The Eyes of Little Charlotte
Now God has made a wistful world,
And a woman strangely coy:
Her eyes say come, and go, and come,
And stay, and be a boy.
Oh, the eyes of little Charlotte say
"Come, kiss me if you can!"
But in a trice they change, and cry
"Go out and be a man."
Oh, the eyes of little Charlotte say
You shall not flinch at pain;
You shall not sigh for the cool cities,
Or moan for the soft rain.
The wind shall bite you, throat and cheek;
The sun will leave its tan;
But the eyes of little Charlotte say,
"Go out and be a man."
And you shall speak as a man speaks
Not mealy-mouthed or mild,
But you must go with a girl's love
For every lisping child;
Nor shall you live in the far clouds
As only dreamers can:
For the eyes of little Charlotte say,
"Go out and be a man."
And you shall fight as a man fights
And fare as a man may;
And you shall see as giants see
And hear what giants say:
You shall not bide in a safe place
Near by a lady's fan—
For the eyes of little Charlotte say
"Go out and be a man."
And your reward,—the old reward
That is for all who dare,
The long love of a warm woman
And kisses, proud and fair.
Oh, you shall toil for Love—the Law
Since ever Love began—
For the eyes of little Charlotte say
"Go out and be a man."
This work is in the public domain in Australia because it was created in Australia and the term of copyright has expired. According to Australian Copyright Council - Duration of Copyright, the following works are public domain:
- published non-government works whose author died before January 1, 1955,
- anonymous or pseudonymous works and photographs published before January 1, 1955, and
- government works published more than 50 years ago (before January 1, 1974).
This work is also in the public domain in the United States because it was first published outside the United States (and not published in the U.S. within 30 days), and it was first published before 1989 without complying with U.S. copyright formalities (renewal and/or copyright notice) and it was in the public domain in Australia on the URAA date (January 1, 1996). This is the combined effect of Australia having joined the Berne Convention in 1928, and of 17 USC 104A with its critical date of January 1, 1996.
Because the Australian copyright term in 1996 was 50 years, the critical date for copyright in the United States under the URAA is January 1, 1946.
This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.
The longest-living author of this work died in 1942, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 81 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse