ON A SUMMER'S DAY when the sea was rippled By a soft and gentle breeze, A ship set sail for a harbor laden To a port beyond the seas. There were fond farewells and loving signals While her form was yet discerned, But they knew not 'twas a solemn parting, For the ship has never returned. Chorus: Did she ever return? No, she never returned, And her fate is yet unlearned; And for years and years fond hearts have been waiting For the ship that never returned. Said a feeble youth to his aged mother, "I must cross the wide, wide sea, For they say perchance in a foreign clime There is health and strength for me." 'Twas a gleam of hope 'mid a maze of danger, And her heart for her youngest yearned, So she sent him forth with smiles and blessings In the ship that never returned. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...FOR DECORATION DAY: 1861-1865 by RUPERT HUGHES MARTHY VIRGINIA'S HAND [SEPTEMBER 17, 1862] by GEORGE PARSONS LATHROP WRITTEN IN BUTLER'S SERMONS by MATTHEW ARNOLD THE OLD CAMP; WRITTEN IN A ROMAN FORTIFICATION IN BAVARIA by WILLIAM EDMONSTOUNE AYTOUN MY FORE-ELDERS by WILLIAM BARNES THE RUNNERS by WILLIAM ROSE BENET ECCLESIASTES by OLD TESTAMENT BIBLE |