POETRY.

"P0 STE RE STANTE."

FROM SIR ST—IF—D N—RTHC—TE TO LORDS R—C—NSE---LD AND S—L—SB—Y.

MY Lords B. and S., on a day coining round,

I shall wish myself several miles underground;

And I feel far from well as the turn we approach So fatal to many a Cabinet coach, When politics Tory and politics Whig, And we Ministers small and you Ministers big, And schemes for the good of the land we adore (To keep us in office a year or two more), And light-hearted wars for the same noble ends,

Which may make our seats rather shaky, my friends,.

Devices for tickling the tax-paying trout,

As Peaces with Honour, and Quarrels without,—

Things amusing to you, but perplexing to me, Are brought to the Budget's hard test,— k s. d.

It's all very well to be gartered and starred, With Orders at so many glories a yard, While the valorous Jingoes are shouting for joy, And dancing like fools to the tune of Dalroy, And threatening Creation till hoarse in the throat With " Arrah ! who'll tread on the tail of my coat ?" Yet here have we wasted good gallons of breath, To harry one poor wretched savage to death, And to find that another—the brute !—dares to stand In arms for his country, and fight for his hand.

And just as the Clubs and the drawing-rooms, my Lords,.

Keep the talk to themselves, leaving others the swords, And bragging like Bobadils over their wine, "D— the tactics of Ch—lmsf—rd ! just listen to mine !'' As they eat, sleep, and bluster, and sit at their ease, While, to win you the votes of such fellows as these, The Br—rah-41.s and Ch—rds throw their lives in the van.

And half-fledged young heroes die game to a man,—

Just so, for the glory and good of the Peerage, Must we niggers of yours go to work in the steerage, And see you beplastered with all the renown Of the "Barons of England" who brag for the Crown, Till, as soon as we come to the reckoning-day.

There's only myself and the D—1 to pay.

My Lords B. and S., do not take it amiss, If I hint that I've grown rather weary of this.

I'm weary of saying—so often I've said it—

That "I think that the C—mm—us have done themselves credit,," When I feel from my heart that, for better or worse, For years they've been doing the very reverse ; I'm weary of plying invisible soap, Till my graceful ablutions with Gr—nv—lle's might cope ; I'm sick of denying the logic of figures ;

I'm sick of O'D—nn—lls, and P—rn—lls, and B—gg—rs ;

Most peaceful of men, with mankind I'm at feud, Though H—rt—ngt,—n's gentle, yet H—ro--rt is rude ; From the Member for Gr—nw—ch I shrink to my shoe,.

He says such unmannerly things,—and so true !

And Truth, as you know, is not much in our line (Though I've a dim notion it once was in mine) ; In my Budget I've nothing to do but confess That we've spent ten times more, and saved ten times less, Than we ever expected to save or to spend ; And I heartily wish the whole thing at an end : From the trail of your chariot fain would I far be,

And join Cincinnatus, C—rn—rv—n, and D—rby,—

Dig potatoes at P—nes,—both your Worships henceforth cut,.

And be a good man. Your misled ST—IF—RD N—RTHC—TE- P.S.—Just a word of advice. As I guess, The country's debauch of prolonged B. and S., Has given her whole Constitution a shaking ; But she's sleeping it off, and look out for the waking !

So neat and complete, too, my parallel is,

That the B. is the poison, the S. is the—fizz. H. C. M.