Contents -BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

William McCarty, comp. The American National Song Book. 1842.

Bleak Wintry Blasts

BLEAK wintry blasts—relentless rain;

Stern slaves of ruthless death;

Ye have indeed a victim slain,

And robb’d the mourning earth;

But why should I my woes impart;

Ah! who can bind a broken heart.

No more my brave, embattled sons

The dauntless hero leads;

This morn, alas! their deep-toned guns

Told why my bosom bleeds:

No more condemn’d through life to roam,

The Heaven that lent him, call’d him home.

What skill and courage could not do,

Alone he left to fate:

What wisdom taught him to pursue,

He ne’er pursued too late;

Expert to mark with eagle’s eye,

And seize occasions as they fly.

Like him, my sons, be brave—be free,

Nor fear the world in arms;

So shall your latest offspring be

Secure from war’s alarms;

No foe shall venture to invade

The land where Washington is laid.