heade whyche in déede is more méete for hym than to hold it vp he hath vsed thys good Lady so wickedly so trecherously that he cānot wel loke vp to take God for his father me for his Prince this Lady for hys mother nor any good man here to be his friend Ah varlet thou hast lost that name of a Gētlemā by villanie which thy auncestors gote by well doing doste thou not knowe that in this my Kingdome of Mauqsun are such good lawes and orders and suche worthie Iudges and Officers that wicked practises cannot be vnreuealed fraude and falshode not defended or bolstred and that the offenders are not long vnpunished I tell thée that God dothe so abhorre the wronging of the widowe the defrauding of the fatherlesse the oppressing of the pore and the misusing of the miserable that he will reueale it thoughe the craftie worldlings with all their policie and power doe hide it as by this pore missused Lady doeth manifestly appeare for she of hir selfe thought neuer to vtter it but God of his goodnesse wrought means to publishe it Well saide the King I will make thée a spectacle to al other and nowe I wil procéede in iudgement against thée Marke the iudgement of the King And firste bycause thou haste made diuers lies to me and specially one that is notorious to make vs the better to credite thée whiche is that thou madest diligent searche after this Gentlewoman whiche thy manne hathe manifested to the contrarie therefore for it and the reste thou shalte not speake any word to any body for the space of nine moneths and thou shalte weare on thy sléeue al that while an H. and an L. for a Hurtfull Lyar. And bicause thou didst strippe this good Ladie thy mother oute of hir clothes and putte beggarly apparell vppon hir backe therefore I wyll sée thée here before my face stripped oute of thy attyre and beggarly ragges in steade thereof to be putte vpon thée Siuqila Did the King himselfe sée the same done Omen Yea what else for as he had prepared before beggarly attyre for his mother so the King commaunded suche like attyre to be purposely prepared for him which beggarly attyre when the King sawe on his backe he saide now thou arte dressed as thou shouldest be for as thou hast done vnto hir so I doe vnto thée And bycause saide the King thou diddest spoyle hir of all hir landes liuing money goodes iewels and plate and turned hir to spinne for hir liuing so here I wil take from thée all thy landes goodes iewels money and plate whiche she shall possesse and enioy all hir life and all hir owne goodes and iewels to bestowe where she wil after hir death and so thou shalte be turned abroad to get thy liuing which way thou canst And wheras thou didst charge hir vpon hir othe that she shoulde not dwell nighe thée by an hundreth myles so I charge and commaunde thée vppon thine allegiaunce that thou shalt dwell from hir an hundreth myles at the leaste And for that thou diddest vnlady hir by taking away hir apparell liuing and goodes nowe I vngentleman thée by taking away thy apparell thy lands and thy goodes from thée But thoughe my iudgement is that thou shalte haue none of thy goodes or landes during thy life yet my will is that thy children if thou haste or shalte haue any shall enioy al the same after this Ladies death And all this my iudgement shal stande and be performed and not be reuoked And nowe said the King to the Iudge and Iustices I haue to say to you for as muche as this Lady was so sodainely gone away the bruite whereof you coulde not choose but heare and bicause you caused not enquiry or search for hir thoughe none complained thereof to you whiche was your partes to haue done for good Iudges and Iustices ought to enquire and searche priuily for misdemeanors therefore euery one of you as well Iudges as Iustices I discharge of your Offices and authoritie commaunding euery one of you besides to finde two of your porest neighbors children at schoole for the space of two yeares allowing them all that while sufficient meate drincke cloth and all other necessaries as well for theyr learning as for their finding commaunding euery one of you to doe and performe this my iudgement as you will auoyde our indignation For whyche worthy iudgemente the said pore Ladye moste humbly thanked the King and al other the Kings Subiectes that hearde of it reioiced that they were subiectes to suche a politike diligent righteous wise and vertuous a Prince And then the King departed the Lady to hir owne liuing and goodes was restored and to all hyr landes admitted hir wicked sonne in lawe of all goodes and landes dispossessed and into a straunge country banished the Iudge and Iustices oute of their authoritie discharged and pore mens children nourished and well educated Siuqila If two or thrée that missuse their mothers in law in our Countrey were but thus handled or as their déedes doe deserue so manye widowes shoulde not be wronged as are This order that your King vseth herein is a verie excellent way for him to knowe many abuses and to redresse manye mischiefes And thoughe it be costely and chargeable to the King yet it is verie necessarie and commodious to his louing and good subiectes Omen Nay the kings Espialls doe also