(It’s Only a Dream of the Past)
A comedy song from 1920.
Words by Irving Ceasar and Alfred Bryan.
Music by Geo. W. Meyer.
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
Wise men are certainly wise
They know the earth and the skies
They know the moon and they study the stars
They know the distance from Venus to Mars
I study things here below
And this is what I’d like to know
Chorus:
What’s become of the hen who laid her eggs when
A dozen you’d get for a quarter?
Oh, where is the cow that used to allow
Her milk to be sold cheap as water?
What’s become of the price that once was so nice
When mother was only a daughter
Where’s the telephone girlie who would late or early
Secure you a number real fast?
Like the hen and the cow, she’s not with us now
It’s only a dream of the past
Chorus:
What’s become of the rail and the little tin pail
You’d send to the corner with brother
Oh, where is the guy who was willing to buy
And always said “Come have another”
What’s become of the doors and the old sawdust floors
Where daddy was dragged home by mother
Where is the honest bartender so kind to the spender
As long as his money would last
Like the hen and the cow, he’s not with us now
It’s only a dream of the past
Chorus:
What’s become of the wife who’d spend half her life
Darning and cooking and sewing
Oh, where are the clothes and the old cotton hose
Where half of the form wasn’t showing
What’s become of the maid who wasn’t afraid
To tell her ma where she was going where
Is the landlord so gentle who grew sentimental
When tenants were moving out fast
Like the hen and the cow, he’s not with us now
It’s only a dream of the past