Yankee seamen

[Ian Adrian Millar]

YANKEE SEAMEN

There used to be a better time,
When Yankee seamen held the line.
Guided by a grand design,
The Stars and Stripes were freedom's sign.

A time when seamen stood their ground,
Defending freedom. duty bound.
Amid the worst of battle's sound,
Took on the foe wherever found.

And now we have a new command,
Led by those who hate this land,
Who hate the sound of Souza's band,
Whose future firmly built on sand.

The clouds have gathered, hide the sun,
A few remember what was done,
When Yankee seamen manned the gun,
In time of stress on convoy run.

Let's hope one day better times we'll see,
And Yankee seamen out at sea,
Will sail defending you and me,
And our given rights of being free.

Ian Adrian Millar

[Keith at Tregenna]

Great day to add your latest work.

1 wmd.jpg

Cheers,

Keith.

[Keith at Tregenna]

A couple of others,

On Annual World Maritime Day

The Forgotten Merchant Marine
Walter Drew

Over a half century has passed and we've yet to be told.
About the men on the ships who carried more than their load.
The first Americans to die even before the war was declared,
Loving fathers and sons, hardly any were spared.

More seamen perished, more than any other branch it is said.
One seamen out of thirty-two gave his life and is now dead.
Yet children lost fathers and mothers lost sons.
Wives lost their husbands before the conflict was won.

No military honors were bestowed on these men.
No mention of heroism was ever told to their kin.
No parades or open arms met them back home.
Only ridicule and scorn and sarcasm the tone.

That dark cloud of disrespect still hangs and it looms.
It has taken over fifty years to try heal these wounds.
Yet loved ones still mourn and the injured still ache.
They have given up wondering if this is some kind of mistake.

The scars still remain, the story is untold.
They ask not for themselves the honor to be bestowed.
They ask for their comrades who gave their life to the ocean.
So their relatives at home can remember them with devotion.

Lt. Colonel (Ret.) U. S. Army Transportation Service

Sea Going American Patriots of World War II

The merchant seamen and the Navy Armed Guard
fought valiantly with the help of God.

These brave lads brought soldiers to fight
when men were needed at a combat site.

It was never easy or even routine
to sail the waters where death reigned supreme.

They roamed the world with cargo intact,
ever mindful of an enemy attack.

When supplies were needed, without delay,
they were delivered by night and by day.

As the battles turned hot,
some got through; many did not.

Heroes all, in death as in life,
doing their duty in time of strife.

"Patriots, all for love of country in the service of America"

.

[Red Lead Ted]

I can remember being in Port o Spain Trinidad for a week or so, The bar we were using drinks very reasonable in price, Then this bloody big Yankee ship pulled in and dropped anchor went ashore that night the prices had trebled we were like a crew of Skid Row they were a bloody nuisance.