certifie him of vprighte Iudges godlye Iustices diligent Officers and of the wise godly and wel learned that are of a good reporte are generally well commended whiche are rather contente with pore liuings than with greate dignities with meane estate than with highe promotion with decent apparell than with costely garments and with necessarie foode than with sumptuous fare Siuqila But what are such the better thoughe the kyng knowe of them Omen Forsooth as the other that practise commit wickednesse are punished according to the lawe executed so these are by the king to promotion and greate authoritie preferred and the other that are godly wise and well learned are to one office or other promoted thoughe they be neuer so pore for the kyng thinkes that they that are content with a pore and base liuing and séeke not to be exalted wil if they be in any aucthoritie doe Iustice and equitie and wil abhorre to take giftes and rewardes Siuqila Your king thinketh truly yet it is often times séene that many before they be in office and authoritie doe professe that with their tongue that when they are in office they neuer performe in their déedes But sir as you told me before that the suters in the lawe with you haue not only quicke dispatch of their matters but also haue thē ended determined with small costs and charges euē so I thinke that suche as haue an occasion to sue vnto any noble man or other for any particular thing to themselues are quicklye dispatched either off or on Omen That is most certaine
of their execution Omen Forsooth all the golde and siluer that he shall receiue to do wrong or to iudge contrary to equitie shall bée melted and then his mouth shal be holden open and it shal bée powred downe into his throate whereby the money that he toke to defraude the Innocent of their righte shal bercaue the couetous and wicked Iudge of his life Siuqila The money might be put to a better vse than so not to be lost on that sorte Omen It was not to be so lost but that it wil be found again I warrant you for though it kil the wicked it doeth pleasure the honest and néedie for when he is deade the same golde and siluer is takeÌ„ out of him and solde by waight to the Goldsmith which shal be giuen to him that did reueale it Siuqila Now surely though this lawe séeme seuere yet me thinkes it is necessarie for what thing is more odible to God and more hurtful to man than suppressing of right and peruerting of Iustice and what law can be too extreame for the offenders therein and is not bribes or giftes the meane to thys mischiefe for Munera peruerâ—uÌ„t Iusticiam Gâ—ftes peruert Iustice now if gifts bribes or as some cal theÌ„ gentle rewards is one of the chiefest causes of this wickednesse then no law can be to seuere for such bribed or corrupt Iudges Oh if al Iudges woulde wel way and consider the greate othes they take and the maruellous charge is giuen them when they are made Iudges they would if they had any sparke of the feare of God or were not vtterly determined to goe to the Diuell abhorre bribes refuse rewardes reuile the bribegiuers nay punishe suche offerers heare the poore willinglie determine their cause spéedilye vse no parcialitie and giue iudgemente wyth all equitie Well though some Iudges haue little regarded this the Iudge of all Iudges will one daye doe this But sir is there no Lawe with you for them that doe offer or giue bribes Omen Yes that there is and I thinke a better law than any you haue in such case Whosoeuer offereth or giueth any gifte or reward For bribe-giuers to any Iudge for anye matter depending or after to depende before him shal forfeit the one halfe of al his goods and the Iudge to whome the gifte is offered or giuen shall haue it fréely to himselfe if he reueale the same within a daye after And if he do not so reueale it then the first reuealer or bewrayer therof shal haue it And the King shal haue â—ne fourth parte of his forfeited goods he against whoÌ„ the bribe or gift is giueÌ„ shal haue another part and the other half shal be sold equallie giuen among the poorest neighbours of him that offred or gaue the reward Siuqila If we had such a lawe with vs so well executed as yours there would not be so many gifts giuen to peruert right as there be But sir may not one write to the Iuge in the behalf of his friend to request him to be good vnto him Omen We haue a law that whosoeuer writeth to the Iudge or speaketh to him in the behalf of any in this case he that so doth write or speake except as a witnesse in the same matter he shal be imprisoned thrée monthes And shal find on his owne cost charges two of the porest prisoners of the same prison meate drink during al the same time And if the Iudge to whoÌ„ he doth so write or speake do not reueale the same within xxiiij houres he shal be displaced out of his office also shal find on his own cost charges two children of his poorest neighbours during a yeare after Siuqila Out of al doubt this is a worthy and necessarie law I would we had the like with vs and so wel executed as youre lawes are and if it were sharper it were not amisse For there haue bin moe matters delayd mo iudgements staide more falshod boulstred