| James and Mary Ford, eds. Every Day in the Year. 1902. | | | | September 21 | | Joseph Rodman Drake | | By Fitz-Greene Halleck (1790–1867) |
| | (Died September 21, 1820) | | “The good die first, |
| And they, whose hearts are dry as summer’s dust, |
| Burn to the socket.” |
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GREEN be the turf above thee, | |
| Friend of my better days! | |
| None knew thee but to love thee, | |
| Nor named thee but to praise. | |
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| Tears fell, when thou wert dying, | 5 |
| From eyes unused to weep, | |
| And long where thou art lying, | |
| Will tears the cold turf steep. | |
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| When hearts, whose truth was proven, | |
| Like thine, are laid in earth, | 10 |
| There should a wreath be woven | |
| To tell the world their worth; | |
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| And I, who woke each morrow | |
| To clasp thy hand in mine, | |
| Who shared thy joy and sorrow, | 15 |
| Whose weal and woe were thine: | |
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| It should be mine to braid it | |
| Around thy faded brow, | |
| But I’ve in vain essayed it, | |
| And feel I cannot now. | 20 |
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| While memory bids me weep thee, | |
| Nor thoughts nor words are free, | |
| The grief is fixed too deeply | |
| That mourns a man like thee. | | | |
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