Classic Poem

Adventure hangs about him, like a friend;
Romance he buys and sells on six months' time.
In his small wallet lust and heedless crime
Come to a safe and profitable end.
Rubies, torn from the eyes of idols, blend
With virgin pearls, fresh from the ageless slime.
And lives and hazards, perilous and sublime,
Are this man's power — and his dividend.

The diver's death becomes his daily bread;
The smallest of his opals burn and glow
With all the stubborn agonies of strife. . .
We spoke of men and hardships. " Well, " he said,
" This traveling is the meanest work I know.
Small towns and sleepers; it's a dog's own life! "