Thereafter, the ostrich, with feet and head sore,
Resolved he would not peck his feet any more;
He's learned by experience, virtue superior
Lies, often, concealed under coarsest exterior;
That modest and unostentatious assumption,
Betimes, will outweigh overweening presumption;
That the feet of an ostrich, no less than his head,—
Though that be, perchance, more or less better bred
And adapted by nature to study astronomy,—
Are important two members of ostrich economy,
With which no wise bird, be his head ere so comely,
Should quarrel, because they are dirty and homely.
Having reached this conclusion, our ostrich became
A modified ostrich in all but the name;
From old misconceptions of merest mendacity,
He grew to be kindly and lost his loquacity,
More humble in spirit, imbued with true charity,—
Which, under the sun, is the thing of most rarity.
Lest any imagine this measure devoid
Of meaning they'd quicker detect unalloyed,
It is meet to observe that '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 and poor, thin and fat, short and tall,
Let loose for awhile, in earth's paddock confined,
An attempt of the gods to rear more of their kind;
I infer the experiment still is in doubt,
For very few gods 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 God human nature affords,
Foretelling of Heaven,—e'en giving a glimpse
Of seraphim, cherubim, angels and nymphs,—
Till the heart of humanity, lifted up, sings
In tune with the Infinite nature of things.
The End.
Transcriber's note:
"wifh ail its portents and promises" has been corrected to "with all its portents and promises".