Little Willie

Eugene Field 1850 (St. Louis) – 1895 (Chicago)



When Willie was a little boy,
    No more than five or six,
  Right constantly he did annoy
    His mother with his tricks.
  Yet not a picayune cared I
    For what he did or said,
  Unless, as happened frequently,
    The rascal wet the bed.
  Closely he cuddled up to me,
   And put his hands in mine,
 Till all at once I seemed to be
   Afloat in seas of brine.
 Sabean odors clogged the air,
   And filled my soul with dread,
 Yet I could only grin and bear
   When Willie wet the bed.

 'Tis many times that rascal has
   Soaked all the bedclothes through,
 Whereat I'd feebly light the gas
   And wonder what to do.
 Yet there he lay, so peaceful like;
   God bless his curly head,
 I quite forgave the little tyke
   For wetting of the bed.

 Ah me, those happy days have flown.
   My boy's a father, too,
 And little Willies of his own
   Do what he used to do.
 And I! Ah, all that's left for me
   Is dreams of pleasure fled!
 Our boys ain't what they used to be
   When Willie wet the bed.

 Had I my choice, no shapely dame
   Should share my couch with me,
 No amorous jade of tarnished fame,
   Nor wench of high degree;
 But I would choose and choose again
   The little curly head,
 Who cuddled close beside me when
   He used to wet the bed.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 22, 2023

1:11 min read
119

Quick analysis:

Scheme ababxcdcdedefcfC xgxghchc igigdcdC jdjdkckc
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,246
Words 235
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 16, 8, 8, 8

Eugene Field

Eugene Field, Sr. was an American writer, best known for his children's poetry and humorous essays. more…

All Eugene Field poems | Eugene Field Books

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