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I don't know if anyone mentioned this since I haven't read every post in this thread, but Sir Patrick Spens (sometimes spelled Spence) is a wonderful ballad of the sea. I don't have the text on hand right now to post otherwise I would. It's about gallant Sir Patrick Spens who answers the King's summons to sail on a treacherous sea to bring the king's daughter home. It's a tragic Scottish ballad. The bit of Scottish language in it really makes it wonderful.
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The Wind Blew Shrill and Smart
The wind blew shrill and smart,
And the wind awoke my heart
Again to go a-sailing o'er the sea,
To hear the cordage moan
And the straining timbers groan,
And to see the flying pennon lie a-lee.
O sailor of the fleet,
It is time to stir the feet!
It's time to man the dingy and to row!
It's lay your hand in mine
And it's empty down the wine,
And it's drain a health to death before we go!
To death, my lads, we sail;
And it's death that blows the gale
And death that holds the tiller as we ride.
For he's the king of all
In the tempest and the squall,
And the ruler of the Ocean wild and wide!
~Robert Louis Stevonson