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THE BABY'S KISS.
AN INCIDENT OF THE CIVIL WAR.
ROUGH and ready the troopers ride,
Pistol in holster and sword by side;
They have ridden long, they have ridden hard,
They are travel-stained and battle-scarred;
The hard ground shakes with their martial tramp,
And coarse is the laugh of the men of the camp.
Pistol in holster and sword by side;
They have ridden long, they have ridden hard,
They are travel-stained and battle-scarred;
The hard ground shakes with their martial tramp,
And coarse is the laugh of the men of the camp.
They reach the spot where a mother stands
With a baby shaking its little hands,
Laughing aloud at the gallant sight
Of the mounted soldiers, fresh from the fight.
The captain laughs out, ``I will give you this,
A bright piece of gold, your baby to kiss.''
With a baby shaking its little hands,
Laughing aloud at the gallant sight
Of the mounted soldiers, fresh from the fight.
The captain laughs out, ``I will give you this,
A bright piece of gold, your baby to kiss.''
``My darling's kisses cannot be sold,
But gladly he'll kiss a soldier bold.''
He lifts up the babe with a manly grace,
And covers with kisses its smiling face.
Its rosy cheeks and its dimpled charms,
And it crows with delight in the soldier's arms.
But gladly he'll kiss a soldier bold.''
He lifts up the babe with a manly grace,
And covers with kisses its smiling face.
Its rosy cheeks and its dimpled charms,
And it crows with delight in the soldier's arms.
``Not all for the captain,'' the troopers call;
``The baby, we know, has a kiss for all.''
To each soldier's breast the baby is pressed
By the strong rough men, and kissed and caressed.
And louder it laughs, and the lady's face
Wears a mother's smile at the fond embrace.
``The baby, we know, has a kiss for all.''
To each soldier's breast the baby is pressed
By the strong rough men, and kissed and caressed.
And louder it laughs, and the lady's face
Wears a mother's smile at the fond embrace.
``Just such a kiss,'' cried one warrior grim,
``When I left my boy I gave to him;''
``And just such a kiss on the parting day,
I gave to my girl as asleep she lay.''
Such were the words of these soldiers brave,
And their eyes were moist when the kiss they gave.
``When I left my boy I gave to him;''
``And just such a kiss on the parting day,
I gave to my girl as asleep she lay.''
Such were the words of these soldiers brave,
And their eyes were moist when the kiss they gave.
ANON.
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