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Fables for the Frivolous

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<h2>THE PRECIPITATE COCK AND THE UNAPPRECIATED PEARL </h2>   A rooster once pursued a worm     That lingered not to brave him,   To see his wretched victim squirm     A pleasant thrill it gave him;   He summoned all his kith and kin,     They hastened up by legions,   With quaint, expressive gurgles in     Their oesophageal regions.   Just then a kind of glimmering     Attracting his attention,   The worm became too small a thing     For more than passing mention:   The throng of hungry hens and rude     He skilfully evaded.   Said he, "I' faith, if this be food,     I saw the prize ere they did."   It was a large and costly pearl,     Belonging in a necklace,   And dropped by some neglectful girl:     Some people are so reckless!   The cock assumed an air forlorn,     And cried, "It's really cruel.   I thought it was a grain of corn:     It's nothing but a jewel."   He turned again to where his clan     In one astounding tangle   With eager haste together ran     To slay the helpless angle,   And sighed, "He was of massive size.     I should have used discretion.   Too late! Around the toothsome prize     A bargain-sale's in session."   The worm's remarks upon his plight     Have never been recorded,   But any one may know how slight     Diversion it afforded;   For worms and human beings are     Unanimous that, when pecked,   To be the prey of men they far     Prefer to being hen-pecked.   THE MORAL: When your dinner comes     Don't leave it for your neighbors,   Because you hear the sound of drums     And see the gleam of sabres;   Or, like the cock, you'll find too late     That ornaments external   Do not for certain indicate     A bona fide kernel. <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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