Classic and Contemporary Poetry
O, AGONY! KEEN AGONY, by WILLIAM MOTHERWELL Poet Analysis Poet's Biography First Line: Tchassan ouglou is on! Last Line: Allah, il allah! Alternate Author Name(s): Brown, Isaac Subject(s): Turkey; War | ||||||||
A TURKISH BATTLE-SONG. TCHASSAN Ouglou is on! Tchassan Ouglou is on! And with him to battle The faithful are gone. Allah, il allah! The tambour is rung; Into his war-saddle Each Spahi hath swung; -- Now the blast of the desert Sweeps over the land, And the pale fires of heaven Gleam in each Damask brand. Allah, il allah! Tchassan Ouglou is on! Tchassan Ouglou is on! Abroad on the winds, all His horse-tails are thrown. 'Tis the rush of the eagle Down cleaving through air, -- 'Tis the bound of the lion When roused from his lair. Ha! fiercer and wilder And madder by far, -- On thunders the might Of the Moslemite war. Allah, il allah! Forth lash their wild horses, With loose-flowing rein; O'er the thunder of cannon Swells proudly their shout, -- And sheeted with foam, Like the surge of the sea, Over wreck, death, and woe, rolls Each fierce Osmanli. Allah, il allah! Fast forward, still forward, Man follows on man, While the horse-tails are dashing Afar in the van; -- See where yon pale crescent And green turban shine, There, smite for the Prophet, And Othman's great line! Allah, il allah! The fierce war-cry is given, -- For the flesh of the Giaour Shriek the vultures of heaven. Allah, il allah! Allah, il allah! How thick on the plain, The infidels cluster Like ripe, heavy grain. The reaper is coming, The crooked sickle's bare, And the shout of the Faithful Is rending the air. Bismillah! Bismillah! Each far-flashing brand Hath piled its red harvest Of death on the land! Allah, il allah! Mark, mark yon green turban That heaves through the fight, Like a tempest-tost bark 'Mid the thunders of night; See parting before it, On right and on left, How the dark billows tumble, -- Each saucy crest cleft! Ay, horseman and footman Reel back in dismay, When the sword of stern Ouglou Is lifted to slay. Allah, il allah! Allah, il allah! Tchassan Ouglou is on! O'er the Infidel breast Hath his fiery barb gone: -- The bullets rain on him, They fall thick as hail; The lances crash round him Like reeds in the gale, -- But onward, still onward, For God and his law, Through the dark strife of Death Bursts the gallant Pacha. Allah, il allah! In the wake of his might, In the path of the wind, Pour the sons of the Faithful, Careering behind; And bending to battle O'er each high saddle-bow, With the sword of Azrael, They sweep down the foe. Allah, il allah! 'Tis Ouglou that cries, -- In the breath of his nostril The Infidel dies! Allah, il allah! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...I AM YOUR WAITER TONIGHT AND MY NAME IS DIMITRI by ROBERT HASS MITRAILLIATRICE by ERNEST HEMINGWAY RIPARTO D'ASSALTO by ERNEST HEMINGWAY WAR VOYEURS by JUAN FELIPE HERRERA THE DREAM OF WAKING by RANDALL JARRELL THE SURVIVOR AMONG GRAVES by RANDALL JARRELL SO MANY BLOOD-LAKES by ROBINSON JEFFERS JEANIE MORRISON by WILLIAM MOTHERWELL |
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