A Ship Sails up to Bideford

Herbert Asquith 1881 – 1947



A ship sails up to Bideford;
Upon a western breeze,
Mast by mast, sail over sail,
She rises from the seas,
And sights the hills of Devon
And the misty English trees.

She comes from Eastern islands;
The sun is in her hold;
She bears the fruit of Jaffa,
Dates, oranges and gold;

She brings the silk of China,
And bales of Persian dyes,
And birds with sparkling feathers
And snakes with diamond eyes.

She’s gliding in the starlight
As white as any gull;
The east is gliding with her
In the shadows of her hull.

A ship sails up to Bideford;
Upon a western breeze,
With fruits of Eastern summers
She rises from the seas,
And sights the hills of Devon
And the misty English trees.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 28, 2023

38 sec read
90

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABxBCB xada defe agxg ABfBCB
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 661
Words 129
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 6, 4, 4, 4, 6

Herbert Asquith

The Hon. Herbert Asquith was an English poet, novelist and lawyer. more…

All Herbert Asquith poems | Herbert Asquith Books

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    "A Ship Sails up to Bideford" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/19021/a-ship-sails-up-to-bideford>.

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    What is the term for the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.
    A Enjambment
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