Blest who on vertues life relying, Happelesse that happie art and knowst no teares, J. H. The Complaynt of Roderyck Mors, somtyme a gray fryre, unto the parliament house of Ingland his natu ral cuntry. For the redresse of certen wicked lawes, evel customs and cruel decreys. [Not paged. Colophon.] Imprinted at Savoy per Franciscum de Tu топа. This book, which bears no date, was written, as far as I can judge from its contents, sometime after Henry VIII. had thrown off his allegiance to the papal power, probably about the year 1545. The general stile of the work is similar to the "Exhortation" addressed to the same Monarch, of which some account is given in the Seventh Volume of the Cens. Lit. (page 36.) The present writer does not however confine his censures to the Pope alone, but extends them to every thing relating to popery in general, and bitterly inveighs, in most of his pages, against such of the English Bishops and higher orders of the clergy, who, in any degree, adhered to the forms and regulations of that religion, in the discharge of their ecclesiastical duties. The following is a Table of the Contents of each chapter in number xxv. "That comon prayers and a sermon owght to be at the begynnyng of all cowncels-Of enhansing of rentes by landlordes Of the forfetting of the landes or goodes of tray tours, &c. Of the inclosing of parkes, forestes and chases-Of sellyng of wardes for maryage wherof ensueth adultery, which owght to be ponished by death-Of the injvryes done to the comynalty by the Kyng's takers, &c.-Of the suttylty of serv yng yng of wryttes, &c.-Of promoters, which may wrongfully troble a man by the lawe of England, and thowgh he be cast, he shall pay no charges, &c.-That all judges and pleaters at the barre may lyve of a stypend, geven them of the king out. of the abbey londes-Of the cruelnesse and suttyltes of the augmitacyon and escheker, &c.-Of the prolongyng of the lawe, and of certen abuses in the same, &c.-That kynges and lordes of presons shuld fynd their presoners suffycyent fode at their charge and of men that have lyen long in preson, &c.— That men which be accused for preachyng, shuld not be comytted into their accuser's handes-Of lordes that are parsons and vicars-Of lordes that are shepardes-Of first frutes both of benefices and of lordes landes-Of particular tachementes, that all creditors may have pownd and pownd alyke, whan any man falleth in poverty-That the rulars of the erth ought to sit in their gates, or els in their privy chamber dores-A godly admonycy on for the abolysshment of dyverse abuses, and of the servyce to be had in the Englyssh tong-That one pryst owght to have but one benefyce, and one fermer but one ferme Of the inhansing of the custome, which is agaynst the Comonwelth A godly advysemet how to bestowe the goodes and landes of the bysshops, &c. after the gospel, with an admonyeyon to the rulers, that thei loke better upon the hospitalles A lamentacyo for that the body and tayle of the pope is not banisshed with his name-A comparyson betwene the doctryne of the scripture, and of the bisshops of EnglandA brefe rehersal, conteynyng the whole somme of the boke." The following extracts are taken from the xxiii chapter, containing some few particulars relative to the first circulation of the Bible in English. "Oh mercyful father of heavyn, I can never lament inough to heare the gospel thus blasphemyd to be namyd a thing causyng sedicyon whan it is the only cause of concord and peace in conscyence unto the faythful. Yet these bysshops, deanys, and canons of collegys, with other the popys shavelings according to their old wont, shame not to blaspheme this holy word, by all the sotle meanys that can be dyvysed. How besy were thei to stey the puttyng forth of the great Byble, and to have had the Byble of Thomas • "Henry VIII. renewed this year (1541, May 6,) his injunc tions to the clergy, to provide English Bibles of the largest volume, and deposit them in their churches for the use of their people; his former injunctions on that subject having been generally disbeyed by those who were enemies to reformation." Henry's Hist. of G. Brit. (8vo. Ed.) Vol. XII. p. 93. Mathy, called in, but the Lord strengthenyd the hart of the Prynce to set it forth agaynst their willys: yet how shamefully haue thei and their membres in many placys of England drevyn men from readyng the