Remembering PRESTAGS

Macro adventures on a ladder

There was an arachnid visitor to the extended web of the black house spider at my front door today (top of the wall where the eave joins). A large huntsman (I suspect a huntswoman actually) - sheltering from the heavy rain? Seemingly uninterested in the house spider further down the wall. (I might call her a pet, as I leave her big messy web in place above the door knowing she won't bother anyone unless they bother her).

A challenge for shooting, as she was behind the web on the wall - autofocus was almost certainly going to focus on the web in front not the spider.

I tried a couple of strategies - first a monopod with the foot wedged against the wall, and camera pointing up. I tried manual focus with live view (zoomed in), and there was sort of success but not stunning. (my eyes just couldn't pick focus or not through the 'normal size' optical viewfinder, especially as I was 'perched' and an odd angle).

Got out a tripod but realised that wasn't going to be high enough either. Then I thought about an approach I had contemplated for jumping spiders - using my travel tripod as a horizontal brace against the wall. This allowed be to have the camera positioned opposite the target rather than underneath. I imagine it looked weird to anyone driving along the street ...

So the set up was small 2 step ladder, tripod with all 3 legs against the wall with me pressing inwards to keep it stable. flash, manual exposure to get shutter speed up a bit, and live view with zoom in then manual focus to get focus on the spider not the web. Moderately pleased with the results. Had a go for the house spider but the web around her is too think and she is in a corner making bracing tricky - in the 'as shot' pic below you can see where she is though.

monopod shot - web in focus

As shot (size wise, minor process tweeks)

cropped image

The house spider hidden in her web. I was trying to focus manually but it was hopeless. She seems to have abandoned the big web further out from the door (her mother's from 3 or so years ago) and stays in the corner.

New toys. Food. Old toy. Birds.

NEW TOY

So I got a poor man's RX100 - a used Canon S120 (for $120 incl post) with the teeny 1/1.7 inch sensor.

I'm pretty impressed. Solid build - metal top and bottom. Lot to learn to drive it though.

Should be good for quick photos.

Dinner last night.

Carl: spring rolls, chicken things, wedges


Thygo - stir fry / satay + kanga bangas

Packet cake made by Carl & Thygo last night, iced today, tastes good.

Lexi enjoying the sun

selfie of Grumpy old Man

 

Another NEW TOY - old binoculars (Gumtree special, $30)- object d'art

image quality good and much more comfortable to hold than the new-bought Olympus.  Both 8x40. Dad had/has a pair like these older ones when I was young.

thi

 

OLD TOY - D7500 + (stellar little) AF-P 70-300 DX VR - Crested pigeons from the clothes line. No cropping.

More backyard camping, of tents

Carl and I had our third night in the tent in the backyard last night. It was rather cooler last night - a hot water bottle is a good addition to a sleeping bag. I slept 8 hours and kept the CPAP on.

post-Easter dinner (Monday?) - Carl liked having candle, and driving the remote of the camera.

in the tent

Lexi looking on

Of Tents.

The tent we have been sleeping in is a recent(ish) Gumtree acquisition - a fairly large, 3 room one. All seems in good condition. It was a little fiddly to put up (though straight forward as it didn't come with instructions). Unlike some other gumtree purchases, true to her word ALL the poles and pegs and ropes appear to be present! The fly is mostly dark blue so it will be a heat magnet in summer but can open up very well with entry ways on all 4 sides. It has little zip holes for entry of power leads to all 3 compartments.

But, I noticed it has a distinctive smell to me, which I suspect of resulting in mild asthma for me. Not sure what it is coming off and I've had it airing for 4 days now. Some of the floor coating is rubbing off (the lady I bought it off pointed this out at sale, not a functional issue).

so, I thought I would pop up the other older 'big' tent I have had for a few years now. [all tents Gumtree bargains].

We used this tent the last time I went camping with Pat and Carl. It absolutely bucketed down mid-setup that trip which was interesting but this tent proved to be very easy to put up. Unlike many other tent designs, you don't need to thread any of the geodesic fibreglass poles through sleeves but simply clip them onto the main tent. The design of this tent also means it basically stands up properly without needing any guy-ropes to be set out. The blue one above only really stands up properly once the fly is on and at least a couple of guy ropes.

