Illustration by Joseph Lee from 'Work-a-day Warriors' by Joseph Lee, published in 1917
A WAYSIDE ESTAMINET IN FLANDERS
THE ESTAMINET
The Recreation Hut is dull,The Dry Canteen is dry,And some'ow neither seems designedFor soldiers sich as I;I likes some family comfortAnd I likes some fireside cheerWhat time I am partaking ofMy little drop o' beer―And so it is I spend my payWithin the old Estamin-ay!Deux bier, Mademoiselle, sil vous play!
It's 'Ome Sweet 'Ome from twelve to two,Likewise from six to eight,And there I sits and pulls my pipeAnd parleys with my mate;We sits and parleys 'bout the warAnd if it's going to end—(What a hope!)And when the old clock strikes weet heurWe up and homewards wend—And so when we can draw five francsWe do not put it in no banks!Encore une bier, sil vous play!
And when our appetites is sharp,And we have got the spoof,We have a plate o' pomme de terre,Du pang, buerre, an oof;And if the morning's very coldThen in by stealth I come,And blarney Marie till I getsA café—avec rhum!Vite! M.P. hovering o'er the wayMight close the old Estamin-ay!Bon santé Mademoiselle! Policemans no regardez moi!
Marie is très complaisant;She is full o' woman's wile,With an expansive bosom,And an expansive smile;And sometimes I have ponderedIf it might not come to beThat I might marry Marie—If Marie 'd marry me—And spend the evening of my dayWithin this old Estamin-ay!Ah non, Monsieur! Reste tranquille!—Après la guerre!
Illustration by Joseph Lee from 'Work-a-day Warriors' by Joseph Lee, published in 1917
THE WAGGONER
Illustration by Joseph Lee from 'Work-a-day Warriors' by Joseph Lee, published in 1917
REFUGEES SHELTERING IN AN ESTAMINET DURING BOMBARDMENT
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