When Father Files His Saw

When father starts to file his saw,

     As of the has to do,

There is a rush for other spheres

     Until he gets all through.

My ma she goes across the street

     Altho’ it’s cold and raw;

And sister takes her sewing out

     When father files his saw.

The cat jumps off the kitchen mat

     And straightens neck and tail,

And Towser, tho’ he’s somewhat deaf,

     Sets up a dismal wail,

And soon he follows all the rest

     With fleetness in his paw;

For naught can stand that awful pitch

     When father files his saw.

When father files his saw it seems

     As tho’ my time was near;

And when he says, “Young man, sit still!”

     Life holds me nothing dear.

I wish he was a minister,

     Or counsellor at law,

Or something so he’d never have

     To file another saw.

March 31, 1901

                                       John Hall Cone