Arthur Guiterman (1871-1943)
The Traveler
1Oh, who would choose to be a traveler? --
2That anxious railway-guide unraveler
3Who spends his nights in berths and bunks,
4His days in chaperoning trunks;
5Who stands in line at gates and wickets
6To spend his means on costly tickets
7To Irkutsk, Liverpool and Yap
8And other dots upon the map.
9He never rests, but always hurries
10From place to place, beset with worries
11About hotels and future trips
12And just how much to give in tips.
13He plods through galleries, museums,
14Cathedrals, castles, colosseums,
15And villages reputed quaint
16With patience worthy of a saint
17To give his friends the chance of hooting,
18"You didn't visit Little Tooting?!!"
Notes
7] Irkutsk, Liverpool and Yap: cities in Siberia, western England, and Micronesia.
18] Little Tooting: Tooting belongs to Greater London, UK.
Online text copyright © 2009, Ian Lancashire (the Department of English) and the University of Toronto.
Published by the Web Development Group, Information Technology Services, University of Toronto Libraries.
Original text:
Publication date note: Guiterman, Arthur, The Light Guitar (New York and London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1923): 95.
RPO poem editor: Ian Lancashire
RP edition:
Recent editing: 1:2004/6/21
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