Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, BUSINESS GIRLS, by JOHN BETJEMAN


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

BUSINESS GIRLS, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: From the geyser ventilators
Last Line: Trolley-bus and windy street!
Subject(s): Commuters; Railroad Stations; Travel; Journeys; Trips


From the geyser ventilators
Autumn winds are blowing down
On a thousand business women
Having baths in Camden Town.

Waste pipes chuckle into runnels,
Steam's escaping here and there,
Morning trains through Camden cutting
Shake the Crescent and the Square.

Early nip of changeful autumn,
Dahlias glimpsed through garden doors,
At the back precarious bathrooms
Jutting out from upper floors,

And behind their frail partitions
Business women lie and soak,
Seeing through the draughty skylight
Flying clouds and railway smoke.

Rest you there, poor unbelov'd ones,
Lap your loneliness in heat.
All too soon the tiny breakfast,
Trolley-bus and windy street!





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net