Lorenzo’s letter came now to dispense;

A lizard, crawling over hieroglyphics,

Knows quite as much of their Egyptian sense;

A sort of London fog, opaque and dense,

Hung over verbs, nouns, genitives, and datives.

In vain she pored and pored, with eyes intense;

As well is known to oyster-operatives,

Mere looking at the shells won’t open natives.

Yet mixed with the hard words, so called, she found

Some easy ones that gave her heart the staggers: