From these praises of themselves—the Knights—they pass on, in pleasant banter, to the praises of their horses,—who, as the song declares, took a very active part in the late expedition against Corinth, in which the cavalry, conveyed in horse-transports, had done excellent service.
"Let us sing the mighty deeds of our illustrious noble steeds:
They deserve a celebration for their service heretofore,—
Charges and attacks,—exploits enacted in the days of yore:
These, however, strike me less, as having been performed ashore.
But the wonder was to see them, when they fairly went aboard,
With canteens, and bread, and onions, victualled and completely stored,
Then they fixed and dipped their oars, beginning all to shout and neigh,
Just the same as human creatures,—'Pull away, boys! pull away!
Bear a hand there, Roan and Sorrel! Have a care there, Black and Bay!'
Then they leapt ashore at Corinth; and the lustier younger sort
Strolled about to pick up litter, for their solace and disport:
And devoured the crabs of Corinth, as a substitute for clover,
So that a poetic Crabbe[1] exclaimed in anguish—'All is over!
What awaits us, mighty Neptune, if we cannot hope to keep
From pursuit and persecution in the land or in the deep?'"
- ↑ Karkinos (Crab) was an indifferent tragedian of the day, some of whose lines are here parodied.
