Go, little pamfilet, and streight thee dresse
Unto the noble rootid gentillesse
Of the myghty Prince of famous honour,
My gracious Lord of York, to whose
noblesse

Me recommande with hertes humblesse,
As he that have his grace and his favour
Fownden alway; for which I am dettour
For him to preye; and so shal my sym-
plesse

Hertily do unto my dethes hour.

Remembre his worthynesse, I charge thee, 1
How ones at London, desired he,
Of me that am his servant, and shal ay,

Yit ful fayn wolde I have a messageer
To recommande me, with herte enteer,
To hir benigne and humble wommanbede; 30
And at the tyme have I noon othir heer
But thee; and smal am I, for thee, the
neer, 6

And if thow do it nat, than shal that dede
Be left and that nat kepte I, out of drede.
My lord, nat I, shal have of thee poweer.
Axe him a licence; upon him crie and
grede! 7

Whan that thow hast thus doon, than aftirward

Byseeche thou that worthy Prince Edward, That he thee leye apart for what may tyde,

Lest thee beholde my Maister Picard.
I warne thee that it shal be full hard
For thee and me to halte on any syde,
But he espie us. Yit, no force, abyde!
Let him looke on; his herte is to me-ward
So freendly that our shame wole he hyde.

40

How welthye a man be, or well begone,15 Endure it shall not; he shall it forgon. Deathe under fote shall hym thrist adowne: That is every wites conclusyon,16

Whiche for to weyve 17 is in no mannes myght,

How riche he be, stronge, lusty, freshe, and

gay.

And in the ende of Novembar, upon a nyght,

13 Will not let me wear spectacles. Hoccleve mentions them again in his poem To Sir John Oldcastle, 1. 417. 14 swiftly. 15 situated. 16 man's end. 17 avoid.

30

The grefe abowte my harte so sore swal,
And bolned 4 ever to and to so sore,
That nedes oute I muste there-with-all;
I thowght I nolde it kepe cloos no more,
Ne lett it in me for to olde and hore;5
And for to preve I cam of a woman,
1 brast oute on the morowe and thus began.

(Here endythe my prologe and folowythe my complaynt.)

Allmyghty God as lyke the his goodnes,
Visytethe folks alday as men may se,
With lose of good and bodily sikenese,
And amonge othar he forgat not me;
Witnes upon
6 the wyld infirmytie 7
Which that I had, as many a man well
knewe,

40

And whiche me owt of my selfe cast and threw.

Of his good reconsiliacion, -
My wyt and I have bene of such accorde
As we were or 11 the alteracion
Of it was. But by my savacion,
Sith that tyme have I be sore sett on fire,
And lyved in great torment and martire;

60

THE outward signe of Bachus and his lure,
That at his dore hangith day by day
Excitith folk to taaste of his moisture
So often that man can nat wel seyen nay.
For me, I seye I was enclyned ay
Withouten daunger 13 thidir for to hye me.
But if swich charge upon my bake lay,
That I moot it forbere as for a tyme;

ΤΟ

Or but I were nakidly bystad 14
By force of the penylees maladie,
For thanne in herte kowde I nat be glad,
Ne lust had noon to Bachus hows to hie.
Fy! Lak of coyn departith conpaignie;
And hevy purs, with herte liberal,
Qwenchith the thirsty hete of hertes drie,
Wher chynchy 15 herte hath therof but
smal.

I dar nat telle how that the fresshe repeir
Of Venus femel lusty children deere,
That so goodly, so shaply were, and feir,
And so pleasant of port and of maneere, 20

Of loves aart yit touchid I no deed;
I cowde nat and eek it was no neede:
Had I a kus I was content ful weel,
Bettre than I wolde han be with the deede:
Ther-on can I but smal, it is no dreede:*
Whan that men speke of it in my presence:
For shame I wexe as reed as is the gleede."
Now wole I torne ageyn to my sentence. 40

Of him that hauntith taverne of custume,
At shorte wordes the profyt is this:
In double wyse his bagge it shal consume,
And make his tonge speke of folk amis;
For in the cuppe seelden fownden is
That any wight his neigheburgh commend-
ith.

Beholde and see what avantage is his,
That God, his freend, and eek himself,
offendith.

But oon avauntage in this cas I have:
I was so ferd with any man to fighte,
Cloos kept I me; no man durst I deprave
But rowuyngly, I spak no thyng on highte.

THE CHURL AND THE BIRD1

PROBLEMYS of olde likenesse and figures, Whiche proved been fructuous of sentence,2 And hath auctorite grownded in scriptures, By resemblances of nobille apparence, Withe moralites concluding of prudence, Like as the Bibylle rehersithe by writing, How trees somtyme chase hemself a kyng.

First in their choise thay named the olive, To reigne amonge hem, Judicum1 dothe expresse,

But he hym dide excuse blyve,3
He myght not forsake his fatnesse,
Ner the figge tree his amorows swettnes,
Ner the vyne his holsom fressh tarage,
Whiche yeveth comforte to al maner age.

6

10

And semlably poetis laureate,
By dyrke parables ful convenient,
Feyne that birddis and bests of estate,
As royalle egles and lyons be assent,
Sent out writtes to olde a parliament,
And made decres brefly for to saye,
Some for to have lordshippe and some for
obeye.

9

20

Egles in the heyre highest to take hir flighte,

Power of lyouns on the grounde is sene,
Cedre among trees highest of sight,

And the laurealle of nature is ay grene;
Of flowres also Flora goddes and quene;
Thus of al thing ther beene diversites,
Some of estate and some of lowe degres.

Poetes writin wonderfulle liknesses,
And under covert kepe hemself ful closse;
They take bestis and fowles to witnesse, 31
Of whos feyninges fabilles first arosse.
And here I cast unto my purpose,

1 A favorite Old-French tale, perhaps of oriental origin. See J. O. Halliwell's remarks in his edition of Lydgate's Minor Poems, Percy So., vol. II, p. 179, whence our text. * chose. 4 Judges, ix. & at 7 similarly. 8 hold. 9 air.

1 fruitful in teaching. • flavor.

.ce.