The "Constitution" was a small warship (technically a frigate) that had fought so well and so often in the War of 1812 that it had been nicknamed "Old Ironsides." In 1830 the Secretary of the Navy considered she had outlived her usefulness, and recommended that the vessel be disposed of or demolished. When he heard of this, Oliver Wendell Homes, the New England poet, editor, and essayist, wrote a sad and ironic poem about the old "eagle of the sea." The poem was reprinted everywhere, and there was so much public resentment that "Old Ironsides" was saved from "the harpies of the shore," those who would have profited from its destruction. Instead of being sold or broken up, "Old Ironsides" was rebuilt and remained afloat, a symbol of glorious achievement.
Old Ironsidespgs. 219-221
September 14, 1830
Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long hast it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it run the battle shout,
And burst the cannon's roar--
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.
Her deck, once red with heroes' blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o'er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor's tread,
Or know the conquered knee--
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!
Oh, better that her shattered hulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!
~ Oliver Wendell Holmes
Story Poems: An Anthology of Narrative Verse selected and edited by Louis Untermeyer, Washington Square Press, New York 1961
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