The Bride | Page 4

languishing past hope did lye:
And so fift, sixt, and seauenth in loues passion,
My Maiden-head for
them should ner'e change fashion.
Aeneas told many a cogging tale,
To Dido that renowned worthy
Queene,
And Iason with his flatterings did preuaile,
Yet falser
knaues in loue were neuer seene:
And at this instant hower, as they were then,
The world aboundeth
with deceitfull men.
Doll.
Iane, thats too true, for to you all I sweare,
How I was bobd by one tis
shame to tell,
A smoother fellow neuer wench did heare,
And as I
liue, I thought he lou'd me well:
Heere you shall fee one of his cunning letters,
Which still I keepe, &
meane to shew his betters.

In Romane hand, on guilded paper writ,
Pray Dorothy read you it to
the rest,
But whether his owne head inuented it,
Or robd some
printed Booke, I doe protest:
I cannot tell, but his owne name is to it,
Which proues he takes vpon
him for to doe it.

The Loue Letter.
_The truest heart, shall nought but falshood cherish,
The mildest man,
a cruell tyrant prooue,
The water drops, the hardest flint shall perish,

The hilles shall walke, and massie earth remooue:
The brightest Sun shall turne to darkesome clowde,
Ere I prooue false,
where I my loue haue vowde._
_Ere I prooue false, the world desolu'd shall be,
To that same nothing
that it was before,
Ere I prooue false mine eyes shall cease to see,

And breath of life shall breath in me no more:
The strong built frame shall moue from his foundation
Ere I remoue
my soules determination._
_Death shall forget to kill, and men to dye,
Condemned soules shall
laugh, and cease to mourne,
The lowest hell shall rise and meete the
skye,
Time shall forget his course and backe returne:
Contrary vnto kinde each thing shall proue,
Ere I be false or once
forget my loue._
_Oh then deare heart regard my sad estate,
My passions griefe and
wofull lamentation,
Oh pittie me ere pittie come too late,
That hold
thee deare past mans imagination:
Preserue my life and say that thou wilt haue me,
Or else I die the

whole world cannot saue me_.
Grace.
This is a Ballad I haue heard it sung.
Doll.
Well, be or be not, that's not to the matter,
But who will trust a louers
pen or tongue,
That vse all protestations thus to flatter:
For this base fellow that was so perplext,
Sent this one monday, and
was married next.
Sara.
Now out vpon him most dissembling creature,
Ile warrant you that he
can neuer thriue,
He showes himselfe, euen of as bad a nature,
As
euer was in any man aliue:
Alas poore foole that hath this fellow got,
Shee hath a Iewell of him,
hath she not?
Nell.
Yes surely hath she, (waying all things deepe,)
A louer that will tast
as sweete as gall,
One that is better farre to hang then keepe,
And I
perswade me you doe thinke so all:
Excepting onely partiall Mistris Bride,
For she stands stoutly to the
married side.
Bride.
So farre as reason, and as right requires,
I will defend them both by
word and deede,
Yet haue I no apology for lyers,
And ill conditions
that false hearts doe breede:

"All that are married be not faithfull kinde,
Nor all vnmarried, are not
chast in minde."
Are there not maids (vpon your coscience speake?)
Knowne to your
selues as well as you knowe me,
Will vowe their loue to men, and
falsly breake,
Which in the number of your Virgins be,
That will delude some halfe a score young men,
And hauing gull'd
them, take some other then.
I will not name her was in loue with ten,
But in your eares i'le note
her secret; harke,
She had both Courtiers, Cockneys, Country-men,

Yet in the ende a Saylor boards her Barke:
And therefore put not men in all the blame,
But speake the trueth, and
so the diuell shame.
Grace.
I knowe the partie well that you doe meane,
And thus much for her I
dare boldly say,
To diuers sutors though she seemed to leane,
To
trye her fortunes out the wisest way:
Yet did she neuer plight her faith to any,
But vnto him she had,
among so many:
And ther's no doubt but diuers doe as she,
Your selfe in conscience,
haue had more then one,
To whom in shewe you would familiar be,

And comming to the point why you would none:
Ciuilitie allowes a
courteous cariage,
To such as proffer loue by way of marriage.
An affable behauiour may be vsed,
And kinde requitall answere kinde
deseart,
And yet no honest man thereby abused,
With fained
showes, as if he had the heart:
When there is purpose of no such intent
To gull him with his time

and mony spent.
Mall.
Were I to giue maides counsell, they to take it,
And that they would
consent to doe as I,
Who offered us his loue, we would forsake it,

And like Dianes Nymphs would liue and die:
For I protest your louers should haue none,
But wiues and