The Theoretic Turtle by Amos Russel Wells

The theoretic turtle started out to see the toad;
He came to a stop at a liberty-pole in the middle of the road.
"Now how, in the name of the spouting whale," the indignant turtle cried,
"Can I climb this perpendicular cliff and get on the other side?
If I only could make a big balloon I'd lightly over it fly;
Or a very long ladder might reach the top though it does look fearfully high.
If a beaver were in my place, he'd gnaw a passage through with his teeth;
I can't do that but I can dig a tunnel and pass beneath."
He was digging his tunnel with might and main, when a dog looked down at the hole.
"The easiest way, my friend," sald he, "is to walk around the pole."