33 



He vowed to pop the question, and one Sunday night they met, 

 And there they shared the loaves and fish — a kitclun cabinet. 

 He lliought he'd like a stock of Simons, from a little tallow tree, 

 And raise some little suckers, from a little nursery. 



" O, Betty Buckwheat," then said he, "if ynu and I don't wed, 

 " I shall return from whence I came — tiiat 's to a. parsley bed; 

 " Them 'ere horse pistols what you see, shall visit these 'ere lugs ;" 

 Then slow as any snail he went, to choose a brace cif slugs. 



" O Sparrowgrass ! O Sparrowgrass ! ! O Sparrowgrass ! ! !" said she, 



" I can't resist — I'm all your own — it 's my/ai-ality." 



But Simon thought, the fingers of her fist were so immense, 



'T would take ten dollars to enclose one, in a gold-ring fence. 



As calms succeed a storm sometimes, so storms succeed a calm ; 

 And weeks of loormwood followed Simon's honey-moon of balm ; 

 For brandy blossoms soon were seen upon her bottle-nose ; 

 And bulbs they budded on his head, for there she planted blows. 



The forcing system she pursued, was, from the house to scold him ; 

 It proved a hot house, for she made his house too hot to hold him : 

 For Betsey planted lots of Box around his cranium's ledge, 

 And though he did dislike the Bet, it was too late to hedge. 



His Waspish Bee he then found out, was but a mere humbug, 

 For daily to her jugular, she joined another jug. 

 Her hands would gather in his crop — for she would tear his hair; 

 And the nature of the Crab was grafted on this kitchen jjoir. 



To make an end of Sparrov/grass, she swore, from the beginning ; 

 She starved him, though his long lean limbs did neverneed mach thinning ; 

 One day she knocked him down, and ran, in spite of all his prayer ; 

 She was an Offset out of doors — he on the ground a layer. 



So he fell sick, to think no junior Sparrowgrass should be; 

 A little heir he thought to feel — a Son-flower to see. 

 The Faculty could not restore his faculties to try 'em ; 

 It is not strange that soon he died — he physic took per diem. 



His plaguy Toad in our Frog pond, then drowned herself one night ; 

 But as all liquors from the Common, now are banished quite — 

 Each 'lection day her ghost appears, and laughs to think — od rot her — 

 That she 's the only Spirit there, allowed to mix with Water. 



