Carmen Bellicosum. Guy Humphrey McMaster (1829-1887). III. War. Bliss Carman, et al., eds. 1904. The World's Best Poetry. VIII. National Spirit

Bliss Carman, et al., eds. The World’s Best Poetry.
Volume VIII. National Spirit. 1904.

III. War

Carmen Bellicosum

Guy Humphrey McMaster (1829–1887)


IN their ragged regimentals
Stood the old Continentals,
Yielding not,
When the grenadiers were lunging,
And like hail fell the plunging	5
Cannon-shot;
When the files
Of the isles,
From the smoky night encampment, bore the banner of the rampant
Unicorn,	10
And grummer, grummer, grummer rolled the roll of the drummer,
Through the morn!

Then with eyes to the front all,
And with guns horizontal,
Stood our sires;	15
And the balls whistled deadly,
And in streams flashing redly
Blazed the fires;
As the roar
On the shore,	20
Swept the strong battle-breakers o’er the green-sodded acres
Of the plain;
And louder, louder, louder, cracked the black gunpowder,
Cracking amain!

Now like smiths at their forges	25
Worked the red St. George’s
Cannoneers;
And the “villanous saltpetre”
Rung a fierce, discordant metre
Round their ears;	30
As the swift
Storm-drift,
With hot sweeping anger, came the horseguards’ clangor
On our flanks;
Then higher, higher, higher, burned the old-fashioned fire	35
Through the ranks!

Then the bare-headed colonel
Galloped through the white infernal
Powder-cloud;
And his broad sword was swinging	40
And his brazen throat was ringing
Trumpet-loud.
Then the blue
Bullets flew,
And the trooper-jackets redden at the touch of the leaden	45
Rifle-breath;
And rounder, rounder, rounder, roared the iron six-pounder,
Hurling death!