The Dominion of the Sword.
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The Dominion of the Sword.
A song made in the Rebellion.
From the Loyal Garland, 1686.
To the tune of “Love lies a bleeding.”
To the tune of “Love lies a bleeding.”
Lay by your pleading,
Law lies a bleeding,
Burn all your studies down, and
Throw away your reading,
Law lies a bleeding,
Burn all your studies down, and
Throw away your reading,
Small pow’r the word has,
And can afford us,
Not half so much priviledge as
The sword does.
And can afford us,
Not half so much priviledge as
The sword does.
It fosters your masters,
It plaisters disasters,
It makes the servants quickly greater
Than their masters.
It plaisters disasters,
It makes the servants quickly greater
Than their masters.
It venters, it enters,
It seeks and it centers,
It makes a ’prentice free in spite
Of his indentures.
It seeks and it centers,
It makes a ’prentice free in spite
Of his indentures.
It talks of small things,
But it sets up all things;
This masters money, though money
Masters all things.
But it sets up all things;
This masters money, though money
Masters all things.
It is not season,
To talk of reason,
Nor call it loyalty, when the sword
Will have it treason.
To talk of reason,
Nor call it loyalty, when the sword
Will have it treason.