Salmagundi; or, The whim-whams and opinions of Launcelot Langstaff, esq. [pseud.] and others. By William Irving, James Kirke Paulding and Washington Irving. Printed from the original ed., with a preface and notes by Evert A. Duyckinck.

TEA-A POEM. 387
They discourse of their colds, and they hem and they cough,
And complain of their servants to pass the time off;
Or list to the tale of some doating mamma,
Htow her ten weeks old baby will laugh and say taa!
But tea, that enlivener of wit and of soulMore loquacious by far than the draughts of the bowl,
Soon unloosens the tongue and enlivens the mind,
And enlightens their eyes to the faults of mankind.'Twas thus with the Pythia, who served at the fount
That flow'd near the far-famed Parnassian mount,
While the steam was inhal'd of the sulphuric spring,
1Her vision expanded, her fancy took wing:By its aid she pronounced the oracular will
That Apollo commanded his sons to fulfill.
But alas! the sad vestal, performing the rite,
Appeared like a demon —terrific to sight.
E'en the priests of Apollo averted their eyes,
And the temple of Delphi resounded her cries.
But quitting the nymph of the tripod of yore,
We return to the dames of the tea-pot once more.
In harmless chit-chat an acquaintance they roast,
And serve up a friend, as they serve up a toast;
Some gentle faux pas, or some female mistake,
Is like sweetmeats delicious, or relished as cake;
A bit of broad scandal is like a dry crust,
It would stick in the throat, so they butter it first,
With a little affected good-nature, and cry
"Nobody regrets the thing deeper than I."
Our young ladies nibble a good name in play
As for pastime they nibble a biscuit away:
While with shrugs and surmises, the toothless old dame,