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THE SINE QUÔ NON.
1 WITH MUCKWORM lately as in chat
2 I pass'd the sober hours,
3 The mice, for MUCKWORM keeps no cat,
4 Came trooping in by scores.
5 When famine leads, what thing can daunt,
6 Our courage what abate?
7 Each mouse was as the mastiff gaunt,
8 That growl'd before the gate.
9 Their mien so grim alarm'd I spied,
10 And looks of desperate woe:
11 "And why neglect, my friend," I cried,
12 "To chase the threatening foe?
13 "True 'tis that, any more than you,
14 " They cannot eat your pelf:
15 "But then of other food in lieu,
16 " They may devour yourself.
17 "And think how odd th' account would sound,
18 " Should future annals tell,
19 "MUCKWORM fell not by hungry houndu
u Alluding to the Fable of Actaeon.
,20 "By hungry mice he sell.
21 "Then drive the furious vermin hence,
22 " To ward such dire mishap:
23 "Nor fret, I pray you, for th' expence,
24 " Myself will lend the trap. "
25 "Your offer's kind," friend MUCKWORM cried,
26 "And highly do I rate it:
27 " But when the trap's by you supplied,
28 "Who'll lend the cheese to bait it?
About this text
Author: James Barclay
Themes:
characters; money; wealth
Genres:
satire
References:
DMI 32584
Text view / Document view
Source edition
Pearch, G. A collection of poems in four volumes. By several hands. Vol. III. [The second edition]. London: printed for G. Pearch, 1770, pp. 179-180. 4v. ; 8⁰. (ESTC T116245; DMI 1136; OTA K093079.003) (Page images digitized from a copy in the Bodleian Library [(OC) 280 o.790].)
Editorial principles
The text has been typographically modernized, but without any silent modernization of spelling, capitalization, or punctuation. The source of the text is given and all editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. Based on the electronic text originally produced by the TCP project, this ECPA text has been edited to conform to the recommendations found in Level 5 of the Best Practices for TEI in Libraries version 4.0.0.