His chasers all stopped running;
Then meek as any lamb
Did Barney stand, as if to say,
"Come catch me! Here I am."
But when one of them started,
Then Barney started too;
As if the chase had just begun,
Away he swiftly flew.
But there's an end to all things,
And so, the stupid elf,
When no one else could capture him
This donkey caught himself.
For, running in the barnyard,
He did not calculate
What consequences would befall,
And hit the swinging gate.
It quickly swung together;
Down dropped the iron latch.
Oh, Barney Gray, to think that you
The runaway should catch!
The children danced with pleasure,
The groom roared with delight,
The others smiled their broadest smiles
Or laughed with all their might.