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1842–1914

THE NIGHT OF ELECTION

Ambrose Bierce

“O venerable patriot, I pray Stand not here coatless; at the break of day We'll know the grand result — and even now The eastern sky is faintly touched with gray.

“It ill befits thine age's hoary crown — This rude environment of rogue and clown, Who, as the lying bulletins appear, With drunken cries incarnadine the town.

“But if with noble zeal you stay to note The outcome of your patriotic vote For Blaine, or Cleveland, and your native land, Take — and God bless you!— take my overcoat.”

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THE NIGHT OF ELECTION · Ambrose Bierce · Poetry Cove