PS
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT; 
 
 AN INCIDENT OF THE SEASON, 
 
 GEORGE DOUGLAS BREWERTON. 
 
 " If there's a hole in a' your coats, 
 
 I rede ye tent it ; 
 A chiefs amang ye takin' notes, 
 And. faith, he'll prent it." 
 
 BURNS. 
 
 CAMBRIDGE: 
 PRINTED AT THE RIVERSIDE PRESS, 
 
 18G9.
 
 NOT A BENE. 
 
 Entered in accord with Congressional Act 
 
 In the District Clerk's Office, so please note the fact, 
 
 Of the State of Rhode Island, in language quite terse, 
 
 And withal inconvenient to weave into verse. 
 
 Of this we feel certain, Eighteen Sixty-nine 
 
 Are the figures that noted the year at the time. 
 
 So be it remembered 'tis the author's own function 
 
 To be ruined by "Fitz" so beware an injunction. 
 
 And to all whom these presents with greeting may come 
 
 A caution we give, though you may think it fun: 
 
 Don't meddle with this our poetical thunder ; 
 
 'Tis best " Nitro G." so beware of a blunder. 
 
 And now, lest this entry should not hold in verse, 
 
 We'll put it in language more legal and terse ; 
 
 So below see it printed in lawyer-like prose, 
 
 Though we fancy our stanza more gracefully flows. 
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1869, by 
 
 GEORGE DOUGLAS BREWERTON, 
 in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Rhode Island
 
 To 
 GEN. CHARLES COLLINS VAN ZANDT, 
 
 OF NEWPORT, R. I. 
 
 DKAR COLLINS: I never read a production of 
 yours without a better understanding of what true 
 poetry means. I confess that I envy the power with 
 which your facile pen weaves into glowing fabrics the 
 raw material of the brain. They need but one added 
 charm, and find it in the oratorical grace with which, in 
 the presence of an audience, your eloquence adorns 
 the offspring of an ever genial and sympathetic heart. 
 
 As a token of my remembrance of our life-long 
 friendship, I have ventured to dedicate to you this 
 poem. If it find favor in your sight, it will more than 
 compensate the labor of 
 
 Your sincere friend, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 STUDIO, NEWPORT, R. I., October 26, 1809.
 
 GRACE BEFORE MEAT. 
 
 " GRACE before meat," if meat should 
 
 be found ; 
 
 If not, the comparison falls to the ground, 
 And but for the freedom to tread on some toes, 
 Our Preface perchance might be written in 
 
 prose : 
 
 A u poetical license," yet when taken out, 
 Or under what law, is a matter of doubt. 
 Our subject is broad as the billows that fling 
 Their arms round the green isle whose summer 
 
 we sing, 
 
 Free as the air that humanity breathes, 
 High as the heaven, and deep as the seas ; 
 The old story still, as the centuries creep, 
 The ulcers of pride that lie festering deep
 
 8 GRACE BEFORE MEAT. 
 
 In the hearts of the careless, the giddy, and vain 
 Who receive of their fellows, yet give not again, 
 Whose lives are a vacuum nothing can fill, 
 Forgetting they're only God's tenants at will, 
 Stewards whom the Master each moment may 
 
 call 
 
 To account for their talents, and render up all. 
 If with a free pen we appear to have sketched, 
 Remember our subject is never /ar-fetched, 
 For the journey is swift from the brain to the 
 
 hand, 
 
 And many the fancies that rise at command ; 
 Nor think that we toil without purpose or plan, 
 As with critical vision our labor you scan ; 
 Though, were it allowed to apologize here, 
 We'd endeavor to tickle your merciful ear 
 By pleading poor Modesty's ancient excuse, 
 Pen and ink out of gear and rusting for use. 
 Enough that we realize our work is half done, 
 And only regret it was ever begun. 
 
 And now for what we're about to receive, 
 May each reader prove grateful, nor suddenly 
 
 leave 
 
 A repast to which all are freely invited, 
 For our dishes, true snobs, are unused to be 
 
 slighted ; 
 
 And your host, after proving and ardently 
 
 pressing, 
 Might grieve to have wasted both dinner and 
 
 blessing.
 
 PRELUDE. 
 
 HINK not of summer dreams I sing!, 
 Or on the high heroic wing 
 My Muse may hope to rise and soar 
 Above the low and level floor 
 Where Commonplace sees common things;; 
 But though our little tea-bell rings 
 While others swing the tocsin loud, 
 That calls each worshipper to crowd 
 Some shrine where highest art shall raise 
 New monuments their skill to praise, 
 We do oar work with lance-like pen 
 To probe the hurts of Upper-ten, 
 And thus perchance the wound to cure 
 By letting out the cause impure. 
 could my Muse " the giftie gie them 
 To see themselves as ithers see them ! " 
 But in this world we often find, 
 He sees the best who stands behind 
 The mighty looking-glass of Fashion, 
 That mirror ever stained by passion, 
 Where envy, hate, and ceaseless strife 
 Divorce the husband from the wife, 
 Make home a hell and friends a curse", 
 Then take the vices in to nurse.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 AN INCIDENT OF THE SEASON. 
 
 JJUR hero may boast of a lofty line, 
 
 Though his grandsire slipped from a 
 
 scaffold, 
 
 Ending his fall by a twist in the spine, 
 And a drop that e'en surgery baffled. 
 For the doctors discovered a fracture compound, 
 'Twixt the second and third of the vertebra found. 
 To give the story as told at the club, 
 
 By Fitz Poodle, the innocent martyr, 
 By way of reply to bitter MacSnub, 
 
 Who delights in performing the Tartar. 
 " He was speaking a piece," though quite in 
 
 the dark, 
 
 Having drawn on a night-cap by way of a lark ; 
 But the carpenter fastened the floor in a way 
 Which soon brought about the event of the day, 
 For the scaffolding broke, and Poodle Grand-pere 
 Was caught by a rope that hung dangling there. 
 But where by that stout cord he managed to 
 
 swing, 
 Is to touch with rude hand on a delicate thing.
 
 12 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 We are told he was talking- in accents quite 
 
 loud, 
 
 On topics befitting the place and the crowd, 
 When the accident happened that silenced his 
 
 tongue, 
 For all but Fitz Poodle declare he was hung. 
 
 At least he was buried, and Poodle James Peter, 
 The father of Fitz and a regular eater, 
 Was left a lone orphan and out of employ, 
 With a stomach and hunger, bad things for 
 
 a boy. 
 
 He was puzzled a little to sup and to dine, 
 Having nothing to eat and abundance of time ; 
 So when Sirloin, the butcher and pork-packer 
 
 too 
 
 The fellow who sits in the red velvet pew 
 Offered Peter a place, and he might have done 
 
 worse, 
 
 He preferred a full meal to a ride in the hearse. 
 Now Peter had ever an eye bright and keen, 
 A sharp eye for business, as soon will be seen, 
 For he managed old Sirloin to carve in a way 
 That quite won the heart of one Mistress O'Flay, 
 Half-sister to Sirloin, a widow to boot, 
 Who called her first husband, when living 1 , a 
 
 brute. 
 