mo true matters wrested and mo pore Clients hindred through letters and sending of rings and tokens with vs in one month than there is with you in a hundreth yeares Omen I beléeue you verie wel but there is a great faulte in theÌ„ the sende suche letters or tokens to the Iudges a great fault in the Iudges that accept theÌ„ but a greater fault for satisfâ—yng them that sent theÌ„ I told you in our first talke of a worthy Iudge that receiued a letter in the behalf of his friende who féeling by the waight that it was a brybers letter and knowing it was onely to wrie with the wrong he put it vp into his bosome would neuer loke on it before he had giuen iudgemeÌ„t on him on whose behalfe it was sent Siuqila I remeÌ„ber it very wel you told it me at my first being with you surely he was a famous Iudge if Iudges wold not reade the letters in such case sent vnto them or winke as thogh they had not read theÌ„ vntil they determine the matter or passe iudgement therof so many matters that haue past by law on poore mens sides shoulde not be so long without their right as they are I heard a woman say with wéeping eyes that she hadde a matter hanged in the law seauen yeares before it could be tryed and passe on hir side and it was then eight yeares after and yet could not haue iudgement therof So that she thought yea and saide that one that comforted and promised hir faire was the chiefe occasion of hir stay from hir right but I beléeue that he hath spedde neuer the better therefore A pittiful thing if it were hir righte by the lawe why shoulde iudgement be staid and if it wer not hir right why did the law giue it hir Surely before God it is as great a fault to kéep one from his right as to defraud one of his right doth not he withold a mans right that wil not giue him iudgement wherby to haue his right At the last day God wil not delay the time betwéene the tryall of our sinnes and his diffinitiue sentence as some of our worldlye Iudges haue done for as soone as he shall saye to the wicked When I was hungrie you gaue me no meate when I was thirstie you gaue me no drinke when I was naked you clothed me not c. And as soone as they shal say we neuer sawe thée hungry thyrstie naked c. by and by he wil giue iudgement on them and wil not stay iudgement thrée or foure yeres after neither for letters brybes rings nor for any mans pleasure at which time he wil saye Go yee accursed into euerlasting fire prepared from the beginning So that hereby it appeareth that he wil giue iudgemente moste quickelie spéedily both on the wicked and godlye as soone as their cause is tryed and determined Therfore the iudges of the earth wer best to learne of Christ to giue righteous and true
whiche was priuily vttered by the Commissioner who was appointed not onely to sée the marriage celebrated betwéene them accordingly but also the other secreate thing performed in all pointes as the Counsel hadde decréede Whiche Iudgement was carried downe thither where the Gentlewoman dwelled by the saide Commissioner And when the day of the mariage approched the Cōmissioner came into the prison to the same wicked Iudge said that the Ruler and the Counsel had giuen iudgement forasmuch as he had taken a Gentlewomans good name from hir by lying with hir Better than he looked for that he should prepare himselfe in the beste manner he coulde to marrye hir thereby to make hir amendes whiche when the treacherous Iudge heard he was the gladdest mā in the world for that was the onelye thing he desired and the cause why hée executed hir husbande And so he prepared himselfe againste the day appointed to marry hir And then the sayd Commissioner went to the saide Gentlewoman whome when she sawe she was maruelous gladde saying sir you are moste hartily welcome I praye you what iudgement haue my Lords of the Counsel giuen on my behalf against the wicked Iudge mine enimie Forsooth saide he as they thinke a verye good and necessarie iudgement thoughe it be not altogither as you desire but in my opinion it is as wise and righteous a iudgement as can be Well sir said shée though it be not according to my contentation yet I must be obedient knowing being wel assured that they are so wise righteous and godly that they will giue none other iudgement but according to equitie iustice and reason and therefore as I haue promised their Honors whatsoeuer iudgement they haue giuen I muste be content and will It is very well saide of you saide he there is no resisting of them and therefore the more willinglier you take it the better they will like of you I praye you sir saide she what is it thoughe I am loath saide he to vtter it vnto you bicause it will not well like you yet I am enforced to tell you of it bycause the Counsell haue commaunded me Spare not I beséeche you saide she to declare it vnto me for if it be any thing that may moue my mind I am determined to arme my selfe with patience I pray you do so saide he for you shall sée that God at the length will turne all things to the best now thus it is the chiefe Ruler and the reste of the Honorable Lordes of the Counsell haue giuen their iudgement and fully decréed that against suche a day you shall