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Trinity College Oxford MS R.3.19

Of god and kynde procedeth all bewte
Craft may ſhewe a foreyne apparence
But Nature ay muſt haue the ſovaynte
Thyng countyrfete hath noon exiſtence
Twene golde and goſſomyr ys gret dyfference
Trew metall reuyreth noone allay
Vnto purpoſe by clere exprence
Bewte woll ſhew though hornys were away

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Ryche atyres of golde and perre
Charbinicles rubies of moſt excellence
Shew in derkeneſſe lyght where ſo they be
By naturall heuenly influence
Dowbletts of glaſſe geue a gret euydence
Thyng countyrfete wyll fayle at aſay
On thys matyr concludyng in ſentence
Bewte woll ſhew though hornys were away

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Alyne remembreth thys complaynt who lyſt ſe
In hys book of famous eloquence
Clad in flowres and bloſſomys of a tre
He ſaueth nature in hys moſt excellence
Vppon her hede a kerchyf of valence
Noon other rycheſſe of countyrfete aray
To exemplyfy by kydely pouydence
Beawte wyll ſhew thowgh hornys were caſt away

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Ffamous poetys of Antiquyte
In grece and troy renowned of prudence
Wroot of quene helyn and penelope
Of pollycene in hyr chaſt innocence
ffor wyves trew call lucreſe to prſence
That they were fayre ther can no man ſey nay
Kynde wrought theym wt ſo gret dilugence
Theyr bewte couth hornys were caſt away

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Clerkys recorde by gret auctoryte
Hornys were yeve to beeſtys for dyffence
A thyng contrary to femynyte
To be made ſturdy of reſyſtence
But arche wyfes egre in theyr vyolence
Fferſe as a tygre for to make affray
They haue dyſpyte and agayn conſaence
lyſt not of pryde theyr hornys to caſt away

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Lenuoy

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Nobyll princeſſys thys lytyll ſhorte dyte
Rudely compyld lat hit be noone offence
To your womanly mrcyfull pyte
Thowgh hit be rad in your audience
Peyſyd eche thing in your iuſt advrtence
So hit be no dyſpleaſance to yor pay
Vndyr ſupport of your pacience
Yeueth exſampyll hornys to caſt away

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Grettyſt of vrtues ys humylyte
As Salamon ſeyth ſonne of ſapience
Was moſt acceptyd o the deyte
Taketh hede herof yeueth to theſe words credence
How Maria whyche had a premynence
Aboue all wemen in Bethleem where ſhe lay
At Cryſte byrthe no cloth of gret dyſpence
She weryd a kerchyef hornys were cast away

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Of byrthe ſhe was hygheſt of degree
To whom all anngells dyd obedience
Of David ys lyne whyche ſprang out of Ieſſe
In whom all v
rtues by iuſt convenyence
Made ſtabyll in god by gooſtly confydence
Thys Roſe of Iherico ther groweth now ſuche in may
Poore in ſpyryt pfyte in pacyence
In whom all hornys of pryde were put away

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Modyr of Ihu myrror if chaſtyte
In worde nev
r thought that nevr dyd offence
Trew exemplare of vyrginite
Hede ſpryng & well of pfyte contynence
Was nev
r clerk by rethoryk or ſcience
Cowde all hyr v
rtues   reherÅ¿e to thys day
Nobyll prynceſſys of meke benyuolence
By example of hyr yo
r hornys to caſt away.

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© 2013 Nichole Peña and Craig A. Schmidt

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