The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, November 17, 1894, Page 9, Image 11

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    Notice the GLOBE'S 10. 15, and $20 Suits and Overcoats.
THE COURIER
X
A
HOW SONG IS SUGGESTED.
. The nimble witted journalist is over ready to take a hint and to
turn nursery rhymes or antiquated jingle into marketable matter,
thoroughly up to date. It was one of thoso clover fellows, tho late
,.Ben King, who, remembering the old quatrain:
"There was an old woman and what do you think?
She lived upon nothing but victuals and drink.
Yes, vituals and drink was tho chief of her diet.
And this funny old women could never keep quiet."
Grasped tho idea and wroto tho popular doggoral, altered but not
improved, by Walter Jones in h;s tramp scene in "1492,' which runs
as follows:
"Nothing to do but work,
Nothing to eat but food,
Nothing to wear but clothes
To keep us from being nude.
Nothing to breathe but air, s-
Quick as a flash it's gone,
c-i Nowhere to fall but off,
, Nowhere to stand but on.
- Nothing to comb but hair,
-'. Nowhere to sleep but in bed.
i"f Nothing to weep but tears,
" Nothing to scratch but head.
Nothing to sing but songs,
Ah ! well ! alas ! alack ! x
There's nowhere to go but out,
. . And nowhere to como but back.
Nothing to see but sights.
Nothing to quench but thirst
And I'm still suffering.'
'Another bright fellow over in London noticed that tho
r rhyme,
"The cat ran over the roof of the house
With a raw lump of liver in her mouth."
Was popular because of its alliteration, and taking tho hint, wrote:
t
'" "Linger longer, Lucy,
- Linger longer, Lou;
Longer lingor, linger longer
Linger longer, Lou."
This atrocious bit of tangling trash was set to music and caught
the town, and afterward became the rage in the music halls of two
continents.
A slighter hint than either of those cited gave rise to tho song:
"Wait! Mister Postman," which tells tho story of a little girl who
wrote a letter "to mamma in heaven," and insisted that the post
man should mail it. The first stanza is as follows:
"The postman was lite
H And was running along,
To gather the letters in time,
, t When he heard a sweet voice,
Like a meadow lark's song,
; Or a mellow-toned silver bell's chime:
,, "Wait, Mister Postman;
Don't hurry so fa at;
nursery
Wait, Mister Postman;
I've caught you at last;
This letter must go in tho mail beforo seven -
This lotter Ivo written to mamma in hoavcn."
Tho author of the song, being a newspaper man, was literally on
tho alert for suggestions, and when his little girl ran to him ono
morning with an old envelope which sho had picked up somewhoro
and told him that sho had a lotter from Nellie, a little playmate of
hers whom sho loved very much and who had recently died ho saw
tho pathos of tho incident and in a few minutes had written, "Wait,
Mister Postman'
Every line that is printed has its auggostion in something that
has existed, as every man has a shadow, and it wo could traco tho
history of works of fiction, of Bongs, or ovon tho funny paragraphs
which wo read so carelessly, we find history back of them all, per
haps tragedy.
HER FORTE.
Sho is fond of athletics, thoy aro her soul's delight,
And at tennis, ball and rowing sho is simply out of sight;
But at present sho has banished all pleasures from hor mind,
For sho loves a game of football more than all tho rest combined.
Sho wishes that sho was a man somo twenty times a day.
It makes hor mad to tell her that sho isn't built to play;
I always seo her on tho grounds whenever there's a game,
But sho says tho looking at it is monotonous and tamo.
Of course, you say, she'd bo no use Upon a football team.
But appearances, they tell me, are not always what they seem;
Tis true that in the rush line she'd bo nothing but a stick;
But Bho'd make a dandy full back; you ought to see her kick.
Charles E. Nettletom.
GINGER SNAPS.
Don't sit in a draught. If you do the doctor will in all probability
bo the one to cash it.
"Are you a district messenger boy?" asked tho near-sighted old
gentleman of an urchin in the street.
"No sir," was she reply, "it's my sore too that makes mo walk that
way."
Mr. Binks I seo by this paper that hairpins were invented in
1515, and
Mrs. Binks Dear me! How do you suppose women buttoned
their shoes and unlocked trunks beforo that?
An Observing Celestial. A chinaman is speaking to himsolf as ho
irons a shirt. Picks up shirt showing evidence of being well cared
for, and says:
"Bachelor. Him landlady fix him."
Picks up another, buttonless and all frayed at the neck and wrists,
and says:
"Mallied man."
Where's yer daddy?"
"He's ploughin'."
"An' where's yer mammy?"
"Makin' him plough."
Lamp frames and crepe papor at Crancer's, 212 So. 11th.
zl
Awarded Highest Honors World's Fair.
PRICE'S
frpalfl Baking
IKJiPowder
- v
The only Pure Cream of Tartar Powder. No Ammonia; No Alum.
Used in Millions of Glomes 40 Years the Statfdar2
WUi yotiiook atThe Globe's correct overcoati?