The Story of the Two Bulls

In Short

This narrative poem is a humorous, cautionary folk tale written in the mid-19th century. It follows a Deacon who, despite his pious reputation, harbors a secret vanity for owning the finest cattle. When his pride drives him to acquire a second bull, his curiosity about their strength overcomes his religious observance, leading to a violent, slapstick confrontation within his own house. Through a series of unfortunate events, the Deacon is publicly humbled before his congregation, serving as a lighthearted lesson on the dangers of hypocrisy and the folly of unchecked ambition.

The Story

The Deacon is a man of comfortable means, possessed of broad acres and a variety of livestock that serve as his quiet source of pride. He is a respectable member of the community, yet he harbors a competitive streak, particularly regarding his animals. When he hears that his neighbor, Moses Grimes, owns a bull that might surpass his own in quality, the Deacon’s envy is piqued. He promptly visits the squire, intending to purchase the animal to assert his own superiority. Despite the Deacon’s claim to be a man of peace, he finds himself deeply preoccupied with the prospect of pitting his new acquisition against his existing bull.

The Saturday purchase concluded, the Deacon faces a dilemma. It is nearly Sunday, a day of holy rest, yet the anticipation of a fight between the two beasts consumes his thoughts. On Sunday morning, while his wife and the rest of the household prepare for church, the Deacon feigns a sudden illness. He insists his family depart without him, claiming a need for rest and medicine, though in truth, he is eager to orchestrate a meeting between the bulls. Once the house is quiet and the family has left for the steeple, the Deacon leads the bulls together, expecting to witness a display of power.

The collision is instantaneous and violent. The spotted bull is killed in the initial clash, and the surviving red bull, maddened by the fight, turns his aggression toward the Deacon. The man who previously claimed to value peace finds himself sprinting for his life, pursued by the beast through his own kitchen and parlor. In a frantic attempt to escape, the Deacon scrambles up the stairs, leaving the bull to demolish the interior of the house. The animal, catching sight of his own reflection in a large, gilded mirror, attacks the glass, shattering it into fragments. Finally, the Deacon, cornered and desperate, retrieves his rifle and shoots the bull, ending the rampage.

The peace of the day is shattered in more ways than one. The local parson, having heard of the Deacon’s supposed illness, arrives at the house with the deacon’s wife, hoping to offer comfort. They arrive just in time to witness the grim aftermath: the spotted bull dead on the lawn and the parlor in ruins. The Deacon is forced to confess his transgression before his guests, his hypocrisy fully exposed. The incident quickly becomes the talk of the town, providing the community with both pity and a great deal of laughter. The Deacon, thoroughly chastened, retires from his competitive posturing and never speaks of his bulls again, leaving the town to ponder the moral that he who pursues the devil’s bait will surely feel the hook.

How It Unfolds

The competition begins The Deacon grows restless upon hearing that a neighbor owns a superior bull. He maneuvers to purchase the animal, driven by a hidden vanity that outweighs his sense of propriety.

The Sabbath deception As Sunday morning arrives, the Deacon feigns illness to remain at home while his family attends church. He is entirely consumed by the forbidden desire to see which of his two bulls is the stronger fighter.

The violent collision The two animals meet with the force of thunder, and the spotted bull is killed instantly. The red bull turns on the Deacon, forcing the formerly composed man to flee for his life into the sanctuary of his home.

The parlor destruction The beast pursues the Deacon through the house, eventually turning his rage on the parlor mirror. The Deacon is forced to kill the bull with his rifle, just as his wife and the parson return to witness the destruction.

The public reckoning The Deacon is caught in his lie, his reputation damaged by the discovery of his vanity and the chaos he has wrought. The story concludes with the town laughing at his expense, and the Deacon living the rest of his days in quiet humility.

The People

The Deacon is the central figure, a man of outward piety who is secretly governed by competitive vanity. He prides himself on his status and his livestock, and his inability to resist the urge to see a fight between his bulls reveals the emptiness behind his religious performativity. By the end of the story, he is stripped of his dignity and forced to admit his sins before his peers.

The Deacon’s wife acts as the voice of domestic concern and moral stability. She is genuinely worried about her husband’s health and remains unaware of his true intentions until the very end, when she brings the parson home to offer support, inadvertently exposing the Deacon’s deceit.

The Parson is a portly, well-meaning figure who represents the community's moral authority. He arrives at the Deacon’s home with the intention of providing spiritual care, only to be confronted by the wreckage of the Deacon's vanity. His presence serves as the catalyst that forces the Deacon to face the consequences of his actions.

Moses Grimes, the justice of the peace, serves as the catalyst for the conflict by owning the prize bull. He is a shrewd character who recognizes the Deacon’s jealousy immediately, and his laughter upon selling the animal highlights the absurdity of the Deacon’s competitive nature.

In Its Own Voice

The deacon was a man of peace, For so he claimed, albeit When there was war among the beasts, He always liked to see it.

The narrator points out the contradiction between the Deacon’s reputation as a peaceful man and his hidden, violent interests.

Through kitchen and through parlor fine, Breathless, the poor man flew, And lo! the bull is at his heels And in the parlor too.

The frantic pace of the poem quickens as the Deacon loses control of the situation and must flee from the very animal he brought onto his property.

If you have read, remember The moral of this book-- Whoever takes the devil's bait, Is sure to feel the hook.

The narrator offers a final, punchy warning that hidden sins and deceptive desires inevitably lead to painful consequences.

What It's Really About

At its heart, the story is a critique of the gap between public persona and private vice. The Deacon represents the classic hypocrite who maintains a veneer of religious observance while harboring a competitive, prideful spirit. The narrative argues that vanity is a dangerous force, one that blinds the individual to common sense and moral duty. By placing the conflict on a Sunday, the author emphasizes the Deacon’s moral failure; his desire to witness a spectacle of nature overrides his commitments to his faith and his family. The destruction of his parlor and his public humiliation serve as a physical manifestation of the disorder he allowed into his own soul, suggesting that one cannot chase the "devil's bait" without eventually suffering the consequences.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy lighthearted, rhythmic narrative verse will find this a charming, if slightly dated, curiosity. It carries the distinct flavor of 19th-century folk humor, where stories were meant to be read aloud for both their moral lessons and their comedic absurdity. There is a palpable sense of slapstick in the Deacon’s retreat from the bull—a "majestic" man reduced to scrambling up stairs and hiding in his own home—that remains genuinely funny.

However, a modern reader should be prepared for the didactic, moralistic tone common to the era. The language, while accessible, reflects the period's conventions and social expectations. Some might find the Deacon’s hypocrisy more tragic than comic, though the poem intentionally pushes the tone toward the farcical. The length is modest, making it a quick read, and the simple AABB rhyme scheme makes it flow with a rapid, sing-song cadence that is easy to follow. You will likely walk away remembering the image of the enraged bull attacking his own reflection in the mirror—a perfect metaphor for the Deacon’s own self-inflicted ruin. It is an honest, straightforward piece of storytelling that succeeds because it refuses to take its "noble" subject too seriously, ultimately valuing a good, grounding laugh over moral grandstanding.