Class _^.S.AB_3i_ Book Murilj; GoRiightN^ llCiy COPYRIGHT DEPOSrr. ■ 5# ■ iisli^f^i ,.:>^ :^' THE STORY or AN OSTRICH ^ z'^;- THE LIBRAHY OF CONGRtSS, Two Copiee Received SEP 26 1903 CLASS CL XXc. N» COPY 8. COPYRIGHTED, 1903, BV THE HAND PRINT BOOK FOLK, BOSTON. .MASS. AI.I. THE ILLUSTRATIONS H1-:R1-: SHOWN, I NCI.rDINC. THE TITLE rAClC, ARE KErRDDUCEI) FROM TEN DRAWINCS MADE EXPRESSLY FOR THIS HOOK, AT GREAT EXPENSE, AND ALL PF.RSoNS ARE HEREBY NciTUIICI) Niil To RI%PR( HirCIC THEM WITHnl'T PERMISSlciX ^ PUBLISHER'S PREFACE r if d > « WIIAIEVER other merit ma\- be discovered in this book, the iniljlishers desire to call atten- tion to the fact that, as a whole, it is a production alto- gether unique in a field of endea\-or where somethino- new is being constantly sought, but seldom found. The poem is entirely hand-printed in large and legible letters, designedly kept free from ornate fancies" and, therefore, particularly easy to read. The hand-printing accords with the adjoining illustrations as angular and machine-made type never does, giving a pleasing and harmonious effect to the entire page, a result not to. be obtained b_\- the ordinary art of the printer. Attention is also called to the illustrations of the volume. Their merely mechanical arrangement upon the page is in itself unusual, we might almost say un- known to the reading public, while the imaginative story that the artist has told in the illustrations that he has contributed, is not only of the real and material world, but also of powers behind the scenes, which offer the motives and even supply the cues of most, if not all of the actors, who perform upon the great sta^e of life. In this, too, the book is unusual, if not unique. 'Publisher's 'Preface and offers a fertile field to the imagination of a discern- ing public in connection with the dehcious humor of the poem itself. While, therefore, fully conscious of how far short the volume falls from what might be done in the direc- tion in which it only points the way, the publishers offer it as one of a series now in preparation, of similar works which, it is believed, will be found worthy of more than a few moments of the amused attention of the reader. Till, H.\M) Pkini IkjoK Folk. Back Bay, Boston, Mass., Oiiobcr, \goj. Artist's A n II o u n t iMti c ti t F the reader will pardon an unconventional obtrusion upon his attention for a brief mo- iment, he may be interested to follow somewhat the train of thought in the artist's mind prior to his beginning to illustrate this book. When " The Story of an Ostrich " was put into his hands, his first impression was, ** Here is a merely juve- nile theme, to be treated with light, conventional and orna- mental drawings, as an adornment to a fairy talc." As he read it, he gradually perceived a deeper signifi- cance concealed beneath the laugh that must inevitably be aroused at the thought of the ridiculous figure of the foolish ostrich pecking away at his homely feet, under the delusion that they are not his own. The longer he studied and pondered over it, the more was he impressed with the conviction that underneath the simple phraseology of the poem, the author had con- veyed a lesson that humanity might well pause and heed. . . In these days of " making many books," how welcome should be that one whose story aims to raise the burden that weighs down the surcharged heart, or seeks to still the fever coursing through the blood of men and women struggling with the compli- cated problems of life I " The Story of an Ostrich " is so simple in its form that children may read it with pleasure and profit, thereby cA r t i s t' s (Announcement drawing the simpler moral from the tale ; while there is also suggested a possible condition of society that shall be attuned to the perfect chord of divine law, through the subordination of individualism in such manner as to pro- duce complete harmony in all human affairs. In the pride and dominance of the head over the rest of the body, in its scorn of the feet, equally indispensable with the head to the welfare of the whole, the poem has struck at the discordant note of all our human disaffection and rebellion. When the artist had thus searched and found between the lines the real motive of the poem, it at once became pregnant with allusions and references that suggested artistic elaboration, or pen analysis, of the large area of social life, which the allegory, in its semi-humorous, satirical vein, assumes to cover. If his pencil seems at times to wander far afield, either in elaboration or disregard of the canon principles of art, his plea must be that the interpretation he has given is according to his carefully studied conception of what the author must have had in mind when writing " The Story of an Ostrich." 