The Poems of Philip Freneau, Poet of the American Revolution. Volume 3 (of 3)Freneau, Philip Morin
General
The Poems of Philip Freneau, Poet of the American Revolution. Volume 3 (of 3)
Freneau, Philip Morin
American poetry
So spoke the prince, but little knew
His minions were for slaughter fed;
Nor did he guess, that vengeance, too,
Would fall on his devoted head;
When all his plans and projects fail,
And he ascends Belshazzar's scale.[A]
[A] Mene mene, Tekel, Peres!--thou art weighed in the balance,
and art found wanting!--Daniel.--_Freneau's note._
THE VOLUNTEER'S MARCH[A]
July, 1814
Dulce est pro patria mori.
[A] This little ode, with the addition of two new stanzas is
somewhat altered from one of Robert Burns' compositions,
and applied to an american occasion: the original being
Bruce's supposed address to his army, a little before the
battle of Bannockbourne.--_Freneau's note._
Ye, whom Washington has led,
Ye, who in his footsteps tread,
Ye, who death nor danger dread,
Haste to glorious victory.
Now's the day and now's the hour;
See the British navy lour,
See approach proud George's power,
England! chains and slavery.
Who would be a traitor knave?
Who would fill a coward's grave?
Who so base to be a slave?
Traitor, coward, turn and flee.
Meet the tyrants, one and all;
Freemen stand, or freemen fall--
At Columbia's patriot call,
At her mandate, march away!
Former times have seen them yield,
Seen them drove from every field,
Routed, ruin'd, and repell'd--
Seize the spirit of those times!
By oppression's woes and pains--
By our sons in servile chains
We will bleed from all our veins
But they shall be--shall be free.
O'er the standard of their power
Bid Columbia's eagle tower,
Give them hail in such a shower
As shall blast them--horse and man!
Lay the proud invaders low,
Tyrants fall in every foe;
Liberty's in every blow,
Forward! let us do or die.
THE BATTLE OF STONINGTON
ON THE SEABOARD OF CONNECTICUT
In an attack upon the town and a small fort of two guns, by the
Ramillies, seventy-four gun ship, commanded by Sir Thomas Hardy;
the Pactolus, 38 gun ship, Despatch, brig of 22 guns, and a razee,
or bomb ship.--August, 1814.
Four gallant ships from England came
Freighted deep with fire and flame,
And other things we need not name,
To have a dash at Stonington.
Now safely moor'd, their work begun;
They thought to make the yankees run,
And have a mighty deal of fun
In stealing sheep at Stonington.
A deacon, then popp'd up his head
And parson Jones's sermon read,
In which the reverend doctor said
That they must fight for Stonington.
A townsman bade them, next, attend
To sundry resolutions penn'd,
By which they promised to defend
With sword and gun, old Stonington.
The ships advancing different ways,
The britons soon began to blaze,
And put th' old women in amaze,
Who fear'd the loss of Stonington.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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