her Grace : Queen Elizabeth. 11 Blazon : the arms of England emblazoned on the standard. THE ARMADA. 53 Look how the Lion^ of the sea lifts up his ancient crown, And underneath his deadly paw treads the gay lilies ^ down. So stalked he when he turned to flight, on that famed Picard field,^ Bohemia's plume,* and Genoa's bow,^ and Caesar's eagle shield.^ So glared he when at Agincourt''' in wrath he turned to bay,^ And crushed and torn beneath his claws the princely hunters lay. Ho ! strike the flagstaff deep, Sir Knight : ^ ho ! scatter flowers, fair maids : Ho ! gunners, fire a loud salute : ho ! gallants,^^ draw your blades : 1 Lion : the lion rampant in tlie arms of England. 2 The lilies: the ancient arms of France, — fleur-de-lis ; the English lion trampling down these lilies represents the early English conquests in France. 3 Picard field : in 1346 the English gained a great and decisive victory- over the French at Crecy, in the province of Picardy, Northwestern France. 4 Bohemia's plume : the blind old king of Bohemia was an ally of the king of France, and fought in his behalf at Crecy. 5 Genoa's bow : the French king had hired 15,000 Genoese cross-bowmen, in the hope that they would be able to hold the English archers in check. 6 Caesar's eagle shield : referring to the eagle on the shield of the king of the Romans, son of the king of Bohemia, and, like his father, an ally of France. J" Agincourt (Ah-zhan-koor') : a battle-field near Crecy, where, in 1415, the English gained another great victory oyer the French. 8 Turned to bay : turned to face the enemy, as a stag pursued by dogs turns and faces them. 9 Sir Knight : Sir, a title of honor given to a knight. 1° Gallants : brave, high-spirited young men. 54 HEROIC BALLADS, Thou sun, shine on her joyously ; ye breezes, waft her wide; Our glorious semper eadem,^ the banner of oui' pride. The freshening breeze of eve unfurled that banner's massy fold ; The parting gleam of sunshine kissed that haughty scroll of gold ; ^ Night sank upon the dusky beach, and on the purple sea, Such night in England ne'er had been, nor e'er again shall be. From Eddystone^ to Berwick bounds,* from Lynn^ to Milford Bay ,6 That time of slumber was as bright and busy as the day ; For swift to east and swift to west the ghastly war- flame^ spread. High on St. Michael's Mount ^ it shone : it shone on Beachy Head.^ 1 Semper Eadem : always the same ; perhaps conveying the idea here of always victorious. 2 Scroll of gold : the royal standard with its arms emblazoned in gold. 3 Eddystone : a rock in the sea fourteen miles south of Plymouth. It is submerged at high tide. On it stands the celebrated Eddystone lighthouse. ^ Berwick bounds : the boundaries or limits of Berwick, on the south coast of England (Sussex) , nearly two hundred and fifty miles east of Ply- mouth. 5 Lynn : King's Lynn or Lynn is on the eastern coast of England (Nor- folk County) . 6 Milford Bay : on the southwestern coast of Wales. From Lynn to Milford Bay ; that is, across the country from one extremity to the other. '' War-flame : the beacon or signal of alarm kindled from height to height and point to point. 8 St. Michael's Mount : a high, rocky islet off the southern coast of Cornwall, near Penzance, and between Lizard Head and Land's End. 9 Beachy Head : a lofty promontory on the south coast of England (Sussex), east of Brighton. THE ARMADA. 55 Far on the deep the Spaniard saw, along each southern shire/ Cape beyond cape, in endless range those twinkling points of fire. The fisher left his skiff to rock on Tamar's ^ gKttering waves : The rugged minei*s poured to war fi'om Mendip's ^ sun- less caves : O'er Longleat's towei-s,^ o'er Cranbourne's oaks,^ the fiery herald flew : He roused the shepherds of Stonehenge,^ the ranger-s " of Beaulieu.^ Right sharp and quick the bells all night rang out fi'om Bristol town,^ And ere the day three hundred horee had met on Clif- ton lo Down; ii 1 Shire : county. - Tamar : a river separating Devonshire from Cornwall. It empties into the English Channel just west of Plymouth. 3 Mendip's caves: the Mendip BQlls are a limestone range in Somerset- shire, in the southwest of England. They abound in caves and old Roman mines. •1 Longleaf s towers : Longleat, the seat of the Marquis of Bath, Wilt- shire, about midway between Bristol and Salisbury. It is said to be the finest Elizabethan mansion in England. •5 Cranbourne's oaks : referring to the oaks on the grounds of the Manor House of Lord Salisbury at Cranborne, or Cranbourne, Wiltshire, near the borders of Dorsetshire, in the south of England, or to the wood- land near by called Cranborne Chase. Causeway: the street. 8 Castle rock: a high, precipitous rock on which stands the castle of Edinburgh. ^ Gordon : the Duke of Gordon, who held the castle for King James, and was therefore friendly to Claverhouse. 1'^ Mons Meg: an immense cannon within the walls of the castle. 11 Marrows : companions ; the other cannon of the castle. 12 Twa : two. i^ Shade : ghost or spirit. 14 Montrose : see note 1, p. 87. 15 Grace : a title given to a duke. 174 HEROIC BALLADS. " There are hills beyond Pentland ^ and lands beyond Forth; 2 If there's lords in the lowlands,^ there's chiefs ^ in the north ; There are wild Duniewassals ^ three thousand times three Will cry 'Hoigh! ' for the bonnet of bonnie Dundee. " There's brass on the target^ of barkened^ bull-hide, There's steel in the scabbard that dangles beside ; The brass shall be burnished, the steel shall flash free, At a toss of the bonnet of bonnie Dundee. " Away to the hills, to the caves, to the rocks. Ere I own an usurper I'll couch ^ with the fox : And tremble, false whigs, in the midst of your glee. You have not seen the last of my bonnet and me." He waved his proud hand, and the trumpets were blown, The kettle-drums clashed, and the horsemen rode on, Till on Ravelston's cliffs ^ and on Clermiston's lea ^^ Died away the wild war-notes of bonnie Dundee. Come fill up my cup, come fill up my can. Come saddle the horses, and call up the men ; Come open your doors and let me gae free, For ifs up ivith the bonnets of bonnie Dundee. Sir Walter Scott 1 Pentland : the Pentland Hills on the south of Edinburgh County. 2 Forth : an arm of the sea, the Firth of Forth. Claverhouse means that Edinburgh does not represent all Scotland, and that he will seek aid else- where — especially in the Highlands. 3 Lowlands : the lords in the Lowlands were favorable to William HI. 4 Chiefs : Highland chiefs who were friendly to King James. s Duniewassals : Highland chiefs or noblemen and their principal followers. ^ Target : a shield. ' Barkened: hardened. § Couch: hide. 9 Eavelston's cliffs and Clermiston's lea: places in the vicinity of Edinburgh. lo Lea : a meadow. THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB. 175 THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB. The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,^ And his cohorts ^ were gleaming in purple and gold ; And the sheen * of their spears was like stars on the sea, When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee. Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green, That host with their banners at sunset were seen ; Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath flown. That host on the morrow lay withered and strown. For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast, And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed ; And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill. And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still ! And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide. But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride ; And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf. And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf. 1 Sennacherib (Sen-nak'er-ib) , king of Assyria, marched on Libnah and Lachish, two frontier towns of Egypt, about 699 B.C., to punish them for the aid they had given or promised to Hezekiah, king of Judah, who had revolted against the authority of the Assyrian monarch. For what befell Sennacherib and his host, see 2 Kings xix. 2 Fold : a pen or enclosure for sheep, and hence the sheep thus enclosed. 3 Cohorts : a body of troops. ^ Sheen : brightness, splendor. 176 HEROIC BALLADS. And there lay the rider distorted and pale, With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail ; And the tents were all silent, the banners alone. The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown. And the widows of Ashur ^ are loud in their wail ; And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal ; ^ And the might of the Gentile,^ unsmote by the sword, Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord ! LoKD Byron. 1 Ashur : or Asshur ; the same as Assyria. 2 Baal (Ba'al) : a heathen god, represented by the sun or some heavenly body, worshipped by the Assyrians. 3 Gentile •■ the heathen ; those who did not worship the God of the Jews. INCIDENT OF THE FRENCH CAMP. 177 INCIDENT OF THE FRENCH CAMP.i You know we French stormed Ratisbon : ^ A mile or so away, On a little mound, Napoleon Stood on our storming-day ; With neck out-thrust, you fancy how, Legs wide, arms locked behind. As if to balance the prone ^ brow, Oppressive with its mind. Just as perhaps he mused, " My plans That soar, to earth may fall. Let once my army-leader Lannes ^ Waver at yonder wall," — Out 'twixt the battery-smokes there flew A rider, bound on bound Full-galloping ; nor bridle drew Until he reached the mound. 1 In 1809 Napoleon began a victorious campaign against Austria. On his march against Vienna, the Austrian capital, he stormed and carried the walled city of Rat'isbon, in Bavaria, on the Danube. A soldier (here repre- sented as a boy) received his death-wound in planting the French flag within the walls of the captured town. Though dying, he gallops out to the emperor — a mile or two away — to announce the victory. 2 Ratisbon: a city of Bavaria, on the Danube, on the route to Vienna. The place is walled, and a breach had to be battered by cannon in order to take the town. ^ Prone: bent forward; but here, apparently, prominent. 4 Lannes (Lan) : Marshal Lannes, one of Napoleon's generals. He led the attack at Ratisbon. 178 HEROIC BALLADS. Then off there flung in smiling joy, And held himself erect By just his horse's mane, a boy : You hardly could suspect — (So tight he kept liis lips compressed, Scarce any blood came through) You looked twice ere you saw his breast Was all but shot in two. " Well," cried he, " Emperor, by God's grace We've got you Ratisbon ! The marshal's in the market-place. And you'll be there anon ^ To see your flag-bird ^ flap his vans ^ Where I, to heart's desire. Perched him ! " The chief's eye flashed ; his plans Soared up again like fire. The cliief 's eye flashed ; but presently Softened itself, as sheathes A film the mother eagle's eye When her bruised eaglet breathes ; " You're wounded ! " " Nay," liis soldier's pride Touched to the quick, he said : " I'm killed, sire ! " And, his chief beside. Smiling, the boy fell dead.* Robert Browning. 1 Anon : presently. 2 Flag-'bird: the eagle on the French flag. ^ Vans : wings. * Fell dead: a similar incident occurred at the Battle of Gettysburg, 1863. An officer of the Sixth Wisconsin approached Lieutenant-Colonel Dawes, the commander of the regiment, after the sharp fight in the rail- road cut. The colonel supposed, from the firm and erect attitude of the man, that he came to report for orders of some kind; but the compressed lips told a different story. With a great effort the officer said, * Tell them at home I died like a man and a soldier.' He threw open his coat, dis- played a ghastly wound, and dropped dead at the colonel's feet. — Chan- cellorsville and Gettysburg, by Major-General Doubleday. YE MARINERS OF ENGLAND. 179 YE MARINERS OF ENGLAND. Ye mariners of England, That guard our native seas, Whose flag has braved, a thousand years, The battle and the breeze. Your glorious standard launch again, To match another foe ! And sweep through the deep While the stormy winds do blow — Wliile the battle rages loud and long, And the stormy winds do blow. The spirits of your fathers Shall start from every wave ! For the deck it was their field of fame. And ocean was their grave. Where Blake ^ and mighty Nelson ^ fell Your manly hearts shall glow. As ye sweep through the deep 1 Blake: a distinguished English admiral (1599-1657). "He is con- sidered as the founder of the naval supremacy of England." His great battles were with the Dutch and the Spanish. 2 Nelson: Southey calls Lord Nelson (1758-1805) " the greatest naval hero of our own and of all former times." He won the battle of the Nile over Napoleon, battle of the Baltic, and the great and decisive battle of Trafalgar, which destroyed Napoleon's combined French and Spanish fleets and made " England mistress of the seas." In this last engagement (1805) Nelson was mortally wounded. 180 HEROIC BALLADS. While the stormy winds do blow — While the battle rages loud and long, And the stormy winds do blow. Britannia ^ needs no bulwarks, No towers along the steep ; Her march is o'er the mountain-wave. Her home is on the deep. With thunders from her native oak ^ She quells the floods below, As they roar on the shore When the stormy winds do blow — When the battle rages loud and long, And the stormy winds do bloAv. The meteor ^ flag of England Shall yet terrific burn, Till danger's troubled night depart. And the star of peace return. Then, then, ye ocean-warriors ! Our song and feast shall flow To the fame of your name. When the storm has ceased to blow — When the fiery fight is heard no more, And the storm has ceased to blow. Thomas Campbell. 1 Sritannia : the Roman or Latin name of Britain. 2 Oak : formerly all men-of-war were built of oak. 3 Meteor : so called from its bright, fiery red. Milton uses the same expression, " The imperial ensign . . . shone like a meteor." BATTLE OF THE BALTIC. 181 BATTLE OF THE BALTIC.^ Of Nelson ^ and the north Sing the glorious day's renown, When to battle fierce came forth All the might of Denmark's crown, And her arms along the deep proudly shone ; By each gun the lighted brand In a bold, determined hand, And the prince of all the land Led them on. Like leviathans ^ afloat Lay their bulwarks on the brine ; While the sign of battle flew On the lofty British line — It was ten of April morn by the chime. As they drifted on their path There was silence deeu as death; And the boldest held his breath For a time. 1 Battle of the Baltic : during the wars with Napoleon, England claimed the right to search all neutral vessels, the object being to prevent trade with France. In 1800 Russia, Denmark, and Sweden entered into a treaty or coalition known as the " Second Armed Neutrality " to resist England's claim. In 1801 the "Battle of the Baltic " was fought, in which Nelson bom- barded Copenhagen, destroyed a great part of the Danish fleet, and gained such a victory that, with the death of the Czar, which shortly after fol- lowed, the coalition was broken up. 2 Nelson : see note 2, p. 179. 3 Leviathans : sea-monsters. 182 HEROIC BALLADS. But the might of England flushed To anticipate the scene ; And her van the fleeter rushed O'er the deadly space between. " Hearts of oak ! " our captain cried ; when each gun From its adamantine ^ lips Spread a death-shade round the ships, Like the hurricane eclipse Of the sun. Again ! again ! again ! And the havoc did not slack, Till a feeble cheer the Dane To our cheering sent us back ; Their shots along the deep slowly boom — Then ceased — and all is wail. As they strike the shattered sail, Or in conflagration pale, Light the gloom. Out spoke the victor then. As he hailed them o'er the wave : " Ye are brothers ! ye are men ! And we conquer but to save ; i So peace instead of death let us bring ; But yield, proud foe, thy fleet. With the €rews, at England's feet. And make submission meet To our king." Then Denmark blessed our chief, That he gave her wounds repose ; 1 Adamantine : which caunot be broken. BATTLE OF THE BALTIC. 183 And the sounds of joy and grief From her people wildly rose, As death withdrew his shades from the day. While the sun looked smiling bright O'er a wide and woeful sight, Where the fires of funeral light Died away. Now joy, old England, raise ! For the tidings of thy might, By the festal cities' blaze, Whilst the wine-cup shines in light ; And yet, amidst that joy and uproar, Let us think of them that sleep Full many a fathom deep, By thy wild and stormy steep, Elsinore 1 ^ Brave hearts ! to Britain's pride Once so faithful and so true, On the deck of fame that died, With the gallant, good Riou^ — Soft sigh the winds of heaven o'er their grave ! While the billow mournful rolls. And the mermaid's song condoles, Singing glory to the souls Of the brave ! Thomas Campbell. ^ Elsinore : a town of Denmark, north of Copenhagen, on the sound where the battle was fought. 2 Siou (Ri-oo) : Captain Riou of the English forces. He was killed in the battle. 184 HEROIC BALLADS. GEORGE NIDIVER. Men have done brave deeds, And bards ^ have sung them well ; I of good George Nidiver Now the tale will tell. In Californian mountains A hunter bold was he ; Keen his eye and sure his aim As any you should see. A little Indian boy Followed him everywhere, Eager to share the hunter's joy, The hunter's meal to share. And when the bird or deer Fell by the hunter's skill, The boy was always near To help with right good-will. One day as through the cleft Between two mountains steep, Shut in both right and left, Their questing ^ way they keep, 1 Bards : poets. 2 Questing : here, roving or searching for game. GEORGE NIDIVER. 185 They see two grizzly bears, With hunger fierce and fell, Rush at them unawares Right down the narrow dell.^ The boy turned round with screams, And ran with terror wild ; One of the pair of savage beasts Pursued the shrieking child. The hunter raised his gun, He knew one charge was all, And through the boy's pursuing foe He sent his only ball. The other on George Nidiver Came on with dreadful pace ; The hunter stood unarmed, And met him face to face. I say unarmed he stood ; Against those frightful paws. The rifle-butt, or club of wood, Could stand no more than straws. George Nidiver stood still. And looked him in the face ; The wild beast stopped amazed. Then came with slackening pace. Still firm the hunter stood. Although his heart beat high ; Again the creature stopped. And gazed with wondering eye. 1 Dell : a narrow valley, a ravine. 186 ' HEROIC BALLADS. The hunter met his gaze, Nor yet an inch gave way ; The bear turned slowly round, And slowly moved away. What thoughts were in his mind It would be hard to spell ; ^ What thoughts were in George Nidiver I rather guess than tell. But sure that rifle's aim, Swift choice of generous part, Showed in its passing gleam The depths of a brave heart. Anonymous. 1 Spell: tell. SHAN VAN VOCHT. 187 SHAN VAN YOCHT.i The sainted isle of old, Says the Shan Van Voclit, The parent and the mould Of the beautiful and bold, Has her sainted heart waxed cold ? Says the Shan Van Vocht. Oh ! the French are on the say ,2 Says the Shan Van Vocht ; The French are on the say. Says the Shan Van Vocht. Oh ! the French are in the bay ; ^ 1 Shan Van Vocht : an Irish phrase meaning the Poor Old Woman ; here personifying Ireland. The song was written just before the Irish rebellion of 1798. Before the union of Ireland with Great Britain in 1800 that country was governed, or rather misgoverned, by a national parliament largely under the control of the English and of those whom the English had bought up. From this parliament all Irish Catholics were rigidly excluded, and this contributed in no small degree to intensify the hatred not only of England, but of the Orangemen, or Irish Protestants, and allies of England in the North. At the time the song was written, the United Irishmen — a strong body of Catholics pledged to reform — were expecting the French to land a force on the shores of Bantry Bay and aid them in a desperate attempt to secure liberty for their country. The attempt ended in disastrous failure, but the " Shan Van Vocht " hopes yet, through the influence of Mr. Gladstone and his party, to obtain the rights which have been so long and so unjustly withheld from her. - Say : sea. 3 Bay: Bantry Bay, on the south of Ireland, county of Cork. 188 HEROIC BALLADS. They'll be here without delay, And the Orange ^ will decay, Says the Shan Van Vocht. Oh ! the French are in the hay^ The'ifll he here by break of day^ And the Orange will decay ^ Says the Shan Van Vocht. And where will they have their camp ? Says the Shan Van Yocht ; Where will they have their camp ? Says the Shan Van Vocht. On the Currach of Kildare ; ^ The boys they will be there With their pikes ^ in good repair, Says the Shan Van Vocht. To the Currach of Kildare The hoys they will repair, And Lord Ediuard^ ivill be there, Says the Shan Van Vocht. Then what will the yeomen do ? ; Says the Shan Van Vocht ; i What will the yeomen do ? ;, Says the Shan Van Vocht. i What should the yeomen do, m 1 The Orange : the Orange organization in the Xorth. 