Part 6 (1/2)
One much prefers those that are dumber, And as for the paragons small-- If a swallow cannot make a summer.
It can bring on a summary fall!
[_Guy Wetmore Carryl_
A NAUTICAL BALLAD
A capital s.h.i.+p for an ocean trip, Was the ”Walloping Window-blind”; No gale that blew dismayed her crew Or troubled the captain's mind.
The man at the wheel was taught to feel Contempt for the wildest blow, And it often appeared, when the weather had cleared, That he'd been in his bunk below.
”The boatswain's mate was very sedate, Yet fond of amus.e.m.e.nt, too; And he played hop-scotch with the starboard watch, While the captain tickled the crew.
And the gunner we had was apparently mad, For he sat on the after rail, And fired salutes with the captain's boots, In the teeth of the booming gale.
”The captain sat in a commodore's hat And dined in a royal way On toasted pigs and pickles and figs And gummery bread each day.
But the cook was Dutch and behaved as such; For the diet he gave the crew Was a number of tons of hot-cross buns Prepared with sugar and glue.
”All nautical pride we laid aside, And we cast the vessel ash.o.r.e On the Gulliby Isles, where the Poohpooh smiles, And the Rumbletumbunders roar.
And we sat on the edge of a sandy ledge And shot at the whistling bee; And the cinnamon-bats wore water-proof hats As they danced in the sounding sea.
”On rubgub bark, from dawn to dark, We fed, till we all had grown Uncommonly shrunk,--when a Chinese junk Came by from the torriby zone.
She was stubby and square, but we didn't much care, And we cheerily put to sea; And we left the crew of the junk to chew The bark of the rubgub tree.”
[_Charles E. Carryl_
THE PLAINT OF THE CAMEL
”Canary-birds feed on sugar and seed, Parrots have crackers to crunch: And, as for the poodles, they tell me the noodles Have chickens and cream for their lunch.
But there's never a question About MY digestion-- Anything does for me!
”Cats, you're aware, can repose in a chair, Chickens can roost upon rails; Puppies are able to sleep in a stable, And oysters can slumber in pails.
But no one supposes A poor Camel dozes-- Any place does for me!
”Lambs are enclosed where it's never exposed, Coops are constructed for hens: Kittens are treated to houses well heated, And pigs are protected by pens.
But a Camel comes handy Wherever it's sandy-- Anywhere does for me!
”People would laugh if you rode a giraffe, Or mounted the back of an ox; It's n.o.body's habit to ride on a rabbit, Or try to bestraddle a fox.
But as for a Camel, he's Ridden by families-- Any load does for me!
”A snake is as round as a hole in the ground, And weasels are wavy and sleek; And no alligator could ever be straighter Than lizards that live in a creek, But a Camel's all lumpy And b.u.mpy and humpy-- Any shape does for me!”
[_Charles E. Carryl_
CHILD'S NATURAL HISTORY