“I remember the sea-fight far away,
How it thundered o’er the tide!
And the dead captains, as they lay
In their graves, o’erlooking the tranquil bay
Where they in battle died.
And the sound of that mournful song
Goes through me with a thrill;
‘A boy’s will is the wind’s will,
And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts.’”
Here Henry Longfellow spent his childhood and youth. Much of that strong aversion to 15 war which pervades the poet’s verses may undoubtedly be charged to early association with his uncle’s death.