Verse and Worse

 In this edition of Book Talk  I propose to share some of the absolutely superb content to be found in the book of poetry shown below.

VERSE and WORSE—A private collection By Arnold Silcock

A delightful anthology of humorous verse, first published in 1952, this book is a treasure-trove of fun stuff; as a reviewer put it back in the day, ‘It includes the witty, the sombre, the lewd, the sweet, and the tasteless.’

I was fortunate enough to find a copy on sale in the Sunday book-market that used to spring up on the pavements of Daryganj  in Old Delhi, one Sunday afternoon many years ago; and I paid the princely sum of fifteen  rupees for it--or perhaps it was twenty five! When I checked on Amazon in June 2020, a used copy was offered for two thousand nine hundred and fifty- one rupees and sixty- six paise! Nuff said!

The best introduction to this book is to present to you a few of the absolutely delicious offerings it contains. So here goes.

CONSCIENCE

King David and King Solomon led merry merry lives

With many many lady friends and many many wives

But when old age crept over them, with many many qualms

King Solomon wrote Proverbs and King David wrote the Psalms

Dr James Ball Naylor : USA(born 1860)