In arms the Austrian phalanx stood, Peasants, whose new-found strength had broke 2 And now the work of life and death Yet, while the Austrians held their ground, How could they rest within their graves, 3 It must not be: this day, this hour, Few were the numbers she could boast, And felt as 'twere a secret known That one should turn the scale alone, While each unto himself was he On whose sole arm hung victory. 4 It did depend on one, indeed; Unmarked, he stood amid the throng, Till you might see, with sudden grace, And, by the uplifting of his brow, Tell where the bolt would strike, and how. 5 But 'twas no sooner thought than done- Ten spears he swept within his grasp; Their keen points crossed from side to side; He bowed amidst them like a tree, And thus made way for liberty. Swift to the breach his comrades fly- As rushed the spears through Arnold's heart. Rout, ruin, panic, seized them all; 6 Thus Switzerland again was free; HELPS TO STUDY Historical: July 9, 1386, a battle between the Swiss and Austrians took place at Sempach, a small town of Switzerland. The Austrian troops were well trained and well armed. As the cavalry were unable to manage their horses in the mountain pass, they dismounted and stood shoulder to shoulder, forming a solid mass and using their spears as weapons. The Swiss mountaineers were not able to break through the Austrian lines until Arnold von Winkelried rushed forward, grasped as many spears as he could reach with his outstretched arms, pressed them into his body and, falling, bore them down with him to the ground. His companions rushed over his body into the opening thus made in the Austrian lines and won a victory which secured the independence of Switzerland. Notes and Questions Who cried, "Make way for liberty''? In what way did the Austrians resemble a wall? What does the poet mean by com- What line tells you that the Swiss were not accustomed to war? What lines tell you that the Aus trians were well disciplined soldiers? What gave the Swiss courage to face so strong a foe? Read the lines in the third stanza which tell you that each of the Swiss felt that the victory de pended on him alone. What effect did this thought have upon their efforts? Adelaide A. Procter (1825-1864) was an English poet. She was born in London, where she also lived and died. She was the daughter of Bryan Waller Procter, who wrote under the name of Barry Cornwall. Her poems are full of sympathy and sweetness. 1 GIRT round with rugged mountains The fair Lake Constance lies; In her blue heart reflected Shine back the starry skies; Float silently and slow, You think a piece of Heaven Lies on our earth below! 2 Midnight is there: and Silence, Enthroned in Heaven, looks dowr Upon her own calm mirror, Upon a sleeping town: Upon the Tyrol shore, Has stood above Lake Constance A thousand years and more. 3 Her battlements and towers, A sacred legend know, Of how the town was saved, one night, Three hundred years ago. 4 Far from her home and kindred, Seemed to bear farther from her The memory of the Past. 5 She served kind, gentle masters, Their speech seemed no more strange; And when she led her cattle To pasture every day, She ceased to look and wonder 6 She spoke no more of Bregenz, |