Classic Poem

He was to blame, you say, sir?
Now, just look here, my friend,
Don't you think your criticisms
The ears of Christ offend?
'Twas He who once said, Judge not!
And He alone can tell
Whose " negligence " occasioned
The loss of the Moselle .

" Neglect? " Oh, yes, 'tis easy
For lubbers just like you
To spin out yarns in fathoms,
And for fools to think 'em true!
Who taught you navigation?
How long have you been to sea?
You don't know port from starboard,
Or weather side from lee!

The facts are these: Our captain
Was new upon this coast,
But a better man nor braver
The whole line couldn't boast!
He knew his business, too, sir,
As well as it could be known,
But he couldn't run the currents
Or storms of the Torrid Zone!

The course he set's been sailed on
For more than a hundred trips
By a hundred different captains,
Who haven't lost their ships!
Who sent the gale that swept us
With lightning speed ahead?
Who sent the sea like mountains
And the darkness of the dead?

I'll bet my next month's wages
You've lost your way on shore!
At sea, and in a tempest,
Is a damned sight different score!
How's man to sight his headlands
When God obscures the view?
I'd like to have an answer —
Who'll tell me, sir — can you?

He's dead! — a hero, too, sir,
If ever there was one!
He died to do his duty —
What more could he have done?
" To blame? " He paid the forfeit!
And Jesus always lets
The punishment fall lightly
On a man who pays his debts!