Epigrams of That most wittie and worthie Epigrammatist Mr Iohn Owen ::

Nature hath giuen two-Hands, one Tongue to Men,
They should performe more than they promise then
Thou'lt promise much, nought giue, but All delay,
As though thou hadst two Tongues, no Hands to pay.

Epig. 24. The Romish Masse-Priest, and Geneuian Minister .

Masse-Priest.

For Adultery no man should Dye,
Thus Baals Priest still cryes;
His Neighbours Wife, he Loues a Life,
Himselfe hath None; He's Wise.

Geneuian Minister.

For Adultery 't's fit Men should Dye,
Thus the Geneuian cryes:

But what's the Cause hee'd haue such Lawes?
His Wife is faire; Hee's Wise.

Epig. 27. Against a Couetous Clyent .

What? dost thou grudge, because the Iudge
Is Deafe and will not heare?
Thy-Selfe's to blame, who to him came,
And Feeling didst forbeare.

Epig. 34. Against Linus .

Thou wast my Debtour when I Lent thee Coine,
Pay mee mine owne, and then I will be thine.

Epig. 39. Man is a Stage-Player .

Mans Life's a Tragike Comedie,
Hope is his Argument;
The Prologue Faith; the Acts are Loue,
The Stage Earths Continent.
And in this Manner, when, to Day,
Kings and Meane-Men doe end their Play;
To Morrow, others take their Roomes,
Whiles they doe fill vp Graues and Tombes.

Epig. 44. Neyther in this World, nor in the World to come.

Against Damiane.

Whether things Present or to Come, I mind,
Than thou, more Wretch, ith'World I cannot find,
The World to Come auailes thee nought, Th'art Bad,
And being a Foole, no Good can heere be had.

Epig. 52. Against byting Momus or Carping Zoilus .

Back-byter , why doest thou thy Brother Bite?
In Enuying what he hath well effected,
In Carping-at what he hath Ill-neglected,
Brothers, each Others Slips let-slip, not smite.

Epig. 54. Against a Selfe-Louer .

Vnto thy Neighbour, be as kinde
As to thy-Selfe thou art;
Thou'lt say I am, how's that? my Selfe
Am neerest mine owne Heart.

Epig. 63. Learning most neglected.

Learned Apollo, once, vnshaued went,
But now, Hee's Cut, shorne, torne and all-berent;
His Louely face is, now, in such a Case,
As scarce it Smiles, once, in a twelue-moneths space:
Alas, he Dreames that Deemes Parnassus pleasant,
Honour (Arts Hope) is giuen to euery Pesant,
To play on Phœbus Lute,'s to play the Lout,
Learning goes Lame (now) and is Sicke o'th' Gout:
When Dolls haue Lucke on Honours step to stay,
Let Schollers burne their Bookes and goe to play!

Epig. 67. 'Tis Better to Giue, than to Receiue .

Mans propertie's to Take, and Gods to Giue,
Too few such Giuing-Gods in these dayes Liue.

Epig. 68. Against Ponticus the Clyent .

Clyent , art Sicke of the Cithâgran-Gout,
And nothing on thy Lawyer wilt bestow?
O'th' Podagra He's ill then, cann't stirre out,
A Lazie Lamenes then doth on him grow;
For if he be not both oft Pray'd and Pay'd,
Thy Cause for this cause shall be long delayd.

Epig. 71. Philautus and Philaristo .

Philautus.
Thou do'st expect (my Philarist)
That I, a Gift should send;
Except my Selfe, Gift haue I none,
This, I to Thee commend.

Epig. 72.

Philaristo.
You sent a Gift, and Nothing 'twas,
I, Nothing send to you:
You Gaue your Selfe, your Selfe to you
I send-backe; so Adieu.

Epig. 73. To Sir Henry Fanshaw, Knight.

If Fortune had Alotted thee by Lot,
Augustus Empire or Mecœnas Store;
This Age had seene Poetick-Maro's more,
But, No Mecœnas, Maro is forgot.

Epig. 78. A Heauenly Archer .

Faith , is our Shaft; our Bow-string, Hope;
Our Bow, is well-bent Loue;
Our Length and Height is Heau'n on high,
Our Marke, is God aboue.

Epig. 81. To a Litigious Debtor.

Th'art much perplext and troubled day by day,
Not How thou Mayst, but How thou Mayst Not Pay.

Epig. 91. Couetous Liberality, Against Acerra .

Acerra Giues to Take; to Giue Takes not:
To Take's his Marke; to Giue's his Shaft and Shot.

Epig. 92. Against the Romish Catholike .

If any one would thy Religion know,
'T's Catholike, Apostolike, thou'lt say;
Catholike Loue, (I thinke) to All thou'lt show,
But why do'st not for Catholike Faith pray?

Epig. 101. The Soules Eclipse .

As, Earth is Interpos'd, betweene
The Sunne and Moones thicke shade;
So Sinne betwixt Me and my God,
Hath Separation made.

Epig. 112. From the Wombe to the Tombe .

As, Beasts ith'Fields to be our Food doe Eate;
So Wormeling-Man is Borne to be Wormes-Meate.

Epig. 119. Womens Tyre.

Your high-horn'd Laces, are more like
A House-Top than a Tyre;
To Build, not Beautifie their Heads,
Is Womens fond desire.

Epig. 120. All-things are Nothing .

He which made All of Nought, Himselfe is All:
And what God made of Nought, wee Nought may call.

Epig. 135. Funerall Sermons.

We wrong Men Liuing, Prayse them being Dead:
O Pleasant Death, ô gloomy-Life so Led!

Epig. 121. Anger and Patience .

As Water cooles the Fires hot flame,
And Fire, Cold-water warmes:
So Patience Peaseth Angry mindes,
Wrath moues the Dull to Armes.

Epig. 143. The Bodie bids the Soule fare-well.

For thee (ô Soule) my Mother Earth I left,
And now, I must of thee be thus bereft.

The Soule bids the Bodie fare-well.

And I, fond Foole, did God my Father Leaue
For thee; who Now to Heauen will Me receiue,
I must to Him, Thou must to Her depart,
From Heau'n am I, from Earth deriu'd, Thou art:
There, till wee meet, we must Disioyn'd remayne,
Till Earth Mee thee; God Thee Mee giue againe.

Epig. 145. Hot-Waters.

Ovr trickling Teares expresse our priuate Loue;
Loue causeth Teares; strange, Fire should Water proue.

Epig. 147. Poore Comfort to his Rich Friend.

Vnconstant Fortune Changeth in short space,
Hence growes my Hope, thy Feare, such is thy case.

Epig. 153. To his Friend waxing-old .

Thou lately wast a Yong-man, I a Childe,
My Selfe a Yong-man now, Thee, Old I see:
Death, shortly, Lookes for Thee, Old-Age for Mee,
Thy Lot's most Sure, but I may bee beguilde.

Epig. 157. To Pontilian .

Pontilian , art thou iealous o're thy Wife?
Th'art wise; but, art Not? then I say th'art wise;
Watch Her, or Not, in vaine is all thy strife,
For, if Shee list, Shee'le Foole thee 'fore thine eyes:
But, Shee's a Wife most Louing, wise and iust,
Who, though She could, ne're wrongs her Housbands trust.

Epig. 160. London to I. W. Citizen and Gold-Smith .

Even as, the Thames, small Springs and Streames Drinkes in,
So, London, Wealth, from poorer Towns doth win;
But, though the Thames to Sea Runnes euery Tide,
Siluer and Gold at London still abide.

Epig. 161. To William Cawley, a London Marchant .

Debtour and Creditour.

Though in my Booke, thy Name heere bee,
Yet, Mine in Thine, thou canst not show;
For, more than Loue, Thee Nought I owe,
This, I'le expect, and Pay to thee.

Epig. 166. A Marriage-Song .

Ith' Day, thou art the Obiect of mine Eyes;
Ith' Night, Loues Subiect thou shalt be likewise.

Epig. 168. To his Beloued .

