Ef you strike a thorn or rose,
Keep a-goin'!
Ef it hails, or ef it snows,
Keep a-goin!
...
When times are bad an' folks are sad
An' gloomy day by day,
Jest try your best at lookin' glad
An' whistle 'em away.
...
In the white moonlight, where the willow waves,
He halfway gallops among the graves—
A tiny ghost in the gloom and gleam,
...
Li'l bit er trouble,
Honey, fer terday;
Yander come Termorrer-
...
De fiel's 'll soon be hummin'
Roun' de country high en low;
De harves' is a-comin':
Hoe yo' row!
...
JEST a-wearyin' fer you
All the time a-feelin' blue;
Wishin' fer you wonderin' when
You'll be comin' home again ;
...
The softest whisperings of the scented South,
And rust and roses in the cannon's mouth;
And, where the thunders of the fight were born,
...
This world that we're a-livin' in
Is mighty hard to beat;
You git a thorn with every rose,
But ain't the roses sweet!
...
The old flag is a--doin' her very level best,
She's a rainbow roun' the country from the rosy east to the west;
...
He did n’t know much music
When first he come along;
An’ all the birds went wonderin’
Why he did n’t sing a song.
...