BY EDNA DEAN PROCTOR.

(AIR:-"The Star-spangled Banner.")

O STAR SPANGLED BANNER! the Flag of our pride! Though trampled by traitors and basely defied, Fling out to the glad winds your Red, White, and Blue,

For the heart of the North-land is beating for you! And her strong arm is nerving to strike with a will Till the foe and his boastings are humbled and still! Here's welcome to wounding and combat and scars And the glory of death-for the Stripes and the Stars!

From prairie, O ploughman! speed boldly away-
There's seed to be sown in God's furrows to-day-
Row landward, lone fisher! stout woodman, come
home!

Let smith leave his anvil and weaver his loom,
And hamlet and city ring loud with the cry,
"For God and our country we'll fight till we die!
Here's welcome to wounding and combat and scars
And the glory of death-for the Stripes and the
Stars!"

Invincible Banner! the Flag of the Free!

O where treads the foot that would falter for thec?
Or the hands to be folded, till triumph is won
And the Eagle looks proud, as of old, to the sun?
Give tears for the parting-a murmur of prayer-
Then Forward! the fame of our standard to share!
With welcome to wounding and combat and scars
And the glory of death-for the Stripes and the
Stars.

And each beautiful lady

Of the "Five Thousand" fair,

Who "held themselves ready"
Would they have staid there?
"Twas a thing to have done,
If only for fun,

Just to show how the gallant spectators could run !
-Vanity Fair, April 27.

-Evening Post, April 18.

VIRGINIA TO THE NORTH.

THUS speaks the sovereign Old Dominion To Northern States her frank opinion:

FIRST.

MOVE NOT A FINGER: 'tis coercion, The signal for our prompt dispersion.

SECOND.

WAIT, till I make my full decision, Be it for union or division.

THIRD.

If I declare my ultimatum,

ACCEPT MY TERMS, as I shall state 'em.

FOURTH.

THEN-I'll remain, while I'm inclined to,
Seceding when I have a mind to.

- Commercial Advertiser, March 21

STARS IN MY COUNTRY'S SKY. Are ye all there? Are ye all there, Stars of my country's sky?

Are ye all there? Are ye all there,
In your shining homes on high?
"Count us! Count us," was their answer,
As they dazzled on my view,
In glorious perihelion,

Amid their field of blue.

I cannot count ye rightly;

There's a cloud with sable rim ;
I cannot make your number out,
For my eyes with tears are dim.
Oh! bright and blessed Angel,
On white wing floating by,
Help me to count, and not to miss
One star in my country's sky!

Then the Angel touched mine eyelids,
And touched the frowning cloud;
And its sable rim departed,

And it fled with murky shroud.
There was no missing Pleiad,

'Mid all that sister race;

The Southern Cross gleamed radiant forth, And the Pole-Star kept its place.

And all my comrades knew me for a soldier brave and bold;

My eye was bright, my step was firm, I measured six feet two,

And I knew not what it was to shirk when there was work to do.

But the first thing a soldier learns is that he must obey,

And that when an order 's given he has not a word to say;

So when told to man the boats, not a question did we ask,

But silently, yet eagerly, began our hurried task.

We did a deal of work that night, though our numbers were but few;

We had all our stores to carry, and our ammunition too;

And the guard-ship-'twas the Nina-set to watch us in the bay,

Never dreamed what we were doing, though 'twas almost light as day.

We spiked the guns we left behind, and cut the flag-staff down

From its top should float no color if it might not hold our own

Then we sailed away for Sumter as fast as we could go With our good Major Anderson, just fifty years ago.

I never can forget, my boys, how the next day, at

noon,

The drums beat and the bands played a stirring martial tune,

And silently we gathered round the flag-staff strong and high,

For ever pointing upward to God's temple in the sky.

Our noble Major Anderson was good as he was brave,

And he knew without His blessing no banner long could wave;

So he knelt, with head uncovered, while the chaplain read the prayer,

And as the last Amen was said, the flag rose high in air.

Then our loud huzzas rang out, far and widely o'er the sca!

We shouted for the stars and stripes, the standard of the free!

Every eye was fixed upon it, every heart beat warm and fast.

As with eager lips we promised to defend it to the last!

'Twas a sight to be remembered, boys-the chaplain with his book,

Our leader humbly kneeling, with his calm, undaunted look ;

And the officers and men, crushing tears they would not shed

And the blue sea all around us, and the blue sky over head!

Now go to bed, my children, the old man's story's told

Stir up the fire before you go, 'tis bitter, bitter cold; And I'll tell you more to-morrow night, when loud the fierce winds blow,

Of gallant Major Anderson and fifty years ago.

-Evening Post, April 18