WHY THE SPARROW LIVES IN THE TOWN.
In noisy towns, where traffic roars and rushes
And where the grimy streets are dark and narrow,
You never see the robins and the thrushes,
Nor hear their songs. Only the City sparrow
Chirps bravely and as cheerily as they,
Although his home is very far away.
He chirps of lanes, of far-off country places
(This is the sparrows' story that I'm telling);
Long, long ago they lived in sweet wide spaces;
Their homes were in the hedges, gay, green-smelling;
The people, though, came citywards to dwell;
"Then we," the sparrows said, "must go as well.
"Yes, we're the birds to go, for all our brothers
Would lose their songs in cities dark and crowdy;
Their hearts would break; but we're not like the others,
We cannot sing, our coats are drab and dowdy;
But we can chirp and chirp and chirp again;
The people shan't forget a country lane."
And so they came, and in all city-weathers
They chirped a note of cheer to exiles weary;
And still the sparrows chirp, for their brown feathers
Hide now, as then, brave kindly hearts and cheery,
Of lanes they've never seen nor lived among,
Of country lanes they sing, the same old song.
"Sir Albert's Elevation.—'Up, Stanley, up!'—Shakespeare (amended)."—Sunday Pictorial.
Great Scott (Walter)!
"Very attractive was the interior of the —— Hall, when the Misses —— entertained a large number of their friends at an enjoyable dance. Everything was 'conteur de pose.'"—Australian Paper.
It is very clear they weren't jazzing.
