Charles E. Burchfield, Journals, February 12, 1911

 Sunday Feb 12, 1911

This morning as I was studying German, Bill called up.

“Hello, you ronyon” I said as I took up the receiver.

“Hello you’roint, what are you going to do this morning?” “I’ve got to study”, I replied “I’ve got my German to get and that English poetry to write, and that’ll take a good while.”

“Oh. I thought maybe you could go out in the woods.”

“I’d like to. Fred and I were out last might.”

“Oh we started about 7:00 and got back at 10:00.”

“Where’d you go?”

“Out to the Dutchman’s.”

“Well,” he said suddenly “what are you going to do this afternoon?”

“You know –“ I said (referring to going out to the Richies) “What-?” he questioned “--oh--for Heaven’s sake I went an

invited Waldo over to play cards. I told him to come around after you.”

“Well you are a ronyon.” I said “We’ve told Gibby, Fay and June to go out.”

“Well I forgot about it” he said “well are you going to study?” he added abruptly.

“Yes I guess so” I answered.

After this I went back and wrote my English poetry, was to be in heroic couplets; here it is:

So the poor Senior, whose untutored mind;

When he was a Freshman for learning had pined;

His lips barely moved as he said with aching pate,

“There was a maiden, whose name was Miss Tate”

“When my simple nature had soughtParadise,

“Pilgrims Progress” spoke she “there happiness lies.”

But it was a way of brambles and stones,

So I lay on the grass and rested my bones.

Then sadly I was up and continued my way.

Oh who can my sorrow and anguish allay?

A storm “Chaucer’s Prologue” arose in the sky;

The Hail pelted down, and the wind roared high;

Weakly and vaguely now wonder I must;

As the raindrops came down why were they not dust?

But now I came to an arid parched plain,

It’s name was “Julius Caesar” and it gave me a pain.

I crossed it and choking and gasping for thirst

I came to a spring, I drank; and ‘most burst;

This lovely spring was called “Diamond Dick”

I sipped of its nectar until I was sick

I now met Tom Carlyle, a horrible goblen.

Who with his ‘Burns’ now sent me a hobblin’.

Famished I wandered and scarcely alive,

I found on a tree a great bee hive;

To sip of its honey was a sore temptation,

But the name of the hive was ‘Burke’s Cenciliation’.

And of all sad words of pen or tongue

The saddest are these ‘I surely was stung’”

He paused and gasped and dying he mumbled.

“Big Premise, Hyperbole” all jumbled;

A leak of terror spread o’er his face forlorn,

And a sadder and wiser man I rose the morrow morn.

In the afternoon when I went over to Bill’s, I found he was not dressed up.

“Aren’t you going out to Schnurrenberger’s” I asked.

“Why I can’t go out when I told King to come in" he answered with a short laugh.

“Well heavens” I replied “you promised us first. You hurt the Richies’ feelings first. And besides King’ll come around to our house and then the joke’ll be on us.”

“Well I’ll go” he said finally.

“Well don’t go, if you don’t want to” I replied. I doubted if he had ever said a word to King, and when King never showed up at our house it looked suspicious. I now felt like kicking myself for not having let him stay at home. However he got up and was soon ready to go.

We had a pretty good practice, altho Gibby who was taking Kinkie’s part, acted so sleepy that Merle suggested getting someone else, but it was too late. We have changed the play to “The Newlyweds Valentine Party”.

When we got home, Joe called the Richies up and made a date for us three for the evening, so after supper we went to Church and got Edna and Fay, and went out to Schurrenbergers where we found Merle, who could not come to church because he had told Roy Gufall she wasn’t allowed to go out that night! Out here we had lots of fun.

Charles E Burchfield, February 12, 1911