Class X English

First Flight
The Tale of Custard the Dragon
Notes

Introduction

The Tale of Custard the Dragon is a ballad written by Frederic Ogden Nash. It is a humorous
poem about a cowardly dragon named Custard, owned by a little girl Belinda who also owns
many other pets - a black kitten named Ink, a grey mouse named Blink and a yellow dog named
Mustard. The poet has described every character as brave except Custard, the dragon who is a
coward. The whole situation changes when a pirate attacks Belinda’s house. No one else except
the dragon has the guts to face and kill the pirate. All the characters are initially happy because
they are saved by Custard but they quickly change their thoughts and claim themselves to be
more powerful. They feel that could have acted more bravely had the situation not been so
confusing for all of them.

Explanation
Stanza 1
Belinda lived in a little white house,
With a little black kitten and a little grey mouse,
And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon,
And a realio, trulio, little pet dragon.
In this stanza, we are introduced to a little girl named Belinda who lived in a little white house
with some creatures which were her pets. They were a black kitten, a grey mouse, a yellow dog
and a creature that the poet says was really and truly a dragon. Belinda also had a little red
wagon.
Stanza 2
Now the name of the little black kitten was Ink,
And the little grey mouse, she called him Blink,
And the little yellow dog was sharp as Mustard,
But the dragon was a coward, and she called him Custard.
The poet tells us the name of all the animals that were tamed by Belinda. He says that the name
of black kitten was Ink. The name of grey mouse was Blink. The little yellow dog had yellow
colour so she called him Mustard and the dragon who was a coward and a weakling was called
Custard by Belinda.
Stanza 3
Custard the dragon had big sharp teeth,
And spikes on top of him and scales underneath,
Mouth like a fireplace, chimney for a nose,
And realio, trulio daggers on his toes.
The poet describes the dragon saying that it had big sharp teeth, spikes on the top and had scales
beneath his belly. His mouth has been compared to a fireplace because it is assumed that dragons
could release fire from their mouths. Even his nose is compared to a chimney which helped him
to pass out smoke. His feet were sharp like a dagger. Thus he looked ferocious and could defend
himself easily.
Stanza 4
Belinda was as brave as a barrel full of bears,
And Ink and Blink chased lions down the stairs,
Mustard was as brave as a tiger in a rage,
But Custard cried for a nice safe cage.
The poet explains the inner strength or the bravery of various characters of the poem. He says
that Belinda was as brave as a group of bears and Ink and Blink were so brave that they could
chase or hunt even lions. The dog Mustard was very brave just like an angry tiger. Custard was a
stark contrast to all of them as he was not at all brave. He was so afraid of everything that he
always demanded a safe cage for himself. Thus all other creatures, though much smaller in size
than Custard, were braver than him.
Stanza 5
Belinda tickled him, she tickled him unmerciful,
Ink, Blink and Mustard, they rudely called him Percival,
They all sat laughing in the little red wagon
At the realio, trulio, cowardly dragon.
Belinda and the others used to make fun of Custard due to the cowardly behavior displayed by
him. Belinda used to stroke the dragon in a very cruel way. Ink, Blink and Mustard made fun of
him by comparing him sarcastically to a knight named Percival, a brave knight who had served
King Arthur. In this manner they used to tease Custard while sitting in the little red wagon.
Stanza 6
Belinda giggled till she shook the house,
And Blink said Weeck! which is giggling for a mouse,
Ink and Mustard rudely asked his age,
When Custard cried for a nice safe cage.
The poet says that Belinda giggled to her heart’s content whenever Custard wanted to be put
safely in a cage, so much so that her laughter echoed in the entire house. Blink, the mouse used
to laugh and make a giggling sound of ‘weeck’. On the other hand, Ink and Mustard would tease
Custard by asking him his age whenever he used to childishly demand for a nice safe cage.
Stanza 7
Suddenly, suddenly they heard a nasty sound,
And Mustard growled, and they all looked around.
Meowch! cried Ink, and ooh! cried Belinda,
For there was a pirate, climbing in the winda
The poet narrates a particular incident which occurred when all of them were once making fun of
Custard. They heard an unpleasant sound. Mustard sensed danger and started growling. Ink and
Belinda cried out in horror when they looked towards the window and saw a pirate climbing up
the wall. All of them were scared of the pirate.

