The Ten Pleasures of Marriage: and the Second Part, The Confession of the New Married CoupleMarsh, A.
General
The Ten Pleasures of Marriage: and the Second Part, The Confession of the New Married Couple
Marsh, A.
Marriage
O new Father, now open your eys! Behold what a pretty Son you have!
How happy you are in so loving and understanding a Wife that knows how
to trick it so curiously up in this manner! She was never better
pleased! Undoubtedly the Summer nights are too long, and the daies too
short for her to gad up and down traversing the streets of the City,
that she may fullfill her desire of shewing it to every body: never
was any thing more neatly drest. But the Nurse and the Maid with the
Child in the mean while at Jericho; for their very backs and sides
seem to be absolutely broken with carrying it up & down from day to
day. And most especially when the Child is wean'd, and the Wet-Nurse
turn'd away, the Maid cannot let it penetrate into her brain; that she
now not only the whole week must rock, sing, dandle, dress, and walk
abroad with it; but that she is upon Sundaies also bound to the Child,
like a Dog to a halter; and never can stir out, as she formerly did,
to walk abroad with _Giles the Baker_, or _John True the Tailor_; nor
so much as go once to give a visit to her Country-folks or kindred;
which occasions no small difference between the Maid and the Mistriss.
But good House Father, never trouble your self at it, for this belongs
also to the Pleasures of Marriage; nor do not seem discontented
because your Dearest walks abroad thus every day; but rather think
with your self, she takes her spinning Wheel and reel along with her.
And if in her absence, you have not that due attendance, nor find that
in the house and Kitchin things are not so well taken care for, why
then, you must imagine to be satisfied with th'assistance of the
Semstress, or some such sort of person, as well as you were when you
enjoied the Eighth Pleasure: You must also observe, that if the Child
should sit much, it might get crooked legs, and then the sweet Babe
were ruined for ever. It is also too weak yet to be any waies roughly
handled; but it begins from day to day to grow stronger and stronger:
Also with your Dearest carrying it abroad continually to visit all
your friends and acquaintance, it learns by degrees to eat all things,
and drinks not only Beer, but some Wine too. And I assure you it is no
small Pleasure for the Father and Mother to see that this little young
Gosling can so perfectly distinguish the tast of the Wine, from the
tast of the Beer: tho when it is come to some elder years, perhaps
they would give a hundred pound, if they could but wean it from it.
But that's too far to be lookt into. And care too soon taken makes
people quickly gray-headed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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