 But when he was dead, the case was reversed ; 
 She vowed that no babe was more tenderly 
 
 nursed 
 Than her darling O'Flay, the dearest, the best
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 13 
 
 Here up went her kerchief, and sobs drowned 
 
 the rest. 
 Now this widow was buxom, and Peter was 
 
 young, 
 
 With a fine pair of legs and a flattering tongue ; 
 And O'Flay had left money, a nice little sum, 
 For he gambled in stocks, and, more singular, 
 
 won. 
 
 If the lady was solid, why, so was her pelf; 
 So Peter concluded to venture himself; . 
 Proposed, was accepted, and married of course, 
 Yet but for her wealth would have sued for 
 
 divorce ; 
 
 When just as his trials had verged on de 
 spair 
 
 Dame Poodle presented a son and an heir, 
 And then, in a highly considerate way, 
 Took her leave of this world on the following 
 
 day. 
 
 Old Poodle we trust he will pardon the slip 
 Still talks of her virtues with tremulous lip ; 
 She had of this cold world so little of leaven, 
 He had long felt the saint was a subject for 
 
 heaven ; 
 
 Had expected to see her go up without wings, 
 Till he grew quite resigned to the aspect of 
 
 things. 
 
 So since his affliction it hardly seems strange 
 That most people think he has met with a 
 
 change.
 
 14 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Meanwhile young- Poodle was cooling his color, 
 And cutting his teeth without aid from his 
 
 mother ; 
 While his father waxed rich, grew pompous and 
 
 proud, 
 
 And forgot the old time when under a cloud. 
 But still there was something of shop in his 
 
 way; 
 
 He had dealt in cold cuts for many a day ; 
 His work had heen slashing, through tendon 
 
 and nerve, 
 Through brain and through sinew, his purpose 
 
 to serve. 
 
 What wonder the habit should harden him still 
 To forget the poor heart - strings he severed 
 
 might thrill? 
 But enough of old Poodle : he gathers his 
 
 wealth ; 
 Let us hope that erelong he'll be gathered 
 
 himself. 
 
 Fitz Poodle was weaned in a summary way, 
 Though men at the club have offered to lay 
 A wager the fellow was still out to nurse. 
 They concede that his weakness is not of the 
 
 purse, 
 
 And MacSnub has remarked that though sim 
 ply a fool, 
 
 Our hero might learn in Necessity's school ; 
 That a doctor of old had suggested the way, 
 When he said, " Live on sixpence, and earn it 
 each day."
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 15 
 
 But this is decided, that as to his head, 
 His brain-pan is soft as a new feather-bed, 
 And his heart so defiled by the dross of his 
 
 wealth, 
 
 That the man cannot even be true to himself. 
 Be this as it may, with his folly or vice, 
 And the world has enough of his kind to suffice, 
 He stands as a type of a class who pretend 
 To hold themselves higher than those they 
 
 offend. 
 
 How Fitz Poodle passed safely through measles 
 
 and rash, 
 
 And bragged to the boys of his pony and cash, 
 What progress he made in acquiring knowledge 
 Of meanness at school and vices at college, 
 How he wasted, and gambled, and sometimes did 
 
 worse, 
 Are things much too common to weave into 
 
 verse. 
 
 Suffice it to say that he grew up a man ; 
 We don't like the word, for it injures our plan ; 
 For a puppy is one thing, a man is another, 
 Though Darwin may fancy the monkey a brother. 
 
 And now, as the reader perchance is a lady, 
 We'll sketch from a photograph, taken by Brady, 
 Of our hero arrived at the advent of twenty, 
 A very ripe age if your greenbacks prove plenty ; 
 For life is a hot-house, where fruit may be 
 forced,
 
 16 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Though many the blossom through rottenness 
 
 lost. 
 
 Imagine a youth with carroty hair, 
 A thin pair of legs, and the vacantest stare, 
 With a nose somewhat large, and withal slightly 
 
 red, 
 Perchance its complexion was caught from his 
 
 head, 
 With a weak crop of whiskers, quite English in 
 
 style, 
 Whose care served their purpose, his time to 
 
 beguile ; 
 But though nature proved chary and niggard 
 
 in gift, 
 
 His tailor, more gracious, lent Poodles a lift ; 
 For his coats were unrivaled, his vests quite au 
 
 fait, 
 And his breeches a wonder unmatched in their 
 
 day. 
 
 'Tis said that the flower with least of perfume, 
 Is most gorgeous in blossom, most brilliant in 
 
 bloom ; 
 
 E'en so the Fitz Poodles put on to the back 
 Each outer adornment, to make up the lack 
 Of the incense arising from virtue and sense ; 
 In a word, shield their weakness with silly pre 
 tence. 
 
 Fitz Poodle's papa had a place by the sea, 
 A cottage ornee he might have had three; 
 For his gilt-paper virtues were known to the 
 ring.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 17 
 
 Each stock that he bulled was a promising 
 
 thing; 
 
 But alas for the holders who found him a bear: 
 When lord of the panic with truculent air, 
 The widow and fatherless pleaded in vain 
 To a heart that felt only the maxims of gain. 
 
 The season was spring-, and the weather quite- 
 
 mild, 
 
 The heavens looked pure as a babe un defiled,. 
 With slow drifting billows of feathery cloud, 
 Whose breakers of pearl seemed to jostle and 
 
 crowd, 
 
 As through the soft ether they floated awary y 
 With here a bright island and there a blue bay ^ 
 Fitz Poodle was passing a night at the club, 
 With Augustus Redowcr, a friend from the Hub, 
 Whose legs led the German, an intricate maze, 
 Which he who attempts should look well to his 
 
 ways. 
 
 Fitz Poodle begins, " Au Gus, do you know, 
 I think that to Newport this season we'll go ; 
 So drop us a line, and by Jove we will meet 
 When we get the old gentleman out of the 
 
 street ; 
 
 For summer 's the season, you see, for repose, 
 And business grows dull, as my governor knows ; 
 So we'll make up a party with Towzer and 
 
 Fearing, 
 And bring down the blacks with the new patent 
 
 gearing. 
 
 2
 
 18 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Then, if the old man is encouraging 1 loans, 
 We'll drop into Watson's and rattle the bones." 
 Redower assented, for dear Mrs. 'Aram, 
 With two charming daughters, Carlotta and 
 
 Fan, 
 
 Who suited his step in the dance to a hair, 
 Had taken a cottage, and meant to be there ; 
 So the bargain was made, and the first of July 
 Was fixed for their meeting ere Gus said good-by. 
 
 The roses of June found Fitz Poodle arrayed 
 In a travelling suit by his Schneider just made, 
 On the deck of a steamer, the Bristol, of course, 
 With good entertainment for biped and horse. 
 Next morning behold him arrived at the wharf, 
 With a carriage in waiting, in haste to be off' 
 To the villa suburban that looks o'er the deep, 
 Where his night trip enhances the blessings of 
 sleep. 
 
