Tree with a Bird in it

<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page101" name="page101"></SPAN>[101]</span></p> <div><SPAN name="h2H_4_0046" id="h2H_4_0046"></SPAN></div> <h2> <i>Arthur Guiterman</i> </h2> <p class="quote"> (He recites with appropriate gestures.)</p> <h3> A TREE WITH A BIRD IN IT: A RHYMED REVIEW </h3> <div class="poem"> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> It seems that Margaret Widdemer </p> <p class="i4"> Possessed a Tree with a Bird in it, </p> <p class="i2"> And being human, prone to err, </p> <p class="i4"> Thought 'twould be pleasant to begin it, </p> </div> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> Or christen it, as one might say, </p> <p class="i4"> By asking poets closely herded </p> <p class="i2"> To come around and spend the day </p> <p class="i4"> And sing of what the Tree and Bird did. </p> </div> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> (Poor girl! When next she takes her pen </p> <p class="i4"> Some bromide critic's sure to say, </p> <p class="i2"> "Don't dare do serious work again&mdash; </p> <p class="i4"> This stuff is your true métier!") </p> </div> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> No sooner said than done; the bards </p> <p class="i4"> Rush out in quantities surprising, </p> <p class="i2"> And, overflowing four front yards </p> <p class="i4"> They carol till the moon is rising; </p> </div> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> <span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page102" name="page102"></SPAN>[102]</span> With ardor, or, as some say, "pash," </p> <p class="i4"> In song kind or satirical, </p> <p class="i2"> Asking, apparently, no cash, </p> <p class="i4"> They make their offerings lyrical. </p> </div> <div class="stanza"> <p class="i2"> I'd be the first a spear to break </p> <p class="i4"> For Poesy; but this to tackle ... </p> <p class="i2"> It seems a lot of fuss to make </p> <p class="i4"> About one Tree and one small Grackle. </p> </div> </div> <div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />