LORD JOHN MANNERS (now Duke of Rutland). _The New Age_ thus describes the august writer of that couplet:―― “The wreck of a beau, of a bard, of a spouter, The seed of a Duke, he was bound by all rule To furnish Disraeli, that scorner and flouter, Of noble-born failures, with friend, foil, and tool. “Had chances galore and some gifts; took to throw ’em Away to the winds 63 years or more; Two laughable lines in an imbecile poem Will probably furnish his posthumous store.” MR. RITCHIE’S SPEECH. (In which he proposed to disestablish everybody, _except_ the Drinksellers.) “Let Boards and Benches, Lords and Squires die, But leave us still our old Debauchery.” _The Star._ March 21, 1888. [Illustration] Thomas Babington, Lord Macaulay, _Born October_ 25, 1800, _Died December_ 28, 1859. ―――― [Illustration: A]LTHOUGH Lord Macaulay’s literary fame rests principally upon his prose writings, yet his “_Lays of Ancient Rome_,” “_Ivry_,” and “_The Armada_,” are widely popular, and have been frequently parodied. “_The Armada_,” (which is but a short fragment) was first published in 1832, it possesses exceptional interest at present, as the tercentenary Commemoration of the defeat of the Spanish Armada is to be held in Plymouth this year. Although the natives of Devonshire have most cause to be proud of the brave deeds of their ancestors, it must not be forgotten that every Englishman is now enjoying that religious and political liberty for which they then fought, the celebration ought therefore to be a thoroughly National one. Those who love English Ballad Poetry will often have regretted that Lord Macaulay should have left unfinished his story of the Armada. His fragment consists of seventy-four lines, bringing the narrative no further than the night alarm of the approach of the Spanish fleet. Dr. W. C. Bennett has written a conclusion of a little over two hundred lines, which can be found in his “_Contributions to a Ballad History of England_,” (London, Chatto and Windus), whilst another continuation (in the same metre as the original,) by the Reverend H. C. Leonard, which originally appeared in _The Boy’s Own Paper_, has since been published, in pamphlet form, by J. W. Arrowsmith of Bristol. By the kind permission of the author, Mr. Leonard’s imitation is inserted here immediately following Lord Macaulay’s fragment. THE SPANISH ARMADA.