Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, COLONEL ELLSWORTH, by RICHARD HENRY STODDARD


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

COLONEL ELLSWORTH, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: It fell upon us like a crushing woe
Last Line: Will steel our aching hearts to strike again!
Subject(s): Alexandria, Virginia; American Civil War; Ellsworth, Elmer Ephraim (1837-18610; U.s. - History


IT fell upon us like a crushing woe,
Sudden and terrible. "Can it be?" we said
"That he from whom we hoped so much, is dead,
Most foully murdered ere he met the foe?"
Why not? The men that would disrupt the State
By such base plots as theirs -- frauds, thefts and lies --
What code of honor do they recognize?
They thirst for blood to satisfy their hate,
Our blood: so be it; but for every blow
Woe shall befall them; not in their wild way,
But stern and pitiless, we will repay,
Until, like swollen streams, their blood shall flow:
And should we pause; the thought of Ellsworth slain,
Will steel our aching hearts to strike again!





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