1 hjii sluggiird in bonds to a vision of night. Be not a king's fool, but a proud man of might : .irise like a lord, that ye max not be slain. No door shal imprison, no hope be in vain ; The zvorld is for conquest, -ivho seeks for such goal, Will fnd the chain riven, the ke\ in his soul! ^ / HE iiiikiiozvii spake 07it of the finiiainciit, sayiiii:;, — " Choose ye one iustnmient first, emd then attune another one to it. This aeeoniplished, attune then a tliird instrument to them ; after that a fourth, and so on ; and ye shall be all attuned alike f Thereupon, the musieians set to loork, but eould not agree as to udiose should be the prst instrumei/t. A pillar of fire descended from Heaven and stood in the }nid<:t of the musieiai/s ; and in the centre of the pillar op pre their appeared an instrument called the .-III Perfect. The instrument gave forth one note and all the musicians attuned to it. The I'oice said. " / haz'c given the keynote, find ye the rest." Tfie pillar of fire departed. Ihie instruments thus attuned in harmony played rapturously. This /perceive. — to make the man and 7vife one, to make the village one, to make the state one, to make the empire one. — all in harmony as one instrument, cannot be done ivithout a Central Son, a Creator to attune to. IVhen a man is attuned to Him, and a woman is attuned to ffim, they 7vill themselves be as one. Jl'hen the family a //d the village are attuned to ffim, it is easy. Without ffim harmony cannot be. ffe. the Creator, then, must be first in all things, first in all places. He must be ilie nearest of all things, the nearest of all places. In our rites and ceremonies. He must be the All Ideal Perfection, the embodiment of a Perfect Person f — iiook of s.iphah. Che Storij of an 0)$tncri HY TTT|-\r) Tti A A fC FOHMRHLY KDITOR OF THK YaNKBE Br.ADE, 'J*~/UU l»T!>.tV..rt-\^Ct, jjy^ Engiand Magazine. Nickeli, Magazink. ^''''■^^ ! ^ ' ^'^'^'' ' ^ ' ^'' *'^' ^-^!^'''^ ' ^ ' ^*'^^'' ' ^'^ ' ^ '' ^ ' ^^^^^ •^ ■■re^ K. /<*■ ij ) I Tlie Story of an Ostrich. A robust old ostrich, with liead little bigger Tliaii that of some creatures of far frailer figure, With two legs complete, and a speed very fleet, Once caught a short peep at his feet, in the street. So far from Ills head did they seem to be located, He failed to take note that upon each were notated Scales, warts and abrasions, nails, ossification, Which proved tlieni a part of his own corporation. He noticed, however, wherever he went, Tiey came along,too, and he asked what it meant? Tiougli lie walked tlirough the town, or he stalked o'er the heath He obseivedthey remained, always, right underneath. He thrust out his bust and inside he just cussed, When they strode along and kept kicking up dust; \ But in vain did he feign to abstain from disdain, l As he dined with the twain in the wind and the rain; m ' ;,iwniifr/,„i^f/i/i^ ^^^iiii/^tritr/ff^frrfn/^rrfrffirfjrr!i/iiiiti/iii! zi V(m', 4^ f^, ¥^ 9u. {^^ r^3g^ ^ ^V '.%'k'. v^v^^v.-^-?^^ j^'^'^^-v^'^w^v'--''--'-^''^''''^'^-'^-^'*; ' .-Wo\tvw\^ Or stared around therein, while wearing' a kar-grin, Evincing an evident, ill-eoncealed chagrin. So very ungainly were tky, like atjinor, TFie ostrich, at last, got in very bad humor; yind, failing to recognise them as liisown, Made a peck with liis beak that went clear to the bone, i Which gave all his nerves such a terrible thrill, He quick pecked another hard peck with his bill; With each peck a quivei) his frame shook with shivers, /Isif his limp liver were pierced with slim slivers,- TIll both his great feet with his heart's blood were red, ^ Oozing outonthe ground, as he'd painfully tread. It was strange that his feet, thus, he blindly maltreated, Debased his escheat and his comfort