A poem by Alan Dugan
Because of the unaccountable spirit of the troops
oh we were marched as we were never marched before
and flanked them off from home. Stupid Meade
was after them, head on to tail, but we convinced
him, finally, to flank, flank, cut off their head.
He finally understood, the idiot, and got a fort
named after him, for wisdom. He probably thought
Lee would conquer Washington from Appomattox
if he, Meade, should march his infantry behind
him, Lee. Ah well, the unaccountable spirit of the troops
triumphed, Meade got his fort, Grant got his presidency,
Sherman got his motto, what was it? War is heck?, Lee got a military school
for the education of young Southern gentlemen, and the Union
Army was taken over by Southern noncommissioned officers
in the wars against the Indians to the west. I know all
about this, I know who won, I served under them
for three hundred and fifty years in World War II,
just long enough not to be called a rookie but a veteran,
and realized the rank and order of my enemies:
first, the West Point officers; second, the red-neck sergeants;
third, the Nazis and perhaps the Japanese. I won
all of these wars as a private soldier, for a while,
and am happy to have done so: without me
Hitler and Hirohito would he ruling the world
instead of America and Russia, but I still will not
drive through Georgia with New York license plates.
A few random poems:
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- Clorinda And Damon poem – Andrew Marvell poems
- of spiritual matters by Raj Arumugam
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External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
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Poems in English
- women picking edible plants by Raj Arumugan
- what I want to know by Raj Arumugam
- what a poet must do by Raj Arumugam
- was it you, mooon? by Raj Arumugam
- walking with a staff by Raj Arumugam
- The village girl models for the artist, 1904 by Raj Arumugam
- The Discovery of the Kama Sutra by Raj Arumugam
- Taking yourself too seriously by Raj Arumugam
- Sohni and her love Mahinwal by Raj Arumugam
- sadness from the night by Raj Arumugam
- run home, run home butterfly by Raj Arumugam
- Rip van Winkle’s dream by Raj Arumugam
- Revenge of the Ghost of the Betrayed Husband by Raj Arumugam
- Poet Herodia of ancient Pincaeia by Raj Arumugam
- pissed-off cow by Raj Arumugam
- on the edge of the seat by Raj Arumugam
- on our conditioning by Raj Arumugam
- Old Man Poet by Raj Arumugam
- oh no – not another love poem! by Raj Arumugam
- of spiritual matters by Raj Arumugam
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Alan Dugan (1923 – 2003) an American poet, a contemporary classic of American poetry.