free-verse26 lines
Longings.
by George W. DoneghyI.
Gim me back my stone-bruised heel,
And them tow-linen pants,
An' that old pole an' line an' reel,
An' all them boyhood ha'nts,
An' that old hat I used to wear,
That didn't hav' no crown,
An' that same crop uv yeller hair--
Sun-burnt on top ter brown--
An' them playmates I used ter know,
An' loved like very brothers--
An' you kin let the old world go
An' giv' its wealth ter others!
II.
Gim me back one gallus, too,
That buttoned with a peg,
An' them blamed ticks that burrowed through
The skin uv either leg,
An' that old single-barrel gun,
As crooked as a rail,
An' that same dog that used ter run
The molly cotton-tail,
An' lem me hav' the tops I spun--
The kites that I hav' sailed--
An' then at last, when life is done,
Who'd keer if it had failed?