Riley Child Rhymes
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[Illustration: A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells
abou--Frontispiece]
RILEY
CHILD-RHYMES
James Whitcomb Riley
WITH HOOSIER PICTURES BY
Will Vawter
Copyright 1890, 1896, 1898 and 1905
WITH HALE AFFECTION AND ABIDING FAITH
THESE RHYMES AND PICTURES
ARE INSCRIBED
TO THE CHILDREN EVERYWHERE
_He owns the bird-songs of the hills--
The laughter of the April rills;
And his are all the diamonds set
In Morning's dewy coronet,--
And his the Dusk's first minted stars
That twinkle through the pasture-bars
And litter all the skies at night
With glittering scraps of silver light;--
The rainbow's bar, from rim to rim,
In beaten gold, belongs to him._
CONTENTS
[Note from the transcriber: The Table of Contents below was taken from
the book and is an alphabetical list of the poems. A second Table of
Contents, listing the poems in the order they occur in this book, has
been provided by the transcriber.]
AT AUNTY'S HOUSE
BEAR STORY, THE
BOY LIVES ON OUR FARM, THE
BOYS' CANDIDATE, THE
BUMBLEBEE, THE
CIRCUS-DAY PARADE, THE
CURLY LOCKS
DAYS GONE BY, THE
DOWN AROUND THE RIVER
ENVOY
FUNNY LITTLE FELLOW, THE
GRANDFATHER SQUEERS
HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE, THE
HOME-MADE FAIRY-TALE, A
IMPETUOUS RESOLVE, AN
JOLLY MILLER, THE
LIFE-LESSON, A
LITTLE COAT, THE
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
LUGUBRIOUS WHING-WHANG, THE
NAUGHTY CLAUDE
NINE LITTLE GOBLINS, THE
OLD AUNT MARY'S
OLD HAY-MOW, THE
OLD TRAMP, THE
ON THE SUNNY SIDE
OUR HIRED GIRL
PET COON, THE
PIXY PEOPLE, THE
RAGGEDY MAN, THE
RIDER OF THE KNEE, THE
RUNAWAY BOY, THE
SOUTH WIND AND THE SUN, THE
SQUIRTGUN UNCLE MAKED ME, THE
SUDDEN SHOWER, A
TIME OF CLEARER TWITTERINGS
WAITIN' FER THE CAT TO DIE
WHO SANTY-CLAUS WUZ
WINTER FANCIES
Contents (Listed in the Order They Appear)
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
THE RAGGEDY MAN
CURLY LOCKS
THE FUNNY LITTLE FELLOW
THE HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE
THE RIDER OF THE KNEE
DOWN AROUND THE RIVER
AT AUNTY'S HOUSE
THE DAYS GONE BY
THE BUMBLEBEE
THE BOY LIVES ON OUR FARM
THE SQUIRTGUN UNCLE MAKED ME
THE OLD TRAMP
OLD AUNT MARY'S
WINTER FANCIES
THE RUNAWAY BOY
THE LITTLE COAT
AN IMPETUOUS RESOLVE
WHO SANTY-CLAUS WUZ
THE NINE LITTLE GOBLINS
TIME OF CLEARER TWITTERINGS
THE CIRCUS-DAY PARADE
THE LUGUBRIOUS WHING-WHANG
WAITIN' FER THE CAT TO DIE
NAUGHTY CLAUDE
THE SOUTH WIND AND THE SUN
THE JOLLY MILLER
OUR HIRED GIRL
THE BOYS' CANDIDATE
THE PET COON
THE OLD HAY-MOW
ON THE SUNNY SIDE
A SUDDEN SHOWER
GRANDFATHER SQUEERS
THE PIXY PEOPLE
A LIFE-LESSON
A HOME-MADE FAIRY-TALE
THE BEAR STORY
ENVOY
ILLUSTRATIONS
WITCH-TALES
THEY WAS TWO GREAT BIG BLACK THINGS A-STANDIN' BY HER SIDE
AN' WHEN THEY TURN'T THE KIVVERS DOWN
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE--TAILPIECE
THE RAGGEDY MAN--TITLE
HE SHOWED ME THE HOLE 'AT THE WUNKS IS GOT
CURLY LOCKS--TITLE
SIT ON A CUSHION AND SEW A FINE SEAM
