Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, A RIDDLING LETTER, by JONATHAN SWIFT


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

A RIDDLING LETTER, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: Pray discruciate what follows
Last Line: Without it a lady should never appear.
Subject(s): Riddles


Sir,
Pray discruciate what follows:
The dullest beast, and gentleman's liquor,
When young is often due to the vicar.
The dullest beast, and swine's delight
Make up a bird very swift of flight.
The dullest beast when high in stature,
Add another of royal nature,
For breeding is a useful creature.
The dullest beast, and a party distressed,
When too long, is bad at best.
The dullest beast, and the saddle it wears,
Is good for partridge, not for hares.
The dullest beast and kind voice of a cat,
Will make a horse go, though he be not fat.
The dullest of beasts and of birds in the air,
Is that by which all Irishmen swear.
The dullest beast and famed college for Teagues
Is a person very unfit for intrigues.
The dullest beast and cobbler's tool,
With a boy that is only fit for school,
In summer is very pleasant and cool.
The dullest beast, and that which you kiss,
May break a limb of master or miss.
Of serpent kind, and what at distance kills,
Poor Miss Dingley oft hath felt its bills.
The dullest beast and eggs unsound,
Without it I would rather walk on the ground.
The dullest beast and what covers a house.
Without it a writer is not worth a louse.
The dullest beast, and scandalous vermin
Of roast or boiled, to the hungry is charming.
The dullest beast, and what's covered with crust,
There's nobody but a fool that would trust.
The dullest beast mending highways,
Is to a horse an evil disease.
The dullest beast and a hole in the ground,
Will dress a dinner worth five pound.
The dullest beast, and what doctors pretend
The cook-maid often hath by the end.
The dullest beast and fish for Lent
May give you a blow you'll forever repent.
The dullest beast and a shameful jeer,
Without it a lady should never appear.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net