Page:Collected poems vol 2 de la mare.djvu/127

 HERE was a ship of Rio
 * Sailed out into the blue,

And nine and ninety monkeys
 * Were all her jovial crew.

From bos'un to the cabin boy,
 * From quarter to caboose,

There weren't a stitch of calico
 * To breech 'em — tight or loose;

From spar to deck, from deck to keel,
 * From barnacle to shroud,

There weren't one pair of reach-me-downs
 * To all that jabbering crowd.

But wasn't it a gladsome sight.
 * When roared the deep-sea gales,

To see them reef her fore and aft,
 * A-swinging by their tails!

Oh, wasn't it a gladsome sight,
 * When glassy calm did come,

To see them squatting tailor-wise
 * Around a keg of rum!

Oh, wasn't it a gladsome sight,
 * When in she sailed to land,

To see them all a-scampering skip
 * For nuts across the sand!