THE FUNNY LITTLE FELLOW--TITLE
NEVER KNEW A BABY THAT WOULDN'T CROW FOR HIM
THE HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE--TITLE
AN' I PECK ON THE WINDER
AN' COOKS A' EGG FER ME
THE HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE--TAILPIECE
THE RIDER OF THE KNEE
DOWN AROUND THE RIVER--TITLE
NOON-TIME AND JUNE-TIME DOWN AROUND THE RIVER
DOWN AROUND THE RIVER--TAILPIECE
AT AUNTY'S HOUSE--TITLE
WE ET OUT ON THE PORCH
THE DAYS GONE BY--TITLE
IN THE ORCHARD
THE BUMBLEBEE
THE BOY LIVES ON OUR FARM--TITLE
STAND UP LIKE HIM AN' DRIVE
THE SQUIRTGUN UNCLE MAKED ME--TITLE
THE SQUIRTGUN--TAILPIECE
AN' NEN HE PEELED OFF THE BARK
THE OLD TRAMP
WE PATTER ALONG IN THE DUST AGAIN
OLD AUNT MARY'S--TAILPIECE
WINTER FANCIES--TITLE
WINTER WITHOUT AND WARMTH WITHIN
HERE IN MY ROOM I'M AS SNUGLY SHUT
AN' A GREA'-BIG PIG WENT "BOOH!"
HUG WITE CLOSE ROUND HER NECK
THE LITTLE COAT
THE LITTLE COAT--TAILPIECE
AN IMPETUOUS RESOLVE--TITLE
I'M GO' TO BE A BAKER
A-SLINGIN' PIE-CRUST 'LONG THE ROAD
WHO SANTY-CLAUS WUZ--TITLE
AN' QUAR'L WITH HIS FROSTED HEELS
WHO SANTY-CLAUS WUZ--TAILPIECE
THE NINE LITTLE GOBLINS
THE NINE LITTLE GOBLINS--TAILPIECE
TIME OF CLEARER TWITTERINGS--TITLE
WHERE THE SHELLBARK HICKORY TREE
THE CIRCUS-DAY PARADE
HOW THE CAGES JOLTED PAST
AND, LAST OF ALL, THE CLOWN
THE LUGUBRIOUS WHING-WHANG--TITLE
WAITIN' FER THE CAT TO DIE--TITLE
BAREFOOTED, HUNGRY, LEAN, ORNRY BOYS
WHY YOU ROCK SO SLOW?
NAUGHTY CLAUDE
THE SOUTH WIND AND THE SUN--TITLE
THIS PAIR OF MERRY FAYS
THE JOLLY MILLER--TITLE
THAT CAT O' YOURN I'D KILL HER
WUZ PARCHIN' CORN FER THE RAGGEDY MAN
THE BOYS' CANDIDATE
THE PET COON--TITLE
AN' NEN WHEN BILLY FIGHTED ME
THE OLD HAY-MOW--TITLE
IN OUR HAY-MOW WHERE I KEEP STORE
ON THE SUNNY SIDE--TITLE
AS A ROMPING BOY
A SUDDEN SHOWER--TITLE
SCHOOLGIRL FACES ... GLEAM FROM THE SHAWLS ABOUT THEIR HEADS
A SUDDEN SHOWER--TAILPIECE
GRANDFATHER SQUEERS--TITLE
AND SMOKE LEAF-TOBACCO
GRANDFATHER SQUEERS--TAILPIECE
THE PIXY PEOPLE--TITLE
WINGED ABOVE THE WALK
A LIFE-LESSON--TITLE
BUT HEAVEN HOLDS ALL FOR WHICH YOU SIGH
A HOME-MADE FAIRY-TALE--TITLE
A LITTLE DUDE-FAIRY
ENVOY
RILEY CHILD-RHYMES
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
[Illustration: They was two great big black things a-standin' by her side]
Little Orphant Annie's come to our house to stay,
An' wash the cups an' saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,
An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,
An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;
An' all us other childern, when the supper things is done,
We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun
A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells about,
An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
Onc't they was a little boy wouldn't say his prayers,--
So when he went to bed at night, away up stairs,
His Mammy heerd him holler, an' his Daddy heerd him bawl,
An' when they turn't the kivvers down, he wasn't there at all!
