29 APRIL 1989, Page 34

The Best Address

This, said the poet, is the Muses' bower, The best address, as Milton thought, of any: That was before the poets were so many; The sweetness of the Muses has gone sour. Battalions of them in a concrete tower Show how a girl can earn an honest penny: Each tells her darling he is marvellous when he Vomits up words which will not last an hour. The great Emathian conqueror who relies On such as these to give him timeless fame May see his singer win a poetry prize But hardly glorify one silly name: The poet's name can only grow more smelly; His own would do much better on the telly. C. H. Sisson