 The season advances ; the church on the hill, 
 Shut up for the winter, once more gets its fill 
 Of sinners in satin, who flock to declare 
 Their creed differs much from the clothing they 
 
 wear ; 
 
 For while they renounce all pomp and vain 
 ly, 
 
 Their milliner's bill tells a far different story. 
 Still the singing is perfect, the music divine, 
 Though some deem the Catholic better in time; 
 But when the dear pastor the pulpit ascends,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 19 
 
 His manner so winning-, all caviling ends, 
 And 'tis really delightful, when asked out to dine, 
 To feel that his blessing has prefaced the wine. 
 The Atlantic is open, the Ocean House too, 
 And Cozzens buys stock of the tasteful and new 
 For Dives, who conies bringing servants and all, 
 With daughters to flourish at party or ball, 
 While old Newport puts forth her best foot to 
 
 receive 
 The guests whom she welcomes for what they 
 
 may leave. 
 
 Fitz Poodle had rested and got out his clothes, 
 And tried the last wash for his ruby-red nose, 
 When Redower arrived to open the ball ; 
 So they ordered the horses at Aram's to call. 
 They found the dear creatures at home when 
 
 they came, 
 
 For Fan was Redower's particular flame ; 
 While as to Fitz Poodle, they both knew full 
 
 well, 
 He was reckoned a catch, as their father could 
 
 tell; 
 
 For Aram was anxious to get his girls married, 
 A hope that too often had sadly miscarried, 
 For Carlotta was thirty, and Fannie had been 
 Twenty-one to a day since the year she grew 
 
 thin. 
 
 The damsels were dressed to suit the occasion, 
 In toilet so rich, we forbear the relation ; 
 For both were investments on sale for the season,
 
 20 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 With trappings thrown in for an excellent 
 reason, 
 
 Accomplishments too ; but 'twould lengthen our 
 verse, 
 
 If the list of their extras we here should re 
 hearse. 
 
 Suffice it to say they both simpered and smiled, 
 
 While our gay cavaliers a brief hour beguiled 
 
 With small talk and flattery, gross and dis 
 tasteful, 
 
 For of that which costs nothing we're apt to 
 be wasteful. 
 
 And now, lest the reader find cause for com 
 plaint, 
 We'll pencil a sketch, which, though feeble and 
 
 faint, 
 May serve to present these young ladies more 
 
 fully, 
 
 Though Fitz Poodle declares they are " per 
 fectly bully " - 
 
 A slangy expression we cannot indorse, 
 For we've heard the same title prefixed to a 
 
 horse. 
 
 Carlotta was dark, and quite Spanish in style, 
 With a good set of teeth and perpetual smile, 
 While Fannie, the younger, was shrewish and 
 
 thin, 
 
 With nose retrousse and a long pointed chin. 
 'Tis said in affinities opposites meet, 
 In which case a row is a positive treat,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 21 
 
 That differing' souls love each other the best, 
 And only the jarring by Hymen are blest. 
 Be this as it may, Gus and Fan seem united, 
 While Fitz with Carlotta is greatly delighted. 
 In short, he was smitten, poor sensitive youth, 
 No novel event, if we publish the truth, 
 For our hero was spoony ; yet butterfly bred, 
 He would sip of each flower that grew on the 
 
 bed ; 
 
 Yet of woman's devotion, her love, and her trust, 
 He knew scarcely more than a worm of the 
 
 dust; 
 For his soul was a cistern a dew-drop might 
 
 fill, 
 And his heart in himself had its tenant at will. 
 
 'Twas proposed and agreed that the party should 
 
 reach 
 
 At ten on the morrow the brown bathing beach, 
 Where, with marvellous costume, and bluey-white 
 
 lip, 
 
 The children of fashion go down for their dip. 
 Fitz Poodle and Gus would have shortened the 
 
 time, 
 
 Discussing the theme as they sat o'er their wine, 
 But the hours go round in the old-fashioned 
 
 way, 
 
 And heed no petition for haste or delay. 
 Yet the morn came at last, and the equipage too, 
 The ladies in white and the servants in blue; 
 And great was the flutter amid the gay throng,
 
 22 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 When close to the billows the carriage was borne, 
 With a glitter of panels and swift-flashing wheels, 
 While Fitz Poodle full many a tender glance 
 
 steals, 
 
 And makes an engagement for croquet and tea 
 With charming Carlotta, his dark vis-a-vis. 
 
 The tickets are purchased, and houses obtained 
 In the height of the season not easily gained ; 
 So straight to their shelter the party repair 
 To shed all their clothing and part of their hair ; 
 For when to the beach Beauty goes on a train, 
 She must part with her locks ere she trusts to 
 
 the main. 
 
 'Tis well that poor Love is proverbially blind, 
 For 'twixt the rude sea and the blustering wind, 
 Pale Beauty, disheveled and stripped />f each art, 
 Is surely no sight for a sensitive heart ; 
 As witness the show from morning till noon 
 Of belles reft of chignon, of panier, and bloom. 
 Reduced to the limits by Nature provided, 
 Not always becoming the thin and slab-sided. 
 
 But now, from their boxes emerging, we see 
 Our party all ready equipped for the sea. 
 Good heavens ! Can these be the queens of 
 
 croquet, 
 
 Or those the spruce beaux of bewitching Broad 
 way ? 
 
 The ladies are robed in flame-colored red, 
 Quite paling the fires of Poodle's soft head,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 23 
 
 With a trimming of braid, three rows on the 
 
 skirt, 
 
 And trousers to match, lik^e a Bloomerite flirt ; 
 But our hero's thin legs in a blue flanel case, 
 Resemble a monkey's got up for a race, 
 Or a skeleton form from a medical school, 
 While Gus plays the clown like a natural fool. 
 The footmen both snicker, the coachman looks 
 
 grim, 
 
 But relaxes a little as Poodle goes in. 
 With a run, and a skip, and a faint little scream, 
 In a few moments more 'mid the crowd they 
 
 are seen, 
 Who go bobbing like corks on the crest of the 
 
 sea, 
 Or duck when the incoming breaker swings free. 
 
 What wonder we laugh as we stand on the 
 
 shore ! 
 
 Yon doctored divine might inspire our awe, 
 But now, in old breeches and battered sea-hat, 
 You can only remark his exuberant fat, 
 As, like an old porpoise, he awkwardly blows 
 (We are sketching from fancy) his bibulous 
 
 nose. 
 
 How they danced, how they shouted, and tum 
 bled about, 
 
 Were long to relate, but at length they came 
 out; 
 
 The ladies cerulean, but not in their clothes,
 
 24 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 And Fitz P. with a chill from his head to his 
 
 toes. 
 
 Then swift to their houses they speedily fly ; 
 Let us hope that no curious cynic is nigh, 
 To scan the fair creatures with critical eye. 
 