An' they seeked him in the rafter-room, an' cubby-hole, an' press,
An' seeked him up the chimbly-flue, an' ever'wheres, I guess;
But all they ever found was thist his pants an' roundabout:--
An' the Gobble-uns'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
[Illustration: An' when they turn't the kivvers down]
An' one time a little girl 'ud allus laugh an' grin,
An' make fun of ever'one, an' all her blood an' kin;
An' onc't, when they was "company," an' ole folks was there,
She mocked 'em an' shocked 'em, an' said she didn't care!
An' thist as she kicked her heels, an' turn't to run an' hide,
They was two great big Black Things a-standin' by her side,
An' they snatched her through the ceilin' 'fore she knowed what she's about!
An' the Gobble-uns'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
An' little Orphant Annie says when the blaze is blue,
An' the lamp-wick sputters, an' the wind goes _woo-oo!_
An' you hear the crickets quit, an' the moon is gray,
An' the lightnin'-bugs in dew is all squenched away,--
You better mind yer parents, an' yer teachers fond an' dear,
An' churish them 'at loves you, an' dry the orphant's tear,
An' he'p the pore an' needy ones 'at clusters all about,
Er the Gobble-uns'll git you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!
[Illustration: Little Orphant Annie--Tailpiece]
THE RAGGEDY MAN
[Illustration: The Raggedy Man--Title]
O The Raggedy Man! He works fer Pa;
An' he's the goodest man ever you saw!
He comes to our house every day,
An' waters the horses, an' feeds 'em hay;
An' he opens the shed--an' we all ist laugh
When he drives out our little old wobble-ly calf;
An' nen--ef our hired girl says he can--
He milks the cow fer 'Lizabuth Ann.--
Aint he a' awful good Raggedy Man?
Raggedy! Raggedy! Raggedy Man!
W'y, The Raggedy Man--he's ist so good
He splits the kindlin' an' chops the wood;
An' nen he spades in our garden, too,
An' does most things 'at _boys_ can't do!--
He clumbed clean up in our big tree
An' shooked a' apple down fer me--
An' nother'n', too, fer 'Lizabuth Ann--
An' nother'n', too, fer The Raggedy Man.--
Aint he a' awful kind Raggedy Man?
Raggedy! Raggedy! Raggedy Man!
[Illustration: He showed me the hole 'at the Wunks is got]
An' The Raggedy Man, he knows most rhymes
An' tells 'em, ef I be good, sometimes:
Knows 'bout Giunts, an' Griffuns, an' Elves,
An' the Squidgicum-Squees 'at swallers therselves!
An', wite by the pump in our pasture-lot,
He showed me the hole 'at the Wunks is got,
'At lives 'way deep in the ground, an' can
Turn into me, er 'Lizabuth Ann!
Aint he a funny old Raggedy Man?
Raggedy! Raggedy! Raggedy Man!
The Raggedy Man--one time when he
Wuz makin' a little bow-'n'-orry fer me,
Says "When _you're_ big like your Pa is,
Air you go' to keep a fine store like his--
An' be a rich merchunt--an' wear fine clothes?--
Er what _air_ you go' to be, goodness knows!"
An' nen he laughed at 'Lizabuth Ann,
An' I says "'M go' to be a Raggedy Man!--
I'm ist go' to be a nice Raggedy Man!"
Raggedy! Raggedy! Raggedy Man!
CURLY LOCKS
[Illustration: Curly Locks--Title]
_Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash the dishes, nor yet feed the swine,--
But sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam,
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream._
Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
The throb of my heart is in every line,
And the pulse of a passion as airy and glad
In its musical beat as the little Prince had!