2 Currach of Kildare : the plain of Kildare in the county of that name, west of Dublin. It was a noted place for military gatherings. 3 Pikes : spear-like weapons. 4 Lord Edward : Lord Edward Fitzgerald, a younger son of the Duke of Leinster, and a leader in the cause of Catholic emancipation. He was arrested for plotting the insurrection of 1798 and died in prison. SHAN VAN VOCHT. 189 But throw off the red and blue,^ And swear that they'll be true To the Shan Van Vocht ? What should the yeomen do^ But throw off the red and blue, And swear that they^ll he true To the Shan Van Vocht? And what color will they wear ? Says the Shan Van Vocht ; What color will they wear ? Says the Shan Van Vocht. What color should be seen, Where our fathers' homes have been, But our own immortal green ?2 Says the Shan Van Vocht. What color should he seen, Where our fathers' homes have been, But our own immortal green ? Says the Shan Van Vocht, 1 The red and blue : the English colors. 2 Green : the Irish national color — the shamrock, or clover. The favorite Irish song, " The wearin' o' the Green," well expresses the Irishman's intense love of that color. " Then take the shamrock from your hat And fling it on the sod, And never fear, 'twill take root there Tho' under foot 'tis trod. When law can stop the blades of grass From growing as they grow, And when the leaves in summer time Their color cease to show, Oh! then I'll change the favor* That I wear in my cawbeen; t But till that time, please God, I'll stick To wearin' o' the green." * Favor: here a token or badge of loyalty to one's native land. t Cawbeen : hat. 190 HEROIC BALLADS. And will Ireland then be free ? Says the Shan Van Vocht ; Will Ireland then be free ? Says the Shan Van Vocht. Yes ! Ireland shall be free, From the centre to the sea ; Then hurrah for liberty ! Says the Shan Van Vocht. Yes! Ireland shall hefree^ From the centre to the sea; Then hurrah for liberty! Says the Shan Van Vocht. Anonymous. HOW THEY BROUGHT THE GOOD NEWS. 191 HOW THEY BROUGHT THE GOOD NEWS FROM GHENT TO AIX.i I SPRANG to the stirrup, and Joris and he : I galloped, Dirck galloped, we galloped all three ; " Good speed ! " cried the watch as the gate-bolts un- drew, " Speed ! " echoed the wall to us galloping through. Behind shut the postern,^ the lights sank to rest, And into the midnight we galloped abreast. Not a word to each other ; we kept the great pace — Neck by neck, stride by stride, never changing our place ; I turned in my saddle and made its girths tight, Then shortened each stirrup and set the pique ^ right, Rebuckled the check-strap, chained slacker the bit. Nor galloped less steadily Roland a whit. 'Twas a moonset at starting ; but while we drew near Lokeren, the cocks crew and twilight dawned clear ; 1 This is said to be a purely imaginary poem. Aix (Aks), a town of Rhenish Prussia, is in peril, but may be saved if certain " good news " can be carried to it without delay. Three horsemen start on a gallop from Ghent (Ghent, G hard), in Belgium, over a hundred miles away, to an- nounce the glad tidings. One rider of the three succeeds in reaching the city. 2 Postern : a small gate. 8 Pique (peek) : the point or pommel of the saddle. 192 HEROIC BALLADS. At Boom a great yellow star came out to see ; At Diiffeld 'twas morning as plain as could be ; And from Mecheln church-steeple we heard the half chime — So Joris broke silence with " Yet there is time ! " At Aerschot up leaped of a sudden the sun, And against him the cattle stood black every one, To stare through the mist at us galloping past ; And I saw my stout galloper Roland at last, With resolute shoulders, each butting away The haze, as some bluff river headland its spray ; And his low head and crest, just one sharp ear bent back For my voice, and the other pricked out on his track ; And one eye's black intelligence, — ever that glance O'er its white edge at me, his own master, askance ; And the thick heavy spume-flakes,^ which aye and anon His fierce lips shook upward in galloping on. By Hasselt Dirck groaned ; and cried Joris, " Stay spur ! Your Roos galloped bravely, the fault's not in her ; We'll remember at Aix " — for one heard the quick wheeze Of her chest, saw the stretched neck, and staggering knees. And sunk tail, and horrible heave of the flank. As down on her haunches she shuddered and sank. So we were left galloping, Joris and I, Past Looz and past Tongres, no cloud in the sky ; 1 Spume-flakes : foam-flakes. HOW THEY BROUGHT THE GOOD NEWS. 193 The broad sun above laughed a pitiless laugh ; 'Neath our feet broke the brittle, bright stubble like chaff; Till over by Dalhem a dome-spire sprang white, And " Gallop," gasped Joris, " for Aix is in sight ! " " How they'll greet us ! " — and all in a moment his roan Rolled neck and croup ^ over, lay dead as a stone ; And there was my Roland to bear the whole weight Of the news which alone could save Aix from her fate, With his nostrils like pits full of blood to the brim. And with circles of red for his eye-sockets' rim. Then I cast loose my buff-coat,^ each holster ^ let fall, Shook off both my jack-boots * let go belt and all. Stood up in the stirrup, leaned, patted his ear. Called my Roland his pet-name, my horse without peer — Clapped my hands, laughed and sung, any noise, bad or good. Till at length into Aix Roland galloped and stood. And all I remember is friends flocking round. As I sate with his head 'twixt my knees on the ground ; And no voice but was praising this Roland of mine. As I poured down his throat our last measure of ^^ine. Which (the burgesses ^ voted by common consent) Was no more than his due who brought good news from Ghent. Robert Browning. 1 Croup : rump. 2 Buff-coat : a leather coat. 8 Holster : a leather case for holding a horse-pistol. ^ Jack -boots : large, heavy boots coming up above the knee, s Burgesses : the citizens, those who had a right to vote. 194 HEROIC BALLADS. BATTLE-HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored, He hath loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword ; His truth is marching on. I have seen him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps ; They have builded him an altar in the evening dews and damps, I have read his righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps ; His day is marching on. I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel ; " As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal : Let the hero born of woman crush the serpent with his heel, Since God is marching on." He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat ; BATTLE-HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC. 195 He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judgment- seat: Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer him, — be jubilant, my feet! Our God is marching on. In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me : As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free, While God is marching on. Julia Ward Howe. 196 HEROIC BALLADS. THE LANDING OF THE PILGRIM FATHERS IN NEW ENGLAND.! " Look now abroad — another race has filled Those populous borders — wide the wood recedes, And towns shoot up, and fertile realms are tilled ; The land is full of harvests and green meads." Bryant. The breaking waves dashed high On a stern and rock-bound coast, And the woods against a stormy sky Their giant branches tossed ; And the heavy night hung dark, The hills and waters o'er, When a band of exiles moored their bark On the wild New England shore. Not as the conqueror comes. They, the true-hearted, came ; Not with the roll of the stirring drums. And the trumpet that sings of fame ; Not as the flying come. In silence and in fear ; They shook the depths of the desert gloom With their hymns of lofty cheer. Amidst the storm they sang. And the stars heard, and the sea ; 1 December 21, 1620, is the traditional date of the landing. THE LANDING OF THE PILGRIM FATHERS. 197 And the sounding aisles of the dim woods rang To the anthem of the free. The ocean eagle soared From his nest by the white wave's foam ; And the rocking pines of the forest roared — This was their welcome home. There were men with hoary hair Amidst that pilgrim band : Why had they come to wither there, Away from their childhood's land ? There was woman's fearless eye, Lit by her deep love's truth ; There was manhood's brow, serenely high, And the fiery heart of youth. What sought they thus afar ? Bright jewels of the mine ? The wealth of seas, the spoils of war ? They sought a faith's pure shrine ! Ay, call it holy ground, The soil where first they trod ; They have left unstained what there they found — Freedom to worship God. Felicia Hemans. 198 HEROIC BALLADS. MONTEREY.i We were not many, we who stood Before the iron sleet that day ; Yet many a gallant spirit would Give half his years if but he could Have been with us at Monterey. Now here, now there, the shot it hailed In deadly drifts of fiery spray. Yet not a single soldier quailed When wounded comrades round them wailed Their dying shout at Monterey. And on, still on our column kept Through walls of flame its withering way ; Where fell the dead, the living stept, Still charging on the guns which swept The slippery streets of Monterey. The foe himself recoiled aghast, When, striking where he strongest lay. We swooped his flanking batteries past, And braving full their murderous blast. Stormed home the towers of Monterey. 1 During the Mexican War, in 1846, General Taylor with less than six thousand men took the strongly fortified city of Monterey by storm. The city was defended by a garrison numbering nearly two to one of the attack- ing force, but it fell before the impetuous assault of the Americans. MONTEREY. 199 Our banners on those turrets wave, And there our evening bugles play ; Where orange-boughs above their grave, Keep green the memory of the brave Who fought and fell at Monterey. We are not many, we who pressed Beside the brave who fell that day ; But who of us has not confessed He'd rather share their warrior rest Than not have been at Monterey ? Charles Fenno Hoffman. 200 HEROIC BALLADS. OUR STATE. The south-land boasts its teeming cane, The prairied west its heavy grain, And sunset's radiant gates unfold On rising marts and sands of gold. Rough, bleak, and hard, our little State Is scant of soil, of limits strait ; Her yellow sands are sands alone. Her only mines are ice and stone ! From autumn frost to April rain. Too long her winter woods complain ; From budding flower to falling leaf. Her summer time is all too brief. ^ Yet, on her rocks, and on her sands. And wintry hills, the school-house stands ; And what her rugged soil denies The harvest of the mind supplies. The riches of the commonwealth Are free, strong minds, and hearts of health ; And more to her than gold or grain The cunning hand and cultured brain. OUR STATE. 201 For well she keeps her ancient stock, The stubborn strength of Pilgrim Rock ; And still maintains, with milder laws, And clearer light, the good old cause I Nor heeds the sceptic's puny hands. While near her school the church-spire stands ; Nor fears the blinded bigot's rule. While near her church-spire stands the school. John Greenleaf Whittier. 202 HEROIC BALLADS. CARMEN BELLICOSUM.i In their ragged regimentals Stood tlie old Continentals,^ Yielding not, When the grenadiers ^ were lunging,* And like hail fell the plunging Cannon-shot ;• When the files Of the isles. From the smoky night encampment, bore the banner of the rampant ^ Unicorn,^ And grummer, grummer, grummer, rolled the roll of the drummer, Through the morn ! Then with eyes to the front all, And with guns horizontal. Stood our sires ; And the balls whistled deadly. And in streams flashing redly 1 Carmen Bellicosum : a war-song (of the Revolution). 2 Continentals : the American forces. 3 Grenadiers : English soldiers. 4 Lunging : thrusting with their swords. 5 Rampant : standing in a fighting attitude. 6 Unicorn: the Unicorn on the British coat-of-arms. CARMEN BELLICOSUM. 203 Blazed the fires; As the roar On the shore, Swept the strong battle-breakers o'er the green-sodded acres Of the plain ; And louder, louder, louder, cracked the black gun- powder. Cracking amain ! Now like smiths at their forges Worked the red St. George's Cannoniers ; ^ And the " villanous saltpetre " Rung a fierce, discordant metre Round their ears ; As the swift Storm-drift, With hot sweeping anger, came the horse-guards' ^ clangor On our flanks. Then higher, higher, higher, burned the old-fashioned fire Through the ranks ! Then the old-fashioned colonel Galloped thi'ough the white infernal Powder-cloud ; And his broad sword was swinging. And his brazen throat was ringing 1 St. George's cannoniers : the British artillery-men. 2 Horse-guards : the British cavalry. 204 HEROIC BALLADS. Trumpet loud. Then the blue Bullets flew, And the trooper-jackets redden at the touch of the leaden Rifle-breath ; And rounder, rounder, rounder, roared the iron six- pounder, Hurling death ! Guy Humphrey McMaster ROLL-CALL. 205 ROLL-CALL. " Corporal Green ! " the Orderly ^ cried. " Here ! " Avas the answer, loud and clear, From the lips of the soldier who stood near ; And " Here ! " was the word the next replied. " Cyrus Drew ! " — then silence fell — This time no answer followed the call; Only his rear man had seen him fall, Killed or wounded, he could not tell. There they stood in the falling light, These men of battle, with grave, dark looks. As plain to be read as open books. While slowly gathered the shades of night. The fern on the liillsides was splashed with blood, And down in the corn, where the poppies grew. Were redder stains than the poppies knew ; And crimson-dyed was the river's flood. For the foe had crossed from the other side That day, in the face of a murderous fire That swept them down in its terrible ire. And then* life-blood went to color the tide. 1 Orderly : a non-commissioned officer who attends a superior officer to bear his orders or do other service. 206 HEROIC BALLADS. " Herbert Kline ! " At the call there came Two stalwart soldiers into the line, Bearing between them this Herbert Kline, Wounded and bleeding, to answer his name. " Ezra Kerr ! " — and a voice answered " Here ! " " Hiram Kerr ! " — but no man replied. They were brothers, these two ; the sad wind sighed, And a shudder crept through the cornfield near. " Ephraim Deane ! " — then a soldier spoke : '' Deane carried our regiment's colors," he said ; " Where our ensign was shot I left him dead. Just after the enemy wavered and broke. " Close to the roadside his body lies ; I paused a moment and gave him drink ; He murmured his mother's name, I tliink, And death came with it, and closed his eyes." 'Twas a victory, yes, but it cost us dear — For that company's roll, when called at night, Of a hundred men who went into the fight. Numbered but twenty that answered " Here ! " Nathaniel Gkaham Shepheri THE BATTLE-FIELD. 207 THE BATTLE-FIELD. Once this soft turf, this rivulet's sands, Were trampled by a hurrying crowd, And fiery hearts and armed hands Encountered in the battle-cloud. Ah ! never shall the land forget How gushed the life-blood of her brave — Gushed, warm with hope and courage yet. Upon the soil they sought to save. Now all is calm, and fresh, and still : Alone the chirp of flitting bird. And talk of children on the hill, And bell of wandering kine are heard. No solemn host goes trailing by The black-mouthed gun and staggering wain ^ Men start not at the battle-cry — Oh, be it never heard again ! Soon rested those who fought ; but thou Who minglest in the harder strife For truths which men receive not now. Thy warfare only ends with life. 1 Wain : a heavy wagon. 208 HEROIC BALLADS. A friendless warfare ! lingering long Through weary day and weary year ; A wild and many-weaponed throng Hang on thy front, and flank, and rear. Yet nerve thy spirit to the proof. And blench not at thy chosen lot ; The timid good may stand aloof, The sage may frown — yet faint thou not. Nor heed the shaft too surely cast, The foul and hissing bolt of scorn ; For with thy side shall dwell, at last, The victory of endurance born. Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again — The eternal years of God are hers ; But Error, wounded, writhes in pain. And dies among his worshippers. Yea, though thou lie upon the dust, When they who helped thee flee in fear. Die full of hope and manly trust, Like those who fell in battle here ! Another hand thy sword shall wield. Another hand the standard wave, Till from the trumpet's mouth is pealed The blast of triumph o'er thy grave. William Cullen Bryant. BARBARA FRIETCHIE. 209 BARBARA FRIETCHIE.i Up from the meadows rich with corn, Clear in the cool September morn, The clustered spires of Frederick ^ stand Green-walled by the hills of Maryland. Round about them orchards sweep, Apple and peach tree fruited deep, Fair as a garden of the Lord To the eyes of the famished rebel horde, On that pleasant morn of the early fall When Lee marched over the mountain wall, — Over the mountains, winding down. Horse and foot into Frederick town. Forty flags with their silver stars. Forty flags with their crimson bars,^ 1 During the Civil War, early in September, 1862, General Lee of the Confederate army crossed the Potomac, took possession of Frederick City, Md., and prepared to move on to Baltimore or Philadelphia. The battle of Antietam (Sept. 17) compelled him to retreat into Virginia. 2 Frederick: the capital of Frederick County, Md. 3 Bars: for the sake of the rhyme " bars " is here used for stripes. The "forty flags," according to the story, were National flags displayed in Frederick; the Confederates hauled them down. 210 HEROIC BALLADS, Flapped in the morning wind ; the sun Of noon looked down, and saw not one. Up rose old Barbara Frietchie ^ then, Bowed with her fourscore years and ten ; Bravest of all in Frederick town, She took up the flag the men hauled down ; In her attic-window the staff she set. To show that one heart was loyal yet. Up the street came the rebel tread, " Stonewall " Jackson ^ riding ahead. Under his slouched hat left and right He glanced : the old flag met his sight. " Halt ! " — the dust-brown ranks stood fast ; " Fire ! " — out blazed the rifle-blast. It shivered the window, pane and sash ; It rent the banner with seam and gash. 1 Barbara Frietchie : the story of Barbara Frietchie is accepted as true by Lossing in his " Pictorial History of the War " (II. 466), and he gives a sketch of her house ; but neither Greeley, Draper, nor the Comte de Paris mentions the incident. 2 "Stonewall" Jackson: Thomas J. Jackson, lieutenant-general in the Confederate army, was one of the bravest and most conscientious of the Southern men who came into prominence during the Civil War. He received the name of " Stonewall" as a compliment to his courage at Bull Run, where during a furious charge of Union troops he stood "like a stone wall." His example inspired others on his side, and was one great cause of the South's winning the day. "Stonewall " Jackson died in 1863, shortly after the battle of Chancel- lorsville; his English admirers, since the war, subscribed for a bronze statue of the general, which was erected in the city of Richmond, Va., Jackson's native State. BARBARA FRIETCHIE. 211 Quick, as it fell, from the broken staff Dame Barbara snatched the silken scarf; She leaned far out on the window-sill, And shook it forth with a royal will. " Shoot, if you must, this old gray head, But spare your country's flag," she said. A shade of sadness, a blush of shame, Over the face of the leader came ; The nobler nature within him stirred To life at that woman's deed and word : '' Who touches a hair of yon gray head Dies like a dog ! March on ! " he said. All day long through Frederick street Sounded the tread of marching feet ; All day long that free flag tost Over the heads of the rebel host. Ever its torn folds rose and fell On the loyal winds that loved it well ; And through the hill-gaps sunset light Shone over it with a warm good-night. Barbara Frietchie's work is o'er. And the rebel rides on his raids no more. Honor to her ! and let a tear Fall, for her sake, on " Stonewall's " bier. 212 HEROIC BALLADSo Over Barbara Frietchie's grave, Flag of freedom and union, wave ! Peace, and order, and beauty draw Round thy symbol of light and law ; And ever the stars above look down On thy stars below in Frederick town ! John Greenleaf Whittier i THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE. 213 THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE.i 1809. Not a drum was heard, not a funeral note, As his corse to the rampart we hurried ; Not a soldier discharged his farewell shot O'er the grave where our hero we buried. We buried him darkly at dead of night, The sod with our bayonets turning ; By the struggling moonbeam's misty light, And the lantern dimly burning. No useless coffin enclosed his breast. Not in sheet nor in shroud we wound him ; But he lay like a warrior taking his rest, With his martial cloak around him ! Few and short were the prayers we said. And we spoke not a word of sorrow ; But we steadfastly gazed on the face that was dead, And we bitterly thought of the morrow. We thought, as we hollowed his narrow bed, And smoothed down his lonely pillow, That the foe and the stranger would tread o'er his head. And we far away on the billow ! 