Oh ! Giant, where are you now ? Faith you are got into Lobb’s Pond, where I shall plague you for your threatening words. Which words were no sooner out of his mouth, hut he tumbled headlong into the deep pit, whose heavy fall made the very foundation of the You incorrigible villian, are you come hither to break my rest you shall dearly pay for it satisfaction I will have, and it shall he this I will take you wholly and broil you for my breakfast. Which unexpected noise roused the Giant, who came roaring towards Jack, crying out. This done, Jack places himself on the contrary side of the pit, just about the dawning of the day, when putting his horn to his mouth, he then blew, Tan twivie, tan twivie. Jack furnished himself with a horn, a shovel, and a pick-ax, and over to the mount he goes in the beginning of a dark winter evening, where he fell to work, and before morning, had digged a pit 22 feet deep, and as broad, and covered the same over with long sticks and straw then strewed a little mould upon it, so that it appeared like the plain ground. Quoth Jack, then I myself will undertake the work. This he had for many years practised in Cornwal.īut one day Jack coming to the town-hall, when the Magistrates were sitting in consternation about the Giant he asked what reward they would give to any person that would destroy him ? They answered, he shall have all the Giant’s treasure in recompence. For the people at his approach would forsake their habitations then he would take their cows and oxen, of which he would make nothing to carry over on his hack half a dozen at a time and as for sheep and hogs, he would tie them round his waist. His habitation was a cave in the midst of the mount neither would he suffer any living creature to inhabit near him his feeding was upon other men’s cattle : for whensoever he had occasion for food, he would wade over to the main land, where he would furnish himself with whatever he could find. In those days the mount of Cornwall was kept by a huge and monstrous Giant, of 27 feet high, and 3 yards in compass, of a grim countenance, to the terror of all the neighbouring towns. The Parson, finding himself fool’d, trudged away, leaving Jack in a fit of laughter. You are out again, quoth, Jack, for God made them bulls, but my father and his man Hobson made oxen of them. Who made these oxen? the Parson replied, God. Well, master Parson quoth Jack, you have asked me one question, and I have answered it let me ask you another. The Person replied, thou art an arch wag, Jack.
Nay, quoth Jack, master Parson, you are out of that it is true there were ten, but you broke one of them with your own maid Margery. Never was any person heard of that could worst him nay, the learned he baffled by his cunning and ready inventions.įor instance, when he was no more than seven years of age, his father sent him into the field to look after his oxen, a country Vicar, by chance, one day coming across the field, called Jack, and asked him several questions in particular, How many commandments were there? Jack told him, there were nine. He was brisk, and of a lively ready wit so that whatever he could not perform by strength, he completed by wit and policy. In the reign of King Arthur, near the Land's-end of England, in the county of Cornwall, there lived a wealthy farmer, who had one only son, commonly known by the name of Jack.