It is slightly smaller in floor area than the blue one. It is older and a bit more worn than the blue one (but in the downpour it didn't seem to leak - some water ingress was run off I think)

It is by default a 2 room tent. The bigger room could be partitioned by a curtain into 2 - there are eyelets in place for that. It does it have windows on the 'back side' of the fly - facing the camera in this orientation - though that whole backside can be lifted up like a verandah [also true for the blue tent too].

The fly is silver in colour though, which has to help with heat in the summer (still gets hot though).

no guy ropes, main tent without fly:

avec fly, pegged down without guy ropes set up

So the question ... [with Thygo there is always a question]

on sell the blue one if it gives me asthma? try washing the floor and see if the smell goes away?

 

Camping in lockdown, kitchen floorball

we put the tent up in the back yard. Lexi joined us as well.

the weather is very mild - 'Indian summer'.

wide angle courtesy of Tokina 11-20, lighting from SB400 flash. However it was evident that in order for the camera to focus pre-shot you still need SOME light ... (a torch helped for this)

amazingly wifi extended to the backyard so thygo was able to provide Spetz his ATGE breakfast [which as of the time of writing he has not touched ...]

CPAP machine run courtesy of heavy duty power cord from the shed [all the mod cons]

Lexi curled up for sleep

roofscape

kitchen floorball [I am so bald now]

 

 

Easter Day dinner Peter & Carl

Peter & Carl had a nice Easter dinner, with Carl driving the camera remote.

BBQ lamb chops (and Kanga Bangas too)

roast vegies

Carl food [sigh]

at the table [note Prestags Grand Tour shirt, and Lexi nuzzling in hope of a hand out ...]

cheers! [Sparkling red & creaming soda]

Carl decided it should be by candlelight

Carl's egg/bunny haul

 

A few from the dog park this afternoon

took Lexi to the dog park (dustbowl) and tried out the Tamron 70-200 f2.8. Some in focus ...

Three attached. Lexi loves to chase and be chased. One of these is reminiscent of Hairy McClairy :-)

 

Smut

Painting the nude was always considered the great challenge. Medieval artists preferred St Sebastian whereas from the Enlightenment onwards, girls and women were preferred. In the age of photography, making the art is easy. Escaping the censors is the challenge. I expect you all to enjoy this post censorship photo of a lone tree in a grassy field with storm clouds above.

Toby also requests an entry in the right-hand margin. This rainbow over the ocean is his proposal.

Star photography - part 2 - stars, kit, moon

one of the first ones, 15mm, complete with airplane or chopper ... Note that this is not what my eye saw - these are long exposures between 10 and 30 seconds. The trees are all fuzzy because it was quite windy and they were flapping about.

shot settings: manual focus (preset before dark), manual exposure - f2.8 & between 10 and 30 seconds, ISO between 2000 and 3200.

11mm showing the ingress light from the late arrival campers ...

20mm, after moving a bit further up the hill. Can you see the Southern Cross?

There are a few more. I was reasonably pleased with this for a first go.  Here is the set up as shot by my phone

Off to bed reasonably early but didn't sleep so well. Very windy through the night. Got up at 3am for a call of nature ...
and lo, the waning moon was evident. 300mm and cropped a lot. manual exposure about 1/500 sec and f8, ISO 400 (from memory)

 

next time I think I will search for a spot with a rocky outcrop in the foreground. Orroral valley would be great but I think it is shut off at night.

Benvenuto Tobiao

Toby is the next dog to rule our humble home. He is a six year old Beagle Labrador cross who needed a home as his owners were downsizing.

I worked from h9ome last week so he could get used to the flow of the home. At the start (and first thing in the morning ever since), he is absolutely terrified of me and scurries out of any room I am in. On the first day he sat way outside my office and watched me whenever I was not watching him

I took him for a walk and decided I might be OK and he could get a little closer

He approves of our house and backyard though, and quickly found the best sunbathing spot

Once he gets used to be, around 10am, he starts to express some of his feelings of curiousity

and excitement

He is well socialised and did very well at the off-leash park

and even gave me a smile while there

In this shot, at least, he looks like a beagle.

Lexi the miner

Lexi is an accomplished digger. She has dug into the outer chook yard twice. 

And she has dug two rather large holes. apparently randomly.

Hole 1, beside the driveway

Hole 2 - down the back

 

Lexi, the (would be) hunter

Snapped through the window with the venerable D60 (closest too hand).

She made a rush just afterwards but the pee wee was way too quick.

New Phone, Lexi & friends, Brisbane macro

So, with more frequent errors on my phone, yesterday I got a new one from the local Harvey Norman near my brother's house.