1 The burial of the English general, Sir John Moore, was an incident of Wellington's campaign against Napoleon in Spain. Sir John was killed at Corunna in 1809. He was buried on the ramparts of the city. 214 HEROIC BALLADS. Lightly they'll talk of the spirit that's gone, And o'er his cold ashes upbraid him ; But little he'll reck if they let him sleep on, In the grave where a Briton has laid him. But half of our heavy task was done. When the clock struck the hour for retiring ; And we heard the distant random gun That the foe was sullenly firing. Slowly and sadly we laid him down. From the field of his fame fresh and gory ; We carved not a line, and we raised not a stone — But we left him alone in his glory ! Charles Wolfe. THE CUMBERLAND. 215 THE CUMBERLAND.! March 8, 1862. At anchor in Hampton Roads we lay, On board of the Cumberland, sloop-of-war ; And at times from the fortress across the bay The alarum of drums swept past. Or a bugle blast From the camp on the shore. Then far away to the south uprose A little feather of snow-white smoke, And we knew that the iron ship of our foes Was steadily steering its course To try the force Of our ribs of oak. Down upon us heavily runs, Silent and sullen, the floating fort ; Then comes a puff of smoke from her guns, And leaps the terrible death. With fiery breath. From each open port. We are not idle, but send her straight Defiance back in a full broadside ! 1 The Cumberland : during the American Civil War, the Merrimac, an iron-clad Confederate gunboat, attacked and crushed in the side of the Union frigate Cumberland at Hampton Roads, Va. The Cumberland speedily sunk, carrying down all the sick and wounded, or one hundred and twenty-one in all. 216 ' HEROIC BALLADS. As hail rebounds from a roof of slate, Rebounds our heavier hail From each iron scale Of the monster's hide. " Strike your flag ! " the Rebel cries, In his arrogant old plantation strain. " Never ! " our gallant Morris ^ replies ; *' It is better to sink than to yield ! " And the whole air pealed With the cheers of our men. Then, like a kraken ^ huge and black, She crushed our ribs in her iron grasp ! Down went the Cumberland all a wreck, With a sudden shudder of death, And the cannon's breath For her dying gasp. Next morn, as the sun rose over the bay. Still floated our flag at the mainmast-head. Lord, how beautiful was thy day ! Every waft of the air Was a whisper of prayer. Or a dirge for the dead. Ho ! brave hearts that went down in the seas ! Ye are at peace in the troubled stream ; Ho ! brave land ! with hearts like these. Thy flag, that is rent in twain. Shall be one again, And without a seam ! Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 1 Lieutenant George Upham Morris, commander of the Cumberland. 2 Kraken : a terrible sea-monster said to have been seen oif the coast of Norway. THE PRIVATE OF THE BUFFS. 217 THE PRIVATE OF THE BUFFS.i Last nighty among his fellow-roughs, He jested, quaffed, and swore ; A drunken private of the Buffs,^ Who never looked before. To-day^ beneath the foeman's frown. He stands in Elgin's place,^ Ambassador from Britain's crown, And type of all her race. Poor, reckless, rude, low-born, untaught, Bewildered, and alone, A heart with English instinct fraught He yet can call his own. Aye, tear his body limb from limb. Bring cord, or axe, or flame ; He only knows, that not through him Shall England come to shame. 1 During the English war with China in 1858 a private of the Buffs with some Indian troops fell into the hands of the Chinese. They were ordered to salute the authorities in the Chinese fashion by prostrating themselves and touching the ground with the forehead. The Indians obeyed, but the English soldier swore that he would not prostrate himself to any China- man living. He was knocked on the head and his body cast out on a dung-hill. 2 Buffs : a regiment from Kent, England, so called because the facings of their uniforms are of buff or light yellow color. 3 He stands : like Lord Elgin {g hard) ; a representative of England's manliness and courage. 218 HEROIC BALLADS. Far Kentish hop-fields round him seemed Like dreams to come and go ; Bright leagues of cherry-blossoms gleamed, One sheet of living snow ; The smoke above his father's door, In gray, soft eddyings hung : Must he then watch it rise no more, Doomed by himself so young ? Yes, honor calls ! With strength like steel He puts the vision by ; Let dusky Indians ^ whine and kneel ; An English lad must die. And thus, with eyes that would not shrink. With knee to man unbent, Unfaltering on its dreadful brink. To his red grave he went. Vain, mightiest fleets, of iron framed ; Vain, those all-shattering guns ; Unless proud England keep, untamed, The strong heart of her sons. So let his name through Europe ring — A man of mean estate. Who died, as firm as Sparta's king,^ Because his soul was great. Sir Francis Hastings Doyle. 1 Indians : native troops from India employed by the English in this war with China. 2 Leonidas, king of Sparta, who with three hundred men held the pass of Thermopylae against a Persian army, until he and all his band were slain. LOCHINVAR. 219 LOCHINVAR. O, YOUNG Lochinvar ^ is come out of the west, Through all the wide Border ^ his steed was the best ; And save his good broadsword, he w^eapon had none, He rode all unarmed, and he rode all alone. So faithful in love, and so dauntless in war, There never was knight like the young Lochinvar. He staid not for brake,^ and he stopped not for stone, He swam the Eske * river where ford there was none ; But ere he alighted at Netherby ^ gate. The bride had consented, the gallant came late : For a laggard in love, and a dastard in war. Was to wed the fair Ellen of young Lochinvar. So boldly he entered the Netherby Hall, Among bridesmen and kinsmen, and brothers, and all : Then spake the bride's father, his hand on his sword, (For the poor craven bridegroom said never a word,) " O come ye in peace here, or come ye in war, Or to dance at our bridal, young Lord Lochinvar ? " 1 Lochinvar (Lok-in-var') . 2 Border : that part of Scotland which borders on England. 3 Brake : here, ground overgrown with brakes and bushes. 4 Eske (or Esk) : a river on the border, emptying into Solvvay Firth. 5 Netherby : Netherby Castle, Cumberland, England. It is on the east- ern bank of the Eske. 220 HEKOIC BALLADS. " I long wooed your daughter, my suit you denied ; Love swells like the Solway, but ebbs like its tide — And now am I come, with this lost love of mine. To lead but one measure,^ drink one cup of wine. There are maidens in Scotland more lovely by far. That would gladly be bride to the young Lochinvar." The bride kissed the goblet : the knight took it up, He quaffed off the wine, and he threw down the cup. She looked down to blush, and she looked up to sigh. With a smile on her lips and a tear in her eye. He took her soft hand, ere her mother could bar, — " Now tread we a measure ! " said young Lochinvar. So stately his form, and so lovely her face, That never a hall such a galliard^ did grace ; While her mother did fret, and her father did fume, And the bridegroom stood dangling his bonnet and plume ; And the bride-maidens whispered, " 'Twere better by far, To have matched our fair cousin with young Lochinvar." One touch to her hand, and one word in her ear, When they reached the hall-door, and the charger stood near ; So light to the croupe the fair lady he swung, So light to the saddle before her he sprung. " She is won ! we are gone over bank, bush and scaur ; ^ They'll have fleet steeds that follow," quoth young Lochinvar. 1 Measure : a dance. 2 Galliard : a gay, lively dance. 3 Scaur : a steep, precipitous place. LOCHINVAR. 221 There was mounting 'mong Graemes of the Netherby clan ; Forsters, Fenwicks, and Musgraves, they rode and they ran : There was racing and chasing on Cannobie Lee,^ But the lost bride of Netherby ne'er did they see. So daring in love, and so dauntless in war, Have ye e'er heard of gallant like young Lochinvar ? Sir Walter" Scott. 1 Cannobie (or Cannonby) Lee : the Cannobie meadows in the vicinity of Netherby Castle. 222 HEROIC BALLADS. "'STONEWALL' JACKSON'S WAY."i CoisiE, stack arms, men ! Pile on the rails,^ Stir up the camp-fire bright; No matter if the canteen fails, We'll make a roaring night. Here Shenandoah ^ brawls along, There burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, To swell the brigade's rousing song Of " ' Stonewall ' Jackson's way." We see him now — the old slouched hat Cocked o'er his eye askew. The shrewd, dry smile, the speech so pat. So calm, so blunt, so true. The " Blue-Light Elder " * knows 'em well ; 1 " stonewall " Jackson : see note 2, p. 210. 2 Rails : fence rails; this must be regarded as "poetic license," since " Stonewall " Jackson gave his men strict orders not to take the fence rails for fuel — occasionally, however, on bitter cold or very wet nights these orders would be secretly violated. 3 Shenandoah : Jackson always spoke of the Shenandoah Valley with particular affection, — his home at Lexington, Va., was in it, — and he used to say that if the South lost, " The Valley," Virginia, would be lost. 4 " Blue-Light Elder " : Jackson was a rigid Presbyterian, and a man of exemplary piety. The name " Blue-Light Elder " was playfully given to him by his former pupils at the Lexington Military Academy ; it meant no disrespect, — it could not, — for Jackson was one who, by his sincerity and force of character, compelled all to respect him whether they agreed with him or not. "'STONEWALL' JACKSON'S WAY." 223 Says he, " That's Banks ^ — he's fond of shell,^ Lord save his soul ! We'll give him " — well, That's " ' Stonewall ' Jackson's way." Silence ! ground arms ! kneel all ! caps off ! " Old Blue-Light's " going to pray. Strangle the fool that dares to scoff ! Attention ! it's his way. Appealing from his native sod, In forma 'pauperis^ to God — " Lay bare thine arm, stretch forth thy rod ! Amen ! " That's " ' Stonewall's ' way." He's in the saddle now, — Fall in ! Steady ! the whole brigade ! Hill's* at the ford, cut off — we'll win His way out, ball and blade I ^ What matter if our shoes are worn ? What matter if our feet are torn ? " Quick-step ! ^ we're with him before dawn ! " That's " ' Stonewall ' Jackson's way." The sun's bright lances rout the mists Of morning, and, hj George ! Here's Longstreet " struggling in the lists,^ 1 Banks: General Banks of the Union army, who undertook to drive Jackson out of " The Valley." ^ Shell: a contraction of bombshell. 3 In forma pauperis : literally, as a pauper ; as one who sorely needs God's help. * Hill: General Hill of the Confederate army. 5 Ball and blade : by bullet and sword. 6 Quick-step : nothing could equal the rapidity of Jackson's movements ; he always seemed to be on the " double-quick," and his brigade of infantry got the name of Jackson's /oo<-cava??'?/. ^ Longstreet : General Longstreet of the Confederate army. 8 Lists : literally an enclosure where a tournament or battle between knights was fought. 224 HEROIC BALLADS. Hemmed in an ugly gorge. Pope ^ and his Yankees, wliipped before, — " Bay'nets and grape ! " ^ hear " Stonewall " roar ; " Charge, Stuart 1 ^ Pay off Ashby's * score I " In '' ' Stonewall ' Jackson's way." Ah ! maiden, wait and watch and yearn For news of " Stonewall's " band ! Ah ! widow, read with eyes that burn That ring ^ upon thy hand. Ah I wife, sew on, pray on, hope on ! Thy life shall not be all forlorn ; The foe had better ne'er been born That gets in " ' Stonewall's ' way." J. W. Palmer. (Written, it is said, within hearing of the battle of Antietam, Sept. 17th, 1862.) 1 Pope : General Pope of the Union army. ■^ Grape : grapeshot. 3 Stuart : General Stuart of the Confederate cavalry. 4 Ashby : a cavalry general in Jackson's army. 5 Ring : wedding ring. THE OLD SERGEANT. 225 THE OLD SERGEANT.i The carrier ^ cannot sing to-night the ballads With which he used to go Rhyming the grand round of the Happy New Years That are now beneath the snow ; For the same awful and portentous shadow That overcast the earth, And smote the land last year with desolation, Still darkens every hearth. And the carrier hears Beethoven's ^ mighty Deadmarch Come up from every mart. And he hears and feels it breathing in his bosom, And beating in his heart. And to-day, like a scarred and weather-beaten veteran, Agam he comes along. To tell the story of the Old Year's struggles, In another New Year's song. And the song is his, but not so with the story ; For the story, you must know, 1 The carrier of the Louisville (Kentucky) Journal. This poem was distributed by the Journal to its patrons on New Year's Day, 1863. 2 Beethoven (Bay'to-ven) : a celebrated German musical composer. 226 HEROIC BALLADS. Was told in prose to Assistant-Surgeon Austin, By a soldier of Shiloli,^ — By Robert Burton, who was brought up on the Adams, . With his death-wound in his side. And who told the story to the Assistant-Surgeon On the same night that he died. But the singer feels it will better suit the ballad, If all should deem it right. To sing the story as if what it speaks of Had happened but last night. " Come a little nearer, doctor, — thank you, — let me take the cup ; Draw your chair up, — draw it closer, — just another little sup ! May be you may think I'm better ; but I'm pretty well used up, — Doctor, you've done all you could do, but I'm just a-going up ! " Feel my pulse, sir, if you want to, but it ain't much use to try — " " Never say that," said the surgeon, as he smothered down a sigh; "It will never do, old comrade, for a soldier to say die ! " " What you say will make no difference, doctor, when you come to die. 1 Shiloh : this was the first really great battle of the Civil War. It was fought at Shiloh Church (or Pittsburgh Landing), Tenn., April 6, 7, 1862, between General Grant and General Johnston. Johnston was killed, and the Confederate force driven from the field. THE OLD SERGEANT. 227 "Doctor, what has been the matter?" "You were very faint, they say ; You must try to get some sleep now." " Doctor, have I been away ? " "Not that anybody knows of!" "Doctor, — doctor, please to say ! There is something I must tell you, and you won't have long to stay I " I have got my marching orders, and I'm ready now to go; Doctor, did you say I fainted ? — but it couldn't ha' been so, — For as sure as I'm a sergeant and was wounded at Shiloh, I've this very night been back there, on the old field of Sliiloh ! " This is all that I remember ! The last time the lighter came. And the lights had all been lowered, and the noises much the same. He had not been gone five minutes before something called my name : Orderly Sergeant — Robert Burton ! just that way it called my name. " And I wondered who could call me so distinctly and so slow. Knew it couldn't be the lighter, — he could not have spoken so, — 228 HEROIC BALLADS. And I tried to answer, ' Here, sir ! ' but I couldn't make it go ! For I couldn't move a muscle, and I couldn't make it go I — '^ Then I thought : ' It's all a nightmare, all a hum- bug and a bore ; Just another foolish grapevine,^ — and it won't come any more ; ' But it came, sir, notwithstanding, just the same way as before : Orderly Sergeant — Robert Burton ! even plainer than before. "That is all that I remember, till a sudden burst of light. And I stood beside the river,^ where we stood that Sun- day night. Waiting to be ferried over to the dark bluffs opposite, When the river was perdition and all hell was opposite ! " And the same old palpitation came again in all its power. And I heard a bugle sounding, as from some celestial tower ; And the same mysterious voice said : ' It is the Eleventh Hour I Orderly Sergeant — Robert Burton, — it is the Eleventh Hour ! ' " Doctor Austin ! what dai/ is this ? " " It is Wednesday night, you know." 1 Army slang for false news. 2 The Tennessee River, where the battle was fought. THE OLD SERGEANT. 229 " Yes, — to-morrow will be New Year's, and a right good time below ! What time is it. Doctor Austin?" "Nearly twelve." " Then don't you go ! Can it be that all this happened — all this — not an hour ago? "There was where the gunboats opened on the dark rebellious host ; And Avhere Webster semicircled his last guns upon the coast ; There were still the two log-houses, just the same, or else their ghost, — And the same old transport ^ came and took me over, — or its ghost ! " And the old field lay before me all deserted far and wide ; There was where they fell on Prentiss, — there McCler- nand met the tide ; There was where stern Sherman rallied, and where Hurlbut's heroes died, — Lower down where Wallace charged them, and kept charging till he died. " There was where Lew Wallace ^ showed them he was of the canny ^ kin, There was where old Nelson thundered, and where Rousseau waded in ; 1 Transport : the transport boat. 2 Lew Wallace : General Lewis Wallace of the Union army ; he distin- guished himself at the battle of Shiloh. The other names are those of Union commanders in the battle. ^ Canny : knowing, shrewd. 230 HEROIC BALLADS. There McCook sent 'em to breakfast, and we all began to win, — There was where the grapeshot took me, just as we began to win. "Now a shroud of snow and silence over everything was spread ; And but for this old blue mantle and the old hat on my head, I should not have even doubted, to this moment, I was dead, — For my footsteps were as silent as the snow upon the dead ! " Death and silence ! death and silence I all around me as I sped ! And behold a mighty tower, as if builded to the dead. To the heaven of the heavens lifted up its mighty head. Till the stars and stripes of heaven all seemed waving from its head ! " Round and mighty-based it towered, up into the in- finite, — And I knew no mortal mason could have built a shaft so bright ; For it shone like solid sunshine ; and a winding stair of light Wound around it and around it, till it wound clear out of sight ! "And behold, as I approached it, with a rapt^ and dazzled stare, — 1 Rapt : raptured. THE OLD SERGEANT. 231 Thinking that I saw old comrades just ascending the great stair, — Suddenly the solemn challenge broke of — 'Halt, and who goes there ? ' ' I'm a friend,' I said, 'if you are.' ' Then advance, sir, to the stair ! ' " I advanced ! — That sentry, doctor, was Elijah Bal- lantyne ! — First of all to fall on Monday, after we had formed the line ! — ' Welcome, my old sergeant, welcome ! Welcome by that countersign ! ' And he pointed to the scar there, under this old cloak of mine ! "As he grasped my hand, I shuddered, thinking only of the grave ; But he smiled and pointed upward with a bright and bloodless glaive ; ^ * That's the way, sir, to headquarters.' ' What head- quarters ? ' 'Of the brave.' ' But the great tower ? ' ' That,' he answered, ' is the way, sir, of the brave ! ' " Then a sudden shame came o'er me at his uniform of light,— At my own so old and tattered, and at his so new and bright. 'Ah!' said he, 'you have forgotten the new uniform to-night, — 1 Glaive: sword. 232 HEROIC BALLADS. Hurry back, for you must be here at just twelve o'clock to-night ! ' "And the next thing I remember, you were sitting there^ and I — Doctor, — did you hear a footstep ? Hark ! — God bless you all ! Good-by ! Doctor, please to give my musket and my knapsack, when I die. To my son — my son that's coming, — he won't get here till I die !~ " Tell him his old father blessed him as he never did before, — And to carry that old musket " — Hark ! a knock is at the door — " Till the Union " — See ! it opens ! — " Father ! Father ! speak once more ! " — " Bless you ! " gasped the old gray sergeant, and he lay and said no more. FORCETTHE WiLLSON. BARCLAY OF URY. 233 BARCLAY OF URY.i Up the streets of Aberdeen, By the kirk ^ and college-green, Rode the Laird ^ of Ury ; Close behind him, close beside. Foul of mouth and evil-eyed. Pressed the mob in fury. Flouted him the drunken churl,* Jeered at him the serving-girl. Prompt to please her master ; And the begging carlin,^ late Fed and clothed at Ury's gate, Cursed him as he passed her. Yet with calm and stately mien. Up the streets of Aberdeen 1 Barclay of Ury : David Barclay, proprietor of Ury, an estate near Aberdeen, Scotland, was one of the early Friends, or Quakers. He served under the famous Swedish general, Gustavus Adolphus, wlien that com- mander was mortally wounded in the terrible battle of Llitzen, Germany, in the Thirty Years' War. Barclay with thirty other Quakers was cast into prison in Aberdeen in 1676, on account of his religious faith, but was shortly after released. His son, Robert, a man of commanding talents and great moral courage, — qualities which he inherited from his father, — was the author of a defence of the religion held and taught by the Friends, which is considered the ablest work of the kind yet produced. 