Of yonge folys that take olde wymen to theyr wyues, for theyr ryches.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Within our shyp that fole shall haue a hode Whiche an olde wyfe taketh in maryage Rather for hir ryches and hir worldly G.o.de Than for pure loue, or hope to haue lynage But suche youth as mary them selfe with age The profyte and pleasour of wedlocke lese certayne And worthely lyue in brawlynge stryfe and payne.]

Under the a.s.se tayle thoughe it be no thynge pure Yet many seke and grope for the vyle fatnes Gatherynge togyther the fowle dunge and ordure Suche ar they that for treasour and ryches Whyle they ar yonge in theyr chefe l.u.s.tynes An agyd woman taketh to theyr wyfe Lesynge theyr youth, and shortynge so theyr lyfe

They that so do hath neyther rest nor peas But besy brawlynge and stryfe contynuall They have no pleasour, but thought and great dyseas Rebuke out braydynge, and strypes whan they fall But theyr owne foly is grounde and cause of all For they be maryd unto the vyle treasour And precious bagges, but nat for G.o.dly pleasour

They haue no hope of children nor lynage Loue is there none, and durynge theyr wretchyd lyfe Is nat one day in suche mad maryage Auoyde of brawlynge, of hatered and of stryfe But that pore man that weddeth a ryche wyfe Cast in his nose shall styll hir bagges fynde For whose cause he made was made and blynde

They that ar weddyd nat for loue but rychesse Of moryage despysynge the pleasour and profyte Suche seldome sauour fortunes happynes But oft mysfortune them greuously doth byte Thus gone is theyr pleasour theyr ioy and delyte And for vayne treasoure suche ar so glad and fayne That for the same they them subdue to payne

They wyllyngly to payne them selfe subdue The whiche ar weddyd for wretchyd couetyse They take no hede to maners and vertue To honeste nor wysdome but lyue ay in malyce For if a woman be fowle and full of vice And lewde of maners, nought both to man and lad Yet good shall hir mary be she neuer so bad

If that a man of hye or lowe degre Wolde spouse his doughter vnto a strange man He nought inquyreth of his honestye Of his behauour, nor if he norture can But if he be ryche in londes and good: than He shall be prayed his doughter for to haue Thoughe be but a bonde man or a knaue

The firste enquyrynge and speciall questyon Is of the money, that thynge namely they moue And last of all aske they the condicion So whan they mete they neuer haue perfyte loue Wherfore it were better to suche for theyr behoue To byde alone in deserte and wyldernes Than in wedloke in payne for frayle ryches

Forsoth it is an vnmete maryage And disagreynge and moche agaynst the lawe Bytwene fresshe youth, and lame vnl.u.s.ty age The loue bytwene them is scantly worth a strawe So doth the one styll on the other gnawe And oft the man in mynde doth sore complayne.

His sede to sowe vpon a grounde barayne

Than muste he haue another prymme or twayne With them to slake his wanton yonge cowrage But in that s.p.a.ce must he endure great payne With hir that he hath tane in maryage Hir bablynge tunge whiche no man can a.s.swage With wrathfull wordes shall sle hym at the laste His other prymes his good shall spende and waste

Thus who that selleth his youthes l.u.s.tynes For frayle ryches and this mundayne vanyte He byeth stryfe, gyle and falshode endlesse Suche force nat for fayth true loue nor honestye And thoughe that he discende of hye degre For hope of money he shall an olde fole wed By whose foly he to euery yll is led.

And so these folys subdue them to bondage And worthely endure suche payne and punysshement They hope therby to come to auantage But that they lese and lyue in sore tourment They wast theyr good, and so whan that is spent And nought remayneth theyr bodyes to relefe Theyr disputacion is nought but h.o.r.e and thefe

But if I sholde wryte all the vnhappynes The wrath discorde and the great deuysyon Wherin they lyue, that mary for ryches And nat for loue. I neuer sholde haue done Wherfore this say I for a conclusyon That he shall neuer thryue ne come to his behoue That weddyth a wyfe for G.o.de and nat for loue

THE ENUOY OF BARKLAY.

Alas man myndles what is thyne intent To wed for ryches, that weddynge I defy Maryage was ordeyned by G.o.d omnypotent In G.o.ddes lawes the worlde to multyply Wherfore that man that wyll therto aply And wolde haue the profyte of faythfull maryage This worldly ryches ought no thynge to set by But wed for loue and hope to haue lynage

Remember ryches is no thynge comparable To mekenes vertue and discrete gouernaunce And other maners whiche ar more commendable Than worldly treasour or suche vnsure substaunce Wherfore consyder and call to thy remembraunce That better is to haue some woman pore and bare And lyue in eas: Than one with habundaunce Of great ryches: and euer to lyue in care

Of enuyous Folys.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Yet ar mo folys whiche greatly them delyte In others losse, and that by fals enuy Wherby they suche vnrightwysly bacbyte The dartis of suche ouer all the wordly flye And euer in fleynge theyr fethers multyply No state in erth therfro can kepe hym sure His sede encreasyth as it wolde euer endure]

Wastynge enuy oft styreth to malyce Folys nat a fewe whiche ar therto enclynyd Pryckynge theyr frowarde hertes vnto vyce Of others damage reioysynge in theyr mynde Enuyes darte doth his begynnynge fynde In wrathfull hertes, it wastyth his owne nest Nat suffrynge other to lyue in eas and rest

If one haue plenty of treasour and ryches Or by his merytis obteyne great dignyte These folys enuyous that of the same haue les Enuy by malyce, the others hye degre And if another of honour haue plente They it enuy and wysshe that they myght sterue Howe be it suche folys can nat the same deserue

These folys desyre agaynst both lawe and right Anoters good if they may get the same If they may nat by flaterynge nor by myght Than by fals malyce they hym enuy and blame Outher if one by his vertue hath good name By fals enuy these foles hym reproue Their wrath them blyndeth so that they none can loue

The wounde of this malycious, fals enuy So dedely is, and of so great cruelte That it is incurable and voyde of remedy A man enuyous hath suche a properte That if he purpose of one vengyd to be Or do some mysche, whiche he reputyth best Tyll it be done, he neuer hath eas nor rest

No slepe, no rest nor pleasour can they fynde To them so swete, pleasaunt and delectable That may expell this malyce from theyr mynde So is enuy a vyce abhomynable And vnto helth so frowarde and d.a.m.nable That if it onys be rotyd in a man It maketh hym lene. his colour pale and wan.

