University of Virginia Library

Out of the first Booke.

Epig. 1. Lib. 1. Sex Librorum.

Epig. 1. To the Lady Nevil .

That this my Book, where't comes, may Patrons find;
To th'Readers It, My-selfe to Thee's assign'd.

Epig. 2. To the Reader.

Reader , do'n't Prayse, nor disprayse All I write;
Lest so I blaze thy Want of Wit, or Spight.

Epig. 3. To Iohn Hoskins, I. C. of his Booke.

My Booke's the World, my Verses People bee;
There's few Good-men, Heere, few Good straines you'l see.

Epig. 4. To the Lady Mary Nevel .

If that opinion of Pythagoras
Be true, that Spirits one t'another passe;
Then, Venus, Iuno's, Pallas, Soules most rare,
By Beauty, State and Learning, in Thee are:
Such Three in One are seldome seene or found,
Many are rare for One; Three haue Thee crown'd.

Epig. 5. To the same Lady.

As Phœbus faire, shewes, shines ith' Ayre;
as Light ith' Sunne most bright:
So in thy face, with Princely Grace,
Dwels Vertue with Delight.
For, whosoere but comes Thee neere,
To Looke on Thee, Thee Loues;
Thy Beauty, Bounty, wond'ring at,
So precious hee approues.

Epig. 13. Loue.

Loues first approch, Delights sweet Sog doth sing;
But in departure Shee Woes sting doth bring:
So, the sweet streames of Springs to Sea which hie,
Mixt with Salt-waters, taste vnsauerily.

Epig. 6. To Master Thomas Nevel, Sonne to the foresaid Lady .

In thee, doe shine such Gifts worth admiration;
That, thogh All-True, they passe al true relatiō.
Who Childrē praise, their Hopes not Hap do praise,
Thy Hap, not Hopes, thy wit, thy worth doth blaze.

Epig. 9. To the Lawyer.

If He be Blest, that Knowes of things the Cause;
O! What is He that Pleades a Cause by Lawes.

Epig. 11. To Degenerous, Generous Avlvs .

Ignoble , Noble, Aulus, owes
All, to's Progenitours;
And his Successours, sure, I thinke,
Will neuer bee his Debtours.

Epig. 12. Against Hernick .

Hernick , thou Boughtst a Foole for 20, pound:
To Buy Thee at that rate, I'de not be bound.

Epig. 14. To D. Gilbert .

Dost say, the Earth stands Not? that's admirable;
Thou wast at Sea, sure, when thou writ'st this Fable.

Epig. 15. To Phisicians and Lawyers .

Ovr Sores and Sicknesse, Galen made thee wise,
And thee Iustinian, our great Fooleries.

Epig. 19. To Linvs .

Th'ast Bookes good store, but thee more Learn'd I'de-hold,
If th' adst such store of Bags full cram'd with Gold.

Epig. 20. To a Noble young Gent.

Friends wish their Friends long Liues to Liue,
But, None their Death desire;
As one should wish a sore Dis-ease,
But Ne're would Cure require.

Epig. 23. Against Marcvs .

What meant'st thou Marcus, stifly to maintain,
That Nought in Nature Empty doth remaine?
Since thou thy selfe hast such a huge great Head,
Of Wit most voyd and wholly Emptyed.

Epig. 26. To Phyllis .

If Loue be Firy (as Louers say and hold)
Thy fiery Loue is then (alas) most cold.

Epig. 31. Prophets, Poets.

Prophets , doe truly things to come fore-know;
Poets, things past in Fictions false doe show.

Epig. 32. Of Life and Death .

As Riuers pleasant Source to th' Salt-Sea hastes;
So, day by day Life vnto Death still wastes.
Tis sweet to Liue, but (oh) tis dire to dye,
Thus sweet with bitter ends Mortalitie.

Epig. 36. Of Life and Loue.

Though euery Action to an End doth bend;
Yet Life and Loue doe hate their proper End.

Epig. 38. The Housband, and the Cuck-old-Maker .

Housband.

Cuck old-Maker.

Epig. 39. New Rhetorike.

Whoso wants Gold, in vaine doth hold
An Argument with any;
He's best Linguist, that hath his fist
Well fill'd with Make-way Mony:
Not Sillab'lls, but Siluer-bells,
Now, make the rarest ring;
Homer, ar't poore? then stand at Doore,
Though thou canst sweetly Sing.

Epig. 42. Against Borbonivs the Poets Trifles .

What thou call'dst Trifles, but not thought'st so much,
I call not Trifles, but I thinke th'are such.

Epig. 48. To the True Statesman .

Though for thy Country it be prayse to dye;
Yet, for her Good to Liue, 's more dignitie.

Epig. 55. The Courtier .

If thou be Good, Better in time,
Not Greater, thou mayst bee:
If thou be Great, thee Greater then,
Not Better, Time may see.

Epig. 58. A Secret against Hoary-Haires to Bithynicus .

That, in Old-Age thy Haire may not waxe-Gray,
Baldnesse in Youth (ô rare!) is the right way.
Probatum est.

Epig. 63. Against Pontia .

All Cuck-olds, cast ith' Sea, Pontius would haue:
Learne first to swim (quoth's Wife) thy selfe to saue.

Epig. 68. Venus.

