A TALE OF A BONNET by Susan E. Gammons

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Feb 17, 1898

A TALE OF A BONNET.

By Susan E. Gammons

A TRAGEDY IN THREE PARTS.

Part I. The Bonnet.

A bit of foundation as big as your hand; Bows of ribbon and lace; Wire sufficient to make them stand; A handful of roses, a velvet band— It lacks but one crowning grace.

Part 2. The Bird.

A chirp, a twitter, a flash of wings, Four wide-open mouths in a nest; From morning till night she brings and brings, For growing birds, they are hungry things— Ay! hungry things at the best.

The crack of a rifle, a shot well sped; A crimson stain on the grass; Four hungry birds in a nest unfed— Ah! well, we will leave the rest unsaid; Some things it were better to pass.

Part 3. The Weaver.

The lady has surely a beautiful face, She has surely a queenly air; The bonnet had flowers and ribbon and lace; But the bird has added the crowning grace— It is really a charming affair.

Is the love of a bonnet supreme over all, In a lady so faultlessly fair? The Father takes heed when the sparrows fall, He hears when the starving nestlings call— Can a tender woman not care? —Susan E. Gammons.