Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n
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A13482
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The olde, old, very olde man: or the age and long life of Thomas Par the sonne of John Parr of Winnington in the parish of Alberbury; in the country of Salopp, (or Shropshire) who was borne in the raigne of King Edward the 4th. and is now living in the Strand, being aged 152. yeares and odd monethes. His manner of life and conversation in so long a pilgrimage; his marriages, and his bringing up to London about the end of September last. 1635. Written by Iohn Taylor.
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Taylor, John, 1580-1653.
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1635
(1635)
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STC 23781; ESTC S102639
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9,432
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32
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With him and his most blest Posterity Till time shall end be they on Earth renown'd And after with Eternity be crown'd Thus had Parr had good breeding without reading Hee from his sire and Grand sires sire proceeding By word of mouth might tell most famous things Done in the Raigns of all those Queens and Kings But hee in Husbandry hath bin brought up And nere did taste the Helliconian cup He nere knew History nor in mind did keepe Ought but the price of Corne Hay Kine or Sheep Day found him work and Night allowd him rest Nor did Affaires of Stae his braine molest His high'st Ambition was A tree to lop Or at the furthest to a May-poles top His Recreation and his Mirths discourse Hath been the Pyper and the Hobby-horse And in this simple sort hee hath with paine From Childhood liv'd to bee a Child againe 'T is strange a man that is in yeares so growne Should not be rich but to the world 't is knowne That hee that 's borne in any Land or Nation Vnder a Twelve-pence Planet's Domination By working of that Planets influence Shall never live to be worth thirteene pence Whereby although his Learning cannot show it Hee 's rich enough to be like mee a Poet. But er'e I doe conclude I will relate Of reverend Age's Honourable state Where shall a young man good Instructions have But from the Ancient from Experience grave Roboam Sonne and Heire to Solomon Rejecting ancient Counsell was undone Almost for ten of twelve Tribes fell To Ieroboam King of Israel And all wise Princes and great Potentates Select and chuse Old men as Magistrates Whose Wisedome and whose reverend Aspect Knowes how and when to punish or protect The Patriarkes long lives before the Flood Were given them as 't is rightly understood To store and multiply by procreations That people should inhabit and breed Nations That th' Ancients their Posterities might show The secrets Deepe of Nature how to know To scale the skie with learn'd Astronomy And found the Oceans deepe profundity But chiefly how to serve and to obey God who made them out of slime and clay Should men live now as long as they did then The Earth could not sustaine the Breed of Men. Each man had many wives which Bigamie Was such increase to their Posterity That one old man might see before he dy'd That his owne only off-spring had supply'd And Peopled Kingdomes But now so brittle's the estate of man That in Comparison his life 's a span Yet since the Flood it may be proved plaine That many did a longer life retaine Than him I write of for Arpachshad liv'd Foure hundred thirty eight Shelah surviv'd Foure hundred thirty three yeares Eber more For he liv'd twice two hundred sixty foure Two hundred yeares Terah was alive And Abr'ham liv'd one hundred seventy five Before Iob's Troubles holy writ relates His sons and daughters were at marriage states And after his restoring 't is most cleare That he surviv'd one hundred forty yeare Iohn Buttadeus if report be true Is his name that is stil'd The Wandring Iew 'T is said he saw our Saviour dye and how He was a man then and is living now Whereof Relations you that will may reade But pardon me 't is no part of my Creed Vpon a Germanes Age 't is written thus That one Iohannes de Temporibus Was Armour-bearer to brave Charlemaigne And that unto the age he did attaine Of yeares three hundred sixty one and then Old Iohn of Times return'd to Earth agen And Noble Nestor at the siege of Troy Had liv'd three hundred yeares both Man and boy Sir Walter Rawleigh a most learned Knight Doth of an Irish Countesse Desmond write Of seven score yeares of Age he with her spake The Lord Saint Albanes doth more mention make That she was Married in Fourth Edwards raigne Thrice shed her Teeth which three times came againe The High-land Scots and the Wilde-Irish are Long liv'd with Labour hard and temperate fare Amongst the Barbarous Indians some live strong And lusty neere two hundred winters long So as I said before my Verse now sayes By wronging Nature men cut off their dayes Therefore as Times are He I now write on The age of all in Britane hath out gone All those that were alive when he had Birth Are turn'd againe unto their mother earth If any of them live and doe replye I will be sorry and confesse I lye For had he bin a Marchant then perhaps Stormes Thunderclaps or feare of Afterclaps Sands Rocks or Roving Pyrats Gusts and stormes Had made him long ere this the food of worms Had he a Mercer or a Silk-man bin And trusted much in hope great game to win And late and early striv'd to get or save His Gray head long ere now had been i' th Grave Or had he been a Iudge or Magistrate Or of Great Counsell in Affaires of state Then dayes important businesse and nights cares Had long ere this Interr'd his hoary haires But as I writ before no cares opprest him Nor ever did Affaires of State molest him Some may object that they will not believe His Age to be so much for none can give Account thereof Time being past so far And at his Birth there was no Register The Register was ninty seven yeares since Giv'n by th' eight Henry that Illustrious Prince Th' yeare fifteene hundred fourty wanting twaine And in the thirtieth yeare of that Kings raigne So old Parr now was almost an old man Neere sixty ere the Register began I' have writ as much as Reason can require How Times did passe how 's Leases did expire And Gentlemen o' th County did Relate T' our gâ—acious King by Their Certificate His age how time w th gray haires hath crownd him And so I leave him older than I found him FINIS