The Forrest of Fancy Wherein is conteined very prety Apothegmes, and pleasaunt histories, both in meeter and prose, Songes, Sonets, Epigrams and Epistles, of diuerse matter and in diuerse manner. With sundry other deuices, no lesse pithye then pleasaunt and profytable [by H. C.] |
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The Forrest of Fancy.
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 | The Forrest of Fancy |  |
The Forrest of Fancy.
A morrall of the misery and mischiefe that raigneth amongst wicked worldlinges, with an admonition to all true Christians, to forsake their sinne and amend their manners.
Who so he be that silent sits,and sets his mind to see,
The subtle slights that wily wights
doe worke in each degree.
shall surely fynd full great abuse,
In euery place committed:
And verine voyde and out of vse,
all reason quight remitted:
Might maistereth right, the pore are pincht,
almost in euery place,
Fraude, flattery, gold, and greedy gaine,
each where doth purchase grace.
But truth and plaine simplicity,
reapes hatred euery where:
Good deedes are dead, and charity,
hath hid her head for feare.
Whores hold the place that Matrons milde,
doe merite moste to haue;
And flattery flockes about the Court,
in steede of fathers graue.
The couetous carle doth scrape for coyne,
the royotous sonne spendes all:
The true man cannot scape the theefe,
but in his handes must fall.
The Userer now doth vse his trade,
The Landlord raise his rent:
The powling Lawyer playes his part,
the truth to circumuent.
Our Gentles now doe iette it out,
in brauery passing measure,
bath credite, land and treasure.
The Yeomans sonne not liking of,
his fathers honest state,
Will climbe to be a gentle man,
and euery Gentles mate.
The Gentleman will be a Knight,
the Knight a Lord likewise,
The Lord an Earle, the Earle a Duke,
the Duke will higher rise,
And make himselfe a puisaunt Prince.
the Prince will Monarke be,
So no man now will be content,
To bide in his degree.
The sonne doth seeke his fathers death,
his liuing to obtaine,
Faith fayles in all, few trusty friendes,
doe any where remayne.
The mayster seekes by rygorous meanes,
his seruauntes to suppresse,
And seruaunts worke all meanes they may,
their maysters to distresse,
Now mothers trayne their Daughters vp,
In loathsome liberty:
Whereby oft times their honest names
they bring in ieoperdy.
Excesse is vsde in euery place,
the pore no whit releude,
Labour is loathde, and Idlenesse
ech where his web hath weude,
The Tauernes tiplers ply a pace,
eache alehouse hath his knightes:
In dice and dauncing, deuilish trades,
are all their whole delightes.
All law is left for liberty,
all vertue changde for vice:
all thinges inhaunce their price.
Eache craftes man now hath craft at will,
his neighbour to defraude,
They sweare, and oft forsweare themselues,
for euery foolish gaude.
But is it well where euery thing,
doth seeme so much amis:
No doubtlesse no: a wicked world,
and wretched state it is.
A world in deede, deuided quight,
from godlinesse and grace:
A world that greatly God abhorres,
from which he turnes his face.
A world it is, which will not last,
a world whose end is nye:
A world that shall his fury taste,
that sees our sins from hye.
A world that will full well content,
the enemy of our ioy.
A world that workes his lewd intent,
that would our soules destroy.
Therefore let each true christian hart
his secrete sins forsake:
To God let him with speede reuert,
and meeke subiection make,
Committing all his actions still,
to his deuine protection,
So shall he surely shun all ill,
and liue without infection.
Finis.
| The Forrest of Fancy | |