Deck of Cards

During the North African campaign
A bunch of soldier boys had been on a long hike
And they arrived in a little town called Casino
The next morning being Sunday
Several of the boys went to church

A sergeant commanded the boys in church
And after the Chaplain had read the prayer
The text was taken up next
Those of the boys who had a prayer book took them out
But this one boy had only a deck of cards
And so he spread them out
The Sergeant saw the cards and said
"Soldier, put away those cards."
After the services was over
The soldier was taken prisoner
And brought before the Provost Marshall

The Marshall said
"Sergeant, why have you brought this man here?"
"For playing cards in church, Sir."
"And what have you to say for yourself, son?"
"Much, sir," replied the soldier

The Marshall said
"I hope so, for if not I shall punish you
More than any man was ever punished."

The soldier said
"Sir, I have been on the march for about six days
I have neither a Bible nor a prayer book
But I hope to satisfy you, sir, with the purity of my intentions."
And with that, the boy started his story

You see, sir, when I look at the Ace, it reminds me that there is but one God
And the Deuce reminds me that the Bible is divided into two parts
The Old and the New Testaments
When I see the Trey, I think of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost
And when I see the Four, I think of the four Evangelists who preached the Gospel
There was Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
And when I see the Five, it reminds me of the five wise virgins who trimmed their lamp
There were ten of them: five were wise and were saved
Five were foolish and were shut out

When I see the six, it reminds me that in six days
God made this great heaven and Earth
When I see the Seven, it reminds me that on the seventh day
God rested from His great work
And when I see the Eight
I think of the right righteous persons God saved when He destroyed this earth
There was Noah, his wife, their sons and their wives

And when I see the Nine
I think of the lepers our Savior cleansed
And nine out of the ten didn't even thank Him
When I see the Te
II think of the Ten Commandments God handed down to Moses on a table of stone
When I see the King
It reminds me that there is but one King of Heaven, God Almighty
And when I see the Queen
I think of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is Queen of Heaven
And the Jack or Knave is the Devil

When I count the number of spots on a deck of cards
I find 365, the number of days in a year
There are 52 cards, the number of weeks in a year
There are 4 suits, the number of weeks in a month
There are 12 picture cards, the number of months in a year
There are 13 tricks, the number of weeks in a quarter
So you see, Sir, my pack of cards serves me as a Bible, an Almanac and a
Prayer Book

And friends, the story is true
I know, I was that soldier