Drawn to the warmth of gold we reach Hawaii,
Tahiti, Treasure Island, Coromandel,
But first we land where there's no rivalry,
Where no-one qualified, with any class,
Would want to go.
Beheadings in the village square; lashings, gold and fly-blown meat.
Cockroaches carpet the shower, scattered by naked bulb and feet;
The sleep-denying malarial mosquitoes.
Slaughterhouse shrieks erupt from the traders' yard -
Last moments of panic, arterial spray.
Quieter, stunned, on a murmuring beach;
Bad dreams take a year to fade.
