Life Upon The Sea Poem by Alonzo Titus

I came down from Nantucket
on a fine mid summer's day,
seeking a berth on a whaling ship
about to go to sea.
The harbor at Nantucket
was too shallow 
for what I sought,
but here I saw a fine three master,
ah,  
thats for me I thought.

Its crew boats were tied along the pier,
its crew men standing by,
"we're looking for a few stout men, "
I heard the first mate cry,
"Come here young lad
sign on with us
I think you'll do just fine,
place your mark upon my book
then stand over there in line."

I walked over to a tied up skiff,
tied up along the pier,
a smiling old man
with a gnarled hand
helped me down the slippery stairs,
"come aboard young mate
what be you're name
you might want to stow you're gear,
sit next to me and grab an ore
we're bout ready to leave the pier."

"I had rowed a boat before, " I say,
"over on Nantucket Bay."
"That so, " the old man smiled  and winked,
"Ye be familiar with the sea? "
"well, the boat I rowed was much smaller you see,
it was just my brother an me."
"Well blow me down ",
the old mad cried,
as our boat mates squealed in glee.
I climbed myself up ladder way                                                      
to a pristine wooden deck,  
I didn't imagine it wound be so clean
I didn't note a single speck.
I was ordered,
by an officer,
to go and find a bunk 
down below the weather deck
and to see him when I was done. 
He would give me my assignment,
I was to preform it with lighthearted spunk,
then I was sent
back down the ladder,  
to bring up the officers' trunk.


We sailed out of New Bedford,
on an easterly,
then southernly track,
"take a good look at New Bedford boys,
it'll be a while before we're back, "
the first mate stood there smiling
as he continued to the last,
"We're bound for the Pacific my boys,
some of us aren't coming back.
you serve at the captains pleasure,
as obligated as those who've passed,  
and you're bound to this ship
as she's bound to you,
three years before the mast."

Our good ship is a three masted Barque
of three hundred twenty one tons,
and when the crew men walked her deck
often a song was sung,
she was nine meters at her beam,  
and was thirty six meters long,
"sixteen men on a dead mans chest"
was the song twas mostly sung."
                                                    
After several weeks of sailing South
we reached the Equators line,
I was brought up for my very first view
of a Sea Bat caught in the brine,
I bent well over,  
to view the beast,
tied up in a bucket with twine,  
but before I saw it,  
I received a swift kick,
in the middle of my behind.
After this I was cast into the sea
then retrieved by a safety line,
every one howled as I was pulled aboard
I was laughing at myself this time,
"It's a fine lad that you are my boy",
the first mate said to me,
"And now we count you as one of us,
it's a whaler that ye be".      

A few months out of New Bedford,  
we we're now approaching the Horn,
where the Pacific meets the Atlantic
and is known for its ship wrecking storms.
So we entered the straight of Magellan,
not with out some heart stopping risks,
But the God that fills our sails each day,
helped our ship along its trek. 

Now we're out into the Pacific 
to hunt the elusive whale,
from the Baja to Alaska,
we hope to find them and prevail,  
for whaling is a dangerous way
for a man to earn his pay,  
and when one's brought 
along side the ship,
the work goes night and day.

A man aboard is sent aloft,  
to the crows nest he'll go,
and with keen eyes he"ll search the sea 
until he sees the blow,
and when he calls,
every one will hear,  
the excitement begins to grow,
"where away, " the captain calls to him,
as men scurry to and fro,
"Two points off the starboard bow, " says he,
"a mile ahead she blows".
we've got to put this whale away
and every whaler knows.

"Get the crews into their boats, "
is now the first mates cry,
"and get another man aloft 
for another pair of eyes, "
the first whale of the season
must be taken at all cost,
for in the mind,  
of a whaling man,  
his good luck could be lost.

The chase boats,  
we placed over the side,
each boat had a crew of its own,
and every man aboard the boats,
had a job that was set in stone.
Each boat had its own harpooner
that stood in the bow alone,
in his strongest arm 
was a sharp harpoon,
ready now to be thrown.
The boats approached
the whale that day,
at least one on either side
and when the harpoons 
hit their mark,
I thought I heard her cry.  
It seems that when the harpoons struck,
the animal lost its mind,
it tried to run away real fast
pulling the boats behind,
it tried to dive down into the deep,
a place where she could hide,
for at least three hours,
she took us along,
what we call,
a Nantucket sleigh ride.
Eventually she tired,
and could no longer fight,
we towed her now with pride,  
she belongs to us alright.
so let's take her there along side.
"She's half the length
of our ship, "I say,
"from her tail all up to her eye,
a good twenty tons of weight, "
I brag,
"and this is no sailor's lie." 
Our ship holds three tiers of barrels,
each barrel fifty gallons of blubber,  
the contents of these 
support the crew,
unlike most of the land lubbers.
The pay that we receive
comes at voyages end,  
it's enough to pay
for what we owe
til we  set sail again. 


After chasing whales,
a year or more,  
we set out for Lahaina,
they said the girls in Hawaii,
out shine girls from Carolina,
I can not say that thats the truth
I wouldn't know which was finer,
but at sixteen years I, d like to look 
at the girls in Lahaina.

