Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). An American Anthology, 1787–1900. 1900.

By William HamiltonHayne

1263 A Cyclone at Sea

A THROAT of thunder, a tameless heart,

And a passion malign and free,

He is no sheik of the desert sand.

But an Arab of the sea!

He sprang from the womb of some wild cloud,

And was born to smite and slay:

To soar like a million hawks set free,

And swoop on his ocean prey!

He has scourged the Sea till her mighty breast

Responds to his heart’s fierce beat,

And has torn brave souls from their bodies frail

To fling them at Allah’s feet.

Possessed by a demon’s lust of life,

He revels o’er wrecks and graves,

And hurtles onward in curbless speed,—

Dark Bedouin of the waves.