¶Here after foloweth a lytell boke, whiche hath to name, why come ye nat to courte, compyled by mayster Skelton poete Laureate.
¶All noble men of this take hede And beleue it as your Crede.
TO hasty of sentence
To ferce for none offence
To scarce of your expence
To large in neglygence
To slacke in recompence
To haute in excellence
To lyght intellegence
And to lyght in credence
where these kepe resydence
Reson is banysshed thence
And also dame prudence
with sober sapyence
All noble men. &c.
¶Than withont collusyon
Marke well this conclusyon
Through suche abusyon
And by suche Illusyon
Vnto great confusyon
Anoble man may fall
And his honour appall
And yf ye thynke this shall
Not rubbe you on the gall
Than the deuyll take all. &c.
Hee va
[...]es ille, de quo loqūtur mille
¶Why come ye nat to court?
[...] Or age is a page
For the courte full vnmete
For age can nat rage
Nor basse her swete swete
But whan age seeth that rage
Dothe aswage and refrayne
Than wyll age haue a corage
To come to court agayne
But
Helas / sage ouerage
So madly decayes
That age for dottage
Is reco
[...]ed now adayes
Thus age agraunt domage
Is nothynge set by
And rage in a rerage
Lothe rynne lam
[...]ntably
So
That rage must make
[...]yllage
To catche that catche may
And with suche forage
Hunte the boskage
[Page] That hartes wyll ronne away
Bothe hartes and hyndes
With all good myndes
Fare well / than haue good day
¶Than haue good daye a dewe
For defaute of rescew
Some men may happely rew
And some theyr hedes mew
The tyme dothe fast ensew
That bales begynne to brew
I drede by swete Iesu
This tale wyll be to trew
In faythe dycken thou krew
In fayth dicken thou krew. &c.
O Icken / thou krew doutlesse
For trewly to expresse
There hath ben moche excesse
With banketynge braynlesse
With tyotynge rechelesse
With gambaudynge thryftlesse
With spende / and, wast witlesse
[Page] Creatinge of trewse restlesse
Pratynge for peace peaslesse
They countrynge at Cales
Wrang vs on the wales
Chefe counselour was carlesse
Gronynge grouchyng gracelesse
And to none entente
Our talwod is all brent
Our fagottes are all spent
We may blowe at the cole
Our mare hath cast her fole
And mocke hath lost her sho
What may she do ther to
An ende of an olde song
Do ryght and do no wronge
As ryght as a rammes horne
For thrifte is threde bare worn
[...]
Our shepe are shrewdly shorn
And trouthe is all to torne
Wysdom is laught to skorne
Fauell is false forsworne
Iauell is nobly borne
Hauell and Haruy hafter
[Page] Iack Trauell and Cole Crafter
We shall here more herafter
With pollynge aud shauynge
With borowynge and crauyne
With reuynge and rauynge
With swerynge aud starynge
Ther vayleth no resonynge
For wyll dothe rule all thynge
Wyll / wyll / wyll / wyll / wyll
He ruleth alway styll
Good reason and good skyll
They may garlycke pyll
Cary sackes to the myll
Or pescoddes they may shyll
Or elles go rost a stone
There is no man but one
That hathe the strokes alone
Be it blacke or whight
All that he dothe is ryght
As right as a Cammocke croked
This byll well ouer loked
Clerely perceuye we may
There went the hare away
[Page] The hare / the fox / the gray
The harte / the hynde / the buch
God sende vs better luck
¶God sende vs better lucke. &c.
