Deck of Cards

During the North African Campaign
A bunch of soldier boys had been on a long hike
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

After the Chaplain read the prayer, the text was taken up next
Those of the boys that had a prayer book took them out
One boy had only a deck of cards, and he spread them out
The sergeant saw the cards and said, "Soldier, put away those cards."
After the service 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," was the response
The Marshall asked the soldier, "And what have you to say for yourself, son?"
"Much, Sir," replied the soldier
The Marshall stated
"I hope so, for if not I will punish you
More than any man was ever punished."
The soldier said, "Sir
I have been on the march for about six months
I have neither 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 Spirit
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 lamps;
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 heaven and earth
And 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 eight righteous persons that
God saved when he destroyed the earth:
There was Noah, his wife, their sons and their wives
And when I see the nine
I think of the lepers our saviour cleansed
And that nine of the ten didn't even thank him
When I see the ten, I think of the ten commandments
That God handed down to Moses on a tablet 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 the Queen of Heaven
And the Jack or Knave is the Devil

When I count the number of spots in 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 four suits, the number of weeks in a month
There are twelve picture cards, the number of months in a year
There are thirteen tricks, the number of weeks in a quarter

So you see, Sir
My deck of cards serves me as a bible
An almanac and a prayer book."

"And friends, this is a true story
I know, I was that soldier."