And the one brother leaned and whispered: "I put my strength in a book, And in that book my love... This, with my love, I give to America..." And the other brother leaned and murmured: "I put my strength in a life, And in that life my love, This, with my love, I give to America." Lilacs bloom for Walt Whitman And lilacs for Abraham Lincoln. Then my heart sang out: This strength shall be our strength: Yea, when the great hour comes, and the sleepers wake and are hurled back, And creep down into themselves There shall they find Walt Whitman And there, Abraham Lincoln. O Spring, go over this land with much singing And open the lilacs everywhere, Open them out with the old-time fragrance Making a people remember that something has been forgotten, Something is hidden deep--strange memories--strange memories-- Of him that brought a sprig of the purple cluster To him that was mourned of all... And so they are linked together While yet America lives... While yet America lives, my heart, Lilacs shall bloom for Walt Whitman And lilacs for Abraham Lincoln. [signed] James Oppenheim Bred to the Sea Ye who are bred to the sea, sons of the sons of seamen, In what faith do ye sail? By what creed do ye hold? Little we know of faiths, and we leave the creeds to the parsons. But we 'bide by the law of the sea which our father made of old. Where is that sea law writ for mariners and for captains, That they may know the law by which they sail the sea? We never saw it writ for sailormen or for masters; But 'tis laid with the keel of the ship. What would you have? Let be. Ye who went down tot he sea in ships and perished aforetime, In what faith did ye sail? In what creed did ye die? What is that law to which your lives were forfeit? What do ye teach your sons that they may not deny? We kept the faith of our breed. We died in the creed of seamen, As our sons, too, shall die: the sea will have its way. The law which bade us sail with death in smack and whaler, In tall ship and in open boat, is the seaman's law to-day. The master shall rule his crew. The crew shall obey the master. Ye shall work your ship while she fleets and ye can stand. Though ye starve, and freeze, and drown, shipmate shall stand by shipmate. Ye shall 'bide by this law of seafaring folk, though ye never come to land. Ye shall hold your lives in trust for those who need your succor: A flash of fire by night, a loom of smoke by day, A rag to an oar shall be to you the symbol Of your faith, of your creed, of the law which sailormen obey. Ye shall not count the odds, ye shall not weigh the danger, When life is to be saved from storm, from fire, from thirst. Ye shall not leave your foe adrift and helpless; And when the boats go overside, 't is, "Women and children first."