Classic Poem

Repyne, not, friends, to view the forme of scorne,
Skew not to see a figure fresh of ruth,
A crooked peece with withered age forworne,
In drouping dayes whome beggerie pursuth,
A sorrie crop for seede of all his youth,
Who moylde, who toyld, who gaped after gaine,
When losse ensude; a poore reward for paine.

2. Though straunge at first my tale may seeme in sight,
Yet, wysely wayde, the cause appeareth playne,
Why backward hap my forward hope did quite,
Why losse I found, where I did looke for gayne;
Why povertie I reapt in lue of paine;
For trye who list, and he by proofe shall see,
With honest myndes the world will hardly gree:

3. Which of it selfe a kingdome is of sinne,
The devill is prince, whose pomp doth never fade;
Deceite and craft his chiefest counsellers bin,
Extortion foule his treasurer is made:
Covetousnesse is merchant of his trade;
Vile usurie his racking rents doth rake,
As auditour account doth briberie take.

4. Within his court these vipers beareth sway;
First false suspect high chamberlain they call,
Who raps them down which mount by honest way.
Disdaine controuls the wightes which be in thral;
Then grudge, the garde, doth place them in the hal;
Mistrust and spight doth dayly watch and ward,
And malice is the captaine of the garde.

5. Envie and Hate, the presence doore doth keepe,
Which elvish elves dame Vertue still deryde,
Or if she knocke, the sottes will be a sleepe.
Next to the divel the court doth Lecherie guyde,
On whom attends dame Pleasure, Lust, and Pryde:
What office beares the glutton with the rest,
Or drunken sot, to shewe it were a jest.

6. Debate and strife, the coastes doth dayly scowre,
Well meaning mynds to see they do repyne;
Though fortune laugh, the world on them doth lowre:
Her subjects sleepe, and snore like fatted swyne,
When hunger stervde with want the vertuous pyne.
No wonder though they leade this lothsome life,
For worldly rule with vertue is at strife.

7. But I too long do tyre you with this tale,
To wray the rule the worldly wretches have,
Who bath in blisse, when others boyle in bale,
Who do commaund, when others gladly crave;
Yet shame and all they leave to fill their grave.
I ment, and meane, to shewe his overthrowe,
Whose honest mynd became his chiefest foe.

8. I first by cost did seeke in court to mount,
A needefull helpe in court to purchase grace;
But sowly short I fell upon account:
I quite forgot to flatter and to face,
The thrall to scorne, the best for to imbrace.
I su'd, I serv'd, I did attendance daunce,
And still, I thought, desart would me advaunce.

9. I lookt aloft, and brav'd it with the best:
The charge mine owne, no countnance did I lacke,
Whilest pence were ryse I was a welcome guest:
I ayded those whom spitefull scorne did sacke,
Which one advaunst were first that threwe me backe.
With conges kynde the gallants would me greete,
With cap and knee the meaner did me meete.

10. The sneaking curres by bryberie layd a traine,
A myle to catch before they fell the crumbes:
I thought desart perforce would fasten gaine
On me, which gape but gained nought but plumbes,
For former graunts still nickt me oore the thumbes;
The drawlatch thriv'd, my selfe who helpt to grace,
As well as he which bare the produest face.

11. Ne envide I of either part the thirft,
Since fortune smylde upon the silly lot:
I thought alost no doubt she would me lift;
So spent in hope, for feare I spared not,
By cost I sayd that worship still was got;
But I so long did spende upon the store,
That all was gone: then could I spend no more.

12. Then countnance straight with sower face did srowne,
And credite next began to slip aside,
Disdaine and spight with speede then threwe me downe.
In this distresse whom earst I helpt I tryde,
Who gave good words, but no reliefe applyde:
Thus, quight forsooke, I in the briers stucke,
And cryde perforce a vengance of yll lucke!

13. I thought mishap my fortune did withstand,
And meere good hap to others gaine assignde:
I little thought that item in the hand,
Remembrance was, a friend in court to finde;
Or some for some could leade a stately mynde,
Ne flatterie, I did feare, should be prefarde,
Ere service true had reapt his full rewarde.

14. I could not thinke the court two faces had,
In favour faire, fresh, sweete, fraught with delight,
When in disgrace the wrongside turnes as sad,
Sullen, sowre, sharpe, the shewe of deepe despight,
As syrens songs bewitch the simple wight:
I quite forgot, in short, to shewe you plaine,
The proverb old, faire words do make fooles faine.

