song of Shadwell's which establishes conclusively the duty of an honest citizen and taxpayer:—
"The king's most faithful subjects, we
In service are not dull,
We drink to show our loyalty,
And make his coffers full.
Would all his subjects drink like us,
We'd make him richer far,
More powerful and more prosperous
Than Eastern monarchs are."
It may be noted, by way of illustration, that Dryden, in his "Vindication of the Duke of Guise," remarks somewhat vindictively that the only service Shadwell could render the king was to increase his revenue by drinking.
Finally, in England, as in Greece and Rome, black care sat heavily by the hearths of men; and English singers, following the examples of Horace and Anacreon, called upon wine to drown the unwelcome guest. "Fortune's a jade!" they cried with Beaumont's Yeoman, but courage and strong drink will bid the hussy stand. Davenant echoed the sentiment defiantly in his mad round,
"Come, boys! a health, a health, a double health,
To those who 'scape from care by shunning wealth; "
