| Hunt and Lee, comps. The Book of the Sonnet. 1867. | | | | III. Tropical Weather | | By Epes Sargent (1813–1880) |
| | | NOW we ’re afloat upon the tropic sea! | |
| Here Summer holdeth a perpetual reign: | |
| How flash the waters in their bounding glee! | |
| The sky’s soft purple is without a stain! | |
| Full in our wake the smooth, warm trade-winds, blowing, | 5 |
| To their unvarying goal still faithful run! | |
| And as we steer, with sails before them flowing, | |
| Nearer the zenith daily climbs the sun. | |
| The startled flying-fish around us skim, | |
| Glossed, like the humming-bird, with rainbow dyes; | 10 |
| And, as they dip into the water’s brim, | |
| Swift in pursuit the preying dolphin hies. | |
| All, all is fair; and, gazing round, we feel | |
| Over the yielding sense the torrid languor steal. | | | | |
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