1

139

And allthough the

duke Henry of Lancastre. bokes, that be written, be contrary; yet I haue folowed therin the prynt copie, for as moche as it may serue bothe weyes, and by cause moste

copies of the same warke are in printe. But yet I thought it goode to warne the reder, that the writen copies do not agree with the prynted. Therfore, syr, I haue prynted here those same lynes, that I fynde in the wrytten copies. The whiche alteracion ye shall perceyue beganne at the xxiii lyne in the Prologue, and goth forth on, as ye se here folowyng.

In our englysshe I thinke make
A boke for kynge Rychardes sake,
To whom belongeth my ligeance,
With all my hartes obeysaunce,
In all that euer a lyege man

Vnto his kynge may done or can;

So far forth I me recommaunde

To him, which all me may commaunde;

Preyend vnto the hygh reigne,

Which causeth euery kynge to reygne,

That his corone longe stonde.

I thynke and haue it vnderstonde
As it befell vpon a tyde,

As thynge whiche shulde tho betyde,
Vnder the towne of Newe Troy,
Whiche toke of Brute his fyrste ioye;

In Themse, whan it was flowende,

As I by bote came rowende,

So as fortune hir tyme sette,

My lyege lord perchaunce I mette.

And so befelle, as I came nygh,

Out of my bote, whan he me sygh,

He bad me come into his barge.

And whan I was with hym at large,
Amonges other thinges seyde,
He hath this charge vpon me leyde,
And bad me do my busynesse,
That to his hygh worthynesse

Some newe thinge I shulde boke,
That he hym selfe it myght loke,
After the forme of my wrytynge.
And thus vpon his commaundynge
Myn harte is well the more glad
To wryte so as he me bad.
And eke my feare is well the lasse
That none enuy shall compasse,
Without a reasonable wyte,
To feyne and blame that I wryte.
A gentyll harte his tonge stylleth,
That it malice none distilleth,
But preyseth that is to be preysed:
But he that hath his worde vnpeysed,
And handleth out ronge any thynge,

I

pray vnto the heuen kynge,

Fro such tonges he me shilde.

And netheles this worlde is wylde!

Of suche ianglynge, and what befall,
My kynges heste I shall not falle,

That I in hope to deserue

His thonke ne shall his wyll obserue;

And els were I nought excused.

For that thyng may nought be refused,

What that a kynge hym selfe byt:

Forthy the symplest of my wyt,

I thynke if that it may auayle,

In his seruyse to trauaile,

Though I syckenes haue vpon honde,
And long haue had, yet woll I fonde,

So as I made my beheste,

To make a boke after his heste,

And wryte in suche a maner wyse,
Whiche may be wysdome to the wyse,

And play to hem that lyst to play.
But in prouerbe I haue herde say,

That who that wel his warke beginneth,
The rather a good ende he wynneth.

And thus the Prologue of my Boke,
After the worlde that whylom toke,
And eke somdele after the newe,
I woll begyn for to newe.

And thus I saye for these lxx lynes there be as many other printed, that be cleane contrarye vnto these bothe in sentence and in meanyng. And furthermore there were lefte out, in dyuers places of the warke, lynes and columnes, ye and sometyme holle padges, whiche caused that this mooste pleasaunt and easy auctor coude not wel be perceyued; for that, and chaungynge of wordes, and misordrynge of sentences, wolde haue mased his mynde in redynge that had ben very well lerned. And what can be a greater blemysshe vnto a noble auctour? And for to preise worthily vnto you the great lernynge of this auctour, I knowe my selfe ryght moche vnable, ye

shall your selfe now deme, when ye shall se hym (as nere as I can) sette forth in his owne shape and lykenes. And this the mene time I maye be bolde to saye, that if we shulde neuer haue sene his counnynge warkes, the whiche euen at the full do wytnesse what a clerke he was; the wordes of the moost famous and excellente Geffraye Chauser, that he wrote in the ende of his moste speciall warke that is entitled Troylus and Creseyde, do sufficiently testify the same, where he sayth:

O morall Gower, this boke I directe
To thé, and to the philosophical Strode,
To vouchsafe, ther nede is, to correcte,
Of your benignites and zeles good.

The whiche noble wark, and many other of the sayde Chausers that neuer were before imprinted, and those that very fewe men knewe, and fewer hadde them, be nowe of late put forthe together in a fayre volume. By the whiche words of Chauser we may also vnderstonde, that he and Gower were both of one selfe tyme, both excellently lerned, both great frendes together, and both alyke endeuoured them selfe and imployed theyr tyme so wel and so vertuously, that they dyd not onely passe forth their lyfes here ryght honourably, but also for their so doing, so longe (of lykelyhode) as letters shal endure and continue, this noble royalme shall be the better, over and