Nokia 7 plus on a good special. New learning curve about to commence.

Lexi is having fun with my brothers two dogs

Also went searching for jumping spiders on Thursday and was rewarded ... first time I have a shot of one with prey.

The Great Escape

Patrick was home sick yesterday but had done some training with Lexi. Chooks and ducks in their extended enclosure.

When I got home from work, I didn't go outside but started up my laptop.

Then I heard a 'sqwarky' noise from one of the chooks - didn't sound right, so I stood up to have a look out the window.

Lo and behold, Lexi is in the chookyard, standing watching the fowls. 

But the gate is still shut.

On closer inspection, she has dug her way under the outer fence ... No idea how long she was in there. No dead fowls (thankfully).

She got in again a little while later and I think she wants to play with them.

here is her tunnel INTO Stalag Chook

Lexi

first 2 pics taken by Carl (with a little post-processing by me). The cone is to stop her licking / chewing out her stitches/

this one by me tonight

New Camera Accessory With Special Capability

I've been playing with my new camera accessory. I won't give away what it is.

It is certainly taking some interesting shots.

The shots are original. They are not zoomed in extracts from larger photographs. All I've done is reduced the size so they load quicker when they're on the website.  Apart from the first photograph, I turned the date stamp on.

First, a photograph of some of Sir Lancelot's bird seed.

To give an idea of how small the budgie seed is, I took a shot of it in a small bowl next to Azog. This was a photo with my D7200 and 18-200 lens.

Next, a surprise shot. This is the PRESTAGS QUIZ - what is this?

Here is a shot of the gold fleur-de-lis pattern on my maroon braces. You can see each individual thread.

Here are the braces excellently modeled by me. Number two daughter took the photo with the D7200 and 18-200 lens.

Speaking of Sir Lancelot, here is a nice shot from the Boss' mobile phone which does a pretty good job of his feathers.

Here is one tiny feather (original was about 10mm) with my new accessory. You can see each strand of the feather.

And last, a rather horrific shot. This is a photograph of the hairs on my forefinger.

Tomorrow I'm hoping to find a little insect to photograph.

Camera Practice at Badgery's Creek

I took number 3 daughter horse riding at Badgery's Creek, and it was a good chance to play with my camera and some of the new lenses. Just my luck, it was a grey and wet day. It's weeks since I had my camera in bright sunshine.

The trusty 70-300 mm lens is still my favourite. It took the best shot of the day, a horse grazing in focus in the middle of the photo, with nice bokeh in both the foreground and the background.

Nearby at a small lake, I did a test shot of the same scene, shot first at 70mm and then at 300mm

Lot's of action in the 70 mm shot, with an almost 3D effect. I like the swans on the lake. I think I stuffed the focus on the 300 mm, with focus on the tree just behind the lake rather than the horses.

At the zoom end, the shots are very nice when you focus on a particular subject, as in the two friendly horses, and a mangy dog.

Nice clear focus on the rocking horses as well.

In this shot the 70-300 mm at 300 mm proves it can handle a bit of macro with the flowers. This is cropped out of a slightly wider shot.

I tried the Tokina 11-16 mm wide angle lens, and it worked well. This is at 16 mm. This will be a good landscape lens, especially with more sunshine.

The 50 mm f1.8 lens had a run and also performed well, although it will be better for portraits. I took a shot of kids playing dress ups and it captured what colour there was on a grey day.

I also took some good shots with the 18-200 mm lens. This is an excellent 'walk around' lens and I can't see myself using the 18-55 mm kit lens now that I have the 18-200.

My new Opteka fish eye did not work at all. The camera gave an error message 'no lens attached'. I need to check whether I was doing something wrong. Lucky I didn't spend too much on this lens.

 

An unexpected visitor

So, tonight I'm sitting alone at my laptop, radio's on behind me, when I hear a sound from near the front door.

The sound is sort of familiar but I think 'noone here but me'

Then more of the sound - the memory clicks - sounds like a dog breathing/panting/snuffling.

And lo, standing at the front (screen) door is a dog, looking a bit lost. No collar on.

Very gentle old boy, he comes in, wanders about a bit. He seems deaf and I suspect the cloudiness of his eyes mean he is partly blind too. I find a halter and lead and try to take him for a walk to see if he leads me home. That doesn't show much promise, and people a few doors up haven't seen him before, so I come back.

