“I’ll break your engagement,” the young man cried,
As he smashed in the coop with an axe,
Whereupon for a healthier neighbourhood
The old turkey gobbler made tracks.
* * * * *
“There’ll be turkey for dinner,” the boarders all cried,
But, alas! they were greatly mistaken,
For the landlady brought in that Christmas day
The usual liver and bacon.
Free Press Flashes, 1882.