They all came out to meet us,
from the beaches hundreds came,
before we even set the anchor
they started calling out their names,
some in boats,  
like i'd never seen,
many swimming too,  
and when they boarded
over the rail,
they began mixing with the crew.

When we lowered down the crew boats,
we were escorted to the beach,
by men and women
in feathered head dress,
and nothing on their feet,
the girls wore short grass skirts,
their bodies slim and neat,
and when they smiled
their brown eyes sparkled,
I thought that very sweet.

That night they held a luau
and roasted a fatted hog,
after the meal the drums began
and continued all night long,
the young men sat in a circle,
to which I was encouraged to join,
the young women came
and danced for us 
as our first mate laughed and mimed.
The fragrance of the flowers they wore 
was intoxicating to my mind,
then I felt a tender hand touch mine 
as she pulled me from the line.

We ran away from the torch light
to a place she had prepared,
along the beach in the darkness
we found each other there,
the essence of my youth,
with her I willfully shared,
and on that night became a man,
as we lay together there.

After several days,  
our time was gone,
she walked me to the beach,
I wanted to stay with her that day,
but my contract I couldn't breach,
I told her I would return someday,
I looked her straight in the eye,
but as our crew boat 
left the beach,
I saw her start to cry.

After another year or so
we had taken our last whale,
It was time we set for home
this weather to avail.
"All hands on deck, "
the captain called,
"and hoist the canvas mates,
for it's the Atlantic I seek to sail,  
with the Pacific in my wake."

the old man I had come to love
got sick and passed away,
as we were  drawing near the horn
but from the other way,
we held a service upon the deck,  
then committed him to the sea,
so with the sea he loved,  
through life,  
he will always be

in about two months 
we reached the port
from which we first set sail,
we hear the horn
that signals us home
as we begin to furl our sails,
we come into the harbor,
then the owners come on board,
"well done my boys
you've earned your wage,  
see accounting 
when they send word.'
I went down to the accounting house
and there I received my pay,
the amount I received 
from the pay master,
was a bit for one my age.

"It's good that I should see you Lad  
for a word before you go,
the way you handled yourself at sea
shows me that you'll grow."
The captain thought,
to himself,
then he looked me in the eye,
and what the Capitan said to me
almost made me cry,
" I never had a son 
that I could teach my trade,  
but if you're here when we set sail  
I'll see your future made,
one day I'll see you a captain
to sail upon the sea,
for in your heart of hearts,
it's a whaler that ye be."

Uncle Lonnie
hope you enjoy © 5 months ago, Alonzo H Titus   misc poems
 Like (1)   1     

I came down from Nantucket
on a fine mid summer's day,
seeking a berth on a whaling ship
about to go to sea.
The harbor at Nantucket
was too shallow 
for what I sought,
but here I saw a fine three master,
ah,  
thats for me I thought.

Its crew boats were tied along the pier,
its crew men standing by,
"we're looking for a few stout men, "
I heard the first mate cry,
"Come here young lad
sign on with us
I think you'll do just fine,
place your mark upon my book
then stand over there in line."

I walked over to a tied up skiff,
tied up along the pier,
a smiling old man
with a gnarled hand
helped me down the slippery stairs,
"come aboard young mate
what be you're name
you might want to stow you're gear,
sit next to me and grab an ore
we're bout ready to leave the pier."

"I had rowed a boat before, " I say,
"over on Nantucket Bay."
"That so, " the old man smiled  and winked,
"Ye be familiar with the sea? "
"well, the boat I rowed was much smaller you see,
it was just my brother an me."
"Well blow me down ",
the old mad cried,
as our boat mates squealed in glee.
                                                                                                                                          I climbed myself up ladder way                                                      
to a pristine wooden deck,  
I didn't imagine it wound be so clean
I didn't note a single speck.
I was ordered,
by an officer,
to go and find a bunk 
down below the weather deck
and to see him when I was done. 
He would give me my assignment,
I was to preform it with lighthearted spunk,
then I was sent
back down the ladder,  
to bring up the officers' trunk.


We sailed out of New Bedford,
on an easterly,
then southernly track,
"take a good look at New Bedford boys,
it'll be a while before we're back, "
the first mate stood there smiling
as he continued to the last,
"We're bound for the Pacific my boys,
some of us aren't coming back.
you serve at the captains pleasure,
as obligated as those who've passed,  
and you're bound to this ship
as she's bound to you,
three years before the mast."

Our good ship is a three masted Barque
of three hundred twenty one tons,
and when the crew men walked her deck
often a song was sung,
she was nine meters at her beam,  
and was thirty six meters long,
"sixteen men on a dead mans chest"
was the song twas mostly sung."
                                                    
After several weeks of sailing South
we reached the Equators line,
I was brought up for my very first view
of a Sea Bat caught in the brine,
I bent well over,  
to view the beast,
tied up in a bucket with twine,  
but before I saw it,  
I received a swift kick,
in the middle of my behind.
After this I was cast into the sea
then retrieved by a safety line,
every one howled as I was pulled aboard
I was laughing at myself this time,
"It's a fine lad that you are my boy",
the first mate said to me,
"And now we count you as one of us,
it's a whaler that ye be".      

