Beware the cat

William Baldwin 1963 (William Joseph Baldwin February 21, 1963 Massapequa, New York)



This little book Bevvare the Cat
moste pleasantly compil'd:
In time obscured was and so,
siince that hath been exilde.

Exilde, because perchaunce at first,
it shewed the toyes and drifts:
Of such as then by wiles and willes,
maintained Popish shifts.

Shifts, such as those in such a time,
delighted for to vse:
Wherby ful many simple soules,
they did ful sore abuse.

Abuse? yea sure and that with spight
when as the Cat gan tel:
Of many pranks of popish preests,
bothe foolish mad and fel.

Fel sure & vaine, if iudgement right
appeere to be in place:
And so as fel in pleasant wise,
this fixion shewes their grace.

Grace? nay sure vngratiousnes,
of such and many mo:
which may be tolde in these our daies
to make vs laugh also.

Also to laugh? nay rather weep,
to see such shifts now vsed:
And that in euery sorte of men,
true vertue is abused.

Abused? yea, and quite downe cast,
let vs be sure of that:
And therfore now as hath been said,
I say beware the Cat.

The Cat ful pleasantly wil shew,
some sleights that now are wrought
And make some laugh, which vnto mirth
to be constrainde are loght.

Lothe? yea, for ouer passing greef,
that much bereues their minde:
For such disorder as in states,
of euery sorte they finde.

Finde? yea, who can now boste but that
the Cat wil him disclose?
Therfore in midst of mirth (I say)
beware the Cat to those.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 21, 2023

1:16 min read
175

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXBA XCXC XBXX DEBE DFXF BBBB XAXX XAXA XXXA XAXA AGXG
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,311
Words 254
Stanzas 11
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

William Baldwin

William Joseph Baldwin (born February 21, 1963) is an American actor, producer and writer. A member of the Baldwin family, he is the third-oldest of the four Baldwin brothers. He has starred in the films Flatliners (1990), Backdraft (1991), Sliver (1993), Virus (1999), The Squid and the Whale (2005), played himself in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and currently stars in and produces the Netflix show Northern Rescue. Baldwin is married to singer Chynna Phillips.  more…

All William Baldwin poems | William Baldwin Books

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