(Eight verses omitted.)
Punch. August 20, 1887.
“Tales of Wonder,” written and collected by M. G. Lewis, contained two ballads entitled “The Erl King” and “The Cloud King,” both written by Lewis in his accustomed style of grim horror, with thunder, shrieks, and fury, and in the same volume he inserted an anonymous burlesque of these entitled “The Cinder King,” the humour of which would not be very apparent unless the two first-named poems were reprinted in full. They are neither of sufficient interest to merit the space this would require. A somewhat similar parody may be found in “The Blue Bag: or Toryana.” London; Effingham Wilson, 1832. It is called “The Fire King, The Water King, and The Cotton King,” and relates the quarrels of some politicians, well-known sixty years since, but now well nigh forgotten.
One more parody of Lewis remains to be noted, it occurs in an exceedingly scarce volume of poems, “The School for Satire.” London, 1802, and is exceedingly interesting on account of its allusions to Monk Lewis’s personal appearance, and his literary productions:—
The Old Hag in a Red Cloak.
(Inscribed to Matthew G. Lewis, Esq., M.P.)
Mat Lewis was little, Mat Lewis was young,
The words they lisp’d prettily over his tongue;
A spy-glass he us’d, for he could not well see,