The Sun.
London, England, 1826-04-25 00:00:00

REJECTED EPIGRAMS.

EDITOR,-•-I have hailed the increased light
-;with which your Sun has lately enlivened us, with
:as much pleasure as a sick man welcomes the return
of summer. Ino sooner read your address to the
'public, which, though modest in its pretensions, held
'forth alair promise of future excellence, than I deter-
. mined to assist your laudable exertions by the occa-
sional contribution of some light articles. If " Re-
jected Addresses," thought I, have been so favourably
received, and " Rejected Reviews" are at this in-
tstant making their progress through the press ; why
•should not the publication of Rejected Epigrams be en-
. titled to an equal share of public interest? In short, this
favourite idea took such forcible possession of my ima-:
'gination, that I resolved,' without a, moment's delay,
.to apply to the Editor of the Morning Chroniele.for his
'assistance ; for, as that paper has shown such remarkable
taste in the selection of the Epigrams 'with which it
has favoured the public, I thought it probable tha
'the same happy discernment Would be found to ,have
, regulated its principle of rejection, and that some ar-
ticles of extraordinary piquancy might be discovered
in the 'feu d esprit wbieh have been thrown aside.
accordingly wrote a civil note to the aforesaid gentle-
' man, and requested that instead of consigi' his
Rejected Epigrams to the ,fire, he would allow me to
throw them into the Sun. My messenger shortly re-
turned with a bundle of scraps and fragments, which
• I eagerly seized for examination. I first drew out a
slip of manuscript, fastened by a black pin, to a para-
graph which had been cut out from the columns of the
--Hampshiro Telegraph." The letter contained an
extraordinary, but well authenticated account, of a
Duch which had been lately shot .near Portsmouth,
in the gizzard of which 63 pieces of metal, which
proved to betold, had been discovered ! After perus-
ing the writing attached to this paragraph, many parts
of which were nearly illegible, from the thumb marks
of the Devil, I made out the following Epigram :
,llow can we explain this gold In the gizzard,
Except by the spell of some powerful wizard ?
' Though 'tis known, to be sure, and strange stories are told,
• -now oimeking• has furnished vast treasures of gold.
This Lfuck, not a low one, may perhaps owe its wit,
To'the wholesOme example of Rome trading elt
Who pouches the gold, he may ON by his
Anti meets all his wants by the aid of a Da

.The 'next' article which presented itself occasioned
conSiderable perplexity. It was disfigured by a trans-
verse scrawl of capital letters, which after sonic trouble
made out .to be " WANTS LEAD." " WANTN
LEAD," thought I, is it thus that the Editor de-
nounces it too light a production for his paper ? Im-
possible, such an idea is not to be reconciled with Ins
.well known taste for every thing that is healy. It
immediately struck me that the term must apply to the
subject, rather than to the execution of the epigram ;
but dal idea was at once banished upon the words,
ALDr,ItMAN Woon, meeting my eye. "No, no,"
said 1, " whatever opinion the public may have formed,
it is the policy of the editor to keep him qfloat. My
perplexities were at this moment cleared up by the en-
trance of a printer, who informed me that it was no-
thing more than a technical expression to denote the
degree of space to be left between the lines of the
composition. You, no doubt, Mr. Editor, must have
discovered the nature of my mistake long since, but as
I hope that the idea of penetrating into the forgotten
archives of the printingkiffice, may induce others to
follow my example, I thought it right to confess an
embarrassment, which might lead those that are inex-
perienced in typographical mysteries, into the error of
consigninpo oblivion compositions, against which
the word " LEAD," " MORE LEAD," and the, like,
Might have been introduced. The Epigram to which
_I allude was in a very tattered condition, and, from its
superscription, appears to have been written at the time
of A-Worn-um 'Wood's election into Parliament, during
his Mayohlty. It ran thus—

11.e41; 6:ornethio?4,lle's rotitirft 4
,g man and a mouse ;
bird, in tltc.city, .meta lirinul in ti'e noun.%
nosit'„re in this, unien you've f(*rgotten,
That 'roar; tilie'best prop for a Flouse that i% rotten.

There were,two other lines, but so defaced was the
writing► that the only words I could make out
_ _ .

[lean of Odle—Bark in the Clouse.

It is my intention to pursue these researches, and,
should any thing of interest occur, you may depend
upon receiving a communication from me.
I remain, &c. X.