defeated! As a matter of fact, he never had noticed How he'd got around; and he'd not the remotest Idea that his own high position depended On two ugly feet that his good taste offended. z /. HE thoughtful student of modern, social, and economic conditions, who reads the accom- panying rhymed satire, " The Story of an Ostrich," will discover in it much more than the mere words would ordinarily convey, and will read into it such measure of philosophy as his own experience and critical study of the problem of human existence may have prepared him for. When, ten thousand years ago, the owl sat in the light of the moon and unknown deities spat wisdom into the philosophies of Hermes and Zoroaster and their more or less erudite predecessors, the earliest gods, with their bird-like heads and male bodies, were yet vehicles of truth, elevating the frail stock of humanity over which they threw their benign influences. Since recorded history began, the world has had many gods, and many books concerning them have been written, determining by much labor of the head which The Undertone should be worshiped, rather than impressing the heart with sincere desire to travel in divinely appointed ways. As "the mere grasses/' priests and kings have trampled upon the masses — have been at once their masters, their deities and interpreters of deity. Their rank materi- alism has always complacently overrated itself, while the world, which labors and runs, has ever been chained to and crushed beneath it. Man knew not the power of God within himself. //. Many unthinking as well as vicious men, in both ancient and modern times, who have by accident of birth and condition been set in authority over their fellows, or, who have by their own efforts been raised to positions of power and responsibility in the state and among the great captains of industry, have thought to ignore their depend- ence upon the lower orders of society for the very altitude they have enjoyed — the head refusing, as it were, to consider the feet as a part of the body corporate and entitled to no more than the pleasure of mere existence. Such heads apply no healing balms to weak and wounded 3 j'>-' j^-. ,^ »^. •ir'T' Although, from his youth up^tlieyVl always been going", His mental inertia prevented his knowing That all lofty heads must have good understanding", To retain, out of hand, a position coniinanding; So, lie would sti II peck, though it hurt, and despise tlieni, /Ind swear, by the gods, he would not recognise tliem ! But those homely feet, which for long had done duty Mid lowly conditions, lay 'ng no claim to beauty Of pinion, or plunie,yet upholding together Tie framework of bone, witli its blood, flesh and feather,— Tie which makes an ostrich of wit and assurance,- A\. last reached the limit of patient endurance. Tiey turned about, then,- the proverbial worin,- I /Ind punched his head hard -to use a slang term ; So forceful and rapid they got in tlieir work, The ostrich, in agony, let out a "quirk!" /Is, weakened by suffring, disheartened by pain, /I hint of the truth dawned upon his dull brain. 3 M )^i( M m Self-centred, astounded, indignant, demented, The ostricli, not yet half acquainted, resented Tlie silent upheaval, he'd felt, of the niasses, He'd, heretofore, held to J)e as the mere grasses; Ttiey having objected, lie'd make no contention, Tiougli he wondered how he'd interpose intervention Enough to protect him from any more kicking Like that, which was, now, in his mein'ry still sticking. Overwhelmed with emotion he could not command, The hurt ostrich buried his head in tlie sand, — /Iway from his sight shut his two mangled feet out, Lest they his own ostrich fool brains should quite beat out,— Tius hiding himself, as he thought, in his shame, F-om the world, though he still stood revealed just the samel Twas then a near neighbor, who'd watched with close scrutiny, | Tie clumsy feet operate during the mutiny, Interfered to propose they adopt arbitration, /Ind settle their difference with more moderation. 