<blockquote>
<p>Every Mid down in Bancroft liked ECA’s a lot…
But the Supe, Who lived just north of Bancroft, Did NOT!! </p>
<p>The Supe hated ECA’s! They served no real purpose!
Now, please don’t ask why. It just makes us nervous.
It could be his head wasn’t screwed on just right.
It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight.
But I think that the most likely reasons - quite unoriginal
were that they were “secondary, optional and conditional”. </p>
<p>But, whatever the reasons, as like as is not,
he stood there on Air Force Eve, hating the thought.
Staring down from his cave with a sour, Supey frown
at the warm lighted windows below in Crabtown.
For he knew every Mid down in Bancroft beneath
was busy now, hanging a “Beat Air Force” wreath. </p>
<p>“And they’re painting their sheet posters!”
he snarled with a sneer,
“Tomorrow is Air Force! It’s practically here!”
Then he growled, with his Supe fingers nervously drumming,
“I MUST find some way to stop Air Force from coming!” </p>
<p>For, Tomorrow, he knew…
…All the Mid girls and boys would wake bright and early.
They’d march to the game! And then! Oh, the Noise! Oh, the Noise!
Noise! Noise! Noise! That’s one thing he hated!
The NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE!
Then the Mids, young and old, would tailgate at a feast.
And they’d feast! And they’d feast!
And they’d FEAST! FEAST! FEAST! FEAST! </p>
<p>They would feast on real burgers, and real hot dogs too,
Which came from those food groups the Supe tried to eschew!
And THEN they’d do something he liked least of all!
Every Mid down in Crabtown the tall and the small,
would stand close together, with goat bells a-ringing.
They’d stand hand-in-hand. And the Mids would start singing! </p>
<p>They’d sing! And say BEAT ARMY! and they’d SING! SING! SING! SING!
And the more the Supe thought of this Mid-Spirit-Sing,
The more the Supe thought, “I must stop this whole thing!”
“Why, for thirty-three years I’ve put up with it now!”
"I MUST stop this spirit from coming! </p>
<p>…But HOW?" </p>
<p>Then he got an idea! An awful idea!
THE SUPE GOT A WONDERFUL, AWFUL IDEA! </p>
<p>“I know just what to do!” The Supe Laughed in his throat.
And he put on his Admiral’s hat and his coat.
And he chuckled, and clucked, "What a great Supey notion!
“With this coat and this hat, I’m pure Rickover in motion!” </p>
<p>“All I need is a lackey…”
The Supe looked around.
Navy lackeys are scarce; there was none to be found.
Did that stop the old Supe…?
No! The Supe simply said,
“If I can’t find a lackey, I’ll make one instead!”
So he called for the Dant. Then he took some gold thread
And he tied a big “L” on top of her head. </p>
<p>THEN
He opened the MidRegs
And began a great rant
“This is no time for talk!”
And he yelled at the Dant. </p>
<p>“It’s time for a walk!”
And then they made tracks
Toward the rooms where the Mids
Lay a-snooze in their racks. </p>
<p>All their windows were dark. Quiet ZZZZ’s filled the air.
All the Mids were all dreaming sweet dreams without care
When he came to the first tiny room in the hall.
“This is stop number one,” The old Supey-Supe hissed
And he knocked on the door, dusty regs in his fist. </p>
<p>Not a sound did he hear. Then he opened the door.
“What’s all this nonsense? We’re a nation at war!”</p>
<p>He stopped only once, for a moment or two.
As he rambled around this small room just for two
Where the little Mid calendars all hung in a row.
“All their free time,” he grinned, “is the first thing to go!” </p>
<p>Then he slithered and slunk, with a smile most alarming, </p>
<p>He went room to room with no attempt to be charming.</p>
<p>He sent the Dant to King Hall. She took the Mids’ eats!
She took the real bacon! She took all the treats!
She cleaned out all the reefers at the order of the nuke.
She filled them with food that would make them all puke! </p>
<p>Then she stuffed the old food in the dumpster with glee.
“And NOW!” grinned the Supe, “Time for stop number three!” </p>
<p>As the Supe turned to leave, and he started to go
When he heard a light sound like the step of a doe.
He turned around fast, and he saw a small Mid!
Little Cindy-Lou Mid, who was not more than a kid. </p>
<p>The Supe had been caught by this little Mid daughter
Who’d got out of bed for a cup of cold water.
She stared at the Supe and said, "Supey-sir, why,
“Why are you taking our liberty? WHY?” </p>
<p>But, you know, that old Supe was so smart and so slick
He thought up a story, and he thought it up quick!
“Why, my dear young lady,” the Admiral said,
“We’re at war with the enemy - we want them all dead.”
“So I’m taking your liberty, my dear.” </p>
<p>Pointing to her calendar, he smiled with a sneer,
“I’ll take it away now. Then I’ll give it back here.” </p>
<p>And his fib fooled the Mid. Then he patted her head
And he told her to study and then go to bed.</p>
<p>And when Cindy-Lou Mid went to study with her cup,
He went to Gate 1 and he locked the place up! </p>
<p>“Pooh-pooh to the Mids!” he was Supe-ish-ly humming.
"They’re finding out now that no more fun is a-coming!
"They’re just waking up! I know just what they’ll do!
"Their mouths will hang open a minute or two
“The all the Mids down in Crabtown will all cry BOO-HOO!” </p>
<p>“That’s a noise,” grinned the Supe,
“That I simply must hear!” </p>
<p>So he paused. And the Supe put a hand to his ear.
And he did hear a sound rising over the Yard.
It started in low. Then it started to grow… </p>
<p>But the sound wasn’t sad!
Why, this sound sounded merry!
It couldn’t be so!
But it WAS merry! VERY! </p>
<p>He stared down at Crabtown!
The Supe popped his eyes!
Then he shook!
What he saw was a shocking surprise! </p>
<p>Every Mid down in Bancroft, the tall and the small,
Was smiling and laughing! Without any liberty at all!
He HADN’T stopped their spirit from coming!</p>
<p>IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same! </p>
<p>And the Supe, with his Supe-feet too tight in his shoes,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: “Did they not get the news?”
“It came without liberty! It came without cheer!”
“It came without free time! It came without beer!”</p>
<p>And he puzzled three hours, `till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Supe thought of something he hadn’t before!
“Maybe spirit,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a war.”
“Maybe spirit…perhaps…means a little bit more!” </p>
<p>And what happened then…?</p>
<p>Well…in Crabtown they say
That the Supe’s tiny heart
Grew three sizes that day!
And the minute his heart didn’t feel quite so tight,
He whizzed with his MidRegs through the bright morning light
And he brought back the liberty! And good chow for King Hall!
And he… </p>
<p>…HE HIMSELF…!
served real food for all!</p>
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