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The Spell of the Yukon
and Other Verses

by

Robert W. Service

---

The Little Old Log Cabin

When a man gits on his uppers in a hard-pan sort of town,

An' he ain't got nothin' comin' an' he can't afford ter eat,

An' he's in a fix for lodgin' an' he wanders up an' down,

An' you'd fancy he'd been boozin', he's so locoed 'bout the feet;

When he's feelin' sneakin' sorry an' his belt is hangin' slack,

An' his face is peaked an' gray-like an' his heart gits down an' whines,

Then he's apt ter git a-thinkin' an' a-wishin' he was back

In the little ol' log cabin in the shadder of the pines.

When he's on the blazin' desert an' his canteen's sprung a leak,

An' he's all alone an' crazy an' he's crawlin' like a snail,

An' his tongue's so black an' swollen that it hurts him fer to speak,

An' he gouges down fer water an' the raven's on his trail;

When he's done with care and cursin' an' he feels more like to cry,

An' he sees ol' Death a-grinnin' an' he thinks upon his crimes,

Then he's like ter hev' a vision, as he settles down ter die,

Of the little ol' log cabin an' the roses an' the vines.

Oh, the little ol' log cabin, it's a solemn shinin' mark,

When a feller gits ter sinnin' an' a-goin' ter the wall,

An' folks don't understand him an' he's gropin' in the dark,

An' he's sick of bein' cursed at an' he's longin' fer his call!

When the sun of life's a-sinkin' you can see it 'way above,

On the hill from out the shadder in a glory 'gin the sky,

An' your mother's voice is callin', an' her arms are stretched in love,

An' somehow you're glad you're goin', an' you ain't a-scared to die;

When you'll be like a kid again an' nestle to her breast,

An' never leave its shelter, an' forget, an' love, an' rest

---

The Younger Son

If you leave the gloom of London and you seek a glowing land,

Where all except the flag is strange and new,

There's a bronzed and stalwart fellow who will grip you by the hand,

And greet you with a welcome warm and true;

For he's your younger brother, the one you sent away

Because there wasn't room for him at home;

And now he's quite contented, and he's glad he didn't stay,

And he's building Britain's greatness o'er the foam.

When the giant herd is moving at the rising of the sun,

And the prairie is lit with rose and gold,

And the camp is all abustle, and the busy day's begun,

He leaps into the saddle sure and bold.

Through the round of heat and hurry, through the racket and the rout,

He rattles at a pace that nothing mars;

And when the night-winds whisper and camp-fires flicker out,

He is sleeping like a child beneath the stars.

When the wattle-blooms are drooping in the sombre shed-oak glade,

And the breathless land is lying in a swoon,

He leaves his work a moment, leaning lightly on his spade,

And he hears the bell-bird chime the Austral noon.

The parrakeets are silent in the gum-tree by the creek;

The ferny grove is sunshine-steeped and still;

But the dew will gem the myrtle in the twilight ere he seek

His little lonely cabin on the hill.

Around the purple, vine-clad slope the argent river dreams;

The roses almost hide the house from view;

A snow-peak of the Winterberg in crimson splendor gleams;

The shadow deepens down on the karroo.

He seeks the lily-scented dusk beneath the orange tree;

His pipe in silence glows and fades and glows;

And then two little maids come out and climb upon his knee,

And one is like the lily, one the rose.

He sees his white sheep dapple o'er the green New Zealand plain,

And where Vancouver's shaggy ramparts frown,

When the sunlight threads the pine-gloom he is fighting might and main

To clinch the rivets of an Empire down.

You will find him toiling, toiling, in the south or in the west,

A child of nature, fearless, frank, and free;

And the warmest heart that beats for you is beating in his breast,

And he sends you loyal greeting o'er the sea.

You've a brother in the army, you've another in the Church;

One of you is a diplomatic swell;

You've had the pick of everything and left him in the lurch,

And yet I think he's doing very well.

I'm sure his life is happy, and he doesn't envy yours;

I know he loves the land his pluck has won;

And I fancy in the years unborn, while England's fame endures,

She will come to bless with pride -- The Younger Son.

---

The March of the Dead

The cruel war was over -- oh, the triumph was so sweet!

