“I remember my levying morn—
I remember my sacred vow;
And I’d hold it matter of scorn
In death’s teeth to break it now.
“Jove! lava is all around—
It nears me with scorching breath;
It hisses along the ground
To my feet, and the hiss means—death.
“I’ve fought as a soldier should
’Neath many an alien sky,
And at home at my post I’ve stood
Amidst cowards, and now, to die.
“Great Mars, give me heart of grace
Triarii,[C] over the bowl
Say, ‘He died with a smile on his face,
And glory in his soul’!”
W. B. B. Stevens.
FOOTNOTES:
[B] Overwhelmed, together with Pompeii, by a lava eruption, A. D. 79.
[C] The Roman Triarii were old soldiers, of approved valor, who formed the third line in a legion—hence their name.
