On the Saints, who had long With their tortures and racks. Their heads were cut off with an axe. "Do we sleep? do we dream?" All the witnesses shout; For quickly the corpse of St. Denys He took up his head, Tuck'd it under his arm, Caused surprise and alarm; Cut down to his neck, Like a flower to its stalk, The Saint met a check When he first tried to walk : But soon he felt stronger than Weston And angels, we're told, Led his footsteps along; While heavenwards rolled Their chorus of song; They led him two leagues from the city, To see that he didn't go wrong. I hope you'll believe That this story is fact, For I scorn to deceive, And refuse to retract; For truth I've a great reputation, Which is why I observe And my statement is true- And the same I have proved unto you. Lays of the Saintly, by Walter Parke (Vizetelly and Co.) London, 1882. THAT INFIDEL EARL! (Flain Language from Artless Ahmed, Istamboul.) AIR-"That Heathen Chinee," SULTAN sings I-aside-may remark, - DUFFER-IN is his name, In regard to the same, What that name might imply. Though his smile is so pleasant and placid, A Sheitan there lurks in each eye. Istamboul was the spot Where we played, and you'd guess Yet he played it on me, did that Giaour, We sat down to the game, He could not understand; But he smiled as he sat at the table My cards were well stocked, As no doubt you'll believe, — For when playing with sons of burnt fathers But the hands which were played Till at last I was "bested" completely, Then I felt that my guile Was but simple and slight, And he rose, with a smile, And he said, "That's all right! Think I'll take the next turn with dear TEWFIK!" And he started for Cairo that night. In the little game there I may not take a hand; Yet he'll probably give you a hiding,-- Be the game short or long, He's ne'er flurried nor stuck. His lead is so strong, He has Sheitan's own luck; And you'll find in this goose-as I thought himWhat occurs to geese-sometimes-that's "pluck." Man some thanks for the way that he publish'd The fact that his genius was great. Then 'twas said with one breath Perfection was he, From the "Belis" to " Macbeth" He was as good as could be He came, and he play'd, and he conquer'd Like a melodramatic J. C. And all London went wild O'er this Eminent I., Save a party that smiled, And thought it good fun; But as for the late William Shakespeare, He never had had such a run. And the public fell down As though in a trance; And the West-End of town Booked their stalls in advance; Whilst the critics wrote furlongs of praises, His triumph to further enhance. And the management, gaily, Its hand on its heart, Did advertise, daily, Its love of high art; Whilst FIGARO smiled somewhat drily, And murmured, "O here's a droll start!" But at last came a night 'Twas "Othello" you'll u'll guess; And thought I (well I might), "Ah! another success!" But the papers next morning-O pizen! They upset this view, I confess. For I dare not repeat The things that were said : Of a mop-stem on feet In one weekly I read With its arms like a pair of pump-handles, And the mop dipped in ink for the head. And another remarked That his voice wasn't clear, And the more the Moor barked, The less he could hear; Whilst a third liken'd him in the death scene, To a curate whose dreams had been queer. Scarce a paper I scann'd Had the old-fashioned praise; But on every hand I read with amaze, And, thought I, this is odd ! To turn round in this way: One day he's a god Or, so they all say And the next night they call him eccentric, Which isn't to my mind, fair play. He ain't a-gone wrong Like this in a day; He's been wrong all along In the same kind of way; And the faults they have damned in "Othello" They praised in-well, "Hamlet," I'll say. So that's why I remark, And would wish to maintain, That for hair long and dark, And a voice that was pain Ful, the Eminent I. was peculiar But I don't think he'll try it again. The Figaro, March 4, 1876. GALAHAD. "A superficial imitation is easy enough, but I shall certainly fail to reproduce his subtle wit and pathos." (Reads.) TRUTHFUL JAMES'S SONG OF THE SHIRT. Which his name it was Sam; That runs thick up and down, without ceilin' or floor. And, says he, it's a game If I put up that same, It'll bust me or make. At fifty the foot I've entered my pile, And the whole derned cahoot I'll let soak for a while, And jest loaf around here, -say, Jim, will you smile? Tom Fakes was the chum, And down to Dutch Flat rushed with might and with main. Seven minutes, to pass Through the hole by the Flat ! If I can't shift in that! What else? Here's to you! And to stop it from goin' he'd give all his dirt ! Diversions of the Echo Club. The following admirable parody of Bret Harte's pathetic poems on miner's life in California was written by Mr. Charles H. Ross, the Editor of Judy. It is a favourite recitation with Mr. Odell, the popular actor : THE BLOOMIN' FLOWER OF RORTY GULCH. It war Bob war the Bloomin' Flower, He scored his stiffs on the hest of his knife Forty I've heern 'em say; It might have been more-Bob kept his accounts In a loosish sorter way. Bob warn't a angel ter look at, And the Bible it warn't his book; He swore the most oaths that war swor'd in the camp, Or blarmedly I am mistook; But he warn't a outen-out bad 'un, And he'd got a heart you could touch; And he never draw'd iron** on boy or man As didn't pervoke him much. And you can't say fair as drinking War counted among his sins; For at nary a sittin' would he put down But one day we was drinkin' and jawin', Then Haggarty went for him savage, 'Bout knee-deep in red. * Corpses. To shoot. But when the fun was over in there, Bob ran a-muck in the street; And he speared and potted each derned cuss And quiet folks shut up their doors- Into their parlour rushed Bloomin' Bob, The tother between the eyes. Then he clutched the innocent slumb'rin' babe, Some long-forgotten strains. * Some soft and