The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1893-06-07
CLEMSON COLLEGE.
The Waving Fields Of Grain and the
Charge of the Fresh Brigade.

They are about ready now up at Clemson
for the boys, and in q few weeks six hundred
tender lads are expected to arrive, and be
transformed into agricultural artists. They
could desire, and few things more IN addi.
tion I'm afraid, such as 800 acres Of land that
are to be planted and plowed.
went over the place with much interest
and thought of the precious boys as went
With my powerful Imagination could see
those noble young artists chisellng out cottou
to q stand. or moving down the grass, Ike
Napoleon did the Russians at Austerlitz.
could see them hewing down the shrubbery
from the stumps, or using familiar quotations
as they plowed In the new ground, and said
to myself "This is q glorious future for them
and us" I saw wheat field there. which
children-it was far-reaching and exceeding
beautiful-acres upon acres OF glorious wav
ing corn-and thought that 1t was In some
fair field like this that those six hundred
all over with, glory and perspiration. Some
blessed morning when the thermometer Is q,
the frying point, they will march out and en-.
sage R es Of hs sodsu
grain: for I know that one OF the most dell
cious things In this world Is to sit In the shade
and listen to rhe song Of the reapers and be
filled with the Joy Of the harvest Time.
those fresh boys, my meditations turned into
q poem, for I haye always been born poet
and my thoughts take TO verse ss naturally as
girls to kissing, or chicks TO water, and these
were the lines that rushed IN upon me:
Halt a mile, half mile.
Half a mile onward,
All into field OF wheat
Marched the six hundred.
Forward, the Fresh Brigade!
"Charge for the grain !" he said:
Into the field Of wheat
Marched the six hundred.
"Forward, the Fresh Brigsder'
Tho every boys dismay'd.
For the freshman knows
Some one has blunder'd:
getting him into such ascrape.)
Theirs not TO make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but TO work or fly.
Into the field OF wheat
Marched the six hundred.
Grain TO right Of them,
Grain to len of them,
Grain In front Of them
There to be sunder'd;
Blister'd by the heat as 1t fell.
Slowly they walked, but we'll,
Beneath blazing sun,
Hotter than words could tell
Marched the six hundred.
Flash'd all their cradles bare,
Flash'd as they turned in air,
Cutting the grain out there,
Reaping whole acres, while
All the State wonder'd:
And tho 1t made them smoke,
Right throt the field they broke.
Wheat and briars
Reel'd from the cradle stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they limped back, but not
Not the six hundred.
Grain 10 right OF them,
Grain to left OF them,
Grain behind them
Still to be sunderd:
While boys fell weary, DER
Streaming from every pore
They that had reap'd TIL sore
Came back from the field Of wheat
Swearing they'd cut no more,
All that could drag Of them,
ALI that could drag
or the shatter'd six hundred.
When can the memory Of 1t fade?
o the wild work they made
ALI the State wondered.
Weep for the havoc they made!
Weep for the Fresh Brigade,
Tender six hundred.
These are touching lines and have about
them the real fire OF poetry, but Morandy
says they are not original, and that have
stolen them from an Englishman named Ten
nyson, as II any body ever heard OF such
fellow. wish there was some Kind OF Pres
bytery or Conference that could silence MO
randy anyway. Andy Crunch.