Classic Poem

(A SAVAGE SORT OF SONG ON THE ROAD)

" O NÉ I was a gallant and bold I
And you so tender and true,
But I'll never again be the old I
Nor you the old you.

I shall go lounging along on the edge
Of the grass. . . . You'll loiter along by the hedge.
I shall go dogged through dust and the dirt
Like an ass in my moods.
You with a new sweetheart at your skirt
Ev'ry few roods. . . .
" Once I was a gallant, " etc.

We'll maybe jog along together
A long way;
Maybe put up with the weather together,
Better or worse
As it chances day by day,
Or maybe part with a kick and a curse
I and you,
After a turning or two. . . .
" But I'll never again, " etc.