Fly Leaves (1872) (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE PALACE. rpHEY come, they come, with fife and drum, And gleaming pikes and glancing banners: Though the eyes flash, the lips are dumb; To talk in rank would not be manners. Onward they stride, as Britons can; The ladies following in the Van. Who, who be these that tramp in threes Through sumptuous Picadilly, through The roaring Strand, and stand at ease At last 'neath shadowy Waterloo? Some gallant Guild, I ween, are they; Taking their annual holiday. To catch the destined train?to pay Their willing fares, and plunge within it? Is, as in old Romaunt they say, With them the work of half-a-minute. Then off they 're whirled, with songs and shouting, To cedared Sydenham for their outing. I marked them light, with faces bright As pansies or a new coined florin, And up the sunless stair take flight, Close-packed as rabbits in a warren. Honour the Brave, who in that stress Still trod not upon Beauty's dress! Kerchief in hand I saw them stand; In every kerchief lurked a lunch; When they unfurled them, it was grand To watch bronzed men and maidens crunch The sounding celery-stick, or ram The knife into the blushing ham. Dashed the bold fork through pies of pork; O'er hard-boiled eggs the saltspoon shook; Leapt from its lair the playful cork: Yet some there were, to whom the brook Seemed sweetest beverage, and for meat They chose the red root of the beet. Then many a song, some rather long, Came quivering up from girlish throats; And one young man he came out strong, And gave " The Wolf" without his notes. While they who knew not song or ballad Still munched, approvingly, their salad. But ah! what bard could sing how hard, The artless banquet o'er, they ran Down the soft slope with daisies starred...