The flowers do fade, and wanton fields
To wayward winter reckoning yield:
A honey tongue, a heart of gall,
Is fancies Spring, but forrows Fall.
Thy gowns, thy fhoes, thy beds of rofes
Thy cap, thy kirtle, and thy pofies,
Soon break, foon wither, foon forgotten,
In folly ripe, in reafon rotten.
Thy belt of ftraw, and ivie buds,
Thy coral clafps, and amber ftuds;
All these in me no means can move
To come to thee, and be thy love.
But could youth last, and love still breed,
Had joyes no date, nor age no need;
Then thofe delights my mind might move
To live with thee, and be thy love.
ING Lear once ruled in this land,
K With princely power and peace,
And had all things with hearts content,
That might his joys increase:
Amongst those things that nature gave,
Three daughters fair had he,
So princely feeming beautiful,
As fairer could not be.
So on a time it pleas'd the king
A question thus to move,
Which of his daughters to his grace
Could fhew the dearest love:
For to my age you bring content,
Quoth he, then let me hear
Which of you three in plighted troth,
The kindeft will appear.
To whom the eldeft thus began,
Dear father, mind, quoth she,
Before your face, to do you good,
My blood shall render'd be:
And for your fake my bleeding heart
Shall here be cut in twain,
The smallest grief sustain.
And fo will I, the fecond faid:
Dear father, for your fake,
The worst of all extremities
I'll gently undertake;
And ferve your highness night and day
With diligence and love:
That fweet content and quietnefs;
Discomforts may remove.
In doing fo, you glad my soul,
The aged king reply'd;
But what fayeft thou, my youngest girl,
How is thy love ally'd ?
My love (quoth young Cordelia then) Which to your grace I owe,
Shall be the duty of a child,
And that is all I'll flow.
And wilt thou fhew no more, quoth he,
Than doth thy duty bind ?
I well perceive thy love is fmall,
When as no more I find;
Henceforth I banish thee my court,
Thou art no child of mine;
Nor any part of this my realm,
By favour fhall be thine.
Thy elder fifters loves are more
Than well I can demand,
To whom I equally bestow
My kingdome and my land:
My pompal state and all my goods,
That lovingly I may
With those thy fisters be maintain'd
Until my dying day.
Thus flattering fpeeches won renown,
By these two fifters here:
The third had caufelefs banishment,
Yet was her love more dear:
For poor Cordelia patiently
Went wandring up and down,
Unhelp'd, unpity'd, gentle maid,
Through many an English town:
Untill at laft in famous France
She gentler fortunes found;
Though poor and bare, yet she was deem'd
The fairest on the ground:
Where when the king her virtues heard,
And this fair lady seen,
With full confent of all his court
He made his wife and queen.
Her father 'old' king Lear this while
With his two daughters flaid,
Forgetful of their promis'd loves,
Full foon the fame decay'd,
And living in queen Ragan's court,
The eldeft of the twain,
She took from him his chiefest means,
And most of all his train.
For whereas twenty men were wont
To wait with bended knee :
She gave allowance but to ten,
And after scarce to three :
Nay, one she thought too much for him,
So took fhe all away,
In hope that in her court, good king,
He would no longer stay.
Am I rewarded thus, quoth he,
In giving all I have
Unto my children, and to beg
For what I lately gave?
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