Page:The Phoenix Vol3 No1.djvu/28

26 And there they lay,

All good dead men,

Like break-o'-day in a boozing-ken—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Fifteen men of a whole ship's list—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Dead and bedamned, and the rest gone whist!—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

The skipper lay with his nob in gore

Where the scullion's axe his cheek had shore

And the scullion he was stabbed times four.

And there they lay,

And the soggy skies

Dripped all day long

In up-staring eyes—

At murk sunset and at foul sunrise—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Fifteen men of 'em stiff and stark—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Ten of the crew had the Murder mark—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

'Twas a cutlass swipe, or an ounce of lead,

Or a yawing hole in a battered head—

And the scuppers glut with a rotting red.

And there they lay—

Aye, damn my eyes!—

All lookouts clapped

On paradise—

All souls bound just contrariwise—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Fifteen men of 'era good and true—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

Every man jack could ha' sailed with Old Pew—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

There was chest on chest full of Spanish gold,

With a ton of plate in the middle hold,

And the cabins riot of stuff untold.

And they lay there

That had took the plum,

With sightless glare

And their lips struck dumb,

While we shared all by the rule of thumb—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!

More was seen through the sternlight screen—

Yo—ho—ho and a bottle of rum!