Yew
think I’m somewhat in the dumps? I ruther guess I be;
Ef
yew wuz standin’ in my shoes yewed be the same ez me.
The
way things go in this ere life jest make me desp’rit mad,
Ef
‘twarn’t fur Mandy, an’ the girls, I’d
go’n’ do somethin’ bad.
What
is the trouble? Ain’t you heard? Uv course yew couldn’t know,
But
when I tell yew yew’ll agree thet I hev cause fur woe.
Yew’ll
see thet I am an injured man, an’ fate ain’t used me square;
Most
anybuddy in my place would give up in despair.
I
bought this here ol’ farm uv mine more’n forty year ago,
A
mass uv stumps an’ brush an’ stones where nothin’ wouldn’t grow;
I
struck right in with might an’ main at sunrise ev’ry day
An’
worked ez long ez I could see to git things under way.
I’ve
worked like that fur forty year to make the ol’ place shine
An’
yit I’ve never made enough to winter me an’ mine.
I’ve
tilled the soil an’ beautified the forest field an’ wood,
An’
in return I’ve simply got a scanty livelihood.
I
wouldn’t kick so much at that, I s‘pose it has to be,
But
here’s the hardest thing uv all, the thorn that rankles me.
Here
comes a city artist chap an’ puts his easel down
An’
paints a picture uv my farm an’ kerries it to town;
He
takes a thousan’ dollar prize fur work I’ve done right here,
Where
I can’t show a thousan’ cents fur all this forty year.
Ain’t
that enough to make a man swear at the fates that be?
Yew
think I’m some’at in the dumps? I ruther guess I be.
Sept.
21, ‘08
With
might and main is 'with all of
one's strength'.
Origin:
Main has been known as meaning 'powerful, possessing physical force' since at
least the 12th century. That usage of the word is now virtually lost - apart
from as part of might and main. Like chop and change and hard
and fast, the phrase is rather tautological as might means near enough the same
as main.
There
are examples of the use of the phrase, sometimes in the form main and
might, in Old English from the late 13th century.
(not sure of the word ‘winter’ in the
sixth line of the second stanza)
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