touching music this, Played by a common organ-man And it went straight home to the digger's heart, But lay it down in its little cot, Talk soft! They say the angels Gleamed brightly round his nob. But I won't set by and hear none o' you say SCARCE a sound was heard, not a word was spoke, They'd packed up in silence at dead of night, Slowly and sadly they hurried away Loudly they'll talk of the tenants now gone, ANONYMOUS. Two old parodies of the same original, on theatrical matters, may also, for the sake of completeness, be inserted here. They are both taken from The Man in the Moon, which was a small comic magazine, edited by the late Angus B. Reach, with many funny illustrations by Hine, Sala, and other humorous artists. The Man in the Moon was started in 1847, and five | volumes in all were issued; its contents are now, of course, somewhat out of date, but there are some clever parodies which will be inserted in this collection-many of these parodies were, no doubt, from the facile pen of Albert Smith, who was one of the principal contributors to.the magazine. THE BURIAL OF PANTOMIME. NOT a laugh was heard, not a topical joke, On the pantomime going to be buried. We buried it after the Boxing night, The folks from our galleries turning, For we knew that it scarcely would pay for the light Of the star in the last act burning. No useless play-bill put forth a puff, How splendid the public had found it. But it lay like a piece that had been call'd "Stuff," With a very wet blanket round it. Stoutly and long all the audience hiss'd, When they found neither sense nor reason; But we steadfastly dwelt on the points we had miss'd And we bitterly thought of next season. We thought, when we felt it was really dead, As we pass'd old Covent Garden, That Opera and Ballet would take up its place, Loudly old gentlemen still will prate, Slowly and sadly we laid it down, For we knew that we couldn't make bad well, And we felt that the prestige was vanish'd at last, But we drank to the health of poor Bradwell. The Man in the Moon, Volume 1. We buried him, sadly, one Friday night, For our hopes were gone past returning; And the manager's pangs were a moving sight, By the foot-lights dimly burning. All bare and exposed to the critics lash, On that luckless stage we found him On that stage where he deemed he should cut such a dash, With armour and mobs around him. Few were the words which the manager said, To soothe the tragedian's sorrow; But they glared at each other with looks which made They doubtless thought, though their tongues they held, Ah! little attention the "Eminent" paid, But coolly let Maddox upbraid him. Slowly and sadly we laid it down That a poem, which is famed in story, The Man in the Moon, Volume 3. THE BURIAL OF THE BILLS. (A Parody apropos to present circumstances, August, 1884.) Not a joke was heard, not a troublesome vote, They buried them darkly at dead of night, For most of the Session's task was done, The supplies marked the hour for retiring; THE BURIAL OF PHILIP VAN ARTEVELDE. (Princess's Theatre). Not a house was drawn-not a five-pound-note So his run to its closing we hurried; Not a listener could follow his hazy plot, So the dreary abortion we buried. A TALE OF A TUB. Nor a cackle was heard, or matitudinal crow, The tears trickled slowly down Emma's fair cheek, Then slowly and sadly they turned them away, Alas! Ere the dawn of another to-day, There only was weeping and wailing; And the Beaks, when applied to, just wagged their old heads, JOHN E. ALLEN. (The touching incident described in these affecting lines occurred to some friends who, for fear of an explosion, buried a cask of paraffine oil in their garden; a midnight robber despoiled them of their spirit, and they could not make light of it.) Alfred, Lord Tennyson. POET LAUREATE. THE first four parts of this collection were devoted to parodies of the works of the Poet Laureate, a few examples being given of the imitations of each of his more important poems. Numerous subscribers have requested that the collection should be continued, so that the first volume might contain as nearly a complete set of parodies on Tennyson's works as it is possible to form. With this view many additional contributions have been sent in; whilst some that have quite recently appeared, and a few that were previously omitted as being too lengthy, will now be included. Independently of the amusing nature of many of the parodies still to be given, collectors of Tennysoniana will appreciate the completeness thus to be obtained, and it will be seen that very few of Tennyson's poems have escaped parody. Although it may appear that the imitations now to be given will come somewhat out of order, no inconvenience will eventually result, as the index will show, in a tabulated form, under the head of each original poem every parody of it. The order adopted in the recent editions of the Laureate's poems will be fol lowed in this further collection, and the parodies will illustrate Mariana; Circumstance; The Palace of Art; Riflemen Form; Lady Clara Vere de Vere; The May Queen; The Dream of Fair Women; "You Ask Me Why;" "Of Old sat Freedom;" Tithonus; Locksley Hall; Lady Godiva; The Lord of Burleigh; The Voyage; Enoch Arden; The Brook; The Princess; Alexandra; In Memoriam; Maud; Hands All Round; and the Idyls of the King. THE HAYMARKET THEATRE ON THE OCCASION OF THE REVIVAL OF A DULL OLD FIVE-ACT PLAY, With kindest friends, each private box Was thickly peopled one and all; The prompter gave against the wall. She only said, "It readeth dreary; ور Her yawns came with the first act even; She only said, "The play is dreary ; "Since I have been at this place I have lost as many as three copies of The Times in a week, while Punch was as regularly stolen as it was posted."-Times, January 10. WITH black ennui the Exile sits, That ate the peach on the garden wall. That gives his days their only change. |