Harcourtius of Derbiæ, In Right’s great name he swore That the crass hordes of Bumble Should hold Guildhall no more. In Right’s great name he swore it, And with good heart and will Made ready for the desperate fight―― That is to say, he named a night For bringing in his Bill, And when the night (’twas Tuesday) In order due came round, In serried ranks the Liberals Were in their places found; And with a mighty shouting Their gallant chief they cheered: In sooth, those present on that day Declare ’twas good to hear the way They ardently “Hear-hear’d!” But ’mongst the City Fathers Was turmoil and affright, For they had right good reason To dread the coming fight; And as they filled the lobby, And locomotion stopped, An awesome thing it was to hear The h’s that they dropp’d! For many a City Father, With far-protruding vest, And City Knight, who should have worn A soup-tureen as crest; _Vulgares Consiliarii_―― In short, they all were there, Who, having passed the bottle, Soon hoped to “pass the Chair!” They held a council standing About the Lobby floor, In groups to which fierce Auceps In turns his presence bore; But, after hot discussion Of this and that design, They, to a man, agreed their plan Should be to go and dine! * * * * * Then out spoke brave Harcourtius, Commencing the debate, “To every Government on earth Defeat comes soon or late, And how can one fall better Than fighting Bumbles’ swarm, For the sake of London’s future And Municipal Reform? For the sake of every citizen, Be he or high or low, And dwelleth he at Kensington, Or Bermondsey, or Bow, For the sake of every citizen Who payeth heavy rates, And to save them from the jobbery That Bumble’s rule creates. “I’m ready, Mr. Speaker, With all the haste I may, To pass the sweeping measure That I bring in to-day. Too long has Gog been fancied Invincible to be; Now, who will stand on either hand And back this Bill with me?” Then out spake Gee-O-Emius, A Grand Old Man was he, “Lo, I will stand at thy right hand And back this Bill with thee!” And out spake Chelsæ Firthius, A legal “friend” was he, “I will, with pride, by thee abide, And fight the Bill with thee!” Meanwhile the Civic forces, Despite their recent meal, Are, in their hearts, so much afraid, That all the blatant noise they made Could not their fear conceal. In vain did Magnus Blockus His snuff-box pass around, In vain did Auceps try to cheer His followers, or far or near, By his loud “Yah, Yah’s” sound. And far above the arena, More City Fathers sat; Smug, dense, and dull and vulgar, Crass, fatuous, and fat. And full of dread foreboding Lest, if the Bill were past, Of civic jobs and shuffles They’d seen the very last.