2 Kirk : church. -i Churl : a low fellow. 3 Laird : a landed proprietor, squire. ^ Carlin: old woman. 234 HEROIC BALLADS. Came he slowly riding ; And, to all he saw and heard, Answering not with bitter word, Turning not for chiding. Came a troop with broadswords swinging, Bits and bridles sharply ringing, Loose and free and froward ; ^ Quoth the foremost, " Ride him down ! Push him ! prick him I ^ through the town Drive the Quaker coward ! " But from out the thickening crowd Cried a sudden voice and loud : " Barclay ! Ho ! a Barclay ! " And the old man at his side Saw a comrade, battle-tried. Scarred and sunburned darkly, — Who with ready weapon bare, Fronting to the troopers there. Cried aloud : " God save us ! Call ye coward him who stood Ankle deep in Liitzen's ^ blood. With the brave Gustavus ? " " Nay, I do not need thy sword, Comrade mine," said Ury's lord ; " Put it up, I pray thee ; 1 Froward : ungovernable, perverse. 2 Prick him: prick him with your swords. 3 Lutzen and Gustavus: see note 1, p. 233. BARCLAY OF URY. 235 Passive to his holy will, Trust I in my Master still, Even though he slay me. " Pledges of thy love and faith, Proved on many a field of death, Not by me are needed." Marvelled much that henchman ^ bold That his laird, so stout ^ of old. Now so meekly pleaded. " Woe's the day ! " he sadly said. With a slowly shaking head, And a look of pity ; " Ury's honest lord reviled. Mock of knave and sport of child, In his own good city ! " Speak the word, and, master mine. As we charged on Tilly's ^ line, And his Walloon * lancers. Smiting through their midst we'll teach Civil look and decent speech To these boyish prancers ! " " Marvel not, mine ancient friend. Like beginning, like the end : " Quoth the Laird of Ury, " Is the sinful servant more 1 Henchman : servant or follower. 2 stout : brave. 3 Tilly : Gustavus Adolphus defeated Marshal Tilly at Leipsic, 1631. 4 Walloon : an inhabitant of Southern Belgium. 236 HEROIC BALLADS. Than his gracious Lord who bore Bonds and stripes in Jewry ? ^ " Give me joy that in His name I can bear, with patient frame, All these vain ones offer ; While for them He suffereth long. Shall I answer wrong with wrong, Scoffing with the scoffer ? " Happier I, with loss of all, Hunted, outlawed, held in thrall,^ With few friends to greet me. Than when reeve ^ and squire were seen, Riding out from Aberdeen, With bared heads to meet me. " When each goodwif e, o'er and o'er, Blessed me as I passed her door; And the snooded * daughter. Through her casement glancing down, Smiled on him who bore renown From red fields of slaughter. " Hard to feel the stranger's scoff. Hard the old friend's falling off. Hard to learn forgiving ; But the Lord his own rewards. And his love with theirs accords. Warm and fresh and living. 1 Jewry: Judea. 2 xhrall: captivity. 3 Reeve : sheriff. 4 Snooded: having the hair bound with a fillet or ribbon. BARCLAY OF URY. 237 " Through this dark and stormy night Faith beholds a feeble light Up the blackness streaking ; Knowing God's own time is best, In a patient hope I rest For the full day-breaking ! " M^ ^ ^ ^ ^ John Greenleaf "Whittier. 238 HEROIC BALLADS. THE LORD OF BUTRAGO.i 1385. " Your horse is faint, my King — my lord ! your gallant horse is sick — His limbs are torn, liis breast is gored, on his eye the film is thick ; Mount, mount on mine, oh, mount apace,^ I pray thee, mount and fly ! Or in mine arms I'll lift your Grace — these trampling hoofs are nigh ! " My King — my King ! j^ou're wounded sore — the blood runs from your f eet ; But only lay a hand before, and I'll lift you to your seat : Mount, Juan,^ for they gather fast ! — I hear their com- ing cry ; Mount, mount, and ride for jeopardy* — I'll save you though I die ! " Stand, noble steed ! this hour of need — be gentle as a lamb : 1 The incident which is related in the following ballad is supposed to have occurred on the famous field of Aljubarrota, where King Juan the First, of Castile, was defeated by the Portuguese. The King, who was at the time in a feeble state of health, exposed himself very much during the action ; and being wounded, had great difficulty in making his escape. 2 Apace : quickly. 3 Juan : Spanish pronunciation, Hoo-au' or Wan. ^ For jeopardy: on account of the peril. THE LORD OF BUTRAGO. 239 I'll kiss the foam from off thy mouth, thy master dear I am. Mount, Juan, mount : whate'er betide, away the bridle fling. And plunge the rowels in his side. My horse shall save my king ! " Nay, never speak ; my sires. Lord King, received their land from yours. And joyfully their blood shall spring, so be it thine secures ; If I should fly, and thou, my King, be found among the dead. How could I stand 'mong gentlemen, such scorn on my gray head ? " Castile's proud dames shall never point the finger of disdain. And say there's ONE that ran away when our good lords were slain ! I leave Diego ^ in your care — you'll fill his father's place : Strike, strike the spur, and never spare — God's bless- ing on your Grace I " So spake the brave Montanez, Butrago's lord was he. And turned him to the coming host in steadfastness and glee. He flung himself among them, as they came down the hill; He died, God wot ! ^ but not before his sword had drunk its fill. J. G. LOCKHART. Translated from the Spanish. 1 Diego : Spanish pronunciation, De-a'go, - Wot : knows. 240 HEROIC BALLADS. THE CAVALIER'S ESCAPE.i TiiA3iPLE ! trample I went the roan, Trap ! trap I went the gray ; But pad! pad I pad! like a thing that was mad, My chestnut broke away. It was just five miles from Salisbury ^ town. And but one hour to day. Thud ! THUD ! came on the heavy roan, Rap ! RAP ! the mettled gray ; But my chestnut mare was of blood so rare, That she showed them all the way. Spur on ! spur on ! — I doffed my hat, And wished them all good-day. They splashed through miry rut and pool, — Splintered through fence and rail ; But chestnut Kate switched over the gate, — I saw them droop and tail. To Salisbury town — but a mile of down,^ Once over this brook and rail. 1 An incident of the Civil War in England between Charles I. and Par- liament. The cavaliers were on the royalist side. Here one of their number escapes, thanks to his good horse, from a band of "Roundheads '' of the Parliamentary party. 2 Salisbury : a noted cathedral town of Southern England. 3 Down: see note 11, p. 55, THE CAVALIER'S ESCAPE. 241 Trap ! trap ! I heard their echoing hoofs Past the walls of mossy stone ; The roan flew on at a staggering pace, But blood is better than bone. I patted old Kate, and gave her the spur. For I knew it was all my own. But trample I trample ! came their steeds, And I saw their wolf's eyes burn ; I felt like a royal hart at bay. And made me ready to turn. I looked where highest grew the May,^ And deepest arched the fern. I flew at the first knave's sallow throat ; One blow, and he was down. The second rogue fired twice, and missed; I sHced the villain's crown, — Clove through the rest, and flogged brave Kate, Fast^fast to Salisbury town! Pad ! pad ! they came on the level sward. Thud ! thud ! upon the sand, — With a gleam of swords and a burning match,^ And a shaking of flag and hand ; But one long bound, and I passed the gate. Safe from the canting ^ band. Walter Thobnbury. 1 May : the hawthorn. 2 Match : a slow-match kept burning to discharge the guns then in use, neither flint nor percussion locks having been invented. 3 Canting : hypocritical ; a term of reproach given to the Puritan or " Roundhead " party. 242 HEROIC BALLADS. SONG OF MARION'S MEN. 1780-1781. Our band is few, but true and tried, Our leader frank and bold ; The British soldier trembles When Marion's ^ name is told. Our fortress is the good greenwood, Our tent the cypress-tree ; We know the forest round us. As seamen know the sea ; We know its walks of thorny vines, Its glades ^ of reedy grass. Its safe and silent islands Within the dark morass. Woe to the English soldiery That little dread us near! On them shall light at midnight A strange and sudden fear ; When, waking to their tents on fire, They grasp their arms in vain, i Marion : General Francis Marion, a hero of the American Revolution. He was bom in South Carolina and was of Huguenot descent. When the British besieged Charleston, Marion raised a force of twenty followers, and kept up a three years' warfare which rendered great service to the cause of liberty. His epitaph states with entire truth, that "He lived without fear, and died without reproach." 2 Glades : here, a contraction of everglades ; a low, marshy tract of country interspersed with land covered with high grass. SONG OF MARION'S MEN. 243 And they who stand to face us Are beat to earth again ; And they who fly in terror deem A mighty host behind, And hear the tramp of thousands Upon the hollow wind. Then sweet the hour that brings release From danger and from toil ; We talk the battle over, And share the battle's spoil. The woodland rings with laugh and shout, As if a hunt were up, And woodland flowers are gathered To crown the soldier's cup. With merry songs we mock the wind That in the pine-top grieves. And slumber long and sweetly On beds of oaken leaves. Well knows the fair and friendly moon The band that Marion leads — The glitter of their rifles. The scampering of their steeds. 'Tis life to guide the fiery barb ^ Across the moonlight plain ; 'Tis life to feel the night-wind That lifts his tossing mane. A moment in the British camp — A moment — and away, Back to the pathless forest. Before the peep of day. 1 Barb : a horse remarkable for speed and spirit. 244 HEROIC BALLADS. Grave men there are by broad Santee,^ Grave men with hoary hairs ; Their hearts are all with Marion, For Marion are their prayers. And lovely ladies greet our band, With kindest welcoming, With smiles like those of summer. And tears like those of spring. For them we wear these trusty arms, And lay them down no more Till we have driven the Briton, Forever, from our shore. William Cullen Bryant. 1 Santee : the Santee River. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 245 ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Oh, slow to smite and swift to spare, Gentle and merciful and just ! Who, in the fear of God, didst bear The sword of power — a nation's trust. In sorrow by thy bier we stand, Amid the awe that hushes all, And speak the anguish of a land That shook with horror at thy fall. Thy task is done — the bond are free ; We bear thee to an honored grave, Whose noblest monument shall be The broken fetters of the slave. Pure was thy life ; its bloody close Hath placed thee with the sons of light, Among the noble host of those Who perished in the cause of right. William Cullen Bryakt. 246 HEROIC BALLADS. HOW HE SAVED ST. MICHAEL'S. It was long ago it happen'd, ere ever the signal gun That blazed above Fort Sumter had waken'd the North as one ; ^ Long ere the wonderous pillar of battle-cloud and fire Had mark'd where the unchain'd millions march'd on to their heart's desire. On the roofs and the glittering turrets, that night, as the sun went down, The mellow glow of the twilight shone like a jewell'd crown ; And, bathed in the living glory, as the people lifted their eyes. They saw the pride of the city, the spire of St. Michaers,^ rise. High over the lesser steeples, tipp'd with a golden ball. That hung like a radiant planet caught in its earthward fall,— First glimpse of home to the sailor who made the harbor- round, And last slow-fading vision dear to the outward bound. 1 Before the Civil War, which began in 1861 with the attack of the South on Fort Sumter, in Charleston harbor, the fort being then garrisoned by United States troops. 2 St. Michael's: this church is considered the finest in Charleston; it has a spire of remarkable beauty. HOW HE SAVED ST. MICHAEL'S. 247 The gently gathering shadows shut out the waning light ; The chilcben pray'd at their bedsides, as you will pray to-night ; The noise of buyer and seller from the busy mart was gone; And in dreams of a peaceful morrow the city slumber'd on. But another light than sunrise aroused the sleeping street ; For a cry was heard at midnight, and the rush of tram- pling feet ; Men stared in each other's faces through mingled fire and smoke, While the frantic bells went clashing, clamorous stroke on stroke. By the glare of her blazing roof-tree ^ the houseless _ mother fled, With the babe she press'd to her bosom shrieking in nameless dread. While the fire-king's wild battalions scaled wall and capstone high. And planted their flaring banners against an inky sky. From the death that raged behind them, and the crash of ruin loud. To the great square of the city was driven the surging crowd ; 1 Eoof-tree : the beam in the angle of a roof ; hence the roof itself. 248 HEROIC BALLADS. Where yet, firm in all the tumult, unscathed by the fiery flood. With its heavenward-pointing finger the Church of St. Michael stood. But e'en as they gazed upon it there rose a sudden wail, — A cry of horror, blended with the roaring of the gale. On whose scorching wings up-driven, a single flaming brand Aloft on the towering steeple clung like a bloody hand. " Will it fade ? " The whisper trembled from a thou- sand whitening lips ; Far out on the lurid harbor they watched it from the ships, — A baleful ^ gleam that brighter and ever brighter shone. Like a flickering, trembling will-o'-wisp ^ to a steady beacon grown. "Uncounted gold shall be given to the man whose brave right hand. For the love of the perill'd city, plucks down yon burn- ing brand ! " So cried the mayor of Charleston, that all the people heard ; But they look'd each one at his fellow; and no man spoke a word. 1 Baleful : fraught with evil ; threatening 2 Will-o'-wisp : a flickering, moving light seen at times in marshy places and church-yards. It is supposed to be the result of animal and vegetable decomposition. HOW HE SAVED ST. MICHAEL'S. 249 Who is it leans from the belfry, with face upturn'd to the sky, Clings to a column, and measures the dizzy spire with his eye ? Will he dare it, the hero undaunted, that terrible, sick- ening height ? Or will the hot blood of his courage freeze in his veins at the sight ? But see ! he has stepp'd on the railing ; he climbs with his feet and his hands ; And firm on a narrow projection, with the belfry be- neath him, he stands ; Now once, and once only, they cheer him, — a single tempestuous breath, — And there falls on the multitude gazing a hush like the stillness of death. Slow, steadily mounting, unheeding aught save the goal of the fire. Still higher and higher, an atom, he moves on the face of the spire. He stops ! Will he fall ? Lo ! for answer, a gleam like a meteor s track. And, hurl'd on the stones of the pavement, the red brand lies shatter'd and black. Once more the shouts of the people have rent the quiv- ering air : At the church-door mayor and council wait with their feet on the stair : 260 HEROIC BALLADS. And the eager throng behind them press for a touch of his hand, — The unknown hero, whose daring could compass a deed so grand. But why does a sudden tremor seize on them while they gaze? And what meaneth that stifled murmur of wonder and amaze ? He stood in the gate of the temple he had perill'd his life to save ; And the face of the hero undaunted was the sable face of a slave. With folded arms he was speaking, in tones that were clear, not loud, And his eyes, ablaze in their sockets, burnt into the eyes of the crowd : "You may keep your gold; I scorn it! — but answer me, ye who can. If the deed I have done before you be not the deed of a man ? " He stepp'd but a short space backward ; and from all the women and men There were only sobs for answer ; and the mayor call'd for a pen, And the great seal of the city, that he might read who ran: And the slave who saved St. Michael's went out from its door, a man. Anonymous. CURFEW MUST NOT RING TO-NIGHT. 251 CURFEW MUST NOT RING TO-NIGHT. England's sun was slowly setting o'er the hills so far away, Filling all the land with beauty at the close of one sad day; And the last ia,js kiss'd the forehead of a man and maiden fair, He with step so slow and weaken'd, she with sunny, floating hair ; He with sad bow'd head, and thoughtful, she with lips so cold and white, Struggling to keep back the murmur, " Curfew ^ must not ring to-night." " Sexton," — Bessie's white lips falter'd, pointing to the prison old. With its walls so dark and gloomy, walls so dark and damp and cold, — '' I've a lover in that prison, doom'd this very night to die At the ringing of the Cujfew, and no earthly help is nigh. 1 Curfew (French couvre-feit, cover-fire): a bell formerly rung in Eng- land in tlie evening as a signal to the inhabitants to rake the ashes over their fires and retire to rest. The curfew is still rung in some parts of England, but no longer for its original purpose. 252 HEROIC BALLADS. Cromwell ^ will not come till sunset " ; and her face grew strangely white, As she spoke in husky whispers, " Curfew must not ring to-night." " Bessie," calmly spoke the sexton, — every word pierced her young heart Like a thousand gleaming arrows, like a deadly poison'd dart, — " Long, long years I've rung the Curfew from that gloomy shadow'd tower ; Every evening, just at sunset, it has told the twilight hour ; I have done my duty ever, tried to do it just and right ; Now I'm old, I will not miss it ; girl, the Curfew rings to-night ! " Wild her eyes and pale her features, stern and white her thoughtful brow, And within her heart's deep centre Bessie made a solemn vow: She had listen'd while the judges read, without a tear or sigh, " At the ringing of the Curfew Basil Underwood must dier And her breath came fast and faster, and her eyes grew large and bright, — One low murmur, scarcely spoken, " Curfew must not ring to-night ! " 1 Cromwell: Oliver Cromwell, " Protector," a ruler of England 1654 to 1658. He was one of the great leaders in the English Civil War. CURFEW MUST NOT RING TO-NIGHT. 253 She with light step bounded forward, sprang within the old church-door, Left the old man coming slowly, paths he'd trod so oft before ; Not one moment paused the maiden, but, with cheek and brow aglow, Stagger'd up the gloomy tower, where the bell swung to and fro : Then she climb'd the slippery ladder, dark, without one ray of light. Upward still, her pale lips saying, "Curfew must not ring to-night." She has reach'd the topmost ladder, o'er her hangs the great dark bell. And the awful gloom beneath her, like the pathway down to Hell ; See, the ponderous tongue is swinging, 'tis the hour of Curfew now ; And the sight has chilled her bosom, stopp'd her breath and paled her brow. Shall she let it ring ? No, never ! her eyes flash with sudden light, As she springs and grasps it firmly, " Curfew shall not ring to-night ! " Out she swung, far out ; the city seem'd a tiny speck below ; There 'twixt heaven and earth suspended, as the bell swung to and fro ; And the half-deaf sexton ringing, (years he had not heard the bell,) 254 HEROIC BALLADS. And he thought the twilight Curfew rang young Basil's funeral knell: Still the maiden clinging firml}-, cheek and brow so pale and white, Still'd her frighten'd heart's wild beating, " Curfeiv shall not ring to-night.''^ It was o'er ; the bell ceased swaying, and the maiden stepp'd once more Firmly on the damp old ladder, where for hundred years before Human foot had not been planted ; and what she this night had done Should be told in long years after : as the rays of set- ting sun Lit the sky with mellow beauty, aged ^ sires, with heads of white, Tell their children why the Curfew did not ring that one sad night. O'er the distant hills came Cromwell ; Bessie saw him, and her brow, Lately white with sickening terror, glows with sudden beauty now : At his feet she told her story, show'd her hands all bruised and torn ; And her sweet young face so haggard, with a look so sad and worn, Touch'd his heart with sudden pity, lit liis eyes with misty light : " Go, your lover lives ! " cried Cromwell ; " Curfew shall not ring to-night." ^Aged : to be pronounced in two syllables, — a'geJ. CURFEW MUST NOT RING TO-NIGHT. 255 Wide they flung the massive portals, led the prisoner forth to die, All his bright young life before him. 