Husband and Heathen
by Sam Walter Foss (1858-1911)

O’er the men of Ethiopia she would pour her cornucopia,
And shower wealth and plenty on the people of Japan,
Send down jelly cake and candies to the Indians of the Andes,
And a cargo of plum pudding to the men of Hindoostan;
         And she said she loved ’em so,
         Bushman, Finn, and Eskimo.
If she had the wings of eagles to their succour she would fly
         Loaded down with jam and jelly,
         Succotash and vermicelli,
Prunes, pomegranates, plums and pudding, peaches, pineapples, and pie.

She would fly with speedy succour to the natives of Molucca
With whole loads of quail and salmon, and with tons of fricassee
         And give cake in fullest measure
         To the men of Australasia
And all the Archipelagoes that dot the southern sea;
         And the Anthropophagi,
         All their lives deprived of pie,
She would satiate and satisfy with custards, cream, and mince;
         And those miserable Australians
         And the Borrioboolighalians,
She would gorge with choicest jelly, raspberry, currant, grape, and quince.

But like old war-time hardtackers, her poor husband lived on crackers,
Bought at wholesale from a baker, eaten from the mantelshelf;
         If the men of Madagascar,
         And the natives of Alaska,
Had enough to sate their hunger, let him look out for himself.
         And his coat had but one tail
         And he used a shingle nail
To fasten up his galluses when he went out to his work;
         And she used to spend his money
         To buy sugar-plums and honey
For the Terra del Fuegian and the Turcoman and Turk.

Views: 45