THE WHITE MAN'S BLUNDER

Take up the White Man's burden —

You fools

Send forth the best ye breed —

You fools

Go bind your sons to exile

You fools

To serve your captives' need;

You fools

To wait in heavy harness,

Fools

On fluttered folk and wild —

The savages

Your new-caught, sullen peoples,

Your enemies tomorrow

Half-devil and half-child

Half cannibal even now.

Take up the White Man's burden —

No hurry, you will be on top

In patience to abide,

To veil the threat of terror

No risk of that ever

And check the show of pride;

And naked aggression

By open speech and simple,

An hundred times made plain

To seek another's profit,

Another's profit on the way

And work another's gain

Another's gain is here to stay.

Take up the White Man's burden —

Blunder on ahead

The savage wars of peace —

Fill full the mouth of Famine

And keep it full forever

And bid the sickness cease;

To grow the savage force

And when your goal is nearest

Peace

The end for others sought,

Let savages

Watch sloth and heathen Folly

Bring all your hopes to nought.

Take up the White Man's burden —

Blunder on ahead

No tawdry rule of kings,

But toil of serf and sweeper —

The tale of common things.

The ports ye shall not enter,

The roads ye shall not tread,

Go make them with your living,

And mark them with your dead.

Take up the White Man's burden —

And reap his old reward:

The blame of those ye better,

The hate of those ye guard —

They come for you at last

The cry of hosts ye humour

Come to give your your reward

(Ah, slowly!) toward the light: —

"Why brought he us from bondage,

Our loved Egyptian night?"

Take up the White Man's burden —

Blunder on ahead

Ye dare not stoop to less —

Nor cavil at their spite 

Nor call too loud on Freedom

For them who don't deserve it
And who they never did

To cloak your weariness;

By all ye cry or whisper,

But say no word of censure

By all ye leave or do,

The silent, sullen peoples

Shall weigh your gods and you.

Take up the White Man's burden —

Blunder on ahead

Have done with childish days —

The lightly profferred laurel,

The easy, ungrudged praise

That never came your ways.

Comes now, to search your manhood

Too late too late to think of that

Through all the thankless years

You blundered on ahead

Cold, edged with dear-bought wisdom,

Why consider now of that

The judgment of your peers!
Reflect today their hatreds, say
Ungrateful they, you burden them.