Catoninetales A Domestic Epic: By Hattie Brown: A young lady of colour lately deceased at the age of 14 [i.e. W. J. Linton] |
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| 1. | KOK ROBYN'S FUNERAL |
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 | Catoninetales |  |
KOK ROBYN'S FUNERAL
His gite was golden gay with streakis blak. Chaucer.
Who kill'd KOK ROBYN? [I]
I did, said Fanny; [VI]
I was set on by Danny: [3]
It was I kill'd Kok Robyn.
I did, said Fanny; [VI]
I was set on by Danny: [3]
It was I kill'd Kok Robyn.
4
Who heard his groans?
I did, said Union; [4]
And growl'd in communion
While picking my bones.
I did, said Union; [4]
And growl'd in communion
While picking my bones.
Who saw him die?
I did, said Jack, [5]
As I lay on my back
Wide awake in one eye.
I did, said Jack, [5]
As I lay on my back
Wide awake in one eye.
Who's Funeral Boss?
I am, said Nelly, [2]
Though my heart's all a jelly,
A-quake at his loss.
I am, said Nelly, [2]
Though my heart's all a jelly,
A-quake at his loss.
Who'll dig his grave?
I will, said Father,
Unless you would rather
Have some stranger knave.
I will, said Father,
Unless you would rather
Have some stranger knave.
Who'll bear the pall?
I will, said Timothy; [7]
I'll mind a limb o' thee:
So the chickens said all.
I will, said Timothy; [7]
I'll mind a limb o' thee:
So the chickens said all.
Who'll be chief mourner?
I, said O'Donoghue; [8]
And no mother's son o' you
'll do it forlorner.
I, said O'Donoghue; [8]
And no mother's son o' you
'll do it forlorner.
Who'll sing the psalm?
We will, said the Mice;
It will be real nice,
We're so blessedly calm.
We will, said the Mice;
It will be real nice,
We're so blessedly calm.
5
And who'll set the tune?
We will, chirp'd the Birds:
Don't ask us for words,
But we'll manage a tune.
We will, chirp'd the Birds:
Don't ask us for words,
But we'll manage a tune.
Who'll preach the sermon?
I will, prosed a Rat;
I have it quite pat
From the text Cats are vermin.
I will, prosed a Rat;
I have it quite pat
From the text Cats are vermin.
Here ends our first story,
One taile of Kok Robyn:
Let us all stop our sobbin'!
We hope he's in glory.
And now take note: as here-under wrote.
One taile of Kok Robyn:
Let us all stop our sobbin'!
We hope he's in glory.
NOTE—1 Robin's name, Kok Robin, which same did our chief he-cat claim; VI delicet Fan, a she-setter, a tan. 3 our chore-boy was, Dan. Then Union and Jack, 4 tabby, 5 black, were our kittens, both born on a midsummer morn of one mother, loved well by 2 Sister Nell. 7's a name that was flung at our rooster most young; and by 8 sure I mean our great Rooster Dean, of Irish descent. D, Leo, in went denoting a neighbour as payment for labour in help of our plot. Other notes we need not.
Sir Kok's epitaph
Will be utter'd by Leo, [D]
And his death-song. Laus Deo!
Let no one laugh!
Will be utter'd by Leo, [D]
And his death-song. Laus Deo!
Let no one laugh!
6
The Epitaph
Here rests, his head and chest due-lapp'd in earth,A Katte to Fortune and to Fame unknown:
Much Science troubled not his kitly berth;
Sad Poesy now makes his taile her own.
Now must we diverge to a right tuneful
Dirge.
Dark Melancholy! mark!
Let never dog bark,
But loving cats hark
And echo our moan!
Though myself but a dog,
Yet I feel that no clog
To my sorrows, which jog
On in unison
With the mourners around,
Who me worthy found
With not too dogged sound
T' accompany them
In these first obsequies
Of the friend that here lies
And to me did devise
His fit requiem.
So I Leo, allow'd
A cat's name, here avow'd,
Of which Popes are proud
In their haught catalog',
Find currage to lay
On this noble Cat's clay
What an advocate may
Who is only a dog.
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As was proved by that knave
That brought him to his grave:
I anticipate here:
But the words may remain,
For he has to be slain
Again, and again
Till nine lives disappear.