Twit Andrewe / twit scote
Ge heme / ge scour thy pot
For we haue spente our shot
We shall haue a tot quot
From the pope of Rome
To weue all in one lome
A webbe of Lyife wulse
Opus male du
[...]ce
The deuyll kysse hes cuse
For whyles he doth rule
All is warse and warse
The deuyll kysse his arse
For whether he blesse or curse
It can not be moche worse
From Baumberow to Bothōbar
We haue cast vp our war
And mad a worthy trewse
With gup leuell suse
[Page] Our mony madly lent
And mor madly spent
From Croydon into Kent
Wote ye whyther they went
From wynchelsey to Rye
And all nat worth a flye
From wentbridge to Hull
Our armye waxeth dull
With tourne all home agayne
And neuer a scot slayne
Yet the good erle of Surray
The frenche men he doth fray
And vexeth them day by day
With all the power he may
Tho french men he hath faynted
And mad theyr hertes attaynted
Of cheualry he is the floure
Our lorde be his soccoure
The french men he hathe so mated
And theyr courage abated
That they are but halfe men
Lyke foxes in theyr denne
Lyke cankerd cowardes all
[Page] Lyke Vrcheons in a stone wall
They kepe them in theyr holdes
Lyke hen herted cokoldes
¶But yet they ouer shote vs
Wyth crownes & wyth Scutus
With Scutis & crownes of gold:
I drede we are bought and solde
It is a wonders warke
They shote all at one marke
At the Cardynals hat
Thy shote all at that
Oute of theyr stronge townes
They
shote[?] at him with crownes
With crownes of golde enblased
They make him so a mased
And his eyen so dased
That he nese can
To know god nor man
He is set so hye
In his Ierarchy
Of frantycke frenesy
And folysshe Fantasy
[Page] That in the chambre of sterres
All maters there he marres
Clappyng his rod on the borde
No man dare speke a worde
For he hathe all the sayenge
With out any renayenge
He rolleth in his recordes
He sayth / how saye ye my lordes
Is nat my reason good
Good euyn good Robyn hode
Some say yes. And some
Syt styll / as they were dom
Thus thwartyng ouer thom
He ruleth all the roste
With braggynge and with bost
Borne vp on euery fyde
With pompe and withpryde
With trompe vp Alleluya
For dame Philargera
Hathe so his herte in holde
He loueth nothyng but golde
And Asmodeus of hell
Maketh his membres swell
[Page] With Dalyda to mell
That wanton damosell
¶Adew philosophia
Aoew Theologia
Welcome dame Simonia
With dame Castrimergia
To drynke and for to eate
Swete ypocrus and swete meate
To kepe his flesshe chast
In lent for a repast
He eateth copons stewed
Fesaunt / and partriche mewed
Hennes / checkynges / and pygges
He foynes and he frygges
Spareth neither mayde ne wyfe
This is a postels lyfe
Helas / my herte is sory
To tell of vayne glory
But now vpon this story
I wyll no further ryme
Tyll another tyme
¶Tyll another tyme. &c.
What newes what news
Small newes y
• true is
That be worth.
[...] kues
But at y
• naked stewes
I vnder stande how that
The sygne of the Cardynall hat
That Inne is now shyt vp
With gup hore gup / now gup
Gup Guilliam Trauillian
With
[...]ast you I say Iullian
Wyll ye bere no coles
A mayny of marefoles
That occupy theyr holys
[...]ull of pocky molys
What here ye of Lancashyre
They were nat payde their hyre
They are felas any fyre
What here ye of Ch
[...]sshyre
They haue la
[...]de all in the myre
They grugyd and sayde
Theyr wages were nat payde
Some sayde they were afrayde
Of the scortysshe hoost
[Page] For all theyr crack and bost
Wylde fyre and thonder
For all this worldly wonder
A hundred myle a sonder
They were / whan the were next
That is a trew text
What here ye of the scottes
They make vs all sottes
Poppynge folysshe dawes
They make vs to pyll strawes
They play their olde pranckes
After huntley bankes
At the streme of Banock
[...] burne
They dyd vs a shrewde turne
Whan Edwarde of Karnaruan
Lost all his father wan
¶What here ye of y
• lorde Dakers
He maketh vs Iacke rakers
He sayes we ar but crakers
He calleth vs England men
Stronge herted lyke an hen
For the scottes and he
[Page] To well they do agre
With do thou for me
And I shall do for the
Whyles the red hat doth endure
He mketh him selfe rock sure
The red hat with his lure
Bryngeth all thyuges vnder cure
But as the worlde now gose
What here ye of the lorde Rose
Nothynge to purpose
Nat worth a cockly fose
Their hertes be in thyr hose
The erle of Northumberlande
Dare take nothynge on hande
Our barons be so bolde
In to a mouse hole they wolde
Rynne away and crepe
Lyke a mayny of shepe
Dare nat loke out at dur
For drede of the mastyue
[...]ur
For drede of the bochers dogge
Wold wyrry them lyke an hogge
For and this curre do gnar
[Page] They must stande all a far
To holde vp their hāde at the bar
For all their noble blode
He pluckes them by the hode
And shakes them by the eare
And brynge them in suche feare
He bayteth them lyke a bere
Lyke an oxe or a bull
Theyr wyt
[...]es he saith are dull
He sayth they haue no brayne
Theyr astate to mayntayne
And maketh thē to bow theyr kne
Be fore his maieste
¶Iuges of the kynges lawes
He countys them foles & dawes
Sergyantes of the coyfe eke
He sayth they are to seke
In pletynge of theyr case
At the commune place
Or at the kynges benche
He wryngeth thē suche a wrenche
That all our lerned men
[Page] Dare nat set theyr p
[...]nne
To plete a trew tryall
With in westmynster hall
In the Chaūcery where he sytt
[...]s
But suche as he admyttes
None so hatdy to speke
He sayth, thou buddy p
[...]e
Thy lernynge is to lewde
Thy tonge is nat well
[...]hewde
To
[...]ke before our grace
And openly in that place
He rages and he rau
[...]s
And cals them cankerd knau
[...]s
Thus royally he dothe deale
Vnder the kynges brode seale
And in the checket
[...]he them cheks
In
[...]
