University of Virginia Library

To his dearest friend the Author, after he had revised his Comedie.

The more I this thy master-piece peruse,
The more thou seem'st to wrong thy noble Muse,
And thy free Genius: If this were mine,
A modest envie would bid me confine
It to my studie, or the Criticks court,
And not make that the vulgar peoples sport,
Which gave such sweet delight unto the King,
Who censur'd it not as a common thing,
Though thou hast made it publick to the view
Of self-love, malice, and that other crue.
It were more fit it should impaled lie
Within the walls of some great librarie;
That if by chance through injurie of time,
Plautus, and Terence, and that

Aristophanes.

fragrant thyme
Of Attick wit should perish; we might see
All those reviv'd in this one comedie.
The Jealous Lovers, Pander, Gull, and Whore,
The doting Father, Shark, and many more
Thy scene doth represent unto the life,
Beside the character of a curst wife:
So truly given, in so proper stile,
As if thy active soul had dwelt a while
In each mans body; and at length had seen
How in their humours they themselves demean.
I could commend thy jests, thy lines, thy plot,
Had I but tongues enow, thy names; what not?
But if our Poets, praising other men,
Wish for an hundred tongues; what want we then
When we praise Poets? This I'le onely say,
This work doth crown thee Laureat to day.
In other things how all, we all know well,
Onely in this thou dost thy self excell.