A Dedication to Soldiers Three

Rudyard Kipling 1865 (Mumbai) – 1936 (London)



And they were stronger hands than mine
That digged the Ruby from the earth-
More cunning brains that made it worth
The large desire of a king,
And stouter hearts that through the brine
Went down the perfect Pearl to bring.

Lo, I have wrought in common clay
Rude figures of a rough-hewn race,
Since pearls strew not the market-place
In this my town of banishment,
Where with the shifting dust I play,
And eat the bread of discontent.

Yet is there life in that I make.
0 thou who knowest, turn and see-
As thou hast power over me
So have I power over these,
Because I wrought them for thy sake,
And breathed in them mine agonies.

Small mirth was in the making-now
I lift the cloth that cloaks the clay,
And, wearied, at thy feet I lay
My wares, ere I go forth to sell.
The long bazaar will praise, but thou-
Heart of my heart-have I done well?

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

49 sec read
194

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBCAC DEEXDX FGGHFH IDDJIJ
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 826
Words 164
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6, 6

Rudyard Kipling

Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English short-story writer, poet, and novelist chiefly remembered for his tales and poems of British soldiers in India and his tales for children. more…

All Rudyard Kipling poems | Rudyard Kipling Books

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