Hats off! Along the street there comes A blare of bugles, a ruffle
of drums, A flash of color beneath the sky; Hats off! The flag is passing
by! Blue and crimson and white it shines, Over the steel-tipped, ordered lines.
Hats off! The colors before us fly; But more than the flag is passing
by; Sea-fights and land-fights, grim and great, Fought to make and to save
the State; Weary marches and sinking ships; Cheers of victory on dying lips;
Days
of plenty and years of peace; March of a strong land's swift increase; Equal
justice, right and law, Stately honor and reverend awe;
Sign of a nation
great and strong To ward her people from foreign wrong; Pride and glory and
honor--all Live in the colors to stand or fall.
Hats off! Along the
streets there comes A blare of bugles, a ruffle of drums; And loyal hearts
are beating high: Hats off! !
