She rears the guardian fork;
Her heart expands, with hope elate,
That she shall kindly snatch from fate
Each tender little Stork.

Dear virtuous damsel, vainly brave,
Thou must resign thy hopes to save
These innocents from death!
The faithless ladder breaks--the maid
Escaping by angelic aid,
Now scarce retains her breath.

Forgetting selfish fear, her eye
Is fixt upon the scene on high,
With anguish and despair;
The dauntless bird, with wond'rous skill,
A parent's duty to fulfil,
Toils in the troubled air.

Two of the callow young she lays,
Beyond the peril of the blaze;
But while the last she rears,
The other little ones distrest
Crawl back within the burning nest,
And aggravate her fears.

Now in the vex'd and heated air,
She draws fresh courage from despair;
She sees them gasp for breath;
Tho' fiercer flames around her sprung,