Loue comes and goes, retyres, returnes,
As Sea's doe ebbe and flow,
How comes it Loue's so like the Sea?
How? Venus thence did grow.
In Venus is Varietie,
Sometimes Shee Nill, Shee Will;
Therefore with Mouing-Planets plac'd,
Not with Starres standing still.

Epig. 70. Woman.

Woman as Weaker or more Soft is said,
Yet Eue o'th' Bone of Mā, not Flesh was made.

Epig. 71. Affinity twixt Lawyers and Phisicians .

The Lawyers and Phisicians case
haue neere Affinitie;
For, others Ruines make them Rich,
No doubt most Lawfully.
These Sucke the Sicke, for Potions, Pounds,
For Law Those Lands purloyne:
These promise Health, and so get Wealth,
Those Quietnesse for Coyne.

Epig. 82. Of the Day .

The Day, with one-eye farre moe things espies,
Than Night can see with more than Argos-eies.

Epig. 87. A Good-man .

Things that be Rare, are euer Deare,
And of great price esteemed:
Then sure (I thinke) an Honest-man,
Most precious may be deemed.

Epig. 89. Against Pavlinvs .

Paulinus , when thy Friend Askes ought of thee,
Thine answer is, Tomorrow come to me.
Wou'dst haue mee giue thee Thankes for what I borrow?
For thy Good-turne Ile giue thee Thankes to morrow.

Epig. 92. A Machiuilian .

Cogge, Counterfeit, as thou shalt see
Both Time and Place require,
That when occasion's offered,
Thou mayst haue thy desire:
Yea, now Hee's Wise can Temporize,
His hoped prey to catch;
For Gold and Gaine, who will refraine?
All seasons well to watch.

Epig. 101. Death.

What Death is, dost thou aske of me?
Till Dead I doe not know;
Come to me when thou hear'st I'm Dead,
Then what tis I' shall show.

Epig. 102. A Client .

The Client going-Home, may sing by th'way,
And needs not feare the theefe to bid him stay:
For Lawyers doe for Fees so filch their coyne,
That many times, they scarce know where to Dine.

Epig. 104. Children and Fooles tell True.

Children & Fooles (our Prouerbe saith) tell true,
As who shuold say, th'are Fooles the truth that shew.
If thus they'le haue it, yet th'are Knaues that lie;
I'le be Truths Foole, let them loue Knauerie.

Epig. 106. Against Ball'd-pates .

Ball'd-pate , my Haires I ne're could numerate,
Nor thou thine owne, ther's None left on thy pate.

Epig. 115. Backe-biters, Flatterers.

Anaxagoras was wont to say, that Snow
Was Blacke, more Blacke was Anaxag'ras Hart.
Many such Enuious Elfes this Age doth know:
The flatt'ring Foxe, with his dissembling Art,
Praysed the Whitenesse of the Cole-blacke Crow;
Such fawning Foxes are (alas) too many,
Who, for aduantage Prayse and Dis-prayse any.

Epig. 117. An Herculean Labour .

To Curbe the Courage, and Wiues Tongue keep-vnder,
May wel be call'd, Hercules thirteenth Wonder.

Epig. 123. Of Bardella a Theefe.

The Theife Bardella being Iudg'd to Dye,
A Fryer gaue him Ghostly Exhortation:
Good-Brother (saith he) Dye most ioyfully:
For thou shalt Sup in Heau'ns blest Habitation.
Sir (quoth Bardella) I must Fast this Day;
Take you that Supper in my sted I pray.

Epig. 128. Answere to Cynthiaes Epistle.

Thy Paper white, thy Letter blacke came to me,
This thy soule-Hart, That thy white skin doth shew me.

Epig. 129. To Sextillian Sp .

Sextillian , when thy Father thee begot,
To Get thee, then, his minde (I thinke) 'twas not;
Himselfe to recreate, not thee Create,
Was all (I iudge) he then did Cogitate:
If, more the Gift, than Giuers minde be praysed,
Then, sure, thy Life to him is not ingaged.

Epig. 131. Saturnes three Sonnes .

Diuines are doubtfull, Lawyers lew'd and ill,
Physicians foule; yet these the World rule still:
If such ill Gouernours, the People nurse,
No maruel, then, though all grow worse & worse.

Epig. 137. Against Pomponia .

Pomponia did a fickle feather weare
Vpon her head; feathers doe Souldiers fit.
True, and Shee this for Mars his Loue did beare.
This shewes, that Mars in Venus Lap may sit:
Thogh on their heads our Hellēs feathers haue,
Marueile not, for tis Paris fauour braue.

Epig. 146. Vertue in the Middle .

A gallant Dame, scarce of good Name,
Ith' midst twixt two Men went,
Vertue, as heere it may appeare,
Her place had lost or lent.

Epig. 150. To his absent Loue .

I burne poore wretch, and so much more
Am burnt with Loues desire;
By how much I am further off,
From my Loue-burning Fire.

Epig. 163. A Probleme of Hornes .

When Wiues defile their Husbands marriage Bed,
Why weares the harmeles Husband Hornes? Hee's Head.

Epig. 168. To the Reader, of himselfe.

My breuity, though some may Sloth esteeme,
Yet to be briefe, most Labour I doe deeme:
Much madly I speake not, with vulgar sort;
Though mine perhaps be foolish, yet tis short.

Epig. 170. Of Himselfe.

Aske and Receiue, so Iames th' Apostle sayes,
O that King Iames to me would vse that Phrase.