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Home  »  The Book of Restoration Verse  »  Richard Brome (d. 1652?)

William Stanley Braithwaite, ed. The Book of Restoration Verse. 1910.

The Merry Beggars

Richard Brome (d. 1652?)

COME, come; away! the spring,

By every bird that can but sing,

Or chirp a note, doth now invite

Us forth to taste of his delight,

In field, in grove, on hill, in dale;

But above all the nightingale,

Who in her sweetness strives t’ outdo

The loudness of the hoarse cuckoo.

‘Cuckoo,’ cries he; ‘jug, jug, jug,’ sings she;

From bush to bush, from tree to tree:

Why in one place then tarry we?

Come away! why do we stay?

We have no debt or rent to pay;

No bargains or accounts to make,

Nor land or lease to let or take:

Or if we had, should that remore us

When all the world’s our own before us,

And where we pass and make resort,

It is our kingdom and our court.

‘Cuckoo,’ cries he; ‘jug, jug, jug,’ sings she;

From bush to bush, from tree to tree:

Why in one place then tarry we?