Ham, Shem And Japhet Poem by Cicely Fox Smith

Ham, Shem, and Japhet went a-sailing in the
Ark
,
With all the kinds of animals that grunt and squeak and bark,
All the birds and beasts and things the world has ever known,
And Ham, Shem, and Japhet chose pets to be their own.

Ham chose an elephant, Shem chose a whale,
Japhet chose a little mouse with only half a tail;
Ham and Shem had each a bird with feathers on his forehead,
Japhet had a beetle; Mrs. Noah cried 'How horrid!'

Ham got a unicorn, Shem a shiny dove,
Japhet, just a lonely toad that nobody would love;
Ham picked the white puppy, Shem picked the brown,
Japhet picked the spotty one that they were going to drown.