University of Virginia Library

[Beautie shut up thy shop, and trusse up all thy trash]

Beautie shut up thy shop, and trusse up all thy trash,
My Nell hath stolne thy finest stuffe, & left thee in the lash
Thy market now is marde, thy gaines are gone god wot,
Thou hast no ware, that maie compare, with this that I have got
As for thy painted pale, and wrinckles surfled up:
Are deare ynough, for such as lust to drinke of every cup:
Thy bodies bolstred out, with bumbact and with bagges,
Thy rowles, thy ruffes, thy caules, thy coifes, thy Jerkins & thy Jagges.
Thy curling, and thy cost, thy friesling and thy fare,
To court to court with al those tois & there set forth such ware
Before their hungrie eies, that gaze on every gest,
And choose the cheapest chaffaire still, to please their fancy best.
But I whose stedfast eies, coulde never cast a glaunce,
With wādring loke, amid the prese, to take my choise by chaūce
Have wonne by due desert, a perce that hath no peere,
And left the rest as refuse all, to serve the market there:
There let him chuse that list, there catche the best who can:
A painted blazing baite may serve, to choke a gazing man.
But I have slipt thy flower, that freshest is of hewe:
I have thy corne, goe sell thy chaffe, I list to seeke no new,
The windowes of mine eies, are glaz'd with such delight,
As eche new face seemes full of faultes, that blaseth in my sight:
And not without just cause, I can compare her so,
Loe here my glove I challenge him, that can, or dare say no.
Let Theseus come with clubbe, or Paris bragge with brand,
To prove how faire their Hellen was, that skourg'd the Greciā land:
Let mighty Mars himselfe, come armed to the field:
And vaunt dame Venus to defēd, with helmet, speare, & shield.
This hand that had good hap, my Hellen to embrace,
Shal have like lucke to [foyle] hir foes, & daūt them with disgrace.
And cause them to confesse by verdict and by othe,
How farre hir lovelie lookes do steine, the beauties of them both.
And that my Hellen is more faire then Paris wife,
And doth deserve more famous praise, then Venus for hir life.
Which if I not perfourme, my life then let me leese,
Or else be bound in chaines of change, to begge for beauties feese.