The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-08-14
POETRY.
The Song Of the vermonters.


MIR. Whittier Settles a Point of DO ubt.
The approaching celebration at Bennington VT,
has revived an interest in everything pertaining to
the history the state and reopened the authorship
OF the celebrated 'Song of the Vermonters" sup
posed to have been composed or sung by the "Green
Mountain Boys of1779." 1t has been attributed to
Ethan Allen as well as to the poet Whittier, though
the latter never made any public acknowledgment
oft, did t appear in any collection OF his works.
In reply to a letter from Mr. Daniel Roberts of Bur-
lngton, inquirng as to his authorship Mr.. Whittier,
in letter dated the 10Th ult states that the song
was written by himself in 1888 or "a as an attempt
at literary mystcaton. He was curious to see what
If it would be received as an od-time production 1t
was printed in Beckinghams Ne,o England Maya
z'ne, and remained unsupported for quarter of a
century. he expresses his regret to find the boys
practical joke still alive and confronting him in late
manhood. The correspondence appeared in a recent
issue OF the Burlington Free Press The following
the poem entire, which relates to the attempts of the
adjoining states Of New York, New Hampshire and
Massachusetts to assert jurisdiction over Vermont
territory, and the gallant manner in which these
claims we've met and resisted by the Green Mountin
Boys.
The Song of the verm onters
-., l779.
Ho, all to the bordersl yermonters, come down,
With your breeches Of deerskin, and jackets Of
brown;
With your red wooden caps and your moccasin, come
To the gathering summons of trumpet and drums.
Come down with your rifesi-let gray wolf and fox
Howl on the shade Of their primitive rocks;
Let the bear feed securely from pig pen and stall,
Here's two-legged game for your powder and bali.
On our south come the Dutchmen, enveloped in
grease,
An And aFmiDg for battle while canting for peace;
On our east crafty Meshech has gathered his band,
To hang up our leaders and eat out our land.
flo, all to the rescued For Satan shall work
No gain for his legion of Hampshire and York!
They claim our posseseions-the pitiful knavesl
The tribute we pay shall be prisons and graves!
Let Clinton and Ten Brock, with brides in their
hands,
sim seek to divide us and parcel our lands;
we've coats for our traitors, whoever they arc
The warp is OF feathers, the filling of tarl
Does the "old Bay stase' threaten? Does Congress
Swarms Hampshire in arms on our borders again?
Bark the war-dogs of Britain aloud on the lake?
Let 'em GOMEZ What they can they are welcome to
take.
Is comfort, contentment, and labor, and health,
And land which as treemen we only have trod,
Independence Of all, save the mercies of God.
Yet we know no allegiance; we bow to no throne
Our ruler Is law, and the law is our own;
Our leaders themselves are our own fellow men,
VINO can handle the sword or the scythe or the PEN
Our wives are all true, and our daughters are fair,
With their blue eyes of smiles and their light flow
All brisk at their wheel till the dark eventual,
Then bthe at the sleighride, the husking and ball.
We've sheep on the hillside; we've COWS on the
And gay tasseled corn-aelds, and rank growing
There are deer on the mountains, and wood. pigeons
From the crack of our muskets, like clouds on the
sky.
And there's fish in our streamlets and rivers, which
Their course from the hills to our broad-bosomed
lake;
Through rock arched Winooski the salmon leaps free
And porty shad follows, all fresh from the sea-
Like sunt cam the piskerel gdes through his pool;
ana me spotted trout sleeps where the water
suit,
And ours are the mountains which awfully rise,
I'LL they Iesttheir green heads on the top of the
And ours are the forests unwasted unshorn,
Save where the wild path Of the tempest is torn.
And though savage and wild be the climate Of ours,
And brief be our season of fruits and OF flowers,
Far dearer the blast round our mountain which
raves,
Than the sweet summer zepher which breathes over
slaves.
Hurrah for Vermont for the land which we till
Must have SONS to defend her, from valley and HILL
Leave the harvest to rot the field where it grows;
And the reaping Of wheat for the reaping of foes
From far Michscow's wild valley to where
Po0soomsuck steals from his wood-circled lair,
From Shocticook River to Lutterlock town
do, all to the rescued Vermonters, come down!
Come York, or come Hampshire come traitors and
kpaves
II ye rule DER land. We shall rule DER our graves
Our VOW is recorded, our banner unfured,
In the name OF Vermont we defy all the the world!