To ben as trewe as euer was antonyus
To cleopatre whyle hym lastetħ bretħ
Or vnto thesbe yong Piramus
That was faithful found, til them deptid deth
Right so shal I til Antropos me sletħ
For whele or woo her faithful man be found
Vnto my last, like as my hert is bound
To loue as wel as did Achilles
Vnto his laste the fair Polixene
Or as the grete famous Hercules
For dyanyre that felte the shott kene
Right so shal I saye right as I mene
Whyle that I lyue, her botħ drede and serue
For lack of mercy thougħ she do me sterue
Now lady venus to whom nothing vnknowe
Is in the world hid, ne nought may be
For ther nys thing nether hye ne lowe
May be conceyled from your pryuete
Fro whom my menyng is not now secret
But wite fully that myn entent is true
And liche my trouthe now on my peyne rue
For more of grace than of presumpcion
I axe mercy, and no thing of dute
Of lowly humbles, witħ oute offencion
That ye enclyne of your benygnyte
Your audience vnto my humylyte
To graunte me that to you I clepe & calle
Sum day relees yet of my peynes alle
And sitħ ye haue the guerdon and the mede
Of alle louers pleinly in your honde
Now of grace and pyte take ye hede
Of my distrees, that am vnder your bonde
So lowly bound, as ye wel vnderstonde
In that place where I toke first my wounde
Of pyte suffre ye my heltħ may be founde
That liche as she me hurte witħ a sight
Right so with helth late me hur sustene
And as the stremes of her eyen bright
Whylom my hert witħ woundes sharp & kene
Thurgħ persed haue and yet be fresh & grene
So as she me hurte, lete her me socoure
Or ellis certayn I may not long endure
For lack of speche I can say you no more
I haue mater but I can not pleyne
My witte is duƚƚ to tel al my sore
A mouth I haue, And yet for al my peyn
For want of wordes I may not now atteyn
To tel half, that dotħ my hert greue
Mercy abydyng, til she me list releue
But this theffect of my mater fynal
Witħ detħ or mercy relees for to fynde
For hert body thought lyf lust and al
Witħ al my reson and al my ful mynde
And fyue wittes of on assent I bynde
To her seruyse witħ oute ony stryf
And make her pryncesse of my detħ or lyf
And now I pray of routħ and eke pyte
O goodly planet, O lady venus bright
That ye your sone of his deyte
Cupide I mene that witħ his dredful myght
And witħ his brond that is so clere of light
Her herte so to fyre and to marke
As ye me whylem brent witħ a sparke
That euenlicħ and with the same fyre
She may be hit, as I now brenne and melte
So that her herte be flamed witħ desire
That she may knowe by feruence hou I swelte
For of pyte plainly yf she felte
The self hete that doth myn hert enbrace
I hope of routħ she wiƚƚ do me grace
And ther witħ al bemis as me thought
Towardes this man ful benyngely
Gan cast her eye, like as that she rought
Of his disease, and said ful goodly
Sith it is so, that thou so humbly
Witħ out gruachyng our hestes liste obeye
Toward thyn help I wil anon pourueye
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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