Senator Ingalls

He stands in Statuary Hall,
A marble tribute to the man
Whose golden tongue moved to enthrall
The people of the state and land.

Keen satire and invective served
Him in debate; his piercing eye
And flow of liquid words unnerved
Opponents brash enough to try

To best him in an argument
He shaped our constitution, coined
The motto of our state, then lent
His voice to issues long enjoined

Demosthenes or Cicero
Were not more eloquent than he.
He charmed a friend or flayed a foe
With wit and words used brilliantly.

A Senator for eighteen years,
He ranked among the best. His mond
Was keen, his courage great, his peers
Convinced he lived to serve mankind.