Lines Suggested by Mr John Abbott's Eulogy of Gladstone.

Observer, Volume XIV, Issue 795, 24 March 1894, Page 16

Lines Suggested by Mr John Abbott's Eulogy of Gladstone.

Behold ! I had a vision, or 'twas in * the Herald's page.' A phrenotogio eulogy on Gladstone's golden age. 'Twas John who strung the pearly oro wn, and set it round with gold ; And this is how the good man wrought, this is the tale he told — ' The Grand Old Man is wiser far than Moses, Job or Saul ; Why, Solomon with all his wit— was not his peer at all ! And brave Achilles never bore such armour as—' our Will ;' Demosthenes ne'er spoke a word so godlike as 'our Bill !' Brave Hereward waa a pigmy boy, and Cromwell bat a muff ; (See John's epistle) if yoa dream I'm cramming you with stuff ? Alfred forgive 1 Thou mighty prince, the wrong done thee this day ; It is not I, but gentle John — who takes thy fame away. Only one Gladstone in the world sprang from Pandora's box ; Bless me 1 he's higher far than Pitt— and deeper than a Fox ! And when he walks about, at times, he holds himself so' high That angels have a busy hour a-lif ting np the sky ! Better than Washington the pure, he's ever been since youth ; He reads no gospel but the best— like Labby-Cherry's Truth ! But when to poetry he stoops— faint with our worldly ills, He spends an hoar with Tennyson— or perhaps a day with Wills! And thou. dear Gladstone, do not blush to hear such lof ;y praise ; It is— it is — the greatest gush that thou hast heard for days ! From poet, sage and orator thy praise is now divine ; God grant we get another ' Bill ' with half such brains as thine ! But no ! there is no other man our realm to carry on, Unless we spare (yet God forbid) the talenis of our John ! I have it now ! hurrah, my boys, the world will now go round. By JoveJ we'll spare the lady Mayor of Onehunga town !

— Ravensworth