The Voyageur and Other Poems | Page 2

tour
For blowin' de worl' aroun'--

But w'erever he sail an' w'erever he ride,
De trail is long an' de trail
is wide,
An' city an' town on ev'ry side
Can tell of hees campin'
groun'."
So dat 's 'de reason I drink to-night
To de man of de Grand Nor' Wes',

For hees heart was young, an' hees heart was light
So long as he 's
leevin' dere--
I 'm proud of de sam' blood in my vein
I 'm a son of
de Nort' Win' wance again--
So we 'll fill her up till de bottle 's drain

An' drink to de Voyageur.
[1] New Year's day.
[2] Indian boot.
[3] Dog-sleigh.
[4] Canadian sash.
[Illustration: Flower]
[Illustration: Moose]
BRUNO THE HUNTER
You never hear tell, Marie, ma femme,
Of Bruno de hunter man,

Wit' hees wild dogs chasin' de moose an' deer,
Every day on de long,
long year,
Off on de hillside far an' near,
An' down on de beeg
savane?
Not'ing can leev' on de woods, Marie,
W'en Bruno is on de track,

An' young caribou, an' leetle red doe
Wit' baby to come on de spring,
dey know
De pity dey get w'en hees bugle blow
An' de black dogs
answer back.

No bird on de branch can finish hees song,
De squirrel no longer
play--
De leaf on de maple don't need to wait
Till fros' of October is
at de gate
'Fore de blood drops come: an' de fox sleeps late
W'en
Bruno is pass dat way.
So de devil ketch heem of course at las'
Dat 's w'at de ole folk say,

An' spik to heem, "Bruno, w'at for you kill
De moose an' caribou of
de hill
An' fill de woods wit' deir blood until
You could run a mill
night an' day?"
[Illustration: "So de devil ketch heem of course at las'."]
"Mebbe you lak to be moose youse'f,
An' see how de hunter go,
So
I 'll change your dogs into loup garou,[1]
An' wance on de year dey 'll
be chasin' you--
An' res' of de tam w'en de sport is troo,
You 'll pass
wit' me down below."
An' dis is de night of de year, Marie,
Bruno de hunter wake:
Soon
as de great beeg tonder cloud
Up on de mountain 's roarin' loud--

He 'll come from hees grave w'ere de pine tree crowd
De shore of de
leetle lake.
You see de lightning zig, zig, Marie,
Spittin' lak' loup cervier,[2]

Ketch on de trap? Oh! it won't be long
Till mebbe you lissen anoder
song,
For de sky is dark an' de win' is strong,
An' de chase is n't far
away.
W'y shiver so moche, Marie, ma femme,
For de log is burnin' bright?

Ah! dere she's goin', "Hulloo! Hulloo!"
An' oh! how de tonder is
roarin' too!
But it can't drown de cry of de loup garou
On Bruno de
hunter's night.
Over de mountain an' t'roo de swamp,
Don't matter how far or near,

Every place hees moccasin know
Bruno de hunter he 's got to go

'Fore de grave on de leetle lake below
Close up for anoder year.

But dey say de ole feller watch all night,
So you need n't be scare,
Marie,
For he 'll never stir from de rocky cave
W'ere door only
open beneat' de wave,
Till Bruno come back to hees lonely grave--

An' de devil he turn de key.
Dat 's way for punish de hunter man
W'en murder is on hees min'--

So he better stop w'ile de work is new,
Or mebbe de devil will ketch
heem too,
An' chase heem aroun' wit' de loup garou
Gallopin' close
behin'.
[1] Were wolf.
[2] Lynx.
[Illustration: Border]
PRIDE
Ma fader he spik to me long ago,
"Alphonse, it is better go leetle slow,

Don't put on de style if you can't afford,
But satisfy be wit' your
bed an' board.
De bear wit' hees head too high alway,
Know not'ing
at all till de trap go smash.
An' mooshrat dat 's swimmin' so proud
to-day
Very often to-morrow is on de hash." [1]
Edouard de Seven of Angleterre,
An' few oder place beside,
He 's
got de horse an' de carriage dere
W'enever he want to ride.
Wit'
sojer in front to clear de way,
Sojer behin' all dress so gay,

Ev'rywan makin' de grand salaam,
An' plaintee o' ban' playin' all de
tam
Edouard de Seven of Angleterre,
All he has got to do,
W'en he 's
crossin' de sea, don't matter w'ere,
Is call for de ship an' crew.
Den
hois' de anchor from down below,
Vive le Roi! an' away she go,
An'
flag overhead, w'en dey see dat sight
W'ere is de nation don't be
polite?

An' dere 's de boss of United State,
An' w'at dey call Philippine--

De Yankee t'ink he was somet'ing great,
An' beeg as de king or
queen--
So dey geev' heem a house near touch de sky,
An' paint it
so w'ite it was blin' de eye
An' long as he 's dere beginnin' to en',

Don't cos' heem not'ing for treat hees frien'.
So dere 's two feller, Edouard de King
An' Teddy Roos-vel' also,

No wonder dey 're proud, for dey got few t'ing
Was helpin' dem mak'
de show--
But oh! ma Gosh! w'en you talk of pride
An' w'at dey