I shook him well from side to side, Until his face was blue; 'Come, tell me how you live,' I cried 40 'And what it is you do!'
He said, 'I hunt for haddocks' eyes Among the heather bright,
I. From Through the Looking-Glass, chap. 8. Car-'Resolution and Independence' (1807). roll's 'Song' is a parodic version of William Words-2. Brand of hair oil, much used in the 19th cenworth's poem concerning an aged leech gatherer: tury.
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CARROLL : TH E WHIT E KNIGHT' S SON G / 153 3 And work them into waistcoat-buttons In the silent night. 45 And these I do not sell for gold Or coin of silvery shine, But for a copper halfpenny, And that will purchase nine. 'I sometimes dig for buttered rolls, 50 Or set limed twigs3 for crabs; I sometimes search the grassy knolls For wheels of hansom-cabs. And that's the way' (he gave a wink) 'By which I get my wealth? 55 And very gladly will I drink Your Honor's noble health.' I heard him then, for I had just Completed my design To keep the Menai bridge4 from rust 60 By boiling it in wine. I thanked him much for telling me The way he got his wealth, But chiefly for his wish that he Might drink my noble health. 65 And now, if e'er by chance I put My fingers into glue, Or madly squeeze a right-hand foot Into a left-hand shoe, Or if I drop upon my toe 70 A very heavy weight, I weep, for it reminds me so Of that old man I used to know? Whose look was mild, whose speech was slow, Whose hair was whiter than the snow, 75 Whose face was very like a crow, With eyes, like cinders, all aglow, Who seemed distracted with his woe. Who rocked his body to and fro, And muttered mumblingly and low, so As if his mouth were full of dough, Who snorted like a buffalo? That summer evening long ago A-sitting on a gate. 1856 1871
3. A method of catching small birds, which 4. Suspension bridge in Wales (completed in become caught on birdlime, a sticky substance. 1826).
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1534
W. S. GILBERT 1836-1911 Before becoming a full-time writer, William Schwenck Gilbert worked in the civil service and as a lawyer. In 1869 he published Bab Ballads, a collection of narrative verses he had first contributed to a magazine called Fun. These ballads are indeed funny but also curiously macabre in their imperturbable accounts of disasters, cannibalism, and murders. Gilbert's skills as a writer of light verse, together with his experience in devising plays for the London theater, contributed to his triumphant success as a librettist in a series of light operas that he composed in collaboration with the eminent musician Sir Arthur Sullivan. For twenty-five years (1871?96). Gilbert and Sullivan captivated audiences in London and New York with productions such as H.M.S. Pinafore (1878), The Pirates of Penzance (1879), Princess Ida (1884)?a comedic response to Tennyson's poem The Princess (1847)?and The Mikado (1885). Most of these operas exhibit Gilbert's satirical flair; gentle fun is poked at the pretentious ineffectuality of the House of Lords and of corner-cutting lawyers and politicians as well as of bumbling admirals and generals. The good- hearted quality is especially evident in the happy endings of the operas: the satire is usually blunted in the finale by a jovial-spirited acceptance of characters who in earlier scenes were exposed as foolish or inept.
In recognition of his work, Gilbert was knighted by King Edward VII in 1907 (some twenty-five years after Sullivan was knighted in token of Queen Victoria's interest in his 'serious' music). Gilbert died on May 29, 1911, while attempting to save a young woman from drowning.
When I, Good Friends, Was Called to the Bar1
When I, good friends, was called to the bar, I'd an appetite fresh and hearty, But I was, as many young barristers are, An impecunious party.0 penniless individual 5 I'd a swallow-tail coat of a beautiful blue? A brief which I bought of a booby2? A couple of shirts and a collar or two, And a ring that looked like a ruby!
CHORUS. A couple of shirts, etc.
In Westminster Hall31 danced a dance, io Like a semidespondent fury;4 For I thought I should never hit on a chance Of addressing a British jury ? But I soon got tired of third-class journeys,5 And dinners of bread and water;
1. Before a breach of promise suit begins in Trial 3. Courtrooms of the Court of Chancery in Lon- by Jury, the singer of this piece, the judge presiding don. over the case, tells the court how he 'came to be 4. The Furies are the avenging goddesses in Greek a judge.' mythology. 2. A fool or dunce. 'Brief: a summary of the facts 5. Rritish passenger trains had first-, second-, and of a case that is prepared (usually by a solicitor) to third-class sections. assist a barrister in presenting the case in court.
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GILBERT: IF YOU'RE ANXIOUS FOR TO SHINE / 1535
15 So I fell in love with a rich attorney's Elderly, ugly daughter.
CHORUS. SO he fell in love, etc.
The rich attorney, he jumped with joy, And replied to my fond professions: 'You shall reap the reward of your pluck, my boy, 20 At the Bailey and Middlesex Sessions.6 You'll soon get used to her looks,' said he, 'And a very nice girl you'll find her! She may very well pass for forty-three In the dusk, with a light behind her!'
CHORUS. She may very well, etc.
25 The rich attorney was good as his word; The briefs came trooping gaily, And every day my voice was heard At the Sessions or Ancient Bailey. All thieves who could my fees afford 30 Relied on my orations, And many a burglar I've restored To his friends and his relations.
CHORUS. And many a burglar, etc.
At length I became as rich as the Gurneys7? An incubus8 then I thought her, 35 So I threw over that rich attorney's Elderly, ugly daughter. The rich attorney my character high Tried vainly to disparage? And now, if you please, I'm ready to try 40 This Breach of Promise of Marriage!
1875
If You're Anxious for to Shine in the High Aesthetic Line1
Am I alone, And unobserved? I am! Then let me own I'm an aesthetic sham!
6. Meetings of the county court of Middlesex sons in their sleep. (which includes London). 'Bailey': the Old Bailey 1. Sung in Patience (Act 1) by Reginald Bun- was a court where criminals were tried. thorne, a caricature of
