I bargained with Life for a penny,

and Life would pay no more,

However I begged at evening

When I counted my scanty store;

Life is a just employer.

He gives you what you ask,

But once you have set the wages,

Why, you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial’s hire,

Only to learn, dismayed,

That any wage I had asked of Life,

Life would have willingly paid.