WE sat at the hut of the fisher And idly watched the sea, While in the hush of evening The mists rose silently. The yellow lights in the lighthouse Shone like a burnished bell, And in the hazy distance One ship still rose and fell. We spoke of storm and shipwreck, Of sailors and their life. Pulled between sky and water, Fierce joy and lusty strife. We gossiped of distant places, Of North and South we spoke, Of wild and curious customs, And wild and curious folk. Of how the Ganges sparkles; Of great exotic trees; Of folk who worship the lotus Silently, on their knees Of Lapland; its slovenly people, Flat-headed, broad-featured and small, That do little else but bake fishes And squat by the fire and squall. ... The girls all listened breathless; Then silence, like a spell ... The ship could be seen no longer— Swiftly the darkness fell. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...MARRIAGE by WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS L.E.L.'S LAST QUESTION by ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING THIRD BOOK OF AIRS: SONG 18. THE CHARM by THOMAS CAMPION THE WITCH by MARY ELIZABETH COLERIDGE FANCY IN NUBIBUS; OR, THE POET IN THE CLOUDS by SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE ONE POET VISITS ANOTHER by WILLIAM HENRY DAVIES HARVEST SONG by LUDWIG HENRICH CHRISTOPH HOLTY |