Prose & Poetry - The Muse in Arms - A Song of the Plane
Updated - Saturday, 10 May, 2003

First published in London in November 1917 and reprinted in February 1918 The Muse in Arms comprised, in the words of editor E. B. Osborne:

"A collection of war poems, for the most part written in the field of action, by seamen, soldiers, and flying men who are serving, or have served, in the Great War".

Below is one of eight poems featured within the War in the Air section of the collection.  You can access other poems within the section via the sidebar to the right.

A Song of the Plane
by Gordon Alchin

This is the song of the Plane -
The creaking, shrieking plane,
The throbbing, sobbing plane,
And the moaning, groaning wires:-
The engine - missing again!
One cylinder never fires!
Hey ho! for the Plane!

This is the song of the Man -
The driving, striving man,
The chosen, frozen man:-
The pilot, the man-at-the-wheel,
Whose limit is all that he can,
And beyond, if the need is real!
Hey ho! for the Man!

This is the song of the Gun -
The muttering, stuttering gun,
The maddening, gladdening gun:-
That chuckles with evil glee
At the last, long dive of the Hun,
With its end in eternity!
Hey ho! for the Gun!

This is the song of the Air -
The lifting, drifting air,
The eddying, steadying air,
The wine of its limitless space,
May it nerve us at last to dare
Even death with undaunted face!
Hey ho! for the Air.

One in five of the Australians and New Zealanders who left their country to fight in the war never returned; 80,000 in total.

Original Material © Michael Duffy 2000-07, SafeSurf Rated