<div style="background:#fff;border:#bbb dashed 1px;padding:5px"><a href="http://en.citatepedia.ro/comments.php?id=346102" style="color:#000;text-decoration:none"><div style="margin:10px 0"><strong>The Fyftene Loyes Of Maryage</strong></div><div style="margin:10px 0">Somer passed/and wynter well begone<br>The dayes shorte/the darke nyghtes longe<br>Haue taken season/and brynghtnes of the sonne<br>Is lytell sene/and small byrdes songe<br>Seldon is herde/in feldes or wodes ronge<br>All strength and ventue/of trees and herbes sote<br>Dyscendynge be/from croppe in to the rote</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>And euery creature by course of kynde<br>For socoure draweth to that countre and place<br>Where for a tyme/they may purchace and fynde<br>Conforte and rest/abydynge after grace<br>That clere Appolo with bryghtnes of his face<br>Wyll sende/whan lusty ver shall come to towne<br>And gyue the grounde/of grene a goodly gowne</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>And Flora goddesse bothe of whyte and grene<br>Her mantell large/ouer all the erthe shall sprede<br>Shewynge her selfe/apparayled lyke a quene<br>As well in feldes/wodes/as in mede<br>Hauynge so ryche a croune vpon her hede<br>The whiche of floures/shall be so fayre and bryght<br>That all the worlde/shall take therof a lyght</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>So now it is/of late I was desyred<br>Out of the trenche to drawe a lytell boke<br>Of .xv. Ioyes/of whiche though I were hyred<br>I can not tell/and yet I vndertoke<br>This entrepryse/with a full pyteous loke<br>Remembrynge well/the case that stode in<br>Lyuynge in hope/this wynter to begyn</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Some Ioyes to fynde that be in maryage<br>For in my youth/yet neuer acquayntaunce<br>Had of them but now in myn olde aege<br>I trust my selfe/to forther and auaunce<br>If that in me/there lacke no suffysaunce<br>Whiche may dyspleasyr/clerely set a parte<br>I wante but all/that longeth to that arte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>yet wyll I speke/though I may do no more<br>Fully purposynge/in all these Ioyes to trete<br>Accordynge to my purpose made to fore<br>All be it so/I can not well forgete<br>The payne/trauayle/besynes and hete<br>That some men haue after they wedded be<br>Because theyr wyues/want humylyte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Who shall I pray/to helpe me to endyte<br>Cupyde or Uenus/whiche haue me in dysdayne<br>And for my feblenes/in grete dyspyte<br>For yeres passed/may not retorne agayne<br>Now may I speke/and shewe in wordes playne<br>Whan youth is gone/and comen is stoupynge age<br>Then worldly Ioyes/must go on pylgrymage</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>If I sholde praye/vnto ymeneus<br>The god of weddynge/to helpe me in this charge<br>Then wyll he bydde me go to Morpleus<br>The god of slepe/for he hath wayes large<br>Whiche with his rodde of leed dooth stere his barge<br>To brynge forthe age/vnto his slepy caue<br>Pray hym of rest/and nothynge elles craue</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>I knowe ryght well/it is but vanyte<br>All worldly Ioye/medled with bytternes<br>Therfore these fayned goddes I lete them be<br>And me betake to god/whose stedfastnes<br>May neuer fayle/neyther his sothfastnes<br>Besechynge hym/that for his moders sake<br>He wyll me teche his lytell boke to make</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>And with good wyll I shall me soone apply<br>This treatyse out of frenche to translate<br>Of .xv. Ioyes/and yf I myght therby<br>Purchace but one/my selfe though it be late<br>I wolde be gladde/for olde paynes I hate<br>Trustyge to Ioye/now somwhat in myn aege<br>As dooth a byrde that syngeth in a cage</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Now to the effecte of this translacyon<br>With grete desyre shortly well I procede<br>But speke I must/by protestacyon<br>Touchynge this mater/or elles gode forbede<br>Whome I beseche lowely to be my spede<br>Praynge also/eche other maner wyght<br>Take no dyspleasure with my wordes lyght</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Here endeth the prologue of the translatoure.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">And the prohemye of the auctour begynneth.<br>Myn auctour wryteth in this prohemye<br>That many men/haue trauayled here tofore<br>To shewe by reason and auctoryte<br>That it is grete wytte/and wysdome more<br>For euery maner wyght/of woman bore<br>To lyue in fraunchyse/at his lyberte<br>Than seruaunt to hym selfe/and thrall to be</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Without constraynt/but of his neclygence<br>His wyll to folowe/and his vnclene delyte<br>As lusty folke in theyr adolescence<br>Haue suche desyre/and so grete appetyte<br>On Uenus brydle/for to champe and byte<br>Tyll they with loue be stryken to the herte<br>Wherby full/oft they suffre paynes smerte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Unto whose reason/and opynyon<br>It may be sayd/and answered thus agayne<br>Man hath no good wytte ne entencyon<br>In his yonge tyme/whan nature dooth constrayne<br>Sauynge in Ioyes/and delytes vayne<br>Of this frayle worlde vnsure and transytory<br>None other thynge is in his memory</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>As thus whan men in youth couragyous<br>With frewyll endewed and lustynes<br>Of theyr desyre/and mynde outragyous<br>Withouten nede/but of theyr folysshenes<br>Frome wele to wo/frome Ioye to heuynes<br>Conuey them selfe/from all theyr lyberte<br>Nothynge content with theyr felycyte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>For where as they may frely ryde or go<br>And at theyr choyse/dysporte them ouer all<br>I you ensure these yonge men wyll not so<br>Whan they leest wene/than sodanly they fall<br>And vnconstrayned make theyr bodyes thrall<br>Lyke to a wyght that in to pryson depe<br>Without cause/all hastely dooth crepe</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>So do they oft for lacke of kyndely wytte<br>And whan they be within this pryson strayte<br>The gayler cometh and fast the dore dooth shytte<br>Whiche is of yren stronge/and in a wayte<br>Helyeth oft/for drede that thrugh desayte<br>By nyght or day some sholde escape out<br>Ryght besyly he pryeth all about</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>He barreth dores/and maketh sure all the lockes<br>The stronge boltes/the fettres and the chayne<br>He sercheth well/the holes and the stockes<br>That wo be they/that lyeth in the payne<br>And out therof/they shall not go agayne<br>But euer endure/in wepynge care and sorowe<br>For good ne prayer/shall them neuer borowe</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>And specyally men may call hym assoted<br>Ferre frome reason/of wysdome desolate<br>That thus his tyme mysse vsed hath and doted<br>Whan he had herde/suche prysoners but late<br>Wepynge waylynge/and with them selfe debate<br>Lyenge in pryson/as he hath passed by<br>And put hym selfe therin so folysshely</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>This auctour sayth/by cause mankynde delyteth<br>Alway to haue fraunchyse and lyberte<br>Without the whiche/nature of man dyspyteth<br>Ryght thus in playne wordes speketh he<br>That many lordes grete/the whiche haue be<br>And lordshyppes haue be loste and ouerthrowe<br>For takynge fredomes frome theyr subgets lowe</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>He sheweth eke in maner semblable<br>That grete cytees/with many an other toune<br>And comyn people of mynde vnreasonable<br>Haue ben dystroyed/and sodaynly cast doune<br>Agaynst theyr prynces/takynge opynyon<br>Desyrynge fredomes/mo than here tofore<br>Theyr elders had/and thus they haue be lore</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>By reason wherof/batayles grete and werre<br>Haue ben/and many folkes also slayne<br>Syth Ihesus deyed/was neuer thynge bought derre<br>Whan poore subgettes on foly wyll pretayne<br>Agaynst theyr prynce/or elles theyr souerayne<br>To moue maters/not beynge obedynge<br>Suche by the lawe ben execute and