English poem
ii
by Maurice Henry Hewlett (1861–1923)
I learned at home the laws of Earth: The nest-law that says, Stray not too far beyond the hearth, Keep truth always; And then the law of sip and bite: Work, that there may be some For you who crowd the board this night, And the one that is to come.
The laws are so for bird and beast, And so we must live: They give the most who have the least, And gain of what they give. For working women 'tis the luck, A child on the lap; And when a crust he learn to suck, Another's for the pap.