Page:Andrew Lockhart - At the Bars of Memory.pdf/9

 

Let me sing the songs o' the Common Place, As the whitenin' years roll by; Let me trace the smiles o' each passin' face Let me sound each sob an' sigh; Let me echo the laughter o' children, An' the liquid lyrics o' birds; Let me sing the songs in the hearts o' men The songs without notes or words!

Ever let me sing o' the love o' life, Let me sing o' the days I knew When youth was mine' an' joy was rife An' friends were ever true; Let me sing a song o' the Common Man— The man o' the sweat an' grime— Who follows the windin' caravan Through the long, slow years o' Time!

Let me sing the old time melodies— The songs I used to know— The sweet lullabies o' Slumberland Seas On the shores o' Long Ago; An' e'er let my humble pen indite The songs that are seldom sung; The old songs that I sought to sing an' write In the days when my heart was young!  

Trouble? Why, man, I have had my share Of dolor an' want an' sorrow an' care; I've hit the dirt, an' the ground was hard. An' I've lost my spunk for a while, but pard— This is a good old world!

Trouble? Why, man, you can go down the line, An' the checks on the side are all checks o' mine. I've stacked all my hopes on a play an' lost, But though I've been jimmied an' double-crossed— This is a good old world!

Trouble? Well maybe you've had a whole lot, But there's always an end, an' like as not You've hit the last load an' sailin' will be fine— If you keep up your nerve, old friend o' mine— This is a good old world!

Trouble? Why bless your old heart, Mister Man, I've had 'bout as much as a fellow can! I'm livin' yet, an' I'll be livin' when The next bunch o' blues gets past me again— God bless this good old world!