He went through a company like a lamplighter –

see the dull minds, one after another,

begin to glow, to shed

a beneficent light.

He went through a company like

a knifegrinder – see the dull minds

scattering sparks of themselves,

becoming razory, becoming useful.

But the man’s life is now over. 

 of the multitudinous company of the dead

where there are no individuals.

The beneficent lights dim

but don’t vanish. The razory edges

dull, but still cut. He’s gone: but you can see

his tracks still, in the snow of the world.