3"tr; ^F ^" S^. M 4^ ;%>«■ '/> '^ 1 ^.V'i' »r.V V :<^' '■y\) 'tj^'. w ''/-^ iM, 'y 2 The Undertone extremities, but proffer, instead, the scourge, i. e., starva- tion, long days of poorly remunerated toil, squalid sur- roundings, — in ancient times the guillotine, the gallows and the rack ; in modern days, ostracism, the prison and the electric chair. The blood of Christ's divinity flov/ed that love and mercy might be exemplified, but it can- not sprinkle the world with saving grace, so long as its own herald, the church, continues to say, " Amen ! " to the master, and " Peace, be still ! " to the slave. When there crept into the world the first dull, unreasoning sense of injury, — when the underlings of humanity first began to assimilate from the common vein of intelligence that made them one with the body, a sensible desire for recognition on the ground of equality, they were promptly denied any part whatsoever in the material and spiritual accretions of generations of labor; and then was inaugu- rated the revolt that has been prolific through all past time, of war and misery, of violence, pillage and murder. In the light of experience the heads of humanity have seldom profited by the tutelage of whips and blood and T h e Undertone torture. Without respect for rights and demands when opposed to their selfish material interests, they have held not their Bibles in their hands, where the light might il- lumine its pages, but have placed the sacred book under their feet while making prayers to stocks and bonds. But the knights-errant are in the saddle, and with the true spirit of knighthood they may be found in the thick of the politic battle, where they are making clear the path for greater powers that shall follow with purging force to cleanse the great body and through a long and cruel strife establish the contentious parts in truth and unity. IV. Mighty powers of the state are asleep at the post of duty, when, lo! an issue arises, — the mice are in the govern- ment meal-bag, — the spirits of fire and distraction are abroad ; wealth and power are being attacked from be- neath ! The great hand of the law reaches forth to seize upon the offender and to snuff out his little, palpitating human life, that, far from being the cause, is only a symp- tom of the real malady. The cause still exists, the cancer of the state still invites new vermin to feed upon its sore. Observe" said the neighbor, "your festiculatioiis, Your dearth of debate and gymnastic gyrations Encroach, with a frequency highly alarming, Upon my estate, which I value for fanning; If your two extremities keep on contending", Bye and bye, we shall have nothing left worth defending. Tie plan was considered by all the combatants,— In silence the feet, by the head's usual blatance, Which presently muttered,"! may yet surprise you? yind mentally uttered, "I'll not recognize you! But agreed, after all, with becoming alacrity. Despite the bald fact thatbotli feet were still theie,gritty Ani soiled with innumerable days of hard working, Transporting their load overland without shirking. TTien a toad, a sly fox, a snail, peacock and hatter, Tirned-to to investigate what was the matter; Selecting a sand-pit within which to meet, They mvited the ostrich to come,— with his feet, And tell how it happened the quarrel arose, Which, they'd been hiformed, culminated in blows. Ttie peacock w^s asked to preside at the hearing, Decide the disputes, in despite of the jeering That,betimes,with his rulings, increased to a gale, When he, perchance,winked with the eyes of his tail. "Fie ostrich appeared and made the assertion, In voluble language of aniniadversion, Tiat, while he'd been, quietly, minding his business, His damp, dirty feet had occasioned him diziiness, Obtruding each, vulgarly, on his attention, Thereby, in so doing, creating contention,- I'faith, 'pon mywoTd,"the ostrich said, squawking, I fear me, each wants a kid shoe and silk stocking;" At this point, the peacock his tail feathers flaunted; The ostrich, however, continued undaunted,- I know of no reason for this state of things, Nor why my two feet should expect, by their flings, ^€^ mm ■/// ^^^ ■'J 'Hi ii W I ^^ '>i suJ!