1. Then if he is inclined to either extreme
He paws the ground, digging like one searching a pit

2. Skittish when his bridle slips off,
Shying from whatever won’t stand still.

3. We have tried him out on difficult terrain
And on flat, easy ground.

4. When we startle him some day nearby,
He is lively as a sparkling firebrand.

5. When we fence in his ample body
And control him, consequence and effect follow.

6. He compounds tension on tension as
A pouring rain compounds a deluge.

7. The fox’s character is to sneak in his running,
And the squirrel, when you startle it, scurries furtively.

8. When you alarm a young hare, it can barely
Be stopped except by force.

9. And it is as if, whenever we ride him out,
We seek game with an unmanageable goshawk

10. Or a fierce, darting falcon
Which the bowman has provoked to fury.

11. He has a will of his own; then when you subdue him
He is gentle, sweet-tempered, and easy going

12. Among racers that vie with him—
Crooked, big-jointed mares with thick ankles.

13. And many a dark-lipped she-camel,
Fleet, of unmixed stock, had sported with me,

14. Which racers train, then when they are worn out,
Are sold off to pay the debt of anxiety.

15. A camel that miscarries or aborts
From which no baby camel is weaned.

16. She is wary of the earth and the pebbles’ sorrows
With a glossy, unmarked sole.