I bargained with Life for a penny, And Life would pay no more, However I begged at evening When I counted my scanty store; For Life is just an employer, He gives you what you ask, But once you have set the wages, Why, you must bear the task. I worked for a menial's hire, Only to learn, dismayed, That any wage I had asked of Life, Life would have paid. Jessie B. Rittenhouse
About This Quote

The story in the poem was inspired by the author's own experiences. The author had been a slave as a young boy and had escaped to freedom as a grown man. Yet, as he grew older he found his life’s work was still tied to slavery. He realized that even though he had been free all those years, he was still trapped under the same thumb of slavery working for menial wages and that no matter how hard he worked, it would never be enough to repay the debt that he owed to Life.

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More Quotes By Jessie B. Rittenhouse
  1. I bargained with Life for a penny, And Life would pay no more, However I begged at evening When I counted my scanty store; For Life is just an employer, He gives you what you ask, But once you have set the wages, Why, you...
  2. I worked for a menial’s hire, Only to learn, dismayed, That any wage I had asked of Life, Life would have willingly paid.
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