| O children, give ear | your duties to learn, |
| How at the table | you may yourselves govérn. |
| Presume not too high, | I say, in no case; |
| In sitting down, | to thy betters give place. |
| Suffer each man | first servéd to be; |
| For that is a point | of good courtesy. |
| When they are served, | then pause a space, |
| For that is a sign | of nurture and grace. |
| Salt with thy knife | then reach and take, |
| The bread cut fair, | and do not it break. |
| Thy spoon with pottage | too full do not fill, |
| For [de]filing the cloth, | if thou fortune to spill. |
| For rudeness it is | thy pottage to sup, |
| Or speech to any, | his head in the cup. |
| Thy knife see be sharp | to cut fair thy meat, |
| Thy mouth not too full | when thou dost eat; |
| Not smacking thy lips, | as commonly do hogs, |
| Nor gnawing the bones | as it were dogs; |
| Such rudeness abhor, | such beastliness fly, |
| At the table behave | thyself mannerly. |
| Thy fingers see clean | that thou ever keep, |
| Having a napkin | thereon them to wipe; |
| Thy mouth therewith | clean do thou make, |
| The cup to drink | in hand if thou take, |
| Let not thy tongue | at the table walk, |
| And of no matter | neither reason nor talk. |
| Temper thy tongue | and belly alway, |
| For “measure is treasure,” | the proverb doth say, |
| And measure in all things | is to be used; |
| What is without measure | ought to be refused. |
| For silence keeping | thou shalt not be shent,[[351]] |
| Whereas thy speech | may cause thee repent. |
| Both speech and silence | are commendáble, |
| But silence is meetest | in a child at the table. |
| And Cato doth say, | that “in old and young |
| The first of virtue | is to keep thy tongue.” |
| Pick not thy teeth | at the table sitting, |
| Nor use at thy meat | overmuch spitting; |
| This rudeness of youth | is to be abhorred; |
| Thyself mannerly | behave at the board. |
| If occasion of laughter | at the table thou see, |
| Beware that thou use | the same moderately. |
| Of good manners learn | so much as thou can; |
| It will thee prefer | when thou art a man. |
| Aristotle, the philosopher, | this worthy saying writ, |
| That “manners in a child are | more requisite |
| Than playing on instruments | and other vain pleasure; |
| For virtuous manners | is a most precious treasure.” |
| Let not this saying | in no wise thee offend, |
| For playing of instruments | he doth not discommend, |
| But doth grant them | for a child necessary, |
| Yet manners much more, | see here he doth vary. |
| Refuse not his counsel, | nor his words despise; |
| To virtue and knowledge | by them may’st thou rise. |