Page:The Muse in Arms, Osborn (ed), 1917.djvu/121

Rh I flaunt my head in the breezes that the ice-bound Pole sends forth

As my halliards curse and chatter in the hail-swept frozen North;

And there's never an ocean steamer or his mate with t'gallant yard

But dip their colours in passing to show me their due regard.

I appeared off the Rio de Oro and secured the Atlantic trade,

I showed off the Isle of Fernandez and saved the Pacific from raid ;

From barren Perim to Delgado, there isn't a creek or bay

But knows of the power behind me and the price that my enemies pay.

I drooped in the Karun River, but my head wasn't hung for shame;

I prayed for the winds to gather so the Arabs might chant my fame ;

From Java to Gulf of Aden, from Frisco to Sea of Timor,

There's joy in the hearts of thousands when my colours are seen off shore.