"Hey! Diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle
The cow jumped over the moon.
The little dog laughed to see the sport,
And the dish ran after the spoon."
These were the classic expressions of the hilarious poet of a period far
back in the vista of ages. How vividly they portray the exalted state of
his mind; and how impressed the public must have been at the time; for
did not the words become popular immediately, and have they not so
continued to the present day?
Every mother immediately seized upon the verse, and, setting it to music
of her own, sang it as a cradle song to soothe the troubles of
infanthood, and repeated it in great glee to the intelligent babe when
in a crowing mood, as the poem most fitted for the infant's brain to
comprehend.
Papa, anxious to watch the unfolding of the human mind, and its gradual
development, would take the baby-prodigy in his arms, and with keen
glance directed upon its face, repeat, in thrilling tones, the sublime
words. With what joy would he remark and comment upon any gleam of
intelligence, and again and again would he recite, in an impressive
voice, those words so calculated to aid in bringing into blossom the bud
of promise.
But who can meditate upon the memorable stanzas, and not see, in fancy,
the enthusiastic youth--the lover of melody and of nature--as he enters
his dingy room, the ordinary abiding place of poetical geniuses. He
sees his beloved fiddle, and his no less beloved feline friend, in
loving conjunction; he bursts out rapturously with impetuous joy:
"Hey! diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle!"
He sees the two things dearest to his heart, and sees them both at one
time! And he must be excused for his sudden night into the regions of
classicism.
No wonder that he immediately imagines the world to be as full of joy as
he himself, and that he thinks
"The cow jumped over the moon."
Perhaps the sight was a sufficient re-moon-eration to him for his past
troubles; and the exhilaration of his spirits caused him to dance, to
cut pigeon-wings, and otherwise gaily disport himself; consequently,
"The little dog laughed to see the sport,"
which every intelligent dog would have done, under the circumstances.
Certainly, dear reader, you would have done so yourself.
The hilariousness of the poet increasing, and his joyfulness expanding,
his manifestations did not confine themselves to simple dancing-steps
and an occasional pigeon-wing, but, inadvertently perhaps, he introduced
the "can-can," and that explains why
"The dish ran away with the spoon."
For the end of his excited toe came in contact with his only dish and
spoon, and propelled them to the other side of the room. As he does not
tell us whether the dish remained whole after its escapade, we must
conclude that it was broken, and that the dreadful accident caused,
immediately, a damp to descend upon his effervescent spirits.
In what better way could he give vent to his feelings than in
descriptive verse? He could not shed his tears upon the paper and hand
them around for inspection, or write a melancholy sonnet on the frailty
of crockery, as a relief to his mind. No! he chose the course best
fitted to command public attention, as the result proved. He told his
tale--its cause and effect--in as few words as possible. Fortunate if
other poets would only do the same!
* * * * *
An Ornithological Con.
What bird does General PRIM most resemble?
A Kingfisher.
* * * * *
[Illustration: NOTES ON THE FERRY.
MR. CARAMEL, WHO IS OBSERVANT, CONTEMPLATIVE, AND GIVEN TO COMPARISON,
ARRIVES AT THE CONCLUSION THAT SOME WOMEN ARE NICER THAN OTHERS.]
* * * * *