free-verse8 lines
A Mahommadan Ship Fireman.
by Francis William Lauderdale AdamsUp from the oven pit,
The hell where poor men toil,
At the sunset hour he comes
Clean-clothed, washed from soil.
On the fo'c's'le head he kneels,
His face to the hallowed West.
He prays, and bows and prays.
Does he pray for death and rest?