shent</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Somtyme the noble realme and men of Fraunce<br>Exempte were/and vtterly made fre<br>By theyr grete/prowes and valyaunce<br>Of the emperours/of Rome the cyte<br>As of trybutes/for whiche batayles haue be<br>Betwene them/and the Romayns longe ago<br>In whiche dayes I fynde it happed so</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Upon a tyme/for cause that they ne were<br>Of fraunce in puyssaunce/able to withstonde<br>The grete army and the myghty powere<br>Of an emperour entred in theyr londe<br>But for as moche/as they ne wolde be bonde<br>Them were leuer go from that regyon<br>Than to remayne vnder subgeccyon</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Seruynge this emperour/and trybute pay<br>So of hygh courage/and theyr grete nobles<br>All sodaynly/these nobles wente away<br>Conquerynge coutrees/suche was theyr worthynes<br>And afterwarde retorned neuertheles<br>Home to theyr lande/in grete prosperyte<br>Whiche they tyll now haue holde in lyberte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Unto theyr owne vse/prouffyte and auayle<br>Wherfore folkes of many a nacyon<br>Lyuynge in seruage/constreyned with trauayle<br>Desyred to haue theyr habytacyon<br>In fraunce/and there vnder domynacyon<br>To lyue in wele/lyberte/and rest<br>Wherby it grewe/somtyme the noblest</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Realme of the worlde/that knowen were or founde.<br>Moost fayre in buyldynge/and inhabyte best<br>The whiche in treasure/and scyence dyde habounde<br>Then for asmoche/as they be fre at leest<br>Prudent in fayth/in lyuynge holyest<br>They sholde theyr subgets/in frauchyse kepe & vse<br>After theyr lawe/and neuer to refuse</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Ageynst all trouthe/and inconuenyent<br>It is certayne/and nothynge charytable<br>God knoweth well/the lorde omnypotent<br>A man to haue/a custome reasonable<br>Onely for hym selfe/ryght prouffytable<br>And for his neyghboure/vse it other wyse<br>Suche vsage sholde/all well dysposed men dyspyse</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Herof it groweth that lyberte is lost<br>In people voyde/of reason and scyence<br>And thus vyces and synnes reygneth most<br>Some gyue to vertues lytell reuerence<br>Wherin to god/do they ryght grete offence<br>The comyn wele/in generalyte<br>All men sholde loue of perfyte charyte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Why it is thus/a man may reason make<br>Who loueth not his wele pertyculerly<br>Hath but a lytell wytte I vndertake<br>Whan he may haue a prouffyte syngulerly<br>Hurtynge none other creature therby<br>And wyll not helpe hym selfe whan he so may<br>But wylfully dooth cast his grace away</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>A fole is he/that wyttynge wyll go<br>Into a caue/a dyche/or elles a pytte<br>Whiche is aboue/bothe narowe and strayte also<br>And all within/full wyde and depe is it<br>So that whan he therin/is fall and shytte<br>Out may he not/for there he must abyde<br>As wylde bestes do in forestes syde</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Trapped and taken/ryght so this crature<br>In lyke wyse/thrugh his owne neclygence<br>Is in the dyche/where as he must endure<br>Lyke as these bestes/whiche gladly wolde go thens<br>Sekynge the wayes with all theyr delygence<br>Out to auoyde/but so it wyll not be<br>Tyme is not then/forth of the dyche to fle</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Thus one may say/and therupon conclude<br>By suche as in to maryage be brought<br>And herupon to make a symylytude<br>Unto the fysshe whiche hath his pasture sought<br>And in a lepe/that is of twygges wrought<br>Is take/and out can not escape ne twynne<br>But euer dwell/and tary styll therinne</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>The fysshe that swymmeth in the ryuer clere<br>As it shall fall hym ofte by aduenture<br>To rayle aboute/in places here and there<br>Fyndeth this lepe/the whiche withoute mesure<br>Beholdeth he with all his besy cure<br>And he therin/the fysshes and the bayte<br>Dooth se/supposynge well in his consayte</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>They be in Ioye and pleasure at theyr lust<br>And all aboute the lepe he gooth rounde<br>With grete desyre/hauynge a veray trust<br>To come to them/and whan that he hath founde<br>The entre/in he gooth gladde and Iocounde<br>And to the shynynge bayte/he hyeth faste<br>Wherof anone/he taketh his repaste</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>To go agayne/he thynketh but a Iape<br>Forthe of the lepe/assaynge besyly<br>A way to fynde/how he therout may scape<br>And thens departe/to other company<br>He boreth with his byll all hastely<br>His besynes/and laboure is in waste<br>Abyde a whyle/he shall for all his haste</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Therin to dwell in wo and heuynes<br>And where as he hath demed certaynly<br>Afore to haue had Ioye/and lustynes<br>There shall he passe his tyme ryght heuely<br>By men it falleth thus moost comenly<br>That put them in to maryage all day<br>Experyence wyll wytnesse as I say</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Though it so be/that folkes se before<br>These wedded men/within the lepe enclosed<br>In poynt to droune & drenche/yet not therfore<br>Wyll they forbere/ne tyll they be innosed<br>As houndes be of bones/it is supposed<br>There is not one/by other can be ware<br>Tyll they be take/and holden in the snare</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Thus what by foly/fortune or destene<br>A man may se the people euery day<br>Demeane themselfe/forsakynge lyberte<br>And shortely after that repenteth they<br>Desyrynge it to haue/but they ne may<br>At ony tyme/vnto suche grace attayne<br>And all to late/for them is to complayne</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Moche more herof/myn auctoure dooth declare<br>In his prologue/or that he wyll begyn<br>To shewe these .xv. Ioyes/but I must spare<br>By losse of tyme/there is nothynge to wynne<br>But pouerte/vnthryftynes/and synne<br>Wherfore in wordes rude to make an ende<br>And of these Ioyes to wryte now I entende</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Some men do call these Ioyes sorowes grete<br>But yet they take them well in pacyence<br>For of necessyte they must forgete<br>The care/trouble/sorowe/payne and offence<br>The whiche they suffre at the reuerence<br>Of theyr wyues/whiche they may not forsake<br>And though they oft/mysse vse theyr eloquence<br>Lytell regarde therto a man sholde take</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Here endeth the proheme of the auctour.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">And here begynneth the fyrst Ioye of maryage<br>The fyrst Ioy of maryage is this<br>As whan a man of tender yeres is<br>Flourynge in youth/pleasaunt fresshe and gay<br>Then in this worlde/nothynge may hym dysmay.