Burlesques William Makepeace Thackeray

24
He never would shrink
From any sthrong dthrink,
Was it whisky or Drogheda ale;
I'm bail
This Larry would swallow a pail.
"Oh, many a night at the bowl,
With Larry I've sot cheek by jowl;
He's gone to his rest,
Where there's dthrink of the best,
And so let us give his old sowl
A howl,
For twas he made the noggin to rowl."
I observed the French Colonel's eye glistened as he heard these well-known accents of his
country but we were too well-bred to pretend to remark his emotion.
The sun was setting behind the mountains as our songs were finished, and each began to
look out with some anxiety for the preconcerted signal, the rocket from Sir Hussey Vivian's
quarters, which was to announce the recommencement of hostilities. It came just as the
moon rose in her silver splendor, and ere the rocket-stick fell quivering to the earth at the
feet of General Picton and Sir Lowry Cole, who were at their posts at the head of the
storming-parties, nine hundred and ninety nine guns in position opened their fire from our
batteries, which were answered by a tremendous canonnade from the fort.
"Who's going to dance?" said the Doctor: "the ball's begun. Ha! there goes poor Jack
Delamere's head off! The ball chose a soft one, anyhow. Come here, Tim, till I mend your
leg. Your wife has need only knit half as many stockings next year, Doolan my boy. Faix!
there goes a big one had wellnigh stopped my talking: bedad! it has snuffed the feather off
my cocked hat!"
In this way, with eighty-four-pounders roaring over us like hail, the undaunted little Doctor
pursued his jokes and his duty. That he had a feeling heart, all who served with him knew,
and none more so than Philip Fogarty, the humble writer of this tale of war.
Our embrasure was luckily bomb-proof, and the detachment of the Onety-oneth under my
orders suffered comparatively little. "Be cool, boys," I said; "it will be hot enough work for
you ere long." The honest fellows answered with an Irish cheer. I saw that it affected our
prisoner.
"Countryman," said I, "I know you; but an Irishman was never a traitor."