The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1871-01-24

To Vermontana.

Doubtless you are weary, waiting,
Form answer to your last;
Pardon, lady,-I've been busy,
Holidays were fitting past.
But those joyous weeks are over,
And I'll occupy the time.
On this cold though lovely morning,
In replying to your rhyme.
Nermontana It's n saying
Very old and quite ms true,
That the praises we ourselves give,
Ne'er account us much. Say you
That if we would ever reach it,
That top shelf Of which you tell,
We must e'er sing our own graces,
And must sound them loud and well;
Very well! to your own standard,
You, of course, have right to cling,
And the praise of poor, little Leicester"
You have perfect right to sing;
But, it is not strange that |, should
Claim n power the same as you,
To advance my own opinions,
And to try and prove them true.
Now cen upon this one subject,
(Ths one of sef-praise, | mean,)
You and I can ne'cr argree. All
That is very plainly SEEM
For, long since, my mother taught me,
Chat same mother who in youth,
Taught me well, this simple truth,
That it is not all at needful,
If ones truly good or great,
To be prasing ones ownself,
Ones country, county, town or state;
still keep that my decision,
And It's right-I'll prove it so;
For does not the best of books - say,
BY their works ye them shall know"
Thank Won for your invitation.
To come on your platform grand;
Please excuse me-its foundation
Look very much like naught but sand.
In your sharp and spicy answer,
You, of borrowing wit, accused
Me, because that in my poem,
A pet word of yours | used;
Nor, until you called attention,
Did / cen of that take note
Neither could have said surely,
That the word you ever wrote,
Till hunted up your Leicester"
And found where DER and DER,
You had used that self-same "pester,"
dozen times or less or more.
| must own that in my wanderings,
I've ne'er seen or heard the "blade."
Sharp enough, to e'er discover,
An idea in Leicester made;
And if anyone should find one,
Coming straightway from your town,
They would likely some day find,
Twas borrowed of some circus clown
have given you no credit,
For that which you hav'nt got;
And think you are MISTAKEN
Let me ask you, are you not?
When you try to make your sister,
On the north, bear all the blame,
Of the title of "Gomorrah,"
Telling that it is her name;
Don't you think you are doing very
Wrong? For she must have her share,
In her own name, "poor old sOdom,"
For one human soul to bear;
And then, too, you say that " Leicester"
Even when drunk, 'Ohen she does drink,
Knows more than some torns when sober
Then she'd keep so l should think.
The slight hint which you gave "some towns
Reminds me of children's play.
When, if one gets at another
Nexed, I've often heard them say
" Zen though I've done 10 and so on"
(Haughtily their grief they'd dof)
Z" guess am quite as good, as
Some one not great way off"
You the right took to reprove me,
For not being far more spry
In answering, than | was; All, well
IL tcii Nou pout u v. anu ny
But one thing | will inform you,
You can't hurry me n mite,
That rs not the way we do things
'Tisnt the style of Cornwallite;
Why | did not answer sooner,
As you seem to think behooved,
Was because, dear Nermontana,
The spirit had not moved.
But thinking tina. you might be troubled,
About the effect of what you wrote,
concluded to indite you,
This short answer to your note.
Did you think that | was silenced,
And could never say word,
After your sharp-edged sarcasm,
In the paper had heardy
was not the least bit frightened
Not n Bit my witty v,
And | write, that you may know
You've not annihilated me
West Cornwall. KATE.