<br>Ne other mynde/desyre nor appetyte<br>Conforte/lykynge/pleasure/Ioye/ne delyte<br>Hath he except/how he may tye his poyntes<br>To cause his hose/to syt well on his Ioyntes<br>And make his vysage/and his lymmes fayre<br>He brussheth oft his goune/and other gayre<br>His hede he combeth smothe ryght as hym lyketh<br>Wherof the heres/pruneth he and pyketh<br>And maketh hym as clenly as he can<br>That folke may say/there gooth a goodly man<br>So wyll he synge/daunce/and balades make<br>And vpon hym/mo entrepryses take<br>That he can do/or may atchyeue perchaunce<br>Thynkynge therby/hym selfe so to enhaunce<br>The fayrest creature that he can espye<br>He wyll beholde/with ryght a lusty eye<br>As vysynge well/where he suche one may fynde<br>A Iolynet accordynge to his mynde<br>And whan he hath her fast in his demayne<br>Ioyous he is/ryght mery/gladde and fayne<br>For paraduenture so the case may stande<br>That by his faders/or his moders lande<br>Or by theyr other goodes he may mayntene<br>His Iolynets/and go ryght well besene<br>Lyuynge in rest and ease habundauntly<br>Beholdynge other folkes certaynly<br>In to the bonde of maryage ybrought<br>Than in his mynde he casteth and his thought<br>Lyke as the fysshe behelde the lepe/so he<br>Demeth/these wedded men in blysse be<br>Hauynge the bayte/and pasture at theyr wyll<br>Wherof they may/theyr appetyte fulfyll<br>Ryght well he seeth the beatute of theyr wyues<br>Supposynge that they haue so mery lyues<br>With them so well appoynted and arayed<br>For whiche the sely husbande hath not payed<br>It may so be percase/at many season<br>Some folke wyll say/and shewe this man by reason<br>That so her owne fader/or her moder<br>Her hath arayed/and demeth he none oder<br>And so this yonge man/torneth hym aboute<br>The lepe/wherin of wedded a route<br>Enclosed be/and thenne he dooth enquere<br>Of maryage/a lytell here and there<br>Soone here vpon/aryseth suche a wynde<br>And smoke/that he therof is made so blynde<br>That he vnware/in to the lepe is cast<br>Wherin he shall be kepte and holden fast<br>And where as he was wonte in tyme afore<br>To synge and daunce/that may well be forbore<br>Of poyntes byenge/purses/or thynges lyke<br>Herof shall he not nede/whyles he may pyke<br>Upon the bayte/tyll he therof be full<br>His besynes may cause hym to be dull<br>Now Ioyeth he a whyle/and hym delyteth<br>To do pleasaunce/ryght well he hym acquyteth<br>Newly so entred/in to the foresayd gin<br>And for a tyme nothynge dysmayed therin<br>Supposynge out to go/but there yet styll<br>He must abyde/and dwell maugre his wyll<br>And to repent/there is no tyme ne houre<br>For with the swete mete/the sauces soure<br>Contynuaunce wyll cause hym to assay<br>Syth he can not escape by ony way<br>And for to put his wyfe in suche degre<br>As appertayneth of necessyte<br>It hym behoueth honeste to saue<br>And so may be/his wyfe an herte may haue<br>Ryght good/desyrynge to be fresshe and gay<br>For peraduenture/she this other day<br>Was at a feest/where she dyde well aduyse<br>Women of her degre/all other wyse<br>Than she/appoynted/clothed/and arayde<br>Within her mynde/than to her selfe she sayde<br>That by her byrthe/she ought as well as they<br>To be apparayled and in as good arey<br>So she compaceth/castynge in her mynde<br>The day and houre/out craftely to fynde<br>To her good man/this mater to declare<br>But her entent to shewe/yet wyll she spare<br>Tyll she with hym/at nyght be gone to bedde<br>For there these wyues trust well to be spedde<br>Of suche petycyons/as they requyre<br>Accordynge to theyr wylles and desyre<br>Whan that this wyfe/in bedde is layde thus<br>Sadly she sayth/for loue of cryst Ihesus<br>Syr lete me be in rest/for euyll at ease<br>I am/and he whiche gladly wolde her please<br>Answereth and sayth/tell me wherfore it is<br>That greueth you/she sayth grete cause ywys<br>Haue I/for ye care nothynge what I saye<br>Or shewe to you/in ernest or in playe<br>He sayeth than/why speke ye in suche a wyse<br>By god and all his sayntes in paradyse<br>She sayth/no myster it is that ye it knewe<br>For whan I speke to you but wordes fewe<br>Lytell accompt therof or rekenynge<br>ye make certayne/demynge for other thynge<br>Suche wordes I haue/and yet it is not so<br>Whiche causeth me/oft tymes to be wo<br>Truly sayth he ye shall tell your dysease<br>Than answereth she/syr syth it may you please<br>Forsothe I shall you tell/this is the cas<br>This other daye at suche a feest I was<br>The whiche in trouth/me plased nothynge wele<br>And wherfore I shall tell you euery dele<br>Whan I there was/I thynke it veryly<br>There was no wyfe arayed soo symply<br>Though she were neuer of soo lowe degre<br>As I was than/ye may byleue well me<br>How be it syr/surely I saye not this<br>For praysynge of my selfe/but soo it is<br>I thaynke god of his mercy and grace<br>That I am comen/of as good a place<br>As ony gentyl woman that was there<br>I me reporte/to suche as knowen where<br>My lygnage and myn ancestres but late<br>Abydynge were/and for myn owne estate<br>This saye I not/sauynge I am ashamed<br>That ye or elles/my kynne shall be defamed<br>Nothynge care I/of clothynge what I haue<br>So that alwaye/your honour ye may saue<br>And than sayth he/in what estate were they<br>At thylke feest/now tell me I you praye<br>Now by my trouth/syth ye wyll knowe algate<br>She sayth/there was not one in her estate<br>Egall to me/but she a newe gowne had<br>And was than better besene and clad<br>Of what clothe were/these gownes sayth he<br>Of scarlet fyne/of grene or perce sayth she<br>Furred ryght wele/with menyuer or gray<br>With traynes longe/and sleues large/so they<br>Had eke of rede/or grene/all gyrdelles good<br>Hangynge vnto the grounde/and by the rode<br>Theyr gownes were made of the newest gyse<br>And of the best maner/one coude deuyse<br>But there had I vpon my weddynge gowne<br>Well ouer worne/and of the olde facyon<br>Whiche ouer lytell/and to shorte for me<br>Is waxen as ye may perceyue and se<br>For I am growen more/syth it was made<br>Than at my maryage/whan I it hade<br>For whan I gyuen was to you alone<br>I was but yonge and lytell of persone<br>And so moche wasted am I now for payne<br>Whiche I of late haue had/that in certayne<br>I seme now wele a moder for to be<br>To her that myght be moder vnto me<br>And in good sayth so sore asshamed was I<br>Whan that I was amonge this company<br>That I ne coude ne durste make countenaunce<br>And yet had I more payne and dyspleasaunce<br>Whan that a lady there/of suche a place<br>Afore them all wolde saye vnto my face<br>Grete shame it was my clothes were so bad<br>And wondred why that I no better had<br>For whiche they toke to me but lytell hede<br>Unneth they turne them wolde/so god me spede<br>Towarde me/saue of theyr gentylnesse<br>Of very pyte and of lowelynesse<br>The good man than her husbande answered tho<br>ye knowe ryght wele that we haue moche to do<br>Wherfore my loue now herken what I saye<br>Remembre ye the same tyme and the daye<br>Whan in to maryage we entred were<br>Plente of money/plate or other gere<br>We had but small/ryght wele herof ye knowe<br>For whiche your selfe ye may suppose and trowe<br>That it hehoueth vs now for to bye<br>Beddes and other thynges hastelye<br>And at this tyme syluer ne golde in store<br>Lytell haue we how be it ferthermore<br>yet must we bye/for wynnynge and encres<br>Kyne and other catelles neuertheles<br>In suche a place/for our prouysyon<br>Also this other daye there fell adown<br>The pygnon of our hous/for couerture<br>It lacketh/wherfore dame I you assure<br>Made must it be in haast of very nede<br>And also other maters for to spede<br>I haue/for whiche grete money shall I spende<br>Or I may brynge my werkes to an ende<br>And ouer this certes within shorte space<br>Unto thassyse holden at suche a place<br>For me to go it is well necessary<br>Bycause of suche a plee I may not tarye<br>That for your londe I haue to pursue there<br>Of whiche as yet I may saye this and swere<br>I haue had lytell prouffyte or auayle<br>But spende my goodes/laboure and trauayle<br>A syr she sayd/now wote I well that ye<br>None other wyse can speke but repreue me<br>Of my landes/this may I not abyde<br>And in her bedde/vnto that other syde<br>All hastely she turneth with a grone<br>Sayenge/for goddes loue let me alone<br>For neuer shall I speke to you agayne<br>What deuyll sayth this man why do ye playne<br>And are so wroth/without cause resonable<br>I am not syr/she sayth/ne yet culpable<br>Though ye but lytell had/whan ye me toke<br>For dyuers to me spake/that I forsoke<br>Of .xx. places/whiche wolde noo good craue<br>So that they myght onely my body haue<br>In maryage withouten golde or rente<br>My person was to them suffycyente<br>But so it was/that ye ofte came and wente<br>And many a messenger vnto me sente<br>By suche subtyll maner crafte and mene<br>So that all other I refused clene<br>And had noo wyll/ony to haue but yow<br>For whiche grete blame & maulgre haue I now<br>Bothe of my lorde/my fader be ye sure<br>And of my moder/out of all mesures<br>Wherof I may haue hate and grete dysdayne<br>And syr this questyon I aske agayne<br>If ony woman/at this sayd feest there<br>In suche a wyse cladde or arayed were<br>As I beynge to me/in lyke estate<br>Nay syr not one/I was infortunate<br>Thyder to come/for by saynt Iohan I saye<br>The symplest gownes/that they gaue awaye<br>Unto theyr