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commodity of warm slaves, as had as lief hear the

devil as a drum; such as fear the report of a

caliver worse than a struck fowl or a hurt wild-

duck. I pressed me none but such toasts-and-

butter, with hearts in their bellies no bigger than

pins' heads, and they have bought out their ser-

vices; and now my whole charge consists of

ancients, corporals, lieutenants, gentlemen of

companies, slaves as ragged as Lazarus in the

painted cloth, where the glutton's dogs licked his

sores; and such as indeed were never soldiers, but

discarded unjust serving-men, younger sons to

younger brothers, revolted tapsters and ostlers

trade-fallen, the cankers of a calm world and a

long peace; ten times more dishonourable ragged

than an old faced ancient: and such have I, to

fill up the rooms of them that have bought out

their services, that you would think that I had a

hundred and fifty tattered prodigals, lately come

from swine-keeping, from eating draff and husks.

A mad fellow met me on the way and told me I

had unloaded all the gibbets and pressed the

dead bodies. No eye hath seen such scarecrows.

I'll not march through Coventry with them,

that's flat: nay, and the villains march wide be-

twixt the legs, as if they had gyves on; for, in-

deed I had the most of them out of prison.

There's but a shirt and a half in all my com-

pany; and the half shirt is two napkins tacked

together and thrown over the shoulders like a

 19 commodity: stock

warm: luxury-loving

21 caliver: musket

26 ancients: ensigns

27 Lazarus; ''cf. III. iii. 36, n.''

28 painted cloth: hangings decorated with figures

32 cankers: worms

34 faced ancient: patched flag

37 prodigals; cf. n.

38 draff: pig-wash

44 gyves: fetters 