An old English ballad of Lord Bateman, imprisoned by a Turk and rescued by the Turk’s daughter Sophia, is set down as if heard sung outside a London tavern by a youth fresh from the treadmill. Mock-scholarly notes, attributed to Dickens, admire its every line, and Thackeray is often credited with the cockney version itself.
A tiny comic gem from three great Victorians, best enjoyed with George Cruikshank’s drawings. Download the free EPUB.