And though in fifty things I stay,
This you will surely find,
Come in whatever form I may,
I benefit mankind.
Two syllables I do possess,
But what is very droll,
Although a part my second is,
My first one is the whole.
[20]
My first is always on a par
With every earthly thing;
With reptile, brute, bird, fish, and man,
With beggar, priest, and king.
My second is a title—
A foreign one, ’tis true—
But none the less familiar
To every one of you.
My whole—a glorious revenge!
And Heaven’s kindest boon:
I dare not tell you plainer, lest
You find me out too soon.
[21]
My first is what young ladies aim at in their movements, and what Christians pray for.
My second is what in winter we see little of, and what no young man likes to be considered.
My third is what every woman should be before she is won, and what we should be badly off without during this cold weather.