<h2>THE WAY IT WUZ</h2>
<h3>BY JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY</h3>
<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
<span class="i0">Las' July—an', I presume<br/></span>
<span class="i2">'Bout as hot<br/></span>
<span class="i0">As the ole Gran'-Jury room<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Where they sot!—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Fight 'twixt Mike an' Dock McGriff—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">'Pears to me jes' like as if<br/></span>
<span class="i2">I'd a dremp' the whole blame thing—<br/></span>
<span class="i4">Allus ha'nts me roun' the gizzard<br/></span>
<span class="i2">When they're nightmares on the wing,<br/></span>
<span class="i6">An' a feller's blood 's jes' friz!<br/></span>
<span class="i4">Seed the row from a to izzard—<br/></span>
<span class="i2">'Cause I wuz a-standin' as clost to 'em<br/></span>
<span class="i6">As me an' you is!<br/></span></div>
<div class="stanza">
<span class="i0">Tell you the way it wuz—<br/></span>
<span class="i2">An' I don't want to see,<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Like <i>some</i> fellers does,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">When they're goern to be<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Any kind o' fuss—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">On'y makes a rumpus wuss<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Fer to interfere<br/></span>
<span class="i4">When their dander's riz—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">But I wuz a-standin' as clost to 'em<br/></span>
<span class="i4">As me an' you is!<br/></span></div>
<div class="stanza">
<span class="i0">I wuz kind o' strayin'<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Past the blame saloon—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Heerd some fiddler playin'<br/></span>
<span class="i2">That "ole hee-cup tune!"</span><span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_262" id="Page_262"></SPAN></span><br/>
<span class="i0">Sort o' stopped, you know,<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Fer a minit er so,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">And wuz jes' about<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Settin' down, when—<i>Jeemses whizz</i>!<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Whole durn winder-sash fell out!<br/></span>
<span class="i0">An' there laid Dock McGriff, and Mike<br/></span>
<span class="i0">A-straddlin' him, all bloody-like,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">An' both a-gittin' down to biz!—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">An' I wuz a-standin' as clost to 'em<br/></span>
<span class="i4">As me an' you is!<br/></span></div>
<div class="stanza">
<span class="i0">I wuz the on'y man aroun'—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">(Durn old-fogy town!<br/></span>
<span class="i2">'Peared more like, to me,<br/></span>
<span class="i4"><i>Sund'y</i> 'an <i>Saturd'y!</i>)<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Dog come 'crost the road<br/></span>
<span class="i4">An' tuck a smell<br/></span>
<span class="i6">An' put right back;<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Mishler driv by 'ith a load<br/></span>
<span class="i4">O' cantalo'pes he couldn't sell—<br/></span>
<span class="i6">Too mad, 'y jack!<br/></span>
<span class="i2">To even ast<br/></span>
<span class="i2">What wuz up, as he went past!<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Weather most outrageous hot!—<br/></span>
<span class="i4">Fairly hear it sizz<br/></span>
<span class="i0">Roun' Dock an' Mike—till Dock he shot,<br/></span>
<span class="i4">An' Mike he slacked that grip o' his<br/></span>
<span class="i4">An' fell, all spraddled out. Dock riz<br/></span>
<span class="i2">'Bout half up, a-spittin' red,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">An' shuck his head—<br/></span>
<span class="i0">An' I wuz a-standin' as clost to 'em<br/></span>
<span class="i4">As me an' you is!</span><span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_263" id="Page_263"></SPAN></span><br/></div>
<div class="stanza">
<span class="i0">An' Dock he says,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">A-whisperin'-like,—<br/></span>
<span class="i1">"It hain't no use<br/></span>
<span class="i2">A-tryin'!—Mike<br/></span>
<span class="i4">He's jes' ripped my daylights loose!—<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Git that blame-don fiddler to<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Let up, an' come out here—You<br/></span>
<span class="i2">Got some burryin' to do,—<br/></span>
<span class="i4">Mike makes <i>one</i>, an' I expects<br/></span>
<span class="i2">In ten seconds I'll make <i>two</i>!"<br/></span>
<span class="i4">And he drapped back, where he riz,<br/></span>
<span class="i2">'Crost Mike's body, black and blue,<br/></span>
<span class="i6">Like a great big letter X!—<br/></span>
<span class="i2">An' I wuz a-standin' as clost to 'em<br/></span>
<span class="i4">As me an' you is!<br/></span>
<span class='pagenum'><SPAN name="Page_264" id="Page_264"></SPAN></span></div>
</div>
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