Thomas Chatterton (1752-1770). The Accounte of W. Canynges' Feast. William Stanley Braithwaite, ed. 1909. The Book of Georgian Verse

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William Stanley Braithwaite, ed. The Book of Georgian Verse. 1909.

The Accounte of W. Canynges’ Feast

By Thomas Chatterton (1752–1770)


THROUGH the hall the bell hath sound;
Welcoming doth the mayor beseem;
The aldermen do sit around,
And snuffle up the savoury steam,
Like asses wild in desert waste	5
Sweetly the morning air do taste.

So keen they ate; the minstrels play,
The din of angels do they keep,
High style. The guests have nought to say,
But nod their thanks, and fall asleep.	10
Thus every day be I to dine,
If Rowley, Iscam, or Tyb. Gorges 1 be not seen.

Note 1. If Rowley, Iscam, or Tib. Georges: “With respect to the three friends of Mr. Canynge mentioned in the last line, the name of Rowley is sufficiently known…. Iscam appears as an actor in the tragedy of Aella, and in that of Goddwyn; and a poem ascribed to him, entitled The Merry Tricks of Laymington, is inserted in the Discorse of Bristow. Sir Theobald Gorges was a knight of an ancient family seated at Wraxhall, within a few miles of Bristol…. He has also appeared as an actor in both tragedies, and as the author of one of the Mynstrelles Songes in Aella.” (Tyrwhitt.) [back]

CONTENTS · GLOSSARY · BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

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