he saw them everywhere they drove 
these sentinels in silent watch 
and wondered how they worked, and why 
he never saw the scaling 

that must betimes be necessary 
given ladders and the rails 
that indicated close-up life 
must sometimes be in order 

with lights that flashed at nighttime, and 
bright patterns to bedeck the day, 
these must be visible from high 
as equally as low, 

and how he longed to climb one, just 
to see the way the whole thing worked; 
for these must the pinnacles 
of every town and country