Paul Laurence Dunbar

"As lone I sat one summer's day,     With mien dejected, Love came by;     His face distraught, his locks astray,     So slow his gait, so sad h"

"Come away to dreamin' town,     Mandy Lou, Mandy Lou,     Whaih de skies don' nevah frown,         Mandy Lou;     Whaih he streets is paved"

"Ah me, it is cold and chill     And the fire sobs low in the grate,     While the wind rides by on the hill,     And the logs crack sharp with"

"A crust of bread and a corner to sleep in,     A minute to smile and an hour to weep in,     A pint of joy to a peck of trouble,     And never"

"Oh, de clouds is mighty heavy     An' de rain is mighty thick;     Keep a song up on de way.     An' de waters is a rumblin'     On de boulder"

"These are the days of elfs and fays:     Who says that with the dreams of myth,     These imps and elves disport themselves?     Ah no, along t"

"Oh, wind of the spring-time, oh, free wind of May,     When blossoms and bird-song are rife;     Oh, joy for the season, and joy for the day,"

"A life was mine full of the close concern     Of many-voiced affairs. The world sped fast;     Behind me, ever rolled a pregnant past.     A pr"

"Mammy's in de kitchen, an' de do' is shet;     All de pickaninnies climb an' tug an' sweat,     Gittin' to de winder, stickin' dah lak flies,"

"As a quiet little seedling     Lay within its darksome bed,     To itself it fell a-talking,     And this is what it said:     "I am not so v"

"Good-night, my love, for I have dreamed of thee     In waking dreams, until my soul is lost--     Is lost in passion's wide and shoreless sea,"

"Fu' de peace o' my eachin' heels, set down;     Don' fiddle dat chune no mo'.     Don' you see how dat melody stuhs me up     An' baigs me to t"

"Come when the nights are bright with stars     Or when the moon is mellow;     Come when the sun his golden bars     Drops on the hay-field yel"

"I stand above the city's rush and din,     And gaze far down with calm and undimmed eyes,     To where the misty smoke wreath grey and dim"

"Thou art my lute, by thee I sing,--     My being is attuned to thee.     Thou settest all my words a-wing,     And meltest me to melody."

"When winter covering all the ground     Hides every sign of Spring, sir.     However you may look around,     Pray what will then you sing, sir"

"This poem must be done to-day;     Then, I 'll e'en to it.     I must not dream my time away,--     I 'm sure to rue it.     The day is rather"

"In the heavy earth the miner     Toiled and laboured day by day,     Wrenching from the miser mountain     Brilliant treasure where it lay."

"I am no priest of crooks nor creeds,     For human wants and human needs     Are more to me than prophets' deeds;     And human tears and human"

"Dey 's a so't o' threatenin' feelin' in de blowin' of de breeze,     An' I 's feelin' kin' o' squeamish in de night;     I 's a-walkin' 'roun' a"

"De ol' time's gone, de new time's hyeah     Wid all hits fuss an' feddahs;     I done fu'got de joy an' cheah     We knowed all kin's o' weddah"

"Hurt was the nation with a mighty wound,     And all her ways were filled with clam'rous sound.     Wailed loud the South with unremitting grief"

"Lead gently, Lord, and slow,     For oh, my steps are weak,     And ever as I go,     Some soothing sentence speak;     That I may turn my fa"

"Wen de colo'ed ban' comes ma'chin' down de street,     Don't you people stan' daih starin'; lif yo' feet!     Ain't dey playin'? Hip, hooray!"

"Place this bunch of mignonette     In her cold, dead hand;     When the golden sun is set,     Where the poplars stand,     Bury her from sun"

"I grew a rose within a garden fair,     And, tending it with more than loving care,     I thought how, with the glory of its bloom,     I shoul"

"Thy tones are silver melted into sound,     And as I dream     I see no walls around,     But seem to hear     A gondolier     Sing sweetly d"

"I     Ah, yes, 't is sweet still to remember,     Though 'twere less painful to forget;     For while my heart glows like an ember,     Mine eyes"

"Dolly sits a-quilting by her mother, stich by stitch,     Gracious, how my pulses throb, how my fingers itch,     While I note her dainty waist"

