A Song for Wall Street
In Nicaragua, my Nicaragua,
What can you buy for a penny there?—
A basketful of apricots,
A water jug of earthenware,
A rosary of coral beads
And a priest’s prayer.
And for two pennies? For two new pennies?—
The strangest music ever heard
All from the brittle little throat
Of a clay bird,
And, for good measure, we will give you
A patriot’s word.
And for a nickel? A bright white nickel?—
It’s lots of land a man can buy,
A golden mine that’s long and deep,
A forest growing high,
And a little house with a red roof
And a river passing by.
But for your dollar, your dirty dollar,
Your greenish leprosy,
It’s only hatred you shall get
From all my folks and me;
So keep your dollar where it belongs
And let us be!
Salomón de la Selva, “A Song for Wall Street”: Tropical Town and Other Poems (New York: John Lane, 1918). This poem is in the public domain.