man of the guard, "Here, take this honest cobbler down into the cellar, and give him meat and drink. I will give orders that Harry Tudor come to him presently."

CHAPTER V

The Cobbler's entertainment at the King's cellar, where he meets his old friend, Harry Tudor.

The cobbler had not been long in the cellar before the King came to him, in the same habit he had on when the cobbler mended his shoe; whereupon the cobbler knew him, and ran and kissed him, saying, "Honest Harry, I have made a holiday, on purpose to come and see you; but I had much ado to get leave of my wife Joan, who was loath I should lose so much time from my work; but I was resolved to see you, so I made myself as fine as I could.

"But I'll tell you, Harry, when I came to court I was in a peck of troubles how to find you out; but, at last, I met with a man who told me he knew you very well, and that he would bring me to you; but, instead of doing so, he brought me before the King; which had almost frightened me to death. But in good faith," continues the cobbler, "I am resolved to be merry with you, since I have the good fortune to find you at last."

"Ay, so you shall," replied the King, "we will be as merry as princes." The cobbler soon fell to singing his old songs and catches, which pleased the

King very much and made him laugh most heartily; when on a sudden, many of the nobles came into the cellar, extraordinarily rich in apparel, who stood bare to Harry Tudor. This put the cobbler in great amazement at first; but, recovering himself, and looking more earnestly upon Harry Tudor, he presently knew him to be the King, that he had seen in the presence chamber.

He, therefore, immediately fell upon his knees, saying, "May it please your Highness, I am an honest cobbler, and mean no harm." "No, no," said the King, "nor shall receive none here." He commanded him, therefore, to rise up; and be as merry as he was before; and though he knew him to be the King, he should use the same freedom with him as he did when he mended his shoe. This kind speech of the King made the cobbler to be in as good humor as he was before; telling the King many of his pretty stories and singing more songs, very much to the satisfaction of the King and his nobles. And among others, he sang this one:

"Come, let us sing a jovial song,

Our sorrows to confound;

We'll laugh, and sing, before the King,
So let his health go round.

"For I'm as bold as bold can be,

No cobbler e'er was ruder;

So then, good fellow, here's to thee,
Remembering Harry Tudor.

"When I'm at work within my stall,

Upon him I shall think;

His kindness I to mind shall call,
Whene'er I eat or drink.

"His kindness to me was so great,
The like was never known;
His kindness I will still repeat,
And so shall my wife Joan.

"I'll laugh, when I sit in my stall,
And merrily will sing,

That I, with my poor last and awl,
Was fellow with a King.

"But it is more, I must confess,
Than I, at first, did know;
But Harry Tudor ne'ertheless,
Resolves it must be so.

"And now, farewell unto Whitehall,
I homewards must retire;
To whistle and sing within my stall,
My Joan will me require.

"I can but think, how she will laugh,
When she hears of this thing;
How he, who ate and drank with me,
Was England's royal King."

CHAPTER VI

Of the Cobbler's becoming a Courtier.

Now the King, considering the pleasant humors of the cobbler, how innocently merry he was, and

free from any designs; and that he was a person that labored very hard, and took a great deal of pains, for a small livelihood, was pleased, out of his princely grace and favor, to allow him a liberal annuity of forty marks a year, for the better support of his jolly humors, and the maintenance of himself and his wife Joan; and that he should be admitted one of the courtiers; and have the freedom of his larder whenever he pleased.

This, being so much beyond his expectation, highly elevated the cobbler's humors, much to the satisfaction of the King. So, after some bows and scrapes, he returned home to his wife Joan, with the joyful news of his kind reception at court; which so pleased her that she did not think much of the pains she had been at, in dressing him up for the journey.

King Henry the Eighth, King of Eng- | blade, fellow.

land from 1509 to 1547, second
king of the Tudor line; no other
English king was so popular.

cas'u al ty, accident.
Whitehall, Strand, districts in Lon-
don.

joc'und, merry, cheerful.

test'er, a silver coin, formerly worth about 18 pence, or 36 cents. Later its value was sixpence.

Che'shire, a county on the west coast of England.

ar'ras, hangings.

trea'son, some word or act against
the King.

per ad ven'ture, perhaps.
stood bare, took off their hats.
an nu'ity, a yearly income.
yeo'man of the guard, one of the
king's bodyguard.

GAMMER GURTON'S HISTORIES, from which this merry tale is taken, are among the most entertaining of the "chap-books," or little pamphlets of tales, that were sold by peddlers three hundred years and more ago.

OVER HILL, OVER DALE

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

A Fairy Song

OVER hill, over dale,

Through bush, through brier,
Over park, over pale,

Through flood, through fire,
I do wander everywhere,
Swifter than the moon's sphere;
And I serve the fairy queen,
To dew her orbs upon the green:
The cowslips tall her pensioners be;
In their gold coats spots you see;
Those be rubies, fairy favors,

In those freckles live their savors;
I must go seek some dew-drops here,
And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear.

pen'sion ers, attendants.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE was born at Stratford, England, in 1564, and died in 1616. He was at first an actor in London, and became a writer of plays. He is regarded as the greatest dramatic poet that ever lived. Among his best plays are "Hamlet," "Macbeth," "Julius Cæsar," "The Tempest," and "The Merchant of Venice."

HAVE more than thou showest,

Speak less than thou knowest,

Lend less than thou owest.-SHAKESPEARE.