Men haue practised by nedle and by stone[626].
Thiderwardes, within litle a while,
Within twelue yeer, and without perill
Gon and come, as men were wont of old
Of Scarborough unto the costes cold.
And nowe so fele shippes this yeere there ware
That moch losse for unfreyght they beare.”
This chapter concludes with some remarks upon the importance of Calais, criticising several incidents in the reigns of Edgar, Edward III., and Henry V., and concluding with a most energetic exhortation to all English statesmen to consider the deep national importance of his arguments concerning English commerce, navigation, and the dominion of the sea, upon which he re-asserts that the peace, prosperity, and security of their island essentially depend.
“The ende of battaile is peace sikerly,
And power causeth peace finally.