Poems: Patriotic, Religious, Miscellaneous

by Abram Joseph Ryan

Hence they are incomplete in finish, as the author is; tho' he thinks they are true in tone. His feet know more of the humble steps that lead up to the Altar and its Mysteries than of the steeps that lead up to Parnassus and the Home of the Muses. And souls were always more to him than songs. But still, somehow — and he could not tell why — he sometimes tried to sing. Here are his simple songs. He never dreamed of taking even lowest place in the rank of authors. But friends persisted; and, finally, a young lawyer friend, who has entire charge of his business in the book, forced him to front the world and its critics. There are verses connected with the war published in this volume, not for harm-sake, nor for hate-sake, but simply because the author wrote them. He could write again in the same tone and key, under the same circumstances. No more need be said, except that these verses mirror the mind of THE AUTHOR.

Contents

Memoir of Father Ryan

Song of the Mystic
Reverie ["Only a few more years!">[
Lines — 1875
A Memory
Rhyme
Nocturne ["I sit to-night by the firelight,">[
The Old Year and the New
Erin's Flag
The Sword of Robert Lee
Life
A Laugh — and A Moan
In Memory of My Brother
"Out of the Depths"
A Thought
March of the Deathless Dead
Reunited
A Memory
At Last
A Land without Ruins
Memories
The Prayer of the South
Feast of the Assumption
Sursum Corda
A Child's Wish
Presentiment
Last of May
"Gone"
Feast of the Sacred Heart
In Memory of Very Rev. J. B. Etienne
Tears
Lines (Two Loves)
The Land We Love
In Memoriam
Reverie ["We laugh when our souls are the saddest,">[
I Often Wonder Why 'Tis So
A Blessing
July 9th, 1872
Wake Me a Song
In Memoriam (David J. Ryan, C.S.A.)
What? (To Ethel)
The Master's Voice
A "Thought-Flower"
A Death
The Rosary of My Tears
Death
What Ails the World?
A Thought
In Rome
After Sickness
Old Trees
After Seeing Pius IX
Sentinel Songs
Fragments from an Epic Poem
Lake Como
"Peace! Be Still"
Good Friday
My Beads
At Night
Nocturne ["Betimes, I seem to see in dreams">[
Sunless Days
A Reverie ["Did I dream of a song? or sing in a dream?">[
St. Mary's
De Profundis
When? (Death)
The Conquered Banner
A Christmas Chant
"Far Away"
Listen
Wrecked
Dreaming
A Thought
"Yesterdays"
"To-Days"
"To-Morrows"
Inevitable
Sorrow and the Flowers
Hope
Farewells
Song of the River
Dreamland
Lines ["Sometimes, from the far-away,">[
A Song
Parting
St. Stephen
A Flower's Song
The Star's Song
Death of the Flower
Singing-Bird
Now
M * * *
God in the Night
Poets
A Legend
Thoughts
Lines ["The world is sweet, and fair, and bright,">[
C.S.A.
The Seen and The Unseen
Passing Away
The Pilgrim (A Christmas Legend for Children)
A Reverie ["Those hearts of ours — how strange! how strange!">[
—— Their Story Runneth Thus
Night After the Picnic
Lines ["The death of men is not the death">[
Death of the Prince Imperial
In Memoriam (Father Keeler)
Mobile Mystic Societies
Rest
Follow Me
The Poet's Child
Mother's Way
Feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple
St. Bridget
New Year
Zeila (A Story from a Star)
Better than Gold
Sea Dreamings
Sea Rest
Sea Reverie
The Immaculate Conception
Fifty Years at the Altar
Song of the Deathless Voice
To Mr. and Mrs. A. M. T.
To Virginia (on Her Birthday)
Epilogue

Posthumous Poems

In Remembrance
A Reverie [`"O Songs!" I said:']
Only a Dream
The Poet
The Child of the Poet
The Poet Priest
Wilt Pray for Me?

Memoir of Father Ryan

By John Moran

It is regretted that the materials at hand at this writing are not sufficient to warrant as extended a notice as the publishers of the present enlarged volume of Father Ryan's poems would wish, and as the many friends and admirers of the dead priest and poet desire. So distinguished a character and so brilliant a man cannot be passed over lightly, or dealt with sparingly, if the demand of his friends and the public generally would be satisfied even in a moderate degree; for Father Ryan's fame is the inheritance of a great and enlightened nation, and his writings have passed into history to emblazon its pages and enrich the literature of the present and succeeding ages, since it is confidently believed that, with the lapse of time, his fame and his merits will grow brighter and more enduring. With this appreciation of his merits, and a realizing sense of what is due to his memory, and with an equal consciousness of his own want of ability to do justice to the subject, the writer bespeaks the indulgent criticism of those who may read the following remarks — admittedly far short of what are due to the illustrious dead.

The exact date and place of Father Ryan's birth are not yet definitely settled. Some assert that he was born at Norfolk, Va.; others claim Hagerstown, Md., as the place of his birth; whilst there is some ground to believe that in Limerick, Ireland, he first saw the light. The same uncertainty exists as to time. Some claim to know that he was born in 1834, whilst others fix with equal certainty, the year 1836 as the time. In the midst of these conflicting statements, the writer prefers to leave the questions at issue for future determination, when it is hoped that final and conclusive proof will be obtained to place them outside the realms of dispute. Meanwhile, he will present what may be regarded as of primary importance in forming a correct estimate of the character of the deceased, and the value of his life-work, which, after all, are the chief ends sought to be accomplished.