EPIGRAMS.
Reading edition
On a Fat Man.
When Fatty walks the street, the paviors cry, “God bless you, sir!” and lay their rammers by. On a Stingy Beau. Curio’s rich sideboard seldom sees the light; Clean is his kitchen, his spits are always bright; His knives and spoons, all ranged in even rows, No hands molest, or fingers discompose. A curious jack, hung up to please the eye, For ever still, whose flyers never fly; His plates unsullied, shining on the shelf, For Curio dresses nothing,—but himself. On Marriage. Cries Celia to a reverend dean, “What reason can be given, Since marriage is a holy thing, That there are none in heaven?” “There are no women,” he reply’d; She quick returns the jest; “Women there are, but I’m afraid They cannot find a priest.” John Winstanley (1678–1750).