The men who camp with Danger
Are mostly quiet men
And one may use a rifle
And one may use a pen
And one may strap a camera
In deserts to his bike
But men who sleep with Danger
Are pretty much alike
To men in places pleasant
Or in the barren West
There's Danger ever present
A half unheeded guest
But , thoughtful for the stranger
The timid or the weak
The men who camp with Danger
Keep watch but do not speak
The men who go with Danger
Are mostly dreamy-eyed
Upon the swooping fo'c'sle
Or by the camp-fire side
And when they sit in darkness
To show us where they are
The glowing of a pipe-bowl
And often a cigar
The men who camp with Danger
Have quiet humour too
And songs that you've forgotten
And real good yarns for you
There's little you can tell them
Of yourself or your own
That men who've lived with Danger
Have never felt or known
The men who sleep with Danger
Sleep soundly while they may
But always wake at midnight
Or just before the day
A something in the darkness
That shudders at the dawn
A side-mate softly wakened
A rifle swiftly drawn
The men who sail with Danger
As actors are ideal
They lightly laugh to fool you
When Danger's very real
The men who sail with Danger
A wondrous insight have
They know if you are timid
They know if you are brave
The stewards set the tables
With careless, practised care
And take accustomed comforts
To sea-sick cabins there
They knock at doors of state-rooms
With broth and tea and toast
While well they know, it's touch and go
And d**h sits on the coast
The man who lives with Danger
Has knowledge all his own
The instinct of a woman
Of men who fight alone
He learns from peace and comfort
He learns from care and strife
Unwittingly from all things
And from his native wife
The men who live with Danger
See sermons in a log
They have the nerves of horses
The instincts of a dog
When illness comes to loved ones
They know where'er they roam
Have you seen, without for reason
A farther start for home?
They know and feel our "warnings"
As only Gipsies do
They know the Norse Vardoger
They hear and see it, too
They know when d**h has pa**ed them
And the d**h watch is at end
They know when he is coming
The Unexpected Friend
The men who live with Danger
They take things as they go
In seeming unpreparedness
To those who do not know
They sleep when they have toiled and laughed
And fought for someone's sake
But Danger whispers in their ear
And they are wide awake!