The Endless Lure

When I was a lad I went to sea And they made a cabin boy of me. Yo ho, haul away, my bullies! We'd hardly put out from the bay When my knees sagged in and my face turned grey; So I went to the captain and I implored That he'd let the pilot take me aboard, And fetch me back to the land again Where the earth was sure for the feet of men . . . But the Captain, he laughed out strong, and said, 'You'll follow the sea, lad, till you're dead; For it gets us all - the sky and the foam And the waves and the wind, - till a ship seems home.' When I shipped as an A.B. before the mast I swore each voyage would be my last . . . Was always vowing, and meant it too, That I'd never sign with another crew . . . You tell me 'The Castle' is outward bound, An old sky-sailor, for Puget Sound? 'Too old!' . . . but I know the sea like a book . . . Well, I've heard that your 'Old Man' needs a cook! . . . Yes, I could rustle for twenty men . . . So, God be praised, you can use me, then? . . . Oh, there's only a few years left for me, And I want to die, and be buried at - sea!