· charles keeler. berkeley poet, philosopher and civic leader, died at his hom e yesterday after...
TRANSCRIPT
Charles Keeler. Berkeley
poet, ph ilosopher and c ivic
leader, died at h is h om e
yes terday after a leng thy
eath Takes
harles KeelerFriendof John
'
Mu ir
And Bu rro ughs‘
Pens
Poem as End Nears
W551B ERKELEY, Ju ly 31. P pped uphis sick-b ed this morning , Charlesee ler
,who often h ad been gsu g
mont h s ago , W i ll?“ t ractu rea m s m p.
INHAL‘
ATOR EA ILS
A“
fire' department inhalator crew
strove vainly to susta in h is life .H is last poem , found at the bedside , seemed to convey portentouslya spirit already remote . Entitled“The Snowy Egret, ! i t read !So long ago ,
so far away,a boy in
h is canoe ,
W ent paddling down a river to aready-bordered slough .
It was twil ight on the r iver and thefrogs began to croak ;
The whippoorwill with eerie callth e
‘
even ing silence broke .“A nd there he saw , so long ago, twoegrets , snowy white , ’
L ike spectres in the marshland atthe com ing of the night“
On stilts upraised , with plum edcrest
,how beautiful and pal e ,
How tall they were, with spearl ikebeaks
,so silent and so frail !
Then,bright the moon broke thi nthe trees
,as white those egrets
s ,toodThey looked like angels in the n ight
agains t the solemn wood .And now today , so far away, that
scene comes back to me ,It seems a dream of some l ost world
in all its mystery .
!
B est known as a poet— o i such
prosaic duties . He was manag in gdirector of the B erke ley ChamberCommerce for seven years end
ing in 1927 .
STUDENT AT U. C .
Kee ler was born in M ilwaukee ,
California as aUniversity of
trave led to ‘
A laska ; wi thn h
t‘
ff‘
érison exped ition and '
also vi si tedthe South Seas, Australiaa nd N ewZealand .
His poems dealt.
with the‘manycountries he vis i ted
‘
and were publi sh ed in many places . Amon g thebooks of poems for which he is!most widely known ar e
“Se !S onnet ! an d “
The, Lure of
Lands .Keeler’s thre e children shared hiscreative ability . His son , Leonarde ,now director of the crime prevention laboratory of . NorthwesternUniversity, developed an improvedlie detector
.
DAUGHTERS TALENTEDOne daughter, Eloise ,
is an actressand t h e other, M rs . M erodine M c
Intyre , is an artist. The formernow is in m id-P acific on a ‘roundthe-world tour. The latter is thewife of Richard M cIn tyre ofB erkeley.The mother of the ch ildren
,the
former Louise B un nell,member of
a prominent B erkeley fam ily,died
ye ars ago . K eeler’s second w i fe,the
former Orm eida Harrison,whom h emarried in 1921, survives h im.
K eeler was an early member andpas t president of the California W riters Club , an early member of theS1erra Club , a l ife honorary mem
museum of the Californ ia A cademyof S ciences.
COPYRIG HT 1904 B Y
CHARLES KEELERCOPYRIG HT 1904 BY
CHARLES KEELER! Fo r Second Edit ion !COPYRIGHT 19 14 B Y
CHARLES KEELER! Fo r Third Edition !COPYRIGHT 1920 BYCHARLES KEELER! Fo r Fourth Edi tion !
D e c o r a t i o n s b y
LO U lS E KEE LER
Elfin songs Of sunland,
F rolicland and funland ;Littl e rhymes Of child hours
,
Wood elves and wild flowers ;Jingles Of the fores t green
,
Songs for l ittl e Merodine !
