THE SHEPHERD
Reading edition
The tired shepherd stands among his ewes That with their lambs are unafraid Of him and keen-eyed dogs; They crouch close in about his feet Whene’er the coyote’s cry Or bear’s low growl Falls tingling on the timid ear. Himself thrusts gun to elbow-place And peers amid the dust-dressed sage And scented chaparral so dense, To glimpse the fiery eyeballs Of the prowler of the hills; While all awatch the faithful collies stand Prepared to fend e’en with their lives The young and helpless not their own.