When vice’s vaunts with vertue’s deedes dare fyght,
Then dooth the soule the happie heauens forsake,
Then man makes haste to Plutoe’s lothsome lake:
Why should man loue that sugered sowre sweete,
Which wisedom’s lore to lothe hath thought most meete?
[THE INDUCTION.
“The iust rewarde for so vile an offence dothe proue,” quoth Inquisition, “this Canutus to bee both a wise and a worthy prince.” “Yea,” saide Memory, “yf he had liued amongst those pratling poetes which made so muche tattle of Hector and Hercules, certaynely he should not haue been inferiour vnto eche of them. This Canutus was king at one time of foure kingdomes: as for Englande, and Scotland, and Norway, he held them by conquest: by birth he was the kyng of Denmarke: yea, he so demeaned himselfe, that duryng his lyfe all these foure kingdomes honoured him with the honoure due vnto a natiue king. But not long after his death, that good king, saint Edmunde the Confessour, obtayned agayne the rule of Englande, but chiefely through the helpe of his nephewe William, duke of Normandy, to whom, for that after his death he by lineall descent was next, he promised the crowne of Englande, if that he dyed without issue.” “Howe chaunced it then,” quoth Inquisition, “that the duke made such sharpe warre vppon Harolde, for the obteynyng thereof.” “Howe dyd it chaunce?” quoth Memory, “that is necessarie too be knowne, for that chaunce dyd not onely destroy the Danes, but it brought both Harolde and the Englishmen to confusion: and although nowe our idle houres be spent, tyme and our affayres doo call vs from the further hearing these men’s complayntes, yet let vs, as we may, heare what thys Harolde wyll saye: hys story wyll furnishe our woorke with a fit conclusion. And for the better vnderstanding of this man’s matter doo you imagine that you see this king comming from the conquest of the Danes, euen sweating in hys armour, to saye, as followeth.”]
THE COMPLAINT OF HAROLDE.
Howe king Harolde raygnyng but niene monthes, had continuall warre with the Danes, with the Norway kyng, with his brother Tosto, and with duke William, who partely by hys strength, but chiefly by policie, overcame hym, and by killyng him in the feelde, obteyned the kingdome of Englande. Thys historie dooth declare that no manhoode nor courage can keepe the crowne from the right heyre’s head[1250].
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