Login
|
Join PoetrySoup
Home
Submit Poems
Login
Sign Up
Member Home
My Poems
My Quotes
My Profile & Settings
My Inboxes
My Outboxes
Soup Mail
Contest Results/Status
Contests
Poems
Poets
Famous Poems
Famous Poets
Dictionary
Types of Poems
Quotes
Short Stories
Articles
Forum
Blogs
Poem of the Day
New Poems
Resources
Syllable Counter
Anthology
Grammar Check
Greeting Card Maker
Classifieds
Member Area
Member Home
My Profile and Settings
My Poems
My Quotes
My Short Stories
My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder
Soup Social
Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us
Member Poems
Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Random
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread
Member Poets
Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest
Famous Poems
Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100
Famous Poets
Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War
Poetry Resources
Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetics
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
Store
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter
Email Poem
Your IP Address: 3.22.114.121
From Email:
Required
Email Address Not Valid.
To Email:
Email Address Not Valid.
Required
Subject
Required
Personal Note:
Poem Title:
Poem
As our mother the Frigate, bepainted and fine, Made play for her bully the Ship of the Line; So we, her bold daughters by iron and fire, Accost and decoy to our masters' desire. Now, pray you, consider what toils we endure, Night-walking wet sea-lanes, a guard and a lure; Since half of our trade is that same pretty sort As mettlesome wenches do practise in port. For this is our office: to spy and make room, As hiding yet guiding the foe to their doom. Surrounding, confounding, we bait and betray And tempt them to battle the seas' width away. The pot-bellied merchant foreboding no wrong With headlight and sidelight he lieth along, Till, lightless and lightfoot and lurking, leap we To force him discover his business by sea. And when we have wakened the lust of a foe, To draw him by flight toward our bullies we go, Till, 'ware of strange smoke stealing nearer, he flies Or our bullies close in for to make him good prize. So, when we have spied on the path of their host, One flieth to carry that word to the coast; And, lest by false doublings they turn and go free, One lieth behind them to follow and see. Anon we return, being gathered again, Across the sad valleys all drabbled with rain -- Across the grey ridges all crisped and curled -- To join the long dance round the curve of the world. The bitter salt spindrift, the sun-glare likewise, The moon-track a-tremble, bewilders our eyes, Where, linking and lifting, our sisters we hail 'Twixt wrench of cross-surges or plunge of head-gale. As maidens awaiting the bride to come forth Make play with light jestings and wit of no worth, So, widdershins circling the bride-bed of death, Each fleereth her neighbour and signeth and saith: -- "What see ye? Their signals, or levin afar? "What hear ye? God's thunder, or guns of our war? "What mark ye? Their smoke, or the cloud-rack outblown? "What chase ye? Their lights, or the Daystar low down?" So, times past all number deceived by false shows, Deceiving we cumber the road of our foes, For this is our virtue: to track and betray; Preparing great battles a sea's width away. Now peace is at end and our peoples take heart, For the laws are clean gone that restrained our art; Up and down the near headlands and against the far wind We are loosed (O be swift!) to the work of our kind!
Type the characters you see in the picture
Required