Page 26 - Poetry-Whimsy

He, who so long had sailed the sea,
At last did see a sail.

XI. In which the hero goes on a long voyage, and the reader
begins to see to what end these adventures are related.

He hailed the ship, he got on board,
He had to take its trip;
The captain would not ship the man,
Unless he would man the ship.

XII. In which the hero reaches port, and the probable
conclusion of his heroic ventures is gently indicated—with
the aid of an extra foot in one line.

At length, Jack Johnson reached his home,
His dangers then were past.
He found his Molly true, and he became
A union jack at last.

XIII. In which the end is reached—to the relief of the hero
and the reader.

The wedding-day is quickly here,
—(How swiftly Time does fly!)—
And his, like many another match,
Resulted in a tie.

(And the reader is requested to declare on his honor, if he
sees wherein this ballad is suggestive of Robin Hood.)

—A.Z. (Scribner’s, 1879)

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