He was striped like a pumpkin,
Had shoulders and rump thin,
And well could a jump win
With any a-foot;
Sleek was he and dainty;
Steals, so, and why mayn't he?
If not quite a saint, he
Ain't less of a brute.
So to speak of him present:
The thought is unpleasant
Of him all decessant
If not all deceased:
Though I'd say to his face
That not one of his race
Has less call for the grace
Of dog poet or priest.
For his gifts, they were great;
What he stole, that he ate;
For his faults, who shall state
Any ill of the Dead?
O, might I be likewise!
8
And the kind Destinies
Heave a stone at his head!
Sic transit Catus Mundi,
Translated Sunday.
And exit Leo.
What recks it me?
Translated Sunday.
And exit Leo.
What recks it me?
Oh!
Though this first fytte be ended,
Thereto is appended
Sir Kok's pedigree:
(Sacrificium laudis)
Which now sent abroad is
As written by me
Though this first fytte be ended,
Thereto is appended
Sir Kok's pedigree:
(Sacrificium laudis)
Which now sent abroad is
As written by me
H.B.
THE PEDIGREE
The cat-log of him. Shakspere.
His hatchment hangs “on the outer wall”
For every one to see;
And fit is it the world should know
Kok Robyn's pedigree.
Listen, dear lords and ladies all!
Lend willing ears to me!
For every one to see;
And fit is it the world should know
Kok Robyn's pedigree.
Listen, dear lords and ladies all!
Lend willing ears to me!
He was a Catte of lineage high,
Which well-writ scrolls remark:
Of very ancient ancestry,
The Two Cats in the Ark:
A fact that's so remarkable,
I could not keep it dark.
Which well-writ scrolls remark:
Of very ancient ancestry,
The Two Cats in the Ark:
A fact that's so remarkable,
I could not keep it dark.
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'Mong his forbears was Fiddler Kat,
When Kow o'erleap'd the Moon;
And the Cat that Mother Hubbard's Dog
Was feeding with a spoon;
And on maternal side that Puss
In Boots like a dragoon,
When Kow o'erleap'd the Moon;
And the Cat that Mother Hubbard's Dog
Was feeding with a spoon;
And on maternal side that Puss
In Boots like a dragoon,
Carabbas hight. Even royal blood
He claim'd in line from him
Who, housed with a belovèd witch,
One night went up the chim-
Ney, crying I am King o' the Cats!
The taile is true, though Grimm.
He claim'd in line from him
Who, housed with a belovèd witch,
One night went up the chim-
Ney, crying I am King o' the Cats!
The taile is true, though Grimm.
In modern times one forerunner
Was well-sung Gilbert Katte
Who Philip Sparowe slew, rehearsed
By his own laureat.
Tho' Cornish cats such tailes deny,
Tailes may be long for that.
Was well-sung Gilbert Katte
Who Philip Sparowe slew, rehearsed
By his own laureat.
Tho' Cornish cats such tailes deny,
Tailes may be long for that.
Still later, in the ways of trade,
'Mong his grandsires came down
The Patron of Dick Whittington,
Who brought him such renown
He purseveres at top o' 'Change
In Troynovant's great town.
'Mong his grandsires came down
The Patron of Dick Whittington,
Who brought him such renown
He purseveres at top o' 'Change
In Troynovant's great town.
What child but oftentimes has read
Of Goody Two-Shoes' friends?
The chief her Cat, a Cat of birth,
Though here she condescends:
She knows that humble maiden's worth,
And so her countenance lends.
Of Goody Two-Shoes' friends?
The chief her Cat, a Cat of birth,
Though here she condescends:
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And so her countenance lends.
See in heraldic books how high
The House of CAT is placed!
The English Lion without spot,
The Scottish ne'er disgraced.
What knight could bear a prouder crest
Than Wild-Cat from the waist?
The House of CAT is placed!
The English Lion without spot,
The Scottish ne'er disgraced.
What knight could bear a prouder crest
Than Wild-Cat from the waist?
Or look again to elder lore!
When Thor in Giant-Land
Put forth his godship in its power,
Which nought else could withstand,
There was the Cat of Destiny
To make him weak of hand.
