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In Memoriam
The Bivouac of the Dead
The muffled
drum's sad roll has beat
The soldier's last tattoo;
No more on life's parade shall meet
That brave and fallen few.
On fame's eternal camping-ground
Their silent tents are spread,
And glory guards with solemn round,
The bivouac of the dead.
No rumor of the
foe's advance
Now swells upon the wind;
No troubled thought at midnight haunts
Of loved ones left behind;
No vision of the morrow's strife
The Warrior's dream alarms;
No braying horn nor screaming fife
At dawn shall call to arms.
Rest on,
embalmed and sainted dead,
Dear as the blood you gave;
No impious footsteps here shall tread
The herbage of your grave;
Nor shall your glory be forgot
While fame her record keeps
Or honor points the hallowed spot
Where valor proudly sleeps.
Theodore O'Hara
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