A few months out of New Bedford,  
we we're now approaching the Horn,
where the Pacific meets the Atlantic
and is known for its ship wrecking storms.
So we entered the straight of Magellan,
not with out some heart stopping risks,
But the God that fills our sails each day,
helped our ship along its trek. 

Now we're out into the Pacific 
to hunt the elusive whale,
from the Baja to Alaska,
we hope to find them and prevail,  
for whaling is a dangerous way
for a man to earn his pay,  
and when one's brought 
along side the ship,
the work goes night and day.

A man aboard is sent aloft,  
to the crows nest he'll go,
and with keen eyes he"ll search the sea 
until he sees the blow,
and when he calls,
every one will hear,  
the excitement begins to grow,
"where away, " the captain calls to him,
as men scurry to and fro,
"Two points off the starboard bow, " says he,
"a mile ahead she blows".
we've got to put this whale away
and every whaler knows.

"Get the crews into their boats, "
is now the first mates cry,
"and get another man aloft 
for another pair of eyes, "
the first whale of the season
must be taken at all cost,
for in the mind,  
of a whaling man,  
his good luck could be lost.

The chase boats,  
we placed over the side,
each boat had a crew of its own,
and every man aboard the boats,
had a job that was set in stone.
Each boat had its own harpooner
that stood in the bow alone,
in his strongest arm 
was a sharp harpoon,
ready now to be thrown.
The boats approached
the whale that day,
at least one on either side
and when the harpoons 
hit their mark,
I thought I heard her cry.  
It seems that when the harpoons struck,
the animal lost its mind,
it tried to run away real fast
pulling the boats behind,
it tried to dive down into the deep,
a place where she could hide,
for at least three hours,
she took us along,
what we call,
a Nantucket sleigh ride.
Eventually she tired,
and could no longer fight,
we towed her now with pride,  
she belongs to us alright.
so let's take her there along side.
"She's half the length
of our ship, "I say,
"from her tail all up to her eye,
a good twenty tons of weight, "
I brag,
"and this is no sailor's lie." 
Our ship holds three tiers of barrels,
each barrel fifty gallons of blubber,  
the contents of these 
support the crew,
unlike most of the land lubbers.
The pay that we receive
comes at voyages end,  
it's enough to pay
for what we owe
til we  set sail again. 


After chasing whales,
a year or more,  
we set out for Lahaina,
they said the girls in Hawaii,
out shine girls from Carolina,
I can not say that thats the truth
I wouldn't know which was finer,
but at sixteen years I, d like to look 
at the girls in Lahaina.

They all came out to meet us,
from the beaches hundreds came,
before we even set the anchor
they started calling out their names,
some in boats,  
like i'd never seen,
many swimming too,  
and when they boarded
over the rail,
they began mixing with the crew.

When we lowered down the crew boats,
we were escorted to the beach,
by men and women
in feathered head dress,
and nothing on their feet,
the girls wore short grass skirts,
their bodies slim and neat,
and when they smiled
their brown eyes sparkled,
I thought that very sweet.

That night they held a luau
and roasted a fatted hog,
after the meal the drums began
and continued all night long,
the young men sat in a circle,
to which I was encouraged to join,
the young women came
and danced for us 
as our first mate laughed and mimed.
The fragrance of the flowers they wore 
was intoxicating to my mind,
then I felt a tender hand touch mine 
as she pulled me from the line.

We ran away from the torch light
to a place she had prepared,
along the beach in the darkness
we found each other there,
the essence of my youth,
with her I willfully shared,
and on that night became a man,
as we lay together there.

After several days,  
our time was gone,
she walked me to the beach,
I wanted to stay with her that day,
but my contract I couldn't breach,
I told her I would return someday,
I looked her straight in the eye,
but as our crew boat 
left the beach,
I saw her start to cry.

After another year or so
we had taken our last whale,
It was time we set for home
this weather to avail.
"All hands on deck, "
the captain called,
"and hoist the canvas mates,
for it's the Atlantic I seek to sail,  
with the Pacific in my wake."

the old man I had come to love
got sick and passed away,
as we were  drawing near the horn
but from the other way,
we held a service upon the deck,  
then committed him to the sea,
so with the sea he loved,  
through life,  
he will always be

in about two months 
we reached the port
from which we first set sail,
we hear the horn
that signals us home
as we begin to furl our sails,
we come into the harbor,
then the owners come on board,
"well done my boys
you've earned your wage,  
see accounting 
when they send word.'
I went down to the accounting house
and there I received my pay,
the amount I received 
from the pay master,
was a bit for one my age.

"It's good that I should see you Lad  
for a word before you go,
the way you handled yourself at sea
shows me that you'll grow."
The captain thought,
to himself,
then he looked me in the eye,
and what the Capitan said to me
almost made me cry,
" I never had a son 
that I could teach my trade,  
but if you're here when we set sail  
I'll see your future made,
one day I'll see you a captain
to sail upon the sea,
for in your heart of hearts,
it's a whaler that ye be."