Chapter II

Greater than power or splendor,
Or birth, or might of gold,
Is the noble life of a noble man
Of a heart both brave and bold--
All honor to the spirit
That knows not earth's defeat,
That meets with courage true and strong
What brave souls have to meet--
And honor to the hero,
Who centuries ago
Sailed out from old Bristowe
Into the trackless waters of the west;
Who bravely beat and beat
Where sky and waters meet,
Till he saw his white cliffs vanish
Under ocean's heaving breast;
Nor cowardly turned him back,
But held straight on his track,
Though old ocean rose up ravening in gray and angry wrack,
And bravely beat and bore up to the west;
All honor to his spirit,
For the glories we inherit,
And peace of mighty slumber
Breathe calmly round his rest!
Where'er his earthy bed,
About his pillowed head
Forever beats old Ocean's monotone:--
For even from a child he loved its voices wild,
Its splendid throb that made his heart its own.