^ J ;/• ''Ak yj //, r-y ^-■■' -''' *' '> r -r/ /: ^ J The Undertone The knight prophesies and expostulates in the public ear, but Uncle Sam still sleeps, though perchance with uneasy dreams. The great forces which evolve the tramp and the ignorant emigrant are still at work, while the devil holds the match to the combustible elements of soulless greed. Bye and bye there will be a great hue and cry of fire, with much ringing of bells. V. Uncle Sam is now awake and doing in earnest. The rankness of materialism breeding from the earth, a thing of great and dreaded power, of craft and slime, recoils upon the land of which it has been begotten and now boldly erects its head to encompass the state in its death- constricting coils. Even the old lady, who is wont to knit her stockings in peace by a hardwood fire, or by the glowing coals of an open grate, in city or town, alike, peaceful and content, and without consideration of the vexing problems of sup- ply and demand, awakens suddenly to the fact that even a comfortable competence is no surety against want and cold, when the serpent has dragged himself into the gar- den and garner house of God. The Undertone The farmer is aroused and indignant, but when he makes his protest, the serpent flies pursuit, and with a changing policy under the guise of a great, foolish bird and a well assumed air of innocence, buries its small and crafty head for a season in the sand. VI. Really, it seems ridiculous that this incessant warfare of man against man should go on, — the head casting aspersions upon the feet, and the feet kicking against their own head, to the mutual affliction of themselves and the great body that holds them together in the firm compact of common life. . . . This is not God's law, but man's supreme selfishness, — his disobedience and his curse. After all, kid shoes and silk stockings are not elective privileges; and poorer humanity, turning under its cross and chains, appeals to Heaven, not in vain, if we read aright the signs of the times. The air resounds with optimistic teachings and words of love and cheer that, as yet, have no guarantee in actual deeds. In con- tra-distinction to the Christian creed, " we must look out for ourselves," is the rasping gospel of our latter-day faith. To dictate to me with whom I shall travel, yinnoy me by constantly scratching the giuvel, yind trench on my courtesy, when I decline, For reasons sufficient, to treat tlieni as mine; Please notice, your honors, their mode of attack,- hold they've no srievanee and shouldn't kick back" lile the ostrich was talking,iii tones hoarse and wlieezy, His feet, from their pecking still sore, grew uneasy; Unfitted by nature totalk,tliey, by grace, In eloquent silence presented their case. Tie judges, thrown now on tlieir own wisdom, turned To next take account of how much they had learned; Tie peacock, as chaivnian, assuming dominion, Invited from eacl) a judicial opinion; Whereupon, in l)isturn,eacliliis own views expressed, Tien sat down and looked arodnd.wise, at the rest. Tie fox was the first to arise to liis feet, X announce that his own mind was made up complete; Mm0WM He seized tlie occasion liis own reputation X clear of a cloud of ill-got defamation /llle^iiigtliat he liad habitually crept Round henroosts, at midnight, when honest tblk slept; Wliicli libel had darkened his whole life's existence, yind made it much harder to gain a subsistence; He thought it ashamethat apoor tempted sinner, Like liini, should thus suffer for getthig his dinner. Wliile he spake,his eyes rested, in manner abiding, Upon the slim neck of the peacock presiding, Wliicli ruffled its feathers and spread out its tail, Tliough feeling itself round the gills growing pale. Tie next to express an opniion, invoked By the peacock piiesiding, the toad gruffly croaked His belief that beneath stillest tongue there lay hid, Most often, the softest and teiiderest quid; For his part,he thought that the ostrich inclined To lay too much stress on his power of mindj The Undertone But there are those who work as well as preach, and to such may yet be recorded the service of universal peace. VII. In solemn convocation met, stand the mighty men of our realm, with the policy of the bull, of the bear, of the wolf and of the fox, each animal, according to the nature of its disposition, awaiting the opportunity of power and spoliation, by which he may grasp and hold to himself, as his own personal increment, all that can be wrested from the state and humanity at large. The state, itself, in