Part 9 (1/2)
When Mother Cooked With Wood
I do not quarrel with the gas, Our modern range is fine, The ancient stove was doomed to pa.s.s From Time's grim firing line, Yet now and then there comes to me The thought of dinners good And pies and cake that used to be When mother cooked with wood.
The axe has vanished from the yard, The chopping block is gone, There is no pile of cordwood hard For boys to work upon; There is no box that must be filled Each morning to the hood; Time in its ruthlessness has willed The pa.s.sing of the wood.
And yet those days were fragrant days And spicy days and rare; The kitchen knew a cheerful blaze And friendliness was there.
And every appet.i.te was keen For breakfasts that were good When I had scarcely turned thirteen And mother cooked with wood.
I used to dread my daily ch.o.r.e, I used to think it tough When mother at the kitchen door Said I'd not chopped enough.
And on her baking days, I know, I s.h.i.+rked whene'er I could In that now happy long ago When mother cooked with wood.
I never thought I'd wish to see That pile of wood again; Back then it only seemed to me A source of care and pain.
But now I'd gladly give my all To stand where once I stood, If those rare days I could recall When mother cooked with wood.
Midnight in the Pantry
You can boast your round of pleasures, praise the sound of popping corks, Where the orchestra is playing to the rattle of the forks; And your after-opera dinner you may think superbly fine, But that can't compare, I'm certain, to the joy that's always mine When I reach my little dwelling--source, of all sincere delight-- And I prowl around the pantry in the waning hours of night.
When my business, or my pleasure, has detained me until late, And it's midnight, say, or after, when I reach my own estate, Though I'm weary with my toiling I don't hustle up to bed, For the inner man is hungry and he's anxious to be fed; Then I feel a thrill of glory from my head down to my feet As I prowl around the pantry after something good to eat.
Oft I hear a call above me: ”Goodness gracious, come to bed!”
And I know that I've disturbed her by my overeager tread, But I've found a gla.s.s of jelly and some bread and b.u.t.ter, too, And a bit of cold fried chicken and I answer: ”When I'm through!”
Oh, there's no cafe that better serves my precious appet.i.te Than the pantry in our kitchen when I get home late at night.
You may boast your s.h.i.+ning silver, and the linen and the flowers, And the music and the laughter and the lights that hang in showers; You may have your cafe table with its brilliant array, But it doesn't charm yours truly when I'm on my homeward way; For a greater joy awaits me, as I hunger for a bite-- Just the joy of pantry-prowling in the middle of the night.
The World Is Against Me
”The world is against me,” he said with a sigh.
”Somebody stops every scheme that I try.
The world has me down and it's keeping me there; I don't get a chance. Oh, the world is unfair!
When a fellow is poor then he can't get a show; The world is determined to keep him down low.”
”What of Abe Lincoln?” I asked. ”Would you say That he was much richer than you are to-day?
He hadn't your chance of making his mark, And his outlook was often exceedingly dark; Yet he clung to his purpose with courage most grim And he got to the top. Was the world against him?”
”What of Ben Franklin? I've oft heard it said That many a time he went hungry to bed.
He started with nothing but courage to climb, But patiently struggled and waited his time.
He dangled awhile from real poverty's limb, Yet he got to the top. Was the world against him?
”I could name you a dozen, yes, hundreds, I guess, Of poor boys who've patiently climbed to success; All boys who were down and who struggled alone, Who'd have thought themselves rich if your fortune they'd known; Yet they rose in the world you're so quick to condemn, And I'm asking you now, was the world against them?”
Bribed