Page:All quiet along the Potomac and other poems.djvu/254

 248 RUTH AND LOT.

With that Lot. What a bright eye he had !

What a pair of square shoulders, the great loving

lad!

An listen, old cat, as you look in the fire He thought I was favorin Abner the squire ; But I wasn t at all. Ah ! well, let it go ; I m a lonesome old maid I must think of it so. But when the girls lovers hang over the gate, An Sammy keeps say in, Them fellers stays late, I say, Oh, it s early, to help them. I know, An I haven t forgotten, how such minutes go. They say Lot is travellin. Sam says he is gray As a rat Sammy heard of him over the way But I s pose, if I saw him, he wouldnit know

me.

Well, Sammy, what is it? Why. what can it be?&quot; &quot;A big letter, Ruthie a man s writin too. Why, Ruthie, you re blushin, an ain t read it

through !

There now ! it s a widower comin, I know. Eh, children, we ll never let Aunt Ruthie go; Will we, chickies?&quot; No, never; we ll kill him,

Aunt Ruth.&quot;

&quot;Why, children-, I b lieve that I hit on the truth, For I saw Lot McCurdy to-day in the town, An he looked kind o queer. Why, where has

Ruth gone?&quot;

What the long letter said, you and I ll never

know ; It was something, I guess, all about long ago.

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