The Dying Words of Stonewall Jackson
"Order A. P. Hill to prepare for battle.""Tell Major Hawks to advance the Commissary train.""Let us cross the river and rest in the shade."
The stars of Night contain the glittering DayAnd rain his glory down with sweeter graceUpon the dark World's grand, enchanted face --All loth to turn away.
And so the Day, about to yield his breath,Utters the stars unto the listening Night,To stand for burning fare-thee-wells of lightSaid on the verge of death.
O hero-life that lit us like the sun!O hero-words that glittered like the starsAnd stood and shone above the gloomy warsWhen the hero-life was done!
The phantoms of a battle came to dwellI' the fitful vision of his dying eyes --Yet even in battle-dreams, he sends suppliesTo those he loved so well.
His army stands in battle-line arrayed:His couriers fly: all's done: now God decide!-- And not till then saw he the Other SideOr would accept the shade.
Thou Land whose sun is gone, thy stars remain!Still shine the words that miniature his deeds.O thrice-beloved, where'er thy great heart bleeds,Solace hast thou for pain!
Words in this poem
- commissary n.
- One to whom is committed some charge, duty, or office, by a superior power; a commissioner. [LL. commissarius, fr. L. commissus, p. p. of committere to commit, intrust to. See Commit.]
- enchanted a.
- Under the power of enchantment; possessed or exercised by enchanters; as, an enchanted castle.
- dwell v. i.
- To delay; to linger. [OE. dwellen, dwelien, to err, linger, AS. dwellan to deceive, hinder, delay, dwelian to err; akin to Icel. dvelja to delay, tarry, Sw. dväljas to dwell, Dan. dv]
- fitful a.
- Full of fits; irregularly variable; impulsive and unstable. [From 7th Fit.]
- miniature n.
- Originally, a painting in colors such as those in mediæval manuscripts; in modern times, any very small painting, especially a portrait. [It. miniatura, fr. L. miniare. See Miniate, v.,Minium.]
- solace n.
- Comfort in grief; alleviation of grief or anxiety; also, that which relieves in distress; that which cheers or consoles; relief. [OF. solas, ssoulaz, L. solacium, solatium, fr. solari to comfort, console. Cf. Console, v. t.]
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Dying Words of Stonewall Jackson is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Sidney Lanier, Project Gutenberg ebook #579; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Sidney Lanier, The Dying Words of Stonewall Jackson, in Poems (1884), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #579, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/lanier-poems/the-dying-words-of-stonewall-jackson-2.html, id L07693.
Form and metre
The Dying Words of Stonewall Jackson is 27 lines in 7 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is ABBA, complete in 5 of its 7 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 94% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.4 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 30% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 ABBA dayA · graceB · faceB · awayA
- 3 ABBA breathA · nightB · lightB · deathA
- 4 A--A sunA · stars · wars · doneA
- 5 ABBA dwellA · eyesB · suppliesB · wellA
- 6 ABBA arrayedA · decideB · sideB · shadeA
- 7 ABBA remainA · deedsB · bleedsB · painA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| "Order A. P. Hill to prepare for battle." | 11 | /˘····˘/·/˘ |
| "Tell Major Hawks to advance the Commissary train." | 13 | ·/˘··˘/·/˘·˘· |
| "Let us cross the river and rest in the shade." | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| The stars of Night contain the glittering Day | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| And rain his glory down with sweeter grace | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Upon the dark World's grand, enchanted face -- | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| All loth to turn away. | 6 | ····˘/ |
| And so the Day, about to yield his breath, | 10 | ·········· |
| Utters the stars unto the listening Night, | 10 | /˘·····/˘· |
| To stand for burning fare-thee-wells of light | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Said on the verge of death. | 6 | ······ |
| O hero-life that lit us like the sun! | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| O hero-words that glittered like the stars | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| And stood and shone above the gloomy wars | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| When the hero-life was done! | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| The phantoms of a battle came to dwell | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| I' the fitful vision of his dying eyes -- | 11 | ··/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Yet even in battle-dreams, he sends supplies | 10 | ·/·/˘···˘/ |
| To those he loved so well. | 6 | ······ |
| His army stands in battle-line arrayed: | 10 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| His couriers fly: all's done: now God decide! | 10 | ·/˘·····˘/ |
| -- And not till then saw he the Other Side | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Or would accept the shade. | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| Thou Land whose sun is gone, thy stars remain! | 10 | ········˘/ |
| Still shine the words that miniature his deeds. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| O thrice-beloved, where'er thy great heart bleeds, | 11 | ··˘/˘˘/···· |
| Solace hast thou for pain! | 6 | /˘···· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.