O Iustyce lady and souerayne goddesse Gyue you true sentence now vpon me As ye be surmountynge in vertue & noblesse Lete me dame Sapyence haue the soueraynte As is accordynge to my royall dygnyte For I am moost profytable vnto man And euer had ben syns the world began Than sayd dame Fortune ye are imperfyte Without that I therto be accordaunt For all your hardynes & prudence perfyte I vnto you must be well exuberaunt And with your werkes euer concordaunt Where that I fauer they haue good cõfort In all theyr dedes by my swete resort I Fortune am the rule and steere Of euery persone lyke to my wyll That in this worlde now lyueth here Whan that I lyst for to fulfyll My mynde ryght sone I can dystyll The dewe of comfort welth and rychesse To man exaltynge hym to noblenesse Though that a man were neuer so hardy Without me he myght not attayne And though that a man were neuer so wytty And I dyd my power from hym refrayne All his labour were lost in vayne So hardynesse and prudence in no wyse Without good fortune may well suffyse Though that a man were but a fole Yf I consent that he be fortunate He nedyth not to make no grete dole For I shall mayntene so his estate That he in rychesse shall be so eleuate Fulfylled with welth & worldely tresure That he shall lacke no maner of pleasure Where that dame hardynes wold afferme By her cases that are so vnsure That she by her power doth conferme The knyghtes of vyctory for to be sure Whan she doth take theyr hertes in cure Yf fortune be awaye she may not auayle For they by reason must lose the batayle Yet forthermore as I do well consyder How dame hardynes dyd expresse Sythens the tyme that I came hyder That she promoted had to worthynes Hector dauid and the noble hercules With many other wherof she fayleth For it was fortune as she well knoweth For in olde tyme the noble warryours For to eschewe euer my grete daungere In whiche tyme they were ydolestours Than they to put hym oute of fere To ydols went that theyr goddes were For to haue answer yf they sholde wynne The batayll or they dyd begynne What nede I pleed by longe contynuaunce As dame Sapyence dyd in maters hy It were of tyme but dyscontynuaunce But o dame Iustyce the gentyll lady Loke that ye Iuge my mater ryght wysely That I of hardynes may be the pryncypall And of dame prudence & nature with all Than sayd dame nature that may not be As I can proue by ryght and reason For I am moost confort to humanyte As man well knoweth at euery encheason And can not be forborne for none season For where I lacke without ony delay Man is but dede and turned to clay That nature gyueth by her power Wysedome nor hardynes may not defete For I to man am the chefe doer Durynge his lyfe without retrete Also dame fortune may not well lete Me of my course though she it thought In sondery wyse my dedes are so wrought