[Tea-Table Miscellany Contents]
HE.
SInce times are so bad, I must tell thee, sweet heart,
I’m thinking to leave off my plough and my cart,
And to the fair city a journey I’ll go,
To better my fortune as other folks do:
Since some have from ditches,
And coarse leather breeches,
Been rais’d to be rulers,
And wallow’d in riches.
Pray thee, come, come, come, come from thy wheel;
For if the gipsies don’t lie,
I shall be a governor too e’er I die.
–
SHE.
Ah Colin! by all thy late doings I find,
With sorrow and trouble, the pride of thy mind;
Our sheep now at random disorderly run,
And now sunday’s jacket goes every day on;
Ah! what do’st thou, what do’st thou, what do’st thou mean!
–
HE.
To make my shoes clean,
And foot it to court to the king and the queen,
Where, shewing my parts, I perferment shall win.
–
SHE.
Fie! ‘tis better for us to plough and to spin;
For, as to the court, when thou happen’st to try,
Thou’ll find nothing got there, unless thou can’st buy;
For money, the devil and all’s to be found,
But no good parts minded without the good pound.
–
HE.
Why, then I’ll take arms, and follow alarms,
Hunt honour, that now a-days plaguely charms.
–
SHE.
And so lose a limb by a shot or a blow,
And curse thy self after for leaving the plough.
–
ΗΕ.
Suppose I turn gamester.
–
SHE.
To cheat and be bang’d.
–
ΗΕ.
What think’st of the road then.
–
SHE.
The high way to be hang’d.
–
HE.
Nice pimping howe’er yields profit for life;
I’ll help some fine lord to another’s fine wife.
–
SHE.
That’s dangerous too amongst the town crew;
For some of them will do the same thing by you;
And then to cuckold ye may be drawn in;
Faith Colin, ‘tis better I sit here and spin.
–
ΗΕ.
Will nothing prefer me, what think’st of the law.
–
SHE.
Oh! while you live Colin, keep out of that paw.
–
НЕ.
I’ll cant and I’ll pray.
–
SHE.
Ah! there’s nought got that way;
There’s no one minds now what these black cattle say;
Let all our whole care be our farming affair.
–
НЕ.
To make our corn grow, and our apple trees bear.
–
ΒΟΤΗ.
Ambition’s a trade no contentment can show.
–
SHE.
So I’ll to my distaff.
–
HE.
And I’ll to my plow.
–
BOTH AGAIN.
Let all our whole care, &c.