[Illustration: Sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam]
Thou shalt not wash the dishes, nor yet feed the swine!--
O I'll dapple thy hands with these kisses of mine
Till the pink of the nail of each finger shall be
As a little pet blush in full blossom for me.
But sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam,
And thou shalt have fabric as fair as a dream,--
The red of my veins, and the white of my love,
And the gold of my joy for the braiding thereof.
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream
From a service of silver, with jewels agleam,--
At thy feet will I bide, at thy beck will I rise,
And twinkle my soul in the night of thine eyes!
_Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash the dishes, nor yet feed the swine.--
But sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam,
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream._
THE FUNNY LITTLE FELLOW
[Illustration: The Funny Little Fellow--Title]
'Twas a Funny Little Fellow
Of the very purest type,
For he had a heart as mellow
As an apple over-ripe;
And the brightest little twinkle
When a funny thing occurred,
And the lightest little tinkle
Of a laugh you ever heard!
His smile was like the glitter
Of the sun in tropic lands,
And his talk a sweeter twitter
Than the swallow understands;
Hear him sing--and tell a story--
Snap a joke--ignite a pun,--
'Twas a capture--rapture--glory,
And explosion--all in one!
Though he hadn't any money--
That condiment which tends
To make a fellow "honey"
For the palate of his friends;--
Sweet simples he compounded--
Sovereign antidotes for sin
Or taint,--a faith unbounded
That his friends were genuine.
He wasn't honored, may be--
For his songs of praise were slim,--
Yet I never knew a baby
That wouldn't crow for him;
I never knew a mother
But urged a kindly claim
Upon him as a brother,
At the mention of his name.
[Illustration: Never knew a baby that wouldn't crow for him]
The sick have ceased their sighing
And have even found the grace
Of a smile when they were dying
As they looked upon his face;
And I've seen his eyes of laughter
Melt in tears that only ran
As though, swift dancing after,
Came the Funny Little Man.
He laughed away the sorrow,
And he laughed away the gloom
We are all so prone to borrow
From the darkness of the tomb;
And he laughed across the ocean
Of a happy life, and passed,
With a laugh of glad emotion,
Into Paradise at last.
And I think the Angels knew him,
And had gathered to await
His coming, and run to him
Through the widely-opened Gate--
With their faces gleaming sunny
For his laughter-loving sake,
And thinking, "What a funny
Little Angel he will make!"
THE HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE
[Illustration: The Happy Little Cripple--Title]
I'm thist a little cripple boy, an' never goin' to grow
An' get a great big man at all!--'cause Aunty told me so.
When I was thist a baby onc't, I falled out of the bed
An' got "The Curv'ture of the Spine"--'at's what the Doctor said.
I never had no Mother nen--fer my Pa runned away
An' dassn't come back here no more--'cause he was drunk one day
An' stobbed a man in thish-ere town, an' couldn't pay his fine!
An' nen my Ma she died--an' I got "Curv'ture of the Spine!"
[Illustration: An' I peck on the winder]
I'm nine years old! An' you can't guess how much I weigh, I bet!--
Last birthday I weighed thirty-three!--An' I weigh thirty yet!
I'm awful little fer my size--I'm purt' nigh littler 'nan
Some babies is!--an' neighbers all calls me "The Little Man!"
An' Doc one time he laughed an' said: "I 'spect, first thing you know,
You'll have a little spike-tail coat an' travel with a show!"
An' nen I laughed--till I looked round an' Aunty was a-cryin'--
Sometimes she acts like that, 'cause I got "Curv'ture of the Spine."
I set--while Aunty's washin'--on my little long-leg stool,
An' watch the little boys an' girls a-skippin' by to school;
An' I peck on the winder, an' holler out an' say:
"Who wants to fight The Little Man 'at dares you all today?"
An', nen the boys climbs on the fence, an' little girls peeks through,
An' they all says: "Cause you're so big, you think we're 'feared o' you!"
An' nen they yell, an' shake their fist at me, like I shake mine--
They're thist in fun, you know, 'cause I got "Curv'ture of the Spine!"
