Classic Poem

You've seen him — 'course you have — the man who might have been so great,
If he'd had the inclination and could only struck his gait;
Who's afeard to work in summer when the temper'ture is riz,
And who can't work in the winter, 'cause he's got the rheumatiz;
Who goes through life complainin', 'cause the good things pass him by,
An' a-tellin' what he could do, if he'd only half way try;
The man that in the race of life is joggin' 'way behind,
But who might 'a' led the winners, if he'd only had a mind.

When I hear a feller tellin' 'bout the great things he could do,
If he felt like, allus makes me think of our old Bobby Blue;
A great, big, strappin' feller, but at workin' he was slack,
'Cause he had a sunstroke once and was afeard he'd bring it back.
But Lor! I guess there's nothin' that was ever yet to do,
But Bobby could 'a' done it, if he'd really wanted to.
You'd have to scour the universe with fine toothed combs to find
A man to beat him workin' — if he'd only had a mind.

I've seen him sittin' evenin's on an old three-legged chair,
His pants all rags and patches and with both his elbows bare,
A-scrapin' an old fiddle till he'd allus weary us,
Screw up the pegs, an' cross his legs, an' look mysterious,
Then, winkin' confidential like, he'd say: " Don't say a word,
But I got the greatest idee that you ever seen or heard.
It's for a patent right; you boys jest keep still and you'll find
I kin make it worth a million — if I only got a mind. "

Again I've seen him sittin', with the people passin' by,
A-chewin' cheap tobacco and a-spittin' at a fly;
And he'd point out the rich merchant that he might 'a' had as clerk,
And the house he might 'a' lived in, if he'd had a mind to work;
And the girls he might 'a' married, if he'd had a mind to try;
And the teams he might 'a' driven, that went swif'ly steppin' by;
And the gems he might 'a' sparkled, and the way he might 'a' shined,
With an independent fortune — if he'd only had a mind.

One night we went together to th' op'ry-house to hear
A way-up concert company that was goin' to appear.
They had the finest fiddler there that ever tuned a string,
An' the noises that he imitated jest beat everything.
At first he had us laughin', an' next time he made us cry,
An' he played bird songs so life-like you could almost see 'em fly;
An' Bobby sit and yawned and blinked, and finally opined
He could beat him all to thunder — if he only had a mind.

Th' last time I saw Bobby he was purty nigh the end,
A-suff'rin' from the fever an' he didn't seem to mend.
The doctor gave him pills and things, but didn't do no good.
He said he'd never get well and old Bobby swore he would.
Doc was a-feelin' of his pulse — 'twas beatin' mighty slow,
Says he: " It's only forty, and that's runnin' mighty low. "
An' Bobby says, says he: " It may be runnin' 'way behind,
But I could run her up to ninety — if I only had a mind. "

I can see him standin', peerin' at the gates of Paradise,
With a sort o' leerin', sneerin'-like expression in his eyes.
I can see him sizin' up the gate, an' then I see him feel
The gold an' pearly trimmin's and a-wonderin' if they're real;
I can see him steppin' through an' takin' in the sights inside;
I can hear him tellin' Peter what he could do if he tried;
An' his drawlin' voice a-sayin' that, while things was mighty fine,
He could build a blame sight better — if he only had a mind.