Puddle around on the RSPCA website. Discover the lost and found postings are on Facebook (only grrrrrrrr). I take a photo of the dog. I muck about a bit longer, joining Facebook. Then can't work out how to post anything. Give that up as a bad joke.

Have another look in the shed for Banjo's collar. Find that and think - I'll just see if the cafe owner across at the shops has seen him before. Nope.

then a lady is walking down the street with a torch - and Deo gratias, it is her dog.

And it turns out she lives across the road from the people who hadn't seen him, about 40 metres away from me. I hadn't seen him before either (or if I have it hasn't registered - probably he's never out the front). She thinks he got out after one of their cats stepped on the garage door remote ...

A nice happy ending. And, yes, I miss the idea of having a dog. But in the present circumstances that probably isn't a good idea.

Sunset, Prestags quiz - crop circles?, filing cave

Gorgeous sunset this evening, had a quick attempt to capture it. Not that satisfied. Vantage and angle didn't do it justice. So many blasted power lines as well.

What has the chicken discovered?   PRESTAGS QUIZ - can you tell me what it was that caused this?

 

Filing cave

Exposure and high contrast scenes

From a discussion I was having with Paul, I played around a little with high contrast scenes. He has some images where the straight out of camera jpeg has not brought up the detail in a dark area (eg a dark statue) against a strong back lit background.

On Nikon dSLRs, a setting called 'active D lighting' became available for application in shooting (as opposed to post processing, whether in camera or on downloaded files).

So, I was taking some shots of the fowls with the D40x - it doesn't have ADL option for shooting but it can be applied in camera after the shot. A couple are below, and it shows how powerful this (software) application is, and also illustrates the problems that any photographic medium has in capturing a whole scene the way our eyes see it, or more accurately as our brains post-process the incoming light to 'pull up' shadow detail.

So, below  a couple of comparison shots - / + ADL. I suspect that in Paul's Lumix FZ1000 there is a setting analagous to ADL, probably with different levels of application. [He might have to resort to reading the manual >:-o).

OK, the examples

but

The photo medium can only capture the light that is there. If you take the film medium, the sensitivity to light is uniform across the film negative - and adjusting exposure will affect the whole area uniformly. That is, a whole exposure adjustment can only be applied uniformly to the whole exposure - if the qualitative and quantitative difference in amount of light between to parts of a scene is too great, the physics per se doesn't allow for getting both parts perfectly exposed for detail.

But our brains do this all the time - segements of our field of view get post-processed to enable us to see both the full lit and the shadow with acuity. Computers can, thanks to clever programmers like Python, detect the contrast areas and locally adjust the exposure. In the old film days, you could do this in the dark room with simple physical tricks such as waving a piece of paper over an overexposed area as the negative was being processed ie between the light coming through the negative and the photographic paper being exposed to get the print.

 

 

Another way of getting at this is where you 'tell' the camera to 'meter' the light to inform the exposure it will apply - shutter speed, aperture (and with digital, ISO). The standard default is 'matrix' or 'averaged' metering - the light meter / software tries to balance all of the incoming light. Then there is 'centre weighted' - the light meter / software takes more account of the area where the light level is read (typically the focus point - I guess face recognition will have some priority - my dSLRs don't have it or I don't turn it on). Then there is 'spot' metering - the light meter / software meters just on the small focus area. Spot allows a small subject to be exposed 'correctly' even if the surrounding scene is very dark or very bright. But, as above, the metering is a physical adjustment affecting the amount of light hitting the sensor or film, not a software interpretation of the incoming light.

Yet another way is 'exposure compensation' - often has a dedicated button with a +/- decal on it - you can dial in how many 'stops' (more precisely electron volts, EV) more or less than the camera's meter thinks the 'correct' exposure is - how much light gets let in. Generally goes in 1/3 EV steps - eg +0.3, +0.7 etc.

On my cameras, choosing metering area and exposure compensation are NOT available in the AUTO modes - needs to be in Manual (I rarely use, except for moon shots), Aperture priority (I use most - set the 'f stop' - how wide open is the lens, how much light gets let in, also affects depth of field), Shutter priority (how long the shutter is open, I use when I want to ensure a fast shutter to freeze motion and/or avoid effects of camera shake), Program mode (I don't use this much but its a bit like A and S).

And having mentioned moon shots, this is a classic example of needing to balance a really bright object in a really dark background - if you don't meter on the moon you generally just get a 'white out'.

