The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1909-12-09

and patriotic verse from one son of
Vermont to another, the closing stan
zas of which are as follows:
"Henceforth on flames eternal page
the Oregon will shine
And Clark-that brave Green Noun
tain Boy,-will be in every line;
That hill-born hero of the waves
whose name revered will be
So long as valor has place in
annals of the sea!
Elsewhere ones rank depends on
Kings, whose whim makes
noble blood
But Clark was not that way endowed
ed-his knighthood came from
Cod
The kind that captured old Fort
Ii. and won at Bennington
Where grand old Stark the Hessians
fought, and drove from every
gun.
And so where Clark shall have COM
mand-that leader true and
brave
From every mast, on every breeze,
old Glory still shall wave"
The longest and probably the strong
est poem in the book is "The Pa
triarch Oak" The writer here sue
ceeds in the difficult and sometimes
dangerous task of telling an historical
tale in rhyme. This is the story of Lake
Champlain, told to a younger oak by
patriarch that "gazes back on CEN
turtles.
"And through a life of twenty score
Of years replete with memories"
When one remembers that into
such story must be woven such
names as Abercrombie, Dieskau,
Jogues, Ticonderoga, Algonquin and
Iroquois, the difficulty of writing
verse will be recognized. Neverthe-
less the task is remarkably well done.
The poem is smooth and melodious,
the movement is free and vigorous,
and the writer nowhere sacrifices
historical accuracy. 1t is a rich con-
tribution to the literature of the
Champlain valley.
OF the period of Indian warfare the
writer says:
And through these years of endless
strife,
Scarce was the spot on this fair
shore
Which tomahawk and scalping knife
Had not yet stained with human
gore"
OF General Abercrombies spectac-
ular descent of Lake George in the
French and Indian War, he says:
THAT spectacle no pen forgets,
Where banners waved with flags
uprun
Mid flashing arms and bayonets
Resplendent in that July sun"
OF the period following the CEN
turtles of warfare, he writes as fol-
lows
Wars ugly sound so constant here
Throughout those tragic days of
yore,
No longer plaques the harassed ear,
For peace now gladdens every
shore.
And where imperial armies fought
To gain this virgin continent,
A providential Hand hath wrought
A free, benignant government,
Where sovereign is the peoples will,
Expressed by all, denied to none !;
And here the conflict ragged until
That righteous cause at last was
won
And here was planted and enshrin-
The sacred tree of Liberty,
Whose outstretched branches inter-
twined,
Are sought by all humanity.
So here upon this hallowed ground,
The weak, the downtrod, and op-
pressed,
| From tyranny at last have found.
A refuge and abiding rest
|
The book has distinctive New
England flavor 1t is impossible to
give as many extracts as one would
wist, they are all so good. That the
auhor's previous poetical writings
have been appreciated is shown by
such testimonials as these:
with the exception of Mr.. Bryant
and ! am not sure that this excep-
ton should be made-Mr. Flagg is
among our poets of nature, our great
est"
-Ex-Gov. Geo. S. Boutwell,, (Mass)
Poetic feeling and insight, and the
force and polish that make the per,
feet poem are in his grasp. In his
volume there is much to please, lit,
tie to criticise"
Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
"a delicious New England flavor