What's the use?

What's the use o' folks a-frownin'
When the way's a little rough?
Frowns lay out the road fur smilin'
You'll be wrinkled soon enough.
What's the use?

What's the use o' folks a-sighin'?
It's an awful waste o' breath,
An' a body can't stand wastin'
What he needs so bad in death.
What's the use?

What's the use o' even weepin'?
Might as well go long an' smile.
Life, out longest, strongest arrow,
Only lasts a little while.
What's the use?

Submitted by Emily Ezust [Administrator]

Authorship

• by Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 - 1906), "What's the use?" [ author's text checked 1 time]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

• by Gary Bachlund , "What's the use?", 2009. [high voice and piano] [
   text verified 1 time
  ]
• by Florence Bea Price (1888 - 1953), "What's the use?", 1937. [
   text verified 1 time
  ]

Text added to the website: 2009-03-07.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:03:10
Line count: 15
Word count: 81

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