Patrick Kavanagh

Untitled (In the woods there lived a cat)

In the woods there lived a cat
White as snow and very fat
He live[d] on robins, larks. No mouse
Was ever eaten in his house.
Since he came to the woods he made
Fun of all the mousing trade.

Once he was a decent cat
In a farmer's house. He sat
On a rug beside a nice
Fire thinking about mice
In the evenings he said: Meow
It is time to milk the cow.

Then one day a little chick
That was very small and sick
Lay beside Tom's big claws
And he liked it better than
Any mouse that ever ran
Next day he killed another
Chick and took it from its mother.
Bad cat bad cat the woman cried
I will kill your dirty hide
I will have you left to die
On the loft
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