Riley Child-Rhymes | Page 3

Raggedy!
Raggedy Man!
CURLY LOCKS
[Illustration: Curly Locks--Title]
_Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash
the dishes, nor yet feed the swine,--
But sit on a cushion and sew a
fine seam,
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream._
Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
The throb of my heart
is in every line,
And the pulse of a passion as airy and glad
In its
musical beat as the little Prince had!
[Illustration: Sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam]
Thou shalt not wash the dishes, nor yet feed the swine!--
O I'll dapple
thy hands with these kisses of mine
Till the pink of the nail of each
finger shall be
As a little pet blush in full blossom for me.
But sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam,
And thou shalt have fabric
as fair as a dream,--
The red of my veins, and the white of my love,

And the gold of my joy for the braiding thereof.
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream
From a service of silver,
with jewels agleam,--
At thy feet will I bide, at thy beck will I rise,

And twinkle my soul in the night of thine eyes!
_Curly Locks! Curly Locks! wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash
the dishes, nor yet feed the swine.--
But sit on a cushion and sew a

fine seam,
And feast upon strawberries, sugar and cream._
THE FUNNY LITTLE FELLOW
[Illustration: The Funny Little Fellow--Title]
'Twas a Funny Little Fellow
Of the very purest type,
For he had a
heart as mellow
As an apple over-ripe;
And the brightest little
twinkle
When a funny thing occurred,
And the lightest little tinkle

Of a laugh you ever heard!
His smile was like the glitter
Of the sun in tropic lands,
And his talk
a sweeter twitter
Than the swallow understands;
Hear him sing--and
tell a story--
Snap a joke--ignite a pun,--
'Twas a
capture--rapture--glory,
And explosion--all in one!
Though he hadn't any money--
That condiment which tends
To
make a fellow "honey"
For the palate of his friends;--
Sweet
simples he compounded--
Sovereign antidotes for sin
Or taint,--a
faith unbounded
That his friends were genuine.
He wasn't honored, may be--
For his songs of praise were slim,--

Yet I never knew a baby
That wouldn't crow for him;
I never knew
a mother
But urged a kindly claim
Upon him as a brother,
At the
mention of his name.
[Illustration: Never knew a baby that wouldn't crow for him]
The sick have ceased their sighing
And have even found the grace

Of a smile when they were dying
As they looked upon his face;

And I've seen his eyes of laughter
Melt in tears that only ran
As
though, swift dancing after,
Came the Funny Little Man.
He laughed away the sorrow,
And he laughed away the gloom
We
are all so prone to borrow

From the darkness of the tomb;
And he

laughed across the ocean
Of a happy life, and passed,
With a laugh
of glad emotion,
Into Paradise at last.
And I think the Angels knew him,
And had gathered to await
His
coming, and run to him
Through the widely-opened Gate--
With
their faces gleaming sunny
For his laughter-loving sake,
And
thinking, "What a funny
Little Angel he will make!"
THE HAPPY LITTLE CRIPPLE
[Illustration: The Happy Little Cripple--Title]
I'm thist a little cripple boy, an' never goin' to grow
An' get a great big
man at all!--'cause Aunty told me so.
When I was thist a baby onc't, I
falled out of the bed
An' got "The Curv'ture of the Spine"--'at's what
the Doctor said. I never had no Mother nen--fer my Pa runned away

An' dassn't come back here no more--'cause he was drunk one day An'
stobbed a man in thish-ere town, an' couldn't pay his fine! An' nen my
Ma she died--an' I got "Curv'ture of the Spine!"
[Illustration: An' I peck on the winder]
I'm nine years old! An' you can't guess how much I weigh, I bet!-- Last
birthday I weighed thirty-three!--An' I weigh thirty yet! I'm awful little
fer my size--I'm purt' nigh littler 'nan
Some babies is!--an' neighbers
all calls me "The Little Man!" An' Doc one time he laughed an' said: "I
'spect, first thing you know, You'll have a little spike-tail coat an' travel
with a show!" An' nen I laughed--till I looked round an' Aunty was
a-cryin'-- Sometimes she acts like that, 'cause I got "Curv'ture of the
Spine."
I set--while Aunty's washin'--on my little long-leg stool,
An' watch
the little boys an' girls a-skippin' by to school; An' I peck on the winder,
an' holler out an' say:
"Who wants to fight The Little Man 'at dares
you all today?" An', nen the boys climbs on the fence, an' little girls
peeks through, An' they all says: "Cause you're so big, you think we're

'feared o' you!" An' nen they yell, an' shake their fist at me, like I shake
mine-- They're thist in fun, you know, 'cause I got "Curv'ture of the
Spine!"
At evening, when the ironin's done, an' Aunty's fixed the fire, An' filled
an' lit the lamp, an'