Out from the mine and the
darkness,
Out from the damp and the mold,
Out from the fiery furnace,
Cometh each grain of gold.
Crushed into atoms and leveled
Down to the humblest dust
With never a heart to pity,
With never a hand to trust.
Molten
and hammered and beaten
Seemeth it ne'er to be done.
Oh, for such fiery trial,
What hath the poor gold done?
Oh, 'twere a
mercy to leave it
Down in the damp and the mold.
If this is the glory of living,
Then better to be dross than gold.
Under
the press and the roller,
Into the jaws of the mint,
Stamped with the emblem of
freedom,
With never a flaw or a dint.
Oh, what a joy, the refining,
Out of the damp and the mold.
And stamped with the glorious image,
Oh beautiful coin of gold!
~ Author Unknown
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