Poems (Coolidge)/Fidus ad Extremum
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
FIDUS AD EXTREMUM
May these brave words, O soldier, thy motto be, always,
To spur thee to thy duty through uneventful days,
Lest thou forget how vigilant thine enemy can be,
And he, thy tarnished armor, shall thus rejoice to see.
To spur thee to thy duty through uneventful days,
Lest thou forget how vigilant thine enemy can be,
And he, thy tarnished armor, shall thus rejoice to see.
Inscribe them on thy banner when thou shalt face the foe,
Though fierce the battle rageth, forward, undaunted go;
Nor sheathe thy sword till conquered is every hated sin,
And thou from Christ thy Captain shalt fadeless laurels win.
Though fierce the battle rageth, forward, undaunted go;
Nor sheathe thy sword till conquered is every hated sin,
And thou from Christ thy Captain shalt fadeless laurels win.
If at the last thou tightest with feeble, flickering breath,
Unswerving in thy courage, although the foe be Death,
When "Taps" in solemn requiem the bugle sounds o'er thee,
Still "Fidus ad Extremum" thy triumph song shall be.
Unswerving in thy courage, although the foe be Death,
When "Taps" in solemn requiem the bugle sounds o'er thee,
Still "Fidus ad Extremum" thy triumph song shall be.