414 7 7 5 7
N AM ES OF THE SON G S
PAG E
COME AWAY CHILDRENHAND-ORGAN MANPOPPING CORNTHE BAKER MANTOPSTHE K ITETHE SEE-SAWSOAP BUBBLESTHE BRASS BANDTHE MERRY-G O-ROUN DTHE OVERLAND FLYERSPORTSTHE SWIMMING POOLA SONG OF LEONARDE
IL SONGS OF THE WILDWOOD
A CHILD’S BOOKA LESSONA WINTER WALK
v i i
N AMES OF THE SON G S
PAG EWINTER RAIN IN CALIFORNIAMR . WINDWILD-WOOD BOGIESTHE COYOTETHE HUMMINGB IRDTHE ROADRUNNERTHE BURROWING OW LTHE CRESTED JAYTROUBLE IN THE TREESTHE S ! UIRRELTHE POLLIWOG THAT LOST ITSTHE HORNED TOADA FAIRY IN A FLOWERBUTTERCUPTHE COLUMB INETHE LEOPARD LILY
JOHNNY JUMP-UPSONG OF THE BROWN LILYSHOOTING STAR FLOWERSTHE SCARLET LARKSPURTHE TRILLIUMBABY BLUE-EYES
NAMES OF THE SON G S
PAG EWHO KNOWS ROSALIETO A WILD ROSETHE ! UEEN OF THE FAIRIES
IH. ! UIPS AND CRANKS
MY AUNTIETHE BEAR HUNTERTRYING TO PLAYMAGGIE MULDOONTHE B OOB ITY BUMPKINFARMER JONES’ GOATPOOR MR . MIDASTHREE WISE MENA G OBBLER IN TROUBLETHE TALE OF A POOR LITTLE WORM
IV. RHYMES FOR TODDLERS
PUSSY WHITECHINA DOLLSDOLLIE’S LULLABY
N AMES OF
PAG EBABY LIFELITTLE BROTHERPLAYING HORSEMY DONKEYBABY IN THE BARNYARDBABY’S G OOD N IGHTDOGSMY ANIMALS
V, BROWN BABY BALLADS
SIx LITTLE ESKIMOPICCANINNY LULLABYTHE ME ! ICAN BABIESTHE LITTLE PIUTETHE HONOLULU BOYA SAMOA SLEEPY SONG
A RING AROUND OF PLAYTIME
COME AWAY CHILDREN
! OME away chi ldren,frisk along
with me,
F or I’l l be the piper and merry
wi l l we be ;With laughter and dancing and sports to
make us gay,
0 there’s sunshine and there’s singing
come away,come away !
Come away chi ldren,l eave the town behind ;
Fol low me to Happy- land and see what
we Shal l find ,Where the flowers smile to see you and
the birdies tri l l and play
Just because the sun is shining— come
away,come away !
Come ch i ldren,I’l l pipe an elfin tune
And we’l l p lay that we are fairies dancing
in the summer moon ;We’l l pretend that we are flowers in the
carnival Of May
If you’l l join the merry crew and come
way, come away !
O tood le de tood l e de , hand-organ grinder,N O man in the city to chi ldren is kinder,
And my l ittl e kid brother j ust played no t
to care
When the monkey jumped on him and
grabbed at his hair.
POPPING CORN
OME, you merry l ittl e fel lows ,Poke the coals and blow the
bel lows ;Here’s the popper, Shel l the corn
,
And let it pop this winter morn .
Pop-a- tee-pop-pop-pop 1
See the kernels Skip and hop,See them puff out ful l and whi te
,
Hear them crackle in affright.
N OW shake , shake , shake,Til l your hands and faces bake ;Tip it, turn it,Or you’l l burn it
,
And a dreadful muss you’l l make.
N OW i t’
s done we’l l have a feast ;Smal lest hands must take the least !Ho t and crisp and white and sweet
,
Isn’t this a jol ly treat !
THE BAKER MAN
WHO do you think is the baker
man
And hOW do you think he makes
his cake ?
He mixes his dough in an O ld tin can
And puts it out in the sun to bake .
He pats pats pats at his l ittl e mud pies ;He rounds them and ro l ls them and looks .
SO wise .
The baker man is my brother Ned
And out in the garden he’
s working away,Right by the scarl et geranium bed
,
And his hands and his face are j ust covered.
with clay,
As he pats pats pats at his l ittle mud pies ;
As he rounds them and ro l ls them and
looks so wise .
TOPS
OW would you l ike to be a top,
TO be made to Spin ti l l you
couldn’t stop ,
TO be pitched head first from a coi l Of
string,
TO be made to dance ti l l you sigh and
swing ?
There’s the top that is whipped and the
top with a peg
That gouges its brother i nd l eaves him to
beg ;There’s the mus ical top with holes in its
side,
That is said to have played til l it fel l down
and died .
But Of al l the tops that ever were spun,
The biggest are those of the Old daddy
Sun ,
And I’l l wager he has j ust the jol l iest sport
With the Earth and with Saturn and tops
Of that sort.
IO
I’
d sai l up from town,kite
,
TO see the moon’s back,
And then sl ide down,kite
,
The Mi lky-Way’s track.
132
THE SEE-SAW
BALANCE the ladder atop Of
the rai l,
And up we gO,down we gO ,
al l
in a gale,
Singing l ike birds as we teeter away,
Bouncing and jouncing each other in play .
You are ! ueen Sal ly and I am King Peter,And where are we going astride Of our
teeter ?
Riding to fairyland,over the moon .
Up we gO ,-down !— and we’l l be there
soon .
SOAP BUBBLES
LUB BLETY,flOpplety, bubb le and
spatter,
Soap-suds and water and clay
p ipes and chatter !
