Ballads of the War.
He lay on the field of Antietam,
As the sun sank low in the west,
And the life from his heart was ebbing
Through a ghastly wound in his breast.
All around were the dead and the dying--
A pitiful sight to see--
And afar, in the vapory distance,
Were the flying hosts of Lee.
He raised himself on his elbow,
And wistfully gazed around;
Till he spied far off a soldier
Threading the death-strewn ground.
'Come here to me, Union soldier,
Come here to me where I lie;
I've a word to say to you, soldier;
I must say it before I die.'
The soldier came at his bidding.
He raised his languid head:
'From the hills of North Carolina
They forced me hither,' he said.
'Though I stood in the ranks of the rebels,
And carried yon traitorous gun,
I have never been false to my country,
For I fired not a shot, not one.
'Here I stood while the balls rained around me,
Unmoved as yon mountain crag--
Still true to our glorious Union,
Still true to the dear old flag!'
Brave soldier of North Carolina!
True patriot hero wert thou!
Let the laurel that garlands Antietam,
Spare a leaf for thy lowly brow![A]
[Footnote A: From an incident narrated in the newspaper account of the
battle of Antietam. The reader will be reminded by it of Mrs. Browning's
'Forced Recruit at Solferino.']