XXVI. THAT OF THE INDISCREET HEN AND THE RESOURCEFUL ROOSTER.

 (An Allegory.)

 

I dote upon the softer sex.

The theme I write upon doth vex¹,

For female inconsistency

A sorry subject is for me

To tackle;

Yet of a wayward female hen

I write this time, with halting pen.

Compound of pride, and vanity,

All feathers she appear'd to be,

And cackle.

A flighty hen was she, no doubt—

A foolish fowl², a gad-about.

"Lay eggs!" quoth she. "Why should I?—why?

And set! I won't, upon that I

'M decided³."

Then,—on the Times instalment plan,—

A bicycle she bought, and 'gan

Domestic duties to neglect;

Her skirts were—what could one expect?—

Divided.

 

This conduct greatly scandalised

The farmyard; all looked on surprised,

All but the rooster staid and grim;

He did not fret⁴. 'Twas not for him

To rate her;

He let her go her wilful⁵ way,

And purchased for himself one day

A strange contraption—glass and tin—

An article that's called an in-

Cubator.

The nearest grocer's then he sought,

Some ten-a-shilling eggs he bought;

The incubator set to work

(There was no fear that it would shirk

Its duty),

Then sat and waited patiently.

Not many days to wait, had he:

Within a week, to make him glad,

A family of chicks he had—

A beauty.

 

Surprised, his wife returned; but "No;

In future you your way may go,

And I'll go mine, misguided hen!"

Said he. She fell to pleading then,

But vainly.

"I'm better off without," he said,

"A wife with such an empty head.

* * *

He flourishes. His wife, grown stout⁶,

Neglected, squa-a-ks and stalks about—

Ungainly.

Moral.

 

It's a wise chicken in these days that knows

its own mother.

1 vex   

vt.使烦恼，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Everything about her vexed him.有关她的一切都令他困惑。
• It vexed me to think of others gossiping behind my back.一想到别人在背后说我闲话，我就很恼火。

2 fowl   

n.家禽，鸡，禽肉

参考例句：

• Fowl is not part of a traditional brunch.禽肉不是传统的早午餐的一部分。
• Since my heart attack,I've eaten more fish and fowl and less red meat.自从我患了心脏病后，我就多吃鱼肉和禽肉，少吃红色肉类。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 fret   

v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损

参考例句：

• Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。
• She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

5 wilful   

adj.任性的，故意的

参考例句：

• A wilful fault has no excuse and deserves no pardon.不能宽恕故意犯下的错误。
• He later accused reporters of wilful distortion and bias.他后来指责记者有意歪曲事实并带有偏见。