He was a person that feared no colours, but mortally hated all, and upon
that account bore a cruel aversion to painters, insomuch that in his
paroxysms as he walked the streets, he would have his pockets loaded with
stones to pelt at the signs {148b}.
Having from his manner of living frequent occasions to wash himself, he
would often leap over head and ears into the water, though it were in the
midst of the winter, but was always observed to come out again much
dirtier, if possible, than he went in {148c}.
He was the first that ever found out the secret of contriving a
soporiferous medicine to be conveyed in at the ears {148d}. It was a
compound of sulphur and balm of Gilead, with a little pilgrim’s salve.
He wore a large plaister of artificial caustics on his stomach, with the
fervour of which he could set himself a groaning like the famous board
upon application of a red-hot iron.
He would stand in the turning of a street, and calling to those who
passed by, would cry to one, “Worthy sir, do me the honour of a good slap
in the chaps;” to another, “Honest friend, pray favour me with a handsome
kick in the rear;” “Madam, shall I entreat a small box in the ear from
your ladyship’s fair hands?” “Noble captain, lend a reasonable thwack,
for the love of God, with that cane of yours over these poor shoulders.”
And when he had by such earnest solicitations made a shift to procure a
basting sufficient to swell up his fancy and his sides, he would return
home extremely comforted, and full of terrible accounts of what he had
undergone for the public good. “Observe this stroke,” said he, showing
his bare shoulders; “a plaguy janissary gave it me this very morning at
seven o’clock, as, with much ado, I was driving off the Great Turk.
Neighbours mine, this broken head deserves a plaister; had poor Jack been
tender of his noddle, you would have seen the Pope and the French King
long before this time of day among your wives and your warehouses. Dear
Christians, the Great Moghul was come as far as Whitechapel, and you may
thank these poor sides that he hath not—God bless us—already swallowed up
man, woman, and child.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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