Boys and Girls: The Verses of James William Foley

SOMETIMES I wonder why they smile so pleasantly at me,

And pat my head when they pass by as friendly as can be;

Sometimes I wonder why they stop to tell me How-d’-do,

And ask me then how old I am and where I’m going to;

And ask me can I spare a curl and say they used to know

A little girl that looked like me, oh, years and years ago;

And I told Mamma how they smiled and asked her why they do,

So she said if you smile at folks they always smile at you.

I never knew I smiled at them when they were going by,

I guess it smiled all by itself and that’s the reason why;

I just look up from playing if it’s any one I know

And they most always smile at me and maybe say Hello;

And I can smile at any one, no matter who or where,

Because I’m just a little girl with lots of them to spare;

And Mamma said we ought to smile at folks, and if you do

Most always they feel better and they smile right back at you.

And when so many smile at me and ask me for a curl

It makes me think most everybody likes a little girl;

And once when I was playing and a man was going by

He smiled at me and then he rubbed some dust out of his eye,

Because it made it water so, and said he used to know

A little girl up in his yard who used to smile just so;

And then I asked why don’t she now and then he said “You see—”

And then he rubbed his eye again and only smiled at me.