FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   275   276   277   278   279   280   281   282   283   284   285   286   287   288   289   290   291   292   293   294   295   296   297   298   299  
300   301   302   303   304   305   306   307   308   309   310   311   312   313   314   315   316   317   318   319   320   321   322   323   324   >>   >|  
s brown and bare Rolled the soft waves of golden hair, Where, almost strangled with the spray, The sun, a willing sufferer, lay. It was the fairest sight, I ween, That the young man had ever seen; And with his features all aglow, The happy fellow told her so! And she without the least surprise Looked on him with those heavenly eyes; Saw underneath that shade of tan The handsome features of a man; And with a joy but rarely known She drew that dear face to her own, And by her bridal bonnet hid-- I cannot tell you what she did! So, on they ride until among The new-born leaves with dewdrops hung, The parsonage, arrayed in white, Peers out,--a more than welcome sight. Then, with a cloud upon his face, "What shall we do," he turned to say, "Should he refuse to take his pay From what is in the pillow-case?" And glancing down his eye surveyed The pillow-case before him laid, Whose contents reaching to its hem, Might purchase endless joy for them. The maiden answers, "Let us wait, To borrow trouble where's the need?" Then, at the parson's squeaking gate Halted the more than willing steed. Down from the horse the bridegroom sprung; The latchless gate behind him swung. The knocker of that startled door, Struck as it never was before, Brought the whole household pale with fright; And there, with blushes on his cheek, So bashful he could hardly speak, The farmer met their wondering sight. The groom goes in, his errand tells, And, as the parson nods, he leans Far o'er the window-sill and yells, "Come in! He says he'll take the beans!" Oh! how she jumped! With one glad bound, She and the bean-bag reached the ground. Then, clasping with each dimpled arm The precious product of the farm, She bears it through the open door; And, down upon the parlor floor, Dumps the best beans vines ever bore. Ah! happy were their songs that day, When man and wife they rode away. But happier this chorus still Which echoed through those woodland scenes: "God bless the priest of Whitinsville! God bless the man who took the beans!" WHEN MALINDY SINGS[77] PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR G'way an' quit dat noise, Miss Lucy-- Put dat mu
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   275   276   277   278   279   280   281   282   283   284   285   286   287   288   289   290   291   292   293   294   295   296   297   298   299  
300   301   302   303   304   305   306   307   308   309   310   311   312   313   314   315   316   317   318   319   320   321   322   323   324   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

parson

 
pillow
 

features

 
errand
 

window

 

LAURENCE

 

wondering

 

DUNBAR

 

Struck

 

knocker


startled

 

Brought

 
bashful
 

farmer

 

blushes

 

household

 
fright
 

priest

 
Whitinsville
 

chorus


scenes
 

echoed

 

happier

 

parlor

 

MALINDY

 

jumped

 

woodland

 

reached

 

ground

 

product


latchless

 

precious

 

clasping

 
dimpled
 
handsome
 

rarely

 

underneath

 
Looked
 

surprise

 

heavenly


bridal

 

bonnet

 

strangled

 

golden

 

Rolled

 
sufferer
 

fellow

 
fairest
 

maiden

 

answers