Be kind and tender to the Frog, And do not call him names, As 'Slimy skin,' or 'Polly-wog,' Or likewise 'Ugly James,' Or 'Gap-a-grin,' or 'Toad-gone-wrong, ' Or 'Bill Bandy-knees': The Frog is justly sensitive To epithets like these. No animal will more repay A treatment kind and fair; At least so lonely people say Who keep a frog (and, by the way, they are extremely rare). The Frog , Hilaire Belloc Photo by @sdavis.art on Instagram For those who may not know the name, Hilaire Belloc got off the sine qua non explanation of successful colonialism: "Whatever happens we have got, The Maxim gun and they have not". A useful maxim to know.