The Kitten's Garden of Verses

Excerpt

Winter and Summer

In Winter when the air is chill,
And winds are blowing loud and shrill,
All snug and warm I sit and purr,
Wrapped in my overcoat of fur.
In Summer quite the other way,
I find it very hot all day,
But Human People do not care,
For they have nice thin clothes to wear.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the world is like a stew,
And I am much too warm to purr,
I have to wear my Winter Fur?

The rain is raining everywhere,
Kittens to shelter fly—
But Human Folk wear overshoes,
To keep their hind paws dry.

The Shadow Kitten

There’s a funny little kitten that tries to look like me,
But though I’m round and fluffy, he’s as flat as flat can be;
And when I try to mew to him he never makes a sound,
And when I jump into the air he never leaves the ground.
He has a way of growing, I don’t understand at all.
Sometimes he’s very little and sometimes he’s very tall.
And once when in the garden when the sun came up at dawn
He grew so big I think he stretched half-way across the lawn.

When People think that Kittens play,
It’s really quite the other way.
For when they chase the Ball or Bobbin
They learn to catch a Mouse or Robin.
The Kitten, deaf to Duty’s call,
Who will not chase the bounding ball,
A hungry Cathood will enjoy,
The scorn of Mouse and Bird and Boy.

A Thought

It’s very nice to think of how
In every country lives a Cow
To furnish milk with all her might
For Kittens’ comfort and delight.

The Lion does not move at all,
Winter or Summer, Spring or Fall,
He does not even stretch or yawn,
But lies in silence on the lawn.
He must be lazy it is plain,
For there is moss upon his mane,
And what is more, a pair of Daws
Have built a nest between his paws.
Oh, Lazy Lion, big and brown,
This is no time for lying down!
The Sun is shining, can’t you see?
Oh, please wake up and play with me.

The Milk Jug

The Gentle Milk Jug blue and white
I love with all my soul,
She pours herself with all her might
To fill my breakfast bowl.
All day she sits upon the shelf,
She does not jump or climb—
She only waits to pour herself
When ’tis my supper-time.
And when the Jug is empty quite,
I shall not mew in vain,
The Friendly Cow, all red and white,
Will fill her up again.

The world is so full of a number of Mice
I’m sure that we all should be happy and nice.

Kitten’s Night Thought

When Human Folk put out the light,
And think they’ve made it dark as night,
A Pussy Cat sees every bit
As well as when the lights are lit.
When Human Folk have gone upstairs,
And shed their skins and said their prayers,
And there is no one to annoy,
Then Pussy may her life enjoy.
No Human hands to pinch or slap,
Or rub her fur against the nap,
Or throw cold water from a pail,
Or make a handle of her tail.
And so you will not think it wrong
When she can play the whole night long,
With no one to disturb her play,
That Pussy goes to bed by day.

...