A tail behind, a trunk in front,
Complete the usual elephant.
The tail in front, the trunk behind,
Is what you very seldom find.

If you for specimens should hunt
with trunk behind and tail in front,
That hunt would occupy you long;
The force of habit is so strong.

About the headline (FAQ)

First published in the Edwardian, December 1936, revised 1937

Text Authorship:

• by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), "The Force of Habit" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by Johan Franco (1908 - 1988), "Elephants, or The Force of Habit", published 1946 [SATB quartet or satb chorus a cappella], from Rounds and Rounds, round [
   text not verified 
  ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2008-08-18
Line count: 8
Word count: 50