Pretty Lessons in Verse :: :: University of Virginia Library

A poor little Toadie lived under a stone,
With nettles o'ershadowed, with lichens o'ergrown;
A Wheat-ear, of covetous spirit possest,
Resolved to obtain the snug hole for his nest.

Said he, “Shall an animal, squalid and squat,
Inhabit this cozy desirable grot;
While I and my wifie must ramble and roam,
To find a fit place for our nursery home?”

So saying, by dint of hard scratches and pecks,
And doing his utmost to harry and vex,
He forced the poor Toad to abandon his cell,
And enter'd therein with his partner to dwell.

A warm little nest in this cave to construct,
The long trailing stems and dry grasses they pluck'd;
They lined it with feathers, with wool and with hair,
Which furzes from wandering animals tear.

Six delicate eggs of a soft blueish white,
The couple soon view'd with unmingled delight;
“My dear,” said the father, “that day will be blest,
When first our young wheat-ears take wing from the nest.”

One morn he went forth, and was hopping hard by,
Intending his wife's noon-day meal to supply;
A feast he expected, the snails seem'd so rife,
When down came the harrier, and ended his life.

For many an hour did his poor hungry mate
Her spouse's return with impatience await;
He never came back for her wants to provide;
Of sorrow and famine, poor birdie! she died.

Her relics were gnaw'd by the carrion crow,
And flies in the cave did their maggots bestow;
The eggs which the pair had so anxiously cherish'd
Were suck'd by the magpies—or otherwise perish'd.

And thus was the grotto restored to the Toad,
Who gladly hopp'd back to his former abode;
In safety dwelt he, for so livid a fright
Was even disdain'd by the hunger-starved kite.

Now this you may learn both from rhymers and preachers,
'Tis wicked to injure the meanest of creatures;
Tyrannical tempers we all should control,
Nor even expel an old Toad from his hole.