e e!— The Name of Old Glory Or droop o'er the sod where the long grasses nod,— So I came by the name of Old Glory. HELPS TO STUDY Notes and Questions To whom is the poet speaking? What soldiers are meant by "the blue''? Why were they given these names? What does the poet mean by describing the blue and the gray as "blended ranks'? This poem was written in the year of our war with Spain. How were the blue and the gray PRONUNCIATION: vāgue (vāg) ach'-ing VOCABULARY: 21 blended at that time? When do the stripes in the flag become "ripples''? Read the lines which tell how we feel when we see the flag fly and "the boys marching by". Who are the boys referred to in these lines? How old does the flag say its name is? Of what is the "driven snow white" the symbol? (See p. 15.) Of what is the "living bloodred" the symbol? Words and Phrases for Study rǎp'-tur-ous leaped (lēpt, or lěpt) chris'ten-ing (kris''n-ing) con-joined' qu'-di-ble-loud enough to be heard. sym'-bol-a sign; anything which suggests an idea or thing. Rufus Choate (1799-1859), an American orator, was a native of Essex, Massachusetts. He graduated from Dartmouth College. He and Daniel Webster were the greatest orators of their time. THE birthday of the "Father of his Country!" May it ever be freshly remembered by American hearts! His memory is first and most sacred in our love; and ever *From one of Choate's orations. Historical: The words, "First in the hearts of his countrymen, were first used by Colonel Henry Lee in the Resolutions which wer presented in the House of Representatives on the death of Washing ton, December, 1799, "to the memory of the Man, first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen." The date 1774 mentioned in this oration, was the year in which the First Continental Congress met. Independence Bell INDEPENDENCE BELL 1 THERE was a tumult in the city, Where they whispered each to each, 2 As the bleak Atlantic currents Lash the wild Newfoundland shore, 3 "Will they do it?" "Dare they do it?" When a nation's life's at hazard, 4 So they beat against the portal, Man and woman, maid and child; And the July sun in heaven On the scene looked down and smiled. 25 |