'Neath the dark- ening English sky, Bessie came with flying footsteps, eyes aglow with love- light sweet ; Kneeling on the turf beside him, laid his pardon at his feet. In his brave, strong arms he clasp'd her, kiss'd the face upturn'd and white, Whisper'd, " Darling, you have saved me ; Curfew must not ring to-night." Rose A. Hartwick Thorpe. 256 HEROIC BALLADS. THE LOSS OF THE BIRKENHEAD.i Supposed to be narrated by a Soldier who survived. Right on our flank the crimson sun went down, The deep sea rolled around in dark repose, When, like the wild shriek from some captured town, A cry of women rose. The stout ship Birkenhead lay hard and fast, Caught, without hope, upon a hidden rock ; Her timbers thrilled as nerves, when through them passed The spirit of that shock. And ever like base cowards, who leave their ranks In danger's hour, before the rush of steel, Drifted away, disorderly, the planks From underneath her keel. Confusion spread, for, though the coast seemed near. Sharks hovered thick along that white sea-brink. The boats could hold ? — not all ; and it was clear She was about to sink. 1 The Birkenhead : an English war-steamer was wrecked on a reef on the African coast in 1852. She had on board, her crew, one hundred and thirty-two in number, and about five hundred other persons consisting of soldiers with their wives and children. The women and children were sent off in the boats. The men remained on board to face almost certain death. Many of them were young soldiers who had been but a short time in the service, but they were as patient and resolute as veterans. All of these brave men were swept into the sea by the waves, and nearly all were lost. They died that others might live. THE LOSS OF THE BIRKENHEAD. 257 " Out with those boats, and let us haste away," Cried one, " ere yet yon sea the bark devours." The man thus clamoring was, I scarce need say, No officer of ours. We knew our duty better than to care For such loose babblers, and made no reply. Till our good colonel gave the word, and there Formed us in line to die. There rose no murmur from the ranks, no thought. By shameful strength, unhonored life to seek ; Our post to quit we were not trained, nor taught To trample down the weak. So we made women with their children go. The oars ply back again, and yet again ; Whilst, inch by inch, the drowning ship sank low. Still under steadfast men. What follows, why recall ? The brave who died, Died without flinching in the bloody surf ; They sleep as well, beneath that purple tide. As others, under turf ; — They sleep as well, and, roused from their wild grave. Wearing their wounds like stars, shall rise again. Joint-heirs with Christ, because they bled to save His weak ones, not in vain. If that day's work no clasp ^ or medal mark. If each proud heart no cross of bronze ^ may press, 1 Clasp : here, a decoration of honor. 2 Cross of bronze : a cross given by Queen Victoria to men who have distinguished themselves by brave deeds in battle or otherwise. 258 HEROIC BALLADS. Nor cannon thunder loud from Tower and Park,^ This feel we, none the less : That those whom God's high grace there saved from ill — Those also, left His martyrs in the bay — Though not bj siege, though not in battle, still Full well had earned their pay. SiE Francis Hastings Doyle. 1 Tower and Park : the Tower of London and Hyde Park, London, where salutes are tired in honor of great victories. THE SONG OF THE CAMP. 259 THE SONG OF THE CAMP.i " Give us a song ! " the soldiers cried, The outer trenches guarding, When tjie heated guns of the camps allied Grew weary of bombarding. The dark Redan,^ in silent scoff, Lay, grim and threatening, under ; And the tawny mound of the Malakoff ^ No longer belched its thunder. There was a pause. A guardsman said : " We storm the forts to-morrow ; Sing while we may, another day Will bring enough of sorrow." They lay along the battery's side. Below the smoking cannon, — Brave hearts, from Severn and from Clyde,* And from the banks of Shannon.^ They sang of love, and not of fame ; Forgot was Britain's glory ; 1 Song of the Camp : an incident of the English and French siege of the Russian stronghold of Sebastopol in the Crimean War, 1855. 2 Eedan : a Russian fort. ^ Severn and Clyde : rivers of Britain. 3 Malakoff : a Russian fort. ^ Shannon : a river of Ireland. 260 HEROIC BALLADS. Each heart recalled a different name, But all sang Annie Laurie.^ Voice after voice caught up the song, Until its tender passion Rose like an anthem, rich and strong, Their battle-eve confession. Dear girl, her name he dared not speak. But, as the song grew louder. Something upon the soldier's cheek Washed off the stains of powder. Beyond the darkening ocean burned The bloody sunset's embers. While the Crimean valleys learned How English love remembers. And once again a lire of hell Rained on the Russian quarters. With scream of shot, and burst of shell. And bellowing of the mortars ! 1 Annie Laurie: a famous Scotch song, beginning: — * " Maxwelton banks are bonnie, Where early fa's the dew; Where me and Annie Laurie Made up the promise true ; Made up the promise true, And never forget will I; And for bonnie Annie Laurie I'll lay me down and die." See J. T. Fields, British Poetry. THE SONG OF THE CAMP. 261 And Irish Nora's eyes are dim For a singer, dumb and gory ; And English Mary mourns for him Who sang of Annie Laurie. Sleep, soldiers ! still in honored rest Your truth and valor wearing ; The bravest are the tenderest, — The loving are the daring. Bayard Taylor. 262 HEROIC BALLADS. THE "REVENGE." 1 A Ballad of the Fleet. August, 1591. At Flores in the Azores, Sir Richard Grenville lay, And a pinnace,^ like a fluttered bird, came flying from far away : " Spanish ships-of-war at sea ! we have sighted fifty- three ! " Then sware Lord Thomas Howard : " 'Fore ^ God I am no coward; But I cannot meet them here, for my ships are out of gear. And the half my men are sick. I must fly but follow quick. We are six ships of the line ; * can we fight with fifty- three?" 1 During the war between Queen Elizabeth of England and Philip II. of Spain, Sir Richard Grenville, commander of the Revenge, was overtaken at the Azores (1591) by fifty-three Spanish men-of-war, several of them of immense size and carrying a great number of heavy guns. The Revenge was a small vessel, and one of a fleet of six. Five of the English ships fled from so unequal and hopeless a fight ; but Grenville refused to accompany them. He with his crew fought the Spaniards all alone all the afternoon and following night. Finally the little Revenge could hold out no longer, and the enemy took the ship. Sir Richard, who was mortally wounded, was carried on board of one of the Spanish ships. His last words were, " Here die I, Richard Grenville, with a joyful and quiet mind ; for I have ended my life as a good soldier ought to do, who has fought for his country and his queen, for his honor and religion." 2 Pinnace : a small sailing-vessel. 3 'Fore : before. 4 Ships of the line : men-of-war large enough to take their place in line of battle. THE "REVENGE." 263 Then spake Sir Richard Grenville : " I know you are no coward ; You fly them for a moment to fight with them again. But I've ninety men and more that are lying sick ashore. I should count myself the coward if I left them, my Lord Howard, To these Inquisition ^ dogs and the devildoms ^ of Spain." So Lord Howard passed away with five ships of war that day. Till he melted like a cloud in the silent summer heaven; But Sir Richard bore in hand all his sick men from the land Very carefully and slow, Men of Bideford in Devon,^ And we laid them on the ballast down below ; For we brought them all aboard. And they blest him in their pain, that they were not left to Spain, To the thumbscrew * and the stake, for the glory of the Lord. He had only a hundred seamen to work the ship and to fight, 1 Inquisition: a Roman Catholic tribunal for inquiring into and punish- ing heresy. It was established in 1233. It was most active in Spain, where multitudes of Mohammedans and Jews secretly practised their religion. It never obtained a real foothold in Germany, and never in England, though both countries were formerly Zealous upholders of the Catholic faith. The Inquisition practically ceased to exist, even in Spain, many years ago. 2. Devildoms : here, cruelties. 3 Devon: Devonshire, England. 4 Thumbscrew : an instrument of torture for crushing the thumbs. 264 HEROIC BALLADS. Aud he sailed away from Flores till the Spaniard came in sight, With his huge sea-castles ^ heaving upon the weather- bow.^ " Shall we fight or shall we fly ? Good Sir Richard, tell us now, For to fight is but to die ! There'll be little of us left by the time this sun be set." And Sir Richard said again : " We be all good English- men. Let us bang these dogs of Seville, the children of the devil. For I never turned my back upon don ^ or devil yet." Sir Richard spoke and he laughed, and we roared a hurrah, and so The little Revenge ran on sheer into the heart of the foe, With her hundred fighters on deck, and her ninety sick below ; For half of their fleet to the right and half to the left were seen. And the little Revenge ran on through the long sea- lane between. Thousands of their soldiers looked down from their decks and laughed. Thousands of their seamen made mock at the mad little craft 1 Sea-castles : the Spanish vessels were built very high at the bow and stern, so that they loomed up like castles. 2 Weather-bow: the side of a ship's bow against which the wind strikes. 3 Don : a Spanish title like our Mr., but here equivalent to Spaniard. THE "REVENGE." 265 Running on and on, till delayed By their mountain-like San Philip that, of fifteen hun- dred tons, And up-shadowing high above us with her yawning tiers of guns, • Took the breath from our sails, and we stayed. And while now the great San Pliilip hung above us like a cloud, Whence the thunderbolt will fall Long and loud, Four galleons ^ drew away From the Spanish fleet that day, And two upon the larboard ^ and two upon the star- board ^ lay, And the battle-thunder ^ broke from them all. But anon the great San Philip^ she bethought herself and went. Having that within her womb that had left her ill- content ; And the rest they came aboard us, and they fought us hand to hand. For a dozen times they came with their pikes and mus- queteers,^ And a dozen times we Shook 'em off as a dog that shakes his ears, When he leaps from the water to the land. 1 Galleons : large vessels. 2 Larboard : the left side of a ship. 3 Starboard : the right side of a ship. 4 Battle-thunder : discharge of the guns ; broadsides, s Musqueteers : men armed with muskets. 266 HEKOIC BALLADS. And the sun went down, and the stars came out far over the summer sea, But never a moment ceased the fight of the one and the fifty-three. Ship after shijD, the whole night long, their high-built galleons came. Ship after ship, the whole night long, with her battle- thunder and flame ; Ship after ship, the whole night long, drew back with her dead and her shame. For some were sunk and many were shattered, and so could fight us no more — God of battles, was ever a battle like this in the world before ? For he ^ said " Fight on ! fight on ! " Though his vessel was all but a wreck ; And it chanced that, when half of the summer night was gone, With a grisly ^ wound to be drest, he had left the deck. But a bullet struck him that was dressing it suddenly dead. And himself, he was wounded again in the side and the head. And he said " Fight on ! fight on ! " And the night went down, and the sun smiled out far over the summer sea. And the Spanish fleet with broken sides lay round us all in a ring ; 1 He : Sir Richard. "^ Grisly : terrible. THE "REVENGE." 267 But they dared not touch us again, for they feared that we still could sting, So they watched what the end would be. And we had not fought them in vain. But in perilous plight were we, Seeing forty of our poor hundred were slain. And half of the rest of us maimed for life In the crash of the cannonades and the desperate strife ; And the sick men down in the hold were most of them stark and cold. And the pikes were all broken or bent, and the powder was all of it spent ; And the masts and the rigging were lying over the side ; But Sir Richard cried in his English pride, " We have fought such a fight, for a day and a night, As may never be fought again ! We have won great glory, my men ! And a day less or more At sea or ashore. We die — does it matter when ? Sink me the ship. Master Gunner — sink her, split her in twain ! Fall into the hands of God, not into the hands of Spain ! " And the gunner said " Ay, ay," but the seamen made reply : " We have children, we have wives, And the Lord hath spared our lives. We will make the Spaniard promise, if we yield, to let us go ; 268 HEROIC BALLADS. We shall live to fight again and to strike another blow." And the lion ^ there lay dying, and they yielded to the foe. And the stately Spanish men to their flagship ^ bore him then, Where they laid him by the mast, old Sir Richard caught at last. And they praised Mm to his face with their courtly foreign grace ; But he rose upon their decks, and he cried : "I have fought for Queen ^ and Faith like a valiant man and true ; I have only done my duty as a man is bound to do : With a joyful spirit I, Sir Richard Grenville, die ! " And he fell upon their decks, and he died. And they stared at the dead that had been so valiant and true, And had holden the power and glory of Spain so cheap That he dared her with one little ship and his English few; Was he devil or man ? He was devil for aught they knew, But they sank his body with honor down into the deep. And they manned the Revenge with a swarthier, alien * crew. And away she sailed with her loss and longed for her own; 1 The lion : Sir Richard. 2 Flagship : the ship of the commander of the Spanish fleet. 3 Queen : Queen Elizabeth. ^ Alien : foreign ; a crew of Spaniards. THE "REVENGE." 269 When a wind from the lands they had ruined awoke from sleep, And the water began to heave and the weather to moan, And or ever that evening ended, a great gale blew. And a wave like the wave that is raised by an earth- quake grew. Till it smote on their hulls and their sails and their masts and their flags, And the whole sea plunged and fell on the shot-shat- tered navy of Spain, And the little Revenge herself v/ent down by the island crags. To be lost evermore in the main.^ Alfred Tennyson. 1 Main : the open or high sea. 270 HEROIC BALLADS. THE EYE OF AVATERLOO.i There was a sound of revelry by night, And Belgium's capital had gathered then Her beauty and her chivalry, and bright The lamps shone o'er fair women and brave men. A thousand hearts beat happily ; and when Music arose with its voluptuous swell, Soft- eyes looked love to eyes which spake again. And all went merry as a marriage bell ; But hush ! hark ! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell! Did ye not hear it ? — No ; 'twas but the wind, Or the car ^ rattling o'er the stony street ; 1 The battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday, June 18, 1815, at Water- loo, near Brussels. The opposing forces were those of Xapoleon on the one side, and the allied English and Prussian armies under Wellington and Blucher (Bloo'ker) on the other. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for the allies, and the final downfall of Napoleon, who was not long after banished to St. Helena, where he died. Three nights before the battle the Duchess of Richmond gave a ball in Brussels at which the Duke of Wellington is said to have been present. Wellington received news of the advance of the French on that evening, June 15, but the information was kept secret in order not to alarm the people of Brussels. In the course of the evening, the Duke sent mauy of his officers from the ball-room to their posts, and he eventually followed them to prepare for the great battle. 2 Car: here, poetically used of anj vehicle. THE EVE OF WATERLOO. 27l On with the dance ! let joy be unconfined ; No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet To chase the glowing hours with flying feet. But hark ! — that heavy sound breaks in once more, As if the clouds its echo would repeat ; And nearer, clearer, deadlier than before ; Arm ! arm ! it is — it is — the cannon's opening roar ! Within a windowed niche of that high hall ^ Sate Brunswick's fated chieftain ; ^ he did hear That sound the first amidst the festival, And caught its tone with death's prophetic ear ; And when they smiled because he deemed it near, His heart more truly knew that peal too well Which stretched his father on a bloody bier, And roused the vengeance blood alone could quell ; He rushed into the field, and, foremost fighting, fell. Ah ! then and there was hurrying to and fro. And gathering tears, and tremblings of distress. And cheeks all pale, which, but an hour ago. Blushed at the praise of their own loveliness. And there were sudden partings, such as ]Dress The life from out young hearts, and choking sighs Which ne'er might be repeated ; who would guess If ever more should meet those mutual eyes. Since upon night so sweet such awful morn could rise ! 1 The hall : the hall where the ball was given is no longer standing. It was near the centre of the modern city of Brussels. 2 Brunswick's fated chieftain: Frederick William, the German Duke of Brunswick ; he fought with the allies, and was killed in the battle of Quatre Bras, June 16, two days before the great and final battle of Waterloo. 272 HEROIC BALLADS. And there was mounting in hot haste ; the steed, The mustering squadron, and the clattering car, Went pouring forward with impetuous speed. And swiftly forming in the ranks of war ; And the deep thunder, peal on peal afar ; And near, the beat of the alarming drum Roused up the soldier ere the morning star ; While thronged the citizens with terror dumb. Or whispering, with white lips — " The foe I they come 1 they come I " Lord Bykon (from Childe Harold). HOHENLINDEN. 273 HOHENLINDEN. On Linden ^ when the sun was low, All bloodless lay the untrodden snow, And dark as winter was the flow Of Iser,^ rolling rapidly. But Linden saw another sight When the drum beat, at dead of night, Commanding fires of death to light The darkness of her scenery. By torch and trumpet fast arrayed Each horseman drew his battle blade. And furious every charger neighed. To join the dreadful revelry. Then shook the hills with thunder riven. Then rushed the steed to battle driven. And louder than the bolts of heaven Far flashed the red artillery. 1 Hohenlinden : this is a little village of Upper Bavaria situated in a pine forest on the river Iser, about twenty miles from Munich. Here in December, 1800, the combined French and Bavarian forces under General Moreau, representing Napoleon, gained a decisive victory over the Aus- trians. The battle was fought in the forest, in the midst of a snowstorm so blinding that it is said that the armies could only see each other by the flash of their guns. The Austrian ruler was obliged to accept such terms of peace as Napo- leon saw fit to offer, as the only means of saving his capital of Vienna. 2 Linden : a contraction of Hohenlinden. 3 jger (Ee'zer). 274 HEROIC BALLADS. And redder yet those fires shall glow On Linden's hills of blood-stained snow, And darker yet shall be the flow Of Iser, rolling rapidly. 'Tis morn, but scarce yon lurid ^ sun Can pierce the war-clouds, rolling dun, Where furious Frank ^ and fiery Hun ^ Shout in their sulphurous canopy. The combat deepens. On, ye brave. Who rush to glory, or the grave ! Wave, Munich,* all thy banners wave ! And charge with all thy chivalry ! Ah ! few shall part where many meet I The snow shall be their winding-sheet. And every turf beneath their feet Shall be a soldier's sepulchre. Thomas Campbell. 1 Lurid : pale yellow, dismal. 2 Frank : here, a name given to the French. 3 Hun: here, applied to the Austrians. 4 Munich (Mu'nik) : the capital of Bavaria. THE HAPPY WARRIOR. 275 THE HAPPY WARRIOR. Who is the happy warrior ? who is he Whom every man in arms should wish to be ? ****** — 'Tis he whose law is reason ; who depends Upon that law as on the best of friends ; ****** — Who, if he rise to station of command. Rises by open means ; and there will stand On honorable terms, or else retire, And in himself possess his own desire ; Who comprehends his trust, and to the same Keeps faithful with a singleness of aim ; And therefore does not stoop, nor lie in wait For wealth, or honors, or for worldly state : Whom they must follow ; on whose head must fall. Like showers of manna, if they come at all. ****** Who if he be called upon to face Some awful moment to which Heaven has joined Great issues, good or bad for human kind, Is happy as a lover ; and attired With sudden brightness like a man inspired ; And through the heat of conflict, keeps the law In calmness made, and sees what he foresaw ; 276 HEROIC BALLADS. Or if an unexpected call succeed, Come when it mil, is equal to the need: ****** Who, whether praise of him must walk the earth Forever, and to noble deeds give birth, Or he must go to dust without his fame, And leave a dead, unprofitable name, — Finds comfort in himself and in his cause ; And while the mortal mist is gathering, draws His breath in confidence of Heaven's applause : This is the happy warrior : this is he Whom every man in arms should wish to be. William Wordsworth. ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 277 ABRAHAM LINCOLN. You lay a wreath on murdered Lincoln's bier ! You who with mocking pencil wont to trace, Broad for the self-complacent British sneer, His length of shambling limb, his furrowed face. His gaunt, gnarled hands, his unkempt, bristling hair, His garb uncouth, his bearing ill at ease. His lack of all we prize as debonair, ^ Of power or will to shine, of art to please ! You, whose smart pen backed up the pencil's laugh. Judging each step, as though the way were plain ; Reckless, so it could point its paragraph Of chief's perplexity, or people's pain ! Beside this corpse, that bears for Avinding-sheet The stars and stripes he lived to rear anew, Between the mourners at his head and feet. Say, scurrile jester, is there room for i/ou f Yes, he had lived to shame me from my sneer — To blame my pencil and confute my pen — To make me own this hind, of princes peer, This rail-splitter a true-born king of men. 1 Debonair: courteous, elegant. 278 HEROIC BALLADS. My shallow judgment I had learnt to rue, Noting how to occasion's height he rose ; How his quaint wit made home-truth seem more true ; How, iron-like, his temper grew by blows ; How humble, yet how hopeful he could be ; How in good fortune and in ill the same ; Nor bitter in success, nor boastful he, Thirsty for gold, nor feverish for fame. He went about his work — such work as few Ever had laid on head, and heart, and hand — As one who knows where there's a task to do, Man's honest will must Heaven's good grace command ; Who trusts the strength will with the burden grow, That God makes instruments to work his will. If but that will we can arrive to know. Nor tamper with the weights of good and ill. So he went forth to battle, on the side That he felt clear was Liberty's and Right's, As in his pleasant boyhood he had plied His warfare with rude nature's thwarting mights ; — The uncleared forest, the unbroken soil. The iron bark that turns the lumberer's axe, The rapid, that o'erbears the boatman's toil, The prairie, hiding the mazed wanderer's tracks, ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 279 The ambushed Indian, and the prowling bear — Such were the needs that helped his youth to train : Rough culture — but such trees large fruit may bear, If but their stocks be of right girth and grain. So he grew up, a destined work to do, And lived to do it : four long-suffering years' Ill-fate, ill-feeling, ill-report, lived through. And then he heard the hisses change to cheers. The taunts to tribute, the abuse to praise. And took both with the same unwavering mood ; Till, as he came on light, from darkling days. And seemed to touch the goal from where he stood, A felon hand, between the goal and him. Reached from behind his back, a trigger prest — And those perplexed and patient eyes were dim. Those gaunt, long-laboring limbs were laid to rest ! The words of mercy were upon his lips. Forgiveness in his heart and on his pen. When this vile murderer brought swift eclipse To thoughts of peace on earth, good-will to men. The old world and the new, from sea to sea, Utter one voice of sympathy and shame ! Sore heart, so stopped when it at last beat high ; Sad life, cut short just as its triumph came. 280 HEROIC BALLADS. A deed accurst 1 Strokes have been struck before By the assassin's hand, whereof men doubt If more of horror or disgrace they bore ; But thy foul crime, like Cain's, stands darkly out. Vile hand, that brandest murder on a strife, Whate'er its grounds, stoutly and nobly striven ; And vsT-th the martyr's crown crownest a life With much to praise, little to be forgiven I Tom Taylor, in London Punch. COMMEMORATION ODE. 281 COMMEMORATION ODE.i Read at Harvard University, July 21, 1865. Many loved Truth, and lavished life's best oil Amid the dust of books to find her, Content at last, for guerdon ^ of their toil, With the cast mantle she hath left behind her. Many in sad faith sought for her, Many with crossed hands sighed for her ; But these, our brothers,^ fought for her. At life's dear peril wrought for her. So loved her that they died for her, Tasting the raptured fleetness Of her divine completeness : Their higher instinct knew Those love her best who to themselves are true, And what they dare to dream of dare to do ; They followed her and found her What all may hope to find. Not in the ashes of the burnt-out mind. But beautiful, with danger's sweetness round her : Where faith made whole with deed Breathes its awakening breath Into the lifeless creed, 1 Extracts from the Ode. 2 Guerdon: reward, recompense. • 3 Our brothers: the students and graduates of Harvard I'niversity who died in the Civil War. 282 HEROIC BALLADS. They saw her plumed and mailed,^ With sweet, stern face unveiled, And all-repaying eyes, look proud on them in death. Life may be given in many ways, And loyalty to Truth be sealed As bravely in the closet as the field. So generous is fate ; But then to stand beside her When craven churls deride her, To front a lie in arms and not to yield, — This shows, methinks, God's plan And measure of a stalwart man. Limbed like the old heroic breeds. Who stand self-poised on manhood's solid earth. Not forced to frame excuses for his birth. Fed from witliin with all the strength he needs. Such was he, our Martyr-chief, ^ Whom late the Nation he had led. With ashes on her head Wept with the passion of an angry grief: Nature, they say, doth dote. And cannot make a man Save on some worn-out plan. Repeating us by rote : • For him her Old- World moulds aside she threw. And, choosing sweet clay from the heart Of the unexhausted West, 1 Mailed: clad in armor. - Our Martyr -chief: Abraham Lincoln. COMMEMORATION ODE. 283 With stuff untainted shaped a hero new, Wise, steadfast in the strength of God, and true. Our children shall behold his fame, The kindly-earnest, brave, foreseeing man. Sagacious, patient, dreading praise, not blame, New birth of our new soil, the first American. We sit here in the Promised Land That flows with Freedom's honey and milk ; But 'twas they won it, sword in hand. Making the nettle danger soft for us as silk. We welcome back our bravest and our best ; ^ Ah, me ! not all ! some come not with the rest. Who went forth brave and bright as any here ! I strive to mix some gladness with my strain. But the sad strings complain, And will not please the ear ; I sweep them for a paean,^ but they wane Again and yet again Into a dirge, and die away in pain. In these brave ranks I only see the gaps. Thinking of dear ones whom the dumb turf wraps. Dark to the triumphs which they died to gain : Fitlier may others greet the living. For me the past is unforgiving ; I with uncovered head Salute the sacred dead, Who went and who returned not. — Say not so ! i Paean : a song of triumph. 284 HEROIC BALLADS. 'Tis not the grapes of Canaan that repay ,i But the high faith that failed not by the way ; Virtue treads paths that end not in the grave ; No ban ^ of endless night exiles the brave ; And to the saner mind We rather seem the dead that stayed behind. Blow, trumpets, all your exultations blow ! For never shall their aureoled ^ presence lack : I see them muster in a gleaming row, With ever-youthful brows that nobler show; We find in our dull road their shining track ; In every nobler mood We feel the orient * of their spirit glow, Part of our life's unalterable good, Of all our saintlier aspiration ; They come transfigured back. Secure from change in their high-hearted ways. Beautiful evermore, and with the rays Of morn on their white Shields of Expectation ! Bow down, dear land, for thou hast found release ! Thy God, in these distempered days. Hath taught thee the sure wisdom of His ways, And through thine enemies hath wrought thy peace I Bow down in prayer and praise ! O Beautiful ! my Country ! ours once more ! Smoothing thy gold of war-dishevelled hair O'er such sweet brows as never other wore, 1 Grapes of Canaan: see Numbers xiii. 17-30. 2 Ban : curse. 3 Au'reoled: surrounded by a halo of holy light. 4 Orient: the dawning or perfect light. COMMEMORATION ODE. 285 And letting thy set lips, Freed from wrath's pale eclipse, The rosy edges of their smile lay bare, What words divine of lover or of poet Could tell our love and make thee know it, Among the Nations bright beyond compare '^ What were our lives without thee ? What all our lives to save thee ? We reck ^ not what we gave thee. We will not dare to doubt thee, But ask whatever else, and we will dare ! James Russell Lowell 1 Reck : care. 286 HEROIC BALLADS. SONG OF THE SWORD.i Thou sword at mv left side. What means thy flash of pride ? Thou smilest so on me, I take delight in thee. Hurrah ! " I grace a warrior's side, And hence my flash of pride ; What rapture thus to be The guardian of the free ! " Hurrah I Good sword, yes, I am free. And fondly I love thee, As wert thou, at my side, My sweet affianced bride. Hurrah ! " And I to thee, by Heaven, My light steel life have given ; O were the knot but tied ! When wilt thou fetch thy bride ? " Hurrah ! 1 Charles Theodore Korner (Kur'ner) , a young German poet and soldier, was killed in 1813, while fighting for his country against the forces of Napo- leon. He was but twenty-two when he died. He wrote this song a few hours before his death, and had just finished reading it to a companion when the signal was given for battle. His comrades buried him at the foot of an old oak on the battle-field, and cut his name deep in the bark of the tree. This poem is, however, his best monument. SONG OF THE SWORD. 287 The clanging trumps betray The blushing bridal day ; When cannons, far and wide, Shall roar, I'll fetch my bride. Hurrah I " O blessed, blessed meeting ! My heart is wildly beating ; Come, bridegroom, come for me ; My garland waiteth thee." Hurrah ! « Why in thy sheath doth clash. As wouldst thou brightly flash In battle, wild and proud? Why clashest thou so loud ? Hurrah ! " Yes, in my sheath I clash ; I long to gleam and flash In battle, wild and proud. 'Tis why I clash so loud." Hurrah ! Stay in thy narrow cell ; What wilt thou here ? O tell ! In thy small chamber bide, Soon will I fetch my bride. Hurrah ! " O do not long delay ! To Love's fair fields away. Where blood-red roses blow, And death blooms round us so ! " Hurrah ! 288 HEROIC BALLADS. Then quit thy sheath that I On thee may feast mine eye. Come forth, my sword, and view The Father's mansion blue ! Hurrah ! " O lovely blue expanse ! Where golden sunbeams dance. How in the nuptial reel Will gleam the bridal steel ! " Hurrah ! • Up, warriors ! awake. Ye German brave ! O take, Should not your hearts be warm, Your bride into your arm. Hurrah ! At first she did but cast A stolen glance ; at last Hath truly God allied The right hand to the bride. Hurrah ! Then press with fervent zeal The bridal lips of steel To thine ; and woe betide Him who deserts his bride ! Hurrah ! Now let her sing and clash, That glowing sparks may flash ! Morn wakes in nuptial pride — Hurrah, thou Iron Bride ! Hurrah ! From the German of Korner. SHERIDAN'S RIDE. 289 SHERIDAN'S RIDE.i October 19, 1864. Up from the South at break of day, Bringing to Winchester fresh dismay, The affrighted air with a shudder bore, Like a herald in haste, to the chieftain's door. The terrible grumble, and rumble, and roar. Telling the battle was on once more, And Sheridan twenty miles away. • And wider still those billows of war Thundered along the horizon's bar ; And louder yet into Winchester rolled The roar of that red sea uncontrolled, Making the blood of the listener cold. As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, And Sheridan twenty miles away. But there is a road from Winchester town, A good broad highway leading down ; 1 During the Civil War, in September, 1864, General Sheridan of the Union army defeated General Early with his Confederate troops, and sent him " whirling up the Shenandoah Valley." Some weeks afterward. Early surprised Sheridan's men at Cedar Creek, about twenty miles from Win- chester. Sheridan was absent, and Early drove the Union forces before him. Sheridan heard the noise of the cannon at Winchester, and riding rapidly reached the field a little before noon. As he rode up he shouted, 'Face the other way, boys; we're going back!" The "boys" did go back, and attacked the Confederates with such vigor that they speedily cleared the valley of them. In return for this victory. President Lincoln atiade Sheridan a major-general. 290 HEROIC BALLADS. And there, through the flush of the morning light, A steed as black as the steeds of night Was seen to pass, as with eagle flight. As if he knew the terrible need ; He stretched away with his utmost speed ; Hills rose and fell ; but his heart was gay. With Sheridan fifteen miles away. Still sprung from those swift hoofs, thundering South, The dust, like smoke from the cannon's mouth ; Or a trail of a comet, sweeping faster and faster. Foreboding to traitors the doom of disaster. The heart of the steed and the heart of the master Were beating like prisoners assaulting their walls, Impatient to be where the battle-field calls ; Every nerve of the charger was strained to full play, With Sheridan only ten miles away. Under his spurning feet thd road Like an arrowy Alpine river flowed. And the landscape sped away behind Like an ocean flying before the wind ; And the steed, like a bark fed with furnace ire, Swept on with his wild eye full of fire. But lo ! he is nearing his heart's desire ; He is snuffing the smoke of the roaring fray. With Sheridan only five miles away. The first that the General saw were the groups Of stragglers, and then the retreating troops. What was done ? what to do ? A glance told him both. Then, striking his spurs, with a terrible oath, SHERIDAN'S RIDE. 291 He dashed down the line, mid a storm of huzzas, And the wave of retreat checked its course there, because The sight of the master compelled it to pause. With foam and with dust the black charger was gray ; By the flash of his eye, and the red nostril's play, He seemed to the whole great army to say, " I have brought you Sheridan all the way From Winchester down to save the day ! " Hurrah ! hurrah for Sheridan ! Hurrah ! hurrah for horse and man ! And when their statues are placed on high. Under the dome of the Union sky. The American soldier's Temple of Fame, — There with the glorious General's name. Be it said, in letters both bold and bright, " Here is the steed that saved the day By carrying Sheridan into the fight, From Winchester, twenty miles away ! " Thomas Buchanan Read. 292 HEROIC BALLADS. THE PLACE WHERE MAN SHOULD DIE. How little recks ^ it where man lie, When once the moment's past In which the dim and glazing eye Has looked on earth its last — Whether beneath the sculptured urn The coffined form shall rest, Or in its nakedness return Back to its mother's breast ! Death is a common friend or foe, As different men may hold, And at his summons each must go. The timid and the bold ; But when the spirit free and warm. Deserts it as it must. What matter where the lifeless form Dissolves again to dust? The soldier falls 'mid corses piled Upon the battle-plain, Where reinless war-steeds gallop wild Above the mangled slain ; 1 Becks ; matters. THE PLACE WHERE MAN SHOULD DIE. 293 But though his corse be grim to see, Hoof-trampled on the sod, What recks it, when the spirit free Has soared aloft to God ? 'Twere sweet, indeed, to close our eyes. With those we cherish near. And wafted upwards by their sighs, Soar to some calmer sphere. But whether on the scaffold high. Or in the battle's van, The fittest place Avhere man can die Is where he dies for man ! Michael Joseph Barry. 294 HEROIC BALLADS. CONCORD FIGHT.i By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the world. The foe long since in silence slept ; Alike the conqueror silent sleeps ; And Time the ruined bridge has swept Down the dark stream which seaward creeps. On the green bank, by this soft stream, We set to-day a votive stone ; ^ That memory may her dead redeem, When, like our sires, our sons are gone. Spirit, that made those heroes dare To die, and leave their children free. Bid Time and Nature gently spare The shaft we raise to them and thee. R. W. Emerson. 1 The battle of Concord, Mass., April 19, 1775, was the opening battle of the Revolution. "There," as Emerson says, " the Americans first shed British blood." This hymn was sung at the completion of the battle monu- ment erected April 19, 1836, on the bank of Concord River. 2 Votive stone : a stone or monument raised in grateful commemoration of some event. PAUL REVERE'S RIDE. 295 PAUL REVERE'S RIDE. Listen, my cliildi-en, and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,^ On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five : Hardly a man is now alive Who remembers that famous day and year. He said to his friend, — " If the British march By land or sea from the town to-night, 1 Paul Kevere : At the outbreak of the Revolution, large quantities of provisions and ammunition were stored at Concord, Mass., for the American provincial army. Concord is about eighteen miles from Boston. General Gage, who had the command of the British troops in Boston, deter- mined to destroy the "rebel stores " at that town, and sent a detachment of eight hundred troops for this purpose, and also to arrest the "traitors," John Hancock and Samuel Adams, who were then at Lexington. The British troops embarked secretly on the night of April 18, 1775, and crossing over from Boston to Cambridge, began their march to Concord by way of Lexington. But the Boston patriots were on the alert, and as soon as it was known that the British had started, Paul Revere was sent to give the alarm. Mounting a swift horse at Charlestown, opposite Boston, he succeeded in , reaching Lexington in time to warn Hancock and Adams of their danger, and then started for Concord, but was stopped by British troops at Lincoln, and brought back to Lexington. Dr. Samuel Prescott of Concord had been passing the evening at Lexington, and he carried the alarm to Concord. The British succeeded in destroying a considerable part of the supplies at that place and then began the memorable march back to Boston. They were hotly pursued by the enraged farmers, and their march soon became a retreat, and a running retreat at that. When they reached Lex- ington and stopped to rest, it is said that their tongues hung out of their mouths "like dogs after a chase." Had it not been for reinforcements, few of them would ever have reached Boston; as it was, their loss was very heavy. 296 HEROIC BALLADS. Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry-arch Of the North-Church ^ tower, as a signal-light, — One if by land, and two if by sea ; And I on the opposite shore ^ will be, Ready to ride and spread the alarm Tlirough every Middlesex village and farm, For the country-folk to be up and to arm." Then he said good-night, and with muffled oar Silently row'd to the Charlestown shore, Just as the moon rose over the bay, Where swinging wide at her moorings lay The Somerset, British man-of-war: A phantom ship, with each mast and spar Across the moon, like a prison-bar. And a huge, black hulk, that was magnified By its own reflection in the tide. Meanwhile his friend, through alley and street Wanders and watches with eager ears. Till in the silence around him he hears The muster of men at the barrack-door, The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet. And the measured tread of the grenadiers Marching down to their boats on the shore. Then he climb'd to the tower of the church. Up the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread, To the belfry-chamber overhead. And startled the pigeons from their perch 1 The North Church: Christ Church, Salem Street, Boston. It still stands, and bids fair to do so for at least another century. 2 Opposite shore: the Charlestown shore, opposite Boston. PAUL REVERE'S RIDE. 297 On the sombre rafters, that round him made Masses and movmg shapes of shade ; Up the light ladder, slender and tall, To the highest window in the wall. Where he paused to listen and look down A moment on the roofs of the quiet town, And the moonlight flowing over all. Beneath, in the church-yard, lay the dead In their night-encampment on the hill, Wrapp'd in silence so deep and still. That he could hear, like a sentinel's tread, The watchful night-wind as it went Creeping along from tent to tent. And seeming to whisper, " All is well ! " A moment only he feels the spell Of the place and the hour, the secret dread Of the lonely belfry and the dead ; For suddenly all his thoughts are bent On a shadowy something far away. Where the river widens to meet the bay, — A line of black, that bends and floats On the rising tide, like a bridge of boats. Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride, Booted and spurr'd, with a heavy stride. On the opposite shore walk'd Paul Revere. Now he patted his horse's side. Now gazed on the landscape far and near. Then impetuous stamp'd the earth, And turn'd and tighten'd his saddle-girth ; But mostly he watch'd with eager search The belfry-tower of the old North Church, 298 HEROIC BALLADS. As it rose above the graves on the hill, Lonely, and spectral, and sombre, and still. And, lo ! as he looks, on the belfry's height, A glimmer, and then a gleam of light ! He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns. But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight A second lamp in the belfry burns ! A hurry of hoofs in a village street, A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark. And beneath from the pebbles, in passing, a spark Struck out by a steed that flies fearless and fleet : That was all I And yet, through the gloom and the light, The fate of a nation was riding that night ; And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight. Kindled the land into flame with its heat. It was twelve by the village clock. When he cross'd the bridge into Medford town, He heard the crowing of the cock. And the barking of the farmer's dog. And felt the damp of the river-fog. That rises when the sun goes down. It was one by the village clock. When he rode into Lexington. He saw the gilded weathercock Swim in the moonlight as he pass'd. And the meeting-house windows, blank and bare, Gaze at him with a spectral glare. As if they already stood aghast At the bloody work they would look upon. PAUL RE VERB'S RIDE. 299 It was two by the village clock, When he came to the bridge in Concord town.^ He heard the bleating of the flock, And the twitter of birds among the trees, And felt tlie breath of the morning-breeze Blowing over the meadows brown. And one was safe and asleep in his bed Who at the bridge would be first to fall,^ Who that day would be lying dead, Pierced by a British musket-ball. You know the rest. In the books you have read How the British regulars fired and fled ; How the farmers gave them ball for ball. From behind each fence and farmyard-wall. Chasing the red-coats down the lane. Then crossing the fields to emerge again Under the trees at the turn of the road, And only pausing to fire and load. So through the night rode Paul Revere ; And so through the night went his cry of alarm To every Middlesex village and farm, — A cry of defiance, and not of fear, — A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door. And a word that shall echo for evermore ! 1 Concord: Revere himself did not succeed in reaching Concord; but the alarm was carried there by Dr. Samuel Prescott of Concord, who had spent the evening at Lexington. 2 First to fall : Shattuck's History of Concord states that the first to fall were Captain Davis and Abner Hosmer of Acton. Three British soldiers were killed. The bodies of two of them were buried where they fell. 300 HEROIC BALLADS. For, borne on the night-wind of the Past, Through all our history, to the last, In the hour of darkness, and peril, and need. The people will waken and listen to hear The hurrying hoof-beat of that steed. And the midnight message of Paul Revere. H. W. Longfellow. SAXON GRIT. 301 SAXON GRIT. Worn with the battle, by Stamford town,i Fighting the Norman, by Hastings Bay, Harold, the Saxon's sun, went down While the acorns were falling one autumn day. Then the Norman said, " I am lord of the land : By tenor of conquest here I sit ; I will rule you now with the iron hand " ; But he had not thought of the Saxon grit. 4U- -^ -^ ^ -^ To the merry green-wood went bold Robin Hood,^ With his strong-hearted yeomanry ripe for the fray. Driving the arrow into the marrow Of all the proud Normans who came in his way ; Scorning the fetter, fearless and free, 1 Early in January, 1066, Edward the Confessor, king of England, died, and Harold, the last of the Saxon or English kings, came to the throne. William, Duke of Normandy, a distant kinsman of Harold's, demanded the crown, declaring that Harold had sworn to uphold his claim to it. Harold refused to recognize William's claim, and the duke, raising a large force, invaded England late in September, landing at Hastings on the south coast. Harold was then in the north, where he had gone to repel an in- vasion from Norway. He gained the battle of Stamford Bridge, in York- shire, and then hurried south to meet William. In the terrible battle of Hastings which ensued, the English army was utterly defeated and Harold himself slain. William became king of England, and eventually Norman wit and Saxon grit united to make the English race the foremost people of the globe. '^ Robin Hood : according to tradition he was an English outlaw, com- 302 HEROIC BALLADS. Winning by valor, or foiling by wit, Dear to our Saxon folk ever is he. This merry old rogue with the Saxon grit. And Ket,i the tanner, whipped out his knife. And Wat,^ the smith, his hammer brought down. For ruth ^ of the maid he loved better than life. And by breaking a head, made a hole in the Crown. From the Saxon heart rose a mighty roar, " Our life shall not be by the King's permit ; We will fight for the right, we want no more " ; Then the Norman found out the Saxon grit. For slow and sure as the oak had grown From the acorns falling that autumn day, So the Saxon manhood in thorpe ^ and town To a nobler stature grew alway ; Winning by inches, holding by clinches, Standing by law and the human right. Many times failing, never once quailing, So the new day came out of the night. manding a band of outlaws in Sherwood Forest, in the twelfth century, and warring against the rich and cruel Norman oppressors. He figures conspicuously in Scott's " Ivanhoe," under the name of Locksley. 1 Ket and "Wat : they were both leaders of insurrections against tyranny. Wat's rising took place in the reign of Richard II. (1381) ; and, though it failed at the time, it eventually helped to bring about the emancipation of the English laboring classes from a condition but little better than that of slaves. Ket's insurrection occurred under Henry VIII., a century and a half later. Just how Wat's rising can be said to have " made a hole in the Crown " is not clear ; possibly, because as the people gained power, the Crown lost it. Richard was deposed and died in prison, but Wat's rebellion seems to have had no direct connection with the king's fall. 2Euth: pity. 3 Thorpe : a Saxon name for a cluster of farm-houses ; a hamlet. SAXON GRIT. . 303 Then rising afar in the western sea, A new world stood in the morn of the day, Ready to welcome the brave and free, Who could wrench out the heart and march away From the narrow, conservative, dear old land. Where the poor are held by a cruel bit. To ampler spaces for heart and hand — For here was a chance for the Saxon grit. Steadily steering, eagerly peering, Trusting in God your fathers came. Pilgrims and strangers, fronting all dangers. Cool-headed Saxons with hearts aflame. Bound by the letter,^ but free from the fetter. And hiding their freedom in Holy Writ, They gave Deuteronomy ^ hints in economy, And made a new Moses of Saxon grit. They whittled and waded through forest and fen. Fearless as ever of what might befall ; Pouring out life for the nurture of men ; In faith that by manhood the world wins all. Inventing baked beans and no end of machines ; Great with the rifle, and great with the axe — Sending their notions over the oceans. To fill empty stomachs and straighten bent backs. 1 The letter : the letter of the Scriptures. 2 Deuteronomy : the Book of Deuteronomy is largely made up of rules and regulations for the government of the Israelites on their way to the Promised Land ; some of these rules relate to the management of domestic aifairs. 304 HEROIC BALLADS. Swift to take chances that end in the dollar, Yet open of hand when the dollar is made, Maintaining the " meetin','' exalting the scholar, But a little too anxious about a good trade ; This is young Jonathan,^ son of old John,^ Positive, peaceable, firm in the right, Saxon men all of us, may we be one. Steady for freedom and strong in her might. Then, slow and sure, as the oaks have grown From the acorns that fell on that autumn day, So this new manhood in city and town, To a nobler stature will grow alway ; Winning by inches, holding by clinches. Slow to contention, and slower to quit, Now and then failing, never once quailing. Let us thank God for the Saxon grit. Robert Collyer. (Read at the New England dinner in commemoration of the Landing of the Pilgrims, Dec. 22, 1879.) 1 Jonathan: i.e. "Brother Jonathan." During the early part of the Revolutionary War General Washington placed great reliance in the good judgment of Governor Jonathan Trumbull of Connecticut. In emergencies he was often heard to say, half humorously, ' ' We must consult Brother Jonathan." From this fact some authorities suppose the name of " Jona- than" came, in time, to designate the American people. Others think it was derived from Captain Jonathan Carver, an American traveller among the Indians before the Revolution, whom the aborigines were accustomed to call " Our dear brother Jonathan." 2 John: i.e. "John Bull"; a nickname occurring first in Arbuthnot's satirical "History of John Bull," 1713. He applied it in ridicule to the famous Duke of Marlborough; later, it came to designate the English nation. DECORATION. 305 DECORATION.i " Manibus date lilia plenis." ^ 'Mid the flower-wreathed tombs I stand, Bearing lilies in my hand. Comrades I in what soldier-grave Sleeps the bravest of the brave ? Is it he who sank to rest With his colors round his breast? Friendship makes his tomb a shrine, Garlands veil it ; ask not mine. One low grave, yon trees beneath, Bears no roses, wears no wreath ; Yet no heart more high and warm Ever dared the battle-storm. Never gleamed a prouder eye In the front of victory ; Never foot had firmer tread On the field where hope lay dead. Than are hid within this tomb. Where the untended grasses bloom ; And no stone with feigned distress, Mocks the sacred loneliness. 1 Compare Bryant's fine poem *• The Conqueror's Grave." 2 Strew lilies with generous hands. 306 HEROIC BALLADS. Youth and beauty, dauntless will, Dreams that life could ne'er fulfil • Here lie buried, — here in peace Wrongs and woes have found release. Turning from my comrades' eyes. Kneeling where a woman lies, I strew lilies on the grave Of the bravest of the brave. T. W. HiGGINSON. SACRIFICE. 307 SACRIFICE. Though love repine, and reason chafe, There came a voice without reply, — " 'Tis man's perdition to be safe. When for the truth he ought to die." R, W. Emerson. INDEX TO NOTES. Abjuring, 83. Adamantine, 182. Aften, 71. Agincourt, 53, 165. Alban kings, 38. Alban mountains, 32. Albinia, 17. Algidus, 27. Alien, 268. Almayne, 62. Alsatia, 67. Alvernus, 19. Amain, 2, 20, 120. Angus, 79. Annie Laurie, 260. Anon, 178. Apace, 238. Appenzel, 60. Appius Claudius, 30, 49. Archers, 104. Argyle, 91. Armada, 50. Array, 2, 122. Arretium, 4. Aruns, 17. Ashby, 224. Ashur, 176. Askance, 30. Assyut, 89. Astley, 66. Astur, 7, 10. Atabals, 118. Athwart, 23. Aught, 30. Augurs, 20, 34. Annus, 16. Aureoled, 284. Aurigny, 51. Auser, 3. Avengers, 42. Axe, 170. Axes, 30, 37. Aye, 95. Baal, 176. Bairnie, 85. Baleful, 248. Ball and blade, 223. Balm, 138. Ban, 284. Banks, 223. Bannock-Burn, 71. Barb, 243. Barbara Frietchie, 209, 210. Barclay of Ury, 233. Bards, 184. Bare, 170. Barkened, 174. Bars, 209. Battlement, 96. Battle-van, 115. Battle of the Baltic, 181. Battle thunder, 265. Bay, 53, 187. Bayou, 140. Beachy Head, 54. Beacon, 52. Beaulieu, 55. Beaumont, 170. Beethoven, 225. Behest, 78. Behooves, 52. Belial, 69. Belted knight, 93. Belvoir, 58. Bent, 158. Berwick bounds, 54. Besprent, 169. Betide, 117. Bilbow, 168. Black fleet, 51. Blackheath, 57. Blake, 179. Blazon, 52. Blue-Light Elder, 222. Boadicea, 75. Bohemia, 53. Bond, 119. Bonnets, 171. Bonnie, 84. Bonnie Dundee, 171. Bonny, 146. Booming shots, 149. Border, 219. Border side, 101. Borough-muir, 102. Both well banks, 124. Bow, 90, 172. Bowers, 79. Bozzaris, 135, 136. Brake, 219. Brand, 10. Bravoes, 67. Break a spear, 157. 310 INDEX TO NOTES. Bregenz, 129. Bridegroom, 95. Bristol, 55. Britannia, 180. Broad pieces, 68. Brooked, 102. Bruce, 114. Brunswick, 271. Buckler, 109. Buff-coat, 193. Buffs, 217. Burgesses, 193. Burghers, 64. Caesar's shield, 53. Caitiff, 34. Caius, 46. Calabrian sea-marks, 48. Camerons, 92. Campania, 17. Campbell clan, 88. Cannobie, 221. Canny, 229. Canting, 241. Captain of the Gate, 12. Capuan odors, 39. Car, 10, 270. Carles, 90. Carlin, 233. Carlisle, 58. Carmen Bellicosum, 202. Cars. 38. Cart, 89. Casablanca, 148. Case, 25. Cask, 28. Casque, 103. Castile, 51. Castle rock, 173. Catches, 69. Cause, 67. Causeway, 173. Cawbeen, 189. Chair, curule, 37. Champ, 3. Champaign, 6. Charger, 132. Chevy-Chase, 154. Chiefs, 174. Churl, 233. Cilnius, 10. Ciminian Hill, 3. Circe, 29. Cities, 9. City band, 99. Civic crown, 40. Clad in clay, 163. Clanis, 3. Clans, 88. Clarence, 169. Clarions, 67. Clasp, 257. Claudian family, 32. Claudius, 36. Claverhouse, 82. Claymore, 88. Clermiston's lea, 174. Client, 30. Clifton, 55. Clitumnus, 3. Close-heads, 173. Cloth-yard, 161. Cohorts, 37, 175. Coligni, 61. Comitium, 26. Commons, 15. Concord, 299. Concord fight, 294. Consul, 8. Continentals, 202. Cope, 70. Copper, 43. Corinthian mirrors, 38. Cornet, 63. Corn-land, 26. Corioli, 46. Corslet. 101. Cortona, 3. Cosa, 17. Cossack, 127. Cossus, 47. Couch, 174. Couched a spear, 102. Couriers, 57. Covenanting carles, 90. Cowls, 173. Cowthie, 172. Crafts, 44. Craftsman, 32. Cranbourne's oaks, 55. Craven, 23. Crest, 10. Crimean War, 126. Cromwell, 252. Cross-bolts, 121. Cross of bronze, 257. Croup, 193. Crow, 15. Crown, Civic, 40. Crown, Laurel, 37. Crustumerium, 7. Cuirasses, 66. Culverin, 61. Curfew, 251. Currach of Kildare, 188. Curule chair, 37. Cypress, 44. Darwin's dales, 57. D'Aumale, 62. Debate, 164. Debonair, 277.- December 21st, 196. Decoration, 305. Deems, 41. Deftly, 19. Degree, 102. Deil, 172. Dell, 185. Deuteronomy, 303. Devildoms, 263. INDEX TO NOTES. 311 Devon, 263. Diamonds, 69. Diego, 239. Ding, 169. Dinna, 85. Doffed, 101. Dog-star, 38. Don, 264. Doublet, 69. Douce, 172. Doughtily, 170. Doun, 172. Down, 55. Drawbridge, 80. Dree, 123. Drovers, 155. Druid, 75. Duke of Mayenne, 62. Dundee, 88, 171. Dunedin, 92. Duniewassals, 174. Durham's stalls, 69. Eagles, 76. Earl Percy, 154. Eddystone, 54. Edgecumbe, 52. Ee, 172. E'en, 172. E'er, 158. Egmont's Flemish Spears, 60. Elsinore, 183. Ely's fane, 58. Ensigns, 15. Erewhile, 33. Erpingham, 168. Erst, 104. Eske, 219. Etruscan, 2. Excester, 167. Eyne, 120. Fa', 71. Fabian, 36. Fabius, 47. Faction, 14. Fain, 121. Falchion, 74. Falerii, 17. Fallow, 155. False sons, 35. Fanhope, 170. Fasces, 36. Fast by, 156. Father Tiber, 24. Fathers of the City, 7. Favor, 189. Fell, 17, 110, 123. Fen, 17. Fenceless, 89. FiUets, 37. Fitfully, 21. Flag-bird, 178. Flagship, 268. Flash, 97. Flecking, 145. Flesher, 33. Flodden, 98. Flower, 119. . Fold, 175. 'Fore, 262. Forth, 174. Fortress strength, 111. Forum, 29. Fourfold shield, 10. Fox-earth, 36. Frank, 121, 274. Frederick, 209. Freit, 115. Froward, 234. Furies, 29. Furius, 46. Gallants, 53. Galleons, 265. Galliard, 220. Gang, 171. Garners, 37. Gate, 7, 80, 134. Gate, Latin, 45. Gates, 56. Gaul, 9, 76. Gauntlet, 81. Gaunt's pile, 58. Geneva ministers, 96. Genoa's bow, 53. Genoese, 138. Gentile, 176. Gibbet, 95. Glades, 242. Glaive, 231, Glistering, 83. Glo'ster, 169. Gold, Spanish, 39. Gordon, 173. Gown, Purple, 37. Gown, toga, 40. Gowns, 8. Grace, 52, 173. Graeme, 91. Graham, 82, 84. Grahame, 87. Grandsire, 167. Grape, 224. Grapes of Canaan, 284. Grapevine, 228. Grass-market, 172. Gray goose wing, 162. Great vengeance, 35. Green, 189. Grenadiers, 202. Grisly, 266. Groan, 97. Grooms, 80. Gudetoun, 172. Guelders, 62. Guerdon, 281. Gullies, 173. Hae, 71. Halberdiers, 52. Haled. 162. 312 INDEX TO NOTES. Half the west, 172. Ivry, 59. Hall, 57, 93. I wis, 8. Hamlet, 58. Hampstead, 57. Jack-boots, 193. Hap, 156. James, 160. Hard by, 120. Janiculum, 7. Hard head, 162. Jeopardie, 118. Hardy, 169. Jesuit, 70. Harness, 99. Jewry, 236. Harts, 155. John (Bull), 304. Haytien seas, 138. Jonathan (Brother), 304 Heath, 92. Juan, 238. Helm, 19. Judgment-seat, 42. Henchman, 235. Juno, 27. Henry, 158. Kaux, 165. Herminius, 13. Hied, 8. Keep, 143. Ken, 145. Hielanders, 145. Kent, 57. Ket, 302. High Pontiffs, 38. Highland, 88. Hill, 223. Hinds, 17. Kilmarnoch, 173. King Henry, 158. Hoar, 114. King James, 100, 142. Kings, Alban, 38. Hohenlinden, 273. Hold, 79. King's crown, 171. Kirk, 125. Holy fillets, 37. Kite 41 Holy maidens, 12. Kraken, 216. Holster, 193. Horse-guards, "03. Labored, 91. House of Doo j, 91. Laird, 84. Houses, 46, .0. Lake Constance, 129. Humbledovm, 164. Lands, 14. Hun, 274. Lang-hafted, 173. Lannes, 177. Larboard, 265. Icilius, 35. Lars Porsena, 1. Ilk, 172. 'Larum, 95. Ilva, 16. Latian, 6. Indian isles, 138. Latin Gate, 45. In forma pauperis, 223. Laurel crown, 37. Inquisition, 263. Laurel leaf, 138. Inverlochy, 88. Lausulus, 17. Iser, 273. Lays, 40. Ivory car, 10. Lea, 174. League, 60. Leaguer, 107. Leash, 90. Lee, 118. Leech, 42. Leech-craft, 37. Lemans, 69. Leonidas, 218. Leviathans, 181. Levin-bolt, 94. Lew Wallace, 229. Licinias, 30. Liege, 59. Lieutenant Morris, 216. Lilies, 53, 62. Limb, 94. Lincoln, 58. Linden, 273. Lindsay's pride, 88. Lion, 53. List, 50. Lists, 79, 223. Litter, 18. Lochaber, 88. Lochinvar, 219. Lode, 159. Long hair, 66. Longleat's towers, 55. Longstreet, 223. Lord Edward, 188. Lord James, 114. Lords of Convention, 171. Lorraine, 60. Lowers, 16. Lowlands, 174. Lucerne, 64. Lucrece, 11, 31. Lucumo, 10. Luna, 4. Lunging, 202. Lurid, 274. Lutzen, 234. Lyart, 124. INDEX TO NOTES. 313 Lynn, 54. Lyre, 139. Maiden knight, 169. Maiden Town, 100. Maidens, the holy, 12. Mail, 62. Main, 167, 269. Malakoff, 259. Malvern's height, 57. Mamilius, 6. Mammon, 69. Man of blood, 66. Manors, 79. Marcian fury, 36. Marion, 242. Market cross, 52. Marmaduke, 66. Marmion, 7^. Marquis, 89. Marrows, 173. Mass, 64. Massilia, 3. Match, 241. Maximilian, 63. May, 241. Mayenne, 60. McGregor's, 145. Measure, 220. Melrose, 125. Mendip's caves, 55. Meteor, 180. Michael's hold, 142. Mile, 51. Milford Bay, 54. Mines, 144. Mirrors, Corinthian, 38. Miserere, 108. Mitre, 69. Mons Meg, 173. Monterey, 198. Montrose, 87, 173, Moslem, 136. Mother Mary, 104. Mount Alvernus, 19. Mount Palatine, 48. Munich, 274. Muraena, 33. Musqueteers, 265. Must, 4. Nar, 16. Naseby, 65. Nelson, 179, 181. Nequinum, 16. Nether gloom, 42. Netherby, 219. Nine Gods, 1. Noisome, 38. Noo, 146. North, 65. Northern streamers, 99. Nurscia, 5. Oak, 180. Ocnus, 17. Odors, Capuan, 39. Oliver, 68. Orderly, 205. Orient, 284. Oriflamme, 61. Ostia, 7. Oxford, 69, 169. Paean, 283. Pages, 67. Palatine, Mt., 48. Palatinus, 24. Panniers, 32. Patricians, 37. Paul Revere, 295. Peak, 57. Peer, 79. Pennon, 150. Pentland, 174. Philip, 64. Pibroch, 87. Picard, 53. Picus, 16. Pikes, 56. Pilgrim-circled, 139. Pillar, 109. Pimp, 30. Pincian Hill, 45. Pinnace, 262. Pinta, 51. Pipes, 146. Pique, 191. Pisae, 3. Pistoles, 64. Pitch of pride, 79. Plaided, 88. Plain, 78. Plataea, 136. Play, 13. Plebeian, 39. Pleugh, 145. Plight, 119. Plymouth Bay, 51. Points, 68. Poitiers and Cressy, 167. Polling, 37. Pontiffs, 38. Pope, 224. Populonia, 3. Port, 10. Portcullis, 80. Portents: 130. Post, 52. '^^^ Postern, 19f. Potsherds, 46. Pounds of copper, 43. Pow, 172. Press, 37, 122. Prick, 234. Pricking, 62. Priest-led citizens, 60. Prone, 177. Prophets, 4. Props, 15. Provost, 84, 102. Punic wares, 33. Purple gown, 37. 314 INDEX TO NOTES. Quarry, 156. Queen, 268. Questing, 184. Quick-step, 223. Quinctius, 36. Quirites, 35. Quit, 172. Quoth, 13. Rails, 222. Ramuian, 13. Rampant, 202. Rangers, 55. Ransom, 166. Rapt, 230. Ratisbon, 177. Ravelston's cliffs, 174. Razed, 80. Rebel peers, 60. Reck, 285. Recks, 292. Redan, 259. Rede, 116. Redoubted, 161. Reeling, 56. Reeve, 236. Religion, 63. Richmond Hill, 56. Right, 66. Ring, 224. Riou, 183. Riven, 100. Robin Hood, 301. Rochelle, 59. Rock, Tarpeian, 7. Rome, Seven Hills of, 32. Roof-tree, 247. Rosny, 63. Rout, 65. Rover, 17. Royal blood, 94. Royal city, 56. Royal Lion, 106. Rung backward, 172. Rupert, 66, 67. Ruth, 302. Sacked, 26. Sacred Hill, 36. Sacred Street, 31. Sae, 71. Saint Andre, 62. Saint Andrew's cross, 93. Saint Bartholomew, 60. Saint Bride, 80. Saint Crispin's day, 170. Saint Genevieve, 64. Saint George's cannon- iers, 203. Saint Michael's, 246. Saint Michael's Mount, 54. Saints, 66. Salisbury, 240. Sanctified bends, 172. Santee, 244. Sappers, 146. Saracen, 121. Saxon, 92. Say, 187. S98evola, 36. Scaur, 220. Scottish lion, 119. Scroll of gold, 54. Sea-castles, 2(>4. Seals, 137. Sea-mew, 85. Seine, 60. Seius, 16. Semper Eadem, 54. Sennacberib, 175. Serf, 134. Servius, 35. Severn and Clyde, 259. Sextius, 34. Sextus, 10. Shade, 173. Shades, 38. Shambles, 39. Shannon, 259. Shan Van Vocht, IST. Sheen, 175. Shell, 223. Shenandoah, 222. She of the Seven Hills. 