THE
JOY RIDE
by C.J.Dennis
Ah, Gawd! It makes me sick to
think
Of what I ‘eard
an’ seen:
Poor ‘Arry
like a wet rag flung
Across the wrecked machine;
An’ Rose, ‘er
face all chiner-white.
Against the gory
green.
Now ‘Arry Cox ‘e drives a car
For Doctor Percy Grey.
Sez ‘e to me: “On Sund’y nex’
The Doc will be away
‘Ow is it for a little trip
To Fernville for the Day?
“I know two bonzer girls,” ‘e sez;
“Fair stunners, both, they are.
There’s Rose who serves behind the joint
In Mudge’s privit bar,
An’ Lena Crump who jerks the pump
Down at the Southern Star.”
Now, who’d refuse a Sund’y trip
With girls an’ all give in?
The car was there an’ oil to spare.
To rat would be a sin!.
An’ who’d refuse a drop o’ booze
When pals is flush o’ tin?
Wot all the courts and papers say
Can’t add to my distress
Rose, with the blood upon ‘er face
An’ on ‘er crumpled dress!
An’ that poor chump who got the
bump----
Ah, Gawd! ‘E was a mess!
The girls ‘ad stout at ten mile out,
An’ we was drinkin’
beer.
I swear they lies like ‘ell who sez
That we was on our ear!
For we was both, I take me oath,
As sober as me here.
Now, Lena was a dashin’ piece,
‘Igh-spirited an’ flash
‘Twas plain enough to me
that day
That ‘Arry’d done ‘is dash
An’ Rose ---(Ah! How ‘er
eyes did stare)
Rose was my special mash.
It’s easy now for folks
to talk
Who might ‘ave done the same
We meant no ‘arm to anyone,
An’ ‘Arry knew ‘is game
‘Twas like a flash, the
skid---the crash,
An’ we was not to blame.
I wisht
I could shut out that sight;
Fergit that awful row!
Poor Rose! ‘Er face all chiner-white
Like I can see it now;
An’ ‘Arry
like a heap o’ clothes
Just chucked there any’ow.
They sez we painted Fernville
red:
They sez that we was
gay:
But wot come after dulls me mind
To wot them liars say.
We never dreamed of death an’ ‘ell
When we set out that day.
‘Twas ev’nin’
when we turned for ‘ome;
The moon shone full that night;
An’ for a mile or more ahead
The road lay gleamin’ white;
An’ Rose sat close a-side o’ me
‘er face turned to
the light.
Wot if we sung a song or two?
Wot if they ‘eard us shout?
Is song an’ laughter things to curse
An’ make a fuss about?
“Go faster! Faster!” Lena screams.
An’ ‘Arry let ‘er
out.
I’d give me soul jist to ferget.
Gawd! ‘ow ‘er eyes did stare!
‘Er
kisses warm upon me lips,
I seen ‘er
lyin’ there,
Blood on ‘er
face, all chiner-white,
An’ on ‘er yeller ‘air.
I never took no ‘eed o’ pace
(I’ve been on twenty trips),
An’ Rose was restin’ in me
arms,
‘Er cheek against my lips.
A precious lot I dreamed of skids,
A lot I thought o’ slips.
I only know we never thinks---
I know we never dreams
Of folks out walkin’ on that road:
Till, sudden, Lena
screams. . . .
An’ after that, the sights I saw
I’ve seen again in dreams.
We never seen the bloke ahead!
‘Ow can they call us rash?
I just seen ‘Arry move to shove
‘Is arm around ‘is mash:
I seen ‘er jump to grab the wheel,
Then, Lord! . . . . there came the smash!
Aw, they can blame an’ cry their
shame!
It ain’t for that I care.
I ‘eld
‘er in my arms an’ laughed . . . .
Then seen ‘er
lyin’ there,
The moonlight streamin’
on ‘er face,
An’ on ‘er yeller hair.
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