Day 11 - George, Who Played With a Dangerous Toy - by Hillaire Belloc

Hillaire Belloc.  Now, how is it possible I never heard of him before I stumbled on this poem yesterday?  I love it. I love his poetry!!

Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (1870 - 1953) was born in France, and after losing his father at age 2, moved with his mother to England.  He went to Balliol College in Oxford as a History major with first class honors.  He was a great debater, and was described by H.G. Wells (whom he disputed on 'Outline of History) as "like arguing with a hailstorm".  He was in the French army, was an avid yachtsman, and deeply religious. He loved walking; he once made a  pilgrimage from France to Rome, and reportedly walked from the mid-West US to California to marry his love, Elodie. When she died in 1914, he wore mourning clothes for the rest of his life.  His son also died in 1918 in WWI.

Belloc's much loved book 'Cautionary Tales for Children' contains this poem.

Here is my spoken version of this poem.
https://soundcloud.com/raindrop-11/george-who-played-with-a-dangerous-toy
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George, Who Played With a Dangerous Toy And suffered a Catastrophe of considerable Dimensions. - by Hillaire Belloc

When George’s Grandmamma was told
That George had been as good as Gold,
She Promised in the Afternoon
To buy him an Immense BALLOON.
And
so she did; but when it came,
It got into the candle flame,
And being of a dangerous sort
Exploded
with a loud report!

The Lights went out! The Windows broke!
The Room was filled with reeking smoke.
And in the darkness shrieks and yells
Were mingled with Electric Bells,
And falling masonry and groans,
And crunching, as of broken bones,
And dreadful shrieks, when, worse Of all,
The House itself began to fall!
It tottered, shuddering to and fro,
Then crashed into the street below-
Which happened to be Seville Row.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
When Help arrive, among the Dead
Were
Cousin Mary,
Little Fred,
The Footmen
(both of them),
The Groom,
The man that cleaned the Billiard-Room,
The Chaplain, and
The Still-Room Maid.
And I am dreadfully afraid
That Monsieur Champignon, the Chef,
Will now be
permanently deaf-
And both his
Aides
are much the same;
While George, who was in part to blame,
Received, you will regret to hear,
A nasty lump
behind the ear.

MORAL

The moral is that little Boys
Should not be given dangerous Toys.

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The French archaeologist in Raiders of the Lost Ark was named after Belloc.

Syd Barrett, the founder of Pink Floyd wrote a tribute song 'Matilda Mother' based on one of Belloc's poems ("Matilda: Who told Lies, and was Burned to Death.") and issued it on 'Pipers at the Gates of Dawn'.

I think I'm going to buy the book 'Cautionary Tales for Children'. :D