Cargoes
John Masefield, 1903
John Masefield's poem of three ships and their cargoes, from an ancient quinquireme of Nineveh to a dirty British coaster.
Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir,Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,With a cargo of ivory,And apes and peacocks,Sandalwood, cedarwood, and sweet white wine.
Stately Spanish galleon coming from the Isthmus,Dipping through the Tropics by the palm-green shores,With a cargo of diamonds,Emeralds, amethysts,Topazes, and cinnamon, and gold moidores.
Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack,Butting through the Channel in the mad March days,With a cargo of Tyne coal,Road-rails, pig-lead,Firewood, ironware, and cheap tin trays.