The Minor Poems of John Lydgate :: :: University of Virginia Library

Off God and kynde procedith al bewte;
Crafft may shewe a foreyn apparence,
But nature ay must haue the souereynte.
Thyng countirfeet hath noon existence.
Tween gold and gossomer is greet dyfference;
Trewe metall requeryth noon allay;
Vnto purpos by cleer experyence,
Beute wol shewe, thogh hornys wer away.

2

Ryche attyres of stonys and perre,
Charbonclys, rubyes of moost excellence,
Shewe in dirknesse lyght where so they be,
By ther natural hevenly influence.
Doublettys of glas yeve a gret evydence,
Thyng counterfeet wol faylen at assay;
On this mater concludyng in sentence,
Beute wol shewe, thogh hornes were away.

3

Aleyn remembreth—his compleynt who lyst see,
In his book of ffamous elloquence—

663

Clad al in flours and blosmes of a tre
He sauh Nature in hir moost excellence,
Vpon hir hed a kerche[f] of Valence,
Noon other richesse of counterfet array:
Texemplyfie by kyndely provydence,
Beute wol shewe, thogh hornes wer away.

4

Famous poetis of antyquyte,
In Grece and Troye renomed of prudence,
Wrot of Queen Heleyne and Penolope,
Of Pollycene, with hir chast innocence;
For wyves trewe calle Lucrece to presence;
That they wer faire ther can no man sey nay;
Kynde wrouht hem with so gret dyllygence,
Ther beute kouth, hornys wer cast away.

5

Clerkys recorde, by gret auctoryte,
Hornes wer yove to bestys ffor dyffence—
A thyng contrarie to ffemynyte,
To be maad sturdy of resystence.
But arche wives, egre in ther vyolence,
Fers as tygre ffor to make affray,
They haue despit, and ageyn concyence,
Lyst nat of pryde, ther hornes cast away.

Lenvoye.

6

Noble pryncessis, this litel schort dyte,
Rudely compyled, lat it be noon offence

664

To your womanly mercyfull pyte,
Though it be rad in your audyence;
Peysed euery thyng in your iust aduertence,
So it be noon dysplesaunce to your pay,
Vnder support of your pacyence,
Yeveth example hornes to cast away.

7

Grettest of vertues ys humylyte,
As Salamon seith, sonne of sapyence,
Most was accepted onto the Deyte;
Taketh heed herof, yeveth to his wordis credence,
How Maria, which hadde a premynence
Above alle women, in Bedlem whan she lay,
At Crystys birthe no cloth of gret dispence,
She wered a kouercheef, hornes wer cast away.

8

Off birthe she was hihest of degre,
To whom alle angellis dyd obedyence,
Of Dauid-is lyne wich sprang out of Iesse;
In whom alle vertues by iust convenyence,
Maad stable in God by goostly confydence,
This rose of Iericho, ther greuh non suych in May,
Pore in spirit, parfit in pacyence,
In whom alle hornes of pride wer put away.

9

Modyr of Ihesu, myrour of chastyte,
In woord nor thouht that neuere dyd offence,
Trewe examplire of virgynyte,
Hed-spryng and welle of parfit contynence,

665

Was neuer clerk by rethoryk nor scyence
Koude alle hir vertues reherse on-to this day;
Noble pryncessis, of meek benyvolence,
Be example of hir your hornes cast away.

Explicit.