No doubt dat you lak to know jes whut wuz ailin' us,
Why me and Maffew Pleasen'view had dat tremandus fuss;
So I'll just splain, ez bes' I kin, how it dun cure erbout,
An' leab de placin' ob de blame fo' you to figgah out.

Furst, Maffew sed, Wash Dudley tole May Belle Hannah Lee
Sum mighty, mighty ugly tales kincernin' Nance an' me.
Den w'en I goes to Dudley an' ast him wor it so,
He sed, he only ovah heared Jack tellin' Ismah Lowe.

Den I goes straight to Ismah, an' Iss sen's me to Jack,
An' Jack sed his wife got it frum Ann Marildah Black;
Right on to Ann Marildah's I ambles on mah way,
To fine dat she had bin enformed by Belledonah Grey.

Boun' dat I'd hab de truf fo' long, I tuk out once too';
An' soon Ise stan'in', hat in han', et Belledonah's do';
An' w'en I broached her 'bout it, she sed, ob co'se 'twas true,
Caze it cum confidensul frum Maffew Pleasen'view.