Ralph Waldo Emerson, comp. (1803–1882). Parnassus: An Anthology of Poetry. 1880.
Honest PovertyRobert Burns (17591796)
I
Wha hangs his head, and a’ that?
The coward-slave, we pass him by,
We dare be poor for a’ that.
For a’ that, and a’ that:
Our toils obscure, and a’ that,
The rank is but the guinea stamp,
The man’s the gowd for a’ that.
Wear hodden gray, and a’ that;
Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine,
A man’s a man for a’ that.
For a’ that, and a’ that,
Their tinsel show and a’ that;
The honest man though e’er sae poor,
Is king o’ men for a’ that.
Wha struts, and stares, and a’ that,
Though hundreds worship at his word,
He’s but a coof for a’ that.
For a’ that, and a’ that,
His riband, star, and a’ that;
The man of independent mind,
He looks and laughs at a’ that.
A marquis, duke, and a’ that;
But an honest man’s aboon his might,
Guid faith he mauna fa’ that!
For a’ that, and a’ that,
Their dignities, and a’ that,
The pith o’ sense, and pride o’ worth,
Are higher ranks than a’ that.
As come it will for a’ that,
That sense and worth, o’er a’ the earth,
May bear the gree, and a’ that,
For a’ that, and a’ that,
It’s coming yet for a’ that.
When man to man, the warld o’er,
Shall brothers be for a’ that.