Page 1 of 38 THE SONG OF THE BOW - Songs of Action

The Project Gutenberg eBook, Songs of Action, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

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SONGS OF ACTION

Contents:

The Song Of The Bow Cremona
The Storming Party The Frontier Line Corporal Dick's Promotion A Forgotten Tale Pennarby Mine A Rover Chanty A Ballad Of The Ranks A Lay Of The Links The Dying Whip Master
H.M.S. 'Foudroyant' The Farnshire Cup The Groom's Story With the Chiddingfolds A Hunting Morning The Old Gray Fox 'Ware Holes The Home-coming of the 'Eurydice' The Inner Room The Irish Colonel The Blind Archer A Parable
A Tragedy
The Passing The Franklin's Maid The Old Huntsman

THE SONG OF THE BOW

What of the bow?

The bow was made in England:
Of true wood, of yew-wood,
The wood of English bows;

So men who are free

Love the old yew-tree
And the land where the yew-tree grows.

What of the cord?

The cord was made in England:
A rough cord, a tough cord,
A cord that bowmen love;

And so we will sing

Of the hempen string
And the land where the cord was wove.

What of the shaft?
The shaft was cut in England:
A long shaft, a strong shaft,
Barbed and trim and true;

So we'll drink all together

To the grey goose-feather
And the land where the grey goose flew.

What of the mark?

Ah, seek it not in England,
A bold mark, our old mark
Is waiting over-sea.

When the strings harp in chorus,

And the lion flag is o'er us,
It is there that our mark will be.

What of the men?

The men were bred in England:
The bowmen--the yeomen,
The lads of dale and fell.

Here's to you--and to you!

To the hearts that are true
And the land where the true hearts dwell.

		"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." Lord Acton