| Harriet Monroe, ed. (1860–1936). Poetry: A Magazine of Verse. 1912–22. | | | | Solid Earth | | By William Rose Benét |
| | From “Green and Gray”
SCURVY doctrine, that the world is a bubble— | |
| It is much more solid than that! | |
| A monument built out of rubble, | |
| If you will—a high silk hat | |
| With the inevitable brick inside, | 5 |
| A perfect whale of a brick! | |
| Love to make you vain, and pride | |
| To make you sick. | |
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| Scurvy doctrine, that love’s a tambourine. A | |
| Love that is fond and true | 10 |
| Is exactly like a tame hyena | |
| (I’m telling this to you!)— | |
| A perfectly tangible hyena, | |
| With perfectly ponderable paws. | |
| You could climb a mountain in Argentina, | 15 |
| But you’d know it was. | |
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| Scurvy doctrine, that joy is fleeting— | |
| Joy is howling aloud | |
| At everyone, in every meeting, | |
| In every crowd! | 20 |
| Joy is what the heavens shake with | |
| At the earth beneath. | |
| Joy is the thing you tame the snake with— | |
| And grit your teeth. | | | | |
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