When Thor in Giant-Land
Put forth his godship in its power,
Which nought else could withstand,
There was the Cat of Destiny
To make him weak of hand.
The greatest goddess Cybele,
By Cats her coach is led;
And look where, following Bacchus' car,
The wild-limb'd Mœnads spread,
And Fawns with Tigers dance to the tune
In old Silenus' head.
By Cats her coach is led;
And look where, following Bacchus' car,
The wild-limb'd Mœnads spread,
And Fawns with Tigers dance to the tune
In old Silenus' head.
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And when that loose Saturnian crew
The Titans did displace,
And scamper'd the jovial Gods like beasts,
Sol's Sister took Cat-grace
And swore she would die an old maid or
A Cat: so made her race.
The Titans did displace,
And scamper'd the jovial Gods like beasts,
Sol's Sister took Cat-grace
And swore she would die an old maid or
A Cat: so made her race.
An old sky-myth: when storms invade
The Moon-ruled realm of Night,
Diana, huntress chased and fair,
Appears to flee; but light
Returns to chase the grey mouse clouds
With re-Olympian might.
The Moon-ruled realm of Night,
Diana, huntress chased and fair,
Appears to flee; but light
Returns to chase the grey mouse clouds
With re-Olympian might.
Wise Egypt held Cats half divine,
Their place to guard the Soul
In royal tombs; no people yet
Have Cats consider'd foul,
Though rude art quite mistakingly
Made Pallas' Cat an owl.
Their place to guard the Soul
In royal tombs; no people yet
Have Cats consider'd foul,
Though rude art quite mistakingly
Made Pallas' Cat an owl.
The goddess hight of Liberty,
In her most high attaint
In haughty Rome, held at her feet
A Cat without complaint,
Imaging order'd liberty,
True freedom, with restraint.
In her most high attaint
In haughty Rome, held at her feet
A Cat without complaint,
Imaging order'd liberty,
True freedom, with restraint.
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I pass, lest some deem me profane,
The Cat of Judah's Tribe,
Saint Mark's too; but the Nemæan mark,
To whom we must ascribe
This fame, Alcides claim'd his skin
The gods themselves to bribe.
The Cat of Judah's Tribe,
Saint Mark's too; but the Nemæan mark,
To whom we must ascribe
This fame, Alcides claim'd his skin
The gods themselves to bribe.
Sage Æsop fables to us how
A Cat, which loved a man,
Became a woman for his sake
And—but (the story ran)
A mouse disturb'd their wedded bliss,
Before the bliss began.
A Cat, which loved a man,
Became a woman for his sake
And—but (the story ran)
A mouse disturb'd their wedded bliss,
Before the bliss began.
Or take the story t'other way,
Of the woman Cattish turn'd,
Saved only when her head was off,
Her taile extremely burn'd!
There really is a power of things
That might from Cats be learn'd.
Of the woman Cattish turn'd,
Saved only when her head was off,
Her taile extremely burn'd!
There really is a power of things
That might from Cats be learn'd.
Of Una and her faithful friend
I may not dare to speak:
The maiden Truth so pure and bold,
And Strength so maiden meek:
To retail Spenser, seems to me,
Should task the soul of Cheke.
I may not dare to speak:
The maiden Truth so pure and bold,
And Strength so maiden meek:
To retail Spenser, seems to me,
Should task the soul of Cheke.
And other poems leonine,
Too many much to quote,
Traverse the Nubia of my thought,—
And most are known by rote:
My chiefest care has been to show
There have been Cats of note.
Too many much to quote,
Traverse the Nubia of my thought,—
And most are known by rote:
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There have been Cats of note.
Yet memories, meandering home,
One saintlike Cat behold.
Whom Gregory (Nazianzen styled)
To his great heart did fold,
A nimble Cat upon his knees
To see the nimb of gold.
One saintlike Cat behold.
Whom Gregory (Nazianzen styled)
To his great heart did fold,
A nimble Cat upon his knees
To see the nimb of gold.