We watched the troops returning, through our tears;

There was triumph, triumph, triumph down the scarlet glittering street,

And you scarce could hear the music for the cheers.

And you scarce could see the house-tops for the flags that flew between;

The bells were pealing madly to the sky;

And everyone was shouting for the Soldiers of the Queen,

And the glory of an age was passing by.

And then there came a shadow, swift and sudden, dark and drear;

The bells were silent, not an echo stirred.

The flags were drooping sullenly, the men forgot to cheer;

We waited, and we never spoke a word.

The sky grew darker, darker, till from out the gloomy rack

There came a voice that checked the heart with dread:

"Tear down, tear down your bunting now, and hang up sable black;

They are coming -- it's the Army of the Dead."

They were coming, they were coming, gaunt and ghastly, sad and slow;

They were coming, all the crimson wrecks of pride;

With faces seared, and cheeks red smeared, and haunting eyes of woe,

And clotted holes the khaki couldn't hide.

Oh, the clammy brow of anguish! the livid, foam-flecked lips!

The reeling ranks of ruin swept along!

The limb that trailed, the hand that failed, the bloody finger tips!

And oh, the dreary rhythm of their song!

"They left us on the veldt-side, but we felt we couldn't stop

On this, our England's crowning festal day;

We're the men of Magersfontein, we're the men of Spion Kop,

Colenso -- we're the men who had to pay.

We're the men who paid the blood-price. Shall the grave be all our gain?

You owe us. Long and heavy is the score.

Then cheer us for our glory now, and cheer us for our pain,

And cheer us as ye never cheered before."

The folks were white and stricken, and each tongue seemed weighted with lead;

Each heart was clutched in hollow hand of ice;

And every eye was staring at the horror of the dead,

The pity of the men who paid the price.

They were come, were come to mock us, in the first flush of our peace;

Through writhing lips their teeth were all agleam;

They were coming in their thousands -- oh, would they never cease!

I closed my eyes, and then -- it was a dream.

There was triumph, triumph, triumph down the scarlet gleaming street;

The town was mad; a man was like a boy.

A thousand flags were flaming where the sky and city meet;

A thousand bells were thundering the joy.

There was music, mirth and sunshine; but some eyes shone with regret;

And while we stun with cheers our homing braves,

O God, in Thy great mercy, let us nevermore forget

The graves they left behind, the bitter graves.

---

"Fighting Mac"

A Life Tragedy

A pistol shot rings round and round the world;

In pitiful defeat a warrior lies.

A last defiance to dark Death is hurled,

A last wild challenge shocks the sunlit skies.

Alone he falls, with wide, wan, woeful eyes:

Eyes that could smile at death -- could not face shame.

Alone, alone he paced his narrow room,

In the bright sunshine of that Paris day;

Saw in his thought the awful hand of doom;

Saw in his dream his glory pass away;

Tried in his heart, his weary heart, to pray:

"O God! who made me, give me strength to face

The spectre of this bitter, black disgrace."

* * * * *

The burn brawls darkly down the shaggy glen;

The bee-kissed heather blooms around the door;

He sees himself a barefoot boy again,

Bending o'er page of legendary lore.

He hears the pibroch, grips the red claymore,

Runs with the Fiery Cross, a clansman true,

Sworn kinsman of Rob Roy and Roderick Dhu.

Eating his heart out with a wild desire,

One day, behind his counter trim and neat,

He hears a sound that sets his brain afire --

The Highlanders are marching down the street.

Oh, how the pipes shrill out, the mad drums beat!

"On to the gates of Hell, my Gordons gay!"

He flings his hated yardstick away.

He sees the sullen pass, high-crowned with snow,

Where Afghans cower with eyes of gleaming hate.

He hurls himself against the hidden foe.

They try to rally -- ah, too late, too late!

Again, defenseless, with fierce eyes that wait

For death, he stands, like baited bull at bay,

And flouts the Boers, that mad Majuba day.

He sees again the murderous Soudan,

Blood-slaked and rapine-swept. He seems to stand

Upon the gory plain of Omdurman.

Then Magersfontein, and supreme command

Over his Highlanders. To shake his hand

A King is proud, and princes call him friend.

