Well, Mabel, 'tis over and ended -
The ball I wrote was to be;
And oh! it was perfectly splendid -
If you COULD have been here to see.
I've a thousand things to write you
That I know you are wanting to hear,
And one, that is sure to delight you -
I am wearing Joe's diamond, my dear!

Yes, mamma is quite ecstatic
That I am engaged to Joe;
She thinks I am rather erratic,
And feared that I might say "No."
But, Mabel, I'm twenty-seven
(Though nobody DREAMS it, dear),
And a fortune like Joe's isn't given
To lay at one's feet each year.

You know my old fancy for Harry -
Or, at least, I am certain you guessed
That it took all my sense not to marry
And go with that fellow out west.
But that was my very first season -
And Harry was poor as could be,
And mamma's good practical reason
Took all the romance out of me.

She whisked me off over the ocean,
And had me presented at court,
And got me all out of the notion