Wallace Thurman, "God's Edict" (1926)
Let the wind-rolled waves tell the tale of the sea,
And the talkative pines tell the tale of the tree;
Let the motored purr of an automobile
Tell the hum-drum tale of power and steel.
Let the blithesome chirp tell the tale of the bird,
And sad, low sounds tell the tale of the herd;
Then enthrone man on the dunce's stool
And let his tale be the tale of a fool.
Published in The Crisis, July 1926