chamberers/were better cloth<br>Than is the gowne/whiche on my body goth<br>On sondayes/or on the holy daye<br>So wote I not herof/what is to saye<br>Moche people good out of this worlde departe<br>Wherof grete domage is/but for my parte<br>I saye/yf god were pleased I sholde decesse<br>To you it wolde be lytell heuynesse<br>For noo dyspleasure/wolde ye for me take<br>But hastely gete you an other make<br>By god sayth he/that is nothynge well sayd<br>Suche symple wordes/myght aparte be layd<br>For there is nothynge that I for you do<br>But wele ye ought to take regarde therto<br>Turne you to me/& what thynge ye lyke best<br>I shall perfourme/for goddes sake let me rest<br>Sayth she/now sothly nothynge alyeth me<br>And wolde our lorde/that in lyke caas were ye<br>But neuer shall ye touche me after this<br>No shall sayth he/no syr she sayth ywys<br>To make all wele/than thynketh he and sayth<br>If I were deed I knowe it by my fayth<br>Unto an other/soone wolde ye maryed be<br>Nay syr by hym that dyed on a tree<br>Touchynge suche pleasure/as I vnto this daye<br>Haue had in maryage/I swere and saye<br>Durynge my lyfe/that neuer mouth of man<br>Shall touche to myn/and she to wepe began<br>Sayenge these wordes/to god I make auow<br>If that I knewe to lyue here after yow<br>I sholde so deale/that I afore wolde go<br>The teeres fell downe fro her eyen two<br>Thus he demaundeth her with wordes fayre<br>All be it soo/she thynketh the contrayre<br>The good man demeth than/he is all eased<br>But yet agayne/in mynde is he dyspleased<br>Supposynge/that of nature she is colde<br>Of body chast/& deale with no man wolde<br>Also he troweth that she hym loueth wele<br>Thus he in herte is eased euery dele<br>Bycause he seeth her som what wepe afore<br>He trusteth that she loueth hym the more<br>Wherof he hath a pyteous herte and mynde<br>And can not be in rest tyll that he fynde<br>The wayes how he may her content & ease<br>All that he can/he dooth her for to please<br>In dyuers wyse/with laboure and trauayle<br>But all for nought/it may nothynge auayle<br>For she alwaye awayteth for to pyke<br>Upon the stroke that she afore dyde stryke<br>That is to saye/a newe gowne wolde she haue<br>The whiche for cruell stomocke nolde she craue<br>She passeth tyme/and no good wyll she do<br>But at suche houre as she was not wonte to<br>Upryseth she/and after all that daye<br>A cursed angry chere maketh she alwaye<br>And not one fayre worde than wyll she speke<br>So in her breste the malyce dooth she steke<br>Soone after this cometh the seconde nyght<br>That she to bedde must go as is it ryght<br>With her good man/& whan that she is layde<br>In bedde/than he whiche is not wele apayde<br>Beholdeth wele loketh and taketh kepe<br>On her to knowe/whether that she wake or slepe<br>He well aduyseth yf her armes bothe<br>Be couered wele and surely with the clothe<br>And heleth them yf nede or mayster be<br>Wherwith anone suche countenaunce maketh she<br>As thoughe she were out of her slepe awaked<br>Slepe ye sayth he/I thought ye had ben naked<br>Nay syr she sayd/what be ye not appeased<br>Sayth he/no syr myn herte is lytell eased<br>Syghynge sayth she I thanke god of his sounde<br>I haue ynoughe to lyue vpon the grounde<br>By god sayth he/dame we shall haue ynowe<br>Of worldly goodes/and nere to her he drowe<br>Sayenge I haue bethought me of a thynge<br>ye shall be at my cosynnes weddynge<br>And ye shall haue ordeyned as goodly gere<br>For you as ony gentyl woman there<br>Certes she sayth/all thoughe ye saye the best<br>Of all this yere/I wyll go to no feest<br>Now by my fayth he sayth but yet ye shall<br>And what ye wyll demaunde haue gowne & all<br>What I demaunde she sayth/that is ryght nought<br>For syr so god me helpe that all hath wrought<br>I aske not to be Ioly for enuy<br>Gladde wolde I be forsothe yf neuer I<br>Out of your hous but vnto chyrche sholde passe<br>Matyns to here euensonge and masse<br>I saye it not ne yet no wayes seche<br>Sauynge onely for suche vngoodly speche<br>As was amonges other whiche I knewe<br>By my gossyp/whome I fynde euer trewe<br>For she the wordes harde all openly<br>The whiche she shewed me full secretely<br>Than thynketh moche this poore newe wedded man<br>And in his mynde to compace he began<br>Consyderynge in what caas that he stode<br>A newe husholde hauynge lytell gode<br>And moche to do he had by many a waye<br>Not purueyed wele grete sommes to paye<br>And fyfty scutes or syxty for this gowne<br>He must bestowe/and shortly laye it downe<br>And in his thought/cast a cheuysaunce<br>For there may be none other waye ne chaunce<br>But that this gowne nedely must be had<br>Wherwith and other gere she shall be clad<br>For he perceyued hath/by his aduyse<br>His wyfe a woman is/bothe good and wyse<br>He thanketh god/the lorde of heuen blysse<br>So fayre a Iuell/to gyue hym as she is<br>From one syde to an other/he turneth ofte<br>In bedde he slepeth not though he lye softe<br>And it may happen soo/his Wyfe this seeth<br>Whiche subtyll is/and she within her teeth<br>Wyll laughe/whan that she knoweth his conceyte<br>Whome she hath ouercome/with her deceyte<br>After this nyght/whan comen is the morowe<br>Aryseth vp this good man full of sorowe<br>All ouercome with syghes/that he hath take<br>The nyght afore/for his good wyues sake<br>And in auenture to the market gothe<br>With pawne or credence/for to by the clothe<br>And straytly vnto marchauntes he hym byndeth<br>Or elles to them suche Iuelles as he fyndeth<br>Whether they be of syluer/or of golde<br>Whiche he somtyme had/of his fader olde<br>Then sellteh he/or elles .x. pounde or more<br>Of rente in mortgage layeth he therfore<br>Shortly this man/dooth so his maters spede<br>That he hath all suche thynges as in that nede<br>Wherwith he cometh home all spedyly<br>And to haue thanke he demeth veryly<br>She syenge this/made semblaunt hym before<br>As though suche cost myght well haue ben forbore<br>And that nothynge/she sette by gowne ne gayre<br>That he home brought with hym for her repayre<br>Cursynge all them with tonge/& not with thought<br>That fyrst so grete estate and porte vp brought<br>And whan she knewe that thynge was sure she sayd<br>To her good man and hym besought and prayed<br>He neuer sholde reproue her of the daye<br>That she had made hym spende for her araye<br>His money or his goodes/and neuermore<br>Her to rebuke/or elles vmbrayde therfore<br>For by the gowne set I nothynge she sayth<br>So that I may me kepe frome colde in fayth<br>And alway haue one peny in my purse<br>Whiche wyll suffyse to me though it were worse<br>Anone was made this gowne/and eke an hood<br>Also a gyrdell whiche was ryche and good<br>And now are comen the termes & the houres<br>Whan that he must content his credytoures<br>And this poore man not able is to paye<br>Bycause his golde and syluer ben awaye<br>And lenger wyll they not forbere this man<br>But execute in all the haast they can<br>They curse on hym/& she the same perceyueth<br>And therof all the circumstaunce conceyueth<br>And perauenture afore this curse procede<br>Or elles after the lawe dooth hym forbede<br>In chyrche to be/wherfore his company<br>Men wyll eschewe and grudge all vtterly<br>Hauynge dysdayne with hym to drynke & ete<br>And he but lytell hath and none can gete<br>Of money out of daunger hym to brynge<br>God wote what Ioye he hath in his lyuynge<br>His wyfe goth cryenge in the hous aboute<br>Wherwith a noyse she maketh and a showte<br>And thus she sayth/ha cursed be the houre<br>That I was euer in my moders boure<br>Forth brought or borne/alas it had not happed<br>That in the cloth/wherin I was fyrst lapped<br>I had be buryed/for neuer so grete shame<br>Betydde to ony woman ne dyffame<br>As to me and my kynne/now shall be layd<br>Alas I laboure sore/and fast she sayd<br>And all the laboure besynesse and cost<br>That I haue done of many a daye is lost<br>In twenty places or moo I had be maryed<br>If I so wolde/but lyke a fole I taryed<br>For where I myght grete honour & auayle<br>Haue had/and rychesse/therof now I fayle<br>I knowe how that theyr wyues be bysene<br>That wolde haue maryed me/whiche doth me<br>And therfore haue I heuynesse and wo<br>That deth the