He hears a roar behind,
    A howl, a hoot, and a yell,
A headlight strikes him blind
And a stench o’erpowers the wind
    Like a blast from the mouth of Hell.

He mends his swingle-bar,
    And loud his curses ring;
But a mother watching afar
Hears the hum of the doctor’s car
    Like the beat of an angel’s wing!

So, to the poet’s mood,
    Motor or carrier’s van,
Properly understood,
Are neither evil nor good—
    Ormuzd not Ahriman!