15. I simply ment, but subtly was beguilde.
A crocodile deceives with fained teares,
But pray obtaind, it turnes to monster wilde.
With sayned friends, in fine, even so it fares,
Which snarled be in froward fortunes snares:
They crouch and creepe til they have that they wish;
In your distresse they wey you not a rush.

16. But certes, they which never tasted bale,
Persuaded be that all men bathe in blis,
So sure he thinkes, truth seemes each sugred tale,
Whose honest mynd did never meane amis;
The speach of craft he counts a mockerie is:
Both losse and gaine (he saith) doth fortune give,
And still he hopes on after hap to live.

17. My selfe the proofe, which reackt my courtly fal,
A backward blast, a fit of froward fate.
Some other way to hap she would me call,
With double mendes to vaunce my poore estate:
As gleames of joy do follow cloudes of hate,
Thus lights I held (bewitched with faire wordes)
Or bushes beate while other lymde the byrdes.

18. I still reliev'd the wights that were distrest,
Although they would they could do me no good;
Which cold excuse soone cutt off my request:
A night cap, sure, or else a lyned hoode,
Beseemde my skonce. I sware by sweete S. Roode,
Which, like a foole, on would and could did feede,
When simple I with deede reliev'd their neede.

19. These hashards hard might honest mindes defile:
What harvest worse then weedes to reape for corne?
But though the lewde do laugh if fortune smile,
And frowne as fast, if that the fyxsen scorne,
Yet wealth, ne woe, no friendly minde can turne:
For happ they leave no honest way unsought,
But feedes on hope by value of their thought.

20. Wel, thus perforce, I left the costly court:
Hie time to trudge when coine and clothes were spent.
The souldiers gaine was rounge with sweete report,
By them which wist not what their losses ment.
At ventures yet to see the warres I went,
Resolv'd by them to rise or leese my breath,
For servile life I worse despisde then death.

21. Appointed well, and souldier like arayde,
I left my friends, and throngd amid my foes.
Although at first the thundring shott mee frayde,
In fine, saunce feare I lent such lustie blowes,
That soone my fame throughout the campe arose:
With better pay to credite then I grue,
And thus a flaunte to care I badde adue.

22. In desperate frayes gave charge my band and I,
By manly force our eager foes to foyle:
Not one then flie, but rather chus'de to die,
And where they foyld, I let them fleece the spoyle;
For trueth to say, that tythe deservde their toyle.
I never nickt the poorest of his pay,
But if hee lackt, hee had before his day.

23. They cheerisht thus, when neede inforst them fight,
On foes they flewe in face of all the shott,
As wolves the sheepe doe spoile or sore affright,
Their enimies soe did flie, or goe to pott,
Such lyll they layde upon their pates, Got wott.
Sith fame I reapt thus by their restlesse paine,
I could not choose but let them gleane the gaine.

24. Such was my hap to reach the honour still,
In hie attemptes I gave the overthrowe.
Thus fortune long did frame unto my will,
But I forgot how soone shee playes the shrowe,
Even where of late shee favour most did showe:
I overslipt the time that serv'd for thrist,
As though the warres ne did their chaunces shift.

25. In poore repastes, whose courtesie is such
To leave to cut, till lurchers old have carv'd,
They seeldome say shall surfet of too much,
Yet haply may with want be hunger starv'd.
Who so in spoile so stayes till all be serv'd,
Besides his blowes an easie burthen beares:
Each for himselfe, where souldiers shift and shares.

26. But whilste I stode in fickle fortunes grace,
And swam in wealth, of want I never thought:
I toke no heede how age drewe on a pace,
Or brused bones at home for safetie sought,
To live uppon the gaine that youth had caught,
But when I could, sith then I would not thrive,
When faine I would, then could with me did strive.

27. For when the warres my chiefest strength had worne,
When wounded flesh did faint at bloudy blowes;
When fortune thwart her fawning face did turne,
When faithfull friendes were rest by by raging foes,
When foule debate amonge our souldiers rose,
When treason foyld where force could never speede,
When hollowe heartes did droupe away at neede.

28. When thus of warres I felt the sower taste,
Which seemed sweete by speach I heard of yore,
Forworne with toile, I homewards trudgst in haste,
My skinne well paide with woundes and bruses sore,
But sure of pence, I had but slender store:
Thus did I spend the time that servde for thrift,
And left old age in drowping dayes to shift.

