toes!
Jane found the children in the van
Were infinitely worse than Ann;
They punched her head and tore her hair,
And pinched and nipped her everywhere,
And when she said, "A little child
Ought to be tractable and mild!"
They only made an ugly face,
And pinched her in another place.
After a time this seemed to teach
Jane it was better not to preach:
And even now and then, she would
Forget that she was very good.
She wished it had not been her plan
Always to tell Mama of Ann.
After two months had passed away,
She even might be heard to say
That she had been a spiteful cat
To treat her Cousin Ann like that!
Now Jane's good parents went to stay
With Ann's Papa one autumn day;
And while they both were staying there,
The people held a kind of fair.
"Pray, brother," Jane's Mama began,
"Do let me take your little Ann;
For she would like to see the show."
And he replied, "We all might go."
And so that afternoon they went,
And gravely passed from tent to tent;
And finally, the party stept
Into the tent where freaks where kept.

[Illustration: "_Gravely passed from tent to tent_"]

[Illustration: "_And threw her arms round little Ann_"]

"Look at that child," said one, "I'm sure
Her spots are paint and nothing more."
Cried Ann: "I do not care a fig
For looking at that spotted pig!"
But at her voice, Jane shrieked and ran,
And threw her arms round little Ann.
"Save me! oh, save me!" she did plead;
"I'm not a spotted pig, indeed!"
While her Mama screamed out, "You're not
My Jane!"--and fainted on the spot.
And her Papa desired to know
Who was the master of the show?
But he, as afterwards transpired,
Had very modestly retired.
Then everyone had much ado
To bring Jane's fainting mother to:
At last she sat up with a start,
And pressed her darling to her heart.
"My Jane!" she cried, "my Jane!! my Jane!!!"
And seemed inclined to faint again.

[Illustration: "_Fainted on the spot_"]

[Illustration]

When Jane regained her native hearth
She had a very thorough bath:
But tho' she used all soaps then known,
And soda too, and pumice-stone,
She sadly saw she still had got
More than one noticeable spot!
And so poor Miss Jemima Jane
Tho' still more good, is still more plain.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Plain Jane, by G. M. George

*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUT