I must go down to the seas again,
to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her
by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white
sail's shaking,
And a gray mist on the sea's face, and a gray dawn breaking.
I must go down to the seas again,
for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls
crying.
I must go down to the seas again,
to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's
like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's
over.
John
Masefield (1878-1967) was born in
Ledbury, Hertfordshire. He was the son of a lawyer,
but had a passion for the sea and adventure and in
his youth took off for America for two years where
for part of the time he worked as a bar-keeper in
New York. If you are interested, you can still visit
it today at the corner of Sixth and Greenwich avenues.
During this whole period, Masefield was actively writing
poetry, and this poem was written in 1900, when he
was only 22. He returned to England in 1897, and married
in 1903. But it wasn't until he published his collection
called The Everlasting Mercy in 1911 that he came
fully to prominence. During the war he served with
the Red Cross in France. He was an active writer and
was the Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in
1967.