And glory crowns his life -- and now the end,

The awful end. His eyes are dark with doom;

He hears the shrapnel shrieking overhead;

He sees the ravaged ranks, the flame-stabbed gloom.

Oh, to have fallen! -- the battle-field his bed,

With Wauchope and his glorious brother-dead.

Why was he saved for this, for this? And now

He raises the revolver to his brow.

* * * * *

In many a Highland home, framed with rude art,

You'll find his portrait, rough-hewn, stern and square;

It's graven in the Fuyam fellah's heart;

The Ghurka reads it at his evening prayer;

The raw lands know it, where the fierce suns glare;

The Dervish fears it. Honor to his name

Who holds aloft the shield of England's fame.

Mourn for our hero, men of Northern race!

We do not know his sin; we only know

His sword was keen. He laughed death in the face,

And struck, for Empire's sake, a giant blow.

His arm was strong. Ah! well they learnt, the foe

The echo of his deeds is ringing yet --

Will ring for aye. All else. . .let us forget.

---

The Woman and the Angel

An angel was tired of heaven, as he lounged in the golden street;

His halo was tilted sideways, and his harp lay mute at his feet;

So the Master stooped in His pity, and gave him a pass to go,

For the space of a moon, to the earth-world, to mix with the men below.

He doffed his celestial garments, scarce waiting to lay them straight;

He bade good by to Peter, who stood by the golden gate;

The sexless singers of heaven chanted a fond farewell,

And the imps looked up as they pattered on the red-hot flags of hell.

Never was seen such an angel -- eyes of heavenly blue,

Features that shamed Apollo, hair of a golden hue;

The women simply adored him; his lips were like Cupid's bow;

But he never ventured to use them -- and so they voted him slow.

Till at last there came One Woman, a marvel of loveliness,

And she whispered to him: "Do you love me?" And he answered that woman, "Yes."

And she said: "Put your arms around me, and kiss me, and hold me -- so --"

But fiercely he drew back, saying: "This thing is wrong, and I know."

Then sweetly she mocked his scruples, and softly she him beguiled:

"You, who are verily man among men, speak with the tongue of a child.

We have outlived the old standards; we have burst, like an over-tight thong,

The ancient, outworn, Puritanic traditions of Right and Wrong."

Then the Master feared for His angel, and called him again to His side,

For oh, the woman was wondrous, and oh, the angel was tried!

And deep in his hell sang the Devil, and this was the strain of his song:

"The ancient, outworn, Puritanic traditions of Right and Wrong."

---

The Rhyme of the Restless Ones

We couldn't sit and study for the law;

The stagnation of a bank we couldn't stand;

For our riot blood was surging, and we didn't need much urging

To excitements and excesses that are banned.

So we took to wine and drink and other things,

And the devil in us struggled to be free;

Till our friends rose up in wrath, and they pointed out the path,

And they paid our debts and packed us o'er the sea.

Oh, they shook us off and shipped us o'er the foam,

To the larger lands that lure a man to roam;

And we took the chance they gave

Of a far and foreign grave,

And we bade good-by for evermore to home.

And some of us are climbing on the peak,

And some of us are camping on the plain;

By pine and palm you'll find us, with never claim to bind us,

By track and trail you'll meet us once again.

We are the fated serfs to freedom -- sky and sea;

We have failed where slummy cities overflow;

But the stranger ways of earth know our pride and know our worth,

And we go into the dark as fighters go.

Yes, we go into the night as brave men go,

Though our faces they be often streaked with woe;

Yet we're hard as cats to kill,

And our hearts are reckless still,

And we've danced with death a dozen times or so.

And you'll find us in Alaska after gold,

And you'll find us herding cattle in the South.

We like strong drink and fun, and, when the race is run,

We often die with curses in our mouth.

We are wild as colts unbroke, but never mean.

Of our sins we've shoulders broad to bear the blame;

But we'll never stay in town and we'll never settle down,

And we'll never have an object or an aim.

No, there's that in us that time can never tame;

And life will always seem a careless game;

And they'd better far forget --

Those who say they love us yet --

Forget, blot out with bitterness our name.

