The Norsk Nightingale | Page 2

ant got no panga to lend.
Drenk and headache, headache and
drenk.
Lumberyack faller ban sucker, ay tenk.
LITTLE STEENA YOHNSON
Ay ban tenking lots of yu,
Little Steena Yohnson,
Ay ban sure yu
love me true,
Little Steena Yohnson.
Oder geezers lak to play
In
yure yard, but yu skol say,
"Ay don't lak yu fallers, nay!"
Little
Steena Yohnson.
Some day yu skol be my vife,
Little Steena Yohnson:
Ay ban glad,
yu bet yure life,
Little Steena Yohnson.
Ay ban vork lak nigger, tu,

Yumping 'round vith treshing crew;
Ay skol building home for yu,

Little Steena Yohnson.
Maybe ve skol saving dough,
Little Steena Yohnson;
Back to
Norvay ve skol go,
Little Steena Yohnson--
Back var dis har
midnight sun
Shining lak a son of a gun;
Ant yu tenk dis har ban
fun,
Little Steena Yohnson?
OLAF
Yust two years ago last venter
Ay meet Olaf op in camp;
Ve ban
lumberyacks togedder.

Every morning we skol tramp
'Bout sax
miles yust after breakfast
Till we come to big pine-trees;
Den our
straw boss he skol make us
Vork lak little busy bees.

Olaf, he ban yolly faller,
He skol taling yoke all day;
Sometimes he
sing dis har ragtime,
Yust to passing time avay.
And at night, ven
we ban smoking
After supper, he skol make
All us lumberyacks to
laughing
Till our belts skol nearly break.
Me and Olaf bunked together,
And sometimes he taling me
'Bout
his vife and little Torger,
Who ban living cross big sea.
"Ay ban
saving dough," say Olaf;
"And next summer, ef ay can,
Ay skol
send for vife and baby;
Den ay ban a happy man!"
One night Olaf getting letter
Ven we coming back to camp;
He yust
tal me, "Little Torger,"
And his eyes ban gude and damp.
Dis ban
how ay know vy Olaf
Never taling no more yoke,--
Vy he yust sit
down at night-time,
Close by me, var he skol smoke.
"YENNIE DEAR"
Vy yu mak my heart to yump,
Yennie dear?
Ay ban yust a fulish
chump,
Yennie dear.
Yu ban sveet lak summer rose,
Lak a qveen
from head to toes.
Ay ant fit for you, ay s'pose,
Yennie dear.
Yu ban gude the whole day long,
Yennie dear;
Yu ant never du no
wrong,
Yennie dear.
Ay ban tuff old lumberyack,
Taking drenk
yust ven ay lak,
Getting slugged and slugging back,
Yennie dear.
But ven ay ban tenk of yu,
Yennie dear,
Ay ban all made over new,

Yennie dear,
Ef ay have yu at my side,
Ef yu ban my little bride,

Ay skol let dese fallers slide,
Yennie dear.
Oh, ay need yu in my life,
Yennie dear;
Ef ay have an anyel vife,

Yennie dear,
Maybe ay can learn to be
Part lak anyel, tu, yu see;

But it ban big yob for me,
Yennie dear.
"PEEK-A-BOO"

"Peek-a-boo!" say little Olaf.
"Yu can't find me. Ay ban hid."
Den
ay used to look all over
For my little blue-eyed kid.
Op in attic,
down in cellar,
Back of chairs on parlor floor;
Den he used to laugh,
and tal me,
"Ay ban back of kitchen door."
"Peek-a-boo!" he used to tal me.
"Shut yure eyes, and don't you
peek!"
Den ay feel his arms around me
And his kisses on my cheek.

"Now ay'm hiding, dad," he tal me!
"Maybe, ef you look some
more,
Yu skol find yure little Olaf--
Ay ban back of kitchen door."
"Peek-a-boo!" ay hear him calling,
Lak he called long time ago.
Var
ban little Olaf hiding?
Maybe anyel fallers know.
Tousand times ay
look to find him
Hiding back of kitchen door,
But ay only see some
shadows:
Ay can't find him any more.
SONNET ON STEWED PRUNES
Ay ant lak pie-plant pie so wery vell;
Ven ay skol eat ice-cream, my
yaws du ache;
Ay ant much stuck on dis har yohnnie-cake
Or
crackers yust so dry sum peanut shell.
And ven ay eat dried apples, ay
skol svell
Until ay tenk my belt skol nearly break;
And dis har
breakfast food, ay tenk, ban fake:
Yim Dumps ban boosting it, so it
skol sell.
But ay tal yu, ef yu vant someteng fine,
Someteng so sveet
lak wery sveetest honey,
Vith yuice dat taste about lak nice port vine,

Only it ant cost hardly any money,--
Ef yu vant someteng yust lak
anyel fude,
Yu try stewed prunes. By yiminy! dey ban gude.
A GOOD FELLOW
Dey tal me ay ban a gude faller.
Ay guess dey ban right; but, yee
whiz!
Ef yu ever ban a gude faller,
Yu know 'bout how costly it is.

Ay vork op in voods since Nowember,

And ban op on drive all the
spring,
And den ay com down har in city
And vatch all my riches
tak ving.

Oh, yes, ay ban yolly gude faller,--
All venter ay eat pork and beans;

Ay only ban har since last Monday,
Now ay ant got cent in my
yeans.
Dese geezers dat call me "Old Stocking,"
And pat me lak hal
on the back,
Skol give me gude snub 'bout to-morrow,
And calling
me "slob lumberyack!"
Ay meet bunch of fallers last Monday,
Yust after ay cashing my
check;
Ay s'pose dat ay have it all coming.
Val, ay getting it gude,
right in neck.
Ay meet little blonde, her name's Yulia,
Ay tenk dis
har Yulia ban Yew;
She touch me for 'bout saxty dollars,
And little
gold watch ay have, tu.
But Yulia she call me gude faller,
Ay s'pose she tenk dat vill help