Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 104, March 11, 1893

E-text prepared by Matt Whittaker, Juliet Sutherland, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net)

No. VI.—REGISTRATION REFORM.
( Scene and Persons as Usual. )
First Well-Informed Man ( bristling with indignation, as he lays down his newspaper ). Well, I'm dashed!
Inquirer ( nervously ). What's up?
First W. I. M. What's up! Everything's up. Up the spout, that's where this blessed country will be if this kind of thing's going on.
Inquirer. What kind of thing?
First W. I. M. Why, all this gerrymandering kind of business.
Inquirer. Oh, by the way, that reminds me. I came on that word the other day. Can any of you chaps tell me what it means?
First W. I. M. It's as plain as a pikestaff. It means playing ducks and drakes with things all round, and letting the whole business go thoroughly rotten.
Inquirer. Has it got anything to do with jerry-builders?