The reader will remark the fondness of our Satirift for alliteration: in this he was guilty of no affectation or fingu larity; his verfification is that of Pierce Plowman's Visions, in which a recurrence of fimilar letters is effential: to this be has only fuperadded rhyme, which in bis time began to be the general practice. See an ESSAY on this very peculiar kind of metre, prefixed to Book III. in this Volume. N december, when the dayes draw to be short, As I past by a place privily at a port, I faw one fit by himself making a fong: * His laft talk of trifles, who told with his tongue [long; That few were faft i'th' faith. I'freyned' that freake, Whether he wanted wit, or fome had done him wrong. He faid, he was little John Nobody, that durft not speake. [tell John Nobody, quoth I, what news? thou foon note and As Solomon the fage, with femblance full fad; To difcuffe divinity they nought adread; More meet it were for them to milk kye at a fleyke. Its meet for every man on this matter to talk, *Perhaps He left talk. † feyned MSS, and P.C. Yet Yet to their fancy foon a cause will find; For our reverend father hath set forth an order, For bribery was never fo great, fince born was our Lord, And whoredom was never les hated, fith Christ har rowed hel, And poor men are fo fore punished commonly through the world, That it would grieve any one, that good is, to hear tel. For al the homilies and good books, yet their hearts be fo quel, That if a man do amiffe, with mischiefe they wil him wreake; The fashion of these new fellows it is fo vile and fell: But that I lit le john Nobody dare not fpeake. Thus to live after their luft, that life would they have, And in lechery to leyke al their long life; Ver. 3. Cain's kind. So in Pierce the Plowman's creed, the proud friars are faid to be De Caymes kind." Vid. Sig. ij. b. For For al the preaching of Paul, yet many a proud knave But of these frantic il fellowes, few of them do thrife; If thou company with them, they wil currifhly carp, and not care According to their foolish fantacy; but faft wil they naught: Prayer with them is but prating; therefore they it forbear: Both almes deeds, and holiness, they hate it in their thought: Therefore pray we to that prince, that with his bloud us bought, That he wil mend that is amifs: for many a manful freyke appear; 6 ne Through the found of a fynagogue for forrow I fwett, IV. Q. ELIZABETH's VERSES, WHILE PRISONER AT WOODSTOCK, WRIT WITH CHARCOAL ON A SHUTTER, -are preferved by Hentzner, in that part of his Travels, which has been reprinted in fo elegant a manner at STRAWBERRY-HILL. In Hentzner's book they were wretchedly corrupted, but are here given as amended by his ingenious Editor. The old orthography, and one or two ancient readings of Hentzner's copy are here restored. H, Fortune! how thy reftleffe wavering state Witnes this prefent prifonn, whither fate Could beare me, and the joys I quit. And freeing those that death had well deserved. A. D. MDLV. ELIZABETHE, PRISONNER. Ver. 4. Could beare, is an ancient idiom, equivalent to Did bear or Hath borne. See below the Beggar of Bednal Green, ver. 57. Could say. V. THE HEIR OF LINNE. The original of this Ballad is found in the Editor's folio MS. the breaches and defects in which, rendered the infertion of fupplemental ftanzas neceffary. Thefe it is hoped the Reader will pardon, as indeed the conclufion of the ftory was fuggefted by a modern ballad on a fimilar fubject. From the Scottish phrases here and there difcernable in this poem, it should feem to have been originally compofed beyond the Tweed. The Heir of Linne appears not to have been a Lord of Parliament, but a LAIRD, whofe title went along with his eftate. L PART THE FIRST, ITHE and liften, gentlemen, To fing a fong I will beginne: It is of a lord of faire Scotland, Which was the unthrifty heire of Linne. His father was a right good lord, His mother a lady of high degree; But they, alas! were dead, him froe, And he lov'd keeping companie. 5 Το |