[...]er chābre he noddis & be
[...]s
And ber
[...]h him thereso st
[...]wte
That no man dare rowte
Duke / erle / baron nor lorde
But to his sentence must accorde
Whether he be knyght or
[...]uyre
All men mu
[...] folow his d
[...]syre
[Page] What say ye of y
• scottysh kynge
That is another thyng
He is but an yonglyng
A stal worthy stryplyng
There is a whysprīg & a whiplīg
He shulde be hyder brought
But and it were well sought
I trow all wyll be nought
Nat worth a shyttel cocke
Nor worth a sowre calstocke
¶There goth many a lye
Of the duke of Albany
That of shulde go his hede
And brought in quycke or dede
And all Scotlande owers
The moūtenannce of two houres
But as some men sayne
I drede of some false trayne
Subtelly wrought shall be
Vnder a fayned treatee
But with in monethes thre
Men may happely se
[Page] The trechery / and the prankes
Of the Scottysshe bankes
What here ye of Burgonyons
And the Spainyardes onyons
They haue slain our Englisshmen
Aboue threscore and ten
For all your amyte
No better they agre
God saue my lorde Admyrell
What here ye of Mutrell
There with I dare nat mell
Yet what here ye tell
Of our graunde counsell
I coulde say some what
But speke ye no more of that
For drede of the red hat
Take peper in the nose
For than thyne heed of gose
Of by the harde arse
But there is some trauarse
Bytwene some and some
That makys our syre to glum
It is some what wronge
[Page] That his berde is so longe
He morneth in blacke clothynge
I pray god saue the kynge
Where ener he go or ryde
I pray god be his gyde
Thus wyll I conclude my style
And fall to rest a whyle
¶And so to rest a whyle. &c.
ONes yet agayne
Of you I wolde frayne
Why come ye nat to court
To whyche court?
To the kynges courte
Or to Hampton court?
Nay / to the kynges court
The kynges courte
Shulde haue the excellence
But Hampton court
Hath the preemynence
And yorkes place
With my lordes grace
To whose magnifycence
[Page] Is all the con
[...]ewence
Sutys and supplycacyons
Embassades of all nacyons
Strawe for lawe conon
Or for the lawe cōmon
Or for lawe cyuyll
It shall be as he wyll
Stop at law tancrete
An obstract or a concrete
Be it soure be it swete
His wysdome is so dyscrete
That in a fume or an hete
Wardeyn of the flete
Set hym fast by the fete
And of his royall powre
Whan him lyst to lowre
Than haue him to the towre
Saunz aulter remedy
Hane hym forthe by and by
To the marshalsy
Or to the kynges benche
He dyggeth so in the crenche
Of the court royall
[Page] That he ruleth them all
So he dothe vndermynde
And suche sleyghtes dothe fynde
That the kynges mynde
By hym is subuerted
And so streatly coarted
In credenfynge his tales
That all is but nutshales
That any other sayth
He hath in him suche fayth
¶Now / yet all this myght be
Suffred / and taken in gre
If that that he wrought
To any good ende were brought
But all he bringeth to nought
By god that me dere bought
He bereth the dkeyng on hand
That he must pyll his lande
To make his cofers ryche
But he laythe all in the dyche
And vseth suche abusyoun
That in the conclusyoun
[Page] All commeth to confusyon
Perceyue the cause why
To tell the trouth playnly
He is so ambicyous
So shamles / an so vicyous
And so supersticyous
And so moche obliuyous
From whens that he came
That he falleth in to Acis
[...]am
Whiche truly to expresse
Is a forgetfulnesse
Or wylfull blyndnesse
Wherwith the So domites
Lost theyr inward syghtes
The gōmoryans also
Were brought to deedly wo
As scrypture recordis
A cecitate cordis
In the latyne synge we
Lybera nos domine
But this madde Amalecke
Lyke to Amamelek
He regardeth lordes
[Page] No more than pot shordes
He is in suche clacyon
Of his exaltacyon
And the supportacyon
Of our souerayne lorde
That god to recorde
He ruleth all at wyll
With out reason or skyll
How be it the primordyall
Of his wretched originall
And his base progeny
And his gresy
[...]enealogy
He came of the sank royall
y
• was cast out of a bochers stall
¶But how euer he was borne
Men wolde haue the lesse scorne
If he coulde consyder
His byrth and rowme to geder
And call to his mynde
How noble and how kynds
To him he hathe founde
Our souereyne lorde / chyfe groūde
[Page] Of all this prelacy
And set hym nobly
In great auc
[...]oryte
Out from a low degre
Whiche he cannat se
For he was parde
No doctor of deuinyte
Nor doctor of the law
Nor of none other saw
But a poore maister of arte
God wot had lytell parte
Of the Quatriuials
Nor yet of triuials
Nor of philosophy
Nor of Philology
Nor of good pollycy
Nor of astronomy
Nor acquaynted worth a
[...]
