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The Fyrst Boke of the Introduction of Knowledge made by Andrew Borde

... A Compendyous Regyment or A Dyetary of Helth made in Mountpyllier, compyled by Andrewe Boorde ... Barnes in the Defence of the Berde: a Treatyse made, answerynge the Treatyse of Doctor Borde vpon Berdes: Edited, with a life of Andrew Boorde, and large extracts from his Breuyary by F. J. Furnivall

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The seconde parte of that songe.
  


313

The seconde parte of that songe.

I lytell thought, ye were so wyse,
Berdes to deuyse of the new guyse;
But truely, for your enterpryse,
ye may go cast your wyt at dyse.
At syncke or syse, whiche so doth fall,
Fere ye not to cast at all;
For yf you lose, your lostes be small:
It is to dere, a tenys ball;
I fere it not.
A berde vpon his ouer lyppe,
ye saye wyll be a proper tryppe,
Wherby ye shall the better skyppe.
Go your wayes, I dare let you slyppe,
Where as be many more,
I thynke, by .xx. score,
In cocke lorelles bote, before
ye maye take an ore.
I fere it not.
Yet though that ye one thing do craue,
Which is, a muster deuyles berde to haue,
ye make me study, so God me saue!
If this peticion came not of a knaue,
Perhapes some other man dyd make it,
And so ye dyd vp take it;
But best ye were forsake it,
For fere of Pears go nakyt.
Nowe fere you that!

314

ye say some berdes be lyke lambes woll,
With lytell wyt within theyr skull:
‘Who goth a myle to sucke a bull,
Comes home a fole, and yet not full.’
And where ye wyshe them pekt with pyes,
That weres a berde, vnto theyr iyes:
Be wyse, take hede! suche homely spyes
Oftymes can spye your crafty lyes.
I fere it not.
But, syr, I praye you, yf you tell can,
Declare to me, when God made man,
(I meane by our forefather Adam)
Whyther that he had a berde than;
And yf he had, who dyd hym shaue,
Syth that a barber he coulde not haue.
Well, then, ye proue hym there a knaue,
Bycause his berde he dyd so saue.
I fere it not.
Christ & his apostles, ye haue declaryd,
That theyr berdes myght not be sparyd,
Nor to theyr berdes no berdes comparyd:
Trewe it is, yet we repayryd
By his vocacion, to folowe in generall
His disciples, both great and small;
And folowyng ther vse, we shuld not fal,
Nothynge exceptynge our berdes at all.
I fere it not.
Sampson, with many thousandes more
Of auncient phylosophers, full great store,
Wolde not be shauen, to dye therfore;
Why shulde you, then, repyne so sore?
A[d]myt that men doth Imytate
Thynges of antyquite, and noble state,

315

Such counterfeat thinges oftymes do mytygate
Moche ernest yre and debate.
I fere it not.
Therfore, to cease, I thynke be best;
For berdyd men wolde lyue in rest.
you proue yourselfe a homly gest,
So folysshely to rayle and iest;
For if I wolde go make in ryme,
Howe new shauyd men loke lyke scraped swyne,
& so rayle forth, from tyme to tyme,
A knauysshe laude then shulde be myne:
I fere it not.
What shulde auayle me to do so,
yf I shulde teache howe men shulde go,
Thynkynge my wyt moche better, lo,
Then any other, frende or fo?
I myght be imputed trewly
For a foole, that doth gloryfye
In my nowne selfe onelye;
I thynke you wyll it veryfye:
I fere it not.
And thus farewel, though I do wryght
To answere for berdes, by reason ryght;
yet vnberdyd men I do not spyght,
Though ye on berdes therin delyght.
And in concludynge of this thynge,
I praye God saue our noble kynge!
Berdes & vnberdyd, to heuen vs brynge,
Where as is Ioye euerlastynge!
I fere it not, &c.