THE CAT OF ALBION 89 



" Gyb, our cat savage, 

 That in a furyous rage 

 Caught Phylyp by the head, 

 And slew him there starke dead." 



Never was grief voiced with such sweet and shrill 

 absurdity. Never was such a formidable array of 

 curses launched at the head of any murderer, since 

 murders were known to man. 



" That vengeaunce I aske and crye, 

 By way of exclamacyon, 

 On all the whole nacyon 

 Of cattes wylde and tame ; 

 God send them sorowe and shame ! 

 That cat especyally 

 That slew so cruelly 

 My lytell pretty sparowe 

 That I brought up at Carowe. 



O cat of churlyshe kynde, 

 The Fynde was in thy minde 

 When thou my byrde untwynde ! 

 I would thou haddest ben blynde ! 

 The leopardes savage, 

 The lyons in theyr rage, 

 Myght catche thee in theyr pawes ! 

 And gnawe thee in theyr jawes ! 

 The serpentes of Lybany 

 Myght stynge thee venymously ! 

 The dragones with theyr tonges 

 Myght poyson thy lyver and longes ! 

 The mantycors of the montaynes 

 Myght fede them on thy braynes ! 

 Melanchates, that hounde 

 That plucked Actaeon to the grounde, 