So, the moral of this story is:

BBQ and the induction to ATGE

Maurice and Dino came to visit and we had BBQ, with Thygo's usual penchant for kangaroo sausages and rissoles, in addition to beef and lamb. (Not sure if Python was taken with the roo?) A nice evening, and a few pics.

We had a little adventure retrieving one of the chickens from the neighbour's yard but that was successful.

ATGE - then Python inducted Thygo to Advanced Tactics Gold Edition ...

Thygo is now addicted to this game, even though he is scrambling to learn the mechanics before the AI overwhelms him.

Screen shots from several turns ago (while the future of the Thygonian empire seemed bright)

 

Why am I angry? - Is Toxoplasma gondii - things to me?

So there is an article in today's Australian and on New Scientist

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2082105-explosive-road-rage-like-anger-linked-to-parasite-spread-by-cats/

I learned about this parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, at uni. It's life cycle is in the guts of cats (or other predators I guess) and the brains of prey (mice). Guess what? People get it too - in the brain.

It was well known that mice infected with it were risk takers, and the evolutionary explanation is that it makes them more likely to get predated.
So this is interesting research. I wonder if I have T. gondii sitting in my amygdala (bottom reptilian fight/flight brain)?

I have lived with cats on and off for many years, including cleaning up their messes.

Maybe I am the mouse that roars? Or am I just a viking trapped in the 21st century?

 

The sometime beserker in Eric the Viking

T. gondii life cycle

cyst full of T. gondii - who needs science fiction?

Brain scan - not mine, but is it the same?

 

Welcome Sir Lancelot

The Boss and the girls couldn't go too long without another budgie, so they have acquired Sir Lancelot (currently known as baby Lance because he was only six weeks old when he arrived). He already has his own little personality, quite different to Aristo.

Labradoodle! 25% off

Well, Pip has had the operation. He is not very happy with life, but is up and doing his best to move around with three legs. Looking after him did gazump Father's Day, but helping the dog relearn how to walk is something you just can't put off.

Aristo: World's Greatest Budgie

Paul and his family are extremely sad today because their pet budgerigar, Aristo, passed away one day before his tenth birthday.

Aristo was amazingly intelligent, had a huge vocabulary, and was the most photographed budgie in history. The house is noticeably quieter without his comforting background chatter.

We had Aristo since he was a baby, and as the girls grew up alongside Aristo he was always a star in their various projects.

Aristo was even a TV star, having appeared on Paul Murray Live on Sky News channel. There was a competition where viewers had to send in a photograph of themselves watching the show, and I sent in a photo of Aristo watching the show which they broadcast:

I'm sure he's chatting away in the great aviary in the sky.

Dog and Dish

Too obvious for a PRESTAGS quiz, but a fun photo nonetheless. Home tomorrow.

Something other than the shadows are long in this photo

What is very long in this photo?

---

Answer: Well done Thygo Canberra

Pip thinks about getting into Emu Oil

A Monkey, a Python and a Dog go into a Cafe....

Who gets the banana?

Of Dogs

Homer's Odyssey includes the tale of Argos.  When Odysseus departed Ithaca for Troy he left behind his faithful dog Argos. After a long absence all of Odysseus' friends thought that he had perished and Argos became neglected. A friend of Odysseus, Eumaeus, spoke of Argos: 

'This dog,' answered Eumaeus, 'belonged to him who has died in a far country. If he were what he was when Odysseus left for Troy, he would soon show you what he could do. There was not a wild beast in the forest that could get away from him when he was once on its tracks. But now he has fallen on evil times, for his master is dead and gone, and the women take no care of him. Servants never do their work when their master's hand is no longer over them, for Zeus takes half the goodness out of a man when he makes a slave of him.'

Nevertheless Argos waited patiently for his master, and when Odysseus returned home from Troy, after an absence of 20 years, only his faithful dog Argos still recognized him.

Speaking of dogs, or at least the dogs of war, a new EDEE has just been commenced. This game will pit Python-on odyssey and Paul against m'Lord ThygoCanberra. Time for revenge.

Ducklings and shelters

Ashleigh's 2 new ducklings hatched about a week ago now. Waiting on Bluebell's 9.

I have been working bit by bit on a moveable shelter for them to be out on the grass but safe. It has finally been completed and I am quite happy with my handywork - a fair amount of recycling but some new elements.

Ducklings

Duckling shelter

Bluebell

Cave Canem!