What families of history,
Vouch'd history, not myth,
And men of might in arts, and arms
Of most heroic pith,
The name of Cat made honourable,
If not so common as Smith;
Vouch'd history, not myth,
And men of might in arts, and arms
Of most heroic pith,
The name of Cat made honourable,
If not so common as Smith;
The Catos, Catius, Catiline,
Catullus, widely famed
For song; also Leonidas;
For race of Cat are claim'd:
Beside some dozen Popes,— of some
Cats need not be ashamed.
Catullus, widely famed
For song; also Leonidas;
For race of Cat are claim'd:
Beside some dozen Popes,— of some
Cats need not be ashamed.
That subtil Cat of Medici;
And Russia's lustiest dame;
And Shakspere's Queen, may be divorced,
But not divorced from Fame;
With Kate, the wild Kate of his love
Petruchio cared to tame.
And Russia's lustiest dame;
And Shakspere's Queen, may be divorced,
But not divorced from Fame;
With Kate, the wild Kate of his love
Petruchio cared to tame.
And Caterina Camoens,
The Portingals' sweet flower,
Ay! sweet as Arqua's laurel bloom
That Petrarch had for dower;
St. Catherine of the Wheel, pourtray'd
By Raffaele's gracious power.
The Portingals' sweet flower,
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That Petrarch had for dower;
St. Catherine of the Wheel, pourtray'd
By Raffaele's gracious power.
So Catherine-wheels, or cat-on-wheels,
As pyrotechnics know:
July, or say November nights,
They make a pretty show,
With boys and belles and squibs and shells
And rockets all of a row.
As pyrotechnics know:
July, or say November nights,
They make a pretty show,
With boys and belles and squibs and shells
And rockets all of a row.
Fireworks, flowers also named from Cats!
The radiant Lion's-Teeth,
French Dents-de-Lion; Lion's-Foot,
Growing moist woods beneath,
Curing the snake's bite; Lion's-Tail
With many-purpled wreath;
The radiant Lion's-Teeth,
French Dents-de-Lion; Lion's-Foot,
Growing moist woods beneath,
Curing the snake's bite; Lion's-Tail
With many-purpled wreath;
Cat-Tail (chair-bottoming); and mint
(Cat-nep) by Cats esteem'd;
The garden darling, Lion's-Heart;
The Lily, Leopard-schemed;
The particolour'd Tiger-Flower,
The flower that Juno dream'd.
(Cat-nep) by Cats esteem'd;
The garden darling, Lion's-Heart;
The Lily, Leopard-schemed;
The particolour'd Tiger-Flower,
The flower that Juno dream'd.
How numerous the Cat-Family!
What names of ancient note!
How long the list when Noah discharged
His Mesopotamian boat!
I wonder if the little Noahs
Had all their names by rote.
What names of ancient note!
How long the list when Noah discharged
His Mesopotamian boat!
I wonder if the little Noahs
Had all their names by rote.
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The tawny monarch, golden-maned;
Tiger with tabbied skin
(Whence tabard); Panther, Eyra, Ounce;
Leopard, so lithe and thin;
Rimau-dahan, and Catamount:
These but the list begin.
Tiger with tabbied skin
(Whence tabard); Panther, Eyra, Ounce;
Leopard, so lithe and thin;
Rimau-dahan, and Catamount:
These but the list begin.
The Serval; and the Chati, else
The Chetah, fleet in chase;
The Javan Marquay; Caracal
(Imperial Rome's disgrace);
The gaiter'd Lynx; the Western world
Has links of the same race.
The Chetah, fleet in chase;
The Javan Marquay; Caracal
(Imperial Rome's disgrace);
The gaiter'd Lynx; the Western world
Has links of the same race.
The real American Wild Cat;
The long-tail'd Ocelot;
The Puma, Lion of the West;
The Jaguar,— for no spot
He'd change with any pard alive,
However streak'd his lot;
The long-tail'd Ocelot;
The Puma, Lion of the West;
The Jaguar,— for no spot
He'd change with any pard alive,
However streak'd his lot;
The Chilian Colocolo;— Back
At the old East once more,—
The sandy Chaus o' Nile; and look
To Thebes, where dwelt of yore
Our Rob's immediate ancestors,
Now ceremented o'er.
At the old East once more,—
The sandy Chaus o' Nile; and look
To Thebes, where dwelt of yore
Our Rob's immediate ancestors,
Now ceremented o'er.