29. Yet simple I did thus persuade my minde,
How that the warres do naught but honour yeeld,
And cost in court did cast mee farre behinde,
My way to thrive was tilling of the feeld;
A charge, God wott, unmeete for mee to wield;
A farmer fresh, I fell then to the plow,
And coste abridgst, yet cares I had ynow.

30. I then did trust the trueth of every swayne,
And thought that I a sight of lubbers kept,
When others housd, my hay lay sowst in raine,
My corne did shead before the same was reapt,
Or spoild with beastes, whilst lasie Robin slept,
I bought at worst, yet sould I under foote;
A poore increase can spring of such a roote.

31. Thus long with losse the farmer stoute I playde,
Till out of house and home pure neede mee prest.
With beggerie bitt then was I sore dismayd,
To trie my friendes yet I my selfe addrest,
With squaymish lookes, who intertainde their guest
With sower showes: my want could well endure,
For small reliefe then none was better sure.

32. In what I could my host then did I please,
With quippes, and nippes, who cutt mee ore the thumbes;
But floutes in faith could not mee so disease,
That from the borde I gathered not the crumbes;
For poore men pincht are glad to pray on plumbes.
Hayted and baited time thus did I weare,
Hard lodgde, worse clothd, not cloyd with costly fare,

33. And fettered thus (God wot) in chaynes of woe,
I sleeping once, mee thought before my vew
A mate I sawe, that earst I did not knowe:
God speede (quoth hee); quoth I, the like to you.
Acquainted thus, such friendship did insue,
As I to him my former fortunes shoe,
My hap, my harme, my want, my weale, my woe:

34. Which to discourse a tedious tale I tould,
Which well hee marckt, and smyled in his thought.
Good friend, hee said, thou waxest very ould,
For whom foresight some succour should have sought;
But well I see thou youth hath spared nought;
Yet all thy life thou moyldst and toyldst for gaine:
Hard was thy hap, that losse still aunsweard paine.

35. No fortune yet, but follie in thy selfe,
That losse thou reapst in recompence of paine:
Thy course was wrounge, a pace to prowle up pelse,
For falsehoode must, or flattery compasse gaine,
Or else, in faith, thy moyling is in vaine:
Deserte is dasde, with dyrefull envies dristes,
And honest mindes are put unto their shiftes.

36. But listen well, and I will shortly showe
How that thy want in drowping dayes shall die.
The way I know how every state doth growe,
From base degree to wealth and honour hie;
Thy conscience yet must beare with briberie,
With falsehoode, fraude, feare not to use deceites,
To fishe for wealth those are the sweetest baites.

37. If thou doest love a faithlesse priest to bee,
If courtiers life in thee hath lyking wrought,
In merchauntes fraude if thou wouldst deepely see,
If lawyers gaine doth tempt thy greedie thought,
If through the warres aloft thou wouldst be brought,
In countrie cares if thou wouldst beate thy braine,
If cheters craft, thou weanst, is full of gaine.

38. If by these trades releefe thou meanst to reape,
Doe thus and thus, and thou with wealth shalt swell.
With that hee wrayed of huge deceiptes a heape,
The least whereof would send a man to hell.
At which amasde, (quoth I) Good frend, farewell,
I like thee not; thy counsell is full evill:
I lived well, I will not die a devill.

39. At which adue my mate to sigh I sawe,
Who sorrie was hee had bestowde such talke
On mee, whose tale to no deceite could drawe;
And in this chase away the man did walke;
And waking then, I up and downe did stalke,
Who in my selfe did finde a hell of thought,
To see what wyles to compasse wealth are wrought.

Desire of wealth forthwith my heart did wound,
My honest minde did blame my greedie veyne;
Thus in my selfe a heape of harmes I found,
Afraide of fraude, yet glad to compasse gaine:
Thus both I blamde, and thankt the cousiners paine;
But as by chaunce, I looking in my glasse,
Mee thought I saw how death by mee did passe.

With that (quoth I) away with golden glee!
Avaunt desire of greedie gathering gaine!
Wouldst thou him binde which whilome lived free?
Away! goe trudge, thy toyling is in vaine:
The world I scorne with my sweete Christ to raine,
No subject I of Sathans empire ame,
Christ is my leage, to serve the devill I shame.