The poem that contains the following verses was written by Sir Walter Scott and published in 1805. It is a long romantic ballad about a forbidden love that is finally reconciled via the pranks of Gilpin Horner, a legendary border goblin of the time. This particular stanza however is rarely associated with Scott’s great ballad, but is known largely because it figures in Edward Everett Hale’s fictional short story, written during the civil war, about a U.S. naval officer named Philip Nolan, who was involved in a conspiracy in 1805 (modeled after the Aaron Bur r affair) to set up a new government in the Southern States. At his trial, Nolan tells the judge, “Damn the United States. I wish I may never hear of the United States again.” In response, the judge confines Nolan to a U.S. Navy ship for the rest of his life, with instructions that he should never again hear the name of his country or any information about it. Nolan suffers a particularly devastating moment when he reads the passage below from Scott’s ballad. He dies filled with remorse and love for the country he forswore.

This is truly an old favorite of mine. In fact, I memorized it in high school some 45 years ago. God bless you Miss Friedman wherever you are.