Part 9 (1/2)
There! little girl; don't cry!
They have broken your doll, I know; And your tea-set blue, And your play-house, too, Are things of the long ago; But childish troubles will soon pa.s.s by.-- There! little girl; don't cry!
There! little girl; don't cry!
They have broken your slate, I know; And the glad, wild ways Of your school-girl days Are things of the long ago; But life and love will soon come by.-- There! little girl; don't cry!
There! little girl; don't cry!
They have broken your heart, I know; And the rainbow gleams Of your youthful dreams Are things of the long ago; But Heaven holds all for which you sigh.-- There! little girl; don't cry!
[Ill.u.s.tration: But Heaven hold all for which you sigh]
A HOME-MADE FAIRY-TALE
[Ill.u.s.tration: A Home-made Fairy-Tale--t.i.tle]
Bud, come here to your Uncle a spell, And I'll tell you something you mustn't tell-- For it's a secret and sh.o.r.e-nuff true, And maybe I oughtn't to tell it to you!-- But out in the garden, under the shade Of the apple-trees where we romped and played Till the moon was up, and you thought I'd gone Fast asleep.--That was all put on!
For I was a-watchin' something queer Goin' on there in the gra.s.s, my dear!
'Way down deep in it, there I see A little dude-Fairy who winked at me, And snapped his fingers, and laughed as low And fine as the whine of a mus-kee-to!
I kept still--watchin' him closer--and I noticed a little guitar in his hand, Which he leant 'ginst a little dead bee--and laid His cigarette down on a clean gra.s.s-blade; And then climbed up on the sh.e.l.l of a snail-- Carefully dusting his swallowtail-- And pulling up, by a waxed web-thread, This little guitar, you remember, I said!
And there he trinkled and trilled a tune-- ”My Love, so Fair, Tans in the Moon!”
Till presently, out of the clover-top He seemed to be singing to, came k'pop!
The purtiest, daintiest Fairy face In all this world, or any place!
Then the little ser'nader waved his hand, As much as to say, ”We'll excuse _you_!” and I heard, as I squinted my eyelids to, A kiss like the drip of a drop of dew!
[Ill.u.s.tration: A Little Dude-Fairy]
THE BEAR STORY
THAT ALEX ”IST MAKED UP HIS-OWN-SE'F”
W'y, wunst they wuz a Little Boy went out In the woods to shoot a Bear. So, he went out 'Way in the grea'-big woods--he did.--An' he Wuz goin' along--an' goin' along, you know, An' purty soon he heerd somepin' go ”_Wooh!”_-- Ist thataway--”_Woo-ooh!”_ An' he wuz _skeered_, He wuz. An' so he runned an' clumbed a tree-- A grea'-big tree, he did,--a sicka-_more_ tree.
An' nen he heerd it ag'in: an' he looked round, An' _'t'uz a Bear!--a grea'-big sh.o.r.e-nuff Bear!_-- No: 't'uz _two_ Bears, it wuz--two grea'-big Bears-- _One_ of 'em wuz--ist _one's_ a _grea'-big_ Bear.-- But they ist _boff_ went ”_Wooh!_”--An' here _they_ come To climb the tree an' git the Little Boy An' eat him up!
An' nen the Little Boy He 'uz skeered worse'n ever! An' here come The grea'-big Bear a-climbin' th' tree to git The Little Boy an' eat him up--Oh, _no!_-- It 'uzn't the _Big_ Bear 'at clumb the tree-- It 'uz the _Little_ Bear. So here _he_ come Climbin' the tree--an' climbin' the tree! Nen when He git wite _clos't_ to the Little Boy, w'y nen The Little Boy he ist pulled up his gun An' _shot_ the Bear, he did, an' killed him dead!