THE CAT= 



Good and Bad Kittens 



Kittens, you are very little, 



And your kitten bones are brittle, 



If you'd grow to Cats respected, 

 See your play be not neglected. 



Smite the Sudden Spool, and spring 

 Upon the Swift Elusive String; 



Thus you learn to catch the wary 

 Mister Mouse, or Miss Canary. 



That is how, in Foreign Places, 

 Fluffy Cubs with Kitten faces, 



Where the mango waves sedately, 

 Grow to Lions large and stately. 



But the Kittencats who snatch 

 Rudely for their food, or scratch, 



Grow to Tomcats gaunt and gory, 

 Theirs is quite another story. 



Cats like these are put away 

 By the dread S. P. C. A., 



Or to trusting Aunts and Sisters 

 Sold as Sable Muffs and Wristers. 



Oliver Herford. 



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