Labor Day Celebration

Brass Spittoons

BY LANGSTON HUGHES

Clean the spittoons, boy.

      Detroit,

      Chicago,

      Atlantic City,

      Palm Beach.

Clean the spittoons.

The steam in hotel kitchens,

And the smoke in hotel lobbies,

And the slime in hotel spittoons:

Part of my life.

      Hey, boy!

      A nickel,

      A dime,

      A dollar,

Two dollars a day.

      Hey, boy!

      A nickel,

      A dime,

      A dollar,

      Two dollars

Buy shoes for the baby.

House rent to pay.

Gin on Saturday,

Church on Sunday.

      My God!

Babies and gin and church

And women and Sunday

All mixed with dimes and

Dollars and clean spittoons

And house rent to pay.

      Hey, boy!

A bright bowl of brass is beautiful to the Lord.

Bright polished brass like the cymbals

Of King David’s dancers,

Like the wine cups of Solomon.

      Hey, boy!

A clean spittoon on the altar of the Lord.

A clean bright spittoon all newly polished—

At least I can offer that.

      Com’mere, boy!

Wishing you and yours a splendid Labor Day holiday filled with peace, love and goodwill toward all our fellow workers.

Crystal Equity Research