Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, CAPTAIN LEAN, by WALTER JOHN DE LA MARE



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CAPTAIN LEAN, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Out of the east a hurricane
Last Line: Howsoever the billows roll!
Alternate Author Name(s): Ramal, Walter; De La Mare, Walter


Out of the East a hurricane
Swept down on Captain Lean --
That mariner and gentleman
Will not again be seen.

He sailed his ship against the foes
Of his own country dear,
But now in the trough of the billows
An aimless course doth steer.

Powder was violets to his nostrils,
Sweet the din of the fighting-line,
Now he is flotsam on the seas,
And his bones are bleached with brine.

The stars move up along the sky,
The moon she shines so bright,
And in that solitude the foam
Sparkles unearthly white.

This is the tomb of Captain Lean,
Would a straiter please his soul?
I trow he sleeps in peace,
Howsoever the billows roll!





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