Byble? yea and Boner bysshop of London shamyd not in the yere a thowsand fyve hundreth and forty to preson one porter and other, for readyng in the Byble which if it be not heresy to God then what is heresy? And if it be not treason to the Kyng to deface his imunicyons, than what is treason? And agayne if it be not theft to the comonwelth to steale from the their sprytual fode, than what is robry and theft? And evyn in the begynnyng of the last Parliament in the yere a thousand fyue hundredth and xli how did thei blaspheme rage and belye the Holy Goost, saing it is not ryghtly translated, and that it is ful of heresys and that thei wold correck it, and set out one ryghtly: soner can thei fynd fautys tha amend it. Who perceyueth not your wickyd intentys, that in the meanetyme ye loke for the death of the Kyng, whom God preserve to his plesure? "No dout one bisshop, one deane, one college, or howse of canos, hath euer done more mischeffe agaynst God's word, and sought more the hynderace of the same, tha x howses of monkys, fryers, chanons, or nunnys ever dyd. The Kyngs grace began wel to wede the garden of Ingland, but yet hath he left standyng (the more pytye) the most fowlest and stynkyng wedys, which had most nede to be pluckyd up by the rootys, that is to say, the prycking thistels, and stinkyng nettels which styll stondyng, what helpyth the deposyng of the pety membres of the Pope, and to leave his whole body behynd, which be the pompes, bysshops, canons of collegys, deanys, and such other? "The bysshops of England never toke so gret paynes to defend the Pope and his kyngdome, as they have done syns the King's grace toke rightfully from him his accustomyd pollagys, which usurpedly he had out of this reame. To prove this to be true, whot blood haue thei shed, syns that tyme, of the belovyd servantes of the everlyving God, for preching, teaching, writing, and walking in the truth: as Tewkysbery, Baynam, Fryth, Bylney, Barnys, Garet, Ierom, with diverse other in Kent, Salysbery and dyverse other placys. And Wyllm The Bible, which passes under the name of "Matther's Bible," was edited by Rogers, and printed in folio at Hamburgh by Grafton and Whitchurch in the year 1537. Mr. Beloe mentions a curious edition of the "Newe Testament, as set forth by Willyam Tyndale, with the annotation of Thomas Matthew. 1549." Anecd. Lit. V. I. p. 179. Tynd Tyndal the apostle of Ingland, (although he were burnt în Brabance *) yet he felt the bisshop's blessing of Inglad, which procured him that death, which he loked for at their handes. Nevertheles I dowt not, but that all these be of the nomber of them, that S. Ioha spekyth of in the Apocalipse, which lye under the altar, till the nomber of their brethren be fulfilled, which shal be slayne for the gospel's sake."— J. H. M. Verses attributed to the Earl of Strafford. TO THE EDITOR OF THE BRITISH BIBLIOGRAPHER. SIR, The copy of Verses enclosed, has been transcribed from a single sheet, printed at London, in folio, 1641. Some of your Correspondents may, perhaps, be able to say whether they were really written by the person they are ascribed to.t "Verses, lately written by Thomas, Earle of Strafford. "Go empty joyes, With all your noyse, 1. And leave me here alone, In sweet sad silence to bemoane Your vaine and fleet delight, Whose danger none can see aright, Whilest your false splendor dimmes his sight. Goe and insnare, With your false ware, 2. Some other easie wight, And cheat him with your flattering light; Raine on his head a shower Of honours, favor, wealth, and power; In the year 1536. A copy from the Harl. MSS. No. 6933, is printed in the Topographer, Vol. II. p. 234, containing several variations. Editor. Fill his big minde 3. Of insolent applause: Let him not feare all curbing lawes, But dreame of something like a crowne, Let him appeare, In his bright sphere, 4. Like Scynthia in her pride, With star-like troups on every side; Such for their number and their light, As may at last orewhelme him quite, And blend us both in one dead night. Welcome sad Night, Griefe's sole delight, 5. Your mourning best agrees With Honour's funerall obsequies. In Thetis lap he lies, Mantled with soft securities, Whose too-much sun-shine blinds his eyes. Alas can he be heard, Who now is neither lov'd nor fear'd? You, who were wont to kiss the ground, Where 'ere my honour'd steps were found, |