---

New Year's Eve

It's cruel cold on the water-front, silent and dark and drear;

Only the black tide weltering, only the hissing snow;

And I, alone, like a storm-tossed wreck, on this night of the glad New Year,

Shuffling along in the icy wind, ghastly and gaunt and slow.

They're playing a tune in McGuffy's saloon, and it's cheery and bright in there

(God! but I'm weak -- since the bitter dawn, and never a bite of food);

I'll just go over and slip inside -- I mustn't give way to despair --

Perhaps I can bum a little booze if the boys are feeling good.

They'll jeer at me, and they'll sneer at me, and they'll call me a whiskey soak;

("Have a drink? Well, thankee kindly, sir, I don't mind if I do.")

A drivelling, dirty, gin-joint fiend, the butt of the bar-room joke;

Sunk and sodden and hopeless -- "Another? Well, here's to you!"

McGuffy is showing a bunch of the boys how Bob Fitzsimmons hit;

The barman is talking of Tammany Hall, and why the ward boss got fired.

I'll just sneak into a corner and they'll let me alone a bit;

The room is reeling round and round. . . O God! but I'm tired, I'm tired. . . .

* * * * *

Roses she wore on her breast that night. Oh, but their scent was sweet!

Alone we sat on the balcony, and the fan-palms arched above;

The witching strain of a waltz by Strauss came up to our cool retreat,

And I prisoned her little hand in mine, and I whispered my plea of love.

Then sudden the laughter died on her lips, and lowly she bent her head;

And oh, there came in the deep, dark eyes a look that was heaven to see;

And the moments went, and I waited there, and never a word was said,

And she plucked from her bosom a rose of red and shyly gave it to me.

Then the music swelled to a crash of joy, and the lights blazed up like day,

And I held her fast to my throbbing heart, and I kissed her bonny brow.

"She is mine, she is mine for evermore!" the violins seemed to say,

And the bells were ringing the New Year in -- O God! I can hear them now.

Don't you remember that long, last waltz, with its sobbing, sad refrain?

Don't you remember that last good-by, and the dear eyes dim with tears?

Don't you remember that golden dream, with never a hint of pain,

Of lives that would blend like an angel-song in the bliss of the coming years?

Oh, what have I lost! What have I lost! Ethel, forgive, forgive!

The red, red rose is faded now, and it's fifty years ago.

'Twere better to die a thousand deaths than live each day as I live!

I have sinned, I have sunk to the lowest depths -- but oh, I have suffered so!

Hark! Oh, hark! I can hear the bells!. . .Look! I can see her there,

Fair as a dream. . .but it fades. . .And now -- I can hear the dreadful hum

Of the crowded court. . .See! the Judge looks down. . . NOT GUILTY, my Lord, I swear. . .

The bells -- I can hear the bells again!. . . Ethel, I come, I come!. . .

* * * * *

"Rouse up, old man, it's twelve o'clock. You can't sleep here, you know.

Say! ain't you got no sentiment? Lift up your muddled head;

Have a drink to the glad New Year, a drop before you go --

You darned old dirty hobo. . .My God! Here, boys! He's DEAD!"

---

Comfort

Say! You've struck a heap of trouble --

Bust in business, lost your wife;

No one cares a cent about you,

You don't care a cent for life;

Hard luck has of hope bereft you,

Health is failing, wish you'd die --

Why, you've still the sunshine left you

And the big, blue sky.

Sky so blue it makes you wonder

If it's heaven shining through;

Earth so smiling 'way out yonder,

Sun so bright it dazzles you;

Birds a-singing, flowers a-flinging

All their fragrance on the breeze;

Dancing shadows, green, still meadows --

Don't you mope, you've still got these.

These, and none can take them from you;

These, and none can weigh their worth.

What! you're tired and broke and beaten? --

Why, you're rich -- you've got the earth!

Yes, if you're a tramp in tatters,

While the blue sky bends above

You've got nearly all that matters --

You've got God, and God is love.

---

The Harpy

There was a woman, and she was wise; woefully wise was she;

She was old, so old, yet her years all told were but a score and three;

And she knew by heart, from finish to start, the Book of Iniquity.

There is no hope for such as I on earth, nor yet in Heaven;

Unloved I live, unloved I die, unpitied, unforgiven;

A loathed jade, I ply my trade, unhallowed and unshriven.

