Sullivan: The Mikado / Act 2: 28. The Criminal Cried As He Dropp'D Him Down

The criminal cried as he dropped him down
In a state of wild alarm
With a frightful, frantic, fearful frown
I bared my big right arm!
I seized him by his little pig-tail
And on his knees fell he
As he squirmed and struggled and gurgled and guggled
I drew my snickersnee!
My snickersnee!

Oh, never shall I forget the cry
Or the shriek that shrieked he
As I gnashed my teeth
When from its sheath
I drew my snickersnee!

We know him well, he cannot tell
Untrue or groundless tales
He always tries to utter lies
And every time he fails

He shivered and shook as he gave the sign
For the stroke he didn't deserve
When all of a sudden his eye met mine
And it seemed to brace his nerve
For he nodded his head and kissed his hand
And he whistled an air, did he
As the sabre true cut cleanly through
His cervical vertebrae!
His vertebrae!

When a man's afraid a beautiful made
Is a cheering sight to see
And it's oh, I'm glad
That moment sad
Was soothed by sight of me!

Her terrible tale you can't assail
With truth it quite agrees
Her taste exact for fautless fact
Amounts to a disease

Now though you'd have said that head was dead
For its owner, dead was he
It stood on its neck with a smile well bred
And bowed three times to me!
It was none of you impudent off hand nods
But as humble as could be
For it clearly knew the deference due
To a man of pedigree!
Of pedigree!

And it's oh, I vow, this deathly bow
Was a touching sight to see
Though trunkless, yet, it couldn't forget
The deference due to me!

This haughty youth, he speaks the truth
Whenever he finds it pays
And in this case it all took place
Exactly as he says
Exactly, exactly, exactly, exactly as he says!