你就是这个问题的诗人吗?我在报纸上看到过你的名字十几次了，但我很抱歉，我从来没有听过你的暗示——你的身材——在我把你想象成一个有点高的人之前——又黑又矮，而且在那张被烧掉的图纸上。“我知道你又小又小，有一张乳白色的脸——”你的眼睛一点也不眨，呃，没有什么适合你的!看起来有点像——我不知道——一个集市上的家伙开着一个很奇怪的东西，呃，也许是个糖果摊。我一直认为诗歌是一种——某种疾病——当我认识一位诗人时，他很挑剔，很难取悦，而且喜怒无常，有点悲伤而且似乎不喜欢和别人交往——好像他身体不好，或者他的肝脏不好。以前是教书谋生的普克里克镇有人记得他我承认他很擅长密码还在《地理》杂志上发表过文章但说到机智，和学校相处，你看，他失败了，这是事实!在我们这儿住了十四个月，在这十四个月里，我要说的是，我们从来没有看见他睡觉，他一天也没有闲过。但是什么! !这让他的成绩越来越差，写不出押韵诗之类的东西，学校委员会还常常说:“在学校里我不够好。”他不像他应该的那样严格，从来没有人知道他会鞭打人，甚至也没有人知道他会让一个学者在他的书法上做文章。 'Stid o' that he'd learn 'em notes, And have 'em every day, Spilin' hymns and a-splittin' th'oats With his 'Do-sol-fa-me-ra!' Tel finally it was jest agreed We'd have to let him go, And we all felt bad--we did indeed, When we come to tell him so; Fer I remember, he turned so white, And smiled so sad, somehow, I someway felt it wasn't right, And I'm shore it wasn't now! He hadn't no complaints at all-- He bid the school adieu, And all o' the scholards great and small Was mighty sorry too! And when he closed that afternoon They sung some lines that he Had writ a purpose, to some old tune That suited the case, you see. And then he lingered and delayed And wouldn't go away-- And shet himself in his room and stayed A-writin' from day to day; And kep' a-gittin' stranger still, And thinner all the time, You know, as any feller will On nothin' else but rhyme. He didn't seem adzactly right, Er like he was crossed in love, He'd work away night after night, And walk the floor above; We'd hear him read and talk, and sing So lonesome-like and low, My woman's cried like ever'thing-- 'Way in the night, you know. And when at last he tuck to bed He'd have his ink and pen; 'So's he could coat the muse' he said, 'He'd die contented then'; And jest before he past away He read with dyin' gaze The epitaph that stands to-day To show you where he lays. And ever sence then I've allus thought That poetry's some disease, And them like you that's got it ought To watch their q's and p's ; And leave the sweets of rhyme, to sup On the wholesome draughts of toil, And git your health recruited up By plowin' in rougher soil.