Living

A wet sheet and a flowing sea

by Allan Cunningham 1784–1842

From The Golden Treasury, ed. F. T. Palgrave (1861)

Living

A wet sheet and a flowing sea,
A wind that follows fast
And fills the white and rustling sail
And bends the gallant mast;
And bends the gallant mast, my boys,
While like the eagle free
Away the good ship flies, and leaves
Old England on the lee.

O for a soft and gentle wind!
I heard a fair one cry;
But give to me the snoring breeze
And white waves heaving high;
And white waves heaving high, my lads,
The good ship tight and free--
The world of waters is our home,
And merry men are we.

There's tempest in yon hornéd moon,
And lightning in yon cloud;
But hark the music, mariners!
The wind is piping loud;
The wind is piping loud, my boys,
The lightning flashes free--
While the hollow oak our palace is,
Our heritage the sea.

MLA

Cunningham, Allan. “A wet sheet and a flowing sea.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/cunningham/0/.

Chicago

Cunningham, Allan. “A wet sheet and a flowing sea.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/cunningham/0/.

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