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For pole “cats,” skunks, and such small deer,
Though, own we must, allied
And Aristotle-class'd as Cats,
But on the sinister side,—
Feline Fitzclarensioux,— in such
No Family Cat takes pride.
Though, own we must, allied
And Aristotle-class'd as Cats,
But on the sinister side,—
Feline Fitzclarensioux,— in such
No Family Cat takes pride.
Rank,— yes! but not as CATS: the Greek
Might be a martinet;
Mustepha Weasel, not a Cat,
He on his ottoman set.
Faugh! fie! foumarts! what sense in that?
I smell that gaily yet.
Might be a martinet;
Mustepha Weasel, not a Cat,
He on his ottoman set.
Faugh! fie! foumarts! what sense in that?
I smell that gaily yet.
Of all this tribe, this family,
This gens, this powerful clan,
Their blood from many so noble source
Through our Kok Robyn ran,
As run the rivers to the sea;
No proudest Catalan
This gens, this powerful clan,
Their blood from many so noble source
Through our Kok Robyn ran,
As run the rivers to the sea;
No proudest Catalan
Had bluer blood; and in his shell
Of tortoise, one to vaunt,
He show'd grand as that Tortoise is
That bears the Elephant
That bears the World. Hyperbolic?
Be more exact I can't.
Of tortoise, one to vaunt,
He show'd grand as that Tortoise is
That bears the Elephant
That bears the World. Hyperbolic?
Be more exact I can't.
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The tortoise hides (think not I mean
The Hindu) I prefer
To black or white, or black and white,
Or even the tabby fur:
A tortoise-shell Tom-Cat, they say,
Is rare. Or say it were.
The Hindu) I prefer
To black or white, or black and white,
Or even the tabby fur:
A tortoise-shell Tom-Cat, they say,
Is rare. Or say it were.
And such a tortoise-shell! No comb
No coxcomb brought his bride
In variegated vanity
Our well-comb'd Kok outvied:
No limner hand might paint that skin.
And yet Kok Robyn dyed.
No coxcomb brought his bride
In variegated vanity
Our well-comb'd Kok outvied:
No limner hand might paint that skin.
And yet Kok Robyn dyed.
R.I.P.
Requiescat in pacè!English'd, Let him lie still!
Or, His cat-bones be aisy!
That's pat,
By Catequil.
[_]
NOTE
Reader! don't wonder at the oath I use:
Catequil is Peru's God of Thunder.
What could be more appropriate?
Kok Robyn is consecrate to Thor.
Catequil is Peru's God of Thunder.
What could be more appropriate?
Kok Robyn is consecrate to Thor.
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[_]
NOTE BY THE EDITOR The pedigreeable portion of the fore-going fytte appears to have been borrowed from or at least suggested by an old poem of the sixteenth century, by Lydius Cattus, put afterwards into Dutch by one Jacob Cat, Cats, Catts, or Catz, for the spelling cat-like is various. The Fight to come follows the account of an affair with the Catti, after the Commentaries of Cæsar, as translated by the French historian, Catrow; and is in some measure an imitation of the Galeomnomachia of Theo. Prodonius.
Whether the Shield of England first contained Lions or Libbards (leopards) has been the subject of many serious inquiries. In the year 1235 Ferdinand, Emperor of the West, gave Henry III three leopards for his coat. Casson's Heraldry.
In the Roll of Caerlaverock the banner of Edward I has 3 leopards.
Lions in England's coat, says Shakspere.
Leopards on thy shield, says Walter Scott.
Whether the Shield of England first contained Lions or Libbards (leopards) has been the subject of many serious inquiries. In the year 1235 Ferdinand, Emperor of the West, gave Henry III three leopards for his coat. Casson's Heraldry.
In the Roll of Caerlaverock the banner of Edward I has 3 leopards.
Lions in England's coat, says Shakspere.
Leopards on thy shield, says Walter Scott.
“The Cat-Moon eats the grey mice of the Night.” PanCattantrums, Book 1, chap. 13. Pan-criti (cretur), the Hindu Goddess of Nature, drives a car drawn by countless myriads of Cats.
Felis maniculata, the progenitor of our domestic cats, their mummies still remaining. See also their monuments at Thebes.
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