Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-05-09
4 CELEBRATED POEM.


Composed for One Little Boy, It Has
Been Recited by Thousands.
David Everett was a distant relative
of the late Edward Everett He was
horn in Princeton. Mass, in 1863. In
the winter previous to entering Dart
mouth College, in 1871, when teacher
in the grammar school at Ipswich, he
prepared this little poem to be read at
an exhibition gotten up in the acad-
envy style, composed expressly for
Ephraim H. Farrar. to be spoken by
him on the occasion, when only seven
years of age:
You'd scarce expect one Of my age
To speak in public on the stage;
And If chance to fall below
Demosthenes or Cicero,
Don't view me with critics eye,
But pass my imperfections by;
Large streams from little fountains now;
Tall oaks from little acorns grow;
And though now am small and young,
Ofjudgment weak and feeble tongue,
Yet all great learned men, like me,
Once learned to read their A BIC.
But why may not Columbia's soil
Rear men as great as Britain's isle
Exceed what Greece anu Rome nave QOuc,
Or any land beneath the sun:
Mayn't Massachusetts boast as great
AS any other sister State:
Or where's the town, go far ana near,
That does not find a rival here!
Or where the boy but three feet high
Who's made improvement more than I?
These thoughts inspire my youthful mind
To be the greatest Of mankind;
Great. not like Cesar stained with blood,
But only great as l am good.
Farrar was writing master in 1918
in the elementry school of Lawson
Lyon, located on the north side of DR..
Channing's church in Boston, where
sons of the most distinguished fami-
lies were educated. Master Farrar,
We are told, was remarkable for a
mild and even temper and his benign
ant light stroke of the rattan was a
striking contrast to the severe blows
of the button-wood ferrule so vigorous
ly applied by Master Lyon, the terror
of the school. Master Farrar was the
son of Rev. Stephen Farrar, the first
minister of Ipswich, graduated at
Harvard College, in 1888. He was
born December 8, 1855; married
Phoebe Parker in 1925 (widow of Jonas
c. Champney); his wife died in 1848,
and he died in New Ipswich. January
8. 1851. There is also another little
poem, written by Rev. DR.. T. M. Har-
ris, of Dorchester, Mass, for Edward
Everett when a very small boy, which
is as follows:
Pray, how can I. little lad,
In speaking make q figure?
You're only joking, I'm afraid;
Do wait till am bigger
But since you wish to hear my part
And urge me to begin it,
I'll strive for praise with all my art
Though small my hopes 10 win it
I'll tell a tale, how farmer John
little roam colt bred, sir:
And every night and every morn
He watered and he fed, sir.
Says neighbor Joe to farmer John:
Aren't you q silly dot, sir,
To spend such toll and cost upon
little useless colt, sir:"
Says farmer John to neighbor Joe:
IL bring my little roam up,
Not for the good he can do now,
But will do when he's grown up"
The moral you may all descry,
To keep the tale from spelling,
The little colt you think is l.
know it by your smiling.
And now, dear friends. at my request
Excuse my lisps and stammers;
/ for this once have done my best,
And nOW-I,ll make manners
Chicago Herald.