"If I ask Him to receive me,
Will He say me Nay?
Not till earth and not till heaven
Pass away—"
"And all in the Lifeboat get safe to shore, Master Stanley: not one in the Lord's boat is lost. I'm getting an old man now, and I've been in the boat a many years, and I sometimes think I'm getting near the shore. And I seem to see Polly waiting for me—she and Jess and Granny standing side by side looking out for me coming. They are all there now, Miss Hilda, and they're waiting for me as they waited for me that night."
"And Jess will dance for joy, and Polly will say 'Thank God!' and Granny will say 'Amen,' when the Lifeboat lands me ashore."
SAVED FROM THE WRECK.
[The sky was clear, and cloudless.]
And filled with sunny light;
The sea was like a deep blue lake.
So calm and fair and bright.
Old Jonah had been shrimping
Within the shallow bay,
We children often watched him
When we were at our play.
We liked to see him wading,
His great net in his hand;
We loved to see him come ashore
And shake it on the sand.
To-day his work was ended,
He sat him down to rest
Upon a coil of tarry rope.
The seat he loved the best.
There, basking in the sunshine.
He leaned against the wall.
I saw him light his little pipe,
And then I heard him call.
Come here, young Master Stanley,
And bring your little boat,
And let me see what can be done
To make her rightly float.
And sit ye down beside me
'Tis far too hot to play,
I'll may be spin another yarn
Like mine the other day.
I've been a jolly sailor
The best part of my life;
I never settled down at home
Until I got my wife.
But Polly, she said: "Jonah,
Now stop at home my dear;"
And when I looked in Polly's eye
I thought I saw a tear.
And somehow, Master Stanley,
I lost the love to roam,
And settled down at fishing here
With Polly, and at home.
But what I tell you now lad,
It happened long ago,
When I was far across the seas
Amidst the ice and snow.
'T was on Newfoundland island,
A dismal place and drear,
My master owned some fishing-boats.
I'd worked for him a year.