lyfe nyll take my body fro<br>Thus she complayneth her withouten care<br>Of her husbande/or how the good man fare<br>For hooly she hath sette her mynde vpon<br>Her owne estate/and shortely she is gon<br>Unto this maryage/and where she sholde<br>Haue thought vpon her husbande she ne wolde<br>But to this poore man putteth all the wyte<br>Lyke as an hors that can bothe playne & byte<br>This woman dooth/and she is cause of all<br>For she this man hath made so bestyall<br>Somwhat for sorowe/or elles wyse by playe<br>That well nygh wasted is his wytte a waye<br>So that he wyll not vnderstonde ne knowe<br>That she is in defaute/wyll he not trowe<br>And though he se the maters euydent<br>yet of necessytee he is content<br>But of the thought & sorowes to enquere<br>It is but waast/syth ye the causes here<br>Of this man whiche can neyther rest ne slepe<br>That thynketh euery houre and taketh kepe<br>How that he may in ease this woman sette<br>And fynde some remedy to paye his dette<br>But yet is he more angry for his wyfe<br>Whiche curseth hym/than all that other stryfe<br>Thus soroweth he/in pouertee downe fall<br>And frome that payne recouer neuer shall<br>Prycked he is/but smarte can he none fele<br>That all is Ioye/to hym it semeth wele<br>Thus is this man within the lepe yclosed<br>And parauenture so he is dysposed<br>That he nothynge therof dooth hym repent<br>For yf that he out of the same were hent<br>Soone wolde he go agayne in to that gynne<br>And all his payne and woo newly begynne<br>yet sholde he neuer be in soo good cas<br>As he hath ben afore he maryed was<br>And there this poore man shall vse his lyfe<br>Endynge his dayes in wretchednes & stryfe </div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Thus endeth the fyrst Ioye of maryage.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Here begynnes the seconde Ioye of maryage.<br>As for the seconde Ioye of maryage<br>It is whan yt this wyfe of her courage<br>Feleth that she so rychely is arayed<br>In suche a wyse as here tofore is sayd<br>And knoweth well ynough yt she is fayre<br>Than wyll she go frome home to take the ayre<br>To many feestes and assembles eke<br>And also holy sayntes for to seke<br>On dyuers pylgrymages wyll she go<br>All though the husbande be not pleased so<br>Her Iourney enterpryseth she to ryde<br>With her cosyon and gossyppes at a tyde<br>And specyally for her kynnesmannes sake<br>Her pylgrymage deuoutly wyll she take<br>And perauenture yet it may soo be<br>That this man is as nyghe kynne vnto me<br>As vnto her/but soo hym for to call<br>Wonte and accustomed is she ouer all<br>It may be thought for some entent or cause<br>She calleth hym soo/but there I leue a clause<br>Her moder than seynge her besynesse<br>Cometh somtyme to this man I gesse<br>And as a woman can begynne to clatter<br>She sayth his herte to tycle and flatter<br>This foresayd man/her cosyn is of blode<br>For her to go with suche a company is good<br>And other whyle the husbande is lothe<br>That she sholde go/sayth sadly by his othe<br>How he none horses hath ne other thynge<br>Her to conuey to feest or gaderynge<br>Than shall the gossyp or her cosyn saye<br>I am ryght lothe by god and by this daye<br>To go/for myn hous so god me spede<br>Moche thynge haue I to do of very nede<br>And were it not honour to you and me<br>Speke wolde I not as now so mote I the<br>For syr soo god me helpe I knowe it wele<br>your wyfe to go is pleased neuer a dele<br>She is a woman leest that loueth waast<br>Of ony lyuynge/for euer she dooth haast<br>Home warde whan she at ony place is oute<br>For your expence & charge she hath suche doute<br>So this good man/whos wysdome is to seche<br>And sore abused with theyr flaterynge speche<br>Demaundeth who goth in this campany<br>Of men and other/and she sayth certaynly<br>My cosyon and my godfader also<br>My god moder/and many an other mo<br>your moder in lawe/whiche is your wyues moder<br>My good cosyn your wyfe/and dyuers other<br>Also the wyues of suche a place in dede<br>And your cosyn and hers haue ye no drede<br>Other there be mo/dwellynge in your strete<br>I dare well saye this company is mete<br>A kynges doughter for to be amonge<br>And be ye sure she wyll not tarye longe<br>Soo is this sely man on honoure sette<br>That in no wyse wyll he this vyage lette<br>And perauenture she that thus dooth speke<br>Shall haue a gowne or other thynges to breke<br>The mater that the persone may be playd<br>And thus it falleth ofte as it is sayd<br>He sayth this company is good and fayre<br>But she moche hath to do/and grete repayre<br>At home how be it/for to goo as than<br>She hath a lycence gyuen by this man<br>Whiche to her sayth/beware how by the dayes<br>ye be demeaned trauaylynge on your wayes<br>Also take hede at nyght ye lodge you sure<br>And god you kepe frome euyll auenture<br>The good wyfe than/whiche doth perceyue & here<br>That she hath leue/maketh coutenaunce & chere<br>At home for to abyde yet had she leuer<br>Than forth to ryde/& from her home dysseuer<br>She sayth my loue this tyme no cause haue I<br>Out for to goo with suche a company<br>I praye you that I may not goo this season<br>Her cosyn than was nyghe herynge that reason<br>Answered and sayd/what cosyn ye shall goo<br>your gentyll husband wyll that it be soo<br>The good man than a lytell abacke doth drawe<br>And thus he sayth vnto his moder in lawe<br>Ne were it for the trust I haue in yow<br>She sholde not go/this make I god auow<br>Ha my good sone she sayth by heuen kynge<br>That made this worlde/and euery other thynge<br>ye may as surely and withouten drede<br>Suffre her to go as for to saye your crede<br>Thus they departe and on theyr waye be gone<br>And as they go/these wordes than sayth one<br>Unto an other he hath some Ialousye<br>It semeth wele he dredeth Ieopardye<br>Thus is he mocked by these womens arte<br>For now come galauntes forth on euery parte<br>Whiche at the feest afore by auenture<br>This foresayd werke haue made and put in vre<br>And there awaytynge ben vpon theyr nede<br>For to conclude and so forth to procede<br>But how this wyfe now fested is & serued<br>For loue of her good man all vndeserued<br>And god wote how she doth herselfe applye<br>To reuell daunce/and for to synge on hye<br>Also she maketh good and mery chere<br>But god wote how she prayseth her bedfere<br>The husbande lefte at home whyle she is oute<br>And seeth herselfe so praysed amonge the route<br>Certes these galauntes than her do aduyse<br>And se she is apparaylled in suche wyse<br>Perceyuynge well her chere and countenaunce<br>Shortely to hex eche one hym doth auaunce<br>One profreth moche/an other offreth more<br>Harde is to me the cause to tell wherfore<br>The Ioly chere the praty trotte and pace<br>With the demeanynge of a womans face<br>Wyll gyue these louers cause & hardynesse<br>To sewe for grace vnto theyr worthynesse<br>One to her wordes gracyous dooth saye<br>And other cometh as nygh her as he may<br>And setteth his fote a lofte on hers playne<br>Eke by the honde quyckly he doth her strayne<br>Also an other his loke casteth a syde<br>Full pyteously and sharpely for a tyde<br>An other than vnto her dooth presente<br>A dyamonde ryght fayre and oryente<br>Or elles a ryche rubye with a rynge<br>Whiche she receyueth with some other thynge<br>By whiche thynges may she well vnderstande<br>Of theyr entent/and fele it with her hande<br>If she haue ony reason brayne or wyt<br>And other whyles by fortune happeth it<br>That frome her chayre alyght wyll she adown<br>To doo some werkes of deuocyon<br>Or vnto Uenus to doo sacrefyse<br>But how can I not saye ne in what wyse<br>This sely man at home in poore degree<br>Is made and brought vnto necessytee<br>For thylke estate that his wyfe doth pretende<br>The mater thus hath dryuen to an ende<br>And made her go to gaderynges and feestes<br>Amonge a wycked company of gestes<br>For vnto her they yolden be in trust<br>To haue theyr pleasures appetytes and lust<br>Upon none other thynge do they aweyte<br>But how they may doo this poore man deceyte<br>The stroke wherof he hath without escape<br>Whiche comynly is called but a Iape<br>So he is causer of his propre shame<br>None other wyght therof is for to