Stanza 8
Pistol in his left hand, pistol in his right,
And he held in his teeth a cutlass bright,
His beard was black, one leg was wood;
It was clear that the pirate meant no good
The poet describes the appearance of the pirate. He says that the pirate was holding guns in both
his hands and had a little sword too which he was held between his teeth. He had a black beard
and one of his legs was of wood. His overall appearance was quite sinister and he intended to
cause harm.
Stanza 9
Belinda paled, and she cried Help! Help!
But Mustard fled with a terrified yelp,
Ink trickled down to the bottom of the household,
And little mouse Blink strategically mouseholed
When all of them saw the pirate they got frightened. Belinda was so scared that she turned pale
due to fear and started crying for help. Mustard the dog started crying for help too. The kitten Ink
ran down towards the bottom of the house in order to hide himself. The mouse Blink ran into his
little mouse-hole in order to save himself.

Stanza 10
But up jumped Custard, snorting like an engine,
Clashed his tail like irons in a dungeon,
With a clatter and a clank and a jangling squirm,
He went at the pirate like a robin at a worm.

When all the other supposedly brave characters got frightened, Custard did the most unexpected
thing and surprised everyone with his actions. He jumped onto the pirate and made a strong
snorting sound like that of an engine with his nose. Not only this, he beat his tail on the ground
with such great force that it produced a heavy sound of metal chains being banged against each
other in a dungeon or an underground prison. He pounced upon the pirate and attacked him just
like a robin attacks a worm.

Stanza 11
The pirate gaped at Belinda’s dragon,
And gulped some grog from his pocket flagon,
He fired two bullets, but they didn’t hit,
And Custard gobbled him, every bit.
The pirate’s reaction has been described. He got so shocked by Custard’s attack that he kept
staring at him with his mouth wide open. To gather some strength, he drank some alcohol from a
container in his pocket. Then he fired two shots from his guns targeting the dragon but they
missed the target. Custard the dragon ate every bit of the fierce looking pirate.
Stanza 12
Belinda embraced him, Mustard licked him,
No one mourned for his pirate victim.
Ink and Blink in glee did gyrate
Around the dragon that ate the pirate.
When the pirate was dead, Belinda hugged the dragon and Mustard licked him to express their
happiness. No one was sad about the dead pirate. Both Ink and Blink started running and dancing
around Custard gaily. All were happy and showed their gratitude towards Custard the dragon
who had saved them.
Stanza 13
But presently up spoke little dog Mustard,
I’d have been twice as brave if I hadn’t been flustered.
And up spoke Ink and up spoke Blink,
We’d have been three times as brave, we think,
And Custard said, I quite agree
That everybody is braver than me.
After thanking and expressing their love towards Custard, all the creatures started defending their
behavior towards the pirate. Mustard said that it was just because of some confusion that he
wasn’t able to do anything otherwise he would have been twice as brave as custard. Both Ink and
Blink also said that they thought that they could have been three times braver than custard. To
this, the dragon modestly said that he fully agreed that all of them were braver and more
powerful than him. Thus after this heroic episode, all the other characters still undermined
Custard by saying that they were more powerful than him and could have handled the situation in
a better manner.
Stanza 14 & 15
Belinda still lives in her little white house,
With her little black kitten and her little grey mouse,
And her little yellow dog and her little red wagon,
And her realio, trulio little pet dragon.

Belinda is as brave as a barrel full of bears,

And Ink and Blink chase lions down the stairs,
Mustard is as brave as a tiger in a rage,
But Custard keeps crying for a nice safe cage
In the end, the poet has used the same lines again to show that life continues in the same manner.
Belinda still lives in that little white house with Ink, Blink, Mustard and Custard. All of them are
very brave except Custard who is still a coward and always wants to stay safe in his cage.