Puff l ittle cheeklets and blow, blow, blow !
Look at the bubbles beginn ing to grow !
0 what a beauty, al l purple and pink !
Whiff ! it has van ished before you can think !
N ow look at this one with clouds and a
Swimm ing about in a gold- l igh ted sea !
Hurrah,i t is floating away through the air !
Car Of. the fairies was never'
m ore’
fair.
Zip comes a gobl in and cl ips it away !
What wi l l the fairy who rode in it say ?
1 4
THE BRASS BAND
T makes me feel so fine and gay
When drums are beat and bugles
P lay ;I think I’d l ike to be a king
And ru le the earth and everything.
The big bass-drum
Goes dum , dum ,dum
,
The horns play tweedle dee,
And every toot and every beat
Just catches hold Of my two feet
And makes them run away from me .
And this is what I hear them say
As down the street they march away
Te dum ratta dum,rattadum
, dum'
dee,
Te dum,ratta dum
, Shout hurrah boys
with me !
Tweedle twee twee twee , tweedle anything‘
you can ,For I’m going to be a soldier when I get
to be a man !
16
THE MERRY-GO-ROUND
TAND stil l,Mr. Horse
,W h i le I
jump on your back
TO ride in the ring o f the wh irli
gig’s track .
The boys and girls shout as tho man cries,
“ Hold fast.
The music is playing— we’re started at last !
0 faster and faster we rock and we spin
Around,keeping time to the musical d in ,
Then I pul l on my reins and cry “Whoa ! !
to the horse,For that is the right way to stop him
,
Of course .
But we go and we go and we don’t mind
a pin
If we end where we started and have to
begin
On the merry-
gO-round
,the merry-go
round’Tis the best kind Of trave l I ever have
found !
18
N OW the iron throat is gasping astrain
As the beast up the mounta ins is dragging
his train .
O where are you taking us,monster Of
steel ?
Out in the darkness the pine- trees ree l !
Over the desert we swing “and fly,
Towns and prairies are flashing by ;When
,10 ! to your castl e you plunge in
the n ight,The great wal ls tower in ghostly l ight.
Does a princess l ive in that tal l b lack tower ?
Are al l Of the peop l e here under your power ?
I never was certa i n that dragons were true
T i l l I go t on your tai l and rode with you !
2 0
SPORTS
NAP - the-whip and tug-Of-war
What is al l this tuss le for ?
Hare-and-hounds and prisoners
base,
Just to make you puff and race !
Bal ls to bat and bal ls to kick
Make you n imble , make you qu ick ;And anyhow I l ike to play
,
SO come on boys ,— hurray, hurray !
2 1
THE SWIMMING POOL
E boys love to swim on a hot
summer day
In the poo l where the pond- l i l i es
float ;There’s Wil l i e and Frankie and Benn i e
and JayAdrift in a leaky O ld boat.
A S Ben Sp lashes under, a kingfisher cries
You’l l frighten my fish with your
noise,
!
While the frog on the l ily-pad croaks in
surprise !
What awkward great creatures are boys
The poor l ittl e catfish way down in the mud
Can’t imagine W hat’s coming its way
2 2’
As Frank dives head-first with a splash
and a thud,
Close fol lowed by Wil l ie and Jay.
Then to l ie in the sand when the swimm ing
is done ,Whi le the skater-bugs dance on the
stream !
Just a tickle Of wind and a shower Of sun
And a sigh Of content as we dream !
2 3
A SONG OF LEONARDE
UN SHINE boy Of the world Of
P lay,
Laughing out in the wind away,
S inging free as a song-bird W i ld,
0 that is the way Of my elfin child !
Love in the heart thro’ the day-bright
hours,
Joy on the l ips l ike the sm i l ing flowers ,Peace on the face when the night is starred
And s leep steals over my Leonarde .
SONGS OF THE WILDWOOD
A LESSON
ELL me l ittle sp ider,
W ho taught you how to
Te l l me l ittle minnow,
How you learned to use your fin ?
Tel l me l ittl e swal low,
Who taught you how to fly ?
And they each said,
“ I t is easy
If you only try and try.
A WINTER WALK
the Berkeley H il l s for miles
away
I went a-roaming one winter’s
day,
And what do you think I saw,my dear ?
A place where the sky came down to the
hil l,
And a big white cloud on the fresh green
grass ,And bright red berries my basket to fi l l
,
And mustard that grew in a golden mass ,All on a winter’s day
,my dear !
WINTER RAIN IN CALIFORNIA
EE the l ittle drops Of rain,
Fal l ing, fal l ing,Softly cal l ing
Flowers back to l ife again .
