after all--do nothing.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

THE CAT METAMORPHOSED INTO
A WOMAN.

A man was passionately fond of his cat,
He thought she was pretty, and sleek, and all that;
And she purred in the softest tone,
He wished to make her his own.
This man by prayers, by tears,
By sorcery and charms,
Changed pussy to a woman fair,
And took her in his arms.
But in the wainscot soon a rat
Made itself manifest,
And very soon the pussy cat,
Could still no longer rest.
Her foolish husband who believed
That nothing had of cat remained,
And as his wife had her received--
Was, now, I warrant, somewhat pained.
Next time the vermin came,
Pussy was surer of her game--
For having changed her face,
The mice not frightened,
Did not change their pace--
And the astonished spouse
Was very glad--
To change her back--
And was no more cat-mad.

MORAL.

What in the bone is born,
Will in the flesh remain,
Both night and morn,
And ne'er come out again.

[Illustration]

THE FROG AND THE RAT.

He who another thinks to injure,
May in the end destroy himself.

A rat who fed exceeding well,
Was by a frog invited out to dine;
"The voyage," said froggy, "will be quickly made,
If you will tie your foot to mine."
Frog vaunted the delight of bathing,
Praised the varieties they'd met upon the way,
And when the rat consented to be tied,
Attempted to bear him away.
The rat half drowned resisted all he could.
The frog, imaged the dinner he would make;
Suddenly, flying from a neighboring wood,
A hawk appeared, and quickly did he take
Both of the combatants up in his bill,
Before they e'en had time to make their will;
And quite delighted did the greedy sinner
Make off of fish and flesh a hearty dinner.
For in the hawk's dominions, fast days
Are never kept.
Now if the frog had acted as he ought,
And had not tried to dine off the poor rat,
They would not both have perished,
To make fat,
A pampered hawk;
And master rat,
Had he not been so curious about
Aquatic government,
Had from the scrape got safely out.

MORAL.

A scheme or a conspiracy,
Be it all plotted well
As safe, 'twould seem as it could be,
And sure of all success,
May, none the less,
Entirely fail,
And grand conspirators,
And all bewail,
The day that set them scheming.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

THE LION AND THE FLY.

A lion by a gad-fly worried,
Half maddened by his sting,
Excl