The Poetical Works of George Barlow In Ten [Eleven] Volumes |
 | I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
 | IX. |
“DRIFTING ALONE”
|
|
|
|
|
|
| X. |
| XI. |
 | The Poetical Works of George Barlow |  |
36
“DRIFTING ALONE”
I
Drifting, drifting aloneO'er the wild waste of waters, while the day
Sinks swallowed in a haze of sullen grey
That hides cliff, shore, and down and creek and bay.
No sound save waves that wail and winds that moan:
Drifting, drifting, drifting,
Drifting on alone!
II
Drifting, drifting aloneInto the darkness of the inhuman sea.
Love aided once, sweet Love,—now where is he?
Only the boat, the waves, the sky, and she.
The sail shrieks out, the racked planks creak and groan:
Drifting, drifting, drifting,
Drifting on alone!
37
III
Drifting, drifting aloneInto the midnight, ninety miles away
From the old sunlit shores of yesterday.
Between her and the land one ceaseless grey
Desert, whose billows in fierce monotone
Cry “Drifting, drifting, drifting,
Drifting to death, alone!”
Feb. 3, 1886.
| The Poetical Works of George Barlow | |