There was once a small child who never said please,
I believe if you went down on your knees;
But with arms on the table, would sit at her ease,
And call out to her mother, in such words as these:
"Pass me the butter, give me some cheese,
Cut me some bread, I want some peas."
So the fairies, this very rude daughter to tease,
Blew her away in a powerful breeze
Over the mountains and over the seas,
And there she must live till she learns to say "please."
Good little girls should never say,
"I will," or, "Give me these."
Oh! no, that never is the way,
But, "Mamma, if you please."
And, "If you please," to grandmamma,
Good girls to say are ready.
And "Yes, sir," to a gentleman,
And, "Yes, ma'am," to a lady.
Politeness
A Fictional Short Story by
Agnes Taylor Ketchum & Ida M. Jorgensen
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