The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)

Name: The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)
Author: Skelton, John

Skelton, John

English poetry -- Early modern, 1500-1700

But what of that? hard it is to please all men;
  Who list amende it, let hym set to his penne;                       1260
            For the gyse now adays
          Of sum iangelyng iays[1802]
          Is to discommende
          That they can not[1803] amende,
          Though they wolde spende
          All the wittis they haue.
            What ayle them to depraue
          Phillippe Sparows graue?
          His _Dirige_, her Commendacioun
          Can be no derogacyoun,                                      1270
          But myrth and consolacyoun,
          Made by protestacyoun,
          No man to myscontent
          With Phillippis enteremente.
            Alas, that goodly mayd,
          Why shulde she be afrayd?
          Why shulde she take shame
          That her goodly name,
          Honorably reportid,
          Shulde be set and sortyd,                                   1280
          To be matriculate
          With ladyes of astate?
            I coniure thé, Phillip Sparow,
          By Hercules that hell did harow,
          And with a venomows arow
          Slew of the Epidawris
          One of the Centawris,
          Or Onocentauris,[1804]
          Or Hippocentauris;[1805]
          By whos myght and maine                                     1290
          An hart was slayne
          With hornnis twayne
          Of glitteryng golde;
          And the apples of golde
          Of Hesperides withholde,
          And with a dragon kepte
          That neuer more slepte,
          By merciall strength
          He wan at length;
          And slew Gerione                                            1300
          With thre bodys in one;
          With myghty corrage
          Adauntid the rage
          Of a lyon sauage;
          Of Diomedis stabyll
          He brought out a rabyll
          Of coursers and rounsis
          With[1806] lepes and bounsis;
          And with myghty luggyng,
          Wrastelynge and tuggyng,                                    1310
          He pluckid the bull
          By the hornid scull,
          And offred to Cornucopia;
          And so forthe _per cetera_:
            Also by Hecates bowre[1807]
          In Plutos gastly towre;
            By the vgly Eumenides,
          That neuer haue rest nor ease;
            By the venemows serpent
          That in hell is neuer brente,                               1320
          In Lerna the Grekis fen
          That was engendred then;
            By Chemeras flamys,
          And all the dedely namys
          Of infernall posty,
          Where soulis fry and rosty;
            By the Stigiall flode,
          And the stremes wode
          Of Cochitos bottumles well;
            By the feryman of hell,                                   1330
          Caron with his berde hore,
          That rowyth with a rude ore,
          And with his frownsid fortop
          Gydith his bote with a prop:

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

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The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)Skelton, John

General

The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)

Skelton, John

English poetry -- Early modern, 1500-1700

But what of that? hard it is to please all men;
  Who list amende it, let hym set to his penne;                       1260
            For the gyse now adays
          Of sum iangelyng iays[1802]
          Is to discommende
          That they can not[1803] amende,
          Though they wolde spende
          All the wittis they haue.
            What ayle them to depraue
          Phillippe Sparows graue?
          His _Dirige_, her Commendacioun
          Can be no derogacyoun,                                      1270
          But myrth and consolacyoun,
          Made by protestacyoun,
          No man to myscontent
          With Phillippis enteremente.
            Alas, that goodly mayd,
          Why shulde she be afrayd?
          Why shulde she take shame
          That her goodly name,
          Honorably reportid,
          Shulde be set and sortyd,                                   1280
          To be matriculate
          With ladyes of astate?
            I coniure thé, Phillip Sparow,
          By Hercules that hell did harow,
          And with a venomows arow
          Slew of the Epidawris
          One of the Centawris,
          Or Onocentauris,[1804]
          Or Hippocentauris;[1805]
          By whos myght and maine                                     1290
          An hart was slayne
          With hornnis twayne
          Of glitteryng golde;
          And the apples of golde
          Of Hesperides withholde,
          And with a dragon kepte
          That neuer more slepte,
          By merciall strength
          He wan at length;
          And slew Gerione                                            1300
          With thre bodys in one;
          With myghty corrage
          Adauntid the rage
          Of a lyon sauage;
          Of Diomedis stabyll
          He brought out a rabyll
          Of coursers and rounsis
          With[1806] lepes and bounsis;
          And with myghty luggyng,
          Wrastelynge and tuggyng,                                    1310
          He pluckid the bull
          By the hornid scull,
          And offred to Cornucopia;
          And so forthe _per cetera_:
            Also by Hecates bowre[1807]
          In Plutos gastly towre;
            By the vgly Eumenides,
          That neuer haue rest nor ease;
            By the venemows serpent
          That in hell is neuer brente,                               1320
          In Lerna the Grekis fen
          That was engendred then;
            By Chemeras flamys,
          And all the dedely namys
          Of infernall posty,
          Where soulis fry and rosty;
            By the Stigiall flode,
          And the stremes wode
          Of Cochitos bottumles well;
            By the feryman of hell,                                   1330
          Caron with his berde hore,
          That rowyth with a rude ore,
          And with his frownsid fortop
          Gydith his bote with a prop:

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)

The Poetical Works of John Skelton, Volume 1 (of 2)

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