I. AGAIN I hear that creaking step! -- He's rapping at the door! -- Too well I know the boding sound That ushers in a bore. I do not tremble when I meet The stoutest of my foes, But Heaven defend me from the friend Who comes -- but never goes! II. He drops into my easy-chair, And asks about the news; He peers into my manuscript, And gives his candid views; He tells me where he likes the line, And where he's forced to grieve; He takes the strangest liberties, -- But never takes his leave! III. He reads my daily paper through Before I've seen a word; He scans the lyric (that I wrote) And thinks it quite absurd; He calmly smokes my last cigar, And coolly asks for more; He opens everything he sees -- Except the entry door! IV. He talks about his fragile health, And tells me of the pains He suffers from a score of ills Of which he ne'er complains; And how he struggled once with death To keep the fiend at bay; On themes like those away he goes, -- But never goes away! V. He tells me of the carping words Some shallow critic wrote; And every precious paragraph Familiarly can quote; He thinks the writer did me wrong; He'd like to run him through! He says a thousand pleasant things, -- But never says, "Adieu!" VI. Whene'er he comes, -- that dreadful man, -- Disguise it as I may, I know that, like an Autumn rain, He'll last throughout the day. In vain I speak of urgent tasks; In vain I scowl and pout; A frown is no extinguisher, -- It does not put him out! VII. I mean to take the knocker off, Put crape upon the door, Or hint to John that I am gone To stay a month or more. I do not remble when I meet The stoutest of my foes, But Heaven defend me from the friend Who never, never goes! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...QUIET WORK; SONNET by MATTHEW ARNOLD THE COTTER'S SATURDAY NIGHT by ROBERT BURNS THE PINES AND THE SEA by CHRISTOPHER PEARSE CRANCH THE MEETING OF THE WATERS by THOMAS MOORE THE COLLEGE, 1917 by HAMILTON FISH ARMSTRONG DESERT BRIDE by MARY MILLER BEARD |