62. MESURE IS TRESOUR.
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[From MS. Harl. 2255, fol. 143, back, to 146 back.]
1
Men wryte of oold how mesour is tresour,
And of al grace ground moost principall,
Of vertuous lyf[e] suppoort & eek favour,
Mesour conveyeth and governyth all,—
Trewe examplayr and orygynall,
To estaatys of hyll and lowe degree,
In ther dewe ordre, for, in especiall,
Alle thyng is weel so it in mesure be.
2
Mesure is roote of al good policye,
Sustir-germayn vnto discrecioun,
Of Poopys, Prelatys, it beryth vp the partye,
Them to conduce in hyh perfeccioun,
To leve in preyour and in devocioun,
Yeve good exaunple of pees and vnite,
That al ther werkys, for shoort conclusioun,
With trewe mesure may commendid be.
3
Al theyr doctryne, nor all ther hoolynesse,
Kunnyng, language, wisdam, nor science,
Studye on bookys, in prechyng besynesse,
Almesse-dede, fastyng, nor abstinence,
Clothe the nakyd with cost and dispence,
Rekne alle these vertues, compassioun, and pite,
Avayllith nought, pleynly in sentence
But ther be mesure and parfight charyte.
4
Myghty emp[er]ours, noble wourthy kynges,
Pryncis, dukys, erlys, and barounnys,
Ther greete conquestys, ther surquedous rydynges,
But ther be mesure in ther condicyounnys,
That attemperaunce conveye ther renownys,
Rekne vp the noblesse of euery conquerour,
What availlith al ther pocessiounnys,
But ther ende conclude in iust mesure?
5
Kyng Alisaundre, that gat al myddyl-erthe,
Affryk, Ayse, Ewrope, and eek Ynde,
And slowh Porrus with his dreedful swerde,
Yit in his conquest mesure was set behynde;
For which, ye lordys, lefft vp your eyen blynde!
The stoon of paradys was ffyn of his labour,
In al his conquest, haue ye wel in mynde,
Was sett ferre bak for lak of iust mesure.
6
Knyghthood in Grece and Troye the Cite
Took hys principlys, and next in Rome toun,
And in Cartage, a famous greet cuntre,
Recoord of Hanybal and wourthy Scipioun;
The greete debaatys and the divisioun
Among these kyngdammys by marcial labour,
Fynal cause of ther destruccioun,
Was fawte of vertu and lakkyng of mesure.
7
To knyghthood longith the Chirche to suppoorte,
Wydewys, and maydenys, and poore folke to diffende,
Men in ther ryght knyghtly to recoumfoorte,
To comoun profight nyght and day entende,
Ther lyff, ther good manly to dispende,
To punysshe extorcioun, raveyne, and ech robbour,
And brynge[n] alle vnto correccioun,
That be froward vnto the iust mesour.
8
Trewe iuges and sergeauntis of the lawe,
For hate or frenshippe they shal ther doomys dresse,
With-oute excepcioun, and ther hand with-drawe,
Fro meede and yifftes alle surffetys to represse;
Holde trouthe and sustene rightwisnesse,
Mercy preferre alwey to-for rigour,
That fals for-sweryng haue there noon interesse,
For lak of trouthe and lak of iust mesour.
9
So egally ther doomys to avaunce,
Of God and trouthe alwey to takyn hede,
And Cambises to haue in remembraunce,
That was slayn be-cause that he took meede
Of poore folk, the causys they shall speede,
To moordre nor theffte they shal doo no favour,
In al ther doomys of conscience to dreede,
That ryght goo not bak, equite, nor mesour.
10
Meyris, sherevys, aldirmen, cunstablys,
Which that governe bourghes and citees,
Kepith your fraunchise and statutys profitablys,
That moost avaylle may to the Comountees;
In no wise lese nought your libertees,
Accorde ech man with his trewe neyhbour,
As ye ar bounde to hih and lowh degrees,
That peys and wheyghte be kept, and iust mesour.
11
A-mong yoursilf suffre noon extorcioun,
Let no wrong be doo vnto the poraylle,
On theffte and manslaughte doo execucioun,
Beth weel providid for stuff and for vitaylle;
Let no devisioun, Salamon doth counsaylle,
With-inne your-silf holde no socour;
And for a tresour which greetly may avaylle,
Among alle thyng kepe peys and iust mesour.
12
Famous marchauntys, that ferre cuntrees ryde,
With al ther greete rychesse and wynnynges,
And artificerys, that at hom abyde,
So ferre castyng in many sundry thynges,
And been expert in wondirful konnyngges,
Of dyvers crafftys tavoyden al errour;
What may avaylle al your ymagynynges,
Withoute proporciouns of weyghte and iust mesour?
13
Rekne vp phesyk with all ther letuaryes,
Grocerys, mercerys, with ther greet habundaunce,
Expert surgeyns, prudent potecaryes,
And all ther weyghtes peysed in ballaunce,
Masouns, Carpenterys, of Yngelond and of Fraunce,
Bakerys, browsterys, vyntenerys, with fressh lycour,
All set at nought to rekne in substaunce,
Yiff peys or weyghte doo lakke, or iust mesour.
14
Ploughmen, carterys, with othir laborerys,
Dichers, delverys, that greet travaylle endure,
Which bern vp all, and haue doon many yeerys,
The staatis alle set here in portrature,
On Goddys wyll, and also by nature,
Alle oon ymage diuers in ther degree,
Shulde be alle oon, by recoord of Scripture,
Be large mesour of parfight charyte.
15
Fro yeer to yeer thexperience is seyn,
Ne were the plough no staat myght endure;
The large feeldys shulde be bareyn,
No corn vp-growe nor greyn in his verdure,
Man to suppoorte, nor beeste in his nature,
For which we shulde of trouthe for our socour
Wourshippe the plough, sithe euery creature
Hath of the ploughman his lyffloode be mesour.
16
So as the shepperde wacchith vpon ther sheep,
The hoote somyr, the coolde wynterys nyght,
Spiritual heerdys shulde take keep
In Crystes foolde, with al ther ful[le] myght,
By vertuous doctryne as they ar holde of ryght,
To save ther sogettys fro wolvys fell rygour,
That heretikys quenche nat the lyght
Of Crystes feith nor of iust mesour.
17
Heerdys with sheep shul walke in good pasture,
And toward nyght sewrly sette a foolde,
Of Isaac and Iacob a ful pleyn figure,
That wer shepperdws whyloom be dayes oolde;
Which lyk prelatys and bysshoppes as I toolde,
Thestaatys here sett in charyte shal governe,
By good exaumple in heete and froostys coolde,
That ryght and mesure shal holde vp the lanterne.
18
Strong as Herculees of manhood & of myght,
I am set here to stondyn at dyffence,
Wrong to represse, and to suppoorte ryght.
With this burdoun of sturdy violence;
But vnto alle that wyl doo reuerence,
To alle the staatys sett here in portrature,
I shall to hem make no resistence,
That be gouernyd iustly be mesure.
19
Among boorys, beerys, and leounnys,
Myn office is to walke in wyldirnesse,
Reste a-nyght in cavys and dongeounnys,
Tyl Phebus shewe a-morwen his bryghtnesse
Now stonde I here to kepe in sekirnesse
This hows in sewyrte, with al my besy cure,
To letyn in folk, that of gentilnesse
Lyst hem governe iustly be measure.
Explicit quod Lydgate.
