John Chipman Farrar

“ The Tinsel Star I'm just a shiny tinsel star, Boxed all the time as such things are, And only used just once a year, Oh, life is very dull and drear! A real star has far fields to roam, A tinsel star must stay at home. It is a terrible vexation To be a silly imitation!
The Ambitious Mouse If all the world were candy And the sky were frosted cake, Oh, it would be a splendid job For a mouse to undertake! To eat a path of sweetmeats Through candy forest aisles— Explore the land of Pepper-mint Stretched out for miles and miles. ”

“ But there's a kind of cracker That I need much worse, A bright red giant cracker To set off under nurse!
The Drum The drum's a very quiet fellow When he's left alone; But oh, how he does roar and bellow, Rattle, snap and groan, Clatter, spatter, dash and patter, Rumble, shriek and moan Whene'er I take my sticks in hand And beat him soundly for the band. ”

“ Yes, if I were a water-lily, I'd sail to sea in state— A green frog for my captain—and a dragon-fly for mate!
Humor Have you ever watched the clowns at play, White, red and black on circus day? They're always very, very gay. I wonder how they stay that way! I'd like to be a clown, Playing tricks around the town, Turning somersaults and springs, As if they were easy things, Laughing morning, noon and night, Being such a funny sight! ”

“ If I were mother to the moon I'd spank her every day Until she learned to stay at home And never run away!
Song for a Child Watching Clouds I've watched the clouds by day and night, Great fleecy ones all filled with light, Gray beasts that steal across the sky, And little fellows slipping by. Sometimes they seem like sheep at play, Sometimes when they are dull and gray The pale sun seems a ship to me, Sailing through a rolling sea; And I've seen faces in them too, Funny white men on the blue, They look so many different ways, And not one single cloudlet stays ”

“ Parenthood The birches that dance on the top of the hill Are so slender and young that they cannot keep still, They bend and they nod at each whiff of a breeze, For you see they are still just the children of trees. ”

“ A road to dream upon by day, A fire for dreams at night, Free to wander far away, Free to shout and free to play, Quite impolite. I'd pitch my tent beside a wall, All apple trees within, And if the apples didn't fall, I wouldn't hesitate at all. ”

“ Cat-Fish The cat-fish with whiskers that lives in the brook, Is an ugly old beast with the wickedest look. I suppose there were mouse-fish one time in brook town Till that ugly old cat-fish gulped all of them down. ”

“ As a young editor in New York, Farrar volunteered in 1922 for the organizing committee of an American chapter of PEN (originally Poets, Essayists and Novelists) founded in England the year before by Sappho (Amy Dawson Scott) to foster support of visiting foreign writers. ”