The Little Mouse

A little mouse got into the wires

At the central clearing house in Buenos Aires.

One little mouse short circuited the computers,

Says a press dispatch from Reuters.

Hooray for the little mouse

That mucked1 up the clearing house,

And threw the Stock Exchange in a spin

And made the bankers cry.

So much for the electronic brains,

That run the world of banks and aeroplanes,

And if one little mouse can set them all awry,

Why not you and I?

Spoken:

Then there was another item in the papers

About a bank's computers

That messed up the accounts

So the farmer's checks all bounced,

So his business fell apart

And it nearly broke his heart.

So he took the bank to court,

And they gave him an award

Of a hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

The bank appealed and on due consideration

The higher court doubled the compensation.

So if a computer does it to you,

You can sue, or chew the wires through.