The pain and sorrow of evil marriage, TAke heed and learn thou little child and see That time passed will not again return And in thy youth unto virtues use the Let in thy breast no manner vice sojourn That in thine age thou have no cause to mourn For time lost nor for default of wit Think on this lesson/ and in thy mind it shit Glory unto god/ loving and benison To Peter and johan and also to Laurence Which have me take under protection From the deluge of mortal pestilence And from the tempest of deadly violence And me preserve that I fall not in the rage Under the bond and yoke of marriage I was in purpose to have taken a wife And for to have wedded without avysednes A full fair maid with her to lead my life whom that I loved of hasty wilfulness with other fools to have lived in distress As some gave me counsel & began me to constrain To have be partable of their woeful pain They lay upon me and hasted me full sore And gave me counsel for to have be bound And began to praise each day more and more The woeful life in which they did abound And were busy my gladness to confound themself rejoicing both at even and morrow To have a fellow to live with them in sorrow But of his grace god hath me preserved By the wise counsel of these angels three From hell gates/ they have my life conserved In time of war when lovers lusty And bright phoebus was freshest unto see In gemynies the lusty and glad season when to wed caught first occasion My joy was set in especial To have wedded one excellent in fairness And through her beauty have made myself thrall Under the yoke of everlasting distress But god alonely of his high goodness Hath by an angel as ye have heard me tell Stopped my passage/ from that perilous hell Among these angels that were in number three There appeared one out of the south which spoke first of all to the trinity All of one sentence the matter is full couth And he was called johan with the golden mouth which concluded by sentence full notable wives of custom been gladly variable After this johan the story saith also In confirmation of their fragility How that Peter called acorbylio affirmeth plainly how that wives be diverse of heart full of duplycyte Maysterfull hasty and eke proud Crabbed of language when they list cry aloud Who taketh a wife receiveth a great charge In which he is full like to have a fall with tempest tossed as is a busy barge There he was free he maketh himself thrall wives of port been full Imperial Husbands dare not their lusts gainsay But lovely please and meekly them obey The husbands ever abideth in travail One labour passed there cometh another new And every day she beginneth a battle And in complaining changeth cheer and hew Under such falsues she feigneth to be true She maketh him rude as is a dull ass Out of whose danger impossible is to pass Thus wedlock is an endless penance Husbands know that have experience A martyrdom and a continuance In sorrow everlasting a deadly violence And this of wives is gladly the sentence Upon their husbands when they list to be bold How they alone governeth the household And if her husband happen for to thrive She saith it is her prudent purveyance If they go aback againward and unthryve She saith it is his misgovernance He beareth the blame of all such ordinance And if they be poor and fall in distress She saith it is his folly and lewdness And if so be he be no workman good It may well hap he shall have an horn A large bone to stuff with his hood A mow behind and feigned cheer before And if it fall that their good be lost By adventure either at even or morrow The silly husband shall have all the sorrow An husband hath great cause to care For wife/ for child/ for stuff and main And if ought lack she will both swear and stare He is a waster and shall never the And Solomon saith there be things three Shrewd wives/ rain/ and smokes black Make husbands oft their houses to forsake wives be beasts very unchangeable In their desires which may not staunched be Like a swallow which is insatiable perilous carriage in the trouble see A wave calm full of adversity whose blandishing endeth with mischance Called Cyrene's ever full of variance They them rejoice to see and to be seen And for to seek sundry pilgrimages At great gatherings to walk on the green And on scaffolds to sit on high stages If they be fair to show their visages And if they be foul of look or countenance They it amend with pleasing dalliance And of profit they take but little heed But looketh sour when their husbands aileth aught And of good meet & drink they will not fail in deed what so ever it cost they care right nought Nor they care not how dear it be bought Rather than they should thereof lack or miss They would liefer lay some pledge iwis It is true I tell you young men everichone women be varyble and love many words and strife who can not appease them lightly or anon Shall have care and sorrow all his life That woe the time that ever he took a wife And will take thought and often muse How he might find the manner his wife to refuse But that manner with troth can not be found Therefore be wise or ye come in the snare Or ere ye take the way of that bound For and ye come there your joy is turned unto care And remedy is there none so may I far But to take patience & think none other way about Than shall ye die a martyr without any doubt Therefore you men that wedded be Do nothing against the pleasure of your wife Than shall you live the more merrily And often cause her to live withouten strife without thou art unhappy unto an evil life Than if she than will be no better Set her upon a lelande and bid the devil fet her Therefore think moche and say nought And thank god of his goodness And prece not for to know all her thought For than shalt thou not know as I guess without it be of her own gentleness And that is as much as a man may put in his eye For if she list of thy words she careth not a fly And to conclude shortly upon reason To speak of wedlock of fools that be blent There is no greater grief nor feller poison Nor none so dreadful perilous serpent As is a wife double of her intent Therefore let young men to eschew sorrow and care withdraw their feet or they come in the snare FINIS. ΒΆ Here endeth the pain and sorrow of evil marriage. Imprinted at London in Fleetstreet at the sign of the Son/ by me winkin de word. W C winkin β—† de β—† word β—† printer's or publisher's device