With honorable Haly
Nor with royall Ptholomy
Nor with Albumasar
Totreate of any star
Fyxtor els mobyll
[Page] His latyne tonge dothe hobbyll
He doth but cloute and cobbill
In Cullis Faculte
Called humanyte
Yet proudly he dare pretende
How no man can him amende
But haue ye nat harde this
How an one eyed man is
Well syghted / when
He is amonge blynde men
¶Than our processe for to stable
This man was full vnable
To reche to suche degre
Had nat our prynce be
Royall Henry the eyght
Take him in suche conceyght
That he set him on heyght
In exemplyfyenge
Great Alexander the kynge
In writynge as we fynde
Whiche of his royall mynde
And of his noble pleasure
[Page] Transcendynge out of mesure
Thought to do a thynge
That perteyneth to a kynde
To make vp one of nought
Aud made to him be brought
A wretched poore man
Whiche his lyuenge wan
With plantyng of lekes
By the dayes and by the wekes
And of this poore vassall
He made a kynge royall
And gaue him a realme to rule
That occupyed a showell
A mattoke / and a spade
Before that he was made
A kynge / as I haue tolde
And ruled as he wolde
Suche is a kynges power
To make with in an hower
And worke suche a myracle
That shall be a spectacle
Of renowme and worldly fame
In lykewyse now the same
[Page] Cardynall / is promoted
Yet with lewde condicyons cotyd
As herafter ben notyd
Presumcyon and vayne glory
Enuy / wrath / and lechery
Couetys / and glotony
Slouthfull to do good
Now frantick / now starke wode
Shulde this man of suche mode
Rule the swerde of myght
How can he do ryght
For he wyll as sone smyght
His trende / as his fo
A prouerbe longe a go
¶Set vp a wretche on hye
In a trone triumphantlye
Make him a great astate
And he wyll play checke mate
with ryall maieste
Counte him selfe as good as he
A prelate potencyall
To rule vnder Belly all
[Page] As ferce and as cruell
As the fynd of hell
His seruauntes meny all
He dothe reuyle and brall
Lyke Mahounde in a play
No man dare him with say
He hath dispyght and scorne
At them that be well borne
He rebukes them and rayles
Ye horsons / ye bassayles
Ye knaues / ye churles sonnys
Ye rebads nat worth two plūmis
Ye raynbetyn beggers reiagged
Ye recrayed ruffyns all ragged
With stowpe thou hauell
Rynne thou iauell
Thou peuysshe pye pecked
Thou losell longe necked
Thus dayly they be decked
Taunted and checked
That they ar so wo
They wot not whether to go
No man dare come to the speche
[Page] Of this gentell Iacke breche
Of what estate he be
Of spirituall dygnyte
Nor duke of hye degre
Nor Marques / erle / nor lorde
Whiche shrewdly doth accorde
Thus he borne so base
All noble men shulde out face
His countynaunce lyke a kayser
My lorde is nat at layser
Syr ye must tary a stounde
Tyll better layser be founde
And syr, ye must daūce attendaūce
And take pacient sufferaunce
For my lordes grace
Hath nowe no tyme nor space
To speke with you / as yet
¶And thus they shall syt
Chuse them syt or flyt
Stande / walke / or ryde
And his layser abyde
Parchaunce halfe a yere
And yet neuer the nere
[Page] This daungerous dowsy pere
Lyke a kynges pere
And within this. xvi. yere
He wolde haue ben ryght fayne
To haue ben a chapleyne
And haue taken ryght gret payne
With a poore knyght
What soeuer he hyght
The chefe of his owne counsell
They can nat well
[...]ell
Whan they with hym shulde mell
He is so fyers and fell
He rayles and he ratis
He calleth them doddy patis
He grynnes and he gapis
As it were Iack napis
Suche a madde bedleme
For to rewle this reame
It is a wonders case
That the kynges grace
Is toward him so mynded
And so farre blynded
That he can nat par
[...]e yue
[Page] How he doth hym disc
[...]ue
I dought lest by Sorsery
Or suche other loselry
As wychecraft / or charmyng
For he is the kynges derlyng
And his swete hart rott
And is gouerned by this mad
[...]ote
For what is a man the better
For the kynges letter
For he wyll tere it a sonder
Wherat moche I wonder
How suche a hoddy poule
So boldely dare controule
And so malapertly withstande
The kynges owne hande
And settys nat by it a myte
He sayth the kynge doth wryte
And writeth he wottith nat what
And yet for all that
The kynge his clemency
Despensyth with his demensy
¶But what his grace
[...]oth thi
[...]e
[Page] I haue no pen nor inke
That ther with can mell.
