-e cherished

words "our

in the flag 1

mify? The

Or compare the Amer

hows that nong the

present

im')

Our

ds"

The Star-Spangled Banner

THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER

FRANCIS SCOTT KEY

17

Francis Scott Key (1780-1843) was an American lawyer and poet. He was a native of Maryland. His "The Star-Spangled Banner" made him famous.

1

O SAY, can you see, by the dawn's early light,

What so proudly we hailed, at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming;

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there:
O say, does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

2

On that shore, dimly seen through the mist of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,

As it fitfully blows, now conceals, now discloses ?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the Star-Spangled Banner; O, long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

3

And where are the foes who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war, and the battle's confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more?

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave;
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a na
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and oba
And this be our motto, "In God is our trust";

And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Historical: The incidents referred to in this poem occurred du the war of 1812. In August, 1814, a strong force of Bri entered Washington and burned the Capitol, the White House, many other public buildings. On September 13 the British adm moved his fleet into position to attack Fort McHenry. The bomba ment of the fort lasted all night, but the fort was so bravely fended that the flag was still floating over it when morning came.

Just before the bombardment began, Francis Scott Key was s to the admiral's frigate to arrange for an exchange of prisoners a was told to wait until the bombardment was over. All night watched the fort and by the first rays of morning light he saw t Stars and Stripes still waving. Then, in his joy and pride, he wro the stirring words of the song, which is now known and loved 1 all Americans-The Star Spangled Banner."

Who were the "foe's haught host''?

What words tell where the fo was?

What words tell that the foe ha

ceased firing? Why was this?

Where was the reflection of the flag seen?

What is the meaning of "thus" in the line that begins "O thus be it ever''g

ave

e!

VOCABULARY:

ccurred during ze of British e House, and itish admiral The bombardbravely de

ig came. ey was sent isoners and

Il night he

he saw the he wrote

loved by

haughty

the foe

foe had

of the

thus" > thus

res'-cue-to free or deliver from danger or evil.

tri'-ŭmph-victory; a state of joy because of success.

WORDS AND PHRASES:

"mist of the deep"

"fitfully blows'
"rocket's red glare"
"haughty host''

"ramparts"

"bombs bursting in air"
"Star-Spangled"

"towering steep"

THE NAME OF OLD GLORY*

JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY

James Whitcomb Riley (1852- ) is an American poet. He was born in Indiana and is called "The Hoosier Poet.''

OLD GLORY! say, who,

By the ships and the crew,

1

And the long, blended ranks of the gray and the blue,—
Who gave you, Old Glory, the name that you bear
With such pride everywhere

As you cast yourself free to the rapturous air
And leap out full-length, as we're wanting you to?—
Who gave you that name, with the ring of the same,
And the honor and fame so becoming to you?-

Your stripes stroked in ripples of white and of red,

*Copyright, 1900, James Whitcomb Riley. Published by permission of the Bobbs-Merrill Company.