First the blades Of grass appear,
Upward creeping,Shyly peeping
O’er the meadow far and near.
Then the mustard spreads its gold,
Opes i ts flowers
TO the showers ,Little heed ing winter’s cold .
Popp ies’ velvet petals glow ;Each new-comer
Thinks ’tis summer,Though the winter breezes blow.
And the l ittle drops Of rain ,Softly fal l ing
Sti l l are ca l l ing
Flowers forth on hil l and plain.
3 1
MR. WIND
APRIL fields are fair to see
Tum tiddle tum,tidd le tum tum
tee !
The grass and the snow p lay at h ide and
seek,And the sun ’round the rim Of a cloud
wil l peek ;O fie and fidd l e and ha ha he !
Up came an Old man as I sang my song,
With a “ Hi,Johnn i e
,hi ; skip along, skip
along !
And who are you ,S ir ?
! said I ; and
quoth he
Mr . Wind is my name , hop along wi th9 ,me ;
3 2
SO we skipped and we hopped along long
long.
O his beard was towsled,his hair blew
free—f
Tum tiddle tum ; l ittl e matter to me !
Fo r he whistled and p iped as we danced
away,
And the best Of companions I found him
in play
O fie and fiddle and ha ha he !
33
WILD WOOD BOGIES
IST littl e toddlekins,whisk and
away !
N ow is the time for the bogies
to p lay ;Patter Offoo t-pads and eyes brightly glowing,Noses that sn i ffle the night breezes b lowing,Bogies are romping the wildwood i n glee
,
Frisking and scampering, nimble and free .
Who are the ve lvet- foot,fire-eyed bogies ?
Coons and coyotes and wild woodland
rogu ies !
Playing at night- time when baby’s as leep ;Wh isk ! did you see that ghost jack-rabbit
leap ?
B OO !! and “ B OO-hoo l cries the fluffy
horned- owl ,
34
THE COYOTE
ROUCHIN G in his monkish gray,
Crunching at his dying prey,
Furtive eyes and pricking ears,
Haunted by a hundred fears !
Yet the cotton- tai l trembles to see him pass
With his pat pat patter on the parching
grass
Lol l ing tongue and panting sides,
’Mid the tawny grass he hides .
Lowered is his bushy tail,
Keen Of snout he sniffs the trail ;But he yelps and howls l ike a mad
at n ight,
With h is ka i yi yi in the moon’s dim
36
Friendless prowler,sage-brush thief
,
Hunted rover,desert chief !
Even you who friend l ess roam
Have a loving mate at home,
And her l ittl e ones yelp in their lair with
del ight
A S she pat pat patters anear through the
n ight.
THE HUMMINGBIRD
UZ-Z ! whir-r ! — a flash and away !
A midget bej eweled ’mid flowers
at play !
A snip Of a bird ling,the blossom-bells’
king,
A waif Of the sun-beams on quivering wing !
O prince Of the fairi es , O pigmy Of fire ,Will nothing those brave l ittle wings Of
yours tire ?
You fol low the flowers from southern lands
sunny,
You pry amid petal s al l summer for honey .
N ow rest on a twig,tiny flowerland spri te ,
Your dear l ittl e lady S i ts near in del ight ;In awee felted basket She lovingly huddles
,
38
Two dots Of wh ite eggs to her warm breast
She cuddles !
Whiz-z ! whiff ! Off to your flowers !
Buzz ’mid the perfume Of jasmine bowers !
Chatter and chirrup , my king Of the fays ,And laugh at the song that I sing in your
praise .
39
THE ROAD-RUNNER
GRAY- streaked road-runner
scurry ing by
In a sage-brush valley,I happened
to spy,
Long- legged and thin-bil led,with a
stretched-out tail ,And a com ical body as thin as a ra i l !
Oh surely, I thought, what a sad s l im fowl
Comparedwi th his neighbor the wel l- fed owl
T i l l he pounced on a snake with a raptur
ous squeak,And rapped the poor reptile a clip with h is
beak.
Then why is he nothing but feathers and
skin ?
40
Is it running so fast that has worn h im
SO thin ?
Just think what would happen,my lad
,to
you ,If you ran al l day l ike a ground cuckoo.
THE BURROWING OWL
Y blinkety owlet atop Of your
mound,
Is your mate tucked away In a
hole in the ground ?
You bare-footed gnome in your striped
suit Of dun,
With your fluffy wh ite bab ies that bask in
the sun !
See her bobbing and bl inking
As if she were thinking
Of the poor lady cricket
That chirps in the thicket !
With a snap and a chatter
Mrs . Owlet is at her,
42
THE CRESTED JAY
HE jay is a j ovial bird,
— heigh-ho l
H e chatters al l dayIn a frol icsome way
With the murmuring breezes that blow,
heigh-ho !