70. Sheridan's Ride, 289. She-wolf's litter, 18. Shield, 10. Shiloh, 226. Ships of the line, 262. Shire, 55. Shriven, 97. Shroud, 149. Sign, 58. Signet-ring, 135. Sir Consul, 8. Sir Knight, 53. Skiddaw, 58. Skins of wine, 6. Skippen, 67. Slee, 172. Slogan, 92. Sludge, 84. Snooded, 236. Song of the Camp, 259. Song of the Cornish men, 142. Sorely, 102. Sound, 97. South, 92. Southrons, 88. Span, 89. Spanish gold, 39. Spear in rest, 121. Spell, 186. Spent, 25. Spits, 173. Spoils, 14. INDEX TO NOTES. 315 Spoils of Mexico, 51. Spume, 48. Spume-flakes, 192. Spurius Lartius, 13. Squire, 158. Squires, 57. Stalls, 33. Standard, 52. Standards, 21. Starboard, 265. Stark, 123. Staves, 47. Stay, 25. Stayed, 145. Stonehenge, 55. "Stonewall" Jackson, 210, 222. Stour, 123. Stout, 235. Strait, 13. Stuart, 224. Succors, 146. Suffolk, 170. Suliote, 135. Surrey, 57. Sutrium, 5. Tablets, Roman, 31. Tale, 5. Tamar, 55. Tamar and Severn, 143. Tantallon's towers, 78. Target, 174. Tarquin, 30. Tartan, 147. Temple Bar, 68. Ten (Decemvirs), 29. Test, 85. Tliae, 146. Tifernum, 16. Tilly, 235. Titian, 13. Tolumnius, 10. Tower, 94. I Tower and hamlet, 58. Tower and Park, 258. Tower of London, 56. Train, 78. Transport, 229. Trent, 58. Tribunes, 14. Tried, 159. Truncheon, 60. Trysting day, 1. Turret, 79. Turrets, 110. Turret-tops, 23. Tuscan, 46. Tuscan bands, 7. Twa, 173. Tweed, 156. Twelve cities, 9. Tyrol, 129. Umbrian, 9. Umbro, 4. Unbouneted, 52. Unicorn, 202. Unmeet, 79. Unscathed, 80. Urgo, 17. Urn, 40. Usuance, 38. Van, 12, 51. Vanguard, 15. Vans, 178. Varlets, 30. Vassal, 16. Vaward, 167. Vengeance, 35. Verbenna, 7. Verses, 5. Vest, 10. Vienna, 64. Virgin! us, 39. Volaterrae, 2. Volero, 33. Volscian, 27. Volsinian mere, 4. Volsinium, 17. Votive stone, 294. Wain, 207. Wall, 51. Wallace, 71, 109. Walloon, 235. Wanton, 68. Wantonly, 118. Ward, 64. Warder, 99. Ware, 159. War-flame, 54. Warristoun, 93. Warwick, 169. Watch and ward, 64. Watergate, 89. Wauken, 145. Weal, 100. Weather, 168. Weather-bow, 264. Weeds, 138. Weel, 145. Ween, 25. Weltering, 120. Westport, 171. Wha, 71. Wham, 71. Wheel, 145. Whelm, 112. Whig, 90. Whigs, 172. Whitehall, 56, 67. Whittle, 40. Wi', 71. Wider world, 76. Wight, 142. Willoughby, 170. Will-o'-wisp, 248. Wine-press, 65. Wings, 76. Wis, 8. Wit, 41. 316 INDEX TO NOTES. Wode, 159. Woman's voice, 91. Word, 70. Wot, 239. Wrekin, 57. Xerxes, 73. Yeomen, 44, 52. Yew, 168. Young plants of grace, 172. INDEX TO AUTHORS. Anonymous. Scotland's Maiden Martyr, 82. The Nation's Dead, 140. Chevy-Chase (it is not known when this stirring ballad was written; but Professor Child believes that the present ver- sion is not later than the reign of Charles II., 1660-1685), 154. George Nidiver, 184. Shan Van Vocht (written about 1798), 187. How he saved St. Michael's, 246. Aytoun, Professor William Ed- MONDSTOUNE (born in Fife- shire, Scotland, 1813; died 1865). The Execution of Montrose, 87. Edinburgh after Flodden, 98. The Heart of the Bruce, 114. Barry, Michael Joseph (born in Dublin (?) , Ireland, about 1815). The Place where Man should die, 292. Browning, Robert (born at Cam- berwell, a suburb of London, England, 1812 ; died 1889) . Incident of the French Camp, 177. How they brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix, 191. Bryant, William Cullen (born atCummington, Massachusetts, 1794; died 1878). The Battle-Field, 207. Song of Marion's Men, 242. Abraham Lincoln, 245. Burns, Robert (born near Ayr, Scotland, 1759; died 179(5). Bannock-Burn, 71. Byron, George Gordon Noel, Lord (born in London, Eng- land, 1788; died 1824). The Destruction of Sennacherib, 175. The Eve of Waterloo, 270. Campbell, Thomas (born in Glas- gow, Scotland, 1777; died 1844). Ye Mariners of England, 179. Battle of the Baltic, 181. Hohenlinden, 273. Collyer, Robert (born at Keigh- ley, Yorkshire, England, 1823; came to America in 1850). Saxon Grit, 301. CowPER, William (born in Hert- fordshire, England, 1731 ; died 1800). Boadicea, 75. Croly, George (born in Dublin, Ireland, 1780; died 1860). Leonidas, 73. Doyle, Sir Francis Hastings (born near Tadcaster, York- shire, England, 1810 ; died 1888). The Private of the Buffs, 217. The Loss of the Birkenhead, 256. Drayton, Michael (born in War- wickshire, England, 1563 ; died 1631). The Ballad of Agiucourt, 165. 318 INDEX TO AUTHORS. Emerson, Ralph Waldo (born in Boston, 1803; died 1882). Concord Fight, 294. Sacrifice, 307. Finch, Francis Miles (born in Ithaca, New York, 1827). The Blue and the Gray, 151. Halleck, Fitz-Greene (born in Guilford, Connecticut, 1790 ; died 1867). Marco Bozzaris, 135. Hawker, Robert Stephen (born in Plymouth, England, 1803; died 1875). Song of the Cornish Men, 142. Hemans, Mrs. Felicia Dorothea (born in Liverpool, England, 1794; died 1835). Casablanca, 148. The Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers, 196. HiGGiNSON, Thomas Wentworth (born in Cambridge, Massachu- setts, 1823). Decoration, 305. Hoffman, Charles Fenno (born in New York, 1806 ; died 1884). Monterey, 198. Howe, Mi's. Julia Ward (born in New York, 1819). Battle-Hymn of the Republic, 194. KoRNER, Karl Theodor (born in Dresden, Germany, 1791 ; died 1813). The Song of the Sword, 286. LocKHART, John Gibson (born in Glasgow, Scotland, 1792; died 1854). The Lord of Butrago (translation from the Spanish), 238. Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth (born in Portland, Maine, 1807 ; died 1882). The Cumberland, 215. Paul Revere's Ride, 295. Lowell, James Russell (born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1819). Commemoration Ode, 281. Lowell, Robert Trail Spence (brother of James Russell Lowell ; born in Boston, 1816). The Relief of Lucknow, 144. Macaulay, Thomas Babington, Loi'd (born in Rothley Temple, Leicestershire, England, 1800: died 1859). Horatius, 1. Virginia, 29. The Armada, 50. Ivry, 59. Naseby, 65. McMaster, Guy Humphrey (born in Bath, New York, 1829; died 1887). Carmen Bellicosum, 202. Palmer, John Williamson (born in Baltimore, 1825) . '"Stonewall" Jackson's Way, 222. Procter, Adelaide Anne (born in London, England, 1825; died 1864). A Legend of Bregenz, 129. Read, Thomas Buchanan (born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, 1822; died 1872). Sheridan's Ride, 289. Scott, Sir Walter (born in Edin- burgh, Scotland, 1771 ; died 1832). INDEX TO AUTHORS. 319 Marmion and Douglas, 78. The iiouuets of Bonnie Dundee, 171. Lochinvar, 219. Shepherd, Nathaniel Graham (born in New York, 1835; died 18G9). Roll-Call, 205. Taylor, Bayard (born in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, 1825 ; ^ied 1878). The Song of the Camp, 259. Taylor, Tom (born in Durham, England, 1817; died 1880). Abraham Lincoln, 277. Tennyson, Alfred, Lord (born in Somersby, Lincolnshire, Eng- land, 1809). The Charge of the Light Brigade, 126. The "Revenge," 2G2. Thornbury, Walter (born in Lon- don, 1828; died 1876). The Cavalier's Escape, 240. Thorpe, Mrs. Rose Hartwick (born in Mishawaka, Indiana, 1850). Curfew must not ring to-night, 251. Whittier, John Greenleaf (born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, 1807). Our State, 200. Barbara Frietchie, 209. Barclay of Ury, 233. WiLLSON, Force YTHE (born in Little Genesee, New York, 1837; died 1867). The Old Sergeant, 225. Wolfe, Charles (born in Dublin, Ireland, 1791; died 1823). The Burial of Sir John Moore, 213. Wordsworth, William (born in Cockermouth, Cumberland, England, 1770; died 1850). The Hajipy Warrior, 275. ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. •o* Stickney's Readers. Introductory to Classics for Children. 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It is reading-matter, too, which, by the force of its own interest and excellence, will do much, when fairly set in competition, to displace the trashy and even harmful literature so widely current. It is believed also that constant dwelling upon such models of sim- ple, pure, idiomatic English is the easiest and on all accounts the best way for children to acquire a mastery of their mother-tongue. A large portion of the coui-se has been devoted to history and biog- raphy, as it has seemed specially desirable to supplement the brief, unsatisfactory outlines of history with full and life-like readings. The annotation has been done with modesty and reserve, the editors having aimed to let the readers come into direct acquaint- ance with the author. The books are all printed on good paper, and are durably and attractively bound in 12mo. A distinctive feature is the large, clear type. Illustrations have been freely used when thought de- sirable. The prices are as low as possible. It has been felt that nothing would be gained by making the books a little cheaper at the expense of crowding the page with fine type and issuing them in a style that would neither attract nor last. The best proof of the need of such a course is the universal approbation with which it has been received. 4 ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. /Esop's Fables. Edited by J. H. Stickney, with a Life of -^Esop, and a Supplement cone taining fables from La Fontaine and Krilof . xvii + 204 pages. Illus= trated. Boards: Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth: 60 and 50 cents. Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales. Edited, for school and home use, by J. H. Stickney. FIRST SERIES: Supplementary to the Third Reader, for children from eight to twelve years of age. viii + 280 pages. Illustrated. Mail- ing Prices : Cloth, 55 cents ; Boards, 45 cents. For introduction : Cloth, 50 cents ; Boards, 40 cents. SECOND SERIES : Supplementary to the Fourth Reader, for children from ten to fourteen years of age. 352 pages. Illustrated. Mailing Prices : Cloth, 55 cents ; Boards, 45 cents. For introduction : Cloth, 50 cents ; Boards, 40 cents. Kingsley's Water-Babies. Edited by J. H. Stickney. 200 pages. Illustrated. Boards : Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth: 60 and 50 cents. The King of the Golden River; or, The Black Brothers. By John Ruskjn. A legend of Stiria. 54 pages. Illustrated. Boards : Mailing Price, 24 cents; for introduction, 20 cents. Cloth: 30 and 25 cents. The Swiss Family Robinson. Edited by J. H. Stickney. viii + 364 pages. Illustrated. Boards: Mail- ing Price, 50 cents ; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth, 60 and 50 cents. Robinson Crusoe. The famous English Classic. Edited for Supplementary Reading in Schools, by W. H. Lambert. 263 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 40 cents ; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth : 60 and 50 cents. Kingsley's Greek Heroes. Edited by John Tetlow, Head Master of the Girls' High and Latin Schools, Boston. 185 pages. Illustrated. Boards : Mailing Price, 40 cents ; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth: 55 and 50 cents. Lamb's Tales from Shakespeare. Measure for Measure has been omitted. 320 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 50 cents ; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth : 60 and 50 cents. ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. 5 Scott's Tales of a Grandfather. Being the history of Scotland from the earliest period to the close of the reign of James the Fifth. Abridged by Edwin Ginn. vi + 286 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 50 cents; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth: 60 and 50 cents. The Peasant and the Prince. By Harriet IVIartineau. viii + 212 pages. Illustrated. Boards: Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 55 cents ; for introduction, 50 cents. Scott's Lady of the Lake. Edited by Edwin Ginn. 268 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduction, 35 cents. Cloth : 60 and 50 cents. Canto I., 5 cents. Scott's Lay of the Last MinstreL With map. Edited by IVIargaret Andrews Allen. 150 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 35 cents; for introduction, 30 cents. Cloth: 45 and 40 cents. Adventures of Ulysses. By Charles Lamb, vii + 109 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 30 cents; for introduction, 25 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduc- tion, 35 cents. Stories of the Old World. Prepared expressly for this Series by the Rev. Alfred J. Church, M.A., author of Stories from Homer, Livy, Virgil, etc. 354 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 50 cents; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth: 60 and 50 cents. Plutarch's Lives. From Clough's Translation. Edited by Edwin Ginn, with Historical Introductions by W. F. Allen, xvi + 333 pages. Illustrated. Boards: Mailing Price, 50 cents; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 60 cents; for introduction, 50 cents. Scott's Talisman. ' — Edited by Dwight Holbrook, Principal of Morgan School, Clinton, Conn., with an Introduction by Miss Charlotte M. Yonge. xii + 454 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 60 cents ; for introduction, 50 cents. Cloth: 70 and 60 cents. 6 ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. Scott's Quentin Durward. Edited for this Series, with an Historical Introduction, by Chaklotte M. YoxGE, of England. 312 pa.oes. Boards: Mailing Price, 50 cents, for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth : 60 and 50 cents. I ruing' s Sketch Book. With full Notes, Questions, etc., for Home and School Use. By Homer B. Sprague, Ph.D., and M. E. Scates, formerly of the Girls' Higii School, Boston. 126 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 30 cents ; for intro- duction, 25 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 40 cents; for introduction, 35 cents. Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. Hudson and Lajmb. 115 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 30 cents; for introduction, 25 cents. Cloth: 45 and 40 cents. The Arabian Nights: Selections, edited by Rev. Edward Everett Hale, D.D. Illustrated 376 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 50 cents; for introduction, 40 cents.- Cloth : 60 and 50 cents. The Vicar of Wakefield. Edited with Notes, for use in Schools. 238 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 35 cents; for introduction, 30 cents. Cloth : 55 and 50 cents. Scott's Guy IVIannering. Edited with Notes, and a Hi.'^torical Introduction by Miss Charlotte M. Yonge. 525 pages. Boar Is: Mailing Price, 70 cents; for introduc- tion, 60 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 85 cents; for introduction, 75 cents. Scott's luanhoe. Edited with Notes, and a Historical Introduction by Miss Charlotte M. Yonge. 554 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 70 cents; for introduc- tion, 60 cents. Cloth : Mailing Price, 85 cents ; for introduction, 75 cents. Scott's Rob Roy. Edited with Notes, and a Historical Introduction by Miss Charlotte M. Yonge. viii + 507 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 70 cents ; for in' troduction, 60 cents. Cloth: 85 and 75 cents. ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. 7 Tom Brown at Rugby. By THoaiAS Hughes. Edited by Clara Weaver Robinson, with a Sketch of the Author's Life by D. H. Montgomery, xiii + 387 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 60 cents; for introduction, 50 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 70 cents; for introduction, 60 cents. Benjamin Franklin. His Autobiography, with Notes, and a continuation of his Life compiled chiefly from his own writings. By D. H. Montgomery. Illustrated. viii + 311 pages. Boards: Hailing Price, 50 cents; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth : Mailing Price, 60 cents ; for introduction, 50 cents. Gulliver's Travels. The Voyage to Lilliput and the Voyage to Brobdingnag. By Dean SwEFT. ix + 162 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 35 cents; for introduc- tion, 30 cents. Cloth : Mailing Price, 45 cents ; for introduction, 40 cents. Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia. By Dr. Samuel Johnson, with a Sketch of the Author, viii + 157 pages. Boards: Mailing Price, 35 cents; for introduction, 30 cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, 45 cents; for introduction, 40 cents. Selections from Ruskin. Edited by Edwin Ginn, with Notes and a Sketch of Ruskin 's Life by D. H. Montgomery, xxv + 148 pages. Boards : Mailing Price, 3s cents ; for introduction, 30 cents. Cloth : Mailing Price, 45 cents ; for introduc- tion, 40 cents. The Two Great Retreats of History : I. The Retreat of the Ten Thousand, taken from Grote's " History of Greece " ; II. Napoleon's Retreat from Moscoio, an abridgment of Count Segur's narrative. With Introductions, Notes, and Pronouncing Index, by D. H. Montgomery, xv + 318 pages and two maps. Boards : Mailing Price, 50 cents ; for introduction, 40 cents. Cloth : Mailing Price, 60 cents ; for introduction, 50 cents. Heroic Ballads, AVith Poems of War and Patriotism. Edited with Notes by D. H. Mont- gomery, pages. Boards : Mailing Price, cents ; for intro- duction, cents. Cloth: Mailing Price, cents; for introduction, cents. OTHER BOOKS FOR SUPPLEMENTARY READING. Washington and His Country. See description under History. Pilgrims and Puritans. See description under History. English History Reader. See description under History. Footprints of Travel. See description under Geography. Our World Reader, No. 1. See description under Geography, 8 ELEMENTARY ENGLISH. THE SERIES OP CLASSICS FOR CHILDREN TTAS been most cordially approved by the press and the critics, and endorsed by teachers, superintendents, and school boards. The books are in wide use (1) as regular readers, (2) as supple- mentary readers, and (3) in school and home libraries. Out of hundreds of testimonials we can present but a very few : — The Critic, New York: A capital series. Education, Boston: These books are remarkably cheap, well printed, well edited, and should have an exr tended use. William H. Payne, Pres. of Pea- body Normal College, Nashville, Tenn. : I think too much cannot be said in favor of this list of publica- tions, destined, I believe, to create a correct taste for reading, and to dis- place much that is now working in- jury to the mental and moral habits of the young. J. H. Vincent, Supt. of Instruction, Chautauqua Assembly : I desire to express my great satisfaction with the taste, skill, and wisdom of the work. I wish it abundant success. Mellen Chamberlain, Librarian, Boston Public Library : These pub- lications seem to me to be of great value, whether regarded as home reading or for use in public school. H. 0. Wheeler, Supt. of Schools, Burlington, Vt. : These books form an admirable series for reading in the home as well as in the school. F. Louis Soldan, Prin. of Normal School, St. Louis, Mo. : The idea un- derlying these books is meritorious in itself, and its execution admirable. W. M. Crow, Supt. of Schools, Gal- veston, Tex. : Permit me to say that I regard your series of Classics for Chil- dren as the best literature in the best form that has ever been presented to the young people of our country. B. B. Snow, Su2Jt. of Schools, Au- burn, N. Y. : As to results, I venture to say, from our experience, that no one who undertakes the method [of dispensing with regular " readers "1 will willingly abandon it. Our read- ing exercise is the most interesting exercise of the day. The pupils look forward to it eagerly, the interest is absorbing, and the exercise is reluc- tantly discontinued. I may add that the teachers are as much interested as the pupils. Hazen's Complete Speller. Editions and Prices. — Part I., Primary: 12mo. Boards. 54 pages. Introduction, 10 cents ; allowed for old book, 3 cents. Parts II. and III., Intermediate and Grammar, and Test Speller: 12mo. Boards. 148 pages. Introduction, 20 cents ; allowed for old book, 6 cents. Complete (Parts L, II., and III.) : 12mo. Boards. 194 pages. Introduction, 25 cents ; allowed for old book, 8 cents. TN this book spelling is taught on a rational plan, by the aid of intelligence as well as memory. It has many features of special merit that practical teachers have been prompt to recognize. W. T. Harris, formerly Supt. of Schools, St. Louis : It gives evidence of long experience on the part of the author in the matter of teaching spelling. Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide Treatment Date: Jan. 2009 Preservationlechnologies A WORLD LEADER IN COLLECTIONS PRESERVATION 1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive Cranberry Township, PA 16066 (724)779-2111