University of Virginia Library

Disprayse of Women that allure and loue not.

When so you vew in Uerse
and Poets rimes report,
Of Lucrece, and Vlysses wife
that lyues in honest sort.
When Hippo commes by hap
or good Alcest yfeare,
And other some that by desert
with fame renowmed were,
Then you with hastie doome
and rashfull sentence straight,
Will vaunt that women more and lesse
were all with vertue fraight.
And, for those fewe that liude
in wiuely bonde so well,
You will esteeme the reast by those
that onely bare the bell,
But follow sound aduice,
let eche receyue hir doome,
As ech in vertue did surmount,
or sit in highest roome.
So cleane was neuer seede
ysifted, but among
For all their paynes were weedes that grew
to put the graine to wrong.
That troupe of honest Dames
those Grisels all are gone:
No Lucrece now is left aliue,
ne Cleopatra none.
Those dayes are all ypast,
that date is fleeted by:
They myrrors were Dame Nature made
hir skilfull hande to try.
Now course of kinde exchaungde
doth yeelde a woorser graine,
And women in these latter yeares
those modest Matrones staine.
Deceit in their delight,
great fraude in friendly lookes:
They spoyle the Fish for friendships sake
that houer on their Hookes.
They buye the baite to deare
that so their freedome loze:
And they the more deceitfull are
that so can craft and gloze.
With beautie to allure,
and murder with disdaine:
What more may be gainst womens kind
where ruth of right should raigne
So Memphite Crocodile
(as we in Poets fine)
Where Nylus with his seuenfold streame
to Seaward doth incline
With ruthlesse trickling teares
and lamentable sounde,
The siely Beast with pittie mooude
doth cruelly confounde.
So Marmaydes in the flood
and Syrens sweetly sing,
Till they the musing Mariner
to speedie death doe bring.
Now Helen for hir traine
with Dian may compare:
Such sundrie Helens now are found,
and Dians Nymphes so rare.
Who if by craft espie
thy Senses once to bende,
And bow by Cupids subtile breach
that burning gleames doth sende:
Then will they seeke in haste
by force of friendly blinck,
And wrested looke into thy breast
their beauties shape to sinck.
Which if be brought to passe,
then haue they their desire:
And standing farre doe smile to see
the flaming of the fire.
Then looke they on a loofe,
and neuer once repaire
To ende the strife that they haue stirrde
twixt Louer and Dispaire.
As Shepheards when they see
the Ganders foe in snare
Reioyce, that from their foldes of late
their siely cattle bare:
Or Boy that knowes the Foule
to be in pithole caught,
That woonted was to steale the stale
and set the snare at naught:
So wily Women woont
to laugh, when so they spie
The louing Wight ytraynde by trust
in poynt and pinch to die.
But if such chaunce doe chaunce
(as often chaunce we see)
The fish that earst was hangde on Hooke
by better chaunce be free,
If he by happie hap
doe cast off Cupids yoke,
Not setting of their Loue a Leeke
that gaue the cruell stroke:
Then are remooude the cloudes
of hir disdainfull brow:
And friendships flood that earst was drie
afresh begins to flow.
Then wresteth shee hir grace,
and makes a seeming show
As though she ment no chaunge at all,
ne would hir Hestes forgo.
Thus are they fright with wiles
whome Nature made so plaine,
Thus Sinons shifts they put in vre
their purpose to attaine.
Wherefore let be our care
Vlysses trade to trie:
And stop our eares against the sounde
of Syrens when they crie.
Think when thou seest the baite
whereon is thy delite,
That hidden Hookes are hard at hande
to bane thee when thou bite.
Think well that poyson lurckes
in shape of Sugar sweete:
And where the freshest flowres are seene
there most beware thy feete.
But chiefly Women shoonne
and follow mine aduice,
If not, thou mayst perhaps in proufe
of folly beare the price.
To trust to rotten boughes
the daunger well is seene:
To treade the tylled trap vnwares
hath alwayes perill beene.
Haue Medea still in minde,
let Circe be in thought:
And Helen that to vtter sack,
both Greece and Troie brought
Let Creside be in coumpt
and number of the mo,
Who for hir lightnesse may presume
with falsest on the row:
Else would she not haue left
a Troian for a Greeke.
But what? by kinde the Cat will hunt,
hir Father did the like.
As wylie are their wits,
so are their tongues vntrue:
Unconstant and aye fleeting mindes
that most imbrace the nue.
When fixed is their fayth
it restes on brittle sande:
And when thou deemste them surste of all
they beare thee but in hande.
Though Argus were aliue
whose eies in number were
As many as the Peacock proude
in painted plume doth beare:
Yet Women by their wyles
and well acquainted drifts,
Would soone deceiue his waking head,
and put his eies to shifts.
Nought haue they neede at all
Cyllenus Pipe to blow
To forge their fraude, their tongues will serue
as learned writers show.