"Breezes blowin' middlin' brisk,     Snow-flakes thro' the air a-whisk,     Fallin' kind o' soft an' light,     Not enough to make things white,"

"Folks is talkin' 'bout de money, 'bout de silvah an' de gold;     All de time de season 's changin' an' de days is gittin' cold.     An' dey 's"

"When all is done, and my last word is said,     And ye who loved me murmur, "He is dead,"     Let no one weep, for fear that I should know,"

"In the silence of my heart,     I will spend an hour with thee,     When my love shall rend apart     All the veil of mystery:     All that d"

"Want to trade me, do you, mistah? Oh, well, now, I reckon not,     W'y you could n't buy my Sukey fu' a thousan' on de spot.     Dat ol' mare o'"

"I have no fancy for that ancient cant     That makes us masters of our destinies,     And not our lives, to hold or give them up     As will di"

"October is the treasurer of the year,     And all the months pay bounty to her store;     The fields and orchards still their tribute bear,"

"I know what the caged bird feels, alas!     When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;     When the wind stirs soft through the springing gras"

"A maiden wept and, as a comforter,     Came one who cried, "I love thee," and he seized     Her in his arms and kissed her with hot breath,"

"Goo'-by, Jinks, I got to hump,     Got to mek dis pony jump;     See dat sun a-goin' down     'N' me a-foolin' hyeah in town!     Git up, Suke"

"Hyeah come Csar Higgins,     Don't he think he 's fine?     Look at dem new riggin's     Ain't he tryin' to shine?     Got a standin' collar"

"Because I had loved so deeply,     Because I had loved so long,     God in His great compassion     Gave me the gift of song.     Because I h"

"Come to the pane, draw the curtain apart, There she is passing, the girl of my heart; See where she walks like a queen in the street, Weather-defying,"

"I like to hear of wealth and gold, And El Doradoes in their glory; I like for silks and satins bold To sweep and rustle through a story. The nighting"

"The Oriole sings in the greening grove As if he were half-way waiting, The rosebuds peep from their hoods of green, Timid, and hesitating. The rain co"

"Because you love me I have much achieved, Had you despised me then I must have failed, But since I knew you trusted and believed, I could not disappoi"

"I know what the caged bird feels, alas! When the sun is bright on the upland slopes; When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass, And the riv"

"The gray dawn on the mountain top     Is slow to pass away.     Still lays him by in sluggish dreams,     The golden God of day.     And then"

"Tell your love where the roses blow,     And the hearts of the lilies quiver,     Not in the city's gleam and glow,     But down by a half-sunn"

"The moon begins her stately ride     Across the summer sky;     The happy wavelets lash the shore,--     The tide is rising high.     Benea"

"There's a memory keeps a-runnin'     Through my weary head to-night,     An' I see a picture dancin'     In the fire-flames' ruddy light;"

"Hain't you see my Mandy Lou,     Is it true?     Whaih you been f'om day to day,     Whaih, I say?     Dat you say you nevah seen     Dis hye"

"When labor is light and the morning is fair,     I find it a pleasure beyond all compare     To hitch up my nag and go hurrying down     And ta"

"In the forenoon's restful quiet,     When the boys are off at school,     When the window lights are shaded     And the chimney-corner cool,"

"Long had I grieved at what I deemed abuse;     But now I am as grain within the mill.     If so be thou must crush me for thy use,     Grind on"

"Some folks t'inks hit's right an' p'opah,     Soon ez bedtime come erroun',     Fu' to scramble to de kiver,     Lak dey 'd hyeahed de trumpet"

"Oh for the breath of the briny deep,     And the tug of the bellying sail,     With the sea-gull's cry across the sky     And a passing boatman"

"Oh, summer has clothed the earth     In a cloak from the loom of the sun!     And a mantle, too, of the skies' soft blue,     And a belt where"

"It's hot to-day. The bees is buzzin'     Kinder don't-keer-like aroun'     An' fur off the warm air dances     O'er the parchin' roofs in town."

"THEN     He loved her, and through many years,     Had paid his fair devoted court,     Until she wearied, and with sneers     Turned all his"

"Oh, I have n't got long to live, for we all     Die soon, e'en those who live longest;     And the poorest and weakest are taking their chance"