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Classic and Contemporary Poetry
A GLIMPSE OF OCEAN, by F. H. MCMAHON
First Line: Down from the crest of one great oak
Last Line: Before he comes to die.
Subject(s): Drake, Sir Francis (1540-1596); Sea; Ocean
First Line: Down from the crest of one great oak
Last Line: Before he comes to die.
Subject(s): Drake, Sir Francis (1540-1596); Sea; Ocean
Down from the crest of one great oak
That crowned the ridge of Darien,
Frank Drake, the English sailor, spoke
In fierce desire to his men.
"By God," quoth he,
"I'll sail that sea
Before I come to die."
No storm that howls around the Horn
Might turn his ship from that high quest
And his exulting soul was borne
Triumphant through the purple west.
The Golden Hind
Obeyed his mind
Before he came to die.
Each man is kin to Francis Drake,
Whose spirit leaps to meet the spray
When he beholds white surges break
Across the ledges far away,
And prays that he
May know the sea
Before he comes to die.
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