Page:Claude McKay Constab Ballads.djvu/19



dat week was cold an’ dreary,

An’ I worked wid heavy heart;

All my limbs were weak an’ weary,

When I knew that we would part;

An’ I thought of our first meeting

On dat pleasant day o’ June,

Of his kind an’ modest greeting

When we met dat afternoon;

Of de cáprice o’ de weader,

How de harsh rain fell dat day,

How we kissed de book togeder,

An’ our hearts were light an’ gay;

How we started homewards drivin’,

Last civilian drive in train;

How we half-feared de arrivin’,

Knowin’ we were not free again;

How we feared do’n to de layin’

By of our loved old-time dress,

An’ to each udder kept sayin’

All might be unhappiness;

How our lives be’n full o’ gladness,

Drillin’ wid hearts light an’ free;

How for days all would be sadness

When we quarrelled foolishly.