I saw some curious things, no doubt,
As I walked painfully about ;
And oh, believe me, ’tis the case,

The world’s a dry and dreadful place.

I passed through woods and fields of grass,
Where not a drop of water was ;
And in the parks and lanes beyond

There wasn’t even.a.common pond.

When that eventful day began,

I thought I was a clever swan

But long before the day was done

I knew I was a foolish one.

And when I reached a cornfield dry,
With prickly sheaves that stood up high,
1 cried The ‘world no more I'll roam,’

For 1 was better off at home.

1 ran—I stopped not
breath to take,
Until I plunged into
the lake ;
Don’t seek the world,
but learn content—
You wouldn’t like it if
you went.”
Edith Bland.