But w
[...]le I can tell
How Frauncis Petrarke
That moche noble clerke
Wryteth how Charlemayn
Coude nat him selfe refrayne
But was rauysht with a rage
Of a lyke dotage
But how that came aboute
Rede ye the story oute
And ye shall fynde surely
It was by
[...]ycromansy
By carectes and coniuracyon
Vnder a certeyne constellacion
And a certayne fumygacion
Vnder a stone on a golde ryng
Wrought to Charlemayn y
• king
Whiche constrayned him forcebly
For to loue a certayne body
Aboue all other inordinatly
This is no fable nor no lye
At Acon it was brought to pa
[...]
[Page] As by myne auctor tried it was
But le
[...]mi nasters mathematical
Tell you the rest / for me they shal
They haue the full intellygence
And dare vse the experyens
In there obsolute consciens
To practyue suche abolete sciens
For I abhore to smatter
Of one so deuyllysshe a matter
But I wyll make further relaciō
Of this I sagogicall colation
How maister Gaguine the crownycler
Of the feytis of war
That were done in Fraunce
Maketh remembraunce
How kynge Lewes of late
Made vp a great astate
Of a poore wretchid man
Wherof moche care began
Iohānes Balua was his name
Myne nuctor writeth the same
Promoted was he
To a Cardynalles dygnyte
[Page] By Lewes the kyng a foresayd
With hym so wele apayd
That he made hī his chauncelar
To make all / or to mar
And to rule as him lyst
Tyll he cheked at the fyst
And agayne all reason
Commyted open trayson
And against his lorde souerayn
Wherfore he suffred payn
Was hedyd / drawen / & quarterd
And dyed stynkingly marterd
¶Lo yet for all that
He ware a cardynals hat
In hym was small fayth
As myne auctor sayth
Nat for that I mene
Suche a casuelte shulde be sene
Or suche chaunce shulde fall
Vnto our cardynall
All myghty god I trust
Hath for hindyscust
That of force he must
[Page] Be faythfull / trew / and iust
To our most royall kynge
Chefe rote of his makynge
Yet it is a wyly mouse
That cā bylde his dwellīge house
With in the cattes eare
Withouten drede or feare
It is a nyce reconynge
To put all the gouernynge
All the rule of this lande
In to one mannys hande
One wyse mannys hede
May stande somwhat in stede
But the wyttys of many wyse
Moche better can deuy
[...]e,
By theyr cyrcumspection
And theyr sad dyrcection
To cause the commune weale
Longe to endure in heale
Christ kepe king Henry the eyght
From trechery and dysceyght
And
[...]raunt him grace to know
The fau
[...]on from the crow
[Page] The wolfe from the lam
From whens that mastyfe cam
Let him neuer con founde
The gentyll grey hownde
Of this matter the grownde
Is easy to expounde
And soone may be perceyuid
How the warlde is conueyed
¶But harke my frēde one worde
In ernest or in borde
Tell me nowe in this stede
Is maister Mewtas dede
The kynges frenshe secretary
And his vntrew aduersary
For he sent in writynge
To Fraunces the french ky
[...]g
Of our maisters coūsel ī euerithīg
That was a peryllous rekenyg
¶Nay nay / he is nat dede
But he was so payned in the hede
That he shall neuer ete more bred
[Page] Now he is gone to another stede
wirh a bull vnder lead
By way of commissyon
To a straunge iuris
[...]ictyon
Called Dymingis dale
Farre by yonde Portyngale
And hathe his pas port to pas
Vltra sauromatas
To the deuyll syr Sathanas
To Pluto and syr Bellyall
The deuyls vycare generall
And to his college conuentuall
As well calodemonyall
As to cacademonyall
To puruey for our Cardynall
A palace pontifycall
To kepe his court prouyncyall
Vpon artycles iudicyall
To
[...]ntende and to stryne
For his prerogatyue
With in that consystory
To make sommons peremtory
Be fore some prothonetory
[Page] Imperyall or papall
Vpon this matter mistycall
I haue tolde you part / but nat all
Herafter perchaunce I shall
Make a larger memoryall
And a further rehersall
And more paper I thinke to blot
To the court why I cam not
Desyring you aboue all thynge
To kepe you from laughynge
Whan ye fall to redynge
Of this wanton scrowle
And pray for Mewtas sowle
For he is well past and gone
That wolde god euerychone
Of his affynyte
Were gone as well as he
Amen / amen / say ye
Of your in ward charyte.
