The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1918-01-24

he was just q 1IGIle 1eller MucH
too young to hide the hope in his eyes
or the fear that trembled on his lips
and quavered in his voice.
Please SIR, he began a little I'M
certainly, as he sided into the back
Office and gave me the once over, are
you the poetry reporter mean do you
ever print poems in your paperf''
Upon being assured that we were
sometimes guilty of that little thing
he proceeded more boldly as if he had
captured his first trench and was
merely waiting for the smoke of battle
to clear away before attacking another
EtWell'', he went on, t'my brother
who's a soldier, sent them all the way
from Waco and I think they re bully.
They we got so much swing to them
and they re funny too. They re kinda
songs, guess, but you can t sing some
of 'em cause you don't know the
tunes. The words are good though
and if you're good you can hum 'em
to most any tune you want to-.
Here he drew a small booklet
from his pocket and proudly exhibited
it for my inspection.
"See it's got flag on it,,
he said as he pointed to a flaming
Stars and Stripes emblazoned on the
cardboard cover, <and the poems are
just like that-I mean they've got life
and color and patriotism.
"Now this first one-it's called
Knowledge. I can Il say all the words
in it but they look funny and sound
funnier still when some one reads them
right. That T-i-m-b-u-c-t-o-o''- spelling
it Quits a world beater but after
you get over that you re all right
mean It's easy sailin'. Of course
there Is 'Borneo' but the wild men
come from there and so-and so
everybody knows it,.
Wouldn't you like to read it,, he
asked hopefully as he handed me the
book and waited for my answer.
Sure I'll read it,, I replied en-
couragingly -and did-out loud, too
He looked right at me all the time I
was reading and fingered his stocking
cap nervously when / approached
"Timbuctoo" as if he were anything
but certain that I'd pass it without
stammering or stopping altogether
before I got to the "Klondike"
and "Borneo''.
He enjoyed it though-every word
of it-and that in spite of the
fact that it expressed an involved
theory phrased in these suggestive
but difficult terms:
Absolute knowledge I have none,
But my aunt s washerwoman
sisters son
Heard q policeman on his beat
Say to a laborer on the street
That he had letter just last week,
Written in the finest Greek,
From Chinese Coolie in
Timbuctoo,
Who said the niggers in Cuba knew
Of a certain man in a Texas town
Who got it straight from circus
clown,
That a man in Klondike heard the
From gang of South American
Jews
About somebody in Borneo
Who heard man who claimed to
know
OF swell society female rake,
Whose nnOther-in-law will
undertake
To prove that her seventh hus-
bands sisters niece
Has son who has friend
Who knows when the war is go
ing to end''.
Overjoyed when T smiled at the poem
he took new courage and advanced
with less caution and more enthusiasm
"Oh there's lots funnier ones than
that" he declared exultantly. tfThere IS
one about a nurse that'lI make you
laugh yourself to death. It's about
soldier that dreamed he turned to ice
cream because the nurse didn't give
him enough pills-let me SEQ yes
I've got it now-almost the last one in
the book. A soldier says it all-don It
you want to read it, too?"
Under the circumstances Il did
and again he listened. carefully as
I sing-songed out:
Nursei Nurse!
A glass Of ice water!
Hey! Nurse!
Head IS gettin' hotteri
Mustn It drink, but I gotteri
noo-o ona i'll WHATS Loo,;,,cr +bo ! ,,,,,-at