Greenland Fishery

'Twas in eighteen hundred and fifty-three
And of June the thirteenth day,
That our gallant ship her anchor weighed,
And for Greenland bore away, brave boys,
And for Greenland bore away.

The lookout in the crosstrees stood,
With his spyglass in his hand.
There's a whale, there's a whale, there's a whale fish, he cried,
And she blows at every span, brave boys,
And she blows at every span.

The captain stood on the quarter-deck,
And a fine little man was he.
Overhaul! Overhaul! Let your davit-tackles fall,
And launch your boats for sea, brave boys,
And launch your boats for sea.

Now the boats were launched and the men aboard,
And the whale was in full view;
Resolv-ed was each seaman bold
To steer where the whale fish blew, brave boys,
To steer where the whale fish blew.

We struck that whale, the line paid out,
But she gave a flourish with her tail
The boat capsized and four men were drowned,
And we never caught that whale, brave boys,
And we never caught that whale.

To lose the whale," our captain said,
It grieves my heart full sore
But oh! to lose four gallant men,
It grieves me ten times more, brave boys,
It grieves me ten times more

The winter star doth now appear,
So boys, we'll anchor weigh;
It's time to leave this cold country,
And homeward bear way, brave boys,
And homeward bear away."

Oh, Greenland is a dreadful place,
A land that's never green,
Where there's ice and snow, and the whale fishes blow,
And the daylight's seldom seen, brave boys, 
And the daylight's seldom seen.      

Lyrics courtesy of www.sailorsongs.com