Page:Lyrics of Lowly Life Dunbar (1896).djvu/218



ELLO, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray,

An' it beats ole Ned to see the way

'At the crow's feet's a-getherin' aroun' yore eyes;

Tho' it ought n't to cause me no su'prise,

Fur there 's many a sun 'at you've seen rise

An' many a one you've seen go down

Sence yore step was light an' yore hair was brown,

An' storms an' snows have had their way—

Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray.

Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray,

An' the youthful pranks 'at you used to play

Are dreams of a far past long ago

That lie in a heart where the fires burn low—

That has lost the flame though it kept the glow,

An' spite of drivin' snow an' storm,

Beats bravely on forever warm.

December holds the place of May—

Hello, ole man, you're a-gittin' gray.