OLD MAN'S NURSERY RHYME

In the jolly winters

Of the long-ago,

It was not so cold as now —

O! No! No!

Then, as I remember,

Snowballs to eat

Were as good as apples now.

And every bit as sweet!

In the jolly winters

Of the dead-and-gone,

Bub was warm as summer,

With his red mitts on,—

Just in his little waist-

And-pants all together,

Who ever hear him growl

About cold weather?

In the jolly winters

Of the long-ago —

Was it HALF so cold as now?

O! No! No!

Who caught his death o’ cold,

Making prints of men

Flat-backed in snow that now's

Twice as cold again?

In the jolly winters

Of the dead-and-gone,

Startin’ out rabbit-huntin’ —

Early as the dawn,—

Who ever froze his fingers,

Ears, heels, or toes,—

Or'd‘ a’ cared if he had?

Nobody knows!

Nights by the kitchen-stove,

Shellin’ white and red

Corn in the skillet, and

Sleepin’ four abed!

Ah! the jolly winters

Of the long-ago!

We were not as old as now —

O! No! No!