Whose wood, in hands like his, as skilled as bold, Ofttimes outweighs the worth of steel _and_ gold. NIZAM, that North-West Frontier, _Punch's_ eye Shall watch henceforth with sharpest scrutiny. The lakhs not lacking, should swift wisdom lack, That _bâton_ will descend with thundering thwack On dolts who dull delay shall cause or suffer;-- But there, our DUFFERIN is not a duffer. Red-tape itself would hardly be so mad As to misread the moral Hyderabad Reads to Calcutta in this princely _proffer_. _Punch_--for his QUEEN--acknowledges the offer Of him who brings, a tribute free as leal, Gold for her peace, and for her war-time steel. * * * * * ROBERT AT LILLIE BRIDGE. Well, it does seem rayther rum, I confess, but it's nevertheless true, that hardly nothink of a singlar and xtraordinary charackter seems to appen in London that I don't seem to be present. In these dredful dull days, when there ain't not no great dinners a going on, no not hardly one Livery Company a dining in their Alls of dazzling light, and the LORD MARE hisself a injoying of his olliday at Pangburn, what is a pore Hed Waiter to do to wile away a idle hour or 2; so hearing as two of the seven Champions of England was about to run a race of ever so many hundred yards in just a few seconds, at Lilly Bridge, me and BROWN went there on that now sillybrated Monday, and saw sich a rewolutionary riot as would have done justice to old Ireland itself. Determined to be in good time, we went early, and took up our plaices, and patiently waited. At about 5 o'clock pea. hem. the two galliant Champions walked on the ground, and took a good look at it. I didn't think werry much of their pussonal aperance, and shouldn't a thort as they was Champions if I hadn't bin told, and one was a good deal older than the other one, which didn't seem quite fare to me. However, I didn't interfere, as it wasn't no bizziness of mine, and the two running Champions walked in to dress, or rather praps I should say, to undress for the race. Harf past 5 came, and no Champions, and 6 o'clock struck and no Champions, and we began to get jest a little fidgetty; at aquarter-past 6 a wild roomer spread around that we was all a going to be sold! There was about a hundred thowsand on us, more or less, a waiting patiently and quietly for a sight that thousands had cum hundreds of miles for to see, and we was told as how as the two galliant Champions had had a jolly row jest as they was a undressing, and then both on em dressed themselves again, and set off at their werry best speed, in quite different and rong directions, and never cum back! At this howdacious swindle our true British pluck begun for to arise, and we all with one acord began to shout tout, "Give us back our Money!" As they didn't do it, we all made a rush to the Pay Places, jest to help ourselves to our several shillings, but the cowardly money-takers had bolted with our money!