After a while we took in the clothes
  Nobody said very much
  Just some old wild shirts and a couple pairs of pants
  Which nobody really wanted to touch
  Mama come in and picked up a book
  An' Papa asked her what it was
  Someone else asked, "What do you care?"
  Papa said, "Well, just because?"
  Then they started to take back their clothes
  Hang'em on the line
  It was January the thirtieth
  And everybody was feelin' fine.
    The next day, everybody got up
  Seein' if the clothes were dry
  The dogs were barking, a neighbor passed
  Mama, of cource, she said, "Hi"
  "Have you heard the news?" he said with a grin
  "The Vice President's gone mad"
  "Where?" "Downtown." "When?" "Last night"
  "Hmm, say, that's too bad"
  "Well, there's nothing we can do about it," said the neighbor
  "It's just something we're gonna have to forget"
  "Yes, I guess so" said Ma
  Then she asked me if the clothes was still wet.
    I reached up, touched my shirt
  And the neighbor said, "Are those clothes yours?"
  I said, "Some of them, not all of them"
  He said, "Ya always help out around here with the chores ?"
  I said, "Sometime, not all the time"
  Then my neighbor he blew his nose
  Just as papa yelled outside
  "Mama wants you to come back in the house and bring them clothes"
  Well, I just do what I'm told so I did it, of course
  I went back in the house and Mama met me
  And then I shut all the doors.