Hear him noisily cal l
From a red-wood tree tal l
TO his mate in the Opposite tree,heigh-ho !
Saying ! “HOW do you do ?
As h is top-knot Of blue
Is raised as po l i te as can be, -heigh-ho !
Oh impudent jay
With your plumage so gay
44
And your manners SO jaunty and free,
heigh-ho !
How little you guessed
When you robbed the wren’s nest
,
That any stray fel low would see,
- heigh-ho l
TROUBLE IN THE TREES
HE birds had a meeting,
The owl was judge ;But a jay came along
And said ’twas al l fudge .
With a quil l i n his ear
The shore- lark was clerk ;The wren was a witness
,
And how She did perk !
The king-bird was Sheriff
And brought i n the Shrike,
When a goldfinch could scarce ly
Conceal her disl ike .
What talking and squawking,
What whetting—o f bi l ls !
46
What ruffling Of feathers,
What bristl ing Of quil ls !
Ti l l a fox heard the chatter
And pounced on the jay,When swal lows and sparrows
And al l flew
47
THE S ! UIRREL
T must be risky
To frol ic so frisky
Up in a swaying tree ;TO scamper and Skip
On a pine tree’s tip
As you chatter away at me !
N ow what’s your hurry,
You wood- imp furry,
In your snug l ittle sui t Of gray ?
You romp and rollic
Wi th fun and frol ic
Like w ind with the leaves at play.
O nervous nixie
With ways so trixie,
48
Fidgety sprite SO frail !
Sit up and munch
At your pine- nut lunch
In the shade Of your bushy
49
THE POLLIW OG THAT LOST ITS
TAIL
WIGGLY little po l l iwog l ived in
a pool
On the edge Of a stream where
the water was cool,
Til l one day he turned very green and paleFor he found that he sure ly was los ing his
tai l,
And legs were sprouting and he caught
the croup
As he crawl ed up the bank with a hoarse,
G e- loup !
Ca- thump,
ca—lump , ca- chug,‘
ca-chOOk !
Oh what can have happened ? he asked
with a croak
5 0
THE HORNED TOAD
ORNYKIN S , Ho rnykins , Open
your eye,
F or close to your nose is a b lue
bottle fly !
Toadykins ruffle your Spines and your fri l ls
And scurry away o n the rocks to the hi l ls !
Little squat goblin,al l bristl ing with spikes
,
Flattened-out l izard that nobody likes,
Stone- colored herm i to fsage-brush and sand,
You’re the dro l l est hobgobl in Of nO-baby’s
land !
A FAIRY IN A FLOWER
TINY go ld fairy flew into a flower
One morning at cock- crow,to hide
from a shower ;The drops fel l a patter upon his tent roof
,
But what did it matter while leaves were
rain proof?
He found in the flower fine honey to eat ;“ SO- SO
,sang the fairy, “ the food here is
sweet !
N O prince in his palace fares better than I,
Alone in my chal ice with storms blowing
by !
Now what do you th ink is the name Of
this fairy
Who hid from the shower in l i ly-bel l airy ?
His coat is bright ye l low,black banded
with fuzz
This bumble-bee gay with his musical buzz !
5 4
BUTTERCUP
UTTERCUP , buttercup ,Why don’t you hurry up
Out Of the ground SO cold !
W i th your l ittl e coat yellow,
You dear l ittle fel low,
Why doesn’t your blossom unfold ?
5 5
THE COLUMBINE
IVE doves the fairies took away
TO the deep dark wood one sum
mer day,
And they hung them up on a S lender
spray,Heigh-ho for the co lumbine !
Red and gold were the doves they took ;With heads outstretched the b irdlings shook,Ti l l the fairies sang them to S l eep by the
brook,
Heigh-ho for the columbine !
THE LEOPARD LILY
N the forest stil ly
The leopard l i ly
Sways on her stem so state ly ;Tall as a chi ld
In the mounta ins wild,
She stands and nods sedately.
Orange and red
Is her dappled head
And her anthers brown are a-quiver ;O fie on you
,l i ly
,
SO vain and S i l ly
TO look at yourself in the river !
JOHNNY JUMP-UP
S I walked under a black-oak tree
A l ittle Johnny Jump- up laughed
at me .
Here you ye l low el f,G O and laugh to yourself,
Or wink at the cricket that ch irps on your
knee .
Ha ha ha ! he he he !
Merry Johnny Jump-up, wi ld and free !
SHOOTING STAR FLOWERS
TARS Of childhood,
S tars Of the wildwood ,Shooting stars Of purple and p ink
,
Stars that hang in trembl ing showers,
Stars Of spring that are more than flowers,
Swinging b l ithe at the cafion’s brink !
