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Good-bye Jim
by James Whitcomb Riley
Old man never had much to say-
Ceptin to Jim,-
And Jim was the wildest boy he had-
And the old man jes wrapped up in him!
Never heerd him speak but once
Er twice in my life, and first time was
When the army broke out, and Jim he went,
The old man backin him, fer three months;
And all at I heerd the old man say
Was, jes as we turned to start away,
Well, good-bye Jim:
Take keer of yoursef!
Peered-like, he was more satisfied
Jes lookin at Jim
And likin him all to hissef-like, see?
Cause he was jes wrapped up in him!
And over and over I mind the day
The old man come and stood round in the way
While we was drillin, a-watchin Jim-
And down at the depot a-heerin him say,
Well, good-bye, Jim:
Take keer of yoursef!
Never was nothin about the farm
Distingished Jim;
Neighbors all ust to wonder why
The old man peared wrapped up in him:
But when Cap. Biggler he writ back
At Jim was the bravest boy we had
In the whole dern rigiment, white er black,
And his fightin good as his farmin bad-
At he had led, with a bullet clean
Bored through his thigh, and carried the flag
Through the bloodiest battle you ever seen,-
The old man wound up a letter to him
At Cap. Read to us, at said: Tell Jim
Good-bye,
And take keer of hissef.
Jim come home jes long enough
To take the whim
At hed like to go back in the calvery-
And the old man jes wrapped up in him!
Jim lowed at he d had sich luck afore,
Guessed he d tackle her three years more.
And the old man give him a colt he d raised,
And follered him over to Camp Ben Wade,
And laid around fer a week er so,
Watchin Jim on dress-parade-
Tel finally he rid away,
And last we heerd was the old man say,-
Well, good-bye, Jim:
Take keer of yoursef!
Tuk the papers, the old man did,
A-watchin fer Jim-
Fully believin he d make his mark
Some way-jes wrapped up in him!-
And many a time the word ud come
At stirred him up like th e tap of a drum-
At Petersburg, fer instunce, where
Jim rid right into their cannons there,
And tuk em, and pinted em t other way,
And socked it home to the boys in gray,
As they scooted fer timber, and on and on-
Jim a lieutenant and one arm gone,
And the old mans words in his mind all day,-
Well good-bye, Jim:
Take keer of yoursef!
Think of a private, now, perhaps,
Well say like Jim,
At s clumb clean up to the shoulder-straps-
And the old man jes wrapped up in him!
Think of him- with the war plum through,
And the glorious old Red-White-and-Blue
A-laughin the news down over Jim,
And the old man, bendin over him-
The surgeon turnin away with tears
At hadnt leaked fer years and years,
As the hand of the dyin boy clung to
His fathers, the old voice in his ears,-
Well, good-bye, Jim:
Take keer of yoursef!