The Olde, Olde, very Olde Man; or The Age and Long Life of Thomas Parr
John Taylor 1578 (Gloucester) – 1653
Good wholesome labour was his exercise,
Down with the lamb, and with the lark would rise:
In mire and toiling sweat he spent the day,
And to his team he whistled time away:
The cock his night-clock, and till day was done,
His watch and chief sun-dial was the sun.
He was of old Pythagoras' opinion,
That green cheese was most wholesome with an onion;
Coarse meslin bread, and for his daily swig,
Milk, butter-milk, and water, whey and whig:
Sometimes metheglin, and by fortune happy,
He sometimes sipped a cup of ale most nappy,
Cycler or perry, when he did repair
T' Whitson ale, wake, wedding, or a fair;
Or when in Christmas-time he was a guest
At his good landlord's house amongst the rest:
Else he had little leisure-time to waste,
Or at the ale-house huff-cap ale to taste;
His physic was good butter, which the soil
Of Salop yields, more sweet than candy oil;
And garlick he esteemed above the rate
Of Venice treacle, or best mithridate.
He entertained no gout, no ache he felt,
The air was good and temperate where he dwelt;
While mavisses and sweet-tongued nightingales
Did chant him roundelays and madrigals.
Thus living within bounds of nature's laws,
Of his long-lasting life may be some cause.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:05 min read
- 46 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AABBCCCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKALMN |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,209 |
Words | 215 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 28 |
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"The Olde, Olde, very Olde Man; or The Age and Long Life of Thomas Parr" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/24123/the-olde,-olde,-very-olde-man;-or-the-age-and-long-life-of-thomas-parr>.
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