POEMS EVERY CHILD SHOULD KNOW - Yesterday's Classics

POEMS EVERY CHILDSHOULD KNOW

POEMS EVERYCHILD SHOULDKNOWBYMARY E. BURTYESTERDAY’S CLASSICSCHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA

Cover and arrangement 2008 Yesterday’s Classics, LLC.This edition, first published in 2008 by Yesterday’sClassics, an imprint of Yesterday’s Classics, LLC, isan unabridged republication of the work originallypublished by Doubleday, Page and Company in1907. For the complete listing of the books that arepublished by Yesterday’s Classics, please visitwww.yesterdaysclassics.com. Yesterday’s Classics isthe publishing arm of the Baldwin OnlineChildren’s Literature Project which presents thecomplete text of hundreds of classic books forchildren at www.mainlesson.com.ISBN-10: 1-59915-210-XISBN-13: 978-1-59915-210-3Yesterday’s Classics, LLCPO Box 3418Chapel Hill, NC 27515

PREFACEIS THIS another collection of stupid poems thatchildren cannot use? Will they look hopelessly throughthis volume for poems that suit them? Will they saydespairingly, “This is too long,” and “That is toohard,” and “I don’t like that because it is not interesting”?Are there three or four pleasing poems and are allthe rest put in to fill up the book? Nay, verily! Thepoems in this collection are those that children love.With the exception of seven, they are short enough forchildren to commit to memory without wearyingthemselves or losing interest in the poem. If one boylearns “The Overland Mail,” or “The Recruit,” or“Wynken, Blynken, and Nod,” or “The Song inCamp,” or “Old Ironsides,” or “I Have a LittleShadow,” or “The Tournament,” or “The Duel,” nineboys out of ten will be eager to follow him. I know,because I have tried it a dozen times. Every boy loves“Paul Revere’s Ride” (alas! I have not been able toinclude it), and is ambitious to learn it, but only boyshaving a quick memory will persevere to the end. Shallthe slower boy be deprived of the pleasure of readingthe whole poem and getting its inspiring sentiment andlearning as many stanzas as his mind will take? No,indeed. Half of such a poem is better than none. Letthe slow boy learn and recite as many stanzas as he can

and the boy of quick memory follow him up with therest. It does not help the slow boy’s memory to keep itdown entirely or deprive it of its smaller activitybecause he cannot learn the whole. Some people willinvariably give the slow child a very short poem. It isoften better to divide a long poem among the children,letting each child learn a part. The sustained interest ofa long poem is worth while. “The Merman,” “TheBattle of Ivry,” “Horatius at the Bridge,” “Krinken,”“The Skeleton in Armour,” “The Raven” and “HervéRiel” may all profitably be learned that way. Nevertheless, the child enjoys most the poem that is just longenough, and there is much to be said in favour of theselection that is adapted, in length, to the averagemind; for the child hesitates in the presence of quantityrather than in the presence of subtle thought. I makeclaim for this collection that it is made up of poemsthat the majority of children will learn of their ownfree will. There are people who believe that in thematter of learning poetry there is no “ought,” but this isa false belief. There is a duty, even there; for everyAmerican citizen ought to know the great nationalsongs that keep alive the spirit of patriotism.Children should build for their future—and get, whilethey are children, what only the fresh imagination ofthe child can assimilate.They should store up an untold wealth ofheroic sentiment; they should acquire the habit ofcarrying a literary quality in their conversation; theyshould carry a heart full of the fresh and delightfulassociations and memories connected with poetryhours to brighten mature years. They should developtheir memories while they have memories to develop.

Will the boy who took every poetry hour for a wholeschool year to learn “Henry of Navarre” ever regret it, orwill the children who listened to it? No. It was fresh everyweek and they brought fresh interest in listening. The boywill always love it because he used to love it. There wereboys who scrambled for the right to recite “TheTournament,” “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” “TheStar-Spangled Banner,” and so on. The boy who was firstto reach the front had the privilege. The triumph ofgetting the chance to recite added to the zest of it. Willthey ever forget it?I know Lowell’s “The Finding of the Lyre.”Attention, Sir Knights! See who can learn it first as I say itto you. But I find that I have forgotten a line of it, so youmay open your books and teach it to me. Now, I canrecite every word of it. How much of it can you repeatfrom memory? One boy can say it all. Nearly every childhas learned the most of it. Now, it will be easy for you tolearn it alone. And Memory, the Goddess Beautiful, willhenceforth go with you to recall this happy hour.MARY E. BURT.The John A. Browning School, 1904.

