1.Once on a time an old red hen Went strutting round with pompous For she had little babies ten，And some of them were tiny ducks.“’Tis very rare that hens，”said she，“Have baby ducks as well as chicks；But I possess，as you can see，clucksThese chickens four and ducklingssix！”
2.A season
Was seen，still cackling of her luck，For though she still had babies ten，Not one of them was now a duck！
“‘Tis well，”she murmured，brooding o’erThe little chicks of fleecy down ；And so ‘tis plain they will not drown！”
3.When spring next came，the old red hen Clucked just as proudly as of yore -But，lo ！her babes were ducklings ten，Instead of chickens，as before.
“’Tis better，”said the old red hen，Who fondly watched her waddling brood ；“A little water now and thenWill surely do my darlings good.”
4.But oh ！alas，how very sad ！
When gentle spring rolled round again，The eggs came out so very bad，That childless was the old red hen！
And said，“‘Tis best that things are so，For chickens are a dreadful care！”
5.I half suspectSome boys and girls，and women too，Might learn a lesson from this henWith plumagesoft of russethue.