Page:Canadian poems of the great war.djvu/102
Major J. M. Langstaff
Killed in action at Vimy Ridge, March 1st, 1917. James Miles Langstaff, son of the late Dr. James Langstaff, was born at Richmond Hill, Ontario, July 25th, 1883. He had a brilliant intellect. Rarely has his career as a student been equalled. After Passing the highest actuarial examinations, he entered ,lautf graduating at Osgoode Hall in 1912, with the Gold Medal and the Van Koughnet Scholarship. As a soldier at the Front 75th Battalion, CM.F.—he rose rapidly in rank, was mentioned in despatches, and later was recommended for the Military Cross.
THE ANSWER
OTHE Tyrant Lord has drawn his sword,
And has flung the scabbard away.
He has said the word that loosed his horde
To ravage, destroy and slay.
Then where are those who will dare oppose
The blast of my fury s flame?
But a salty breeze swept across the seas,
And back the clear answer came:
‘We have heard the boast of your mighty host,
And slaves will we ne er become;
Let our deeds declare what our hearts will dare,
We come! We come! We come!’
WAR-SHAPED DESTINY
I NEVER thought that strange romantic War
Would shape my life and plan my destiny;
Though in my childhood s dreams I ve seen his car
And grisly steeds flash grimly thwart the sky.
Yet now behold a vaster, mightier strife
Than echoed on the plains of sounding Troy,
Defeats and triumphs, death, wounds, laughter, life,
All mingled in a strange complex alloy.
I view the panorama in a trance
Of awe, yet coloured with a secret joy,
For I have breathed in epic and romance,
Have lived the dreams that thrilled me as a boy.
How sound the ancient saying is, forsooth,
How weak is Fancy s gloss of Fact s stern truth!
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