USS Constitution-- Part 8: "Ay, Tear Her Tattered Ensign Down"

OLD IRONSIDES

OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES

September 16, 1830

Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;

Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon's roar, --
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.

Only, I thought "Ay" was spelled "Aye."

Again, I only remembered the first two lines.  But, in my defense, I memorized this poem a real long, long, long time ago.

And, There Were Two More Stanzas.  --Brock-Perry