Jingles

Chapter 57: One Johnson More, One Smith Less

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About This Book

A compact anthology of short rhymes and playful verse written in early childhood and arranged by the ages at which they were composed. The pieces use a childlike voice to render animal songs, holiday verses, riddles, light moral observations, and wordplay, occasionally experimenting with other languages and invented turns of phrase. Humorous sketches and simple portraits of daily life alternate with fanciful imaginings, and lively illustrations accompany the poems to emphasize their spontaneous charm and the development of a young poet’s imagination.

One Johnson More, One Smith Less

(Written for Salibelle Royster, Smith's Mills, Kentucky.)

When Zekiel Rastus Johnson had the courage to propose

To lovely Miss Amanda Smith, she turned up her flat nose

And said, "Now Rastus Johnson, how dare you ask of me

To change my 'ristocratic name and Mrs. Johnson be,

When now in the directory, the Johnsons are ahead

Of our most noted family, so 'course I would not wed

With you to make one Johnson more to swell the Johnson line,

While Smiths in number take back seats where they can never shine."