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FABLE [21] XXI.
The Rat-catcher and Cats.
1 The rats by night such mischief did,
2 Betty was ev'ry morning chid:
3 They undermin'd whole sides of bacon,
4 Her cheese was sapp'd, her tarts were taken,
5 Her pastys, fenc'd with thickest paste,
6 Were all demolish'd and laid waste.
[Page 71]7 She curst the cat for want of duty,
8 Who left her foes a constant booty.
9 An Engineer, of noted skill,
10 Engag'd to stop the growing ill.
11 From room to room he now surveys
12 Their haunts, their works, their secret ways,
13 Finds where they 'scape an ambuscade,
14 And whence the nightly sally's made.
15 An envious Cat, from place to place,
16 Unseen, attends his silent pace,
17 She saw that, if his trade went on,
18 The purring race must be undone,
19 So, secretly removes his baits,
20 And ev'ry stratagem defeats.
21 Again he sets the poyson'd toils,
22 And puss again the labour foils.
23 What foe (to frustrate my designs)
24 My schemes thus nightly countermines?
25 Incens'd, he crys: this very hour
26 The wretch shall bleed beneath my power.
27 So said. A pond'rous trap he brought,
28 And in the fact poor puss was caught.
29 Smuggler, says he, thou shalt be made
30 A victim to our loss of trade.
31 The captive Cat with piteous mews
32 For pardon, life and freedom sues.
33 A sister of the science spare,
34 One int'rest is our common care.
35 What insolence! the man reply'd,
36 Shall cats with us the game divide?
37 Were all your interloping band
38 Extinguish'd, or expell'd the land,
39 We rat-catchers might raise our fees,
40 Sole guardians of a nation's cheese!
41 A Cat, who saw the lifted knife,
42 Thus spoke, and sav'd her sister's life.
43 In ev'ry age and clime we see,
44 Two of a trade can ne'er agree,
45 Each hates his neighbour for encroaching;
46 Squire stigmatizes squire for poaching;
[Page 73]47 Beautys with beautys are in arms,
48 And scandal pelts each other's charms;
49 Kings too their neighbour kings dethrone,
50 In hope to make the world their own.
51 But let us limit our desires,
52 Not war like beautys, kings and squires,
53 For though we both one prey pursue,
54 There's game enough for us and you.
Source edition
Gay, John, 1685-1732. FABLES. By Mr. GAY. London: Printed for J. Tonson and J. Watts, MDCCXXVII., 1727, pp. 70-73. [14],173,[1]p.: ill.; 4°. (ESTC T13818)
Editorial principles
Typography, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation have been cautiously modernized. The source of the text is given and all significant editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. 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.
Other works by John Gay
- [FABLE ] INTRODUCTION TO THE FABLES. The Shepherd and the Philosopher. ()
- FABLE [01] I. The Lyon, the Tyger, and the Traveller. ()
- FABLE [02] II. The Spaniel and the Cameleon. ()
- FABLE [03] III. The Mother, the Nurse, and the Fairy. ()
- FABLE [04] IV. The Eagle, and the Assembly of Animals. ()
- FABLE [05] V. The Wild Boar and the Ram. ()
- FABLE [06] VI. The Miser and Plutus. ()
- FABLE [07] VII. The Lyon, the Fox, and the Geese. ()
- FABLE [08] VIII. The Lady and the Wasp. ()
- FABLE [09] IX. The Bull and the Mastiff. ()
- FABLE [10] X. The Elephant and the Bookseller. ()
- FABLE [11] XI. The Peacock, the Turkey, and Goose. ()
- FABLE [12] XII. Cupid, Hymen, and Plutus. ()
- FABLE [13] XIII. The tame Stag. ()
- FABLE [14] XIV. The Monkey who had seen the World. ()
- FABLE [15] XV. The Philosopher and the Pheasants. ()
- FABLE [16] XVI. The Pin and the Needle. ()
- FABLE [17] XVII. The Shepherd's Dog and the Wolf. ()
- FABLE [18] XVIII. The Painter who pleased No body and Every body. ()
- FABLE [19] XIX. The Lyon and the Cub. ()
- FABLE [20] XX. The Old Hen and the Cock. ()
- FABLE [22] XXII. The Goat without a beard. ()
- FABLE [23] XXIII. The Old Woman and her Cats. ()
- FABLE [24] XXIV. The Butterfly and the Snail. ()
- FABLE [25] XXV. The Scold and the Parrot. ()
- FABLE [26] XXVI. The Cur and the Mastiff. ()
- FABLE [27] XXVII. The Sick Man and the Angel. ()
- FABLE [28] XXVIII. The Persian, the Sun and the Cloud. ()
- FABLE [29] XXIX. The Fox at the point of death. ()
- FABLE [30] XXX. The Setting-dog and the Partridge. ()
- FABLE [31] XXXI. The Universal Apparition. ()
- FABLE [32] XXXII. The two Owls and the Sparrow. ()
- FABLE [33] XXXIII. The Courtier and Proteus. ()
- FABLE [34] XXXIV. The Mastiffs. ()
- FABLE [35] XXXV. The Barley-mow and the Dung-hill. ()
- FABLE [36] XXXVI. Pythagoras and the Countryman. ()
- FABLE [37] XXXVII. The Farmer's Wife and the Raven. ()
- FABLE [38] XXXVIII. The Turkey and the Ant. ()
- FABLE [39] XXXIX. The Father and Jupiter. ()
- FABLE [40] XL. The two Monkeys. ()
- FABLE [41] XLI. The Owl and the Farmer. ()
- FABLE [42] XLII. The Jugglers. ()
- FABLE [43] XLIII. The Council of Horses. ()
- FABLE [44] XLIV. The Hound and the Huntsman. ()
- FABLE [45] XLV. The Poet and the Rose. ()
- FABLE [46] XLVI. The Cur, the Horse, and the Shepherd's Dog. ()
- FABLE [47] XLVII. The Court of Death. ()
- FABLE [48] XLVIII. The Gardener and the Hog. ()
- FABLE [49] XLIX. The Man and the Flea. ()
- FABLE [50] L. The Hare and many Friends. ()