prepare your selfe in most sober and comely wise to be married vnto him for they thinke that the infamie you haue receiued by hym Worse than she looked for can be salued by no meanes so wel as by being his wife and to be married vnto him therfore prepare you for it accordingly for there is no remedy but you muste performe this their decrée and iudgement whiche when she hadde hearde she waxed as pale as was possible whereby it appeared that inwardly she was not a little vexed and troubled And wythin a while after she saide shall I nowe marry hym that hathe cruelly killed my louing husbande whom he promised mée to saue and spoiled me of my faith and honestie whiche I can neuer recouer againe to haue the life of my husbande made me to goe to his bed loathfully and can the death of my husbande make me to lye with him willingly Oh I woulde to God that the Counsell hadde not respected so muche mine honestie as to make me doe that I deteste more than death I had rather a thousande times liue in shame than to marry him that is cause of my shame Then said he to hir againe Did not you tell me that you would arme your selfe with patience thoughe I shoulde tell you that did trouble your minde I saide so indéede but when I saide so thoughe all things were not so wel as I would yet I did not thinke that it was so euill as it is to marry him is the thing he moste desireth but to be marryed to him is the thing that I moste abhorre whereby he shall haue a ioyful life that hathe deserued a cruell death but thereby I shall haue a sorrowfull death that oughte rather haue a ioyfull lyfe I hoped that the daye appoynted for his marying with me shoulde rather haue béene the daye of hys death for so shamefully abusing me Well I will obey theyr commaundementes trusting thereby that my sorrowe shall ende and whereas that nighte he thinketh that I shall bée bedded wyth hym I hope that then I shall be buried by my selfe There was neuer a sorrowfuller Bride than I shall be but looke what you haue willed me I will doe it and what the Counsel haue iudged I wyll performe it And then he toke his leaue of hir and departed Omen This was not suche a iudgement as shée looked for nor yet as the wicked Iudge didde hope to haue But didde she come at the daye appoynted to be marryed vnto him Siuqila Yea that she did thoughe it was full sore against hir will for in the same morning he was ready at the churche a good while before she came for if he had béene so vnwilling as she he woulde not haue come so soone as he did And at the laste she came in hir mourning apparell thinking the would weare the same at hir owne dolefull marriage that she did weare at hir husbandes death And so to conclude they were both married togither wherof he was as glad as she was sorrowfull And when they were marryed and as he was aboute to go home with his newe wofull wife the saide Commissioner saide sir you muste stay a little this Gentlewoman youre wife hathe performed all the iudgements that on hir parte are to be done but thoughe you haue done some yet you haue not done al there is one péece yet behinde for you to performe What is that said the Iudge for I wil do it willingly then said the Commissioner not so willingly I beléeue as you were marryed vnlesse you are willing to goe to youre death whereat the Iudge was astonied and then the Commissioner saide to him A wise and worthy iudgement nay there is no remedy the Counsels iudgemente is that immediately after you are married you muste bée executed therefore prepare youre selfe for I muste sée it done presently And as for you Gentlewoman saide he you were beste goe to dinner and not tarry for youre husbande for he hath an other parte to play O saide the Gentlewoman blessed be God that hathe giuen vs suche wise and godlye Counsellours that haue gyuen suche a worthy iudgement the death of my firste husband did not make mée so wofull a Widowe but the death of my seconde husbande dothe make me as ioyful a Widow Here was a sodaine change for whereas before the Bridegroome was mery and the Bride sad
Notarie I read it before them both before it was sealed and deliuered and they sound no fault therewith the one sealed it gladly and the other receiued it willinglie This is both manifest and apparant said the Iudge for this fellow confest before that he had such a quittaÌ„ce of him which he would not haue receiued vnlesse he had liked it and it had bin according to trueth Therefore come hyther sirra saide the Iudge and stande neare that you maye heare your Iudgement for your two notable lyes that you made before me and for the defrauding of this man of his mony You shall according to our Law kéepe silence and speake neuer a word to any for the space of sixe monthes that is for either lye thrée monthes vnlesse you be required therto by some Ruler or Iudge for some waightie matter or cause you shal weare on your sléeue al the whyle an H. and an L for a Hurtful Lyer and yet you may say that I am a fauourable Iudge vnto you for if I had put thée to thy oth as I might haue done verie wel I knowe thou wouldst haue forsworne thy self which fearing I did not require thée thereto and then halfe thy goods shoulde