THE YELLOW VASE
BY CHARLES HANSON TOWNE
I GAVE the man a ten-cent fare
When I got on the train.
The sun was shining in the sky,
A great big drop fell in my eye—
It had begun to rain.
Oh, yes! It was a glorious reign,
The reign of good Queen Bess;
The people were quite happy then,
The women, children, and the men,
Each with a fine address.
I tried to find your old address,
But no, it was not there;
I looked down cellar for it, and
I thought I had it in my hand
When I came up the stair.
Good gracious! how the people stare,
When I am off my guard;
They watch my feet when I go out,
(I always push my feet about)
All three feet—in the yard.
I told the clerk I’d take a yard;
I don’t know what I’ll do,
As your clock says it’s now half-past,
And mine, although it’s somewhat fast,
Says it is half-past, too.
I walked a mile and then walked two,
Not knowing where to go;
Then I came home and ate some fish—
Some shad upon a shallow dish—
And went out for a roe.
RYMBELS are not all of them necessarily humorous. Jocoseria is, of course, frequently met with in them, but in the following tragical and noteworthy rymbel Theodosia Garrison proves that drama, in its most lean, Greek, intense, and pulsing form, may well find a place in them. The tragedy, terrible as it is, is one that might befall any woman of means.