Amen.
¶Of your inward charyte.
IT were great rewth
For wrytynge of trewth
[Page] Any man shulde be
In perplexyte
Of dyspleasure
For I make you sure
Where trouth is abhorde
It is a playne recorde
That there wantys grace
In whose place
Dothe occupy
Full vngracyously
Fals flatery
Fals terchery
Fals brybery
Subtyle Sym Sly
With madde foly
For who can bestlye
He is best set by
Than fare well to the
Welthfull felycite
For prosperyte
Away than wyll lie
Than must we agre
With pouert
[...]
[Page] For mysery
With penury
Myserably
And wrerchydly
Hath made askrye
And out cry
Folowynge the chase
To dryue away grace
Yet sayst thou per case
We can lacke no grace
For my lordes grace
And my ladies grace
With trey duse ase
And ase in the face
Some hau
[...]e and some base
Some daunce the trace
Euer in one case
Marke me that chase
In the tennys play
For synke quater trey
Is a tall man
He rod / but we
[...]
Hay the gye and the gan
[Page] The gray gose is no swan
The waters wax wan
And beggers they ban
And they cursed datan
De tribu dan
That this warke began
Palam / et
clam[?]
With Balak and Balam
¶The golden ram
Of flemmyng dam
Sem / Iapheth / or cam?
But howe comme to pas
Your cupbord that was
Is tourned to glasse
From syluer to brasse
From golde to pewter
Or els to a newter
To copper / to tyn
To lede or / alcumyn
A goldsmyth your mayre
But the chefe of your fayre
Myght stande nowe by potters
[Page] And suche as sell trotters
Pyrchars / potshordis
This shrewdly accordis
To be a copborde for lordys
My lorde now and syr knyght
Good euyn and good nyght
For now syr Trestram
Ye must weare bukram
Or canues of Cane
For sylkes are wane
Our royals that shone
Our nobles are gone
Amonge the Burgonyons
And spanyardes onyons
And the Flanderkyns
Gyll swetis and Cate spynnys
They are happy that wynnys
But Englande may well say
Fye on this wynnyng all way
Now nothynge / but pay pay
With laughe and lay downe
Borowgh / cyte / and towne
Good Sprynge of Lanam
[Page] Must counte what became
Of his clothe makynge
He is at suche takynge
Though his purse wax dull
He must tax for his wull
By nature of a newe writ
My lordys grace nameth it
A quia non satisfacit
In the spyght of his tethe
He must pay a gayne
Athousande or twayne
Of his golde in store
And yet he payde before
And hunderd pounde and more
Whiche pyncheth him sore
My lordis grace wyll brynge
Downe this hye Sprynge
And brynge it so lowe
It shall nat euer flowe
¶Suche a prelate I trowe
Were worthy to rowe
Thorow the streytes of Marock
[Page] To the gybbet of Baldock
He wolde dry vp the stremys
Of .ix. kinges realmys
All ryuers and wellys
All waters that swellys
For with vs he so mellys
That within Englande dwellys
I wolde he were somwhere ellys
For els by and by
He wyll drynke vs so drye
And suck vs so nye
That men shall scantly
Haue peny or halpeny
God saue his noble grace
And graunt him a place
Endlesse to dwell
With the deuyll of hell
For and he were there
We nede neuer feere
Of the fendys blake
For I vnder take
He wolde so brag and crake
That he wolde than make
[Page] The deuyls to quake
To shudder and to shake
Lyke a fyer drake
And with a cole rake
Brose them on a brake
And bynde them to astake
And set hell on fyer
At his owne desyer
He is suche a grym syer
And suche a potestolate
And suche a potestate
That he wolde breke the braynes
Of Lucy fers in his chaynes
And rule them echone
In Lucyfers trone
I wolde he were gone
For amonge vs is none
That ruleth / but he alone
With out all good reason
And all out of season
For Folam peason
With him be natgeson
They growwe very ranke
[Page] Vpon euery banke
Of his herbers grene
With my lady bryght and shene
On theyr game it is sene
They play nat all clene
And it be as I wene
¶But as touchynge dystrectyō
With sober dyrectyon
He kepeth them in subiectyon
They can haue no protectyon
To rule nor to guyde
But all must be tryde
And abyde the correctyon
Of his wylfull affectyon
For as for wytte
The deuyll spede whitte
But braynsyk and braynlesse
Wytles and rechelesse
Careles and shamlesse
Thriftles and gracelesse
To gether are bended
And so condy scended
[Page] That the commune welth
Shall neuer haue good helth
But tatterd aud ruggyd
Raggyd / and ruggyd
Shauyn and shorne
And all threde bare worne
Suche gredynesse
Suche nedynesse
My serablenesse
With wretchydnesse
Hath brought in dystresse
And moche heuyuesse
And great dolowre
Englande the flowre
Of relucent honowre
In olde commemoracion
Most royall Englyssh nacion
Now all is out of facion