At evening, when the ironin's done, an' Aunty's fixed the fire,
An' filled an' lit the lamp, an' trimmed the wick an' turned it higher,
An' fetched the wood all in fer night, an' locked the kitchen door,
An' stuffed the ole crack where the wind blows in up through the floor--
She sets the kittle on the coals, an' biles an' makes the tea,
An' fries the liver an' the mush, an' cooks a egg fer me;
An' sometimes--when I cough so hard--her elderberry wine
Don't go so bad fer little boys with "Curv'ture of the Spine!"
[Illustration: An' cooks a' egg fer me]
But Aunty's all so childish-like on my account, you see,
I'm 'most afeard she'll be took down--an' 'at's what bothers me!--
'Cause ef my good old Aunty ever would git sick an' die,
I don't know what she'd do in heaven--till _I_ come, by an' by:--
Fer she's so ust to all my ways, an' ever'thing, you know,
An' no one there like me, to nuss an' worry over so!--
'Cause all the little childerns there's so straight an' strong an' fine,
They's nary angel 'bout the place with "Curv'ture of the Spine!"
[Illustration: The Happy Little Cripple--Tailpiece]
THE RIDER OF THE KNEE
Knightly Rider of the Knee
Of Proud-prancing Unclery!
Gaily mount, and wave the sign
Of that mastery of thine.
Pat thy steed and turn him free,
Knightly Rider of the Knee!
Sit thy charger as a throne--
Lash him with thy laugh alone:
Sting him only with the spur
Of such wit as may occur,
Knightly Rider of the Knee,
In thy shriek of ecstasy.
Would, as now, we might endure,
Twain as one--thou miniature
Ruler, at the rein of me--
Knightly Rider of the Knee!
[Illustration: The Rider of the Knee]
DOWN AROUND THE RIVER
[Illustration: Down Around the River--Title]
Noon-time an' June-time, down around the river!
Have to furse with 'Lizey Ann--but lawzy! I fergive her!
Drives me off the place, an' says 'at all 'at she's a-wishin',
Land o' gracious! time'll come I'll git enough o' fishin'!
Little Dave, a-choppin' wood, never 'pears to notice;
Don't know where she's hid his hat, er keerin' where his coat is,--
Specalatin', more'n like, he haint a-goin' to mind me,
An' guessin' where, say twelve o'clock, a feller'd likely find me!
Noon-time an' June-time, down around the river!
Clean out o' sight o' home, an' skulkin' under kivver
Of the sycamores, jack-oaks, an' swamp-ash an' ellum--
Idies all so jumbled up, you kin hardly tell 'em!--
_Tired_, you know, but _lovin'_ it, an' smilin' jes' to think 'at
Any _sweeter_ tiredness you'd fairly want to _drink_ it!
Tired o' fishin'--tired o' fun--line out slack an' slacker--
All you want in all the world's a little more tobacker!
Hungry, but _a-hidin'_ it, er jes' a-not a-keerin':--
Kingfisher gittin' up an' skootin' out o' hearin';
Snipes on the t'other side, where the County Ditch is,
Wadin' up an' down the aidge like they'd rolled their britches!
Old turkle on the root kindo-sorto drappin'
Intoo th' worter like he don't know how it happen!
Worter, shade an' all so mixed, don't know which you'd orter
Say; th' _worter_ in the shadder--_shadder_ in the _worter!_
Somebody hollerin'--'way around the bend in
Upper Fork--where yer eye kin jes' ketch the endin'
Of the shiney wedge o' wake some muss-rat's a-makin'
With that pesky nose o' his! Then a sniff o' bacon,
Corn-bred an' 'dock-greens--an' little Dave a-shinnin'
'Crost the rocks an' mussel-shells, a-limpin' an' a-grinnin',
With yer dinner fer ye, an' a blessin' from the giver,
Noon-time an' June-time down around the river!
