Seein’ Large

A frog who wore new spectacles Observed a common fly; “What monster can this be?” he said, “That comes before my eye?”

But when the fly was quickly caught, And on the frog’s inside, He felt so empty that he knew His glasses magnified.

A turtle had a big bass-drum On which he used to play; His comrades didn’t like the noise, And so they ran away. He played till he was all tired out, Then all his friends returned And smashed that drum to kindling wood, Which they piled up and burned.

When Robert Pip put out to sea, His ship was strong and new; He was the captain proud and bold, He also was the crew. And he could reef and splice and clew And yaw and luff and steer. For food he carried chocolate drops; His drink was ginger beer.

The course as steered by Captain Pip Was sou’ sou’ west by east; And he had sailed upon his way For forty days at least, When up there came a tidal wave And, with a rush and roar, Picked up his ship and landed it Fast on a foreign shore.

When Robert Pip’s ill fated ship Was landed high and dry Upon a flat and unknown shore, The shades of night were nigh: So down he lay to take his rest Upon the vessel’s deck, Observing that his food and drink Were safe, despite the wreck.

The sun was up when he awoke And, on a hillock near, He saw a group of monkey folk Who showed no signs of fear. They seemed polite, well bred and kind— He wished to make them friends And, by the means of chocolate drops, He soon had gained his ends.

The monkeys met by Captain Pip Were all one family, Who, near the place where he was wrecked, Dwelt in a banyan tree. They took him to their lofty home And urged that he should stay; And he consented, for he knew He could not sail away.

Within a week he learned their ways And spoke their language, too; He climbed with ease the tallest trees Where dates and cocoas grew. The father monkey and his wife Rejoiced in children three— Strong Reginald and Rufus, sons, A daughter named Marie.

With Rufus and with Reginald, Bob Pip went out one day To find a place for golfing grounds And teach his friends to play. For clubs they used the bamboo sprouts, In near-by jungles found; For balls they plucked young cocoanuts, Green, hard and small and round.

The monkey boys soon learned the game And, with the greatest ease, Could drive the ball from hole to hole, O’er brooks and rocks and trees. They swung their clubs with hand or foot, Or tail—’twas all the same. And soon they beat the Captain At this ancient, royal game.

Within the chest of Captain Pip A bag of marbles lay; He fished them out one afternoon And taught his friends to play. They played the game of “little-ring” Upon the hard beach near Until there came a sad mishap As you shall straightway hear.

For, as Marie was standing by, There rolled close to her feet A china “shooter” that indeed Looked good enough to eat. She snatched it up to swallow it; It caught—she choked—turned pale. To save her life they hung her up By her prehensile tail.

Upon a sunny stretch of sand That lay beside the sea, The father monkey went to stroll And with him went Marie. She, running on ahead of him, Cried out: “For goodness sake: “Oh, father dear, come quickly here “And kill this horrid snake.”

He quickly grasped a driftwood club And reached his daughter’s side; But when he saw that serpent strange, He, too, was terrified. He shook with fright, but soon he found That what had made him quail, Was Rufus buried in the sand— All hid except his tail.

Now Captain Pip so longed for home, He sought his stranded boat. New rigging here, some patches there He thought would make her float. His mind was speedily made up; His new idea was tried, And soon his ship, all staunch again, Rode proudly on the tide.

His monkey friends wept bitterly At losing Captain Pip, Till finally Marie ran home To pack her little grip; And when she said, “I’m going, too.” They all made haste to pack: Then boarded ship and sailed away, Nor to that isle came back.

There was an old school teacher bear Whom a fever had robbed of his hair; And the thought of his loss Made him peevish and cross To the cubs who were under his care.

So they bought him a bottle or two Of a medicine famous and new; Then his hair grew so fast, That the old bear at last Had to braid it all up in a queue.

Small Wee-Wip was an Indian Who, in a wigwam warm, Dwelt snugly all the winter through Quite safe from frost and storm. But he had heard of Santa Claus And so, when Christmas came, He hung his deerskin moccasins Upon the wigwam frame.

And sure enough, the good, old saint That night came jingling by; And, as he passed, the moccasins Caught his observing eye. But wigwams have no chimneys tall Through which old Kriss can drop, So Wee-Wip’s Christmas gifts were left Upon the wigwam top.

Young Billy Hedgehog wished a nap; He found an easy chair And, snugly curling up in it, He soon forgot all care.

Grave old Judge Bruin wished to read, For books were to his taste; In that same chair he sat him down But rose again in haste.

A little girl Mermaid sat down by the sea, And mournful, dejected and tearful was she; She wanted a shirtwaist all ironed stiff and nice, But the ocean would take out the starch in a trice.

And she wanted blue shoes, for she thought them “so sweet,” So she sobbed out afresh for she saw she’d no feet. And she wept, and she wailed, and she sobbed, and she sighed, Till her tears added salt to the salty sea’s tide.

The little girl Mermaid dove down in the sea, The crabs and the lobster folk hailed her with glee; The squids, shrimps and starfish stood up in a row, To welcome her back to her home down below.

Behind her sea-horses she went for a ride Where brilliant hued ocean plants swayed in the tide. ’Twas pleasant indeed, and she thought with regret That once she had wished to live out of the wet.

The little girl Mermaid once bade her friends all To come to a beautiful fancy dress ball. The Fiddler Crabs fiddled for waltzes and reels Which were gracefully danced by Squids, Lobsters and Eels.

The Flounders were awkward; they floundered about Till Swordfish policemen escorted them out. But with this exception, the ball had no flaw And the Sawfish declared ’twas the best he e’er saw.