The Disappointed
by
There’s a Red Cross Button on his left lapel,
And a Liberty Bond pin on his right;
There’s a U. S. flag above the Red Cross, too;
His patriotism’s never out of sight!
His loyalty is spread on his hollow breast
(And sometimes he’s pathetic, I confess),
But the button that he’s most ashamed to wear
Is the one that reads
EXEMPT
U. S.
There’s an aching heart in his 28-chest,
There’s a look of deep longing in his eyes;
Behind his heavy glasses there gleams a hope
That maybe he can grow an inch in size!
There’s a hero-throb in the heart of that boy,
Though he wears too much “scenery”–ah, yes!–
But the badge that hurts he really tries to hide–
It’s the one that reads
EXEMPT
U. S.
You fellows that are in–have a heart for those
Who want to be, but can’t! For they must know
A bitterness of soul you can never feel–
They haven’t got a chance on earth to go!
So it’s, “Stay back home with the old and unfit,”
(There’s nothing else to do but that, I guess!)
The badge he’d be glad to throw a mile away
Is the one that reads
EXEMPT
U. S.