The seventh heaven, or the shell, next to the starry

sky,

41

All those degrees that gathereth up, with aged pace

so sly:

And doth perform the same, as elders' count hath been,

In nine and twenty years complete, and days almost sixteen;

Doth carry in his bowt,' the star of Saturn old,

A threat'ner of all living things with drought and with his cold.

The sixth whom this contains, doth stalk with younger

pace,

And in twelve year doth somewhat more than t'other's voyage was:

And this in it doth bear the star of Jove benign, 'Tween Saturn's malice and us men, friendly defending

sign.

50

The fifth bears bloody Mars, that in three hundred

days

And twice eleven with one full year hath finish'd all

those ways..

A year doth ask the fourth, and hours thereto six, And in the same the day his eye, the Sun, therein he sticks.

The third that govern'd is by that that governs

me,

And love for love, and for no love provokes, as oft we

see,

In like space doth perform that course, that did the

other.

So doth the next unto the sarne, that second is in

order;

1Bowt' orbit

But it doth bear the star, that call'd is Mercury; That many a crafty secret step doth tread, as calcars' try.

That sky is last, and fix'd next us those ways hath

gone,

In seven-and-twenty common days, and eke the third of one;

And beareth with his sway the diverse Moon about; Now bright, now brown, now bent, now full, and now her light is out:

Thus have they of their own two movings all theso Seven;

One, wherein they be carried still, each in his several heaven:

Another of themselves, where their bodies be laid
In by-ways, and in lesser rounds, as I afore have said;
Save of them all the Sun doth stray least from the
straight:

The starry sky hath but one course, that we have call'd the eight.

70

And all these movings eight are meant from west to

east;

Although they seem to climb aloft, I say, from east to

west.

But that is but by force of their first moving sky, In twice twelve hours from east to east, that carrieth them by and by:

But mark we well also, these movings of these seven Be not above the axletree of the first moving heaven. For they have their two poles directly th' one to th' other,' &c.

1Calcars:' astrologers.

SONGS AND EPIGRAMS.

A DESCRIPTION OF SUCH A ONE AS
HE WOULD LOVE.

A FACE that should content me wondrous well,
Should not be fair, but lovely to behold;
Of gladsome chere, all grief for to expel;

With sober looks, so would I that it should
Speak without word, such words as none can tell:
Her tress also should be of crisped gold;
With wit, and these perchance I might be tried,
And knit again with knot, that should not slide.

WHY LOVE IS BLIND.

OF purpose Love chose first for to be blind,
For he with sight of that, that I behold,
Vanquish'd had been, against all godly kind:
His bow your hand, and truss should have unfold;
And he with me to serve had been assign'd:

But, for he blind and reckless would him hold,
And still by chance his deadly strokes bestow;
With such as see, I serve, and suffer woe.

THE LOVER BLAMETH HIS INSTANT
DESIRE.

DESIRE, alas! my master and my foe,

So sore alter'd thyself, how mayst thou see? Sometime thou seek'st, and drives me to and fro;

Sometime thou lead'st, that leadeth thee and me.

What reason is to rule thy subject so,
By forced law, and mutability?

For where by thee I doubted to have blame,
Even now by hate again I doubt the same.

AGAINST HOARDERS OF MONEY.
FOR shamefast harm of great and hateful need,
In deep despair, as did a wretch go,
With ready cord out of his life to speed,
His stumbling foot did find an hoard, lo!
Of gold, I say, where he prepar'd this deed,
And in exchange he left the cord tho.1
He that had hid the gold, and found it not,
Of that he found he shap'd his neck a knot.

DESCRIPTION OF A GUN.

VULCAN begat me, Minerva me taught,

Nature my mother, craft nourish'd me year by year; Three bodies are my food, my strength is in nought; Anger, wrath, waste, and noise are my children dear;

Guess, friend, what I am, and how I am wrought,
Monster of sea, or of land, or of elsewhere:
Know me, and use me, and I may thee defend,
And if I be thine enemy, I may thy life end.

1Tho' then.

OF THE MOTHER THAT EAT HER CHILD AT THE SIEGE OF JERUSALEM.

In doubtful breast whilst motherly pity

With furious famine standeth at debate;

The mother saith, O child unhappy,

Return thy blood where thou hadst milk of late; Yield me those limbs that I made unto thee, And enter there where thou were generate; For of one body against all nature,

To another must I make sepulture.'

TO HIS LOVE WHOM HE HAD KISSED
AGAINST HER WILL.

ALAS, Madam, for stealing of a kiss,

Have I so much your mind therein offended? Or have I done so grievously amiss,

That by no means it may not be amended? Revenge you then: the readiest way is this; Another kiss, my life it shall have ended; For to my mouth the first my heart did suck; The next shall clean out of my breast it pluck.

OF THE JEALOUS MAN

THAT LOVED THE SAME WOMAN, AND ESPIED THIS OTHER
SITTING WITH HER.

THE wandering gadling in the summer tide,
That finds the adder with his rechless 2 foot,
Starts not dismay'd so suddenly aside,

As jealous despite did, though there were no boot,

16 'Gadling:' vagabond.- 'Rechless' reckless.