| IF we were such and so, the same as these, | |
| maybe we too would be slingers and sliders, | |
| tumbling half over in the water mirrors, | |
| tumbling half over at the horse heads of the sun, | |
| tumbling our purple numbers. | 5 |
| |
| Twirl on, you and your satin blue. | |
| Be water birds, be air birds. | |
| Be these purple tumblers you are. | |
| |
| Dip and get away | |
| From loops into slip-knots, | 10 |
| Write your own ciphers and figure eights. | |
| It is your wooded island here in Lincoln park. | |
| Everybody knows this belongs to you. | |
| |
| Five fat geese | |
| Eat grass on a sod bank | 15 |
| And never count your slinging ciphers, | |
| your sliding figure eights, | |
| |
| A man on a green paint iron bench, | |
| Slouches his feet and sniffs in a book, | |
| And looks at you and your loops and slip-knots, | 20 |
| And looks at you and your sheaths of satin blue, | |
| And slouches again and sniffs in the book, | |
| And mumbles: It is an idle and a doctrinaire exploit. | |
| Go on tumbling half over in the water mirrors. | |
| Go on tumbling half over at the horse heads of the sun. | 25 |
| Be water birds, be air birds. | |
| Be these purple tumblers you are. | |
