Even as Man fashions his Rules
do these decay to dust
& he must again renew his Trust
upon himself & tools
And good it is--Because Man's roads
continuously run
& only pause to set up Codes
and Canons of oblivion. 15
^{15} Were it not for our deaths (the dying of the individuals) there could not be life (the life of the species); births would be pointless and unnecessary. [line 10] rejected "continuously" because the road itself continues (rather than being continuous from here to there).
In the middle and final stanzas the notion is proposed that human achievement stems from a direct reaction (of) its own passing nature. A being with an infinite life span would have an eternal deadline and would postpone "turning in his work" infinitely --in fact, he would be forced to postpone it infinitely or he'd find himself with nothing (more) to do for the rest of eternity! [sic.]@