Modern Merry Men. By William Andrew. (A. Brown and Son.)
—Mr. Andrew, who has made sundry collections of literary curios, has put together in this volume" some of the best examples of the wit and humour of the Victorian age." He introduces. the verses—most of the examples are in verse—with brief biographical sketches of the authors. These number forty- eight, a very fair company of accomplished jesters for a country to produce in the course of a century. The first is Richard_ Barham (" Ingoldsby "). He is followed by W. M. Praed, and he again by Theodore Hook. (It will be seen that a strict chronological order has not been observed.) Some of the later in point of time of Mr. Andrew's "Merry Men" are happily still alive to entertain us. It need hardly be said that the book is full of good things. We quote a stanza from the "City of Prague," by an author whose name has been almost forgotten, —William Jeffrey Prowse "Bohemian, of course, were my neighbours, And not of a pastoral kind !
Our pipes were of clay, and our tabors
Would scarcely be easy to find.
Our Tabors ? Instead of such mountains
lien Holborn was all we could share, And the nearest available fountains Were the horrible things in the Square.
Does the latitude still seem uncertain?
And think ye the longitude vague?
The persons I pity who know not the City,
The beautiful City ot Prague."
The profession does not seem to have been conducive to long life, Out of nearly forty, some six only completed their seventieth year. It is to be hoped that those who are still living will raise the average.
Previous page
