A Ballad Against Malicious Slanderers

Anon

TextBaseEarlyTudorEnglish
BAMS1323.5
2008
STC 1323.5
Ringler 1323.5 and TP 2059. Single sheet folio. Facs. John A. Kingdon, _Incidents in the Lives of Thomas Poyntz and Richard Grafton_, 1895. UMI microfilm reel 1861

A balade agaynst malycyous sclaunderers
London: [R. Lant for] J. Gough,[1540].



Composition Date: 1540 [STC].







folio: 1

¶A balade agaynst malycyous Sclaunderers.

¶Heue and how rumbelow thou arte to blame
Trolle into the right way agayne for shame.

TRolle into the way / trolle in and retrolle
Small charyte and lesse wytte is in thy nolle
Thus for to rayle vpon a christen soule
Wherfore men thynke the worthy blame
5 Trolle into the way agayne for shame.

¶Thou makest a trollyng hyther and thyther
Somtyme thou trollest thou canst not tell whyther
But if all thy trollynges were gathered togyther
Thy trollynge might trym the and tourne the to blame
10 Wherfore trolle thou nowe into the way for shame

Although lord Crumwell a traytour was
Yet dare I saye that the kynge of his grace
Hath forgyuen him that gret trespas
To rayle than on dead men / thou arte to blame
15 Trolle now into the way agayne for shame.

In that that he the law hath offended
By the lawe he is iustly condempned
This mortall lyfe / full godly he ended
Wherfore to rayle thus / thou art to blame
20 Trolle into the way agayne for shame.

¶For all his offences in euery thyng
He asked god mercy and grace of the kynge
And of all the wyde world / for his transgressyng
Thou nor no man can say nay to the same
25 Trolle into the way than agayne for shame

Thou takest his treason for thy subtyll defence
Which nowe is departed and gone from hence
But men spye the pricke of all thy pretence
Thy owne sayenges folowyng declare the same
30 Trolle into the way / for fere or for shame

¶Thou sayest he was with the church to quycke
Fauouryng none but of the new trycke
But nowe thou spurnest agaynst the prycke
And thou of force / must confesse the same
35 Trolle into the way agayne for shame

For bysshops haue now as they haue had
If preestes wold complayne / they were to mad
Wherfore thou apperest to be a popysshe lad
For vsyng thy popery / thou arte to blame
40 Trolle into the way agayne for shame.

For here thou vpholdest both monkes and fryers
Nunnes and noughty-packes / and lewed lowsy lyers
The bysshop of Rome / with all his rotten squyers
To buylde such a church / thou arte moche to blame
45 Trolle nowe into the way agayne for shame.

May not men thynke now in the meane ceason
That thou hast deserued by ryght and by reason
As moch as he hath done for clokynge thy treason
For he was a traytour / and thou arte the same
50 Trolle away papyst / god gyue the shame.

¶The sacrament of the aulter / that is most hyest
Crumwell beleued it to be the very body of Chriest
Wherfore in thy writyng / on him thou lyest
For the kynge and his counsell wyll wytnesse the same
55 Trolle into the waye / than agayne for shame

Although that he of byrth were but bace
Yet was he set vp of the kynges noble grace
Wherby it appereth that thou woldest deface
The kynges royall power / dispysyng the same
60 Trolle away traytour / god gyue the shame.

¶Is it thy facyon thus craftely to saye?
Let vs for the kynge / and his lordes praye
And than at the last / to trolle them awaye
With heue and how rumbelow / thy wordes be the same
65 Both written and printed / to thy great shame?

Hast thou no man els / thou dronken [f]oll foll] soll 1540
But the kynge and his nobles / away for to troll
It were ynough for to cost the thy poll
Both thyne and all other / that wold do the same
70 Trolle away traytoure / god gyue the shame.

¶A prety wyse printer belyke he was
Which of his printyng / so lytell doth pas
To print such pylde poetry / as this same was
Lyke maker / lyke printer / two trolles of the game
75 A payre of good papystes / ye be payne of shame

God send all traytours their hole desartes
God send small ioye / to all popysshe hartes
And euyll hap to as many as do take their partes
God send their purpose neuer to frame
80 But trolle them away with sorow and shame.

¶I pray god thou be not fownde one of those
That peruarteth the people / as I suppose
From redyng of gods worde / that goodly rose
Where the counsell commaundeth to occupy the same
85 Thou traytor allurest them this fayre floure to defame.

God preserue and kepe the kynges noble grace
With prince Edwarde his sonne / to succede in his place
God kepe them amonge vs / longe tyme and space
Let all his true subiectes / say Amen to the same
90 And they that wold otherwyse / god send them shame.

Finis.
Prentyd at London in Lombard_strete nere vnto the Stockes market at the sygne of the Mermayde by Johnn_Gough.

Cum preuilegio Ad imprimendum solum

o domine in uirtute tua letabitur Rex, etc.