Dirge
by
John Williamson Palmer (1819-1892) |
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ROOM for a soldier! lay him in the clover;
He loved
the fields, and they shall be his cover;
Make his mound
with hers who called him once her lover:
Where the rain
may rain upon it,
Where the sun may shine upon it,
Where the lamb hath lain upon it,
And the bee will dine
upon it.
Bear him to no dismal tomb under city
churches;
Take him to the fragrant fields, by the silver
birches,
Where the whip-poor-will shall mourn, where the
oriole perches:
Make his mound with sunshine on it.
Where the bee will dine upon it,
Where the lamb hath lain
upon it,
And the rain will rain upon it.
Busy as
the bee was he, and his rest should be the clover;
Gentle
as the lamb was he, and the fern should be his cover;
Fern and rosemary shall grow my soldier's pillow over:
Where the rain may rain upon it,
Where the sun may shine
upon it,
Where the lamb hath lain upon it,
And the bee
will dine upon it.
Sunshine in his heart, the rain
would come full often
Out of those tender eyes which
evermore did soften:
He never could look cold till we saw
him in his coffin.
Make his mound with sunshine on it,
Plant the lordly pine upon it,
Where the moon may stream
upon it,
And memory shall dream upon it.
"Captain
or Colonel,"�whatever invocation
Suit our hymn the best,
no matter for thy station,�
On thy grave the rain shall
fall from the eyes of a mighty nation!
Long as the sun
doth shine upon it
Shall glow the goodly pine upon it,
Long as the stars do gleam upon it
Shall memory come to
dream upon it. |
By John Williamson Palmer (1819-1892)
Listed August 6, 2013 |
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