Ballade of an Omnibus
"To see my love suffices me."--Ballades in Blue China.
Some men to carriages aspire;On some the costly hansoms wait;Some seek a fly, on job or hire;Some mount the trotting steed, elate.I envy not the rich and great,A wandering minstrel, poor and free,I am contented with my fate --An omnibus suffices me.
In winter days of rain and mireI find within a corner strait;The 'busmen know me and my lyreFrom Brompton to the Bull-and-Gate.When summer comes, I mount in stateThe topmost summit, whence I seeCrœsus look up, compassionate --An omnibus suffices me.
I mark, untroubled by desire,Lucullus' phaeton and its freight.The scene whereof I cannot tire,The human tale of love and hate,The city pageant, early and lateUnfolds itself, rolls by, to beA pleasure deep and delicate.An omnibus suffices me.
Princess, your splendour you require,I, my simplicity; agreeNeither to rate lower nor higher.An omnibus suffices me.
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