Definition of Respite

  Altgeld upon his incandescend bed
  Lay, an attendant demon at his head.

  'O cruel cook, pray grant me some relief --
  Some respite from the roast, however brief.'

  'Remember how on earth I pardoned all
  Your friends in Illinois when held in thrall.'

  'Unhappy soul! for that alone you squirm
  O'er fire unquenched, a never-dying worm.

  'Yet, for I pity your uneasy state,
  Your doom I'll mollify and pains abate.

  'Naught, for a season, shall your comfort mar,
  Not even the memory of who you are.'

  Throughout eternal space dread silence fell;
  Heaven trembled as Compassion entered Hell.

  'As long, sweet demon, let my respite be
  As, governing down here, I'd respite thee.'

  'As long, poor soul, as any of the pack
  You thrust from jail consumed in getting back.'

  A genial chill affected Altgeld's hide
  While they were turning him on t'other side.

Joel Spate Woop