[Illustration: Noon-time and June-time down around the river]
[Illustration: Down Around The River--Tailpiece]
AT AUNTY'S HOUSE
[Illustration: At Aunty's House--Title]
One time, when we'z at Aunty's house--
'Way in the country!--where
They's ist but woods--an' pigs, an' cows--
An' all's out-doors an' air!--
An' orchurd-swing; an' churry-trees--
An' _churries_ in 'em!--Yes, an' these--
Here red-head birds steals all they please,
An' tetch 'em ef you dare!--
W'y, wunst, one time, when we wuz there,
_We et out on the porch!_
[Illustration: We et out on the porch]
Wite where the cellar-door wuz shut
The table wuz; an' I
Let Aunty set by me an' cut
My vittuls up--an' pie.
'Tuz awful funny!--I could see
The red-heads in the churry-tree;
An' bee-hives, where you got to be
So keerful, goin' by;--
An' "Comp'ny" there an' all!--an' we--
_We et out on the porch!_
An' I ist et _p'surves_ an' things
'At Ma don't 'low me to--
An' _chickun-gizzurds_--(don't like _wings_
Like _Parunts_ does! do _you?_)
An' all the time, the wind blowed there,
An' I could feel it in my hair,
An' ist smell clover _ever'_where!--
An' a' old red-head flew
Purt' nigh wite over my high-chair,
_When we et on the porch!_
THE DAYS GONE BY
[Illustration: The Days Gone By--Title]
O the days gone by! O the days gone by!
The apples in the orchard, and the pathway through the rye;
The chirrup of the robin, and the whistle of the quail
As he piped across the meadows sweet as any nightingale;
When the bloom was on the clover, and the blue was in the sky,
And my happy heart brimmed over, in the days gone by.
[Illustration: In the orchard]
In the days gone by, when my naked feet were tripped
By the honeysuckle tangles where the water-lilies dipped,
And the ripples of the river lipped the moss along the brink,
Where the placid-eyed and lazy-footed cattle came to drink,
And the tilting snipe stood fearless of the truant's wayward cry
And the splashing of the swimmer, in the days gone by.
O the days gone by! O the days gone by!
The music of the laughing lip, the lustre of the eye;
The childish faith in fairies, and Aladdin's magic ring--
The simple, soul-reposing, glad belief in everything,--
When life was like a story, holding neither sob nor sigh,
In the golden olden glory of the days gone by.
THE BUMBLEBEE
You better not fool with a Bumblebee!--
Ef you don't think they can sting--you'll see!
They're lazy to look at, an' kindo' go
Buzzin' an' bummin' aroun' so slow,
An' ac' so slouchy an' all fagged out,
Danglin' their legs as they drone about
The hollyhawks 'at they can't climb in
'Ithout ist a-tumble-un out agin!
Wunst I watched one climb clean 'way
In a jim'son-blossom, I did, one day,--
An' I ist grabbed it--an' nen let go--
An' "_Ooh-ooh! Honey! I told ye so!_"
Says The Raggedy Man; an' he ist run
An' pullt out the stinger, an' don't laugh none,
An' says: "They _has_ ben folks, I guess,
'At thought I wuz predjudust, more er less,--
Yit I still muntain 'at a Bumblebee
Wears out his welcome too quick fer me!"
[Illustration: The Bumblebee]
THE BOY LIVES ON OUR FARM
[Illustration: The Boy Lives on Our Farm--Title]
The boy lives on our Farm, he's not
Afeard o' horses none!
An' he can make 'em lope, er trot,
Er rack, er pace, er run.
Sometimes he drives two horses, when
He comes to town an' brings
A wagon-full o' 'taters nen,
An' roastin'-ears an' things.
Two horses is "a team," he says,
An' when you drive er hitch,
The right-un's a "near-horse," I guess
Er "off"--I don't know which--
The Boy lives on our Farm, he told
Me, too, 'at he can see,
By lookin' at their teeth, how old
A horse is, to a T!
I'd be the gladdest boy alive
Ef I knowed much as that,
An' could stand up like him an' drive,
An' ist push back my hat,
Like he comes skallyhootin' through
Our alley, with one arm
A-wavin' Fare-ye-well! to you--
The Boy lives on our Farm!