I paint my cheeks, for they are white, and cheeks of chalk men hate;

Mine eyes with wine I make them shine, that man may seek and sate;

With overhead a lamp of red I sit me down and wait

Until they come, the nightly scum, with drunken eyes aflame;

Your sweethearts, sons, ye scornful ones -- 'tis I who know their shame.

The gods, ye see, are brutes to me -- and so I play my game.

For life is not the thing we thought, and not the thing we plan;

And Woman in a bitter world must do the best she can --

Must yield the stroke, and bear the yoke, and serve the will of man;

Must serve his need and ever feed the flame of his desire,

Though be she loved for love alone, or be she loved for hire;

For every man since life began is tainted with the mire.

And though you know he love you so and set you on love's throne;

Yet let your eyes but mock his sighs, and let your heart be stone,

Lest you be left (as I was left) attainted and alone.

From love's close kiss to hell's abyss is one sheer flight, I trow,

And wedding ring and bridal bell are will-o'-wisps of woe,

And 'tis not wise to love too well, and this all women know.

Wherefore, the wolf-pack having gorged upon the lamb, their prey,

With siren smile and serpent guile I make the wolf-pack pay --

With velvet paws and flensing claws, a tigress roused to slay.

One who in youth sought truest truth and found a devil's lies;

A symbol of the sin of man, a human sacrifice.

Yet shall I blame on man the shame? Could it be otherwise?

Was I not born to walk in scorn where others walk in pride?

The Maker marred, and, evil-starred, I drift upon His tide;

And He alone shall judge His own, so I His judgment bide.

Fate has written a tragedy; its name is "The Human Heart".

The Theatre is the House of Life, Woman the mummer's part;

The Devil enters the prompter's box and the play is ready to start.

---

The Premonition

'Twas a year ago and the moon was bright

  (Oh, I remember so well, so well);

I walked with my love in a sea of light,

  And the voice of my sweet was a silver bell.

    And sudden the moon grew strangely dull,

      And sudden my love had taken wing;

    I looked on the face of a grinning skull,

      I strained to my heart a ghastly thing.

'Twas but fantasy, for my love lay still

  In my arms, with her tender eyes aglow,

And she wondered why my lips were chill,

  Why I was silent and kissed her so.

    A year has gone and the moon is bright,

      A gibbous moon, like a ghost of woe;

    I sit by a new-made grave to-night,

      And my heart is broken -- it's strange, you know.

---

The Tramps

Can you recall, dear comrade, when we tramped God's land together,

And we sang the old, old Earth-song, for our youth was very sweet;

When we drank and fought and lusted, as we mocked at tie and tether,

Along the road to Anywhere, the wide world at our feet --

Along the road to Anywhere, when each day had its story;

When time was yet our vassal, and life's jest was still unstale;

When peace unfathomed filled our hearts as, bathed in amber glory,

Along the road to Anywhere we watched the sunsets pale?

Alas! the road to Anywhere is pitfalled with disaster;

There's hunger, want, and weariness, yet O we loved it so!

As on we tramped exultantly, and no man was our master,

And no man guessed what dreams were ours, as, swinging heel and toe,

We tramped the road to Anywhere, the magic road to Anywhere,

The tragic road to Anywhere, such dear, dim years ago.

---

L'Envoi

You who have lived in the land,

  You who have trusted the trail,

You who are strong to withstand,

  You who are swift to assail:

      Songs have I sung to beguile,

        Vintage of desperate years,

      Hard as a harlot's smile,

        Bitter as unshed tears.

Little of joy or mirth,

  Little of ease I sing;

Sagas of men of earth

  Humanly suffering,

      Such as you all have done;

        Savagely faring forth,

      Sons of the midnight sun,

        Argonauts of the North.

Far in the land God forgot

  Glimmers the lure of your trail;

Still in your lust are you taught

  Even to win is to fail.

      Still you must follow and fight

        Under the vampire wing;

      There in the long, long night

        Hoping and vanquishing.

Husbandman of the Wild,

  Reaping a barren gain;

Scourged by desire, reconciled

  Unto disaster and pain;

      These, my songs, are for you,

        You who are seared with the brand

      God knows I have tried to be true;

        Please God you will understand.

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