eaning, what endless adorning,
Not a creature stirr'd out the whole course of the morning;
And some of their dresses were barely complete,
At the time they were punctually order'd to meet,
The _Lioness_, willing to sanction the rest,
With a helmet, and spear, as Britannia was drest;
But the Lion, as lord of the banquet, remain'd
In the same noble figure that Nature ordain'd;
And crouching beside her, with dignified mien,
Contributed much to the state of his Queen.
The _Jackal Lord Chamberlain_ waited upon her,
And two _little Lap-dogs_ as _Pages of Honour:_
While twelve _Orang-Outangs_ were station'd without, [p 8]
To usher the company in, and about.
At the hour which his King had thought proper to name,
The _Horse_, as the _Hounyhm_ of Gulliver came;
Unaccustomed to "utter the thing that is not,"[*]
He reach'd, at the moment he promis'd, the spot.
The _Fox_ then appear'd on a different scent,
On foul depredation, and villainy bent;
And the dress of a _country attorney_ he chose,
To his purpose best suited, as all the world knows!
With looks as impatient, and teeming with sin,
The _Wolf in Sheep's-clothing_ was next usher'd in.

* Vide Gulliver's Travels.

[Illustration: _"A Lamb Miss in her teens, with her Aunt, an old Mutton."
p. 9._]

The guests now came thronging in numbers untold, [p 9]
The furious, the gentle, the young and the old.
In dominos some, but in characters most,
And now a brave warrior, and then a fair toast.
The _Baboon_, as a _Counsellor_; _Alderman_, _Glutton_;
A _Lamb_, Miss _in her teens_, with her _aunt_, an _old mutton_.
It was easy to see, as this couple past by,
The _Wolf_, very knowingly, cast a _Sheep's eye_.
And now at the door was a terrible clatter,
The beasts all about wonder'd what was the matter.
A poor _Cat in pattens_ came running so fast,
Her ticket was almost forgot as the past;
But there was, it appear'd, quite enough to alarm her, [p 10]
For close at her heels came a _great Hog in armour_.
Then follow'd his friend in a very large wig
As a _deep read professor_--the _fam'd learned Pig_--
A _Bear_ came as _Caliban_, loaded with wood,
His bones full of _aches_ from Prospero's rod.
The _Greyhound_ as _Vanity_ holding a glass,
The _Stag_, as _Actaeon_; King _Midas_, the _Ass_.
A