by Katharine Lee Bates (1859 - 1929)
Don't you see?
Language: English
The day was hotter than words can tell, So hot the jelly-fish wouldn't jell. The halibut went all to butter, And the catfish had only force to utter A faint sea-mew -- aye, though some have doubted, The carp he capered and the horn-pout pouted. The sardonic sardine had his sly heart's wish When the angelfish fought with the paradise fish. 'T was a sight gave the bluefish the blues to see, But the seal concealed a wicked glee -- The day it went from bad to worse, Till the pickerel picked the purse-crab's purse. And the crab felt crabedder yet no doubt, Because the oyster wouldn't shell out. The sculpin would sculp, but hadn't a model, And the coddlefish begged for something to coddle. But to both the dolphin refused its doll, Till the whale was oblidged to whale them all.
Authorship:
- by Katharine Lee Bates (1859 - 1929) [author's text not yet checked 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 Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "Don't you see?", 2010 [medium voice and piano] [ sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2011-12-27
Line count: 18
Word count: 140