BOOK ONE. 31
XX.
THE COCK AND THE PEARL.26
A COCK scratched up, one day,
A pearl of purest ray,
Which to a jeweller he bore.
'I think it fine,' he said;
'But yet a crumb of bread
To me were worth a great deal more.'
So did a dunce inherit
A manuscript of merit,
Which to a publisher he bore.
'T is good,' said he, 'I'm told;
Yet any coin of gold
To me were worth a great deal more.'
XXI.
THE HORNETS AND THE BEES.27
'The artist by his work is known.'—
A piece of honeycomb, one day,
Discovered as a waif and stray,
The hornets treated as their own.
Their title did the bees dispute,
And brought before a wasp the suit.
The judge was puzzled to decide,
For nothing could be testified,
