Poems

Poems List

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James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

My Father's Halls

My Father's Halls

My father's halls, so rich and rare,
Are desolate and bleak and bare;
My father's heart and halls are one,
Since I, their life an…

224
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

My Bride That Is To Be

My Bride That Is To Be

O soul of mine, look out and see
My bride, my bride that is to be!
Reach out with mad, impatient hands,
And draw aside futur…

329
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Mr. Hammond's Parable--The Dreamer

Mr. Hammond's Parable--The Dreamer

I

He was a Dreamer of the Days:
Indolent as a lazy breeze
Of midsummer, in idlest ways
Lolling about…

267
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Moon-Drowned

Moon-Drowned


'Twas the height of the fete when we quitted the riot,
And quietly stole to the terrace alone,
Where, pale as the lovers that ever swe…

308
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Man's Devotion

Man's Devotion

A lover said, 'O Maiden, love me well,
For I must go away:
And should ANOTHER ever come to tell
Of love--What WILL you say?'
<…

331
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

May I Not Weep With You

May I Not Weep With You

Let me come in where you sit weeping—aye,
Let me, who have not any child to die,
Weep with you for the little one whose love

231
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Lockerbie Street

Lockerbie Street

Such a dear little street it is, nestled away
From the noise of the city and heat of the day,
In cool shady coverts of whispering trees,…

336
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Lullaby

Lullaby


The maple strews the embers of its leaves
O'er the laggard swallows nestled 'neath the eaves;
And the moody cricket falters in his cry--Bab…

307
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Little Dick And The Clock

Little Dick And The Clock

When Dicky was sick
In the night, and the clock,
As he listened, said 'TickAtty--
tick-atty--tock!'
He said that _it…

303
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Little Orphant Annie

Little Orphant Annie

To all the little children: -- The happy ones; and sad ones;
The sober and the silent ones; the boisterous and glad ones;
The good o…

319
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Limitations Of Genius

Limitations Of Genius

The audience entire seemed pleased--indeed
_Extremely_ pleased. And little Maymie, freed
From her task of instructing, ran to show …

293
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Let Us Forget

Let Us Forget

Let us forget. What matters it that we
Once reigned o'er happy realms of long-ago,
And talked of love, and let our voices low,
And ru…

297
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Leedle Dutch Baby

Leedle Dutch Baby

Leedle Dutch baby haff come ter town!
Jabber und jump till der day gone down--
Jabber und sphlutter und sphlit hees jaws--
Vot a Du…

229
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Last Night-- And This

Last Night-- And This

Last night-- how deep the darkness was!
And well I knew its depths, because
I waded it from shore to shore,
Thinking to reach…

222
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Knee-Deep in June

Knee-Deep in June

Tell you what I like the best -'
Long about knee-deep in June,
'Bout the time strawberries melts
On the vine, -- some afternoon

239
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Kingry's Mill

Kingry's Mill

On old Brandywine-- about
Where White's Lots is now laid out,
And the old crick narries down
To the ditch that splits the town--,

282
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Judith

Judith


O her eyes are amber-fine--
Dark and deep as wells of wine,
While her smile is like the noon
Splendor of a day of June.
If she so…

316
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

June At Woodruff

June At Woodruff

Out at Woodruff Place--afar
From the city's glare and jar,
With the leafy trees, instead
Of the awnings, overhead;
With the …

306
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

John McKeen

John McKeen

John McKeen, in his rusty dress,
His loosened collar, and swarthy throat,
His face unshaven, and none the less,
His hearty laugh and hi…

272
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Johnson's Boy

Johnson's Boy

The world is turned ag'in' me,
And people says, 'They guess
That nothin' else is in me
But pure maliciousness!'
I git the blame…

307
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

John Alden And Percilly

John Alden And Percilly

We got up a Christmas-doin's
Last Christmas Eve--
Kindo' dimonstration
'At I railly believe
Give more satisfaction--

271
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Jim

Jim


He was jes a plain ever'-day, all-round kind of a jour.,
Consumpted-Iookin'-- but la!
The jokeiest, wittiest, story-tellin', song-singin', laug…

325
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Jack-In-The-Box

Jack-In-The-Box


_(Grandfather, musing.)_

In childish days! O memory,
You bring such curious things to me!--
Laughs to the lip--tears to …

291
James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley

Iry And Billy Jo

Iry And Billy Jo

Iry an' Billy an' Jo!--
Iry an' Billy's _the boys_,
An' _Jo's_ their _dog_, you know,--
Their pictures took all in a row.
Bet …

312