O never an oathe sweares he,
And never a pig-taile jerkes;
With a brick-batte he ne lurkes
For to buste y e crust, perdie,
Of y e man from over sea,
A-synging as he werkes.
For he knows ful well, y s youth,
A tricke of exceeding worth:
And he plans withouten ruth
A conflagration’s birth!
Public-domain source text
Y<sup>e</sup> Foe to Cathaye
by Ambrose Bierce
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