Intolerance
Robert William Service 1874 – 1958
I have no brief for gambling, nay
The notion I express
That money earned 's the only way
To pay for happiness.
With cards and dice I do not hold;
By betting I've been bit:
Conclusion: to get honest gold
You've got to sweat for it.
Though there be evil in strong drink
It's brought me heaps of fun;
And now, with some reserve, I think
My toping days are done.
Though at teetotal cranks I laugh,
Yet being sound and hale,
I find the best of drinks to quaff
Is good old Adam's ale.
I do not like your moralist,
Who with a righteous grin
Informs you o'er a pounding fist:
"Unchastity is sin."
I don't believe it, but I grant,
By every human test,
From parson, pimp and maiden aunt,
Morality is best.
Yet what a bore our lives would be
If we lived as we should;
It's such a blessing to be free,
And not be over-good.
I value virtues great and small,
As I in life advance:
But O the greatest sin of all
I count--INTOLERANCE.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 56 sec read
- 78 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXAXBCBC DEDEFGFG HIHIJKJK LMLMNXNX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,048 |
Words | 183 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 8 |
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"Intolerance" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/32190/intolerance>.
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