Thanks for posting the original lyrics, Charley. I meant to do that last night.

Can't say that I see any improvement on the original in the "sung" version. I would put the authenticity of the "voice" in the original over modern sensibilities. The "voice" in this case isn't that of the singer, nor even of Cicely Fox Smith, but her sailor recalling a time long before in the language he knew. CFS was recognized long before the folk revival interest in her material as someone who well knew the words and ways of the people she described, and as someone who had a facility for telling a story in a way that sounded true and right.

If you like it, leave it as it is - if you don't like it, leave it alone.

Ross