His style has the desperate jauntiness of an orchestra fiddling away for dear life on a sinking ship.

Rats desert a sinking ship.

But all the love in the world won't save a sinking ship. You have to either bail or jump overboard.

It is cheering to see that the rats are still around - the ship is not sinking

And you know what happens when a ship gets too many rats on board? It sinks. That's what.

I wondered if a ship had ever really sunk that way.

I have not yet begun to fight (as his ship was sinking, 23 September 1779)