The Beggar

I had just as soon be a beggar as a King, and the reason, I'll tel you why,
A King cannot swagger nor drink like a beggar, nor be half as happy as I.

chorus
Let the back and the sides go bare, me boys; let the hands and the feet gang cold,
But give to the belly, boys, beer enough; whethre it be new or old.

Sometimes we call at a nobleman's hall to beg for bread and beer,
Sometimes we are lame, sometimes we are blind, sometimes too deaf to hear. chorus

Sometimes we lie like pigs in a sty with a mess of straw on the ground,
Sometimes eat a crust that has fallen in the dust, and be thankful it can be found. chorus

I've six-pence in me pocket and I begged hard for it; kind landlord, here it is,
Neither jew nor turk shall make me work while begging is as good as it is. chorus