I found the full lyrics to this tune yesterday... Amazing how few Americans even know all the lyrics to the first verse...

Now if I may put on my "Poetry Critique" hat (It's purple, with tassles, by the way):

I really like the second verse. The details he chose -- the mists of the ocean, the dim light, the breeze -- all paint a clear picture of one man's perspective, and show, first, his anxiety and then, his relief.

The third and fourth verses, however, leave me cold. In both of these, he sinks into boasting and propaganda. He may, considering his experiences, have been entitled to these feelings. But boasting and propaganda make weak poems.

"Show, don't tell."