Classic and Contemporary Poetry
ON THE DEATH OF LIEUT. WILLIAM HOWARD ALLEN, by FITZ-GREENE HALLECK Poet Analysis Poet's Biography First Line: He hath been mourned as brave men mourn the brave Last Line: It was a mother's -- and is broken now. Alternate Author Name(s): Croaker Subject(s): Death; Grief; Navy - United States; Pirates; Dead, The; Sorrow; Sadness; American Navy; Piracy; Buccaneers | ||||||||
(mortally wounded in an action with pirates, near Matanzas, in the Island of Cuba) HE hath been mourned as brave men mourn the brave, And wept as nations weep their cherished dead, With bitter, but proud tears, and o'er his head The eternal flowers whose root is in the grave, The flowers of Fame, are beautiful and green; And by his grave's side pilgrim feet have been, And blessings, pure as men to martyrs give, Have there been breathed by those he died to save. -- Pride of his country's banded chivalry, His fame their hope, his name their battle cry; He lived as mothers wish their sons to live, He died as fathers wish their sons to die. If on the grief-worn cheek the hues of bliss, Which fade when all we love is in the tomb, Could ever know on earth a second bloom, The memory of a gallant death like his Would call them into being -- but the few, Who as their friend, their brother, or their son, His kind warm heart and gentle spirit knew, Had long lived, hoped, and feared for him alone; His voice their morning music, and his eye The only starlight of their evening sky, Till even the sun of happiness seemed dim, And life's best joys were sorrows but with him; And when -- the Burning bullet in his breast, He dropped, like summer fruit from off the bough, There was one heart that knew and loved him best -- It was a mother's -- and is broken now. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...BLUEBEARD'S CLOSET by ROSE TERRY COOKE THE SACK OF BALTIMORE by THOMAS OSBORNE DAVIS HOW WE BURNED THE 'PHILADELPHIA' by BARRETT EASTMAN THE LAST BUCCANEER by CHARLES KINGSLEY THE TARRY BUCCANEER by JOHN MASEFIELD REUBEN JAMES by JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE PIRATE STORY by ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON BLOUDIE JACKE OF SHREWSBERRIE; THE SHROPSHIRE BLUEBEARD by RICHARD HARRIS BARHAM THE WEDDING DAY; OR, THE BUCCANEER'S CURSE; A FAMILY LEGEND by RICHARD HARRIS BARHAM ALNWICK CASTLE by FITZ-GREENE HALLECK |
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