Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, CAPTAIN DEATH, by ANONYMOUS


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

CAPTAIN DEATH, by                    
First Line: The muse and the hero together are fired
Last Line: I ne'er saw rhw fellow of brave captain death
Subject(s): Navy - Great Britain;pirates; English Navy;piracy;buccaneers


THE muse and the hero together are fired,
The same noble views have their bosoms inspired;
As freedom they love, and for glory contend,
The muse o'er the hero still mourns as a friend;
And here let the muse her poor tribute bequeath
To one British hero—'tis brave Captain Death!

His ship was the Terrible—dreadful to see!
His crew were as brave, and as gallant as he;
Two hundred, or more, was their good complement,
And sure, braver fellows to sea never went:
Each man was determined to spend his last breath
In fighting for Britain, and brave Captain Death.

A prize they had taken diminished their force,
And soon the good prize-ship was lost in her course:
The French privateer and the Terrible met—
The battle begun—all with horror beset;
No heart was dismay'd—each as bold as Macbeth—
They fought for Old England, and brave Captain Death.

Fire, thunder, balls, bullets, were seen, heard, and felt;
A sight that the heart of Bellona would melt!
The shrouds were all torn, and the decks filled with blood,
And scores of dead bodies were thrown in the flood—
The flood, from the days of old Noah and Seth,
Ne'er saw such a man as our brave Captain Death.

At last, the dread bullet winged with his fate,
Our brave Captain dropped—and soon after his mate—
Each officer fell, and a carnage was seen,
That soon died the waves to a crimson from green:
And Neptune rose up, and he took off his wreath,
And gave it a Triton—to crown Captain Death.

Thus fell the strong Terrible, bravely and bold:
But sixteen survivors the tale can unfold;
The French were the victors—though much to their cost
For many brave French were with Englishmen lost:
And thus says old Time: "from good queen Elizabeth,
I ne'er saw the fellow of brave Captain Death!"





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