They tell of the north, with its ice and snow,
Where roses and violets never will blow;
Where the rein-deer, fleet, doth lightly bound,
With its fur-lined sledge o’er the frozen ground.
Of the clever rat’s skill thy pages show,
Who makes his snug home where the waters flow,
And when any dangerous foe is near,
He dives ’neath the stream, and hides in fear.
But if each bright eye should more brightly shine,
When it reads these simple tales of thine,