To have his company, and hear him tell
Those pilgrim stories which he knows well.
Yea, some who did not love him at the first,
But called him fool and noddy, say they must,
Now they have seen and heard him, him commend,
And to those Whom they love they do him send.
Wherefore, my Second Part, thou need'st not be
Afraid to show thy head: none can hurt thee,
That Wish but well to him that went before,
'Cause thou com'st after with a second store
Of things as good, as rich, as profitable,
For" young, for old, for staggering and for stable.
OBJECTION III.
But some there be that say, He laughs too loud;
And some do say, His head is in a cloud.
Some say, His words and stories are so dark,
They know not how, by them, to find his mark.
ANSWER.
One may, I think, say, Both his laughs and cries
May well be guessed at by his watery eyes.
Some things are of that nature, as to make
One's fancy chuckle While his heart doth ache.
When Jacob saw his Rachel with the sheep,
He did at the same time both kiss and weep.
Whereas some say, A cloud is in his head,
That doth but show how wisdom's covered
With its own mantle, and to stir the mind
To a search after What it fain would find.
Things that seem to be hid in words obscure
Do but the godly mind the more allure
