CHRISTMAS BEEF A LA MODE DE TARIFF.
"Beef à la mode de Tariff," well I ween
To such lean cattle very few will lean.
It really passes all belief,
No wonder foreigners a'n't fond of beef.
Poor beasts, 'tis very clear
To any one possess'd of gumption,
That if they'd not come over here,
They'd have been carried off by home consumption.
At Christmas time, such beef to eat,
None would consider meet.
Surely the duty upon cattle laid,
For them was most unjustly paid,
When the new tariff would have let them in,
As what they are—mere skin.
If better beef than this is to the French unknown,
It must be very clear,
When it comes over here,
That what to them is bon—to us is bone.