haue bin lost which the King should haue had and thy tongue should haue bin cut out of thy head for a periured person Thus thou maist perceiue I haue vsed thée gentlye And then the Iudge saide to him to whoÌ„ the debte was due howe long is it since you firste required youre money of him Note this Iudgement forsooth my Lorde saide he two monethes and something more theÌ„ my iudgemente is saide the Iudge that he shall paye you your debte whiche is tenne pounds and for euery moneth since so muche as the debte is that is for euerye month tenne pounds whiche amounteth in the whole to thyrtie poundes This is my iudgement sée that yée performe it in any wise And the man vpon whom the iudgement was giuen was going from the Bar but the Iudge said sirra you must stay a little I haue another thing to say to you yet then he called before him the other man whoÌ„ he defrauded of his Farme and that put him in trust to buy it for him To whom the Iudge saide did you neuer desire to buy the Farme that this felow bought of whoÌ„ I gaue iudgement of late yes my Lord saide he I was verie desirous to buy it but I was sicke that I coulde not goe aboute it my selfe and I spedde therafter did you put no friend of yours in trust said the Iudge to make the bargaine for you yes forsooth my Lord said he who was it said the Iudge truly my Lord saide he euen this same man that bought the same Farme whom I requested for that I was sicke and not well able to goe and bycause I hadde a greater confidence in hym than in anye other of my neighbours to doe so muche for me to enquire of the manne that oughte the same whether he woulde sell hys Lease thereof or not saying I vnderstande that he meaneth to putte it awaye and bycause I dwel here where I haue no certentie and looke euerye daye to be putte out of it I will giue him for it as muche as it is worthe with reason and if you can not gette it vnder thirtie pounds I will giue it and rather than I woulde goe without it I will giue him more therefore I praye you saide I driue the bargaine for me as nye as you may make it vp for me before you come home againe if you can And then he promised me faithfully that he woulde doe more for me than that and he went thither and when he came home he tolde me that though before he was determined to sel it then he would in no wise depart withal were you the first that tolde him of it saide the Iudge yea my Lord saide he thereof I am sure wel saide the Iudge what house bought you then to dwel in forsooth my Lord said he within a while after he came vnto me and proffred me his Farme saying that he had another Farme promised him aboue twentie miles hence and so I for lacke of a house was constrayned to paye vnto him his owne price for his Farme whiche was fortie pounds thoughe it were not halfe so good as the Farme that he hath nâ—we for which as I vnderstande he paide but twentie pounds yea said the Iudge and if he might haue gone forwarde as he beganne he woulde haue paide but tenne pounds saying further this geare I feare will fal out but madly for it beginneth verie suspitiously How long was it after said the Iudge ere you entred into his house forsooth my Lorde saide hée a quarter of a yeare and more and when I was enforst of necessity to come thither to dwel he desired me to stay from coÌ„ming thither for one seuenight to let him remaine there so long for saide he I was disappointed of the Farme twentie miles hence wherof I told you but I hope to get another shortly and so I was content to lette him tarrie there for so long and when I came to dwel there at the ende of the Seuenight he had almost remoued all his goods and stuffe from thence and then I asked him where he had gotten a house so quickly marie neighbor said he I haue got the same Farme that you willed me to buye for you the Lease wherof I bought but within thys foure or fiue dayes And thus as he said hée gotte the Farme whiche at the first I desired him to gette for me Indéede saide the Iudge a man maye be in good hope of a house when alreadie he is sure of one of his owne I smel saide the Iudge this geare welynough A Iugler by his trinckets is easie to be knowen Then saide the Iudge to the fellow vppon whom lately he gaue iudgement tel me truely and lye not for lyes are so deare that you were better tel truth how long is it since thou boughtst the Farme thou now dwellest in whereat he helde his peace and spake neuer a worde he is driuen into such narrow roome said the Iudge that he can neither go backward nor forward for if he say he bought it when I thinke hee did then he bewrayeth himselfe if he say he boughte it at suche time as he tolde his neighbour that bought his Farme then he that solde it to him he feareth wil witnesse against him Wel séeing you will not aunswere me sayde the Iudge I will sée if another wil aunswere me tel me saide the Iudge to hym the solde him his Farme how long is it since he bought his Farm of you my Lorde saide he it is almost fiue monthes since for on such a day I receiued the tenne pounds of him for the same then sayde the Iudge to the other that bought the craftie felows Farme howe long doe you thinke it since you sente your saide