MIDO. How say you, master Jacob, ran not I apace?
JACOB. Yes, and a good son to go quick on your errand.
REBECCA. Son, how goeth the matter? let me understand.
JACOB. Forsooth, mother, I did so, as ye me bad,
Esau to sell me all his birthright persuade.
REBECCA. Hast thou bought it indeed, and he therewith content?
JACOB. Yea, and have his promise, that he will never repent.
REBECCA. Is the bargain through? hast thou paid him his price?
JACOB. Yea, that I have, a mess of red pottage of rice,
And he ate it up every whit, well I wot.
MIDO. When he had supp'd up all, I saw him lick the pot;
Thus he licked, and thus he licked, and this way:
I thought to have lick'd the pot myself once to-day;
But Esau beguil'd me, I shrew him for that,
And left not so much as a lick for puss our cat.
REBECCA. Son Jacob, forasmuch as thou hast so well sped,
With an hymn or psalm let the Lord be praised.
Sing we all together, and give thanks to the Lord,
Whose promise and performance do so well accord.
MIDO. Shall we sing the same hymn, that all our house doth sing?
For Abraham and his seed to give God praising.
REBECCA, Yea, the very same.
MIDO. Then must we all kneel down thus,
And Abra, our maid, here must also sing with us,
Kneel down, Abra; what, I say, will ye not kneel down?
Kneel, when I bid you, the slackest wench in this town!
[_Here they kneel down to sing all four, saving that
Abra is slackest, and Mido is quickest_.
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