h folly must be clearly due
To their peculiar point of view.

The Ant. The Pheas-ant.

[Illustration: The Ant. The Pheas-ant.]

The ant is known by his ant-ennae,
Where-as the pheas-ant has'nt any,
And that is why he wears instead,
A small red cap upon his head:
Without his Fez, indeed the pheasant,
Would be quite bald and quite un-pleasant.

The Hare. The Harrier.

[Illustration: The Hare. The Harrier.]

The Harrier, harassed by the Hare,
Presents a picture of despair;
Although as far as I'm concerned,
I love to see the tables turned.
The Harrier flies with all his might,
It is a harum-scare'm flight:
I'm not surprised he does not care
To meet the fierce pursuing Hare.

The Pen-guin. The Sword-fish.

[Illustration: The Pen-guin. The Sword-fish.]

We have for many years been bored
By that old saw about the sword
And pen, and now we all rejoice,
To see how Nature made her choice:
She made, regardless of offendin',
The Sword-fish mightier than the Penguin.

The Gnu. The Newt.

[Illustration: The Gnu. The Newt.]

The Gnu conspicuously wears
His coat of gnumerous bristling hairs,
While, as we see, the modest Newt
Of such a coat is destitute.
(I'm only telling this to you,
And it is strictly "entre gnu")
In point of fact the Newt is nude,
And therefore he does not obtrude,
But hides in some secluded gnook,
Beneath the surface of the brook.
It's almost more than he can bear,
To issue slyly from his lair,
And snatch a hasty breath of air,
His need of which is absolute,
Because, you see, he is a pneu-t.[A]

[Illustration]

[Footnote A:
This word, of _air_ is emblematic,
Greek, "pneumos"--air--compare Pneumatic.]

The Ray. The Raven.

[Illustration: The Ray. The Raven.]

I always sing the hymn of hate,
When I perceive the Ray (or skate)
His ugly mouth I can't abide,
His eyes are on the other side,
His features are all out of place
He hasn't even any face.
I do not mind the Raven, though
Maligned by Edgar Allan Poe:
By his fun-er-ial array
We recognize him from the Ray,
Whose epiderm is white as snow,
Not black as night, like Mr Crow.
Though black, morose, and quite unshaven
I'm sure we all prefer the Raven.

[Illustration]

The Ape. The Grape.

[Illustration: The Ape. The Grape.
To see her shape,
Invert the Ape!]

The