 At length from their closets once more they 
 
 emerge : 
 
 Can these be the figures we saw in the surge? 
 Has Fannie grown fat, and Carlotta found bloom, 
 Though ghastly before as a ghost from the tomb? 
 Now into the carriage and back to the hill 
 Ere the white flag go down, and the men take 
 
 their fill 
 
 Of breasting the ocean in Nature's own dress ; 
 A garb that the poor might have reason to 
 
 bless, 
 Were the climate more mild, or the audience 
 
 less, 
 Btit gone out of fashion since Eve took to 
 
 working, 
 Ad sewed up her fig-leaves by way of a curtain. 
 
 The season has crept to the hot August days, 
 When the landscape lies soft 'neath the silvery 
 
 haze, 
 
 And o'er the blue billows the gray vapors creep 
 On the wings of the breeze from the wastes of 
 
 the deep. 
 What wonder old Newport attracts the gay 
 
 throng !
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 25 
 
 What wonder the weary ones ardently long 1 
 To escape the gay city's sirocco and heat, 
 The turmoil of business, the crowd of the street, 
 The jar of its bustle, the strife of its ways, 
 Its long, sultry nights, and its thrice fervent 
 
 days, 
 
 To find by our bright waves the dolce-far-niente, 
 And a place to deplete if your cash be too plenty. 
 
 To return to our mutton the Frenchman is 
 
 right, 
 
 'Tis a phrase for our hero close-fitting and tight ; 
 A poor silly sheep to be speedily shorn, 
 Though few for his shearing may honestly mourn. 
 But a truce to this trifling; so lest we should 
 
 tire, 
 
 We beg to present Mrs. Snobby Pariah 
 A lady substantial in person and dollars, 
 Though perhaps not the best of grammatical 
 
 scholars. 
 
 As a crusty old fellow was heard to remark 
 (There's somebody always to snap and to bark), 
 He'd venture the thought, though hastily thrown, 
 " She spoke every language excepting her own." 
 But an ample excuse, we know, will be voted, 
 When Mrs. Pariah's beginnings are quoted. 
 A chimney-sweep's daughter, in factory life 
 She worked as a maid, ere they made her a 
 
 wife ; 
 
 And 'tis said when Pariah popped out his pro 
 posal,
 
 26 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Putting himself at her instant disposal, 
 
 She took twenty-four hours the case to decide 
 
 'Twixt the dressmaker's trade and the wreath of 
 
 a bride. 
 
 It seems her decision turned out for the best, 
 For Pariah waxed rich, and good luck did the 
 
 rest, 
 
 While Mrs. Pariah, in fashion's gay crowd, 
 Sailed a frigate, saluting in style rather loud, 
 With colors, and streamers, and other gay things. 
 Not to mention a hat with a garnish of wings. 
 But a dash of the factory hangs round her still, 
 A flavor e'en cash cannot banish at will,- 
 As fawned on, and flattered, and flurried along, 
 The pleasant amusement and jest of the throng, 
 She shakes out her feathers, and turns up her 
 
 nose, 
 Like a pig when the wind of the hurricane 
 
 blows ; 
 
 Ah ! little she thinks, as she gives herself airs, 
 That the low " common people," at whom she 
 
 thus stares, 
 
 Have a way of remembering things of the past, 
 And this sort of style makes it likely to last. 
 
 Now Mrs. Pariah old P. was just nothing, 
 Save a bank and a butt for continual bluffing 
 Determined to give, perhaps for that reason, 
 A fete to eclipse every ball of the season. 
 The cards were all out, and Fitz Poodle invited ; 
 Of the Arams and Redower neither were 
 slighted.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 29 
 
 The thing proved successful ; Pariah displayed 
 A grace that quite rivaled her favorite maid ; 
 Though the coachman declared, " Our old woman 
 
 was looking 
 As red round the gills as if she'd been cooking." 
 
 But 'tis not with Pariah our Muse has to do ; 
 We have chosen a hero, and hope to prove 
 
 true; 
 
 So leave to your fancy each full matinee, 
 The concerts hy night and the boating by day, 
 The music and dust of the drive to the Fort, 
 With other diversions, for cash to be bought, 
 To all their gay doings persistently dumb, 
 Though the fete of Pariah die sad and unsung. 
 
 In a spot well defended in flank and in rear, 
 Where the coyest of maids could have nothing 
 
 to fear, 
 
 And a lover might " pop," if he felt so inclined, 
 Nor dread some impertinent puppy behind, 
 There, there in that bower, with blossoms agleam, 
 Like Love 'mid the roses, Fitz Poodle was seen ; 
 Nor alone did he sit, but close pressed to his 
 
 side 
 
 Sat Carlotta, his promised and possible bride; 
 For the girl was no fool, and had tickled his 
 
 brain, 
 
 No difficult task when 'tis shallow and vain, 
 And stirred the small heart that just matched 
 
 with his head,
 
 30 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Till the fellow forgot that its color was red. 
 In short, he was led like a pup by his chain ; 
 She was training her Poodle with might and 
 
 with main, 
 
 To fetch and to carry, and even to beg, 
 Though, unlike Columbus, 'twas not her first 
 
 egg- 
 
 She had practiced before in more difficult cases, 
 And laid in a stock of emotion and graces 
 Could weep in a hurry, or get up a fit ; 
 We hope that the biter may never be bit. 
 
 For a while let us wander away from the pair 
 To Redower and Fan, who are taking the air 
 Where a nice little terrace looks over the sea, 
 In a place made for two, but too little for three. 
 He stoops, and she listens with eyelids down 
 cast ; 
 
 The look on her face would be pleasant to last, 
 A something that lights it, as if from within 
 Love's own magic lantern, when not made of tin. 
 His words are quite broken, but still we may 
 
 guess 
 
 The depth of devotion he seeks to express. 
 There's a language full common, and old as 
 
 the world, 
 
 Comprehended wherever a flag is unfurled ; 
 There's no mountain so high, no valley so deep, 
 Where that tongue may not move ns to smile 
 
 or to weep. 
 'Tis the language unspoken of lips and of eyes,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 31 
 
 The first one e'er born, and the last one that 
 
 dies ; 
 
 The story of Eden, that never grows old, 
 Yet yields nothing new, though a thousand times 
 
 told. 
 
 'Twill be seen that our party have somewhat 
 
 progressed 
 Since we saw them afloat on old Ocean's rude 
 
 breast, 
 
 Or rather adrift, with a wave for a pillow, 
 And a cool bathing-tub in the trough of the 
 
 billow; 
 But boating, and driving, and walks on the 
 
 cliff, 
 
 Not to mention their daily matutinal dip, 
 Had brought the affair to this fortunate close, 
 Notwithstanding poor Poodle's exuberant nose ; 
 But Carlotta had scruples, in spite of papa, 
 Not to speak of the lectures received from 
 
 mu mm a, 
 
 Ere she yielded her charms to even a catch, 
 Though all deemed Fitz Poodle an excellent 
 
 match. 
 Still, in spite of her fondness for horses and 
 
 dash, 
 
 He gained his fair charmer at last by a smash 
 A regular breakdown unknown e'en to Fan, 
 Whose principal agent of course was a man ; 
 A Count, with a ribbon and arrogant air, 
 From Turkey, or Texas, or Tophet knows where,
 
 32 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 With snaky black eyes and a twisted moustache, 
 Whose debts were apparent, more so than his 
 
 cash, 
 
 Who fished for Carlotta, and baited his hook 
 For to do the Count justice he talked like a 
 
 book 
 With romance and flattery, commingled with 
 
 tales 
 Of hardships and exile, of battles and gales. 
 
