He wandered about till late at night,
At last he made for a distant light;
"Here's a gentleman's mansion," thought Jack, "all right."
He knocked at the wicket,
Crying, "That's the ticket!"
When lo! the portal open flew,
And a monster came out,
Enormously stout
And of stature tremendous, with heads for two.
Jack was rather alarmed,
But the Giant was charmed,
He declared with both tongues, the young hero to see:
"What a double-tongued speech!
But you wo n't overreach
Me" thought Jack; as the Giant said—"Walk in, to tea."
But he saw that to fly
Would be quite "all his eye,"
He could n't, and so it was useless to try;
So he bowed, and complied with the monster's "walk in!"
With a sort of a kind of hysterical grin.
Now this Giant, you know, was a Welshman, and so,
'T was by stealth he indulged in each mischievous "lark
His name was Ap Morgan,
He had a large organ
Of "secretiveness," wherefore he killed in the dark.
"He was sorry that Jack was benighted," he said,
"Might he fenture to peg he'd accept of a ped?"
And he then led the way,
All smiling and gay,
To the couch where his guest might rest his head;
And he bade him good night, politely quite,
Jack answered—"I wish you a very good night."
XV.
Though his eyes were heavy, and legs did ache,
Jack was far too wide awake
To trust himself to the arms of sleep;—
I mean to say he was much too deep.
Stumping, through the midnight gloom,
Up and down in the neighbouring room,
Like a pavior's rammer, Ap Morgan goes.
"I shouldn't much like him to tread on my toes!"
Thought Jack as he listened with mind perplexed;—
"I wonder what he's up to next?"
XVI.
Short was our hero's marvelling;
For, deeming him in slumber locked,
The monstrous oaf began to sing:
Gracious, how the timbers rocked!
From double throat
He poured each note,
So his voice was a species of double bass,
Slightly hoarse,
Rather coarse,
And decidedly wanting a little in grace:
A circumstance which unluckily smashes
A comparison I was about to make
Between it and the great Lablache's,—
Just for an allusion's sake.
Thus warbled the gigantic host,
To the well-known air of "Giles Scroggins' Ghost:
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XVII.