Almost in desolation
I speke by protestacion
God of his miseracyon
Send better reformacyon
Lo / for to do shamfully
[Page] He iugeth it no foly
But to wryte of his shame
He sayth we ar to blame
What a
[...]renly is this
No shame to do amys
And yet he is a shamed
To be shamfully named
And ofte prech
[...]ues be blamed
Bycause they haue proclamed
His madnesse by writynge
His symplenesse resytynge
Remordynge and bytynge
With chydyng and with
[...]y
[...]y
[...]ge
Shewynge him goddis
[...]aw
[...]s
He calleth the prechours dawis
¶And of holy scriptures saw
[...]s
He counteth them for gygawis
And putteth them to sylence
And with
[...] of vyolence
Lyke Ph
[...],
[...] of grace
Dyd Moyses so
[...]e
[...]
And Aron so
[...]e
[...]e three
[Page] The worde of god to let
This maumet in lyke wyse
Against the churche doth ryse
The prechour he dothe dyspys
[...]
With crakyyge in suche wyse
So braggynge all with bost
That no prechour almost
Dare speke for his lyfe
Of my lordis grace / nor his wyte
For he hath suche a bull
He may take whom he wull
And as many as him lykys
May ete pigges in lent for pikys
After the sectes of heretykis
For in lent he wyll et
[...]
All maner of flesshe mete
That he can ony where gete
With other abusyons grete
Wherof for to trete
It wolde make y
• deuyll to swete
For all priuileged places
He brekes and defaces
All placis of relygion
[Page] He hathe them in derisyon
And makith suche prouisyon
To dryue them at diuisyon
And fynally in conclusyon
To bringe them to confu
[...]yon
Saint Albons to recorde
Wherof this vngracyous lorde
Hathe made him selfe abbot
Against their wylles god wot
All this he dothe deale
Vnder strength of the great seale
And by his legacy
Whiche madly he dothe apply
Vnto an extrauagancy
Pyked out of all good lawe
With reasons that ben rawe
Yet whan he toke first his hat
He said he knew what was what
All iustyce he pretended
All thynges sholde be a mended
All wronges he wolde redresse
All iniuris he wolde represse
All periuris he wolde oppresse
[Page] And yet this gr
[...]celesse elfe
He is periured him selfe
As playnly it dothe appere
Who lyst to enquere
In the regestry
Of my lorde of Cantorbury
To whom he was professed
In thre poyntes expressed
The fyrst to do him reuerence
The secōde to owe hym obedynce
The thirde with hole affectyon
To be vnder his subi
[...]ctyon
But now hemaketh obiectyon
Vnder the protectyon
Of the kynges great seale
That he setteth neuer a deale
By his former othe
Whether god be pleased or wroth
He makith so proude pretens
That in his equipolens
He ingyth him equiualent
With god omnipotent
But yet be ware the rod
[Page] And the stroke of god,
The apostyll Peter
Had a pore my
[...]er
And a poore cope
Whan he was creat pope
First in Antioche
He dyd neuer approche
Of Rome to the see
Weth suche dygnyte
Saynt Dunstane what was he
Nothynge he sayth lyke to we
There is a dyuersyte
By twene him and me
We passe hym in degre
As legatus a latere
Ecce sacerdos magnus
That wyll hed vs and hange vs
And strcitly strangle vs
And he may fange vs
Decre and deecetall
Constytucyon prouineyall
Nor no lawe canonicall
Shall le
[...] the preest pontyficall
[Page] To syt in causa sanguinis
Nowe god amende that is a mys
For I suppose that he is
Of Ieremy the why skynge rod
The flayle / the scourge
Of almighty god
This Naman Sirus
So fell and so irous
So full of maleucoly
With a flap afore his eye
Men wene that he is pocky
Or els his surgions they lye
For as far as the can spy
By the craft of surgery
It is manus domini
And yet this proude Antiochus
He is so ambicious
So elate / and so vitious
And so cruell hertyd
That he wyll nat be conuertyd
For he setteth god a part
He is nowe so ouerth wart
And so payned with pangis
[Page] That all his trust hangis
In Balthasor / whiche heled
Domīgos nose / that was wheled
That Lumberdes nose meane I
That standeth yet a wrye
It was nat heled alderbest
It standeth somwhat on the west
I meane Domyngo Lomelyn
That was wont to wyn
Moche money of the kynge
At the cardys and haserdynge
Balthasor y
• helyd domīgos uose
From the puskylde pocky pose
Now with his gūmys of araby
Hath ꝓmised to hele our cardinals eye
Yet sum surgiōs put a dout
Lest he wyll put it clene out
And make hi lame of his neder limes
God sēde him sorowe for his sines
Some mē myght aske a q̄stion
By whose suggesty
[...]n
I toke on hand this warke
Thus boldly for to barke
[Page] And men lyst to harke
And my wordes marke
I wyll answere lyke a clerk
[...]
