in 1884, riley toured the major cities in the eastern united states again. following the lectures, he began compiling a second book of poetry. he completed it during july, and bowen-merrill published it in december with the title "the boss girl, a christmas story and other sketches". the book, which contained humorous poetry and short stories, received mixed reviews. it was popular around indiana, where most of its copies were sold. one reviewer, however, called the poems "weird, nightmarish, and eerie" and compared them to edgar allan poe's works.