"Magpie, magpie, tell me, pray
Where have you been?"
"Far away!"
"You built a fire
And you cooked some mash
You called your friend
And here, in a flash
A hungry brood
By the porch they stood
You drew your spoon
They held the noon"
"Magpie, magpie, tell me, dear
Where have you been?"
"I've been near!"
"The squirrel had some
And so did the hare
The fox and the owl
They each got a share
But the wolf in the hole
Got nothing at all
His little grey soul
Got nothing at all!"
"He had fetched no water
He had chopped no wood
He had built no fire
He had cooked no food!"
