40
perchance obtain,
'Twere better that some henchman of his choice
Should do untieing of his fiscal knots.
_(Exit Somnolent)_
_Quezox:_ Sire, in the anteroom doth stand McDuff,
With bearing like a criminal of state,
Sustained by stubborn pride as he doth walk
With measured, kingly step unto the block.
_Francos:_ Go bid him enter, and on thy return,
Take precedence; twere well to demonstrate
The high esteem which Caesar for thee feels
And give his party pride a parting dig.
_(Enter Quezox and McDuff)_
_Quezox:_ My Liege, McDuff, who fills a council seat
Within the party which has long controlled
Affairs politic in these tropic Isles,
Would fain resign the office he now holds.
_Francos, consolingly:_ Events march on, and as the whirligig
Of time revolves, so 'tis with politics.
To-day one soars aloft on Vict'ry's wings;
Tomorrow Fate those pinions proud may clip.
'Tis here Philosophy a cooling draught
Kindly present to him who, from his seat,
Is thrust by Fortune's hand, which killeth not,
But only girds our loins for battles new.
_McDuff:_ Sir Governor, thy words with wisdom teem.
I threw the gauge of battle in the ring,
And for each thrust the enemy did give
I parried, and with vigor did return
Each lunge in kind, and now my
Medicine I gulp and whimper not.
But look ye, sir! the wheel that now hath turned May grind us all between it cruel cogs.
_(Exit McDuff)_
_Quezox to Francos, exultingly:_
A mighty day! a glorious day is here!
But, Sire, the cleansing work is but begun.
A joyful paean swells within my breast,
And I must mouth it, else this heart will burst!
_(Sings)_
We'll smite the grafters; smite them hip and thigh; Our motto shall be ever, "Do or die."
We've got 'em on the run, And with every rising sun, We'll oil the new machine; Its blade we'll sharpen kee