But the more that I think about Peter, the greater my fancy for Paul,
I know he'd be first to defend me if ever disaster should fall,
For Peter thinks only of money and smilingly reckons his fee,
While Paul, when he whispers of caution, thinks not of himself but of me.
Paul would defend me from trouble, would shield and protect my renown,
But Peter would add to my burdens and smilingly let me go down.
Yes, Peter the pleasant would wreck me, and gloat when I rode to my fall,
So the more that I learn about Peter, the greater my fondness for Paul.
Life's Equipment
"Here's how I figure it out," says he,
"With my ears to hear and my eyes to see,
And my legs to walk and my hands to work,
And a head to bow and a cap to jerk
Whenever a woman I know goes by—
It's well-equipped for this life, am I.
"Kings and princes and high and low
Have noses to smell when the blossoms blow.
And eyes to see, but I don't suppose
A king smells more with his royal nose
Or sees more charm with his kingly eye
In the pink of the orchard blooms, than I.
"But eyes and ears and legs and hands
Don't always follow the same commands,
And some find beauty in dollar bills,
And some in the streams and the misty hills;
Some people hear nothing but mortal words,
And some are tuned to the songs of birds.
"Some grapple with facts that are stiff and cold,
And some see visions all tipped with gold;
Some hands are tender and others rough,
And some are gentle and some are gruff;
But each must follow life's pathway through,
Doing the things which he likes to do.
"Now I find joy when I tramp about,
Up hill and down, for my legs are stout
And my ears and eyes can pick up things
That are maybe lost to the wisest kings;
And I'm always grateful, when day is through,
That I'm built for the things which I like to do."