In Tobia in the year of 1865,
Where people were happy to be alive,
The people decided and they were sure,
That Ignatious would be their governor.

At this time Ignatious found himself a bride,
A woman named Alma to stand be his side,
Before too long she said as she smiled,
"Ignatious my dear, I am with child".

Nine months later on a winter morn,
A little baby girl was born,
Emma was the name they gave to her,
She brought them joy, of this they were sure.

Emma grew up as one loved by all,
She was strong-willed and tough and fairly small,
Then the Tobian people caused quite a scene,
"We don't want a governor, we want Emma as queen".

So at the tender age of nineteen,
Emma was crowned as the queen,
The people celebrated with shouts and cheers,
A queen they'd have for the next 80 years.

Ignatious said, "Emma I must give you advice,
You never again can be very nice,
You must let the Tobian people know,
That you are in complete control.

"I learned as captain of a ship,
To rule my shipmates with a whip,
To treat them fair and with respect,
But be quite firm and be direct".

"If they see that you are weak,
Against you they'll begin to speak,
Soon they'll be calling for your head,
And before you know it you'll be dead".

So Queen Emma no one could ever resist,
Because she ruled with an iron fist,
And they built her a castle where she could live,
She was quick to anger and slow to forgive.

In Tobia in the year of 1885,
A man named Eustace would arrive,
Young and dashing, with money to spare,
Seeking adventure beyond compare.

He was a man who had good heart,
His problem was he wasn't too smart,
But about him you could say one thing,
When he opened his mouth, he sure could sing.

Soon Emma the Queen desired to meet him,
She'd invite him to Lompoc and there she would greet him,
But to Emma it was almost a crime,
When Eustace came there at the wrong time.

So they decided that later that week they would meet,
At a pub where they could eat,
But Emma was filled with dismay,
When Eustace showed up on the wrong day.

Emma was feeling pretty glum,
Thinking that this Eustace was pretty dumb,
"He's stupid, but handsome and rich and can sing,
He'd make a great puppet king!"

"When things go wrong in times of shame,
I'll make sure they he gets the blame,
When things go right as right can be,
Everyone will know it's because of me!"

Emma said "Eustace will you marry me,
We'd make a great couple as you can see",
So Eustace took Emma as his wife,
And each went on with their own life.

While Emma signed laws well after dark,
Eustace gave a concert in the park,
While Emma worked to help the army prepare,
Eustace was judging pigs at the fair.

While Emma ran the Tobian National Bank,
Eustace went out with his friends and drank,
While Emma presided over the Tobian Court,
Eustace was outside playing a sport.

Because she was so busy and rarely was seen,
Emma was known as the Ghost Queen,
Because everyone knew him and he could sing,
Eustace was known as the People's King.

Then one day to the court there came,
Two women with each other to blame,
They brought with them a baby boy,
Which neither of them was able to enjoy.

One women said that she was sure,
The other had taken her baby from her,
She said the other's baby was dead,
And she switched them as she slept in bed.

Emma said to herself "It is clear to me,
I need to read in the bible 1st Kings Chapter 3,
King Solomon himself had this very case,
And made a wise ruling that showed God's grace.

So Emma quickly came up with a plan,
"I'll give this to Eustace, he'll show he's not much of a man",
So Eustace tried to decide their fate,
But he fainted because the pressure was too great.

So from that day on and forever more,
Things were not like they were before,
Eustace was known as the Cowardly King,
And he didn't do much of anything.

Copyright Dan Olds 1998