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by Louis Untermeyer (1885 - 1977)

Caliban in the Coal Mines
Language: English 
God, we don't like to complain;
We know that the mine is no lark.
But-there's the pools from the rain;
But-there's the cold and the dark.

God, You don't know what it is-
You, in Your well-lighted sky-
Watching the meteors whizz;
Warm, with a sun always by.

God, if You had but the moon
Stuck in Your cap for a lamp,
Even You'd tire of it soon,
Down in the dark and the damp.

Nothing but blackness above
And nothing that moves but the cars ...
God, if You wish for our love,
Fling us a handful of stars! 

Text Authorship:

  • by Louis Untermeyer (1885 - 1977), "Caliban in the Coal Mines", appears in Challenge, first published 1914 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

  • by Lewis Raymond (1908 - 1966), "Caliban in the Coal Mines", published 1936. [medium voice and piano] [
     text not verified 
    ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2008-06-05
Line count: 16
Word count: 99

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