CONTENTSPART I — THE BUDDING MOMENT1. THE ARROW AND THE SONG . 12. THE BABIE .23. LET DOGS DELIGHT TO BARK AND BITE .24. LITTLE THINGS .35. HE PRAYETH BEST.36. TWINKLE, TWINKLE, LITTLE STAR .47. PIPPA .58. THE DAYS OF THE MONTH . 59. TRUE ROYALTY .610. PLAYING ROBINSON CRUSOE .611. MY SHADOW . 712. LITTLE WHITE LILY .813. HOW THE LEAVES CAME DOWN . 1014. WILLIE WINKIE .1115. THE OWL AND THE PUSSY-CAT . 1216. WYNKEN, BLYNKEN, AND NOD . 1417. THE DUEL . 1518. THE BOY WHO NEVER TOLD A LIE .1719. LOVE BETWEEN BROTHERS AND SISTERS. 18

20. THE BLUEBELL OF SCOTLAND. 1821. IF I HAD BUT TWO LITTLE WINGS . 1922. A FAREWELL . 1923. CASABIANCA . 2024. THE CAPTAIN’S DAUGHTER . 2125. THE VILLAGE BLACKSMITH .2326. SWEET AND LOW .2527. THE VIOLET .2528. THE RAINBOW .2629. A VISIT FROM ST. NICHOLAS .2730. THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER .2931. FATHER WILLIAM .3032. THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE GLOW-WORM .32PART II —THE LITTLE CHILD33. THE FROST .3534. THE OWL .3635. LITTLE BILLEE .3736. THE BUTTERFLY AND THE BEE .3837. AN INCIDENT OF THE FRENCH CAMP .3938. ROBERT OF LINCOLN. 4139. OLD GRIMES .4340. SONG OF LIFE .4541. FAIRY SONG.4642. A BOY’S SONG .47

43. BUTTERCUPS AND DAISIES.4844. THE RAINBOW .5045. OLD IRONSIDES .5046. LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE . 5147. O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!.5348. INGRATITUDE .5449. THE IVY GREEN . 5550. THE NOBLE NATURE.5651. THE FLYING SQUIRREL . 5752. WARREN’S ADDRESS .5953. THE SONG IN CAMP .6054. THE BUGLE SONG .6255. THE THREE BELLSOF GLASGOW.6356. SHERIDAN’S RIDE .6557. THE SANDPIPER . 6758. LADY CLARE .6959. THE LORD OF BURLEIGH. 7260. HIAWATHA’S CHILDHOOD . 7661. I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD . 8062. JOHN BARLEYCORN . 8163. A LIFE ON THE OCEAN WAVE .8364. THE DEATH OF THE OLD YEAR .8465. ABOU BEN ADHEM .8666. FARM-YARD SONG .8767. TO A MOUSE .89

68. TO A MOUNTAIN DAISY . 9169. BARBARA FRIETCHIE.93PART III —THE DAY'S AT THE MORN70. LOCHINVAR .9971. LORD ULLIN’S DAUGHTER. 10172. THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE. 10373. THE TOURNAMENT . 10574. THE WIND AND THE MOON . 10775. JESUS THE CARPENTER .10976. LETTY’S GLOBE . 11177. A DREAM . 11178. HEAVEN IS NOT REACHED AT A SINGLE BOUND .11279. THE BATTLE OF BLENHEIM .11380. FIDELITY .11581. THE CHAMBERED NAUTILUS . 11882. CROSSING THE BAR .11983. THE OVERLAND-MAIL .12084. GATHERING SONG OF DONALD DHU .12185. MARCO BOZZARIS . 12386. THE DEATH OF NAPOLEON . 12787. HOW SLEEP THE BRAVE . 12988. THE FLAG GOES BY. 12989. HOHENLINDEN .13190. MY OLD KENTUCKY HOME . 132

91. OLD FOLKS AT HOME . 13392. THE WRECK OF THE HESPERUS . 13593. BANNOCKBURN. 138PART IV —LAD AND LASSIE94. THE INCHCAPE ROCK .14395. THE FINDING OF THE LYRE . 14696. A CHRYSALIS . 14797. FOR A’ THAT . 14898. THE NEW ARRIVAL . 15099. THE BROOK .151100. THE BALLAD OF THE CLAMPHERDOWN . 152101. THE DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB . 156102. I REMEMBER, I REMEMBER .157103. DRIVING HOME THE COWS . 158104. KRINKEN .160105. STEVENSON’S BIRTHDAY . 163106. A MODEST WIT . 163107. THE LEGEND OF BISHOP HATTO. 165108. COLUMBUS . 168109. THE SHEPHERD OF KING ADMETUS . 170110. HOW THEY BROUGHT THE GOOD NEWSFROM GHENT TO AIX . 172111. THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE AT CORUNNA . 174112. THE EVE OF WATERLOO. 176

