To see an airy monarch drowned,
To them was something new
Some gave a quick, astonished look,
And darted swift away;
While some his parting plumage shook,
And nibbled him for prey.
O! who that saw that bird at noon
So high and proudly soar,
Could think how awkwardly--how soon,
He'd fall to rise no more?
Though glory, majesty, and pride
Were his an hour ago,
Deprived of all, that eagle died,
For stooping once too low!
Now, have you ever known or heard
Of biped, from his sphere
Descending, like that silly bird
To buy a fish so dear?
=The Two Thieves=
A lady, they called her Miss Mouse,
In a slate-colored dress, like a Quaker,
Once lived in a snug little house,
Of which she herself was the maker.
There lived in another close by,
A dame, whom they called Lady Kitty;
But that she was stationed so nigh,
Miss Mouse often thought a great pity.
For she, though so soberly clad,
And never inclined to ill-speaking,
Had often a fancy to gad,
Or more than her own might be seeking.
She did not then like to be scanned,
Or questioned respecting her duty,
When some little theft she had planned,
Or seen coming home with her booty.
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