The Rocket Book By Peter Newell THE BASEMENT When Fritz, the Janitor's bad kid, Went snooping in the basement, He found a rocket snugly hid Beneath the window casement. He struck a match with one fell swoop; Then, on the concrete kneeling, He lit the rocket and-she-oop! It shot up through the ceiling. [pg] [pg] FIRST FLAT The Steiners on the floor above Of breakfast were partaking; Crash! came the rocket, unannounced, And set them all a-quaking! It smote a catsup bottle, fair, And bang! the thing exploded! And now these people all declare That catsup flask was loaded. [pg] [pg] SECOND FLAT Before the fire old Grandpa Hopp Dozed in his arm-chair big, When from a trunk the rocket burst And carried off his wig! It passed so near his ancient head He roused up with a start, And, turning to his grandsons, said, "You fellows think you're smart!" [pg] [pg] THIRD FLAT Algernon Bracket, somewhat rash, Had blown a monster bubble, When, oh! there came a blinding flash, Precipitating trouble! But Algy turned in mild disgust, And called to Mama Bracket, "Say, did you hear that bubble bu'st? It made an awful racket!" [pg] [pg] FOURTH FLAT Jo Budd, who'd bought a potted plant, Was dousing it with water. He fancied this would make it grow, And Joseph loved to potter. Then through the pot the rocket shot And made the scene look sickly! "Well, now," said Jo, "I never thought That plant would shoot so quickly!" [pg] [pg] FIFTH FLAT Right here 'tis needful to remark That Dick and "Little Son" Were playing with a Noah's ark And having loads of fun, When all at once that rocket, stout, Up through the ark came blazing! The animals were tossed about And did some stunts amazing. [pg] [pg] SIXTH FLAT A Burglar on the next floor up The sideboard was exploring. (The family, with the brindled pup, Were still asleep and snoring.) Just then, up through the silverware The rocket thundered, flaring! The Burglar got a dreadful scare; Then out the door went tearing. [pg] [pg] SEVENTH FLAT Miss Mamie Briggs with no mean skill Was playing "Casey's Fling" To please her cousin, Amos Gill, Who liked that sort of thing, When suddenly the rocket, hot, The old piano jumbled! It stopped that rag-time like a shot, Then through the ceiling rumbled. [pg] [pg] EIGHTH FLAT Up through the next floor on its way That rocket, dread, went tearing Where Winkle stood in bath-robe, gay, A tepid bath preparing. The tub it punctured like a shot And made a mighty splashing. The man was rooted to the spot; Then out the door went dashing. [pg] [pg] NINTH FLAT Bob Brooks was puffing very hard His football to inflate, While round him stood his faithful guard, And they could hardly wait. Then came the rocket, fierce and bright, And through the football rumbled. "You've got a pair of lungs, all right!" His staring playmates grumbled. [pg] [pg] TENTH FLAT The family dog, with frenzied mien, Was chasing Fluff, the mouser, When, poof!... We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.