Had I Not This, Or This, I Said

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Had I not This, or This, I said,
Appealing to Myself,
In moment of prosperity-
Inadequate-were Life-

“Thou hast not Me, nor Me”-it said,
In Moment of Reverse-
“And yet Thou art industrious-
No need-hadst Thou-of us”?

My need-was all I had-I said-
The need did not reduce-
Because the food-exterminate-
The hunger-does not cease-

But diligence-is sharper-
Proportioned to the Chance-
To feed upon the Retrograde-
Enfeebles-the Advance-