The Cock and Goose 
The extravagant and erring spirit hies 
To his confine: and of the truth herein 
This present object made probation : 
It faded on the crowing of the cock. 
Some say that ever ’gainst that season comes 
Wherein our Saviour’s birth is celebrated, 
The bird of dawning singeth all night long: 
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad, 
The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike, 
No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm ; 
So hallowed and so gracious is the time.1 
The coosz, so frequently alluded to in 
the Plays, usually appears there as the 
recognised symbol of human stupidity and 
cowardice. How far this character, if 
really deserved by the bird, is the result 
of domestication and association with man 
for many centuries, is a question for 
ornithological psychologists. ‘There can 
be no doubt that the wild-goose does not 
deserve the reputation attributed to his 
degenerate kinsman in the farm-yard. 
Shakespeare was aware how active and 
vigilant that bird was among the fens 
1 Hamlet, 1. 1. 147-164. 
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