Thank you for visiting SNEWPapers!
Sign up free
Poem
November 21, 1900
The Watchman And Southron
Sumter, Sumter County, South Carolina
What is this article about?
A satirical poem humorously depicting a speaker who would briefly rise from death if a debtor finally pays back ten dollars owed, only to collapse again in frustration.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
IF I SHOULD DIE TONIGHT.
If I should die tonight
And you should come to my cold corpse and say,
Weeping and heartsick o'er my lifeless clay—
If I should die tonight
And you should come in deepest grief and woe
And say, "Here's that ten dollars that I owe,"
I might arise in my large white cravat
And say, "What's that?"
If I should die tonight
And you should come to my cold corpse and kneel,
Clasping my bier to show the grief you feel—
I say, if I should die tonight
And you should come to me and there and then
Just even hint of paying me that ten,
I might rise up the while;
But I'd drop dead again.
If I should die tonight
And you should come to my cold corpse and say,
Weeping and heartsick o'er my lifeless clay—
If I should die tonight
And you should come in deepest grief and woe
And say, "Here's that ten dollars that I owe,"
I might arise in my large white cravat
And say, "What's that?"
If I should die tonight
And you should come to my cold corpse and kneel,
Clasping my bier to show the grief you feel—
I say, if I should die tonight
And you should come to me and there and then
Just even hint of paying me that ten,
I might rise up the while;
But I'd drop dead again.
What sub-type of article is it?
Epigram
Satire
What themes does it cover?
Moral Virtue
Satire Society
What keywords are associated?
Debt Repayment
Death Humor
Satirical Verse
Ten Dollars
Debtor Folly
Poem Details
Title
If I Should Die Tonight.
Form / Style
Rhymed Stanzas
Key Lines
And Say, "Here's That Ten Dollars That I Owe,"
I Might Arise In My Large White Cravat
And Say, "What's That?"
I Might Rise Up The While;
But I'd Drop Dead Again.