Teh (sic) prisoner's welcome/Teh prisoner's welcome

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The Prisoner's Welcome.

Welcome, welcome, brother debtor,To this poor but merry place,Where no bailiff, Dun, nor Setter,Dare to show their frightful face:But, kind Sir, as you're a stranger,Down your garnish you must lay,Else your coat will be in danger;You must either strip or pay.
Ne'er repine at your confinement,From your children, or your wife;wisdom lies in true resignment,Thro' the various scenes of life.Scorn to shew the least resentment,Tho' beneath the frowns of fate;Knaves and beggars find contentment,Fears and cares attend the great.
Tho' our creditors are spiteful,And retain us captives here,Use will make a goal delightful,Since we've nothing else to fear:Every island's but a prison,Strongly guarded by the sea;
​Kings and princes, for that reason,Prisoners are as well as we.
Pray, what made great Alexander,Weep at his unfriendly fate?'Twas because he could not wander,beyond the world's prison-gate:For the world is also bounded,By the heavens and stars above:Why should we then be confounded.Since there's nothing free but love.

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