Question

Section 6: Poetry
You will use the following poem to answer questions 22-25.

During the American Revolution, Sybil Ludington, daughter of Colonel Ludington, took the place of a weary messenger and spread the news that British soldiers were approaching. Paul Revere was eulogized by the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and consequently became one of the most famous patriots of the Revolution. Ludington, at age 16, rode twice as far through more dangerous territory without being captured by the enemy.

from Sybil Ludington’s Ride by Berton Braley
Sound of a horseman riding hard

Clatter of hoofs in the manor yard

Feet on the steps and a knock resounding

As a fist struck wood with a mighty pounding.

5 The doors flung open, a voice is heard,

“Danbury’s burning—I rode with word;

Fully half of the town’s gone

And the British—the British are coming on.

Send a messenger, get our men!”

10 His message finished the horseman then

Staggered wearily to a chair

And fell exhausted in slumber there.

The Colonel muttered, “And who, my friend,

Is the messenger I can send?

15 Your strength is spent and you cannot ride

And then, you know not the countryside;

I cannot go for my duty’s clear;

When my men come in they must find me here;

There’s devil a man on the place tonight

20 To warn my troopers to come—and fight.

Then, who is my messenger to be?”

Said Sybil Ludington, “You have me.”

“You!” said the Colonel, and grimly smiles,

“You! My daughter, you’re just a child.”

25 “Child!” cried Sybil. “Why I’m sixteen!

My mind’s alert and my senses keen,

I know where the trails and the roadways are

And I can gallop as fast and far As any masculine rider can.

30 You want a messenger? I’m your Man!

The Colonel’s heart was aglow with pride.

“Spoke like a soldier. Ride, girl, ride

Ride like the devil; ride like sin;

Summon my slumbering troopers in.

35 I know when duty is to be done

That I can depend on a Ludington!”

So over the trails to the towns and farms

Sybil delivered the call to arms.

Riding swiftly without a stop

40 Except to rap with a riding crop

On the soldiers’ doors, with a sharp tattoo

And a high-pitched feminine halloo.

“Up! Up there, soldier. You’re needed, come!

The British are marching!” and then the drum

45 Of her horse’s feet as she rode apace

To bring more men to the meeting place.

Sybil grew weary and faint and drowsing,

Her limbs were aching, but still she rode

Until she finished her task of rousing

50 Each sleeping soldier from his abode,

Showing her father, by work well done,

That he could depend on a Ludington.

Dawn in the skies with its tints of pearl

And the lass who rode in a soldier’s stead

55 Turned home, only a tired girl

Thinking of breakfast and then to bed

With never a dream that her ride would be

A glorious legend of history;

Nor that posterity’s hand would mark

60 Each trail she rode through the inky dark,

Each path to figure in song and story

As a splendid, glamorous path of glory—

To prove, as long as the ages run,

That “you can depend on a Ludington.”

65 Such is the legend of Sybil’s ride

To summon the men from the countryside

A true tale, making her title clear

As a lovely feminine Paul Revere!

Question 22 (1 point)
In lines 1 through 4 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride,” the diction and imagery mainly appeal to the reader’s sense of —

Question 22 options:

touch


sight


taste


hearing

Question 23 (1 point)
What is implied in lines 57 through 62 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?

Question 23 options:

Future generations will remember Sybil's deed.


Sybil expects to be rewarded for her bravery.


Sybil is fearful while riding in the dark.


Historians will question Sybil's motives.

Question 24 (1 point)
What does spent mean as it is used in line 15 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?

Question 24 options:

needed


paid


exhausted


abandoned

Question 25 (1 point)
How do lines 1 through 12 mainly contribute to the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?

Question 25 options:

The imagery helps the reader comprehend the urgency of the situation.


The punctuation enhances the description of the setting.


The introduction of the characters allows the reader to understand the narrative.


The use of a metaphor enhances the reader's enjoyment of the scene.

Answer 1

Here are the answers to the questions based on the poem "Sybil Ludington’s Ride":

**Question 22:**
In lines 1 through 4 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride,” the diction and imagery mainly appeal to the reader’s sense of —
**Answer:** hearing

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**Question 23:**
What is implied in lines 57 through 62 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?
**Answer:** Future generations will remember Sybil's deed.

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**Question 24:**
What does spent mean as it is used in line 15 of the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?
**Answer:** exhausted

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**Question 25:**
How do lines 1 through 12 mainly contribute to the poem “Sybil Ludington’s Ride”?
**Answer:** The imagery helps the reader comprehend the urgency of the situation.