If I took the fair Maid, he would gnaw at me so." At the mention of Rat, the fair Maiden, with glee, Cried, "'Tis Rat, and Rat only, my husband shall be!" See a Girl for a Rat now Apollo forsaking! It was one of those strokes which Love glories in making. And, 'twixt you and me, such strange instances are, 'Mongst girls that we know of, more frequent than rare. With men and with beasts it is ever the same: They still show the trace of the place whence they came; And this fable may aid us to prove it; but yet, On a nearer inspection, some sophistry's met In its traits; for, to trust to this fanciful story, Any spouse were more good than the Sun in his glory. But, what! shall I say that a giant is less Than a flea, because fleas can a giant distress? The Rat, if this rule must be strictly obeyed, Of his wife to the Cat would a present have made: And the Cat to the Dog, and the Dog to the Bear; Till, at length, by a sort of a high-winding stair, The story had brought us where first 'twas begun, And the beautiful Maid would have married the Sun. But let us return to the Metempsychosis The truth of which, firstly, this fable supposes. It seems to me plain that the fable itself The system decidedly puts on the shelf. According to Brahmin law, animals all That inhabit the earth, be they mighty or small,-- Be they men, mice, or wolves, or e'en creatures more coarse,-- Their souls have derived from one general source; And vary, in physical actions, just so As the form of their organs may force them to do. And if this be the case, then, how came it that one Of so fine-formed a frame did not wed with the Sun? Whereas, as we know, to a Rat she devoted The charms on which many a king would have doated. All things considered, I'll declare That girl and mouse souls different are. We must our destiny fulfil, As ordered by the sovereign will. Appeal to magic,--it is all in vain; The soul, once born, will still the same remain. [Illustration: THE MONKEY AND THE CAT.] FABLE CLXXXI. THE MONKEY AND THE CAT.