There was a funny duck there in that wood, A source of mirth to all since childhood! A duckling from the shell will
open eyes And madly dote upon first beast it spies, Be it lion, bear, wolf, or bull, or monkey, Wide-awake
ape or dopey donkey! Even to Homo sapien monster The new-hatched chick will instantly transfer Its love. Yes,
whether mouse, hound or heifer It follows her forever as its mother! This all is true and I can well present Witness
and facts. But what astonishment! This is a joke that made us laugh no end: What mother did our chick misapprehend?
Of all the birds and beasts on earth, guess who? - None other than our own caribou! She who led circuits of
the frozen North (Head the herd, manage, govern, guide) - henceforth Would show the way (one smiled at her luck)
To a strange quacking son, a daffy duck.
He was harlequin to our jolly crew In colors all fantastic. Patch of blue Here on his wing, his head a brilliant green;
Legs all bright red, derriere aquamarine. And yet for all this he could fly. "My birth," Quoth he, "was
odd, but the axis of the earth I can determine, its magnetic field. The sun, stars - all Nature's secrets yield
To my art. Near sixty miles an hour I fly in migration. Such is my power." Yes, for his skill
did we this duck acclaim, And for his fun! And Oscar was his name.
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