FOREWORD
Let me sing the songs o' the Common Place,
As the whitenin' years roll by;
Let me trace the smiles o' each passin' face
Let me sound each sob an' sigh;
Let me echo the laughter o' children,
An' the liquid lyrics o' birds;
Let me sing the songs in the hearts o' men
The songs without notes or words!
Ever let me sing o' the love o' life,
Let me sing o' the days I knew
When youth was mine' an' joy was rife
An' friends were ever true;
Let me sing a song o' the Common Man—
The man o' the sweat an' grime—
Who follows the windin' caravan
Through the long, slow years o' Time!
Let me sing the old time melodies—
The songs I used to know—
The sweet lullabies o' Slumberland Seas
On the shores o' Long Ago;
An' e'er let my humble pen indite
The songs that are seldom sung;
The old songs that I sought to sing an' write
In the days when my heart was young!
GOD BLESS THIS GOOD OLD WORLD
Trouble? Why, man, I have had my share
Of dolor an' want an' sorrow an' care;
I've hit the dirt, an' the ground was hard.
An' I've lost my spunk for a while, but pard—
This is a good old world!
Trouble? Why, man, you can go down the line,
An' the checks on the side are all checks o' mine.
I've stacked all my hopes on a play an' lost,
But though I've been jimmied an' double-crossed—
This is a good old world!
Trouble? Well maybe you've had a whole lot,
But there's always an end, an' like as not
You've hit the last load an' sailin' will be fine—
If you keep up your nerve, old friend o' mine—
This is a good old world!
Trouble? Why bless your old heart, Mister Man,
I've had 'bout as much as a fellow can!
I'm livin' yet, an' I'll be livin' when
The next bunch o' blues gets past me again—
God bless this good old world!
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