[Illustration: Stand up like him an' drive]
THE SQUIRTGUN UNCLE MAKED ME
[Illustration: The Squirtgun Uncle Maked Me--Title]
Uncle Sidney, when he wuz here,
Maked me a squirtgun out o' some
Elder-bushes 'at growed out near
Where wuz the brickyard--'way out clear
To where the toll-gate come!
So when we walked back home again,
He maked it, out in our woodhouse where
Wuz the old workbench, an' the old jack-plane,
An' the old 'pokeshave, an' the tools all lay'n'
Ist like he wants 'em there.
He sawed it first with the old hand-saw;
An' nen he peeled off the bark, an' got
Some glass an' scraped it; an' told 'bout Pa,
When _he_ wuz a boy an' fooled his Ma,
An' the whippin' 'at he caught.
Nen Uncle Sidney, he took an' filed
A' old arn ramrod; an' one o' the ends
He screwed fast into the vise; an' smiled,
Thinkin', he said, o' when he wuz a child,
'Fore him an' Pa wuz mens.
He punched out the peth, an' nen he put
A plug in the end with a hole notched through;
Nen took the old drawey-knife an' cut
An' maked a handle 'at shoved clean shut
But ist where yer hand held to.
An' he wropt th'uther end with some string an' white
Piece o' the sleeve of a' old tored shirt;
An' nen he showed me to hold it tight,
An' suck in the water an' work it right
An' it 'ud ist squirt an' squirt!
[Illustration: The Squirtgun--Tailpiece]
[Illustration: An' nen he peeled off the bark]
THE OLD TRAMP
[Illustration: The Old Tramp.]
A Old Tramp slep' in our stable wunst,
An' The Raggedy Man he caught
An' roust him up, an' chased him off
Clean out through our back lot!
An' th' Old Tramp hollered back an' said,--
"You're a _purty_ man!--_You_ air!--
With a pair o' eyes like two fried eggs,
An' a nose like a Bartlutt pear!"
OLD AUNT MARY'S
Wasn't it pleasant, O brother mine,
In those old days of the lost sunshine
Of youth--when the Saturday's chores were through,
And the "Sunday's wood" in the kitchen, too,
And we went visiting, "me and you,"
Out to Old Aunt Mary's?
It all comes back so clear to-day!
Though I am as bald as you are gray--
Out by the barn-lot, and down the lane,
We patter along in the dust again,
As light as the tips of the drops of the rain,
Out to Old Aunt Mary's!
We cross the pasture, and through the wood
Where the old gray snag of the poplar stood,
Where the hammering "red-heads" hopped awry,
And the buzzard "raised" in the "clearing" sky
And lolled and circled, as we went by
Out to Old Aunt Mary's.
And then in the dust of the road again;
And the teams we met, and the countrymen;
And the long highway, with sunshine spread
As thick as butter on country bread,
Our cares behind, and our hearts ahead
Out to Old Aunt Mary's.
[Illustration: We patter along in the dust again]
Why, I see her now in the open door,
Where the little gourds grew up the sides and o'er
The clapboard roof!--And her face--ah, me!
Wasn't it good for a boy to see--
And wasn't it good for a boy to be
Out to Old Aunt Mary's?
And O my brother, so far away,
This is to tell you she waits to-day
To welcome us:--Aunt Mary fell
Asleep this morning, whispering, "Tell
The boys to come!" And all is well
Out to Old Aunt Mary's.
[Illustration: Old Aunt Mary's--Tailpiece]
WINTER FANCIES
[Illustration: Winter Fancies--Title]
I
Winter without
And warmth within;
The winds may shout
And the storm begin;
The snows may pack
At the window pane,
And the skies grow black,
And the sun remain
Hidden away
The livelong day--
But here--in here is the warmth of May!
[Illustration: Winter without and warmth within]
II
Swoop your spitefullest
Up the flue,
Wild Winds--do!
What in the world do I care for you?
O delightfullest
Weather of all,
Howl and squall,
And shake the trees till the last leaves fall!
III
The joy one feels,
In an easy chair,
Cocking his heels
In the dancing air
That wreathes the rim of a roaring stove
Whose heat loves better than hearts can love,
Will not permit
The coldest day
To drive away
The fire in his blood, and the bliss of it!