Tale Of The Wayside Poem by Kristjan Niels Julius Jonsson

That half a dollar bottle held not enough for me;
Its empty form I viewed with consternation;
Another flask I opened and when its cork was free
I drank its contents without hesitation.

My eyes grew dim and strangely the day was changed to night,
In body I felt weak, ín spirit humble.
I toppled over headlong, but with my waning might
l quickly rose — then took another tumble.

I lay there still for hours for heavy was my yoke;
It did not seem my friends had missed me — really!
I thought that I was dead from an apoplectic stroke
And possibly had drunk a little freely.

At last my feet grew stronger, my eyes began to see,
And Satan lost a sheep he would'st devour;
And thus it has been proven on Lasarus and me,
That life surpasseth death in strength and power.