The True Man

This is the sort of a man was he:

True when it hurt him a lot to be;

Tight in a corner an’ knowin’ a lie

Would have helped him out, but he would n't buy

His freedom there in so cheap a way —

He told the truth though he had to pay.

Honest! Not in the easy sense,

When he need n't worry about expense —

We'll all play square when it does n't count

And the sum at stake's not a large amount —

But he was square when the times were bad,

An’ keepin’ his word took all he had.

Honor is something we all profess,

But most of us cheat — some more, some less —

An’ the real test is n't the way we do

When there is n't a pinch in either shoe;

It's whether we're true to our best or not

When the right thing's certain to hurt a lot.

That is the sort of a man was he:

Straight when it hurt him a lot to be;

Times when a lie would have paid him well,

No matter the cost, the truth he'd tell;

An’ he'd rather go down to a drab defeat

Than save himself if he had to cheat.