English and Scottish Ballads, Volume VIII

Ballads, English -- England -- Texts; Ballads, Scots -- Scotland -- Texts

And layd him into prison strong,
      And sued his bond withall;
    And when the judgement day was come,
      For judgement he did call.

    The marchants friends came thither fast,                          85
      With many a weeping eye,
    For other means they could not find,
      But he that day must dye.


THE SECOND PART.

  Of the Jews crueltie; setting foorth the mercifulnesse of the Judge
    towards the Marchant. To the tune of _Black and Yellow_.

    Some offered for his hundred crownes
      Five hundred for to pay;
    And some a thousand, two or three,
      Yet still he did denay.

    And at the last ten thousand crownes                               5
      They offered, him to save:
    Gernutus sayd, "I will no gold,
      My forfeite I will have.

    "A pound of fleshe is my demand,
      And that shall be my hire."                                     10
    Then sayd the judge, "Yet, good my friend,
      Let me of you desire

    "To take the fleshe from such a place,
      As yet you let him live:
    Do so, and lo! an hundred crownes                                 15
      To thee here will I give."

    "No, no," quoth he, "no, judgement here;
      For this it shall be tride;
    For I will have my pound of fleshe
      From under his right side."                                     20

    It grieved all the companie
      His crueltie to see,
    For neither friend nor foe could helpe
      But he must spoyled bee.

    The bloudie Jew now ready is                                      25
      With whetted blade in hand,
    To spoyle the bloud of innocent,
      By forfeit of his bond.

    And as he was about to strike
      In him the deadly blow,                                         30
    "Stay," quoth the judge, "thy crueltie;
      I charge thee to do so.

    "Sith needs thou wilt thy forfeit have,
      Which is of flesh a pound,
    See that thou shed no drop of bloud,                              35
      Nor yet the man confound.

    "For if thou doe, like murderer
      Thou here shalt hanged be:
    Likewise of flesh see that thou cut
      No more than longes to thee.                                    40

    "For if thou take either more or lesse,
      To the value of a mite,
    Thou shalt be hanged presently,
      As is both law and right."

    Gernutus now waxt franticke mad,                                  45
      And wotes not what to say;
    Quoth he at last, "Ten thousand crownes
      I will that he shall pay;

    "And so I graunt to set him free."
      The judge doth answere make;                                    50
    "You shall not have a penny given;
      Your forfeyture now take."

    At the last he doth demaund
      But for to have his owne:
    "No," quoth the judge, "doe as you list,                          55
      Thy judgement shall be showne.

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

English and Scottish Ballads, Volume VIII

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