... they had authored the lyric; the most committed imposter was Alexander McWhorter Ball, a New Jersey legislator whose wealthy and powerful friends mounted a national campaign to prove his authorship. The poem’s actual author, Elizabeth Akers Allen, found herself in danger of losing her reputation and...

..., Elizabeth Akers. “‘Some Queer Freak of Taste’: Gender, Authorship and the ‘Rock Me to Sleep’ Controversy,” by Jennifer Putzi, 769–95. Apess, William. “Shadows of Mashantucket: William Apess and the Repre- sentation of Pequot Place,” by Mark Rifkin, 691–714. Authorship. “‘Some Queer Freak of Taste...