Page:Fables for the Frivolous.djvu/36

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FABLES FOR THE FRIVOLOUS

Now this wasn't to her credit,
And her callers came to dread it,
For the way the lady said it
Wasn't recherché at all.

But a jay that overheard it
From his perch upon a fir
Didn't take in how absurd it
Was to every one but her;
When they answered, "You don't tell us!"
And to see the birds seemed zealous
He became extremely jealous,
Wishing, too, to make a stir.

As the peacocks fed together
He would join them at their lunch,
Culling here and there a feather
Till he'd gathered quite a bunch;
Then this bird, of ways perfidious,
Stuck them on him most fastidious
Till he looked uncommon hideous,
Like a Judy or a Punch.

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