The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #28733   Message #4174133
Posted By: Jim Dixon
08-Jun-23 - 10:39 AM
Thread Name: Lyr Add: The Alphabet Song variations
Subject: Lyr Add: THE SIEGE OF BELGRADE
An Buachaill Caol Dubh quoted from this pom on 09 Aug 22. This is the oldest copy I can find:

From The Trifler: A Periodical Paper, No. 20, (London: W. Ginger, Wed., May 7, 1817), page 233:

An Austrian army awfully array’d,
Boldly by battery besieg’d Belgrade;
Cossack commanders cannonading come,
Dealing destruction’s devastating doom.
Every endeavour engineers essay—
For fame, for fortune fighting—furious fray!
Generals ’gainst generals grapple—gracious God!
How honours Heav’n heroic hardihood—
Infuriate—indiscriminate in ill,
Kinsmen kill kindred, kindred kinsmen kill.
Labour low levels longest, loftiest lines—
Men march ’mid mounds, ’mid moles, ’mid murd’rous mines.
Now noisy noxious numbers notice nought,
Of outward obstacles opposing ought;
Poor patriots! partly purchas’d, partly press’d,
Quite quaking quickly, “quarter, quarter,” quest.
Reason returns, religious right redounds,
Suwarrow stops such sanguinary sounds.
Truce to thee, Turkey, triumph to thy train,
Unjust, unwise, unmerciful Ukraine,
Vanish vain vict’ry, vanish vici’ry vain.—
Why wish we warfare? wherefore welcome were
Xerxes, Ximenes, Xanthus, Xaviere?
Yield, yield ye youths, ye yeomen yield your yell;
Zeno’s, Zorpater’s, Zoroaster’s, zeal
Attracting all, arms against acts appeal.