As by the dead we love to sit, 1
Become so wondrous dear－
As for the lost we grapple
Tho' all the rest are here－
In broken mathematics 5
We estimate our prize
Vast－in its fading ration
To our penurious eyes!
Become so wondrous dear－
As for the lost we grapple
Tho' all the rest are here－
In broken mathematics 5
We estimate our prize
Vast－in its fading ration
To our penurious eyes!
(F.78/J.88)
[1] dead:: deadhead, one who enters a theater without ticket. by the dead:: by the deadhead way.
[2] Become, dear:: they behaved themselves in this way.
[3] grapple:: to struggle, when being chased by an inspector.
[4] all the rest, here:: they all escaped.
[6] prize:: the reward of this adventure.
[7] fading ration:: they saw little of the show and almost forgot the content.
[8] penurious:: a hint on not buying tickets.
[7, 8] Vast, penurious:: still great though they didn't see much.
DEADHEAD.－Freely translated, this means a person who lives on community; but as applied to the press, signifies those who pay nothing for their amusements, and who ride over railroads free. ─ Young America, Volume I (1856)
This conspiracy happened to be defeated by the single fact (succeeded by a little management) that the sheriff sought to pass me at the door of the theatre as "a deadhead." ─ The Life of P. T. Barnum (1855)