Goodnight Sweet Prince

There are conflicting stories about where the term bogeyman originated. The Spice Islands, for me, seem the most likely. Hence this little poem. Have fun!  

The spice-laden bark,

dressed to the nines

spied sails full and dark,

while water breached its deck and chines.

Salt-crusted tars pumped

the bark’s swollen sluicegate

while the black sailed romped

then tacked to a broad reach gait.

The man above, with a crow’s eye view

cried in dread for now he knew

the bogeymen were gaining apace

their waterlogged spicer was losing the race.

“Bogeymen! Bogeymen! Off the starboard bow!

There, my captain, there they be!”

“Pray to God,” the captain cried, “if you know how!

The bogeys are fast and they’re born at sea.”

The bark’s gunwales showed smoke and flame

as its cannonballs sought the bogey’s hull.

“For your mothers, wives, sons and fame

brace yourselves boys, here comes a bogey’s ball!”

Their foremast splintered, its sails now aflame

as the poor bark stumbled, the bogeys closed.

The captain prodded his men with God’s name

while the bogeys neared and their standard rose.

Now get thee to bed my sons, one and all

For the rest of the story, I’ll relate tomorrow.

If you hear men walking down the darkened hall