I loue thee well, Now-Knowne, I lou'd th'vn-kowne,
Thy fame did first, thy forme now hath me taken;

Loue, now I know; I Loue, not Lou'd, forsaken,
I know what's, I Loue, not I'm Lou'd; ô Moane.

Epig. 169. A Younger Brother .

I'm Poore, tis true; my Parents, Me blame not,
Who 'fore my Brother haue not Me begot.

Epig. 180. To Old Ponticus .

Thou, which didst neuer Doe good-Deed,
But still adde Sinne to Sinne;
When wilt thou these Bad Courses leaue,
And to be Good beginne?
O when I Dye, I'le Leaue (sayst Thou)
To th' Poore my Whole-Estate;
He that's not Wise, vntill he Dyes,
I thinke is Wise too Late.

Epig. 181. A Black-Moore in White Clothes .

O rare seene Bird! much like a Swan most white,
Thy Clothes as Snow, thy Skin like Pitch in sight.

Epig. 199. Gold out of Doung .

Virgil , from Ennius Doung, did Gold extract,
And our Phisicians doe the selfe-same Act.

Epig. 205. To his Couetous Friend .

What Rich-men haue, tis All, their-owne,
From Friends, Themselues, they'le Spare:
But yet they Haue-not, what they Haue,
This is the Misers share.

Epig. 208. Christ-Masse and Mid-sommer .

Iohn Baptist , came ith' Sommers prime,
And Christ ith' Winter season;
They, Fire and Water, both, fore-show,
And both, for holy Reason:
How well these Contraries concurre,
Iohn's Fire, Christs Water pure;
Gods Fire our Sinnes to purifie,
Christs Water, Sinne to Cure.

Epig. 214. Æsops Tongue .

Of all Mans Members, than the Tongue, there's none,
More Noble-Good, more Nimble Bad be knowne.

Epig. 220. Hard'ned Wickednesse Against Linus .

Good-Wine (they say) makes Vineger most Tart:
Thou, the more Witty, the more Wicked art:

Epig. 240. Against Ponticus a Selfe-Louer.

Neyther the Minde nor Eye themselues doe see,
That thou thy-selfe shuldst Loue then, how may't bee?

Epig. 241. A Querê .

O would to God, that, that which Christ enquired
Of his Disciples; what men of him spake:
The same of Prince, Priest, People were desired,
Of their Good-name and fame suruey to take:
If euery one would this desire to know,
Hee'd Know hee's Bad and Better, striue to grow.

Epig. 242. Report, Errour.

Errours by Errour, Tales by Tales great grow,
As Small Snow-balls by rowling too and fro.

Epig. 249. Of Himselfe .

Some men there be, which say of mee,
That I am not a Poet;
They say well, why? I doe not Lye,
I write the Truth, I know it.

Epig. 253. The Worlds Dungeon .

This World's a Prison, Heau'n as Walls doth stand,
The Iaylour's Sinne, Women our Iron-band.

Epig. 259. The Bagge .

As, Birds with Bird-Lime commonly are caught:
So, wide-Bags are with Wealth wel fil'd & fraught.
A Bagge and Bird-Lime are much like in vsing,
This Hangs, that Holds, Birds, Gold, both safe from losing.

Epig. 276. To the Lady Arbella Stuart .

If Fame or Vertue did consist in Words,
In thy Praise I might Thousand-Uerses write:
My Muse cannot Promote thy Glory bright,
Thy Vertue rather Grace to It affords.

Epig. 138. Euery one thinkes his owne fairest.

Cic. Tuscul. Quæst. Lib. 5.

Thy Neighbours Wife to Thee, to Him thine's fairest:
Then, that's not true, that All thinke their owne rarest.

Epig. 255. Mans Condition.

Till one Foot falls, the tother doth not Rise;
So one Mans wracke, Another magnifies.

Epig. 262. Two Contrary Courtiers.

At Court these copesmates dwell, though not the same,
Momus who All, Gnatho who Nought will blame.

FINIS.

University of Virginia Library

Out of one sole Booke.

Epig. 23. Against Marcus .