Aesop in Rhyme

The Tale of a Fox

A fox, one night while walking out,
Had not looked beyond his snout
He did not see a well hid trap
Until he heard a great, big snap.

The fox began to weep and groan
On seeing that his tail alone
Was caught quite firmly in the jaws.
(At least, he still had all his paws.)

He had to leave his tail right there
He slunk off to his foxy lair
Where he stayed for quite a while
Not daring to see friend or pal.

But then one day there came a plan
As often comes to fox or man.
He called his friends to gather ’round
To tell them something new he’d found.

“Tailless foxes are all the rage!
Soon we’ll appear on film and stage
We’re much more sleek and so good-looking
And our tails won’t always fall in the cooking.”

“No tails to trip on or get in the way
I feel quite happy by night and day
I advise you all to lose your tails
A happiness treatment that never fails.”

One wise fox spoke for the rest,
“I think that keeping tails is best
Because once we give our tails the slice
They can’t be returned for any price.”

“You’d like us all to be as you
But what you say does not seem true
And now I’m speaking for us all
I think your tale seems rather tall.”