 So Carlotta was won, the elopement all planned, 
 But the Count came in haste his ring to de 
 mand, 
 
 When at the last moment he suddenly found 
 His hopes of her fortune all dashed to the 
 
 ground : 
 
 For old Aram had been a lame duck in his day, 
 And living on credit don't generally pay.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 33 
 
 Meanwhile poor Carlotta had given her heart ; 
 Though artful and tricky, the tear-drops would 
 
 start, 
 When she thought of the man a barber at 
 
 home 
 With whom she was willing the wide world to> 
 
 roam. 
 
 'Tis pity some pedagogue, versed in rattan, 
 Could not give a hint to that no-a-Count man, 
 For a fellow who chatters and swindles by rule, 
 Should learn of the rod in Severity's school. 
 
 Thus Poodle was blessed through his barber-ons 
 
 rival, 
 At least when she found him beginning to 
 
 trifle, 
 
 For a maid disappointed is willing to choose 
 Where before she determined to flout and 
 
 refuse ; 
 
 But alas for the swain who a vacuum fills, 
 As a possible cure for positive ills ! 
 
 So the ladies were wooed, not " married and a'," 
 For as yet the affair was unknown to papa 
 Not Aram indeed, who would ne'er have ob 
 jected, 
 
 But one with whom Fitz was more closely con 
 nected, 
 For James Peter was absent, with men of the 
 
 ring, 
 To get up a corner, and make a sure thing;
 
 34 F1TZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 'Tvvas true a few thousands would lose, but who 
 
 cares ? 
 What are Poverty's groans to the bulls and the 
 
 bears ? 
 So he'd gone with his friends to manipulate 
 
 gold, 
 
 And smash the poor sinners left out in the cold. 
 For 'twas thought if the Government cash was 
 
 controlled, 
 'Twould pay for the keen ones to buy it and 
 
 hold 
 
 Till it rose to the tune of a hundred per cent., 
 When the bulls would unload at the top of their 
 
 bent, 
 While the market was stocked at their sovereign 
 
 pleasure, 
 
 Or kept short of funds in Custom House treas 
 ure ; 
 But to do the thing well, there were wires to 
 
 pull, 
 
 A Bear to be trained, and likewise a Bull, 
 An uncertain menagerie e'en at the best, 
 The curse of our country, a national pest ; 
 Moreover, 'twould help if the President's fame 
 Could be tarnished awhile by the use of his 
 
 name, 
 And a certain great dealer in steamboats and 
 
 stocks 
 
 Tie up all the gold by that safest of locks, 
 The promise that Grant should not hammer the 
 
 ring
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 35 
 
 When the traps were all baited and ready to 
 
 spring. 
 But our Muse may not dwell on the pumping 
 
 and sounding ; 
 Let the rogues lay their plans, and Grant do 
 
 the pounding. 
 
 So back to our lovers we go with a fling, 
 And farewell awhile to the men of the ring. 
 
 Their courting went on in the old fashioned way, 
 With dancing by night, and coquetting by day ; 
 'Tis strange, while in most things the world is 
 
 progressing, 
 
 No new patent's out in the way of caressing; 
 For on Adam and Eve we may hardly improve ; 
 'Tis the old story still, though the centuries 
 
 move ; 
 So for little endearments, and sweet honeyed 
 
 words, 
 With billings and cooings, we quote from the 
 
 birds, 
 
 We leave them to fancy, no mighty exertion, 
 When most people take to this kind of diversion. 
 
 'Mid other amusements 'twas planned they 
 
 should go 
 For a trip to the Lime Rocks, and possible 
 
 row 
 Should Miss Ida prove gracious, and winds 
 
 gently blow 
 In the Rescue, a boat by that heroine won,
 
 36 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 As a sort of reminder of what she had done, 
 For saving 1 twelve lives though one was a 
 
 fleece, 
 
 Pulling them out at a hundred apiece. 
 We don't mean to say that she did it for gain, 
 But this being written, 'tis well to explain, 
 That folks came by thou. ands to question and 
 
 stare, 
 
 To fill the small parlor, and even the stair, 
 And beset the poor girl by night and by day ; 
 Till, weary and sick, she was going away, 
 And then gave a pitiful thousand in all, 
 To pay her for working through summer and 
 
 fall; 
 
 For the life-saving business proved easier far, 
 Than playing the public's particular star. 
 
 The day was well chosen, the breezes in tune, 
 And the ladies looked sweet as the roses of 
 
 June ; 
 So lest their arrangements with others might 
 
 clash, 
 
 Fitz Poodle had hired a boat of old Ash, 
 A captain renowned in the little craft way, 
 For sailing " Ye Maidens " o'er billow and bay. 
 Then quick to the landing, in haste to embark, 
 Our party all drove, in the mood for a lark; 
 For though timid on water, the girls seldom 
 
 fail 
 
 With laughter and shout to get into a gale. 
 There were bundles and baskets of grub to be 
 
 shipped,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 37 
 
 There were shrieks if the sail-boat was suddenly 
 tipped, 
 
 With just the least blushing when called to dis 
 close 
 
 Of a neat-fitting- gaiter much more than the 
 toes ; 
 
 For their ankles were good, though their figures 
 were bad, 
 
 A promise unfilled that's decidedly sad ; 
 
 For 'tis Nature's own outward and visible sign, 
 
 The show-window card, if the form be divine ; 
 
 For even the hand may be judged by the foot ; 
 
 If the gauntlet be little, why so is the boot. 
 
 But enough of aesthetics ; while the gay party 
 start, 
 
 We'll bring to a period our lecture on art. 
 
 At length they are off, with a cheer and a shout, 
 And a waving of kerchiefs that fluttered about ; 
 With the wind right abaft to the Lime Rocks 
 
 they ran, 
 
 But still kept their course as suggested by Fan, 
 Intending to coast by Conanicut's shore, 
 And, unless the young ladies should deem it a 
 
 bore, 
 
 To visit old Beaver Tail Light, and then stop 
 On their way back to town at Miss Ida's small 
 
 dock. 
 
 How the visit was made, how Fitz acted silly, 
 How Fannie turned sick, and Carlotta felt chilly, 
 How Redower's legs got entwined in a rope
 
 38 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 That almost extinguished the German's best 
 
 hope, 
 
 We doubt not were written by Ash in his log ; 
 But this much we know, they were caught in 
 
 a fog, 
 
 With a thin driving mist and a spatter of rain, 
 A fact by the Arams remembered with pain ; 
 For bonnets cost money, and when short of 
 
 cash, 
 To boat in your best is decidedly rash. 
 
