It was because our cat was overfed,

And, gorged with some superior pabulum,

Declined to touch the cod's disgusting head;

It was because the weather was too warm

To hide the horror in the refuse-bin,

And too intense the perfume of its form,

My wife commanded me to do the sin,

To take and cast it in the twinkling Thames—

A practice which the neighbourhood condemns.

So on the midnight, with a strong cigar