Public-domain source text

The Tables Turned

by Ambrose Bierce

From Standard Ebooks · standardebooks/ambrose-bierce_poetry

Over the man the street car ran, And the driver did never grin. “O killer of men, pray tell me when Your laughter means to begin.
“Ten years to a day I’ve observed you slay, And I never have missed before Your jubilant peals as your crunching wheels Were spattered with human gore.
“Why is it, my boy, that you smother your joy, And why do you make no sign Of the merry mind that is dancing behind A solemner face than mine?”
The driver replied: “I would laugh till I cried If I had bisected you; But I’d like to explain, if I can for the pain, ’Tis myself that I’ve cut in two.”

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This is a source transcription from Standard Ebooks, published in Past Poetry’s public-domain archive without line-by-line editorial notes. Public-domain source edition. Availability can vary by territory.

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