nclusive
conclusion the reader is befooled.

The only incident which we ever heard of, at all rivaling this story in
an abortive ending, is one which we once heard related at a party, where
the conversation turned on the singular manner in which valuable
articles thrown into the sea had been sometimes recovered, and restored
to their owners--the ring of Polycrates, which was found in the maw of a
fish after having been sunk in deep waters, being, as the reader knows,
the first and most remarkable instance of such recoveries. After the
rest of the company had exhausted their marvellous relations, the
following tale was told as the climax of all such wonderful narratives;
and it was admitted on all hands that the force of surprise could no
further go. We shall endeavour to versify it, _a la_ Patmore, conceiving
that its issue is very similar to that of his story of "The River."

THE RING AND THE FISH.

A lady and her lover once
Were walking on a rocky beach:
Soft at first, and gentle, was
The music of their mutual speech,
And the looks were gentle, too,
With which each regarded each.

At length some casual word occurr'd
Which somewhat moved the lady's bile;
From less to more her anger wax'd--
How sheepish look'd her swain the while!--
And now upon their faces twain
There is not seen a single smile.

A ring was on the lady's hand,
The gift of that dumb-founder'd lover--
In scorn she pluck'd it from her hand,
And flung it far the waters over--
Far beyond the power of any
Duck or drag-net to recover.

Remorse then smote the lady's heart
When she had thrown her ring away;
She paceth o'er the rocky beach,
And resteth neither night nor day;
But still the burthen of her song
Is, "Oh, my ring! my ring!" alway.

Her lover now essays to soothe
The dark compunctious visitings,
That assail the lady's breast
With a thousand thousand stings,
For that she had thrown away
This, the paragon of rings.

But all in vain; at length one day
A fisher chanced to draw his net
Across the sullen spot that held
The gem that made the lady fret,
And caught about the finest cod
That ever he had captured yet.

He had a basket on his back,
And he placed his booty in it;
The lady's lover bought the fish,
And, when the cook began to