The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-10-19
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EUGENE FIELDS TRIBUTE
TO MR.. DANA.
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TO Mr.. DANA.
From "a Little Book of Western vers,

" H. MN DANA. &
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(From "a Little Book of Western Verse.')
MR.. DANA, OF THE NEW YORK SUN.
Thar showed up out'n Denver in the spring
Nv 81
A man who'd worked with Dana on the Moo
York Sun.
His name wus Cantell Whoppers, md he wuz
sight ter view
, Ez he walked inter the orf1ce nd inquired fer
wurk to do
Thar warn't no places vacant then, fer be it
understood,
That wuZ the time when talent four-shed at
her altitood;
But thar the stranger fingered, telling Ray
mond nd the rest
Wv what prodgeous wonders he could do
when at his best,
Till finally he stated quite by chance that
he had done
A heap Nv work with Dana on the Moo York
Sun.
Wall, that wuz quite another thing; we owned
that airy cuss
Who'd worked FIR Mr.. Dana must bee good
enough fer u.s.
And so we TUX the strangers word md 'nipped
him while we could,
For if we didn't take him we knew John
Atkins would
And Cooper, too, WuZ moulin round fer enter
prise nd brains,
Whenever them commodities blew in across
the plains.
At any rate nailed him, which made OIL
Cooper swear
And Atkins tear out handfuls Nv his copious
curly hair;
But we set back and cackled, nd he'd power
Nv fun
With our man who's worked with Dana on
the Moo York Sum-
1t made our eyes hang on cur cheeks md
lower jaws ter drop
Ter hear that fel,er telin' how OIL Dana run
his shop:
1t seems that Dana wuz the biggest man you
He lived on human beins nd preferred to eat
'em raw
If he he'd Democratic drugs ter take, before
he took 'em,
AS good old allopathic laws prescribe he allus
shook 'em.
The man that could set down nd write like
Dana never grew,
And the sum of human knowledge wuzn't
half what Dana knew;
The consequence appeared to be that nearly
every one
Concurred with Mr.. Dana of the Moo York
Sum-.
This Teller, Cantell Whoppers, never brought
an item in
He spent his time at PERKINS, shakin' poker
dice for gin.
Whatever the assignment he wuz allus sure
to shirk
He wuz long on likker, and ALFRED short on
work
If any other cuss had played the tricks he
dared ter play,
The daisies would be bloomin' over his re
mains today;
But somehow folks respected him and stood
him to the last,
Considerin his superior connections in the
past,
So, when he bilked at poker, not sucker
drew gun
On the who'd worked with Dana on the
Moo York Sun.
Well, d Dana came ter Denver in the fall Nv
thought ter see,
nice md clean old gentleman so digniied
nd calm,
You bet yer life he never did no human bein'
harm,
certain hearty manner nd fullness Nv the
vest
Betokened that his sperrits nd his victuaIs
wuz the best;
His face was so benevolent his smile so sweet
nd kind,
That they seemed TO be the reflex NV an
honest healthy mind
And God has set upon his head a crown Nv
silver hair
In promise Nv the golden crown he meaneth
him TO wear.
So us boys that met him out'n Denver
there
But fell in love with Dana Nv the Moo York
Sun.
But when he came to Denver in the fall of
His old friend Cantell whoppers disappeared
upon p spree:
The very thought NV seem Dana worked
upon him
CThey hadn't been together fer a year or
two, you know)
That he borrowed all the stuff he could and
started on a bat,
And, strange as it may seem, we didn't see
him after that.
So, when oil Dana hove in sight, we couldn't
understand
That he didn't seem to notice that his crony
want on hand
No casual alusion, not a question, no, not
one,
For the man who'd worked with Dana on
the Moo York Sum-
We broke it gently to him, but he didn't
seem surprised,
Thar wuz no big burst passion as we
fellows had surmised.
He said that Whoppers wuz man he'd never
heard about,
But he mought have carried papers
Jarsey City route;
And then he recollected kearin' Mr.. Taffan
say
That he'd fired a man named Whoppers fur
bein' drunk one day,
Which, with more likker underneath than
money in his vest.
Had started on a freight train fur the great
nd bounding West.
But further information or statistics he had
Nv the man who'd worked with Dana on
the Moo York Sum-
We dropped the matter quietly md never
made no fuss.
When we get played for suckers, why, that's
horse on usi
But ever now md then we Denver fellows
have to 1aff
To hear some other paper boast Nv havin'
on its staff
A man who'd worked with Dana" md then
we fellows wink
And pull our hats down on our eyes md set
around nd think.
1t seems like Dana couldn't be as smart as
people say.
If he educates as many folks nd lets them
And. as for eT1 US, in future wen be very apt
The man who worked with Dana on the
Moo York Sun"
But bless ye Mr.. Dana. May you live
thoussn' years.
To sort O. keep things lively in this vale OF
human tears;
An may 1 live a thousan', too-a thousan'
For shouldn't like to be on earth to
hear you'd passed away.
And when it comes your time to go you'll
need no Latin chaff
Nor geographic data put in your epitaph;
But one straight line of English and OF
truth will let folks know
The homage md the gratitude nd reyer-
ence they owe;
You'll need no eptaph but this: Here sleeps
the man who run
The best md brightest paper, the Moo York
Sun"