Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE BOATMAN'S SONG, by ELIZABETH


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE BOATMAN'S SONG, by                    
First Line: Down-stream 'tis all by moonlight
Last Line: Long in the sand remain.
Alternate Author Name(s): Sylva, Carmen; Pauline Elizabeth Ottilie Luis
Subject(s): Sailing & Sailors; Seamen; Sails


DOWN-STREAM 'tis all by moonlight,
Up-stream at blazing noon;
Down-stream upon the ripples,
Up-stream through sandy dune.

Down-stream, the helm held loosely,
A pipe between the lips;
Up-stream, like beast one straineth
And galls the breast and hips.

What boots it that I seem like
The river's king to-day.
If to-morrow like a beggar,
Despised, I tug away?

My pleasuring leaves no furrow
Upon the water-plain;
The marks of struggling footsteps
Long in the sand remain.






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