blame<br>And thus it happeth by contynuaunce<br>That what by sygnes speche or countenaunce<br>Trouth of the thynge wherof he was in doute<br>All openly reported is aboute<br>Wherby he falleth Ialouse in a rage<br>Out of the whiche there is no wyght so sage<br>That hym can moue/for who that feruently<br>Of woman feleth the cruell malady<br>There is no medycyne that may hym cure<br>The sekenesse is so sharpe without mesure<br>Than wyll he bete her bytterly and curse<br>Wherby the werkes maketh he moche worse<br>For chastyce can he not by daye ne nyght<br>His wyfe but by his betynge maketh lyght<br>And hote the loue bytwne her & her frende<br>Thus dryueth he the mater to an ende<br>And soo he other whyles fortune may<br>One of her lymmes breke or kytte away<br>Wherby his castell or his pyle he loseth<br>Than as a mased beest he hym dysposyth<br>Withouten care and all he setteth at nought<br>Thus hath he founde ye payne whiche he hath sought<br>And neuer after wyll she loue hym more<br>Bycause that he hath beten her so sore<br>But for to passe the tyme and make a shewe<br>And of fayre wordes speketh she but fewe<br>There this poore man in turment payne & wo<br>Lyueth and yet he thynketh not so<br>And all these sorowes/he for Ioyes doth take<br>Soo in the lepe he is I vndertake<br>Enclosed depe/and yf he were withoute<br>yet shortely wolde he in withouten doute<br>There vseth he his lyfe in paynes alwayes<br>And wretchedly/thus endeth he his dayes </div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Thus endeth the seconde Ioye of maryage.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Here begynneth the thyrde Ioye of maryage.<br>Another Ioye whiche named is the thrydde<br>Of maryage in no wyse may be hydde<br>The whiche I purpose shortely to dclare<br>Accordynge to myn auctour and not spare<br>The whiche is whan man in youth doth wedde<br>A yonge mayde/and whan they bothe in bedde<br>Haue had theyr pleasures largely and desyre<br>And well aswaged is the brennynge fyre<br>The hoot heruest is well ouerblowe<br>As it with me and other is I trowe<br>Soone after this her bely doth aryse<br>And waxeth grete/as is the comyn gyse<br>Wherof the husbande alwaye hath the name<br>And perauenture he nothynge to blame<br>Is of the dede/for so it happeth ofte<br>As some men saye in preuy counseyll softe<br>And therat meryly wyll laughe or hum<br>But this is de secretes mulierum<br>The husbande than in to suche thought doth fall<br>And turmentes that he ronne and trotte shall<br>To gete the wyfe all she shall nede<br>Forth on his Iourney swyftely doth he spede<br>And yf he tryppe or stomble by the waye<br>He may fall in the myre by nyght or daye<br>And grete auenture shall be yf he brynge<br>Uytaylles that may be good to her lykynge<br>All thoughe he hath done neuer so grete payne<br>Whyles he was out/tyll he came home agayne<br>And ofte it happeth so that for suche mete<br>As comynly she vsed hath to ete<br>Bothe lust and appetyte from her do pas<br>Bycause her stomacke is not as it was<br>Than she desyreth to haue thynges straunge<br>And noueltees her dyerte for to chaunge<br>For whiche this poore man must trotte on fote<br>Or elles ryde there is none other bote<br>Bothe nyght & daye/to gete where he may fynde<br>Suche delycates as may content her mynde<br>And in this turment seuen yeres and more<br>Is this good man/and yet she euermore<br>Nothynge wyll do but playe the wanton so<br>That therof pyte hath this husbande tho<br>Whiche of the hous alwaye the charge doth bere<br>And se all thynges well ordred euery where<br>Erly to ryse/and late to goo to bedde<br>He must and se all maters be well spede<br>And on his husholde/after suche estate<br>As he is of remembreth he algate<br>Now dooth the tyme approche of trauaylynge<br>And she a chylde into the worlde shall brynge<br>God faders than in haast/god moders eke<br>As she wyll ordre/besyly to seke<br>He hath grete thought and out goth in an hete<br>The nourysses and gossyppes for to gete<br>Whiche must her kepe of chylde whyle she lyeth in<br>What tyme his double sorowe dooth begyn<br>For so they drynke the wyne in euery houre<br>As in to olde botes one dyde it poure<br>Now lyenge in her trauayle payne and wo<br>This wyfe auoweth twenty waye and mo<br>On pylgrymage to go for her good spede<br>To be put out of her grete payne and drede<br>This poore man auoweth eke for to ryde<br>Unto all halowes/and now on euery syde<br>The gossyppes come/and this good man must gete<br>Suche vytayles as they may well drynke and ete<br>So that they may in suche a wyse be eased<br>As they shall holde them well content & pleased<br>This done/the wyfe and gossyppes talke togyder<br>And fast they carye in for drede of weder<br>All be it soo/this good man hath the payne<br>That trauayle must in wynde snowe hayle or rayne<br>And whan he is forth passed on his waye<br>One of the gossyppes wyll these wordes saye<br>Alas my gossyp whiche now is withoute<br>An harde fytte hath/that am I out of doute<br>A foule and euyll weder now it is<br>No force an other sayth so haue I blysse<br>He is ryght wele at ease/and so be we<br>But yf it fortune soo/somtyme that he<br>Fayle of suche thynge as were vnto theyr paye<br>One of the gossyppes to the wyfe shall saye<br>Gossyp I meruayle moche/and so dooth all<br>This felawshyp/that it so is befall<br>And we haue wonder what it may amount<br>That your husbande doth make so lytell count<br>Of you or of your yonge chylde here in trouthe<br>A gentyll herte wolde pyte haue and routhe<br>Beholde it wele/conceyue what he wolde do<br>yf ye had chyldren fyue or syxe yet mo<br>It doth appere he leuoth you but lyte<br>Wherof bothe ye and we may haue dyspyte<br>Consydred where ye lust hym for to take<br>He hath more honoure truely for your sake<br>Than euer ony of his lygnage bore<br>Haue had in dayes passed here tofore<br>By god I saye/that is our lorde Ihesus<br>Rather than my husbande serued me thus<br>I had well leuer/eyther he were deed<br>Or elles that he none eye had in his heed<br>Than sayth an other/gossyp fynde some bote<br>Let not this man thus cast you vnderfote<br>For he shall doo to you whan ye be layde<br>As moche agayne or more/now haue I sayde<br>An other sayth/my cosyon I meruayle<br>ye take no more regarde to your auayle<br>Consydred/ye be wyse of good lygnage<br>And he not lyke to you/though maryage<br>Hath coupled you and all men hygh & lowe<br>How ye hym suffre vnderstonde and knowe<br>And he doth you so grete domage alwaye<br>Than doth the wyfe answere agayne and saye<br>Truely my dere gossyppes what is the best<br>To do as in this caas so haue I rest<br>Nothynge knowe I ne wayes fynde I can<br>To helpe my selfe he is so euyll man<br>An euyll man he is/one of them sayth<br>But I shall tell you truely by my fayth<br>My gossyppes that be here/they knowe well whan<br>I was fyrst maryed to myn husbande than<br>Men sayd he was so dyuers of his wyll<br>That it was wonder but he wolde me kyll<br>By god my gossyp though he so were named<br>I thanke our lorde he is now ryght wele tamed<br>For he had leuer fall and breke his arme<br>Than me to do dyspleasure hurte or harme<br>But fyrst whan we togyder maryed were<br>To speke than he began with angry chere<br>And for to stryke as dooth a carlysshe mon<br>But by the sacrament of god anon<br>Fast with my tethe I toke the brydell so<br>That he me bette no more but tymes two<br>Wherin he played the very fole and more<br>For after was I moche wors than before<br>And he hath tolde my gossyp sykerly<br>That he in me coude put no remedy<br>Now may I speke and do all that I wyll<br>And be it ryght or wronge vntrouth or skyll<br>Alwaye with me the last worde shall remayne<br>So whan he speketh I chekke hym vp agayne<br>There is no game lyke it/whiche is to playe<br>With players and put besynesse a waye<br>For gossyp neuer man yet was so harde<br>I you ensure but yf he be answarde<br>Well by his wyfe she shall soone make hym fre<br>And debonarye/yf that she wytty be<br>An other sayth/my cosyn be well ware<br>ye speke to hym/and for no drede ye spare<br>Whan he cometh home/and saye the best ye can<br>And in this wyse/gouerned is this man<br>Than drynke they fast & saye saynt Iohn