Birds are p laying
Above you , swaying,Beloved stars Of the woodland spring !
Chi ldren shout and s ing when they see
you,
And where is the fairy who dares to free
you ,
Joyous sp irits that sway and swing !
60
THE SCARLET LARKSPUR
ERRY wee red-coats were frisking
and dancing
Down in the rocky glen,
And the jol ly Old sun O’
er the mountains
was glancing
At the merry Wee red- coated men .
Each l i ttle man had a horn on his head ,And the O l d sun laughed as he got out Of
bed !
The wind p layed a tune
And they danced unti l noon ,And
,
“A jol ly good time we’ve had , they
said .
THE TRILLIUM
TRILLIUM dear
I am glad you are here,
Wh i le March rains are pattering,
Brooklets are clattering,
Kinglets are chattering,
And you ,pretty thing
,
Are just smil ing and dreaming Of spring.
O shade- loving sprite,
The canon’s del ight,Three petals wine- red
,
Three leaves broadly spread,
You leap from your bed
In joy,pretty th ing,
TO sway in the breezes Of Spring.
BABY BLUE-EYES
ON NY baby blue- eyes
Twinkling in the grass,
Smil ing on the sunny hil l
see the chi ldren pass !
Of all the flowers Of spring- time
The fairest and the frai lest !
There’s gladness in your baby eyes,
The purest and the pal est !
WHO KNOWS ROSALIE ?
HO knows Rosal ie ?
There goes Rosal ie
Out where her roses are growing !
The dear l ittl e tot
With her watering pot
Where the daisies are nodding and blowing.
I t’s six 0’ the clock
And the l i ly bel ls rock
In the merry warm month Of July ;And Rosal ie tel ls
A l l the whispering bel ls
Of the tear in the VIOlet’s eye .
TO A WILD ROSE
EAR li ttle rose,SO sweet and fair
,
You give your perfume to the air,
You give your honey to the bee ,And al l the day long you smile at me .
O teach me,l i ttle rose
,the way
TO smi le at people al l the day,
TO give from my heart- store the sweet
To every one I chance to meet.
THE ! UEEN OF THE FAIRIES
WANT to go ou t i n the woods
and play
That I am the queen Of the fairies
to-day ;SO I
’
l l gather some stars from the mid
night sky
!There are p lenty to spare in the j ewels
on high !And I’l l have them set in a crown Of gold ;F or a sceptre a tiger l i ly I’l l hold ;A violet bed will be my throne
And the beautiful world wil l be mine a lone .
I’l l make one law my realm to bind ,That everybody must just be kind
And love al l chi ldren and flowers and birds
66
! UIPS AND CRANKS
MY AUNTIE
OW would you l ike to have for
an auntie
Kittie ka dink ka dee ka dantie ?
Kittie ka dink
With fro l icsome wink,
Kittie ka dink
With ruffles Of p ink,
Kittie ka dink,
Now what do you think
Of Kittie ka dink for an auntie ?
Kittie ka dink ka dee
Is as bright as a bumble
Kittie ka dink ka dee , ,
She dresses my dol ls for
Kittie ka dink ka dee ,
7 I
If you knew her I’m sure you’d
That Kittie ka dink
With frol icsome wink
In ruffles Of pink,
Is the jol l iest kind Of an auntie !
THE BEAR HUNTER
F I should meet a grizzly bear
A—roaming from his mountain lair,
I’d j ust get down on hands and
knees
And growl around among the trees .
Then if my growl ing didn’
t scare
That great ferocious grizzly bear,I’d s ing a song and at my ease
Just try my best the bear to p lease .
73
TRYING TO PLAY
A gentlem an dressed in a high
top hat
Rode on a hobby—horse j ust l ike
that.
Mr. Man , Mr. Man, O what is the matter?
Little boy,let me hear no more Of your
chatter !
S O he pranced and he kicked ti l l h is glasses
fel l Off,And he puffed and he choked ti l l i t made
him cough ;Then he stopped and said In his solemn
way,
My child,I was merely attempting to
play.
!
THE BOOB ITY BUMPKIN
BOOB ITY bump ity bumpkin
Was sent to town w ith a pump
kin ,But he s tumbled and tripped
As he h ippi ty skipped ,
And sm ackety smash went the pumpkin !
FARMER JONES’S GOAT
LD Farmer Jones had a frisky Old
goat
That wore a long beard and a
hairy black coat,
With hoofs on i ts feet and horns on its
head,
And a sad hungry look on its face whi le
it fed .
Now what do you think was its favorite
caper ?
