Do you remember that dark night,
We met upon the Verde Trail,
And I was paralyzed with fright,
Occasioned by a weird wild wail.
Across the canyon to our right,
It seemed to come; and raise my hair,
And I would sure have taken flight,
If your Old Friend had not been there.
And I have never, to this day,
Been able to describe the fear,
When I first heard a Burro bray,
And thought a Mountain Lion near.
I've laughed, 'til I could laugh no more,
Your answer, it was such a dry one,
As I heard that appalling roar,
And asked "Was that a Mountain Lion?"
Your calm reply dispelled all fear,
And made me feel at once quite merry,
"That Mountain Lion that you hear,
Is just a lone Washoe Canary."
By Benjamin Peck Keith (1856-1927)