principle wise, majestic and supreme, petitions peace of the leering devil, who constantly juggles with the tape of human selfishness, as waiting angels record the devious courses that nations and individuals take. Behold, how pressed on all sides is the man of the hour in the grasp of the huge, overbrooding, material powers of self-interest. VIII. Confusion still reigns, but labor has risen from the cross and comes to legislation. He dreams of conquests that are chimerical, where the shadowy knight of honor con- tests the field with the disgruntled spirit of melancholy. The Undertone who pessimistically broods the unhatched zgg of arbitra- tion. Agitators and agitations still hold sway, while Satan in their midst dominates the human idea of prog- ress and reform with the accursed principle of Self, that is in itself Self-destroying. IX. When, now, the monster spirit of protest begins to show its gigantic figure, high, low, and middle classes are alarmed. Prices fluctuate, business goes down, work and bread are scarce. Behold, in the heavens appear the gruesome phantoms of war. But so far, in every crisis, messengers from worlds beyond have sanctified the impending woe to the world's welfare. The tides of progress are in the hands of the Infinite, who measures from cycle to cycle their ebb and flow; while the ever rising tide-mark signifies the ultimate in- undation of the millenium. How great is God ! How small is man in his own councils! X. By the loss of men and money mighty men are upset, and the wise among them are made to look grave. In Its all very well for them as can do it, To strive after learning aiidtiy to construe it, But an oslricli's presumption is, clearly, mere shoddy, His head is too small for tlie size of his body." TTie .<:nail next emerged from his shell, to announce His opiin'oii, in words he could scarcely pronounce; He spake without grace and his voice was not strong, V/inle his sentences dragged themselves slowly along; Aw estred§e,"hesaid,"isermonstrus bigcreeter, Who'd killyou all dead, as you'd kill er niuskeeter; fl Ef he stepped his gret foot on your body and shell, I'm sure you would never, again.feel so well;" Tie snail then withdrew to his shell's deep recesses, With the same staid demeanor he ever possesses. TTie hatter essayed, now, to speak, in his turn. In serious words.that evinced his concern, Lest justice iniscany and leave their decision A subject for mirth, if not open derision. My friends," he begaii Tin pleased witli your brevity, Butycu treat the matter with far toe iiiucli levity; Its plainly the duty of tliose of our station, To reconiendtliat which deserves coininendatiou;" Tie world is a large one, and all who are in it Should join iiithispriiicip]e,this very iiiiiiute,- TtiatiiaturejOr Providence, made no mistake III giving an ostrich a head that will ache, In order that when he slips off from his trolley. Some well sustained kicks may reveal liini his folly" I perceive in this case a well defined principle,- Divinely appointed, eternal, invincible,- To wit,- adaptation of means to an end, By reason of which, all effect and cause blend,- Whicti gave the dumb feet an integument bony. To travel in dirt and o'er ground rough and stony, Awi set ill the head, held aloft in the main, The delicate eye forthe convolute brain, sn The Undertone the day of judgment, in the overturning of the kingdom and principles of the world they inhabit, no one knows what to think. Apprehension and gloom are on all the faces that meet in the populous thoroughfares of trade ; but the public school, the pen, and the power of the press have so raised the standard of common intelligence, that there is a steady advance and progress, animated by its in- spiring, though still shackled Spirit of Protest- It has entered of its own volition into the service which makes for the unity of powers working jointly in Heaven and upon the earth, and our beautiful flag shows only the transfigured light of the stars. XL To separate the head from the feet, labor from capital, or to inaugurate war between them, brings about such con- fusion and distress as can only be likened to the great body of humanity being continually brewed by Satan in an enormous caldron kept hot by the fires of