Page:Poems Allen.djvu/197

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VOYAGING.
185
VOYAGING.
IN the fierce battle of contending waves
  Alternate lost and won,
Driving o'er sunken wrecks and nameless graves
  The strong ship struggles on.

Striving and toiling like a soul in bonds,
  Its haven unattained;—
The wild waves call, and the wild wind responds,
  And rest is not yet gained.

Often the eye sweeps the horizon's verge,
  To see if there may be
Some small relief from the incessant surge,
  And the wide waste of sea;

But all in vain. No sail or living thing
  Breaks the monotony,—
Only the lonesome gulls on slanting wing
  Between the sea and sky.