“I ask you riddles, tell you tales,
But all our conversation fails:
You never answer me again—
I fear you’re dumb, Matilda Jane!
“Matilda, darling, when I call,
You never seem to hear at all:
I shout with all my might and main—
But you’re so deaf, Matilda Jane!
“Matilda Jane, you needn’t mind;
For, though you’re deaf, and dumb, and blind,