%ISOlat1; %ISOlat2; %ISOnum; %ISOpub; ]> THE / Young-Man & Maidens Fore-cast; / SHEWING HOW / They Reckon'd their Chickens before they were Hatcht. University of California - Santa Barbara The Early Modern Center English Broadside Ballad Archive (EBBA) Director Patricia Fumerton Associate Director Carl G Stahmer ?-? Early Modern Center, University of California Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 05/30/2021 36997

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Patricia Fumerton Early Modern Center - English Department University of California Santa Barbara, CA 93105 United States of America EMail: pfumer@english.ucsb.edu

R186951 1 The Country Farmer. Or, The Devonshire Damosels Where's My Shepherd The Country Farmer. Or, The Devonshire Damsels I'LL tell you a Jest of a Provident Lass, / Whose Providence prov'd her a Provident Ass; Information in this section of the Source Description refers to the original ballad manuscript. 1: 210 THE / Young-Man & Maidens Fore-cast; / SHEWING HOW / They Reckon'd their Chickens before they were Hatcht. THE Young Man & Maiden's Forecast; SHOWING HOW They Reckoned their Chickens before they were Hatched. ?-? P. Brooksby

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 Early Modern Center Ballad Project Keyword Taxonomy advice affliction / health alcohol Americas animals / nature Bible / biblical figures buildings / architecture catastrophe children class clothing / appearance country / nation crime death economics / commerce entertainments family Featured folklore gender holidays / seasons infidelity labor / craft law London love maritime marriage military / war monstrosity mythology / Classical news nobility / court politics / government procreation punishment race / ethnicity religious concepts religious figures religious groups royalty rural life servitude sex / sexuality supernatural / magic travel trickery / deceit urban life vice violence virtue vulgar humor youth / age Library of Congress Subject Heading Taxonomy 5/30/2021 Santa Barbara, California, United States of America Ballads, English 17th century Broadsides, England 17th century 5/30/2021 1:44:15 PM XBallad Wise, Juliette Created XML Version of Ballad 5/30/2021 1:44:15 PM Transcription Supervisor McCants, Kristen Transcription of ballad manuscript 5/30/2021 1:44:15 PM Double-Key Comparison and Merging McCants, Kristen Transcription of ballad manuscript 5/30/2021 1:44:15 PM Transcriptionist Two Messner, Milena Transcription of ballad manuscript 5/30/2021 1:44:15 PM Transcriptionist One Raychawdhuri, Anita Transcription of ballad manuscript 3/19/2019 Bibliographer Kristen McCants Initial Ballad Catalogue Record Created
<seg n="1" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">THE</hi></seg> <seg n="2" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">Young-Man & Maidens Fore-cast;</hi></seg> <seg n="3" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">SHEWING HOW</hi></seg> <seg n="4" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">They Reckon'd their <hi rend="bold">Chickens</hi> before they were Hatcht.</hi></seg> <lb/> <seg n="5" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">To the Tune of; <hi rend="bold">The Country Farmer.</hi> Or, <hi rend="bold">The</hi> Devonshire Damosels-</hi></seg> <lb/> <seg n="6" rend="left">This may be Printed, <hi rend="italic">R.P.</hi></seg>
I'LL tell you a Jest of a Provident Lass, Whose Providence prov'd her a Provident Ass; She laid forth her store in such brittle Ware, That very small profit did fall to her snare; Thirteen to the Dozen of Eggs she would buy, And set a Hen over them carefully; As long as she went her footing she watch'd, She counted her Chickens before they were Hatch'd.
Said she, if these Chickens five Capons do prove, Capons be Meat which Gentlemen love; Those Chickens she would sell to buy a Sow-Pig, That it might have young ones e're it was big: Then with her Pigs she would have an Ewe, It may have Lambs not kill'd with the Dew: And as she was thinking to buy her a Calf, Her Heels they flew from her a Yard and a half.
Her Heels kiss'd the ground, and up flew her Leggs, Down came her Basket, and broke all her Eggs; There lay her Pigs, her Chickens, her Lambs She could not have young ones except she had Dams: Thus Fortune did frown by a fall that she catcht, Her Chickens prov'd Addle before they were Hatcht: Attend but a while, and I'll briefly declare, Bad fortune did likewise fall to the Mans share. And now the Man to the Market will go, To see what Dame Nature on him will bestow; He bought him five Eggs thinking to Thrive, And thus did the business finely contrive Said he, if these Eggs five Cocks they will frame, And most of them prove to be Cocks of the Game, So soon as their Spurs are long enough grown, Then I may ingross a Cock-Pit of my own. Then may I have Gallants of every sort, Both Lords, Knights, and Squires, and all to see sport If they Fight bravely these Gallants to please, I may come to get Means by the rearing of these: And when I have done, I'll get me a rich Wife, That I may live happy all days of my Life, And in the Church we will be loving matcht, But count not your Chickens before they be Hatcht. And when he came home he set his Eggs by, He could not get up the Roost was so high; But fetching a Ladder that unhappy time, It was his hard luck with his Eggs for to Climb; These Ladders prove fatal to many a Man, And are undone by them now and than; So was this poor Man undone by a fall, Down comes the Basket, Man, Eggs and all. There lay the poor Man with a fall almost Lame, His Cock-Pits and Gallants, and Cocks of the Game The loosing of this grieved him to the Life, Yet the grief it was more in the loss of his Wife: All you Young Men live vertuous Lives, And think to get Portions now by your Wives; Take warning by me before you are Matcht, Pray count not your Chickens before they be Hatcht.
FINIS. Printed for P. Brooksby, at the Golden-Ball in Pye-Corner, near West-Smithfield[.]