revolution. All evil being ultimate good, the process, though one of renovation and purification, is bitterly painful to the inno- cent as well as to the guilty. In the determined revolt of T h e Undertone the feet of humanity against the head, it has always been discovered that the head was too small for the size of the body; and that the bulky feet carry with them, when aroused to action along the lines of self-defence, a tre- mendous barbaric force and cruelty. Witness the fearful revolts of society that have brought the issue to a test. In the cosmical alembic of human jurisprudence, there must be mixed with lofty and divine sentiments a recognition of our mutual dependence and accountability, not of man to man, only, but to something higher than his humanity, a perfect and divine law to which that humanity may be harmoniously attuned. God, dominant in love that is not calculating, but universal and free as the air we breathe and without taint of prejudice, can alone amalgamate the differences of these varying tones, — wielding them to- gether into a perfectly melodious theme. He is, indeed, the tuning fork that shall put the instru- ments into perfect tune. XIL The age has reached a point of reason so far as councils may serve to settle the differences between the head and the feet; and the waiting world stands with attentive ear To detect at a distance iinpeiiding disaster, Fulfilling the duties assigned to tk master, Of guiding tlie feet toward smootli paths, every day, yiiid making as easy as may he tlieir way." The peacock had hstened, with iated emotion, While each indicated and stated his notion; But whenthey were done, tw screeched out with aflout, 4ou,noiie of you, know what you're talking about!" With which aJlegatioii he gravely begun To strut up and down, back and forth, in the sun, -^nd spread out his frail and great, glim mering tail, Till it shone like a beautiful, shimmering veil. Lxcuse me," he said, in tones harsh and discordant, Ill-concealing a feeling sarcastic and mordant That listeners all noted,"if, I implore you, I perambulate g^orgeousjy round here before you. To show you that beauty of plumage and figure Have nothing in common with prosaic vigor; Creation, which wisely decreed that ttie feet Were made tobe used in the dust of the street, Has, also, ordainedtliatthey shall sustain Superior cellular tissue and brain ^bove and away from the gross things of earth,- Evincing, thereby, a superlative birth; ^nd why should I be, then, so terribly blamed, Jf I , of my feet , am a good deal asliained •" A^ he ended, the floor of the sand-pit lie spurned, ,^nd abruptly announced arbitration adjourned. -Although no agreement was reached,as awhole, Discussion is generally good for the soul; The ostrich,ere adjudication was tlirough. Unconsciously passing his acts in review, Had arrived, independently, at the decision, TTiat he'd been a fool; and he laughed in derision, To think he'd permitted his weak self-conceit, To lead him to pecking his own faithful feet. 1\ Vt-!Tk ^fei *^ ^^Od! :ii' J/r, ^d^ t^ Ml ■!^<. m '','>"•;;? m: ^' KHH: ^i \^^k ^ ^:v2 ■■«^- t^^^-_^rr^ .4if<. ^^, ,^^A V iv^^'S Lest any imagine tliis measure devoid Of mean iiig they'd quicker detect unalloyed, It is meet to observe tiiat 'twas writ with design, Well knowing wise men its intent will divine. By the ostrich is meant mankind, great and small, Weak and strong, rich andpoor, thin and fat,sliort and tall, Let loose for awhile, in earth's paddock confined, A]\ attempt of the gods to rear more of their kind; 1 infer the experiment still is in doubt, Fox very few ^ods have, as yet, been hatched out. But some men,there are, with great purposes fraught, Who have pushed back afar the world's frontier of thought; And others, whose deeds,speaking louder than words, Show how much of Cod human nature affords, Foretelling of Heaven,- e'en giving a glimpse Of seraphim, cherubim, angels and iiyniphs,- Tll the heart of humanity, lifted up, sings In tune with the Infinite nature of things. The End. ^^1 ^v M L^T^ P^>' M ^' tfff b>-s* '■r> t^ P. '14 ! ^' # :ll^ W^>'L -"4^ ^->. ^-^'^M ^fM^^&. 'm ut- i-'Vif^'S:^ ,-ag-'a£-?- ^.'F'?^7 ^-'W' jLf 26 »903 i LIBRARY OF CONGRESS III III III II II III 11 II I II II Z' 015 909 818 7 -C