The Men of the Open Spaces

These are the men with the sun-tanned faces
and the keen far-sighted eyes-
the men of the open spaces,
and the land where the mirage lies.

The men who have learnt to master
the forces of fire and drought
and the demon Flood's disaster
in the fields of furthest out.

The men who have stood together
and shared in the fight with fate
and known the strength of the tether
that holds a mate to his mate.

Who ride with a gallant bearing
where every saddle's a throne,
and each is an emperor sharing
an empire enough for his own.

They are strangers to airs and graces,
and scornful of power and pride-
the Men of the Open Spaces,
who rule the world when they ride.