Poetry from the Past

My brother, Bill, has been finding treasures lately among the family photos and papers. Here is a poem he found; there was no date. It may have been written by our grandmother, putting the date around 1918 or so. If it was HER mother... wow...no...her mom wouldn't have written of sufferagettes. 

 

When Mamma was a Girl.

 

       When Mamma was a girl.

Girls didn’t wear a slitted skirt,

Red petticoats, and mannish shirts,

Drive autos, shoot and smoke and flirt.

       When mamma was a girl

Maids never longed to sufferagette,

Or earn their living by their sweat,

Or have a poodle for a pet

       When mamma was a girl.

They never on a horse rode stride

They never had their ankles eyed

It seems they had what they called pride

       When Mamma was a girl

They didn’t go like Toms and Dicks

And have two legs as plain as sticks

Nor did they ponder fuss and fix

       When Mamma was a girl.

“But Tin” was still an uncoined word,

A “Chicken” but a homely bird,

And “Oh! You Kid”, was never heard

       When Mamma was a girl.

I cannot understand a bit

How they contrived to manage it

How in their eyes the love got lit

       When Mamma was agirl

Life must have been quite dull and slow

I don’t see hoe they got a beau

In that pathetic long ago

       When Mamma was a girl.