Notes (142—144). 145 



142. This is a most singular section, since it presupposes that a gentleman's 

 servant would be able to recognise the rhythm of an English hexameter. As an 

 early experiment in hexameters, it is very curious. In the original, it is printed 

 as prose, but each line ends with a full stop, and the next begins with a capital 

 letter. I have therefore printed it as verse. It is, however, of a rather rude 

 character ; home boget hardly comes up to our idea of a dactyl, nor and shoes to 

 that of a spondee. For the reader's assistance, I may remark that the dactyls are 

 as follows : Purse dagger, -chef shoyng-, horne boget, -ter sadel-, hatte with thy, 

 Bowe arrawes, stringe and thy, Penne paper, -waxe pomnus, bokes thou re-, -bU 

 nedle, leste that thy, -gel gyue thy, se he be. Make tnery, synge and thou, hede to thy, 

 gere that thou. The rest are spondees. 



I. R., not perceiving the law of rhythm, makes wild work of it. He calls it 

 "An excellent rude Lesson in rude ryme." He divides the lines rightly, and 

 leaves the first three verses untouched. But the rest assume the following fearful 

 forms. 



Penne, paper, incke, parchment, redde waxe, pnnisse {jiic), 



and bookes doe thou remember. 

 Penknife, combe, thymble, needle, thred, and poynt, 



least that by chaunce thy garth breake. 

 Bodkin, knyfe, rubber, g^iue thy horse meate, 

 See he be shodde well, make merry, sing if thou can. 

 And take heede to thy needments, that thou loose none. 

 I think we may fairly put these down as being the worst verses extant in the 

 English language ; though this is saying a good deaL 



143. 7. The saying doubtless represents a rude couplet in verse. The dative 

 case "wyfe (governed by of) was formerly spelt wyue, and rimed with thryue. 



144. Salomon, Solomon. But where to find, in his writings, this remarkable 

 sentence, I do not know. 



*»* After this section I. R. inserts a quantity of additional matter, which he 

 tells us (at p. 174) is drawn from his ' owne experience in byrds and foules.' 

 The additional chapters treat of choice of cocks, heas for brood, nimiber of 

 eggs to each hen, chickens, diseases of poultry (especially of the pip), choice 

 of poultry, how to fat poultry, how to make capons, where to keep poultry, 

 how to choose, keep, and fatten geese, how to keep ducks, peacocks, ' ginny or 

 turkie-cocks,' pigeons, pheasants, turtles, partridges, and swans ; after which 

 digression he returns to his text. I may remark that he considers it essential 

 that a hen should sit upon an odd number of eggs, say 19, and that matters 

 should be so arranged as to provide for the hatching of chickens ' in the 

 increase of the Moone.' The leaves of a bay-tree, *or els some Bents or 

 Grasse,' will preserve eggs 'from the hurt of thunder.' Chickens ought not 'to 

 be breathed vpon by any Snake, Toade, or other venomous thing ' ; if they are, 

 you must quickly bum amongst them some ' Galbanum, or womans hayre.' 

 Those that have the pip should be dieted on Hearbgrace [rue] or garlic. Geese 

 ' are more watchftdl then Do^s.' ' You must vse in the time of brooding, to lay 

 vnder your egges [of geese] the rootes of Nettles, to the end the Gosling may 

 escape stinging of Nettles, which otherwise many times killeth them. ' If geese 

 are to have fat livers, feed them on dry figs mingled with water. Ducks chiefly 

 delight in acorns. If you praise a peacock, 'he will presently sette vp his taile.' 

 A turkey-cock ' is very highly esteemed of, both for his rarenesse and greatnes of 

 body ;' and we are told that he changes the colour of the wrinkled skin about his 



