(3) Base Camp
"The River-Merchant's Wife" is a straightforward poem, especially as far as Pound is concerned. (Man, you should read some of his later stuff!) The allusions to different places aren't that important to the reader, as long as you know that the wife wants to travel hundreds of miles just so she can see her husband a few weeks sooner. The poem follows a logical series of events leading up to the current moment when the wife writes her letter, so just take it slow (like a lazy river) and let yourself sink into the feeling.