 Now on their return 'twas discussed and ap 
 proved, 
 
 And a vote of the house was accordingly moved, 
 
 That on the next night, at the Ocean House 
 hop, 
 
 All parties should meet at the party to stop, 
 
 Till each took a turn, and perhaps a turnover, 
 
 In which case an action would soon lie for 
 trover, 
 
 In that maze so divine of twisting and squirm 
 ing, 
 
 A giddy go round if the pupil be learning. 
 
 But the heads of our lovers, though silly and 
 weak, 
 
 W'ould have scorned to complain, though they 
 danced for a week ; 
 
 Though stupid enough where the brain had a 
 hand in, 
 
 "At least in their legs they'd a strong under 
 standing."
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 39 
 
 At ten of the clock, on the evening appointed, 
 Our beaux, by their barbers all newly anointed, 
 Drove up to the Ocean House steps with a 
 
 whirl, 
 
 Each fully content with his favorite girl. 
 The Arams caused quite a sensation that night, 
 Though the ladies declared them a horrible 
 
 fright ; 
 
 For Carlotta was robed in ruby red silk, 
 And Fannie in satin the color of milk ; 
 Their get-up was stunning; e'en Mrs. Pariah, 
 Whose head wore a helmet suggestive of fire, 
 Confessed herself vanquished when Fannie ap 
 peared 
 With Augustus Redower, all neck-tie and beard. 
 
 'Twas a scene for a painter, at least a reporter, 
 Or one not too chary of sister or daughter, 
 To view the girls languish, and see the men 
 
 squeeze, 
 While brothers and fathers looked on at their 
 
 ease ; 
 
 But alas for the husband by jealousy damned, 
 Watching his wife by each roue eye scanned, 
 While her points and her paces are fully dis 
 cussed, 
 
 And not even her character suffered to rust. 
 God help the world ! if mothers and wives 
 Are to waste in such follies the morn of their 
 
 lives, 
 While duties neglected cry loudly at home,
 
 40 - FITZ POODLE AT NEWPOKT. 
 
 And the babe in its cradle makes sorrowful 
 
 moan . 
 
 Yet steadily sweeping the fashion tide still 
 Flows through the long hall with its tremu 
 lous thrill, 
 Till the night air grows heavy and faint with 
 
 perfume, 
 
 And the dancers seem flowers of tropical bloom, 
 With diamonds like dew-drops to hang on each 
 
 belle, 
 
 Not all of them paid for, as jewelers tell. 
 And the waltz ! 0, that wonderful waltz ! where 
 
 the heels 
 
 Of thrice active Redower made magical reels, 
 Till a boarder declared the impudent lubber 
 His legs were a compound of breeches and 
 
 rubber ; 
 While Carlotta, with dark flowing hair, went the 
 
 pace, 
 With soft sliding step, and each languishing 
 
 grace, 
 Though her eyes caught full many an amorous 
 
 glance, 
 As sustained by Fitz Poodle, she swept through 
 
 the dance ; 
 
 And Fannie, who feels she is looking her best 
 In the arms of Redower seems perfectly blest. 
 
 Of Bullion the banker, with velvet and squint, 
 The satirical pen might flow without stint, 
 Whose horses and flunkies, bright buttons and 
 bays,
 
 FiTZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 41 
 
 Quite rival the circus in various ways ; 
 
 For the clown seldom rides with his roystering 
 
 crew, 
 While in Bullion's big wag-on he's always on 
 
 view. 
 
 'Tis quite a sensation to see them dash by, 
 Though some view the turn-out with critical eye. 
 At the footmen, at least, no cynic should frown, 
 As, with buttons beplastered, and coat-tails hung 
 
 down, 
 
 Their livery aids to prevent the mistake, 
 More frequent than pleasant, of those who might 
 
 take 
 
 The man for the master, and thus spoil the plan 
 Of the party who ride in this small caravan. 
 'Tis said that the dash is all on the street, 
 That the servants complain there is little to eat, 
 That the cook finds her reckoning kept to a dot, 
 And woe to the clerk who a ledger should blot. 
 But enough of our Bullion ; we cherish the 
 
 name, 
 
 And expect to subscribe to his posthumous fame, 
 By placing a statue, perhaps in the Park, 
 At which no impertinent puppy may bark, 
 (Near the one by our princely Belmont just 
 
 erected, 
 
 In which, like its donor, no flaw is detected,) 
 Whose brass so enduring, or gray island stone, 
 For slights of the past should amply atone ; 
 And while we'd not dictate, or seem to com 
 mand,
 
 42 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 We'd suggest to the artist, a wide open hand ; 
 
 But whether extended to give or receive, 
 
 To those who best know him we willingly leave. 
 
 An inscription might follow, both plain and 
 terse, 
 
 If fifty per cent, could be woven in verse. 
 
 Yet the lines we annex might be made to suf 
 fice, 
 
 Though unworthy the theme they are truthfully 
 nice : 
 
 IN MEMORIAM. 
 
 Here lies how appropriate Bullion the banker, 
 For whom all who miss him persistently hanker ; 
 So devoted a husband, so tender, so true, 
 In an infidel age w r as refreshing to view ; 
 As a master unrivaled, forbearing, and kind, 
 To his debts ever prompt, to his dues almost 
 
 blind ; 
 
 This marble, put up by his friends of the street, 
 Bears witness his spirit was gracious and sweet ; 
 Enough be it written in letters de oro, 
 "Hie jacet vir nulla non donandus lauro." 
 
 Thus much of description and less might have 
 
 done, 
 But 'tis hard to leave off when once you've 
 
 begun 
 
 Is meant as a preface, though not very brief, 
 To a new episode of our ; ubject in chief.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 43 
 
 Mrs. B. gave a party quite striking and new, 
 To flutter each fop on the long avenue ; 
 For tableaux vivants were the principal treat, 
 Where the faces make up for the absence of 
 
 feet. 
 
 We don't mean the feet that bipeds must walk in, 
 But the feat that's involved in ranting and 
 
 talking ; 
 
 A very bad jest, and as badly expressed ; 
 We refer you to Miller (not Hugh) for the rest. 
 To this party exclusive our friends were invited, 
 With the Count, and some Englishman recently 
 
 knighted, 
 
 With other bright stars of the upper-ten world, 
 That realm recherche, all beflounced and be- 
 
 curled. 
 
 So our lovers decided, blow high or blow low, 
 To the Bullions' grand party they'd certainly go. 
 Moreover, Carlotta and Fitz were to take 
 A part in the tableau intended to make 
 The sensation par excellence, high and supreme ; 
 Let us hope the denouement may realize their 
 
 dream. 
 
 The picture referred to involved a live goose, 
 Whose uproar saved Rome from fagot and noose ; 
 For such were the horrors, and worse, of a sack, 
 When the enemy crept to their midnight attack. 
 For the fowl caught a glimpse of some form 
 
 that looked ill, 
 
 Then cackled so loudly, the guard on the hill, 
 Aroused by the clamor, sprang quick to his feet,
 
 44 1TTZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 And forced the armed foe to a speedy retreat ; 
 Though the story be new to boys fresh from 
 
 college, 
 'Tis a trite one to graybeards in classical 
 
 knowledge. 
 
