| sig: [A1] | |
| ¶Here begynneth a dialogue betwene the comen Secretary and Ielowsy touchynge the vnstablenes of harlottes. | |
| sig: [A1v] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| WHat a world is this / I trow it be a_curst | |
| Fayne wold I marye / yf that I durst | |
| But I trow syth the time that god was born | |
| So many honest men neuer held of the horn | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| 5 | ¶What is the mater / be ye in ony doubte |
| Pacyfye your mode / let it come oute | |
| Dyscharge your stomake / avoyde it forth | |
| Sorowes in store be nothynge worth | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶Trouth it is / I trust ye wyll not be greued | |
| 10 | To a small questyon be to you moued |
| In a mater / to me doubtfull and defuse | |
| Whiche I suppose ye haue had in experyence and vse | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| That parauenture / but I wyll not promyse you presysely | |
| To assoyle your questyon very wysely assoyle ='resolve' | |
| 15 | Howe-be-it that ye say / I am of experyence |
| So ye wyll be close / ye shall here my sentence | |
| sig: [A2] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶Then thus / she that hath a rollynge ey | |
| And doth conuey it / well and wysely | |
| And therto hath a waueryng thought | |
| 20 | Trowe ye this trull wyll not be bought. |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶Yes / but take hede by the pryce ye haue noo losse | |
| A made marchaunt that wyll gyue .v. marke for a goose | |
| Beware a rollyng ey with wauerynge thought marke that | |
| And for suche stuffe passe not / a dandy_pratt | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| 25 | ¶She that is very wanton and nyse |
| Thynkyng her-self maruaylous wyse | |
| And wyll come to hym that doth her call | |
| Wyll she not wrastell for a fall | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶Yes suerly / for a fall flat as a cake | |
| 30 | And cares not howe many falles she doth take |
| There is noo fall can make her lame | |
| For she wyll be sure of the best game. | |
| sig: [A2v] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that doth make it all straunge and quaynt | |
| And lokyth as she were a very saynte | |
| 35 | If a man in the darke doo hyr assay |
| Hath she any power to holde owte nay / nay | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶Holde oute / yes / or it is pyttye she was borne | |
| A horse a whele-barowe and a Rammys-horne | |
| If the other thynge come ye wott what I mene | |
| 40 | For all her holly lookes she wyll conuey it clene |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that doth loue moche dallyng | |
| With dyuerse men for fayre spekynge | |
| And thynkys not on her owne shame | |
| Wyll not this wylde-foule be made tame | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| 45 | ¶Yes with good handlynge as I ayme |
| Euen by and by ye shall her reclayme | |
| And make her tame as euer was Turtyll | |
| To suffre kyssyng and tyklyng vnder the kyrtell | |
| sig: [A3] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that is sum-what lyght of credence | |
| 50 | And to make her freshe / large of expence |
| Howe say you and her mony doo fayle | |
| Wyll she not lay too pledge her tayle | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶Yes and yf she be of that appetyte | |
| She wyll pledge and sell oute-ryght | |
| 55 | Hede-pece / tayle-pece / and all .iiii. quarters |
| To one or other / rather then fayle to carters | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that louys to sytte and muse | |
| And craftly can her-selfe excuse | |
| When she is taken with a faulte | |
| 60 | Wyll she not be wonne with a small saulte |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶What nedys a saulte / I dare say she wyll consent | |
| That ye shall enter by a reasonable poyntment poyntment ='agreement for terms of capitulation'; see OED s.v. pointment, appointment n3. | |
| And then take hede for in kepynge of this warde and hold | |
| Is more daunger then in gettynge a thousande-folde | |
| sig: [A3v] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| 65 | ¶She that is of mynde sum-what rechelles rechelles: =reckless |
| Gyuynge her-selfe all to ydelnes | |
| And louys to lye longe in her bed | |
| Who wayteth his tyme shall he not be sped | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶Tyme nay nay wayte / yf she be in good mode | |
| 70 | For out of chyrche all tymes be goode |
| But passe not theron / though she say nay | |
| For so she wyll whan she hath best lust to play | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that can no counsayll kepe | |
| And lyghtly wyll sobbe and wepe | |
| 75 | Laughe agayne and wote not why |
| Wyll she not be sone tysed to foly tysed: =ticed, 'enticed' | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| The teares be_token a gracyous corage | |
| And laughynge doth all malyce aswage | |
| Whan she is in that takynge marke well marke | |
| 80 | Let slyp / spare not for one course in her parke |
| sig: [A4] | |
|
¶ Ielowsy. |
|
| ¶She that is fayre and lusty yonge | |
| And can comyn in termes with fyled tonge comyn: =common, 'commune, converse' | |
| And wyll byde whysperynge in the eare | |
| Thynke ye her tayle is not lyght of the seare lyght of the seare ='easily made to "go off", readily yielding to any impulse'; see OED s.v. sear n1, 1b. | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| 85 | ¶By all these sym[y]lytudes me-thynkes suerly symylytudes] symblytudes 1530 |
| Her owne tayle she shulde occupy | |
| Somtyme for nede her honeste saued | |
| She wyll wasshe often or she be ones shaued | |
|
¶Ielowsy. |
|
| She that paynteth her in starynge apparell starynge ='bright-coloured', or 'glaringly conspicuous'; see OED s.v. staring ppla2, 4. | |
| 90 | Vse[th] [h]ote wynes and dayly to fare well Vseth] Vse 1530; hote] bote 1530 |
| And loues to slepe at after-none-tyde | |
| Who lyst stryke trowe ye she wyll not stryde | |
|
¶Secretary. |
|
| ¶I can not say yf she wyll stryke | |
| But yf reason be offered nothynge shall fall besyde | |
| 95 | For of a trouth as frost engendereth hayle |
| Ease and ranke fedynge doth cause a lycorous tayle. | |
|
¶ Finis |
|
| sig: [A4v] |