I t would eat Farmer Jones’s weekly Satur
day paper ;But the diet was more than the goat could
endure,
SO it fed upon sawdust and rags for a cure .
77
POOR MR . MIDAS
POOR Mr. Midas did nothing
but think
Of the sound that his money
made,— chink
,chink
,ch ink !
He fi l led his pockets,he fi l l ed his shoes
,
But the more he gathered the less he
could use .
It weighed on h is mind ti l l he scarce s lept
a wink,
And then he wou ld dream Of the chink,
chink , chink.
He fi l l ed his boxes,he fil led his bed
,
And SO there was nothing to fil l but his
head .
THREE WISE MEN
HREE wise men sailed away o n
a bat,
But the one who was bald forgot
his hat ;The one who made music forgot his fife
,
And the one who was married forgot his
The bat flew straight to the Man in the
Moon ,And they said , “ Kind s ir
,is i t n ight or
‘
noon ?
SO the Man in the Moon h is brain he
racked
And decided the three wise men were
cracked .
A GOBBLER IN TROUBLE
WHAT would the turkey gobbler
do
If he got the hiccoughs before he
was through
! Vith his gobble-gobble-gobb le-gobb le
gobble ?
I’m sure that he could never see through
the joke
If he started to gobble and stopped to
choke
In his gobble-gobble-gobble-gobble-gobble .
The puffed- out fool would grow red in
the face,
And the hens would laugh at their lord’s
disgrace,
At h is gobble , hic ! gobb le , h ic ! gobble
gobble-gobble
8 1
THE TALE OF A POOR LITTLE
WORM
UST listen to that,
Rat-atat- tat
T is a woodpecker,wh ispered
a worm .
As he crouched in a cranny
He cal led to his granny,
“ Hark hark,hark hark
,
Rap-a- tap on the bark,
That noise makes me shiver and squirm !
Then a long barbed tongue
Right through him was flung,
And down in the gizzard he wal lowed ;I t made him grow pal e
T i l l he thought Of th e whale
82
HYMES FOR TODDLERS
CHINA DOLLS
HERE are ch ina cups and china
do l ls
And Ch inamen galore ,All huddled in together
a l ittl e China store .
The china cups are pretty
And the china dol ls , O
I wish I had a hundred
S itting round me now,
But the Chinaman that se l ls them ,
With h is s l i ts Of eyes askew,
And hair al l braided down his back
In such a funny queue !
88
If all his do l ls shou ld grow and grow
Unti l l ike him they grew,
And I should have the care Of
O dear, what wou ld I do ?
DOLLIE’S LULLABY
OLLIE’S in the cradle
Fal l ing fast asleep ;Hush
,l i ttl e mamma
,
and take a peep .
Wh isper low to do l l ie !“ Dream Of pleasant things
,
Fairies in the dol l house
A—dance in fairy rings ;
Fairies round the cradle
Flying to and fro,
Singing in the moon l ight
Fairy mus ic low.
Shut are dol l i e’s eyel ids,
Cover up her arm ;
90
BABY LIFE
HAT can l ittle baby do ?
Clap his hands and coo and coo ;Kick and rol l and smile and grow,
That why we love h im so !
9 2
LITTLE BROTHER
ITTLE brother ful l o f glee ,With dainty hand and dimpled
knee,
Chubby l i ttl e laughing boy,
Father’s pride and Mother’s joy !
Rlnglets gold on shapely head ,Smiles that break ere tears have fled ,Eyes Of blue that Open wide ,Wondering at the world outside !
Merry spirit,sweetly w11d,
Why are you,my precious chi ld
Dearer far than any other
Loving S ister’s l i ttle brother ?
‘93
PLAYING HORSE
ORSE and cart and tinkl ing l ines,
Rattl ing under the passion vines ;Up the road and down the lane
round the yard to the door aga in !
Babe is driver, snap the whip !
Watch the turn and don’t you tip .
Nero barks as the chickens scatter,
Dust is flying and cart-wheels clatter.
Nel l , the cook at the kitchen door,Wonders what the noise is for.
Round the house on the run they go
Til l baby cal ls to the horsie,
-“whoa !
BABY IN THE BARNYARD
with the big b lue eyes,
Tel l me why you look SO
When you watch the kitties
Or Old Bil ly eating hay.
DO the horses ta lk to you ,
Baby with the eyes Of blue ?
Can you tel l me what they say
When they look at you and neigh ?
And the romping kitties,too
,
When they cry out,mew
,mew
,mew
,
Have they secrets,baby dear
,
On ly meant for you to hear ?
When the doggie says,bow-wow
TO the lazy mu ley-cow,
96
And the cow repl ies , moo , m oo,
Are they talking sti l l to you ?
