 | The lay of the Scottish fiddle : a tale of Havre de Grace |  |
VII.
In silence now they go on board,The gallant barge with rockets stor'd,
The muffled oars are still as death,
And every sailor holds his breath.
Childe Cockburn carried in his hand,
A rocket, and a burning brand,
And waving o'er his august head,
The red-cross standard proudly spread,
Whence hung by silken tassel air,
A bloody scalp of human hair,
Emblem of that pure Christian band,
Which binds the savage, hand in hand
As Caleb Strong devoutly saith.
It was officially communicated to the American government, by Commodore Chauncey, commandant of the lakes, (who, by-the-bye, has called one of his vessels “The Lady of the Lake,”) that the mace of the Speaker of the parliament of Upper Canada, was surmounted by a scalp; which was taken down at the capture of York, and forwarded to the commander in chief.
I rejoice, and so will his pious excellency Governor Strong, to find by this, that such an intimate and brotherly union subsists between our country and the savage, on whom the example of Englishmen cannot fail of having a most beneficial effect. The humane General Procter, will, doubtless, take every pains to have them properly instructed in the principles of the Christian religion, so that by the time the war is over, they will probably, under the guidance of the great prophet Tecumseh, be marvellously improved in humanity and politeness.
| The lay of the Scottish fiddle : a tale of Havre de Grace | |