The Wolf turned Shepherd

A WOLF who found in cautious flocks
His tithes beginning to be few,
Thought that he'd play the part of Fox,
A character at least quite new.
A Shepherd's hat and coat he took,
And from a branch he made a hook ;
Nor did the pastoral pipe forget.
To carry out his schemes he set,
He would have liked to write upon his hat,
" I'm Guillot, Shepherd of these sheep ! "
And thus disguised, he came, pit-pat,
And softly stole where fast asleep
Guillot himself lay by a stack,
His dog close cuddling at his back ;
His pipe too slept ; and half the number
Of the plump sheep was wrapped in slumber.
He's got the dress—could he but mock
The Shepherd's voice, he'd lure the flock :
He thought he could.
That spoiled the whole affair—he'd spoken ;
His howl re-echoed through the wood.
The game was up—the spell was broken !
They all awake, dog, Shepherd, sheep.
Poor Wolf, in this distress
And pretty mess,
In clumsy coat bedight,
Could neither run away nor fight.
At last the bubble breaks ;
There's always some mistake a rascal makes.
The Wolf like Wolf must always act ;
That is a very certain fact.