Part 36 (2/2)
THE ENUOY OF THE TRASLATOUR.
Thou blynde Phesician that of thy craft nought can Leue of thy lewdnes and bolde audacyte To take on the: the cure of chylde or man For by thy foly the wors myght they be And ye that suerly perceyue your faculte Be true therin, and auaryce from you cast Shame is to brynge a man to pouertye And than in paynes to leue hym at the last
Of the ende of worldly honour and power and of Folys that trust therein.
[Ill.u.s.tration: On erth was neuer degre so excellent Nor man so myghty: in ryches nor scyence But at the ende all hath ben gone and spent Agaynst the same no man can make defence Deth all thynge drawyth, ferefull is his presence, It is last ende of euery thynge mundayne Thus mannys fortune of cours is vncertayne]
O creatures of myndes mad and blynde I wonder of your hertis proude and eleuate Whiche on vayne power set so sore your mynde And trust so moche to your vnsure estate As of your lyfe were neyther yere nor date To worldly worshyp ye stedfastly intende As if your lyfe sholde neuer more come to ende
Alway ye labour to come to dignyte And oft by falshode your power to augment Alas fewe ar content with theyr degre But by extorcion spoyle the pore innocent On worldly treasour so set is theyr intent And styll to honour as besely to ascende As if theyr lyfe sholde neuer more come to ende
Take thou example by Julius cesar That of the worlde durynge a whyle was sure And many kynges subduyd by myght of warre And of the Empyre had lordshyp charge cure But this his myght great s.p.a.ce dyd nat endure And whyle he trustyd yet hyer to ascende By cruell deth he soon came to his ende
Right in lyke wyse the myghty Darius Was kynge of Persy a realme moche excellent Yet was his mynde so greatly couetus That with the same helde he hym nat content But warred on other Royalmes adiacent So whan his myght coude nat therto extende His owne Royalme he loste and so came to his ende
And also Xerxes in ryches abundant Was longe in peas and great tranquyllyte And in his Royalme was hye and tryumphant As longe as he was content with his degre Than had he pleasour and great felycyte.
To a.s.say by warre his kyngdome to amende But all he lost and so came to his ende
Whyle NabuG.o.donosor kynge of Babylone In vnsure fortune set to great confydence Commaundynge honour vnto hym to be done As vnto G.o.d: with all humble reuerence, G.o.d by his power and hye magnyfycence Made hym a beste, for that he dyd offende And so in proces of tyme came to his ende
Alexander the great and myghty conquerour To whome all the worlde scantly myght suffyse Of Grece was the origynall lorde and Emperour And all the worlde subdued as I surmyse Yet hath he done as is the comon gyse Left all behynde, for nought coude hym defende But as a symple man at the last came to his ende
The myghty Cresus with his kyngdomes and store Of golde and ryches hym selfe coude nat content But whyle he trustyd and laboured for more Fortune hym fayled: So lost he his intent.
What shall I wryte of Cyrus excellent Drynkynge his blode by deth whiche fortune sende To here of states the comon deth and ende
All kyngdomes dekay and all estate mundayne Example of Rome Cartago and Mycene Of Solyme Tyre grace and Troy moste souerayne None of these places ar nowe as they haue ben Nor none other ouer the worlde as I wene Thus shortly to speke and all to comprehende All worldly thynges at last shall haue an ende.
THE ENOUY OF BARKLAY TO THE FOLYS.
O man that hast thy trust and confydence Fyxed on these frayle fantasyes mundayne Remember at the ende there is no difference Bytwene that man that lyued hath in payne And hym that hath in welth and ioy souerayne They both must dye their payne is of one sort Both ryche and pore, no man can deth refrayne For dethes dart expellyth all confort
Say where is Adam the fyrst progenytour Of all mankynde is he nat dede and gone And where is Abell of innocence the flour With adamys other sonnes euerychone A: dredfull deth of them hath left nat one Where is Mathusalem, and Tuball that was playne The first that played on Harpe or on Orgone _Ilz sont tous mortz ce monde est choce vayne_
Where is iust Noy and his ofsprynge become Where is Abraham and all his progeny As Isaac and Jacob, no strength nor wysdome Coude them ensure to lyue contynually Where is kynge Dauyd whome G.o.d dyd magnyfy And Salomon his son of wysdome souerayne Where ar his sonnes of wysdome and beauty _Ilz sont toutz mortz ce monde est choce vayne._
Where ar the prynces and kynges of Babylon And also of Jude and kynges of Israell Where is the myghty and valiant Sampson He had no place in this lyfe ay to dwell Where ar the Prynces myghty and cruell That rayned before Christ delyuered vs from payne And from the Dongeons of darke and ferefull h.e.l.l _Ilz sont toutz mortz ce monde est choce vayne._
Of worldly worsyp no man can hym a.s.sure In this our age whiche is the last of all No creature can here alway endure Yonge nor olde, pore man nor kynge royall Unstable fortune tourneth as doth a ball And they that ones pas can nat retourne agayne Wherfore I boldly dare speke in generall We all shall dye: _ce monde est choce vayne_.
Ryches nor wysdome can none therfro defende Ne in his strength no man can hym a.s.sure Say where is Tully is he nat come to ende Seneke the sage with Cato and Arture The hye Arystotyll of G.o.dly wyt and pure The glorious G.o.dfray, and myghty Charlemayne Thoughe of theyr lyfe they thought that they were sure Yet ar they all dede: _ce monde est choce vayne_.
Where ar the Phylosophers and Poetis lawreat The great Grammaryens and pleasant oratours.
Ar they nat dede after the same fourme and rate As ar all these other myghty conquerours Where ar theyr Royalmes theyr ryches and treasours Left to theyr heyres: and they be gone certayne And here haue left theyr riches and honours So haue they proued that this worlde is but vayne.
So I conclude bycause of breuyte That if one sought the worlde large and wyde Therin sholde be founde no maner of dere That can alway in one case suerly byde Strength, honour, riches cunnynge and beautye All these decay, dayly: thoughe we complayne _Omnia fert etas_, both helth and iolyte We all shall dye: _ce monde est choce vayne_.
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