Ballad Of Lieutenant Miles

When you speak of dauntless deeds,
When you tell of stirring scenes,
Tell this story of the isles
Where the endless summer smiles, —
Tell of young Lieutenant Miles
In the far-off Philippines!

'Twas the Santa Ana fight! —
All along the Tagal line
From the thickets dense and dire
Gushed the fountains of their fire;.
You could mark their rifles' ire,
You could hark their bullets whine.

Little wonder there was pause!
Some were wounded, some were dead;
"Call Lieutenant Miles!" He came,
In his eyes a fearless flame.
"Yonder block-house is our aim!"
The battalion leader said.

"You must take it —how you will;
You must break this damnèd spell!"
"Volunteers!" cried Miles. 'Twas vain,
For that narrow tropic lane
'Twixt the bamboo and the cane
Was a very lane of hell.

There were five stood forth at last;
God above, but they were men!
"Come!" — exultantly he saith! —
Did they falter? Not a breath!
Down the path of hurtling death
The Lieutenant led them then.

Two have fallen — now a third!
Forward dash the other three;
In the onrush of that race
Ne'er a swerve nor stay of pace.
And the Tagals —-dare they face
Such a desperate company?

Panic gripped them by the throat, —
Every Tagal rifleman;
And as though they seemed to see
In those charging foemen three
An avenging destiny,
Fierce and fast and far they ran.

So a salvo for the six!
So a round of ringing cheers!
Heroes of the distant isles
Where the endless summer smiles, —
Gallant young Lieutenant Miles
And his valiant volunteers!