Ode to the Indian Dhobi Walla  by Alan Patterson...Radio Man

Of course the boys also take care of our laundry and cleaning our uniforms. Sometimes my clothes come back in not quite the same condition as when they left so instead of being angry at my boy I decided to express my feelings through my poetry.

You have torn my shorts and ripped my shirts,

Broken the buttons until it hurts:

You have marrowed my clothes with such right good will

I can hardly believe they are the same clothes still;

The higher the price that clothing goes

The broader your grin and the harder your blows

As you marrow my clothes on the dhobi rock

And mutter with glee "Sahib's in for a shock."

Written by AKM Patterson

marrow    v.  to hit or strike