ISSUE: Summer 1938
There are a lot of dead men in the parlor,
And they’re capering and dancing in their bones.
I never saw such naked men.
I hope I never do again.
For God’s sake,
Missus, can’t I put them out?
No.
They’re uncles, cousins, sons of mine.
There is a bunch of ladies in the parlor,
And they’re deader than the men and just as bony.
They’re playing on a mandolin
As black as night and old as sin.
For God’s sake,
Missus, can’t I put them out?
No.
They’re nieces, cousins, aunts of mine.
There is a sort of devil in the hallway,
And half of him is thin while half is stout.
Back and side are more than I
Can bear to see before I die.
For God’s sake,
Missus, can’t I put him out?
There’s no such thing as devils.
Put him out.
