The Horse, a fine animal, noble and strong,
Draws coaches and carts, or waggons along;
With the collar and trace he tugs at his load
In the street, on the bridge, or along the high road.
With his long flowing mane, and smooth coat of hair,
He grazes abroad, quite pleas'd with his fare;
Now eating the grass, now prancing around
The beautiful meadow, where daisies abound.
Sometimes on his back, with bridle to guide,
His master sits easy, and takes a long ride;
On saddle well mounted, and stirrups so bright,
He goes and he comes, both by day and by night.
What a pity and shame that man should ill use,
O'erload the poor Horse, neglect and abuse
A creature so useful, so helpful to him
At the plough, in the stage, or the lumb'ring team.
Do see the poor, the patient Ass,
Stand feeding on the scanty grass;
'Twas made for man, by man ill-us'd,
And useful too, but much abus'd.
See how they load his back so small,
Until he's ready near to fall;
And then, most cruelly, you know,
They use the stick to make him go.
But God, who made him, sees and knows
What are his suff'rings, and his woes;
And once, he gave him speech to tell
A man that did not use him well.
But let us all remember well
The honour done this animal-
And may it lessen all our pride-
The Prince of Peace on one did ride.
This, let us strive to bear in mind,
To treat him carefully and kind;
And use him well, however small,
And recollect, that God made all.
Come, children, listen to me now,
And you shall hear about the Cow;
You'll find her useful, live or dead,
Whether she's black, or white, or red.
When milk-maids milk her morn and night,
She gives them milk so fresh and white;
And this, we little children think,
Is very nice for us to drink.
The curdled milk they press and squeeze,
And thus they make it into cheese:
The cream, skimm'd off, they shake in churns,
Which very soon to butter turns.
And when she's dead her flesh is good,
For beef is our true English food;
And though in health it makes us strong,
To eat too much is very wrong.
Then lime and bark the tanner takes,
And of the skin he leather makes ;
And this, we know, they mostly use
To make nice soles for boots and shoes.
And, last of all, when cut with care,
Her horns make combs, to comb our hair;
And so we learn, thanks to our Teachers,
That cows are good and useful creatures.
PART THE Second.
The hair that grows upon her back,
Is taken, whether white or black,
And mix'd with mortar, short or long,
To make it very firm and strong.
Her hoofs, with care, make glue so good,
For carpenters to join their wood;
Her fat, with cotton us'd aright,
Makes candles for to burn at night.
Her paunch, when clean'd and boiled well,
Makes tripe, which in the shops they sell ;
Her bladder, blown and dry'd, is thin,
And us'd for putting hog's-lard in.
Her feet they wash, and scrape, and boil,
From which they skim off neat's-foot oil;
Her feet are then both clean and sweet,
And very nice for us to eat.
Her gall is good for washing clean
Cloth that is black, or blue, or green;
Her blood and bones are us'd as well,
And if you wish their use I'll tell.
Thus you have heard, dear children, now,
All this about the pretty Cow;
Then treat her well, and bear in mind,
God made the cow, and all mankind.
Hark now to me, and order keep,
And we will talk about the Sheep;
For sheep are harmless, and we know
That on their backs the wool doth grow.
The Sheep are taken once a year,
And plung'd in water clean and clear;
And there they swim, but never bite,
While men do wash them clean and white.
And then they take them, fat or lean,
Clip off the wool, both short and clean;
And this is call'd, we understand,
Shearing the Sheep, throughout the land.
The wool they take, so soft and white,
And pack it up in bags quite tight;
And then they take those bags so full,
And sell to men that deal in wool.
The wool is wash'd and comb'd by hand,
And after, spun with wheel and band;
And then with shuttle, loom, and care,
Wove into cloth, for men to wear.
The cloth is next sent to be dyed,
Where it is wash'd and press'd and dry'd;
The tailor then cuts out with care
The clothes that men and boys do wear.
Dear little Lambs, you never fight,
You never growl, nor scratch, nor bite,
As dogs and cats so often do ;
So ev'ry body's fond of you.
Yet no one teaches you what's right,
Or tells you it is wrong to fight;
How very bad it then must be
In us to fight and disagree.
For we are told, day after day,
What's right, what's wrong, to do, and say; Are told, that God, who lives above,
Is pleas'd when we each other love.
The Goat, in size, is like a sheep,
And climbs up mountains very steep;
He has no wool, but shaggy hair,
Which makes stout cloth for men to wear.
The tops of boughs, and bark of trees
Is food that does him greatly please:
In Wales and Scotland, too, I'm told,
That Goats supply the place of gold.
Their milk does cheese and butter make,
And we their skins for leather take;
Their horns to handles art contrives
To make for pretty forks and knives.
A kid the little one is named;
Its skin for ladies' gloves is famed;
The names of goat and kid we may
Find in the Bible every day.
THE SQUIRREL.
The squirrel leaps from tree to tree
As quick as birds can fly ;
It makes its nest of twigs and moss
On trees that are most high.
It likes to feed on nuts and fruit-
Of wind it stands in fear :
It well provides for winter's storms
When summer cheers the year.
We then, like it, should much improve
The summer of our days,
That in life's winter we may all
Be found in wisdom's ways.
We, also, should work hard while young,
And try to save some gold;
And put it in the bank, that we
May never want when old.
The dog will stand and watch the sheep,
Or guard the house while men do sleep;
And so should we both watch and pray,
That God would keep us night and day.
The dog will draw a load with care,
And guide the blind man here or there;
And so should we be always kind
To all the poor, or lame, or blind.
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