113. IVRY . .178114. THE GLOVE AND THE LIONS . 181115. THE WELL OF ST. KEYNE . 183116. THE NAUTILUS AND THE AMMONITE . 185117. THE SOLITUDE OF ALEXANDER SELKIRK . 187118. THE HOMES OF ENGLAND .189119. HORATIUS AT THE BRIDGE .191120. THE PLANTING OF THE APPLE-TREE . 209PART V —ON AND ON121. JUNE . 215122. A PSALM OF LIFE . 216123. BARNACLES . 217124. A HAPPY LIFE .218125. HOME, SWEET HOME . 219126. FROM CASA GUIDI WINDOWS. 220127. WOODMAN, SPARE THAT TREE! . 220128. ABIDE WITH ME .222129. LEAD, KINDLY LIGHT .222130. THE LAST ROSE OF SUMMER .223131. ANNIE LAURIE .224132. THE SHIP OF STATE .225133. AMERICA .226134. THE LANDING OF THE PILGRIMS.227135. THE LOTOS-EATERS.229

136. MOLY . 231137. CUPID DROWNED .232138. CUPID STUNG .232139. CUPID AND MY CAMPASBE .233140. A BALLAD FOR A BOY .234141. THE SKELETON IN ARMOUR .238142. THE REVENGE .244143. SIR GALAHAD .250144. A NAME IN THE SAND .253PART VI —"GROW OLD ALONG WITH ME"145. THE VOICE OF SPRING . 257146. THE FORSAKEN MERMAN .258147. THE BANKS O’ DOON.263148. THE LIGHT OF OTHER DAYS .264149. MY OWN SHALL COME TO ME .265150. ODE TO A SKYLARK .266151. THE SANDS OF DEE.268152. A WISH .270153. LUCY . 271154. SOLITUDE . 271155. JOHN ANDERSON.272156. THE GOD OF MUSIC . 273157. A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT .274158. THE BRIDES OF ENDERBY . 275

159. THE LYE . 282160. L’ENVOI . 284161. CONTENTMENT .285162. THE HARP THAT ONCE THROUGH TARA’S HALLS. 286163. THE OLD OAKEN BUCKET .287164. THE RAVEN . 288165. ARNOLD VON WINKLERIED .294166. LIFE, I KNOW NOT WHAT THOU ART . 298167. MERCY . 298168. POLONIUS’ ADVICE .299169. A FRAGMENT FROM “JULIUS CÆSAR” . 300170. THE SKYLARK . 300171. THE CHOIR INVISIBLE . 302172. THE WORLD IS TOO MUCH WITH US . 303173. ON HIS BLINDNESS. 303174. SHE WAS A PHANTOM OF DELIGHT. 304175. ELEGY WRITTEN IN A COUNTRY CHURCHYARD .305176. RABBI BEN EZRA .311177. PROSPICE . 318178. RECESSIONAL . 319179. OZYMANDIAS OF EGYPT. 320180. MORTALITY . 321181. ON FIRST LOOKING INTO CHAPMAN’S “HOMER” .323182. HERVÉ RIEL .324183. THE PROBLEM . 330

184. TO AMERICA.333185. THE ENGLISH FLAG .334186. THE MAN WITH THE HOE .338187. SONG OF MYSELF .340

Index of AuthorsAnonymousTwinkle, Twinkle Little Star, 4The Days of the Month, 5The Boy Who Never Told a Lie, 17The Bluebell of Scotland, 18The Nautilus and theAmmonite, 185A Ballad for a Boy, 234Arnold, MatthewThe Forsaken Merman, 258Austin, AlfredTo America, 333Barbauld, A. L.Life, I Know Not What ThouArt, 298Bennett, Henry HolcombThe Flag Goes By, 129Blake, WilliamA Dream, 111Bowles, William LisleThe Butterfly and the Bee, 38Bradley, Mary EmilyA Chrysalis, 147Brewer, Ebenezer CobhamLittle Things, 3Browning, Elizabeth BarrettFrom Casa Guida Windows, 220A Musical Instrument, 274Browning, RobertPippa, 5An Incident of the FrenchCamp, 39Browning, RobertHow They Brought the GoodNews from Ghent to Aix, 172Rabbi Ben Ezra, 311Prospice, 318Hervé Riel, 324Bryant, William CullenRobert of Lincoln, 4

This edition, first published in 2008 by Yesterday’s Classics, an imprint of Yest erday’s Classics, LLC, is an unabridged republication of the work originally published by Doubleday, Page and Company in 1907. For the complete listing of the books that are published by Yesterday’s Classics, please visit