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LIFE.
Ever, the undiscouraged, resolute struggling
soul of man;
Have former armies failed? Then we send fresh
armies—and fresh again
Ever the grappled mystery of all earth's ages
old or new;
Ever the eager eyes, hurrahs, the welcome-clap-
ping hands, the loud applause;
Ever the soul dissatisfied, curious, unconvinced
at last;
Struggling to-day the same—battling the same.
WALT WHITMAN.
Notes
1. Reprinted in the "Sands at Seventy" annex to Leaves of Grass (1888). [back]
2. The "Sands at Seventy" version of the poem includes parentheses around the second line. [back]