 | The poetical works of John Godfrey Saxe |  |
WISDOM AND CUNNING.
AN ALLEGORY.
As Wisdom one evening was taking a stroll,
Quite out of her usual road,
She came to a hut, at the foot of a knoll,
Where Selfishness had his abode.
Quite out of her usual road,
She came to a hut, at the foot of a knoll,
Where Selfishness had his abode.
In this dismal retreat, which, within and without,
Was the shabbiest ever was known,
In a fashion befitting so scurvy a lout,
The miser was living alone.
Was the shabbiest ever was known,
In a fashion befitting so scurvy a lout,
The miser was living alone.
She knocked at the door with a maidenly rap,
To inquire concerning the way;
For in strolling about, by an awkward mishap,
Miss Wisdom had wandered astray.
To inquire concerning the way;
For in strolling about, by an awkward mishap,
Miss Wisdom had wandered astray.
The occupant growled, for the insolent churl
Suspected some beggarly kin;
But, getting a peep at the beautiful girl,
He civilly bade her, “Come in!”
Suspected some beggarly kin;
But, getting a peep at the beautiful girl,
He civilly bade her, “Come in!”
Alas for the damsel! was ever before
A maid in so wretched a plight?
For Selfishness cruelly bolted the door,
And forced her to wed him outright.
A maid in so wretched a plight?
For Selfishness cruelly bolted the door,
And forced her to wed him outright.
That a couple so mated soon came to be foes,
Of course it is easy to see;
For natures so opposite, every one knows,
Could never a moment agree.
Of course it is easy to see;
For natures so opposite, every one knows,
Could never a moment agree.
And so it befell that the lady at last,
By pleading deception and force,
From the infamous marriage that bound her so fast,
Procured an eternal divorce.
By pleading deception and force,
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Procured an eternal divorce.
But ere 't was decreed, it is proper to say,
A serious mischief was done;
For it happened one morning,—bad luck to the day!
The lady gave birth to a son.
A serious mischief was done;
For it happened one morning,—bad luck to the day!
The lady gave birth to a son.
An ill-looking urchin as ever was born
(As Cunning the fellow is known),
Whom even his mother regarded with scorn,
And never was willing to own.
(As Cunning the fellow is known),
Whom even his mother regarded with scorn,
And never was willing to own.
A slight look of Wisdom he bears in his face,
Procures him a deal of respect
With people too little discerning to trace
The vices which other detect.
Procures him a deal of respect
With people too little discerning to trace
The vices which other detect.
For, ever his motives are sordid and vile,
And ever his methods are mean;
And thus, in despite of his treacherous smile,
The mind of the father is seen.
And ever his methods are mean;
And thus, in despite of his treacherous smile,
The mind of the father is seen.
| The poetical works of John Godfrey Saxe | |