For trewly and vnfayned
I am forcebly constrayned
At Iuuynals request
To wryght of this glorious gest
Of this vayne gloryous best
His fame to be encrest
At euery solempne feest
Quia difficile est
Satiram non scribere?
Now mayster doctor / howe say y
[...]
What soeuer your name be
What though ye be namelesse
Ye, shall nat escape blamelesse
Nor yet shall scape shamlesse
Mayster doct
[...]r in your degre
yourselfe madly ye ouer se
Blame Iuuinall & blame nat me
Maister doctor diricum
Omne / animi vicium
[...] &c.
As Iuuinall dothe recorde
[Page] A small defaute in a great lorde
A lytell cryme in a great astate
Is moche more inordinate
And more horyble to beholde
Than any other a thousand folde
Ye put to blame ye wot nere whō
Ye may weare a cockes come
your fōde hed in your furred hode
Holde ye your tong ye cā no goode
And at more conuenye
[...]t tyme
I may fortune for to ryme
Som what of your madnesse
For small is your sadnesse
To put any man in lack
And say yll be
[...]ynde his back
And my wordes marke truly
That ye can n
[...]t byde thereby
For Smigma non est sinamomū
But de absentibus nil ni
[...]i bonum
Complayne or do what ye wyll
Of your cōplaynt it shall nat skyl
This is the tenor of my byl
A daucock ye be / & so shalbe styll.
¶Sequitur epitoma de morbilloso Thoma Nec nonobscend de poliphemo. &c.
[...]Orro perbelle dissimulatū
Illū pādulphū tātū legatū
Tam formidatū nuper prelatum
Ceu / Naman sirsinu
[...]e elongatū
Insolitudine iam commoratum
Nrapolitano morbo grauatum
Malagmate / Cataplasmatistat
[...]
Pharmacapoli ferro foratum
Nihilo magis alleniatum
Nihilo melius aut medicatum
Relictis famulis ad famulatum
Quo tollatur infamia
Sed maior patet insania
A modo ergo Ganea
Abhoreat ille Ganeus
Dominus male Creticus
Aptius Dictus Tetricus
Phanaticus freneticus
[Page] Graphicus sicut Metricus
[...]utumat,
HOc genus dictaminis
Non egit examinis
In cen
[...]iloquio nec centimetro
Honorati
Graminatici
Mauri.
¶Decasticon virulentum in galeratum / Licaonta marinum [...]. &c.
PRoghdolor / e
[...]e mar
[...] lupꝰ et nequissimus. vrsus
Carnificis vitulus Britonum
[...] bubulcus iniquus
Conflatus / vitulus
[...] vel Oreb / vel Salmana / velzeb.
Carduus / et erudelis Asaph
(que) Datan reprobatus
Blandus et Acchitiphel / regis scelus omne Britannum
Ecclesias / qui nam
(que) Thomas confundit vbi
(que)
Non sacer iste / Thomas /
[Page] sed duro corde / Goleas
Quem gestat Mulus sathane cacet (obsecro
[...]culus
Fundens Aspaltum (precor hunc versum lege cautum)
Asperius nichll est misero quum surget in altum.
¶Apostropha an Londini ciues (citanto mulum a [...]ino aureo gale rato) in occursum aguile. &c.
EXitat eu
[...]sious mulum (mirabile / visu)
Calcibus: O vestro ciues occurite Asello.
Qui regnum reg
[...] regit qui vestra
[...]
Predia diuitias /
[...] gasas spoli
[...]nd
[...].
¶Dirit, alludens / i [...]mo ill [...]dēs [...]odo [...]ā de [...] to gale [...]t [...] [...] xxxii [...].
Hec vates ille [...] mille