MERCHANT

Oh what a great wealth and prosperity It is to any reme where merchants be Having from liberty and entercours also All merchandise to continued ̄ vey to and from Which thing I have used and the verey fetched found And thereby gotton many a thousand pound Wherefore now be cause of my great riches Thoroughowt this land in every place doubtless I am magnyfyed and greatly regarded And for a wise and noble man esteemed ¶Why sir what than what be you I pray you ¶But I would thou knewist for all thy krakkys I am able to buy now all the land That thou hast and pay for it out of hand Which I have God by mine own labour and wit ¶Why what callest thou a gentleman tell me ¶All that is truth I will not deny now Yet I am more gentleman born than thou For I call him a gentleman that gently Does give unto other men lovingly Such thing as he hath of his own pper But he that taketh ought away from a neither And does give him no thing again therefore Ought to be called a churl evermore But mine ancestors have giffyn alway To thine ancestors such thing as they By their labours did truly get and win For mine ancestors builded howsis wherein Thine ancestors have had their dwelling place Also mine ancestors have made tolis To all manner crafti men belonging Whereby clothes and every other thing Where of thine ancestors need have had With the same tolys have ever be made So mine ancestors have gyffin their labours Ever to continued ̄ fort and help thine ancestors ¶Marry God a mercy John for that now That is even a pyg of our own sow How can lords & estates have ought in store Except thartyfycers do get it before For all metalis be dug First by miners And after wrought by the artificers will fell and every other thing That is necessary to mannys covering And all other things that men use & were Is all weigh made by the artyfycer Marry as for wit & subtle inuencyou Mine ancestors with thine may make continued ̄ ꝑison For though my fader were a smyth what than yet was he a marvelous quick witted man And could work as well for his ꝑt As any in this land using that art And devise new fashions in chynges that he made That every man to buy his beware was glad And carve & graven in iron & stele Both Image & letters marvelously wele And there on lay gold & guilt it also Fine & pure as any gold smyth could do My grauntfader also was a mason Of great wit as any in this region And could byld a castle & tour right well In which some of thy kynnys men now do dwell where in aperyth right good masonry with Immagys & arms wrought curiously My great graundfadyr lo was a weuer Of wollyn yarn & of other gere And made marvelous pleasant works to be hold Lynyn dyaꝑ sylk & cloth of gold All such subtle things as I have rehearsed lo Mine ancestors by their wyttis could work & do And as for thine ancestors I know no thing They could do by their wittis worth of praising But use occupi & wast ever more Such things as mine ancestors before And thou & thie ancestors Of such things wrought Of other men oughtist not be praised therefore But the praise ought to be given ever more To the artyfycer which by his wit It devised and so continued ̄ nyngly wrought it wherefore if thou Say that wit & polesy Be the thyngꝭ pertaining to gentry Thine ancestors may never continued ̄ pare with, mine For their actꝭ prove them wiser than thine For thine did never no thing in their days Concerning quick wit that was worthy prays Nay nay thine ancestors cam never all To authority for wisdom p ̄ ncypall For though so ̄ e were wise yet some of the ̄ again Had small discretion little wit or brain But because of the long continued ̄ tynuannce Of their great possessions by inheritance By the foolish manner of the world we see For that cause ever they have had authority you marry thou lewd villain & rud rascal It is for the full ill beseeming To ꝑturb any gentlemen's talking Now hold thy hand fellow I the pray And harkyn what I shall to the say Hold thy hand I pray the & come no narr I am a merchant & no man of war Our continued ̄ ming hither & our intent is not to fight but by way of argument Every man to show his oppinyon To see who could show the best reason To prove him self noble & most gentleman ¶Nay I wys pyvysh & rude Jak Iauell I can make and answer so substantially where to neither of you is able to reply That can I well do. P. Then go to foal go to I say the common well of every land In feet of marchauntdyse does principally stand For if our continued ̄ moditees be uttered for nought In to strange lands and no riches brought Hydyr therefore / we should come to beggary And all men dryffyn to life in misery The ̄ we noble marchauntis that in this ream be what a great wealth to this land do we we utter our warys & by theirs good cheap And bring them hither that great ꝓffet And pleasure daily continued ̄ myth to this region Too all manner people that here do wone Furthermore you see well w to your eyes That of straying lands the continued ̄ modytees we have such need of them that be there That in no wise we may them for bear As oil sylkis frutis & spices also Gold silver yryn & other metal is moo All dram ̄ mys & druggys longing to physyke which men must needs have when they be seek which in this ream can not well grow Our continued ̄ trey is to cold & not hight I now w to out which things we should life in misery And oft times for lak of them we should die And I spend my studi & labour continually And cause such things to come hither daily For the comfort of this land & continued ̄ men wealth And to all the people great, pffer & health And for such noble deeds reason will than That I ought to be called a noble man And neither of you both that here now be In nobleness may accompare w to me ¶Marry that is very trough & well said ¶That is a verey good & preguant reason yet me thynkith thou makist a degression From the argument that we First began which was to ꝓue who was most gentleman which we disputed I would thou haddist hard it ¶I see well thou has a cursed apish wit Then if thou Wilt depart I pray the yet Come again when thy bisines is do ¶For we will in our old argument prosede Who should be called a gentleman in deed And we would be glade to here thy reason ¶Then I pray the let not the pmise quail ¶Thou shalt find us true in every thing well now he is gone God speed well his gate But what shall we do now the mean season Now thereto I am right well content And in the meayn wile good lord of thy grace Preserve all the people here in this place