Enuy is pale of loke and countenaunce His body lene of colour pale and blewe His loke frowarde, his face without pleasaunce Pyllynge lyke scalys, his wordes ay vntrue His iyen sparklynge with fyre ay fresshe and newe It neuer lokyth on man with iyen full But euer his herte by furious wrath is dull

Thou mayst example fynde of this enuy By Joseph whome his bretherne dyd neuer beholde With louynge loke, but sharpe and cruelly So that they hym haue murdred gladly wolde I myght recount examples manyfolde Howe many by enuy lost hath theyr degre But that I leue bycause of breuyte

Enuyous folys ar stuffed with yll wyll In them no myrth nor solace can be founde They neuer laughe but if it be for yll As for G.o.de lost or whan some shyp is drounde Or whan some hous is brent vnto the grounde But whyle these folys on other byte and gnawe Theyr enuy wastyth theyr owne herte and theyr mawe

The mount of Ethnay though it brent euer styll Yet (saue itselfe) it brenneth none other thynge So these enuyous Folys by theyr yll wyll Wast theyr owne herte, thoughe they be ay musynge Another man to shame and losse or hurt to brynge Upon them sellfe Thus tournyth this yll agayne To theyr destruccion both shame great losse and payne

This fals enuy by his malycious yre Doth often, bretherne so cursedly inflame That by the same the one of them conspyre Agaynst the other without all fere and shame As Romulus and Remus excellent of fame Whiche byldyd Rome, but after: enuy so grewe Bytwene them that the one the other slewe

What shall I wryte of Cayme and of Abell Howe Cayme for murder suffred great payne and wo Atreus story and Theseus cruell.

Ar vnto vs example hereof also Ethyocles with his brother: and many mo Lyke as the storyes declareth openly The one the other murdred by enuy

THE ENUOY OF BARKLAY TO THE FOLYS.

Wherfore let hym that is discrete and wyse This wrathfull vyce exyle out of his mynde And yll on none by malyce to surmyse Let charyte in perfyte loue the bynde Sue hir preceptis than shalt thou consort fynde Loue in this lyfe, and ioy whan thou art past Where as enuy thy conscyence shall blynde And both they blode and body mar and wast

Of impacient Folys that wyll nat abyde correccion.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Unto our Folys shyp let hym come hastely Whiche in his Bagpype hath more game and sport Than in a Harpe or Lute more swete of melody I fynde vnnumerable Folys of this sort Whiche in theyr Bable haue all they hole confort For it is oft sayd of men both yonge and olde A fole wyll nat gyue his Babyll for any golde]

The grettest synners that man may se or fynde In myserable Folys theyr foly to expres Is whan they wyll by no mean gyue theyr mynde To frendly wordes, to grace or to goodnes Suche folys so set theyr mynde on frowardnes That though one gyue them counsell sad and wyse They it disdayne and vtterly despyse

But he that is discrete sad and prudent Aplyeth his mynde right gladly to doctryne He hereth wyse men, his wysdome to augment He them doth folowe and to theyr wordes enclyne But that fole whiche ay goeth to ruyne.

And mortall myschefe had leuer be dede or slayne Than byde correccyon or for his profyte payne

Suche haue suche pleasour in theyr mad folysshe pype That they dispyse all other melody.

They leuer wolde dye folys than: byde a strype For theyr correccyon and specyall remedy And without dout none other Armony To suche folys is halfe so delectable As is their folysshe bagpype and theyr babyll

These frantyke folys wyll byde no punysshement Nor smale correccion, for theyr synne and offence No frendly warnynge can chaunge theyr yll intent For to abyde it, they haue no pacyence.

They here no wysdome but fle from hir presence And so it hapnyth that in the worlde be Mo folys than men of wyt and grauyte

O mortall fole remember well what thou art Thou art a man of erth made and of clay Thy dayes ar short and nede thou must depart Out of this lyfe, that canst thou nat denay Yet hast thou reason and wyt wherby thou may Thy selfe here gyde by wysdome ferme and stable Wherby thou pa.s.sest all bestis vnreasonable

Thou art made lorde of euery creature All thynge erthly vnto thyne obedyence G.o.d hath the creat vnto his owne fygure Lo is nat here a great preemynence G.o.d hath also gyuyn vnto the intellygence And reason and wyt all foly to refuse.

Than art thou a fole that reason to abuse

He that is fre outher in subieccion.

If by his foly he fall into offence And than submyt hym vnto correccyon.

All men shall laude his great obedyence But if that one by pryde and insolence Supporte his faute and so bere out his vyce The h.e.l.l tourmentis hym after shall chastyce

Correccyon shall the vnto wysdome brynge Whiche is more precious than all erthly ryches Than londes rentis or any other thynge Why dost thou bost the of byrth or n.o.blenes Of ryches, strength beauty or fayrnes These often ar cause of inconuenyence.

Where as all good comyth by wysdome and prudence