The Point of View

Old William says the sun comes up Out of the China Sea; He says he's seen it rising there And that's a certainty; On this, he tells me, sailor-men Entirely agree.

And William was a sailor-man Though he's a fisherman now. He says he'd be a farmer But he cannot learn to plow; So he fishes from his fishing-smack And I sit in the bow.

He knows the seas where pirates sail And do their horrid crimes; He says he's met the worst of them About a score of times, And that they always call him "Bill"! When they meet in foreign climes.

He has a mermaid on his arm Tattooed by Lee Hong Wong; And he often sings a chanty Of thirty verses long; "Blow the man down," is all I know, But it is a charming song.

And we hardly ever argue Except about the sun, For I know less than William knows When all is said and done— So we usually fish in peace And have a lot of fun.

And all goes very happily Till William says to me That every day the sun comes up Out of the China Sea!— Well—if it does, I know it sets Behind our Maple Tree.

It doesn't set in China But beyond our tree and shore! I've seen it go a million times Or a squillion times or more Into the sea, and then roll on Right through a golden door!—

So, after we have talked awhile We let the subject drop, And William lights his old clay pipe, Or a fish comes up, 'Kerflop!' "We argue noble," William says, "But we both know when to stop."