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UPSALL. by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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This excerpt comes from Longfellow's dramatic poem about Nicholas Upsall, a real man from the Puritan era who challenged the strict Sabbath laws of colonial Boston.

Poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Themes
faith, freedom, identity
The PoemFull text

UPSALL.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

O day of rest! How beautiful, how fair, How welcome to the weary and the old! Day of the Lord! and truce to earthly cares! Day of the Lord, as all our days should be! Ah, why will man by his austerities Shut out the blessed sunshine and the light, And make of thee a dungeon of despair! WALTER MERRY (entering and looking round him). All silent as a graveyard! No one stirring; No footfall in the street, no sound of voices! By righteous punishment and perseverance, And perseverance in that punishment, At last I have brought this contumacious town To strict observance of the Sabbath day. Those wanton gospellers, the pigeons yonder, Are now the only Sabbath-breakers left. I cannot put them down. As if to taunt me, They gather every Sabbath afternoon In noisy congregation on my roof, Billing and cooing. Whir! take that, ye Quakers. Throws a stone at the pigeons. Sees UPSALL. Ah! Master Nicholas!

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

This excerpt comes from Longfellow's dramatic poem about Nicholas Upsall, a real man from the Puritan era who challenged the strict Sabbath laws of colonial Boston. The opening voice laments how strict religious rules have transformed a day intended for rest and joy into something somber and lifeless. Next, we encounter Walter Merry, a smug enforcer who has managed to silence the entire town—and he's angry that even the pigeons refuse to follow his commands.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. O day of rest! How beautiful, how fair, / How welcome to the weary and the old!

    Editor's note

    An unnamed voice begins with heartfelt appreciation for the Sabbath — viewing it not as a list of rules, but as a precious gift of rest. The repeated phrase "Day of the Lord" creates a rhythm reminiscent of a hymn, but then the tone shifts dramatically: human "austerities" have transformed this lovely day into "a dungeon of despair." The speaker argues that enforcing joylessness betrays the true purpose of the day.

  2. All silent as a graveyard! No one stirring; / No footfall in the street, no sound of voices!

    Editor's note

    Walter Merry enters and looks over the town with clear pride. He refers to the silence as graveyard-like, but it’s really a compliment to his own achievements — he has secured total compliance. The irony is palpable: what was meant to be a day of rest has turned into a deathly stillness. His self-congratulation is quickly undermined by the pigeons, the one aspect he can't control, which he dubs "wanton gospellers" — a funny yet telling phrase that reveals how he views even birds as moral transgressors.

  3. Those wanton gospellers, the pigeons yonder, / Are now the only Sabbath-breakers left.

    Editor's note

    Merry's anger toward the pigeons serves as the satirical core of the scene. He refers to their cooing as a "noisy congregation," using religious language to describe birds, and likens them to Quakers, a group persecuted by the Puritan authorities. His act of throwing a stone at them is not only trivial but also symbolic: it reveals a man willing to punish nature for not fitting his expectations. The stage direction "Whir! take that, ye Quakers" hits as dark comedy, revealing the cruelty lurking beneath his supposed piety.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The poem shifts between two opposing tones. It begins warmly and with sincere reverence, depicting the Sabbath as a much-needed respite for weary individuals. When Walter Merry enters, the mood turns to sharp, biting satire. Longfellow allows Merry to reveal his own shortcomings through his own words: his arrogance, his small-mindedness, and his irritation with pigeons. This combination creates a comic effect on the surface while hiding a deeper anger beneath.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

The pigeons
The pigeons symbolize the natural, unstoppable force of life — a source of joy and connection that no law can stifle. When Merry calls them "wanton gospellers" and likens them to Quakers, he directly ties them to the religious dissenters he persecutes. They serve as the poem's emblem of freedom that endures beyond tyranny.
The graveyard silence
Merry uses the phrase "silent as a graveyard" to express admiration, but it ends up working against him. A day of rest that feels lifeless is far from the intended spirit of the Sabbath. This silence serves as Longfellow's critique of Puritan excess, disguised as Merry's bragging.
Sunshine and light
In the opening stanza, sunshine represents what human austerity keeps at bay. Light symbolizes grace, warmth, and the inherent goodness of life — everything that strict adherence to rules undermines in the name of religion.
The stone Merry throws
A small but significant gesture. Throwing a stone at birds on the Sabbath is, in itself, a disruption of the peace he says he safeguards. It also resonates with the biblical idea of casting the first stone, subtly highlighting Merry as the one who lacks grace.

§06Historical context

Historical context

Longfellow included this in his longer dramatic work *New England Tragedies* (1868), which features verse plays set in colonial Puritan Massachusetts. Nicholas Upsall was a real person — a Boston resident who faced fines and eventual banishment for sheltering Quakers and standing up against the persecution of religious dissenters during the 1650s and 1660s. Longfellow wrote during the aftermath of the Civil War, a time when issues of conscience, law, and moral courage were front and center. His depiction of Puritan Boston isn't a celebration; it's a critique of what happens when religious authority crosses the line into cruelty. Walter Merry may be fictional, but he embodies a very real type — the true believer whose faith has warped into a means of control.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

Nicholas Upsall (c. 1590–1666) was an innkeeper in Boston and one of the first colonists to openly challenge the Puritan authorities' persecution of Quakers. He faced fines, had his property taken away, and was ultimately banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for providing shelter to Quakers and protesting their executions. Longfellow portrayed him as the moral center of this dramatic poem.

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