The Example of Vertu | Page 6

dame fortune so gayly
gloryfyed
Impossyble it is for me to dyscouere
How gorges she was
& gretly magnyfyed
Full lyke a goddes that had ben deyfyd

Clothed with gold sette full of rubyes
And tynst [with] emeraudys &
many a turkes
And next to her there dyd ensue
Dame Hardynes that noble lady

After whome anone dyd pursue
Dame Sapyence whiche dyd not tary

Than came dame nature appareled royally
And all the other cladde
in gold
Set with dyamondes many a fold
They lowted all vnto the ground
Afore dame Iustyce for obeysaunce

That sate there both hole and sound
Withouten ony
dyscontynuaunce
Gyuynge god ere vnto the vteraunce
Of these
foure ladyes pledynge at barre
With all theyr cases dyd well avarre
Capitulum .vii.
[Illustration]
Fyrst dame hardynes began to plede
Saynge she was to man moost
profytable
For she the hertes hath often fede
Of conquerous as it
was couenable
And by my corage haue made theym able
Regyons
to wynne theyr ennemyes to subdue
And yf I were not they had it rue
And yf a man be neuer so wyse
Withouten me he getyth none
vteraunce
Wherfore his wysedome may not suffyse
All onely
without myn allegeaunce
For I by ryght must nedys enhaunce
A
lowe born man to an hyghe degre
Yf that he wyll be ruled by me
Haue I not caused many a noble warreour
To wynne the batell by my
grete myght
Without me was made neuer conquerour
Nor yet man
coragious whan he dyd fyght
No man without me may defende his

ryght
I may be worst from hym forborne
For and I were not he were
forlorne
Dyd I not cause the noble hercules
By my power to wynne the
vyctory
Of the sturdy and stronge Philotes
As is recorded in bokes
of memory
For without me can be no cheualry
And vnder the
wynge of my proteccyon
All rebels brought be to subieccyon
A realme is vpholden by thynges thre
The fyrst and the chyef it is the
swerd
Whiche causeth it to be in good suerte
And other realmes of
it to be aferd
By whiche the vsurpers be dyfferd
From theyr wyll
with treason knyte
And by me slayn for theyr fals fyte
The seconde is lawe that euer serueth
But within the realme onely

For other nacyons our lawe ne dredeth
But our swerd they do in
specyally
For and they roose ayenst vs proudly
As they haue done
often in tymes past
Yet [with] our swerd they shold be ouercast
The thyrde be marchauntes that do multyply
In this realme welth and
prosperyte
For of euery thynge they often occupy
Euery man lyke
vnto his faculte
For without marchauntes can not be
No realme
vpholden in welth & pleasure
For it to vs is a specyall tresure
Also yet hercules the puyssaunt geaunt
Dyd slee the monstre afore
Troy the grete
And with his strokes he dyd hym daunt
They were so
peysantly on hym sette
That he the vyctory on hym dyd gette
Had I
not be comfort vnto his harte
Suche vyctory had ben leyd aparte
Dyd he not vaynquysshe in [the] forest of Nemee
The thre mortall
lyons by his grete hardynes
And ryued theyr Iawes as was to se
By
twene his handes by chyualrus prowes
And yet by armes and
knyghtly exces
In egypt he slewe the tyraunt Busyre
And brent hym
after in a grete fyre
Also he slewe the tyraunt Cacus
For his tyranny and grete myschefe


By cause his dedys were so odyous
For he dyd murdre and was a
thefe
Wherfore his deth to many was leef
Who more of his actes
wyll haue report
To the Troyans story lette hym resort
Also the worthy and the noble hectour
That eclyped was the troyans
champyon
And of all cheualry called the flour
In his tyme reynynge
and of renowne
Of whose noble dedes the brute and sowne
Was
spred by euery straunge habytacyon
That they of his faytys dyde
make relacyon
By his power and hardy corage
He put the grekes full often to flyght

And bete theym downe by a grete outrage
That well was he that
hym saue myght
Full often he brought theym to the plyght
His
dedes were pure without magycyon
And without nygromancy or
suche corrupcyon
Dyd I not cause also kynge dauith
A lyon Iawbones to rent and tere

That dyd deuour his shepe in the fryth
As he sat kepynge of theym
there
The lyons crueltye myght not hym fere
And he in his youth so
hardy was
That he dyd sle the gyaunt Golias
Dyd I not cause the noble Iulius
Emperour of rome for to be electe

By cause he was so stronge and cheualrus
Whan in armes he knewe
the affecte
He all his ennemyes dyd abiecte
And by the support of
my chyef socour
He gouerned hymselfe lyke a noble emperour
And also Arthur kynge of Bretayne
With all the knyghtes of the
rounde table
Neuer auentures had sought certayne
And I therto had
not ben greable
They for to fyght had not ben able
Who that me
lacketh is but a coward
And shame is euer his rewarde
Also kynge Charlemayne kynge of Fraunce
With his dyssypers
Rowland and Olyuer
With all the resydue of his alyaunce
That in
all armes so noble were

On goddys ennemyes brake many a spere


Causynge them to flee