Select Poetry.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4964, 6 December 1884, Page 1

Select Poetry.

NOT A MAN FOR A* THAT. V

" A man's a man,", says Robert Burns,^ '' For a' that and a'- that." But though the song be clear and strong , It lacks a note for a* that; The lout who'd shirk his daily work, v Yet claim his wage and a' that, : • Or beg when he can earn his bread,; la not a man for a' that. If all who dine on homely fare Were true and brave, and a' that; And none whose garb is " hodden grey," Was fool and knave and a' that,, ■ The vice and crime that shame our time Would fade and fall ann a'that; And ploughmen be as good as kings, ,■;.„.. And churls as earls for a' that. Yon see yon brawny, blustering sot, Who swaggers, swears, and a* that; And thinks, because his strong right han' Might fell an ox, and a' that, That he's as noble, man for man, As duke and lord, and a' that, He's but a brute, beyond dispute, And not a man for a' that. A man may own a large estate, Have palace, park, and a' that; And not for birth, but honest worth Be thrice a man for a' that, And Donald herding on the muir, ' Wno'b^ittis-'lrts'wife an 3 vTtfMi? "'"~ Be nothing but a rascal boor, *• ' Nor half a man for a' that. •' It comes to this, dear Eobert Burns, The truth is old> and a' that, The rank is but the guinea's stamp, The man's the gowd for a' that." And though you put the minted man On copper, brass, and a' that, The lie is gross, the Cheat is plain, And will not pass, for a' that. For a' that, and a' that, 'Tis soul and heart, and a' that, That makes the king a gentleman, And not his crown, and a' that. A man with man, if rich or poor, The best is he, for a' that, Who stands erect in self-respect, And acts the man for a' that. ;