So long as shoe coupons will keep me well-heeled,
I’d do more than a mile tor a Chesterfield.
I would tackle a, well– I’ll let you name the mammal–
For a draw upon even a second-hand Camel.
I would swap my kid’ s comic oooks–even her dollies–
for one Oh-so-wonderful pack of Raleighs.
I would climb me an Alp, and arrive feeling hefty
If, once at the top, I’d find LS/MFT.
Going over Niagara amid ridicule
Wouldn’t faze my aplomb if the prize were a Kool.
I would rest in a cell, whether barren or padded
If I could be sure Something New Has Been Added.
I would sing on the air; I would dance with the Chorus;
Or go in for Ballet, for one Philip Morris.
Almost every sacrifice, you will concede ,
I would share for the vile and the volatile weed;
Any effort, for smoking, I’ll make and still laugh;
But I WON’T STAND IN LINE FOR AN HOUR-AND-A -HALF!
by Ray Romine Saturday, July 21, 1945
