Spread your sail to the wincing weather,
Steer ye out from the port of Youth,
Where Life and Love shall be left together
Hand in glove with the hand of Truth;
Scoff ye loud at the hope that thrills ye
Deep in the gloom of a midnight sea,
And laugh, laugh up at the fiend that kills ye,
But never look down at the doom to be.
Slither your steel in the swift passado,
Bury her deep in the bosom bared;
Brag ye out in your bold bravado
At them who dare not the things ye dared;
Harry your foes where the tempest blinds ye,
Follow at midnight and follow at morn,
And take brave heed that the darkness finds ye
Harboring fear in your hearts, unborn!
Pester the long lean unknown reaches—
Hull far steeped in the setting sun—
Sully the calm of the moonlit beaches
With the blatant boom of your godless gun;
Drape your couch with the flags that flout ye,
Bury your dead in their ships of pride,
And bid the Devil go on without ye!...
Never again will he quit your side!