3.
Part Third.
“I feare thee, auncient waggonere,
I feare thy hornye fiste,
For itte is stained with gooses gore,
And bailiffe's blood, I wist.
“I fear to gette ane fisticuffe
The tailore meeteth Corporal Feare.
From thy leathern knuckles brown;
With that the tailore strove to ryse—
The waggonere thrusts him down.
“‘Thou craven, if thou mov'st a limbe,
I'll give thee cause for feare;’—
And thus went on, that tipsye man,
The red-billed waggonere.
The bumbailiffe so beautifull!
The bailiffe complaineth of considerable derangement of his animal economye.
Declared itte was no joke,
For, to his knowledge, both his legs,
And fifteen ribbes were broke.
“The lighte was gone, the nighte came on,
Policemen with their lanthernes, pursue the waggonere.
Ane hundrede lantherns sheen,
Glimmerred upon the kinge's highwaye,
Ane lovelye sighte I ween.
“‘Is it he,’ quoth one, ‘is this the manne,
I'll laye the rascalle stiffe;’—
With cruel stroke the beak he broke
Of the harmless bumbailiffe.
Steppeth 20 feete in imitatione of the Admirable Crichtoun.
“The threatening of the saucye rogue
No more I coulde abide.
Advancing forthe my goode right legge,
Three paces and a stride,
I sent my lefte foot dexterously
Seven inches thro' his side.
Complaineth of foul play, and falleth down in ane trance.
“Up came the seconde from the vanne;
We had scarcely fought a round,
When some one smote me from behinde,
And I fell down in a swound:
One acteth the parte of Job's comfortere.
“And when my head began to clear,
I heard the yemering crew—
Quoth one, ‘this man hath penance done,
And penance more shall do.’”
