The Flag Goes By

The Fourth of July is an important holiday in American history. This is the day when our Founding Fathers accepted the Declaration of Independence, and declared America free from England's rule. So, even though the Fourth of July is still two days away, I thought I would share a patriotic poem about our country with you. The Flag Goes By is written by Henry Holcomb Bennett.

 

I did a small amount of searching and found the history of Bennett and the poem The Flag Goes By on whatsoproudlywehail.org. This is what it said:

Henry Holcomb Bennett (1863–1924), an Ohio-born author and poet, moved west after graduating from Kenyon College to work in the railroad business before returning to his hometown of Chillicothe as a journalist. By 1897, he left journalism to focus on more creative writing, including short stories and poems, often illustrating his own works (he was a landscape painter as well). His nonfiction work included essays about military life, Ohio history, and ornithology. Bennett’s most famous work remains this patriotic poem, first published in The Youth’s Companion on January 13, 1898. It was immediately included in several students’ readers around the turn of the century.

I really like this poem, as it shows how deep a respect we should have for the country in which we live. Here is the poem.

The Flag Goes By

Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums,
A flash of color beneath the sky:
Hats off!
The flag is passing by!

Blue and crimson and white it shines,
Over the steel-tipped, ordered lines.
Hats off!
The colors before us fly;
But more than the flag is passing by.

Sea-fights and land-fights, grim and great,
Fought to make and to save the State:
Weary marches and sinking ships;
Cheers of victory on dying lips;

Days of plenty and years of peace;
March of a strong land’s swift increase;
Equal justice, right and law,
Stately honor and reverend awe;

Sign of a nation, great and strong
To ward her people from foreign wrong:
Pride and glory and honor,—all
Live in the colors to stand or fall.

Hats off!
Along the street there comes
A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums;
And loyal hearts are beating high:
Hats off!
The flag is passing by!

I hope you like this poem as much as I do, and I hope it helps you to remember that the Fourth of July is not just about hamburgers and fireworks in the back yard. Come back Monday for another patriotic poem. Feel free to leave any comments you have on Facebook or in the comment section below.