Shipwreck

'She struck one night on a sunken ledge Off the Scillies, homeward bound, Four months out for the Surrey Docks With deals from Puget Sound; Her back was broke, she couldn't live, As any man might see, An' it's 'ard to see a good ship go The way she went,' said he. 'An' I lost my oilskins an' sea boots, An' all my bloomin' gear, An' my chest with fancy shackles on I'd 'ad this many a year; There warn't no time to think o' them, Lord know, in such a sea, But &mdash it's 'ard to lose your chest an' gear The way we done,' said he. 'An' better ships then 'er maybe I'll sign in yet, my son, An' chest an' gear I'll get again As good as them that's gone: But never a chap in all the world Like him that's drowned an' dead, An' it's 'ard to lose a man's best pal The way I done,' he said.