Poems

Poems List

Explore poems from our collection

Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lucindy Jane

Lucindy Jane

When I was young I was too proud
To wheel my daughter in her pram.
"It's infra dig," I said aloud,-Bot
now I'm old, behold I…

272
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lowly Laureate

Lowly Laureate

O Sacred Muse, my lyre excuse! -
My verse is vagrant singing;
Rhyme I invoke for simple folk
Of penny-wise upbringing:
For Gran…

231
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lost

Lost


"Black is the sky, but the land is white-(
O the wind, the snow and the storm!)-Father,
where is our boy to-night?
Pray to God he is safe…

199
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lost Shepherd

Lost Shepherd

Ah me! How hard is destiny!
If we could only know. . . .
I bought my son from Sicily
A score of years ago;
I haled him from our…

249
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Longevity

Longevity


I watched one day a parrot grey - 'twas in a barber shop.
"Cuckold!" he cried, until I sighed: "You feathered devil, stop!"
Then balefull…

211
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lobster For Lunch

Lobster For Lunch

His face was like a lobster red,
His legs were white as mayonnaise:
"I've had a jolly lunch," he said,
That Englishman of pleasan…

245
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Little Moccasins

Little Moccasins

Come out, O Little Moccasins, and frolic on the snow!
Come out, O tiny beaded feet, and twinkle in the light!
I'll play the old Red Rive…

238
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Lip-Stick Liz

Lip-Stick Liz

Oh Lip-Stick Liz was in the biz, That's the oldest known in history;
She had a lot of fancy rags, Of her form she made no myst'ry.
She had …

249
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

L'Escargot D'Or

L'Escargot D'Or

O Tavern of the Golden Snail!
Ten sous have I, so I'll regale;
Ten sous your amber brew to sip
(Eight for the bock and two the tip)…

244
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

L'Envoi

L'Envoi


We've finished up the filthy war;
We've won what we were fighting for . . .
(Or have we? I don't know).
But anyway I have my wish:

168
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Laughter

Laughter


I Laugh at Life: its antics make for me a giddy games,
Where only foolish fellows take themselves with solemn aim.
I laugh at pomp and van…

273
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Learn To Like

Learn To Like

School yourself to savour most
Joys that have but little cost;
Prove the best of life is free,
Sun and stars and sky and sea;
E…

223
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Kings Must Die

Kings Must Die

Alphonso Rex who died in Rome
Was quite a fistful as a kid;
For when I visited his home,
That gorgeous palace in Madrid,
The g…

242
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Land Mine

Land Mine

A grey gull hovered overhead,
Then wisely flew away.

'In half a jiffy you'll be dead,'
I thought I heard it say;

As the…

274
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Kail Yard Bard

Kail Yard Bard

A very humble pen I ply
Beneath a cottage thatch;
And in the sunny hours I try
To till my cabbage patch;
And in the gloaming g…

216
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Katie Drummond

Katie Drummond

My Louis loved me oh so well
And spiered me for his wife;
He would have haled me from the hell
That was my bawdy life:
The mot…

202
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Julot The Apache

Julot The Apache

You've heard of Julot the apache, and Gigolette, his mome. . . .
Montmartre was their hunting-ground, but Belville was their home.
A lit…

288
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Joey

Joey


I thought I would go daft when Joey died.
He was my first, and wise beyond his years.
For nigh a hundred nights I cried and cried,
Until…

262
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Jane

Jane


My daughter Jane makes dresses
For beautiful Princesses;
But though she's plain is Jane,
Of needlework she's vain,
And makes such …

216
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Jim

Jim


Never knew Jim, did you? Our boy Jim?
Bless you, there was the likely lad;
Supple and straight and long of limb,
Clean as a whistle, and …

257
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

It Is Later Than You Think

It Is Later Than You Think

Lone amid the cafe's cheer,
Sad of heart am I to-night;
Dolefully I drink my beer,
But no single line I write.
The…

283
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Inspiration

Inspiration


How often have I started out
With no thought in my noodle,
And wandered here and there about,
Where fancy bade me toddle;
T…

174
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Innocence

Innocence


The height of wisdom seems to me
That of a child;

So let my ageing vision be
Serene and mild.

The depth of folly,…

228
Robert W. Service
Robert W. Service

Infidelity

Infidelity


Three Triangles

TRIANGLE ONE

My husband put some poison in my beer,
And fondly hoped that I would drink it up.
H…

206