for trewlie, in thair intentis,
to rug and reif, and tak up rentis,
the puire pepill oppressand cleine.
for the qlk thing some sair repentis,
in this warst warld that evir was sein.

That tyme thair was bot ane pilat ;
now is thair mae than fiftie store;
with as fair wordis of dissait,
as hard the other of befoir
sa fast into this warld they soir,*
to trew men dois meikill teine; +
their traist ay kythes moir & moir;
as in this warld it is now sein.

That tyme thair was bot ane caiphace
that did accuise our Lord Jesue;
but now is monie mae alace
the Inocentis for to persew:
thair is bakbytteris now anew,
bot of guide men over quhew I wein,
that will & can give counsall trew ;
as in this warld it may be sein.

The tormenturis war than sa skant,
cryst for to scourge skerce found were sax;
now of ane thousand not ane dois want,
thair wicked number so dois wax;
to spoulzie puire men of thair pakis,
to reif can na man theme refraine
quhill that thay gar ane wuddie|| rax
in this warst warld that evir was sein.
Thair was ane Judas in that tyme,
for silver did his master sell;
bot now is smitted without cryme¶
ane thowsand mae than I can tell,
that dois in this countrie dwell,
wald sell thair sawillis as J wein
for geir unto the divill of hell;
in this warst warld that evir was sein.

Peter to Annas hous him drest,
quhair he his maister did deny ;

monie with mouth hes now confest
thay ar of crystis company,

bot and ye will thair warkis espy,
ye sall sie thame befoir your eine
denyand crist alluterlie

as be thair lyfis may be sein.
Pilat let bot ane theife gang
quhen he put Jesus Crist to deid,
bot now fyve hundreth theifis strang,
at ainis with thair remissioune speid,
and trew folk can get na remeid
quhat wrang that evir thay susteine,
quhilk garris monie beg thair bread
in this warst warld that evir was sein.
Fra pilat fand of deid na caus
in cryst, he wald haive lattin him ga ;
J wald thay that leidis our lawis
and of judges wold do sa;
compell na Jnnocent to pay,

nor thame convict be subtill mein,
nor in thair syes put not thairfra,*
let na partialitie be sein.
Thairfoir princes and magestratis
and ye in court that office bear,
that for auctoritie debaittis,
to hurt the Jnocent tak feir,
for leid suspitione or for geir.
from wrang proceiding ay abstein:
for dreid god, quhen zour sinis appeir,
his vengeance gar on yow be sein.
The Jewis war to cryst unkind
for all his warkis & guidnes ;
his miracles put fairth of mynd,
quhen that to deid he did him dres.
sua in this world all thankfulnes
and all auld kindnes that hes bein
and all guide turns mair & les
ar clein for got & now of sein.
Apeiranthe now all men sayes
that all scottis ar in despair;
think and can thay put off thair dayes
quhat sall cume eftir thay tak na cair,

* Sic in MS,

theclet

thocht all the regioune sould for fear,
of thair will nochit want ane prein;
qlk will mak monie biggings bear,
and one waist cuntre to be sein.
Quhair is the zealous men & wyse
of kirk and of the temporall stait,
that in this realme has bein oft syse,+
that wald tak travill air & lait
to stenche all troubill and debaitt,
and ane great perell could prevein,
and now the lordis to gang ongett
the comoune weill to be forsein.+

God mak us quyt of all blasphemeis,
and of all men of evint conditioune;
god mak us quyt of all menkimerist
amongis us of seditioune ;
and all raisers of suspitioune :
send us guide men to gang betwein

the lordis to mak unione ;

that peace may in this land be sein.

God keip the Kingis majestie
and give him grace manifold,
the land to keip in libertie
in peace and justice to us hald.
sua that na persone young nor auld
sall onie caus haive to complein
that justice now is coft and sauld,
as uther tymes has bein sein.
Finis 9d

W. Richart Maitland
of Lethingtonne knicht."
R. P. G.

A Mery Play betwēne Johan Johan the husbande Tyb his wyfe and Syr Jhan the preest. [Col.] Finis, Imprynted by Wyllyam Rastell the xii day of February the yere of our Lord Mccccc and xxxiii. Cum privilegio. Small folio, 16 pages.