to borowe<br>And take theyr leue vnto the nexte morowe<br>What tyme agayne they wyll retourne to se<br>The maner all/how she shall gouerned be<br>But whan this poore man cometh home agayne<br>With vytaylles and with other thynge certayne<br>And seeth there is grete waast made in his hous<br>Of goddes and he is inly couetous<br>Than falleth he heuynesse and payne<br>For thought that hym doth by the herte constrayne<br>An houre or two by nyght he doth aryue<br>For he hath comen ferre to se his wyue<br>And for to vnderstonde yet ferthermore<br>How that she dooth/he coueyteth ryght sore<br>Whether she be hole/or how it with her is<br>In ony wyse to knowe wyll he not mys<br>One nyght frome home he dare not lodge withoute<br>Of his expence he hath suche fere and doute<br>Into his hous with Ioye entred is he<br>And all his seruauntes there in theyr degre<br>Instructed be and taught in suche a wyse<br>Lyke as the good wyfe lyst afore deuyse<br>For elles though neuer so good & true were thay<br>They sholde not tarye there well halfe a daye<br>Now he demaundeth how the good wyfe doth<br>And therof wyll he vnderstonde the soth<br>Than sayth her chamberer whiche dooth her kepe<br>Syr she is very seke and may not slepe<br>Syth ye departed hens ete myght she not<br>But lytell she amended is god wot<br>Than is this man all sorowfull and sadde<br>Whiche hath ben wette wt reyne & harde bestadde<br>For oftentyme by hym and other moo<br>Parauenture it may well happen soo<br>That he is faynte and his hors at assaye<br>For he hath passed by an euyll waye<br>And they percas of all the daye afore<br>Haue neyther dronke ne eten lasse ne more<br>And yet wyll not this poore man ete a bytte<br>Tyll tyme that he may vnderstonde & wytte<br>How his wyfe dooth/& than the chambrerere<br>Olde matrones/& the nouryse drawen nere<br>And seruauntes whiche enfourmed ben how they<br>After theyr charge shall them demeane alwey<br>They shewe theyr personages as they were wroth<br>Than wyll not he abyde/but vp he goth<br>Into the chambre/comynge her agayne<br>And at his entre/softely she dooth playne<br>Upon the bedde afore her leneth he<br>Sayenge my best byloued how do ye<br>Ryght seke she sayth my lorde/and than he there<br>Demaundeth how in what a wyse and where<br>My loue sayth she/ye knowe well that of late<br>I am made feble/and in poore estate<br>Than answereth he to her as in this wyse<br>Haue ye not ordeyned so that some colyse<br>Of a fatte capon for you may be made<br>Now syr so god me helpe/ryght so I hadde<br>She sayth of late/but they it can not make<br>In fayth quod he loue I shall vndertake<br>To make you one full well and holsomly<br>The whiche shall no man touche but ye and I<br>And ye shall ete it for the loue of me<br>She sayth my loue I wyll well it so be<br>This good man than goth to the coke in hast<br>He stampeth fast and ordeyned her repast<br>Fast chydeth he/and sayth they be but bestes<br>For they can dyght no metes at requestes<br>Than hastely he dooth this soupynge bere<br>Unto his wyfe/and whan he cometh there<br>With prayer he enforceth her to take<br>Somwhat therof and ere well for his sake<br>And so she dooth and sayth syr good it is<br>But so was not that they haue made or this<br>For it was nothynge worth a symple fle<br>And with that worde frome her departeth he<br>To souper/and adowne he dooth hym sette<br>And therupon the vytaylles be forth sette<br>None of the delycates that gossyppes ete<br>The daye afore/whiche were not for hym mete<br>Not perauenture of the messes chefe<br>He had but of the fragmentes and belefe<br>Wherof the olde wyues haue take theyr fyll<br>And god wote in what wyse they dranke theyr tyll<br>Thus was this wety man at souper fedde<br>Wherwith he is content and goth to bedde<br>All sobrely with heuynesse and sorowe<br>And whan that comen is the nexte morowe<br>Unto his wyfe he gooth and in this wyse<br>He sayth/my loue tyme is ye awake and ryse<br>And go to masse for we so moche do spende<br>That all our money nygh is at an ende<br>This cost is grete/we may not bere out it<br>And she answereth a syr it is not yet<br>No whyle syth I was layde/& so grete payne<br>I haue that yet I can not well sustayne<br>Myselfe/but now I wote it and byleue<br>ye thynge it longe/& sore it doth you greue<br>That I ne laboure in the hous agayne<br>In suche a wyse as though I sholde be slayne<br>I vnderstonde it is your mynde and wyll<br>That in this wyse I sholde my selfe do kyll<br>Alas I se in tyme to come that I<br>Ryght moche shall haue to suffre certaynly<br>If that I sholde haue .x. or .xii. yee mo<br>Chyldren/but god defende that it be so<br>For yf it myght hym please I wolde be gladde<br>That neuer one after this tyme I hadde<br>And please it to god that I more chylde haue neuer<br>But his comaundement be perfourmed euer<br>In me and all his wyll lowly obeyd<br>Ha sayd this man/alas what haue ye sayd<br>ye mone yourselfe without cause or encheson<br>For I dare saye and make it good by reoson<br>Was neuer poore man yet of myn estate<br>That suffre hath soo moche as I of late<br>Frome hensforth in it shall me lyke & please<br>That whan ye wyll ye aryse or take your ease<br>Than sayth she thus/my counseyll is that one<br>Go streyght vnto my gossyppes all anone<br>And saye to them they come no more to me<br>For I am euyll dysposed in certaynte<br>My loue sayth he they shall come and haue all<br>Suche thynges as may them please in specyall<br>Syr than sayth she/no more let me be styll<br>And do ye all thynges as it is your wyll<br>Than cometh a matrone with a wryngled face<br>An olde kepster with whome is lytell grace<br>And to the good man out her mynde doth breke<br>Pease syr she sayth/no mo suche wordes speke<br>For to a woman that is voyde of brayne<br>And feble/and so tender in certayne<br>Grete peryll is to speke so in her payne<br>And therwithall she draweth the courtayne<br>So doth this man lyue sorowfully alwayes<br>And wretchedly so shall he ende his dayes </div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br>Here endeth the thyrde Ioye of maryage.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Here begynneth the fourth Ioye of maryage.<br>The fourth Ioye of maryage to tell<br>Is as to go frome purgatorye to hell<br>For it is whan he whiche hath maryed be<br>Kepynge an housholde after his degre<br>Where he hath dwelled styll .viii. yeres euen<br>And hath of yonge chyldren fyre or seuen<br>Passynge full many an euyll nyght & daye<br>Unhappely as ye haue herde me saye<br>Wherof he hath had many an euyll ende<br>Thus is his youth gretely made colde & spende<br>And it were tyme for hym sore to repente<br>If that he coude/as synners sholde in lente<br>But of his hous whiche he must kepe algate<br>He is soo inly wery and soo mate<br>That what someuer the wyfe wyll speke or do<br>Nought careth he/ne taketh hede therto<br>For he as harde and dull is as an asse<br>Whiche for no prycke ne sporre wyll faster passe<br>This poore man doughters hath yet one or twayne<br>The whiche may fortune wolde be maryed fayne<br>They redy be and on the houre they tarye<br>Awaytynge fast who wyll come them to marye<br>They be in Ioye/and it may happen so<br>The man is poore/and lyueth in care & wo<br>Nygh moneyles/and hath no grete substaunce<br>For maryage to make his cheuysaunce<br>Also vnto his sones he must bye<br>His doughters & his other small meynye<br>Doublettes hosyn kyrtels and vytayle<br>And many an other thynge withouten fayle<br>His sayd doughters he must repayre and kepe<br>All honestely and gaye/elles wyll they wepe<br>And for thre thynges this nedely must be done<br>One is bycause they may be asked sone<br>Of dyuers galauntes dwellynge them aboute<br>An other is withouten ony doute<br>All were it so that this goodman ne wolde<br>yet so to be/for nothynge it ne sholde<br>For why the wyfe hath passed the same waye<br>And she ne wyll it suffre by this daye<br>Also there is an other reason why<br>Bycause they haue good myndes & hertes hye<br>And are accustomed to be fresshe & gay<br>For otherwyse wyll they not be ne may<br>And in auenture yf they otherwyse<br>Entred were/anone they wolde practyse<br>To haue theyr Iolynettes/for helpe and ease<br>But there an ende/of