Page:Iolanthe lib.djvu/21

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21

Queen.

Oh! Chancellor unwary
It's highly necessary
⁠Your tongue to teach
⁠Respectful speech—
Your attitude to vary!

Your badinage so airy,
Your manner arbitrary,
⁠Are out of place
⁠When face to face
With an influential Fairy!

All the Peers (aside).

⁠I never knew
⁠We were speaking to
An influential Fairy!

Lord Ch.

A plague on this vagary!
I'm in a nice quandary!
⁠Of hasty tone
⁠With dames unknown;
⁠I ought to be more chary!
⁠It seems that she's a fairy
⁠From Andersen's library,
⁠And I took her for
⁠The proprietor
⁠Of a Ladies' Seminary!

All.	⁠ $\scriptstyle {\left\{{\begin{matrix}\ \\\ \end{matrix}}\right.}$ He/We $\scriptstyle {\left.{\begin{matrix}\ \\\ \end{matrix}}\right\}\,}$ took her for ⁠The proprietor Of a Ladies' Seminary!

Queen.

When next your Houses do assemble,
You may tremble!

Celia.

Our wrath, when gentlemen offend us,
Is tremendous!

Leila.

They meet, who underrate our calling,
Doom appalling!

Queen.

Take down our sentence as we speak it,
And he shall wreak it!

(Indicating Strephon.)

Queen.	Henceforth, Strephon, cast away Crooks and pipes and ribbons so gay— Flocks and herds that bleat and low; Into Parliament you shall go!
Fairies.	Into Parliament he shall go! Backed by our supreme authority, He'll command a large majority: Into Parliament he shall go!

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