Lyrics
It was homeward bound one night on the deep
Describes the narrator's journey back home at sea.
Swinging in my hammock I fell asleep
The narrator, in a hammock, falls asleep while swinging.
I dreamed a dream and I thought it true
The narrator has a dream about Franklin and his crew.
Concerning Franklin and his gallant crew
Refers to a dream concerning the fate of Franklin and his brave crew.
With one hundred seamen he sailed away
Franklin set sail with a crew of one hundred seamen.
To the frozen ocean in the month of May
They sailed to the frozen ocean in May, aiming to find a passage around the pole.
To seek a passage around the pole
Objective: Finding a route around the North Pole.
Where we poor seamen do sometimes go
Acknowledges the risks faced by sailors in unfamiliar, icy waters.
Through cruel hardships they mainly strove
The crew faced harsh conditions and challenges.
Their ship on mountains of ice was drove
Their ship was stranded on ice-covered mountains.
Only the Eskimo with his skin canoe
Highlights the resilience of the Eskimo, who navigated through ice with a skin canoe.
Was the only one that ever came through
The Eskimo was the only survivor of the perilous journey.
In Baffin's Bay where the whale fish blow
Refers to Baffin's Bay, a treacherous region with whale fish.
The fate of Franklin no man may know
Uncertainty surrounds Franklin's fate in Baffin's Bay.
The fate of Franklin no tongue can tell
Emphasizes the mystery and difficulty in narrating Franklin's fate.
Lord Franklin along with his sailors do dwell
Suggests that Franklin and his sailors may have found their eternal rest.
And now my burden it gives me pain
The narrator expresses the emotional burden caused by Franklin's loss.
For my long lost Franklin I'd cross the main
The narrator would endure great hardship to find the lost Franklin.
Ten thousand pounds I would freely give
The narrator is willing to pay a substantial amount (10,000 pounds) for news of Franklin's survival.
To say on earth that my Franklin do live
Expresses the intense desire to hear that Franklin is alive on Earth.
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