Ballad of Yarmouth Castle

Well, it's four o'clock in the afternoon

And the anchors have been weighed

From Miami to Nassau

She's bound across the waves

She'll be headin' south through Biscayne Bay

Into the open sea

Yarmouth Castle, she's a-dyin' and don't know it

Now the many years she's been to sea

She's seen the better times

She gives a groan of protest

As they cast away her lines

And the grumble of her engines

And the rust along her spine

Tells the Castle she's too old to be sailin'

But the sands run out within her heart

A tiny spark glows red

It smolders through the evening

There's laughter overhead

Now the dinner's served and the cards are dealt

And the drinks are passed around

Deep within the fire starts a-burnin'

Now it's midnight on the open sea

And the moon is shinin' bright

Some people join the party

And others say goodnight

There's many who are sleepin' now

It's been a busy day

And a tiny wisp of smoke is a-risin'

"Oh Lord," she groans, "I'm burning

Let someone understand"

But her silent plea is wasted

In the playin' of the band

Everybody's dancin' on her deck

And they're havin' such a time

And a voice says, "Shut up and deal, I'm losin'"

Deep within the Yarmouth Castle

The fire begins to glow

It leaps into the hallways

And climbs and twists and grows

And the paint she wore to keep her young

Oh Lord, how well it burns

And soon that old fire is a-ragin'

Up beneath the bridge it's climbin' fast

The captain stands aloft

He calls up to the boatswain, says

"Boatswain, we are lost"

For the ragged hoses in the racks

No pressure do they hold

And the people down below will soon be dyin'

All amidships, oh she's blazin' now

It's spreadin' fore and aft

The people are a-scramblin'

As the fire blocks their path

The evil smoke surrounds them

And they're fallin' in their tracks

And the captain in his lifeboat is a-leavin'

Oh then the ship, Bahama Star

Comes steamin' through the night

She sees the Castle blazin'

And 'tis a terrible sight

"Jump down, jump down", the captain cries

"We'll save you if we can"

Then the paint on his funnels is a-fryin'

"God help the ones who sleep below

And cannot find the way

Thank God for those we rescue

Upon this awful day"

Now the heroes, they are many

But the times are growin' slim

And now from stern to bow, she's a-blazin'

Oh the Yarmouth Castle's moanin'

She's cryin' like a child

You can hear her if you listen

Above the roar so wild

Is she cryin' for the ones who lie

Within her molten sides?

Or cryin' for herself, I'm a-wonderin'

But the livin' soon were rescued

The ones who lived to tell

From the Star they watched her

As she died there in the swells

Like a toy ship on a mill pond

She burned all through the night

Then slipped beneath the waves in the mornin'