Page:The Lusitania's Last Voyage (lusitaniaslastvo00lauriala).djvu/14



Avert Thy gaze, O God, close tight Thine eyes! Glance down no longer on the ocean foam, Lest Thou behold such horrors as can turn Men's burning hearts to ice, and chill their souls.

Keep Thine heart warm and full of charity That Thou mayst yet be able to forgive, And pity feel for those who know not when To pause in deeds of ruthless sacrifice.

Restrain Thy wrath, and keep Thine hand in     check; Smite not, nor fiercely thrust without the pale Those who can dare to strew the ocean waste With fellow creatures, innocent of wrong.

Forget the studied purpose to destroy; The launching of the missile through the deep; The shattered hull; the crushed and bleeding forms; The seething swirl of wreckage, women, men.