Cerritra’s Last Stand
Cerrita is a Bravo Cat who travelles on a barge:
In fact she is the meanest cat who ever roamed a large.
In Gravesend and in Oxford she pursues her evil aims,
Enjoying of her title as “The horror of the Thams”.
Her manners and appearance always calculate to please;
Her coat is very strait and neat, it goes all to her knees;
Though one ear is somewhat missing, no need to tell you why,
and she scowles upon a hostile world from one green, glaring eye.
The cottagers of Rotherhithe know something of her fame:
At Hammersmith and Putney people shudder at her name.
They will fortify the hen house, lock up the silly goose,
When the rumor runs along the shore: CERRITA’S ON THE LOOSE!
Woe to the weak canary, that fluttered from it’s cage;
Woe to the pampered Pekinese that faced Cerrita’s rage;
Woe to the bristly bandicoot that lurks on froeign ships;
And woe to any Cat with whom Cerrita came to grips!
But most to Cats of foreign race her hatred had been vowed:
To Cats of foreign name and race no quarter was allowed.
The Persian and the Siamese have regarded her with fear-
Because it was a Siamese that mauled her missing ear.
And on a peaceful summer night, all nature seemed at lay,
The tender moon was shining bright, the barge on Molesey lay.
And in the fogy midnight it lays rocking on the tide-
And Cerrita is disposed to show her sentimental side.
Her bucko mate, GRUMBUSKIN, had long since disaperred,
For to the Bell at Hampton he had gone to wet his beard;
And her bosun, TUMBLEBRUTUS, he to had stol’n away-
In the yard behind the Lion he was prowling for his prey.
In the forepeak of the vessel, Cerrita stood alone,
Concentrating her attention on the Mr. JERRIEBONE.
And her raffish crew was sleeping in there barrels and there bunks-
As the Siamese came creeping in there sampans and there junks.
Cerrita had no eye or ear for aught but Jerriebone,
And Cerrita seemed enraptured by his manly baritone,
Disposed to relaxation, and awaiting no surprise-
But the moonlight shone reflected from a thousand bright blue eyes.
And closer still and closer the sampans circled ‘round,
and yet from all enemy there was not heard a sound.
The lovers sang there last duet in danger of there lives-
For the foe was armed with toasting forks and cruler carving knives.
Then GILBERT gave the signal to his fierce Mongolian horde;
With a frightful burst of fireworks the Chinks they swarmed aboard.
Abandoning their sampans,and their pullaways and junks,
They battened down the hatches on the crew withen there bunks.
Then Jerriebone he gave a screech, for he was badly skeered;
I am to sorry admit it, but he quickly disappeared.
He probably escaped with ease, I’m sure she was not drowned-
But a serried ring of flashing steel Cerrita did surround.
The ruthless foe pressed foward in stubborn rank on rank;
Cerrita to her vast surprise was forced to walk the plank.
She who a hundred victims had driven to that drop,
At the end of all her crimes was forced to go ker-plip, ker-plop.
Oh there was joy and Wapping when the news flew through the land;
At Maidenhand and Henley there was dancing on the strand.
Rats were rosted whole in Brentford, and in Victoria Dock,
And a day of celebration was commanded in Bankok.