that I holde my pease<br>So is this man on euery parte dysmayd<br>These charges berynge/as afore is sayd<br>And perauenture soo he is bestadde<br>That symplely and poorely he is cladde<br>Of whiche araye yet careth he nothynge<br>So he may haue a passe tyme and lyuynge<br>And this suffyseth well to hym alwaye<br>As to the fysshe doth in the lepe to playe<br>Whyles he may haue a tyme and suffraunce<br>Therin to lyue and languysshe nt penaunce<br>And yet therby abbredged ben his dayes<br>So fareth it by suche a man alwayes<br>The whiche into the lepe of housholdynge<br>Is put where he shall suffre suche turmentynge<br>As I haue sayd/and other innumerable<br>And thus he seeth these thynges so chargeable<br>That all he sette at nought soo he lyue may<br>As doth an hors morfounded by the waye<br>Whiche none accompte doth set by sporre ne thynge<br>That may to hym be done in trauaylynge<br>This not withstondynge/wheder he wyll or not<br>Forth hym behoueth for to goo and trot<br>To gouerne londe and lyuelode whiche is his<br>Ryght after suche estate as he of is<br>And perauenture he hath horses twayne<br>The whiche be lene & poore for lacke of grayne<br>And it soo fortune may he hath but one<br>Or yet not one/but forth he gooth anone<br>And .xx. myle or fourty from his place<br>He trauaylleth/within a lytell space<br>Unto the parlyament/or to thassyse<br>Where he hath for to sewe in dyuers wyse<br>For suche a cause/as other thynges amonge<br>Hath ben dependant in the lawe there longe<br>A payre of botes well of thre yeres olde<br>Or foure he hath to kepe his legges frome colde<br>The whiche full ofte haue mended ben alowe<br>Ryght craftely for drede it sholde be knowe<br>So that parte whiche was somtyme on the kne<br>Amyddes the shynne must nedely vsed be<br>Full ofte they chaunged haue theyr former face<br>And that hath brought them from aboue so bace<br>A rustye payre of sporres he hath eke<br>Wherof one of the rowelles be to seke<br>Also of .x. yeres olde he hath a gowne<br>Not of the newest gyse ne facyowne<br>The whiche for drede that he sholde it appere<br>Excepte on hygh feestes he nolde it were<br>Or elles whan he frome home sholde go or ryde<br>All other tymes it was layde clene asyde<br>The cause why it was of so olde a shappe<br>May be for soo it fallen is by happe<br>That gownes be made all in a newe gyse<br>But this to hym dooth well ynoughe suffyse<br>And in his wayes yf that he se or here<br>Ony Instrumentes or playes ay they answere<br>As semeth hym by sowynge in his ere<br>Of his housholde bycause his mynde is there<br>He lyues harde and poorely by the wayes<br>So do his horses/and his page alwayes<br>Whiche page is all to ragged and to rent<br>As pluto was that rode to parlyament<br>Upon his syde a rustye sworde and bad<br>He ware the whiche his mayster goten had<br>In flaunders at a bataylle/also he<br>Those bowges caryed that were wonte to be<br>Ofte vsed to conueye bothe nygh and farre<br>His legge harneys alwayes in tyme of warre<br>Sortely to speke/he doth all that he may<br>With lytell cost to trauayle by the waye<br>For he at home ynough hath for to spende<br>Also these aduocates to hym offende<br>Sergeauntes gryffyers/and suche a companye<br>So largely take of hym that he doth hye<br>Home warde as fast as he his hors can dryue<br>And perauenture whan he cometh to his wyue<br>It is nygh the mornynge as the nyght<br>And whan he is at home he dooth alyght<br>Where he noo souper fynde can ne espye<br>Bycause his wyfe and other companye<br>Unto theyr beddes were gone somwhat afore<br>Or he came home/but he dare saye no more<br>But taketh all in pacyence and gree<br>For here vnto accustomed hath he be<br>And yf it happe that he come in good houre<br>Wery and sadde with trauayle and laboure<br>Pensyfe heuy/and of his charges greued<br>Supposynge to be welcomed and releued<br>How be it many tymes he hath had<br>And he doth thynke ryght euyll chere & bad<br>The good wyfe chydeth than & clappeth fast<br>As though a tempest were or thonder blast<br>Within the hous/and yf that this good man<br>Lyst to comaunde/or bydde his seruautes than<br>To gete hym ony thynge that he wolde haue<br>There is not in his hous so lewde a knaue<br>That maketh accompte therby ne wyll obey<br>So by theyr dame afore taught ben all they<br>Wherfore to speke he loseth tyme and payne<br>But she therwith be pleased in certayne<br>And yf his ladde in ony wyse demande<br>Mete for hym selfe/or for his hors prouande<br>He shall be checked and rebuked so<br>That he shall not dare speke suche wordes mo<br>Also this poore man that is soo sage<br>Wyll make no noyse for hym ne for his page<br>But taketh all in pacyence and sayth<br>Dame ye do well/and yours in good fayth<br>Therwith she answereth hym all hastely<br>ye haue more lost and spent now folyly<br>Than ye wyll wynne of all these yeres twaye<br>I tolde you late in twenty deuylles waye<br>ye sholde haue made our henhous close or now<br>A martron eten hath this tell I yow<br>Thre of myn olde hennes ye shall perceyue<br>What harme we haue therby/thus ye deceyue<br>By god I knowe yf ye may lyue your age<br>ye shall be poorest man of your lygnage<br>Fayre dame sayth he no mo suche wordes saye<br>I haue ynough/and so shall haue alway<br>Our lorde I thanke/and yf it do hym please<br>I am content/and thynke me well at ease<br>For of my kynred there ben full ryght good men<br>In your kynred/ha se now/sayth she then<br>By saynt Mary/I knowe not where they be<br>And at the leest I coude them neuer se<br>Dame by my/fayth he sayth/some be ryght gode<br>Of my lygnage/I wolde ye vnderstode<br>The whiche be worthe as moche or more than ye<br>What they/she sayth/be they lyke vnto me<br>ye dame sayth he/nay syr by god sayth she<br>I tell you well your dedes were but small<br>Without my frendes helpe in especyall<br>Now fayre dame/for goddes loue sayth he<br>Haue pacyence/and lete suche wordes be<br>Certes she sayth/yf that my frendes were here<br>And you suche/wordes had/they wolde answere<br>you well ynough/then he the mater feres<br>Leest it by her/sholde come vnto theyr eres<br>Wherfore to kepe all thynges in pacyence<br>No more sayth he/but resteth with sylence<br>And here with all/begynneth for to wepe<br>A lytell chylde/that can not go but crepe<br>And she anone/a rodde taketh in her hande<br>And in dyspyte/of this good poore husbande<br>More than for other cause or chastysynge<br>Upon the buttockes/she dooth it bete and dynge<br>This lytell babe/and than he sayth no more<br>Bete it fayre dame/and waxeth wrothe therfore<br>And she begynneth for to chyde and crye<br>In all the deuylles names of hell on hye<br>To gouerne them/she sayth ye haue no payne<br>They cost you nought/but I haue cause to playne<br>For alway vpon them I must attende<br>God gyue it shamefull deth/and euyll ende<br>Ha fayre dame sayth he/that is foule sayd<br>With that the nouryce shortely dooth out brayde<br>And sayth a syr/full lytell do ye knowe<br>The sorowe that here is amonge vs I trowe<br>And what payne that it were to you/yf ye<br>Sholde kepe and nourysshe them so as do we<br>Now by my trouth/than sayth the chamberere<br>It is grete shame to you syr/wyll ye here<br>For whan that you come home/we sholde be fayne<br>Of your comynge/but ye make noyse and playne<br>A</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br /></a><br />poem by <a href="http://en.citatepedia.ro/by.php?a=Anonymous+Olde+English">Anonymous Olde English</a><div class=q> <img src="https://www.citatepedia.ro/g/32share.png" style="float:left" alt="Share"> <script type="text/javascript" src="//s7.addthis.com/js/300/addthis_widget.js#pubid=citatepedia" async="async"></script><div style="display:inline-block" class="addthis_sharing_toolbox" data-url="http://en.citatepedia.ro/comments.php?id=346102" data-title="The Fyftene Loyes Of Maryage de Anonymous Olde English" data-description="Somer passed/and wynter well begone The dayes shorte/the darke nyghtes longe Haue taken season/and brynghtnes of the sonne Is lytell sene/and small byrdes songe Seldon is herde/in feldes or wodes ronge All strength and ventue/of trees and herbes s..."></div> </div> </div>

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