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SLAVE OF SONG, by                    
First Line: Any little lad will say
Last Line: "sour, salt, or sweet."
Subject(s): Singing & Singers; Tongues


Any little lad will say,
If you ask him fair and square,
"A tongue's but to taste with,
Or stick out -- if you dare."

Savage voices flinging far
One wild high note;
And a dumb slave tearing
His impotent throat.

Rich wine and sandalwood,
Incense and musk,
And a black girl singing
In the purple dusk;

And a tongueless minstrel
With a gaping mouth;
Crying like a leopard,
Staring fiercely south.

Any little child will tell you;
Ask the first one that you meet,
"Tongue's the thing that says to me,
Sour, salt, or sweet."





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