Page:All quiet along the Potomac and other poems.djvu/243

 EVEN MEASURE.

&quot;There s the noon-bell. There s Susy! I see her bright eyes,

And her long yellow curls in the sun at the door;

Bless her heart ! if the lassie had been here before I wouldn t have grumbled so. I wasn t wise.

&quot; She loves her poor daddy in spite of his grime, And I ll wash my old face for my little girl s sake. There ! Noon, is it, Susy? The kiss now I ll take :

Daddy waits for a kiss when it comes dinner-time.

&quot; Stranger, this is my gal six years, going seven.&quot; The stranger looked up; his eye dimmer grew, And he spoke very softly : &quot;I had a girl too,

But she went to the angels above us in heaven ;

&quot;And if I could buy her sweet company here By a life full of labor and care, as your own, I would work without measure, or murmur, or moan,

For the sake of the blessing I counted so dear.&quot;

&quot;Well, stranger, yer pardon. I thought in my soul You never knew trouble, or sorrow, or care, And so I was frettin inside, at yer fare

And my lot. Guess it s square on the whole.&quot;

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