The Laughing Sally

A wind blew up from Pernambuco, (Yeo heave ho! the Laughing Sally! Hi yeo, heave away!) A wind blew out of the east-sou'-east And boomed at the break of day. 5
The Laughing Sally sped for her life, And a speedy craft was she. The black flag flew at her top to tell How she took toll of the sea.
The wind blew up from Pernambuco;10 And in the breast of the blast Came the King's black ship like a hound let slip On the trail of the Sally at last.
For a day and a night, a night and a day; Over the blue, blue round,15 Went on the chase of the pirate quarry, The hunt of the tireless hound.
"Land on the port bow!" came the cry; And the Sally raced for shore, Till she reached the bar at the river-mouth20 Where the shallow breakers roar.
She passed the bar by a secret channel With clear tide under her keel,— For he knew the shoals like an open book, The captain at the wheel.25
She passed the bar, she sped like a ghost, Till her sails were hid from view By the tall, liana'd, unsunned boughs O'erbrooding the dark bayou.
At moonrise up to the river-mouth30 Came the King's black ship of war, The red cross flapped in wrath at her peak, But she could not cross the bar.
And while she lay in the run of the seas, By the grimmest whim of chance,35 Out of the bay to the north came forth Two battle-ships of France.
On the English ship the twain bore down Like wolves that range by night; And the breakers' roar was heard no more40 In the thunder of the fight. The crash of the broadsides rolled and stormed To the Sally hid from view Under the tall liana'd boughs Of the moonless dark bayou.45
A boat ran out for news of the fight, And this was the word she brought— "The King's ship fights the ships of France As the King's ships all have fought!"
Then muttered the mate, "I'm a man of Devon!"50 And the captain thundered then— "There's English rope that bides for our necks, But we all be Englishmen!"
The Sally glided out of the gloom And down the moon-white river. 55 She stole like a gray shark over the bar Where the long surf seethes for ever.
She hove to under a high French hull, And the red cross rose to her peak. The French were looking for fight that night,60 And they hadn't far to seek.
Blood and fire on the streaming decks, And fire and blood below; The heat of hell, and the reek of hell, And the dead men laid a-row!65
And when the stars paled out of heaven And the red dawn-rays uprushed, The oaths of battle, the crash of timbers, The roar of the guns was hushed.
With one foe beaten under his bow,70 The other far in flight, The English captain turned to look For his fellow in the fight.
The English captain turned and stared;— For where the Sally had been75 Was a single spar upthrust from the sea With the red cross flag serene!
. . . . . .
A wind blew up from Pernambuco (Yeo heave ho! the Laughing Sally! Hi yeo, heave away!) And boomed for the doom of the Laughing Sally! Gone down at the break of day.

—Charles G. D. Roberts (By arrangement)

Preparatory.—Divide the poem into sections giving to each part a descriptive title. (Introduction, p. .) How is each section made to stand out?

In what Time is the section which describes the flight of the Laughing Sally read? Give your reason. (Introduction, pp. and .)

Contrast the first and last stanzas from the standpoint of feeling. How does the voice express the difference?

blew, knew, news, King's ship, seethes, and. (Appendix A, 2, , , and .)

Distinguish the sound of a in Laughing Sally, craft, last, passed, wrath, chance, crash, dark, far, dawn. (Appendix A, 1.)

8-9. Note the Grouping and Pause. (Introduction, p. .)

11-13. Observe the Grouping. Which phrases have the heaviest Shading? (Introduction, p. .)

16. Where is the Pause? Why?

18. Land on the port bow. What change is made in Pitch and Force? Account for it. (Introduction, pp. and .)

24. What is the Inflection on this line?

30-37. Observe the Grouping and Shading throughout these stanzas.

38-45. What sense is appealed to in these stanzas? How is the Time affected?

46-53. How are the transitions to direct discourse indicated? (Introduction, p. .)

What is the difference in Pitch between the mate's and the captain's speech? (Introduction, p. .)

66-67. Note the contrast with the preceding stanza and with the two following lines.