 For further particulars, apply to Liddel, 
 Who to honor the goose which once cackled so 
 
 well, 
 Spins a yarn rather tough, and quite hard to 
 
 believe, 
 
 Of some soldiers so pious they saw fit to leave 
 To a goddess, one Juno, by way of a treat, 
 A fine flock of fowls, though they'd nothing to 
 
 eat. 
 
 Yet we fancy no priest of her temple grew thin, 
 Though to dine off of goose were a capital sin. 
 So the scene was selected, but only the goose 
 Was permitted his voluble tongue to let loose, 
 While the rest of the figures stood speechless 
 
 and dumb, 
 
 For the better inspection of all who might come ; 
 With a background of sentries alarmed or 
 
 asleep, 
 
 Where a maiden and matron should silently weep, 
 Parts left to Carlotta, and Mrs. Aram ; 
 While Fitz Poodle played goose as instructed by 
 
 Fan. 
 How he practiced and cackled until he was 
 
 hoarse, 
 
 And studied from nature, are matters of course, 
 With an old speckled bird exciting his dander,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 45 
 
 Till he fairly wore out the unfortunate gander, 
 Not to mention a mask like a huge feather bed, 
 With a yellowish bill, and a long goosey head. 
 
 The evening came round, and the audience too ; 
 Carlotta wears tunic of wonderful hue, 
 In longitude scant, like the " Ledger's " last text, 
 " The rest of this tail will be found in our next." 
 While the Count as her backer, with buckler 
 
 and bill, 
 Stood for Manlius roused from his sleep on the 
 
 hill. 
 
 But the goose after all was the star of the night, 
 Till, sad to relate, to our hero's great fright, 
 His false head fell off, and his real one appeared, 
 With the faint English whiskers by way of a 
 
 beard ; 
 While between, like a lantern that hangs in a 
 
 bush, 
 You could see his eyes peep, and his ruby nose 
 
 blush. 
 
 The curtain fell quick, mid a burst of applause ; 
 But alas for Fitz Poodle, the innocent cause, 
 Who, while cursing his stars, and unfortunate 
 
 luck, 
 
 Was christened anew, the Bed-headed Duck. 
 So ended the farce, and Carlotta retired, 
 An event by our hero extremely desired ; 
 For to wait as a butt when you came butt to 
 
 shoot, 
 Is insult and injury added to boot.
 
 46 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 Our story has lingered too long- by the way ; 
 We haste to conclude without further delay : 
 An elopement was planned the world to deceive, 
 Not that Aram papa would exceedingly grieve; 
 But as Poodle James P. was just then Major 
 
 Ursa, 
 
 The job was confided in quiet to Ourser ; 
 No flourish of trumpets or flourish 'of tongues, 
 No bills for trousseau to bring about duns ; 
 But a quiet affair, with a witness to prove 
 They stood for each other, their promise to 
 
 love. 
 
 So the bargain was made, and the articles sold, 
 Depending, alas, on a corner in gold, 
 Though of this the young ladies are yet to be 
 
 told; 
 
 But both of them promise to take and to keep, 
 While Fannie alone looks ready to weep ; 
 For Carlotta seems iced, with a curl on her 
 
 lip- 
 She had talked with the Count ere she ventured 
 
 the trip. 
 But now before Heaven, " in sickness and 
 
 health," 
 
 'Neath poverty's frown, or the fullness of wealth, 
 " Till death them do part," she vows she will 
 
 cling, 
 To what she well knows is a poor brainless 
 
 thing. 
 Will her heart keep the vow that her lips doth 
 
 record ?
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 47 
 
 Will the spirit find rest that so lately hath 
 
 warred ? 
 
 Ask not of the future its secrets to tell 
 But hark to the sound of the steamer's last 
 
 bell. 
 
 They are off, but their fancies take different 
 
 ways : 
 
 While the Poodles go North, on Niagara to gaze, 
 Augustus considers the air of " The Hub," 
 Not to mention his father ah, there comes the 
 
 rub, 
 
 Might require his presence at least to disclose 
 The match as yet secret, and under the rose. 
 And now ere we drop them for aye from our 
 
 story, 
 We'll sum them up briefly like "old Mother 
 
 Morey." 
 
 His father declined the pair to support, 
 And even Redower's allowance cut short ; 
 So he proves that extremes may frequently meet, 
 By working his jaws through the play of his feet ; 
 In a word, he's turning his legs to account, 
 And now receives pupils to any amount, 
 With Mrs. Redower, who helps fill the purse ; 
 But lately her spirits have changed for the 
 
 worse, 
 
 Though expecting a pupil, a lively one too, 
 For whose better reception she now has in view 
 A neat little wardrobe, quite small at the best, 
 With worked uuder-clothes and diminutive vest ;
 
 48 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 At which, while the fiddle is going without, 
 She patiently toils with some little doubt, 
 If business should fail, or matters grow worse, 
 What figure Augustus might cut as a nurse. 
 
 Meanwhile the Fitz Poodles are off on a train. 
 A double one too, though the meaning is plain, 
 They have rolled through the Sound on the 
 
 Admiral's boat, 
 
 With music to keep you awake while afloat, 
 Where Fisk reigns omnipotent, great in his 
 
 wealth ; 
 
 He has dealt in his gold till he's gilded himself, 
 While his virtues reflected shine out in the 
 
 brass, 
 Which begins with the Captain, and ends with 
 
 the gas. 
 
 So the pair rattle on with a jerk and a jar, 
 Quite natural too, for we seldom go far 
 On a journey by rail, or a trip with a wife, 
 Without that slight swerving so common in life, 
 Which is seen on the stage in " Family Jars," 
 And is equally felt in "A Ride on the Cars." 
 But Niagara is reached with its thundering roar; 
 A carriage obtained ; they stand at the door 
 Of a first-class hotel, where Poodle goes in, 
 In clothes superfine and a large diamond pin, 
 Despite of Carlotta, who fain would repress, 
 With a taste better bred, his monkey fied dress. 
 So behold them all settled, yet strange to relate, 
 The Count reached the town by a train rather 
 
 late,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 49 
 
 And more singular far, " had happened to 
 
 glance 
 
 At their registered names a fortunate chance," 
 Which enabled that snaky-eyed exile to take 
 A room for the present, " indeed he might 
 
 make 
 His stay quite as long as the Poodles should 
 
 stop ; " 
 Then glanced at Carlotta, who 'blushed and 
 
 spoke not. 
 
 So the time sped along. Fitz Poodle soon found 
 His enjoyment consisted in circling round, 
 Mid billiards and bars, with horses and grooms, 
 While the Count and Carlotta would chat in his 
 
 rooms. 
 