Literary Devices:
• Rhyme scheme: aabb (house-mouse, wagon-dragon, ink-blink etc.)
• Repetition: Suddenly, suddenly; Help! Help!
• Anaphora: repeated use of word at the start of two consecutive lines. (And a little ….And
a realio)
• Simile: as sharp as mustard; mouth like a fireplace; as brave as a barrel full of bears;
snorting like an engine; clashed his tail like irons in the dungeon; like a robin at a worm
• Metaphor: chimney for a nose
• Allusion: reference to any person or place (Percival)
• Personification: use of ‘he’ for the dog, the kitten and the mouse
• Alliteration: she called him Custard ; barrel full of bears; Custard cried for a nice, safe
cage; he held in his teeth; beard was black; gulped some grog; in glee did gyrate
• Onomatopoeia: Weeck!; giggled; growled; Meowch; clatter; clank; jangling
• Imagery: mouth like a fireplace; brave as a tiger in a rage; the appearance of the pirate;
went at the pirate like a robin at a worm etc.
• Transferred epithet: terrified yelp
• Refrain: Repetition of a sentence again and again (And a realio, trulio...)
• Poetic license: realio, trulio for real, true; winda for window; mouseholed
 Class X English
First Flight
The Tale of Custard the Dragon
Assignment
(Do the following in your English Notebook)

1.”Belinda paled, and she cried Help! Help!

But Mustard fled with a terrified yelp,
Ink trickled down to the bottom of the household,
And little mouse Blink strategically mouseholed.”

(i) Why did Belinda become pale?

(a) She had fever
(b) She was terrified
(c) She was exhausted
(d) She felt weak

(ii) In what way did Mustard react?

(a) He ran away
(b) He fought bravely
(c) He fainted
(d) He shouted for help

(iii) What did Ink do?

(a) He went into his hole
(b) He hid in the wagon
(c) He jumped out of the window
(d) He ran down the stairs

(iv) Identify the poetic device used in the second line.

(a) Repetition
(b) Alliteration
(c) Onomatopoeia
(d) Personification

2. How has the poet described Custard, the dragon? What is ironical about the description?
Ans: Custard, the dragon has big sharp teeth. He has spikes on top and scales on the lower part
of his body. His mouth has been compared to a fireplace because it is assumed that the dragons
could release fire from their mouth. Even his nose is compared to a chimney to pass out the
smoke. His feet are sharp like a dagger. The description seems to be ironical because of the
cowardly manner in which Custard behaves, always asking for a safe cage to keep him protected.
3. In what way did Belinda and others make fun of Custard? Do you think people should be
made fun of because of their preferences and choices in life? Explain in the context of Custard,
the dragon.

Ans: It is not right to make fun of anyone on the basis of their lifestyle, preferences or their
choices. Custard, the dragon wanted his own comfort and safety and therefore always cried for a
nice safe cage. Belinda and other pets of the house made fun of him because of his cowardice.
Belinda tickled the dragon unmercifully and everyone used to laugh at him. Custard proved that
just because he liked comfort, he was not a coward. In fact, he was the only one, who had the
courage to face the pirate and gobble him up. Others were only boastful of their bravery as they
all disappeared when the real need arose. So no one should make fun of others without realizing
their strength.

4. Custard, the dragon was considered a coward but he proved his bravery in adversity. Certain
qualities like bravery and courage are situational and spontaneous. Express your views with
reference to the poem.

Ans. Custard’s humble and modest behavior won every reader’s heart as he showed true bravery
and did not boast like Belinda and her other pets. Everyone boasted of their bravery and began to
glorify themselves but when they faced the real danger it was only Custard, who showed
courage. Instead running away he came to their rescue and jumped towards the pirate, snorting
like an engine. He clashed his tail and charged at the pirate like a robin at a worm and ate him
up. Thus he faced the pirate bravely and killed him. Qualities like bravery and courage can only
be tested when someone is actually put in a dangerous situation. Therefore, these qualities are
situational as becomes clear from Custard’s example. Custard looked for comfort all the time but
this did not mean that he was a coward.