A BALLADE OF THE "HOW TO" BOOKS

BY JOHN JAMES DAVIES


That time when Learning's path was steep,
And rocks and fissures marred the way,
The few who dared were forced to creep,
Their souls oft quaking with dismay;
The goal achieved, their hairs were gray,
Their bodies bent like shepherds' crooks;
How blest are we who run to-day
The easy road of "How To" books!

The presses groan, and volumes heap,
Our dullness we no more betray;
To know the stars, or shear a sheep--
To live on air, or polo play;
The trick is ours, or we may stray
Beneath the seas, with science cooks,
And sprint by some reflected ray
The easy road of "How To" books!

Who craves the boon of dreamless sleep?
Who bricks would make, _sans_ straw or clay?
"Call spirits from the vasty deep,"