C.

The Protecting Brewer.

A brewer may be a burgess grave,

And carry the matter so fine and so brave,

That he the better may play the knave,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may be a parliament-man,
For there the knavery first began,

And brew most cunning plots he can,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may put on a Nabal face,
And march to the wars with such a grace,

That he may get a captain's place,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may speak so wondrous well
That he may rise (strange things to tell),
And so be made a colonel,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may make his foes to flee,

And raise his fortunes so that he

Lieutenant-general may be,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may be all in all,

And raise his powers both great and small,

That he may be a lord general,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may be like a fox in a cub,
And teach a lecture out of a tub,
And give the wicked world a rub,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer by his excise and rate

Will promise his army he knows what,
And set upon the college gate,

Which nobody can deny.

Methinks I hear one say to me,
Pray why may not a brewer be
Lord chancellor o' th' university?

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may be as bold as Hector,
When he had drank his cup of nectar;
And a brewer may be a lord protector,

Which nobody can deny.

Now here remains the strangest thing,

How this brewer about his liquor did bring

To be an emperor, or a king,

Which nobody can deny.

A brewer may do what he will,
And rob the church and state, to sell

His soul unto the d-l in h-ll,

Which nobody can deny.

(D.)

SIR OLIVER CROMWELL.

SIR OLIVER CROMWELL, a wealthy and respectable old knight, and a staunch cavalier, claims some notice from the biographer of his illustrious nephew. He had succeeded to the enormous estates of sir Henry, and chiefly resided, of course, at the splendid family seat of Hinchinbrook. "Sir Oliver Cromwell," says Noble, " eldest son and heir of sir Henry, was a most popular and beloved character in his own county of Huntingdon; for which he was returned one of the members in the parliaments called in the 31st, 35th, 39th, and 43d years of the reign of queen Elizabeth; and had the honour to receive knighthood from her majesty in 1598, in which year he was sheriff of the counties of Huntingdon and Cambridge."

Immediately after the latter date, some enormous accessions appear to have fallen into his rent-rolls,—but sir Oliver was a true cavalier, fond of the present, careless of the future, and with every new accession of fortune more recklessly profuse of the old. His love of display was carried at all times to ridiculous excess; but it was not till the death of Elizabeth that the brilliant thought of his life occurred to him; namely, that, as the new king must pass through Huntingdon in his journey from Edinburgh to London, it would reflect eternal glory on the Cromwells if a magnificent entertainment at Hinchinbrook awaited the passage of the new sovereign! Poor sir Oliver little knew what other and different glories an infant Oliver was then providing for the Cromwells-what other and different entertainments for that Scotch dynasty of English kings!

The knight's duteous invitation having been accepted by royalty, it became his next care to show off as much as possible the family claims of the Cromwells; and so, according to Noble," he hastily made such improvements in his house as he judged most proper; and at this time he built that very

elegant bow window to the dining-room, in which are two shields of arms of his family impaling, the one his first, the other his second lady's, painted upon the glass, with many quarterings," and surrounded by a prodigious number of other shields Cromwellian. All preparations complete, king James arrived at Hinchinbrook on the 27th of April, 1603, lord Southampton carrying before him the sword which the mayor of Huntingdon had offered to the new sovereign. Sir Oliver received James at the gate of the great court, and conducted him up a walk, that then immediately led to the principal entrance of the house.

"His majesty," we learn from various accounts, "here met with a more magnificent reception than he had ever done since his leaving his paternal kingdom; both for the plenty and va riety of the meats and wines. It is inconceivable with what pleasure the English received the king; all strove to please, every one to see the new sovereign, who was to unite two jarring and valiant kingdoms, and to be the common monarch of both. Sir Oliver gratified them to the full; his doors were thrown wide open to receive all that chose to pay their respects to the new king, or even to see him; and each individual was welcomed with the choicest viands and most costly wines: even the populace had free access to the cellars during the whole of his majesty's stay. Whilst the king was at Hinchinbrook, he received the heads of the university of Cambridge in their robes, to congratulate him upon his accession to the English throne, which they did in a long Latin oration. His majesty remained with sir Oliver until he had breakfasted, on April 29: at his leaving Hinchinbrook, he was pleased to express the obligations he had received from him, and his lady; to the former he said at parting, as he passed through the court, in his broad Scotch manner, morry mon, thou hast treated me better than any one since I left Edenburgh;' and it is more than probable, than ever that prince was entertained before, or after for it is said, sir Oliver at this time gave the greatest feast that had been given to a king by a subject. His loyalty and regard to his prince, seems almost unbounded; for when his majesty left Hinchinbrook he was presented by him with many things of great value; amongst others, a large elegant