 At length when his purse is depleted and low, 
 He is driven by need to James Peter to go ; 
 So sits down to pencil a note to "mon pere," 
 Who thus far had honored the drafts of his 
 
 heir. 
 He wrote, " I dare say you're astonished to 
 
 see, 
 
 And wonder why I at Niagara should be ; 
 But in fact, my Paternal, I've just settled down, 
 And cut all the vices, so low, of the town, 
 You know the old rule if a rake should reform, 
 He makes the best husband that ever was 
 
 born ; 
 
 If this should prove true, my Carlotta is blessed, 
 But send me a thousand, and don't mind the 
 
 rest.
 
 50 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 I'll drop in ere long 1 , in a sociable way 
 (By by, old Gov.) when convenient to stay, 
 But just now Carlotta don't care for the sea ; 
 With love from my spouse, your devoted Fitz P." 
 To this came an answer like telegram terse, 
 " I can't send the money, Fitz Poodle, I'm burst ; 
 I leave by the steamer; my margin's rubbed out ; 
 You must shift for yourself; I can't e'en give 
 my route." 
 
 Fitz Poodle was ruined ; bad news travels fast ; 
 'Tis vain to repent of extravagance past ; 
 But was it not worse that his wife shoutd elope 
 With the Count, and her jewels, his ultimate 
 
 hope ? 
 Fitz Poodle was missed ; 'twas supposed that he 
 
 fell, 
 
 But of this no observer the story could tell ; 
 Yet certain it is that his body was found 
 Where the waltz of the whirlpool goes merrily 
 
 round. 
 
 It may be the man, though erring and wild, 
 Deep down in his heart kept one well midefiled, 
 The love he had staked on his false wife, and 
 
 lost, 
 To leave him a wreck on the wave tempest 
 
 tossed, 
 
 Till despairing of life, and forgetful of God, 
 He sought a cold pillow beneath the green sod, 
 With coward heart hoping in rest of the grave 
 To escape a disaster he dared not to brave.
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 51 
 
 And Carlotta the perjured how fares it with 
 
 her? 
 
 Has Memory no power that false soul to stir; 
 Has Conscience no hold on the heart that so 
 
 lied 
 To the husband who honestly made her his 
 
 bride ? 
 Though polluted e'en then by the serpent's foul 
 
 breath, 
 She vowed to prove faithful, and true to the 
 
 death. 
 Though so near with her lover, she heard not 
 
 the doom 
 Of the mate left to perish in blackness of 
 
 gloom, 
 
 While she found with the Count a poor dwell 
 ing beside 
 
 The river that sweeps with Niagara's full tide. 
 She was walking far down by the brink of the 
 
 stream, 
 
 In idle mood watching its bright eddies gleam, 
 When the wave flung a corpse on the shore at 
 
 her feet, 
 
 Tossing the dead arm as if it would greet 
 With a gesture of welcome the foul faithless 
 
 wife, 
 Who a brief space before had caressed it in 
 
 life. 
 
 The shock was too great, and reason dethroned, 
 For the sin of the past, if it might be atoned. 
 Yet ever in madness she walks by the stream,
 
 52 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 
 
 And sees the pale corpse with its hollow eyes 
 
 gleam, 
 While the white ghostly fingers seem beckoning 
 
 still, 
 
 Clutching her own with their terrible thrill ; 
 For the spoiler who now should have guarded 
 
 her best, 
 Leaves his victim 'mid strangers to rave or to 
 
 rest, 
 And goes with the jewels which most he could 
 
 prize, 
 
 For purity ne'er was a gem in his eyes ; 
 The flower once gathered, was soon thrown aside, 
 For he valued the widow e'en less than the bride ; 
 But fled with his gains the tale is of old, 
 A slave to his lust, and still more to his gold. 
 
 Though Justice moves slowly, she's sure in the 
 
 end ; 
 
 As witness an " invite " the Count has to spend 
 A few years to come at a quiet retreat, 
 Where every arrangement, though simple, is 
 
 neat, 
 
 And ill-disposed people kept out by a grating, 
 Are constantly watched by servants in waiting; 
 For the host is so jealous he never can bear 
 That his guests should feel lonely while taking 
 
 the air. 
 
 So a careful companion is always provided, 
 To whose constant attention the inmate's con 
 fided,
 
 FITZ POODLE AT NEWPORT. 53 
 
 As clothed in a uniform, coarse but complete, 
 He shuffles along- with his iron-clad feet. 
 An order of merit he fain would decline, 
 Were talking permitted by word or by sign. 
 Moreover, the Count has been trying the bathing, 
 Though greatly opposed to the cutting and 
 shaving.
 
 GRACE AFTER MEAT. 
 
 THE vision has fled ; like a dream of the night 
 The actors and actresses passed out of sight ; 
 The drop curtain falls, and my fancy forms melt, 
 Like the nebulous stars of the lacteal belt, 
 When the day dawn creeps coldly above the 
 
 dark hill, 
 And the breath of the morning the night vapors 
 
 thrill. 
 
 Nor fancy the figures my wand has thus raised, 
 To be characters living, on which you have 
 
 gazed. 
 
 They are met with each day in city or mart, 
 The silly in head, and corrupted in heart. 
 Nor suppose that the poor and the mean are 
 
 exempt, 
 
 That 'tis only to Lazarus talents are lent 
 Of justice and purity, honor and truth, 
 Abiding in age, as implanted in youth. 
 All these may be found mid the wealthy and 
 
 learned ; 
 
 God heeds not the altar where incense is burned ; 
 Though the censer be jeweled, or hewn from 
 
 the stone, 
 The All-seeing regards the oblation alone.
 
 GRACE AFTER MEAT. 55 
 
 There are hands ever open by riches made full, 
 While the poorer man's purse his heart-string's 
 
 may pull; 
 
 There is meanness in low life as well as in high, 
 The proud, scornful lip, and the arrogant eye. 
 We are all of us failing ; e'en Charity needs 
 The prayer " Help me, Lord," as the saint tells 
 
 her beads. 
 
 Then this be our motto, mid folly and pride, 
 Remember the mansion we're walking- beside, 
 Whose roof is of sod, and its fashion of old, 
 With earth for a pillow, and dust to enfold, 
 Where the night is unbroken, the season the 
 
 same, 
 
 And the sleeper unmindful of honor or shame. 
 Then pause for a moment, in Fashion's gay tide, 
 In the mansions you build by the blue water 
 
 side; 
 There's rebuke in each billow that breaks 'neath 
 
 the cliff, 
 
 There's a tremulous story on Ocean's white lip, 
 As it falls into foam, and the wild waters moan, 
 For it speaks of an Ocean more vast than its 
 
 own, - 
 
 A sea that is shoreless, yet silent and still, 
 To which we g-o down, let us strive as we will ; 
 Where the rich and the poor, the high and the 
 
 low, 
 
 Are lost mid its solemn mysterious flow ; 
 Where humanity meets unstripped of its pride, 
 Save its record with God, and nothing beside.
 
 UC SOUTHERN I REGIONAL; BRARY AGILITY 
 
 A A 000279634