My Lord Tomnoddy is thirty-four; The Earl can last but a few years more. My Lord in the Peers will take his place: Her Majestys councils his words will grace. Office hell hold and patronage sway; Fortunes and lives he will vote away; And what are his qualifications?ONE! Hes the Earl of Fitzdotterels eldest son.
The fool that eats till he is sick must fast till he is well.
The Jesters Sermon.
Note 1. See Gay, page 350: Life is a jest and all things show it; I thought so once, but now I know it. Life s but a series of trifles at best. Anonymous. Life is an empty dream. Robert Browning. Paracelsus, ii. [back]