The above is one of the six plays attributed by our dramatic biographers to John Heywood author of The

* Buildings bare.

† Sic in MS.

+ Men-comers.

Four P's contained in Dodsley's collection, of The Spider and Flie, and of some other poems; a satisfactory account of which may be found in the third volume of Warton's History of English Poetry.* No copy of the present drama appears to exist in the Garrick collection at the British Museum,+ and if any of our modern editors of ancient plays were in possession of it, they seem to have regarded the Four P's as better calculated for the illustration of our early scenic history. The "Mery Play," however cannot be considered as entirely devoid of interest; exclusively of its antiquity and rarity, it is valuable as affording a specimen of the earliest and rudest form of our comedy, (for the poem is shorter and the number of the Dramatis Personæ yet fewer than those of the Four P's) and of the liberty with which even the Roman Catholic authors of that age felt themselves authorised to treat the established priesthood. Johan Johan himself prologises thus,

God spede you Maysters everychone;
Wote ye not whyther my wyfe is gone?
I pray God the dyvell take her,
For all that I do, I cannot make her,
But she wyll go a gaddynge very much,
Lyke an Anthony pig with an olde wyche,
Whych fedeth her aboute hyther & thyther,
But, by our Lady, I wote not whyther.

He proceeds to affirm "by our Lady of Crome" that he will beat her soundly upon her return. It occurs however, to him that she may possibly die under the operation, and he has no taste for hanging; that she may not mend if she survive his correction; and that his neighbours may chide him for cruelty. His love of authority, however, and his suspicions that she is visiting Syr Johan, confirm him in his first resolution; he requests the audience not to interfere in her behalf, and is loudest in his threats, when she suddenly returns with these words,

Tyb.-Why? whom wilt thou beate, I say, thou knave? Jhan.-Who? I, Tyb? none, so God me save.

*P. 87 and seq.

+ See Beloe's Anecdotes of Literature, v. 4.

Heywood was a bigoted papist.

Tyb.

The Cronycles of Englonde with the dedes of popes and emperours, and also the descripcyon of Englonde.

The rest of the title-page is filled with a wood-cut of the royal arms, viz. France and England quarterlyunderneath, the supporters; on each side of the shield, the portcullis over the crown, a rose between two angels.

At the back the same, except that the scroll round the rose has this inscription:

"Hec rosa virtutis de celo missa sereno

Eternu florens regia sceptra feret."

Then follows Tabula on sign. Aa ii.

"Here begynneth a shorte and a breue Table, for to fynde lyghtly wherof ony man shall please hy to rede in this

boke."

The prologue (for which see Bibliographer, vol. 2, p. 33, in an account of Julyan Notary's edition) is signatured a i.

Then on folio ii. Pars Prima. "Hic incipit fruc us temporum."

Pars Secunda, fol. ix. rev. "Here begynneth the second parte & of the kyngdome of Brytayne."

Pars Tertia, fol. xviii. rev.

"Here begynneth the thyrde part, and cotynueth vnto the Natiuite of Chryst."

which, Fuller says, happened about 1400.-Batman in his address to the reader, (ed. 1562) says, this " booke was had in great estimation among the learned, as well beyond the sea as at home, vntill within 60 yeares past, [when] there sprang vp famous and worthy persons of singular perseuerance and learning, which from the course of auncient beginnings, set foorth the same that was formally written of, with additions." Ile names th writers and observes, "I haue therefore as an imitator of the learned for the good will I bare to my countrie collected forth of these afore said authors, the like deuises, which they in times past gathered of their elders."-It is perhaps needless to add that the work of Bartholomeus forms an extraordinary storehouse of valuable information and entertainment, and, although scarce, is one of the articles to be earliest obtained, by those whose research may tend to the acquiring some knowledge of Ancient English litera

ture.

J. H.

Pars