Classic and Contemporary Poetry
THE INDIAN GONE!, by JOSIAH D. CANNING Poet's Biography First Line: By night I saw the hunter's moon Last Line: It answered me! Subject(s): Native Americans; Indians Of America; American Indians; Indians Of South America | ||||||||
By night I saw the Hunter's moon Slow gliding in the placid sky; Her lustre mocked the sun at noon -- I asked myself the reason why? And straightway came the sad reply: She shines as she was wont to do To aid the Indian's aiming eye, When by her light he strung his bow, But where is he? Beside the ancient flood I strayed, Where dark traditions mark the shore; With wizzard vision I essayed Into the misty past to pore. I heard a mournful voice deplore The perfidy that slew his race; 'T was in a dialect of yore, And of a long-departed race. It answered me! I wrought with ardor at the plough One smoky Indian-summer day; The dank locks swept my heated brow, I bade the panting oxen stay. Beneath me in the furrow lay A relic of the chase, full low; I brushed the crumbling soil away -- The Indian fashioned it, I know, But where is he? When pheasants drumming in the wood Allured me forth my aim to try, Amid the forest lone I stood, And the dead leaves went rustling by. The breeze played in the branches high; Slow music filled my listening ear; It was a wailing funeral cry, For Nature mourned her children dear. It answered me! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE OLD INDIAN by ARTHUR STANLEY BOURINOT SCHOLARLY PROCEDURE by JOSEPHINE MILES ONE LAST DRAW OF THE PIPE by PAUL MULDOON THE INDIANS ON ALCATRAZ by PAUL MULDOON PARAGRAPHS: 9 by HAYDEN CARRUTH THEY ACCUSE ME OF NOT TALKING by HAYDEN CARRUTH AMERICAN INDIAN ART: FORM AND TRADITION by DIANE DI PRIMA |
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