And the piggie in her pen,
G runting to the setting hen ,Ugh
,ugh
,ugh , can baby tel l
What the piggie means to Spel l ?
Lying in her bed at morn,
Baby hears a lusty horn
Sounding,rook-a-dook-a-doo l
And baby laughs as if She knew.
Baby loves them,one and al l ,
And She answers when they cal l ;And they tel l her wondrous
'
talesOf the barnyard
,hil ls and dales .
BABY’S GOOD-NIGHT
ITTLE eyes droop in the dim
evening l ight ;Wave your hand
,l ittle maiden ,
good-bye,good-nigh t ;
Throw a kiss to the doggie - he’s wagging
his tai l
And wave to the mu ley-cow down in the dale .
Hark ! hark ! she is ringing good- night
with her be l l ;N ow toss to the kitties a sweet farewel l .
Go od-night birds,in the branches
as leep ,
Good-night s tars that twinkle and
peep ;
98
DOG S
HAVE many l ittl e dogg i e friends ;There’s Jip who wags at both his
ends,
And Buddie l ike a bal l Of si lk,
Who laps the cream and sniffs at milk,And Judie with her rubber bal l
Who never minds me when I cal l,
And Rab who runs before the horse ,I love to hear him bark
,Of course
,
’Cept sometimes he most barks in two,
And then I wish he’d stop,don’t you ?
MY ‘
A NIMALS
AVE you seen my l ittle am m als
Shut in a paper’
house
There’s a donkey and a came l
With a kittie and a mouse ;
There’s a doggie and an elephant,
A lion and a bear, 3
Al l huddled in together,And they never seem to care !
O I’m very,very hungry
And I th ink I’d‘
like‘ to eat
The donkey and the liOn
And the elephant for meat ;
They are al l made out Of crackers,
And if Mamma says I may,
I’
l l eat a half a bag Of them
And give the rest away .
1 0 2
S I! LITTLE ESKIMO
I! jo l ly l ittle Eskimo
Lived i n the land Of Ice and snow.
They p layed with their ivory dol ls
al l n ight
In a stuffy igloo with a smoky
I wouldn’t l ive in a smoky igloo,
Wou ld you ?
They dressed in seal-Skin from hOOd to
heel ;I wonder how such a suit would feel !
They chewed!
their blubber'
and smacked
their l ips
And wiggled their toes and finger tips ,But I wouldn’t l ike such food to chew,
Would you ?
10 5
And when they were tired Of eating and
play
Their mammas stowed them safely away
In the big wh ite Skin Of a polar bear.
Six l ittl e black heads in a row were there ,But I would’nt l ike to be one Of that crew,
Would you ?
10 6
Carry yoh cleah up into de moon ,An’den what would yoh pOh Oldmammy
say
IO8
THE ME! ICAN BABIES
HE Mexican babies are chubby and
gay iEach family has ten or a dozen
,
And a l l in the town are related,they say
,
From a first to a twentieth cousin .
The house is adobe,the floor is Of dirt '
In the patio sheltered and sunny
The babies can todd le with never a shirt
W hi l e their mammas can S ing without
money.
If the l i ttl e b lack-hheaded brown baby should
cry,Or madre grow S ick Of his prattle,
His tears in an instant his sister can dry
With the end Of a snake for a rattle .
Their l ittle black dogs are a sight to be
ho ld ,Al l hairless and wrinkled as mummies ;
With b lankets about them to keep out the
co ld ,
And the babies about them for chum
m ies .
How happy these imps from the day they
are born ,They toddle and tumble in tatters ;
Their faces are d irty,the ir clothes are al l
torn,
But nobody th inks that it matters .
I IO
Soon you wil l fol low ; alas— too soon ,
As your clan moves on toward the setting
moon
1 1 2
THE HONOLULU BOY
OCOANUT milk and poi,
Cocoanut curds and fish,
For the Honolulu boy,
What more could a baby wish ?
Taro and yams and chicken,
Baby shal l have a feast,
Bones Of the pig for pickin’,
Fat l i ttl e face wel l greased !
A S l eep in the house Of grasses,
A swim in the C0 0 ! lagoon ,A kiss as the trade wind passes ,And a low Kanaka tune !
1 13
A SAMOA SLEEPY-SONG
IE on your mat,l ittl e tama
,and
s leep ;The pigeon has gone to its rest
in the palm ;I see the bright moon through the ifi trees
peep,
And the sleepy waves s ing on the coral
reef calm .
Sing to my tama,soft waves Of the sea ;
Some day he’l l ride in his rocking
canoe,
Ride on your laughing crests , happy and
free,
Joyous to rol l o n your rol licking b lue .
1 14