I promise underneath all the fluff there are some kind of sharp teeth if you can get past the tongue trying to lick your hands.

Wish I was war gaming

Solstice sun on Labradoodle

Solstice sunset

Solstice evening light, looking east

A friend for Lucky - Pikachu

We got Lucky a friend - a Pekin duckling about 3-4 days older - they snuggle up together under the lamp.

Ineffable cuteness!

Guest post by Uxor Petri

Clare has been sitting on her nest of 14 eggs for the last 5 weeks. I candled them on day 18, but not being an expert egg candler, I wasn't sure if 2 were fertile and 12 infertile, or vice versa. Last week, Clare got rid of one rotten egg from the nest, and we took another out which was also rotten (Pew!!!) On Thursday, ThygoCanberra removed what he thought was another rotten egg. Unfortunately, after he broke it he found a perfectly formed duckling.

We have been on tenterhooks the last few days, waiting for Clare's ducklings to hatch. This is the first clutch to be fathered by Frank (our incredibly handsome Muscovy drake). I thought they were due to hatch on Friday, and was worried that the 40C heat last week might be too much for them. Finally, over the last 36 hours, 11 ducklings have hatched - an excellent result. Trying to keep Thygo major and Thygo minor from pestering Clare and drowning the ducklings in affection has been difficult. To tell the truth, I can't get enough of them either.

 

The Proud Father

 

Can you see them?

 

Lots of pics to follow...

The rest of the photos were taken by Thygo major.

 

This one has been named Angry Bird, for obvious reasons.

 

And this was the last to hatch. It is not quite dry.

Can you spot all 11 ducklings?

 

And in case you are wondering what has happened to Ashley and the older ducklings, they are now 3 weeks old and are starting to lose their baby feathers. Big Duckling is almost twice the size of Little Duckling. Yesterday, Thygo major found Little Duckling soaking wet and exhausted. I thought she was a gonner. She must have jumped into the big bucket of water and almost drowned. I dried her off with the hair dryer, wrapped her in a towel with a heat pack and fed her sugar water with an eye dropper. She came good after a couple of hours, thank goodness, and was running around happily today.

 

Ducklings - update

actually 3 out now and a 4th is poking out - pics later - the 4th was a misdiagnosis - only 3 viable eggs

'Peek a boo' a little while ago:

The ducklings are starting to hatch !

Duclings were supposed to be due on 1 January.

Yesterday I thought there was peeping under Ashleigh but there was no action under her, so I put it down to her.

This morning I lifted her and behold, 2 eggs are hatching. Sadly another one had gone off (top left) so max from this clutch will be 5.

One in the middle is getting there, one at bottom left has just started.

Meanwhile Clare is sitting on a clutch of 11 under the back steps but is some weeks behind:

Another view of Herodotus

Pip has taken to swmming around that boat. I think he wants me to buy it. I'll need a job first.

Also note the traffic jam over Anzac Bridge. You would have to be mad to drive to work in Sydney...

A PRESTAGS' Best Friend

We extend our best wishes to Thygocanberra and his family on the loss of their loyal dog Banjo. Our family also has many fond memories of this kind natured cattle dog. I remember Banjo would always sit on your foot for the human contact.

As A. B. Banjo Paterson would say, he is now "on his way":

A Dog's Mistake (1933)

               He had drifted in among us as a straw drifts with the tide,
            He was just a wand'ring mongrel from the weary world outside;
            He was not aristocratic, being mostly ribs and hair,
            With a hint of spaniel parents and a touch of native bear.

            He was very poor and humble and content with what he got,
            So we fed him bones and biscuits, till he heartened up a lot;
            Then he growled and grew aggressive, treating orders with disdain,
            Till at last he bit the butcher, which would argue want of brain.

            Now the butcher, noble fellow, was a sport beyond belief,
            And instead of bringing actions he brought half a shin of beef,
            Which he handed on to Fido, who received it as a right
            And removed it to the garden, where he buried it at night.

            'Twas the means of his undoing, for my wife, who'd stood his friend,
            To adopt a slang expression, "went in off the deepest end,"
            For among the pinks and pansies, the gloxinias and the gorse
            He had made an excavation like a graveyard for a horse.

            Then we held a consultation which decided on his fate:
            'Twas in anger more than sorrow that we led him to the gate,
            And we handed him the beef-bone as provision for the day,
            Then we opened wide the portal and we told him, "On your way."