"
On being assured that he is her husband, she exclaims--
"_Beppo._ And are you really truly, now a Turk?
With any other women did you wive?
Is't true they use their fingers for a fork?
Well, that's the prettiest shawl--as I'm alive!
You'll give it me? They say you eat no pork.
And how so many years did you contrive
To--Bless me! did I ever? No, I never
Saw a man grown so yellow! How's your liver?"
More than half the poem is taken up with digressions, more or less
amusing, such as--
"Oh, mirth and innocence! Oh milk and water!
Ye happy mixtures of more happy days!
In these sad centuries of sin and slaughter
Abominable man no more allays
His thirst with such pure beverage. No matter,
I love you both, and both shall have my praise!
Oh, for old Saturn's reign of sugar-candy!
Meantime I drink to your return in brandy."
We may observe that there is humour in the rhymes in the above stanzas.
He often used absurd terminations to his lines as--
"For bating Covent garden, I can hit on
No place that's called Piazza in Great Britain."
People going to Italy, are to take with them--
"Ketchup, Soy, Chili-vinegar and Harvey,
Or, by the Lord! a Lent will well nigh starve ye."
We are here reminded of the endings of some of Butler's lines. Such
rhymes were then regarded as poetical, but in our improved taste we only
use them for humour.
Pages:
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224