下面是两首著名的小诗。桑德堡的短诗《雾》曾在各种媒体上广为传播，是美国家喻户晓的名作。而在米莱创作的许多优美的抒情诗中，被引用最频繁的是《第一颗无花果》。
Fog 　
The fog comes 　
on little cat feet. 　
It sits looking 　
over harbor and city 　
on silent haunches 　
and then moves on. 　
——　 Carl Sandburg 　

　　
First Fig 　
My candle burns at both ends,　
It will not last the night, 　
But ah my foes and oh my friends 　
It gives a lovely light.　
——　 Edna St. Vincent Millay 　　

[注释]：
harbor: a sheltered part of a body of water deep enough to provide anchorage for ships 海港　
haunch: the hip, buttock, and upper thigh in human beings and animals 腰　
fig: any of several trees or shrubs of the genus Ficus, especially F. carica, native to the
Mediterranean region and widely cultivated for its edible multiple fruit 无花果　
candle: readily bent; pliant 柔软的