Abuses Stripped and Whipped, Book · Satire 5
OF REVENGE.
SATYR. 5.
ROome for Reuenge, he's no Commedian
That acts for pleasure, but a grim Tragedian,
A foule sterne monster, which if we displease;
Death, wounds and bloud, or nothing can appease;
So wicked that though all good men disdaine it,
Yet there are many rashly entertaine it,
And hugge it as a sweet contented Passion:
But all men act not in one kinde, nor fashion,
For one so priuate is, that no man knowes it;
Another cares not, before whom he showes it,
Then some of them are fearefull, some are bolder,
Some are too hot, and some againe are colder:
Oh, I hauehave seene, and laught at heart to see't,
Some of our hot-spurs drawing in the street,
As though they could not Passions rage withstand▪
But must betake them to it out of hand.
But why ith' street? Oh company doth heart them,
And men m…y see their valorous acts and part them.
That humor yet, I rather doe commend
Then theirs whose fury hath no stay nor end;
Till of their liues they hauehave bereft their foes,
And then they thinke they pay them; yet who b… knows▪
That tis a smal reuenge? since to be slaine,
Is to be free from danger, care and paine.
So whilst his enemy lies and feeles no smart,
He hath a thousand tortures in his heart.
And say his conscience do escape a flaw,
He brings himselfe in danger of the Law.
If such reuenge be sweet sure Ile forgiue,
And neuer seeke for vengeance whilst I liue.
But oh (me thinkes) I heere our Hacsters tel me,
With thundring words, as if their breath would fel me:
I am a Coward if I wil not fight,
True, Cauelieroes you hane spoke the right,
And if vponupon good tearmes you vrge me to it,
I hauehave both strength and heart enough to doe it,
Which you should find; and yet my mind is still,
Rather to defend my selfe then kill.
But most men thinke, that he which kils his foe;
Is most couragious: now I tell thee no:
For he that hath a heart that fact to doe,
Is both a Tyrant and a Coward toe.
But how is he a Coward some will aske?
To answer that is but an easie taske,
Thus he is one: He hauing by his might,
A power on him with whome he haps to fight:
Thinkes if he spare his life, in such a case,
He one day may reuenge his foule disgrace;
That thought with feare, of future dangers fils him,
Which to preuent, he like a Coward kils him.
But those that iustly in excuse can say,
For present safety, they were forc't to slay,
I must count blamelesse. Thou that hast a Foe,
Seeke not to be his wofull ouerthrow.
Rather if't may be keepe him liuing still;
I tell thee 'tis a necessary ill, (inimicus amicus)
My selfe hauehave some, their liues I do no grutch,
For they hauehave done me seruice very much;
And wil do still for wheresoere I goe,
They make me careful what I speak, or doe:
And when I step aside I here on't roundly,
Or (as themselues say) they wil tel't me soundly.
Whereas my friend, til I were quite vndone,
Would let me stil in mine owne follies run,
Or if he warne me it is so in sport,
That I am scarse a whit the better sort.
But this same good, I know but few can vse,
Because that they do better thinges abuse.
Mans nature's ill, and I hauehave noted this,
If they vpbraided bewith what's amisse
They cannot brooke it, but are readier still,
For to reuenge that, then amend what's ill.
We must not now our lusty-blouds gain-say,
No not so much as in a yea, or nay;
But presently we dye for't (if we will)
They hauehave both hand, and heart prepar'd to kil.
Let them but thinke a man to them iniurious,
Although he be not so, thei'le straight grow furious
And are so quickly up in a brauado,
They are for nothing but the imbrocado:
And in this humor they respect not wheither,
They be vntounto them friends, or foes, or neither;
All are alike; and their hot choller ends,
Not only louelove, and friendship, but their friends:
I know 'twere vaine if I should tel to these
The peaceful mind of ancient Socrates:
Or if I should Lycurgus vengeance shew,
How he behau'd himselfe vntounto his foe,
…Twere but in vaine (I say) for there's no doubt,
Our watle-headed Gallants would but flout
At their wel tempred passions; since they deeme,
None now but fooles, or mad-men, worth esteeme…
But whats the cause of their vnbridled rage?
Oh know it is a humor of their age,
For to be foolish desperate; and many
Account not of him wil not fight with any
On the least quarrel. Therefore most to gaine,
A little fame that way, though nere so vaine,
Wil put their liues in danger: nay there's some,
Had rather hauehave it then the life to come,
Alas poore men, what hath bewitcht your mind?
How are you grown so sencelesse and so blind,
For to affect vaine shaddowes and let slide,
The true substance, as a thing vnspide?
…s Reason in you growne so great a stranger,
To suffer an affection of such danger
To settle in you? Bannish't from your breast,
And there let Mercy and Forgiuenes rest:
…t is a token of a humane mildnes,
But vengeance is a signe of Bruitish wildnes:
Not fitting any but the Tyger, Beare,
…r su…h like creatures, that remorslesse teare
What ere they light on. Cast it from you then,
…e in condition as in shape y'are men;
And stand vnmoou'd, for Innocence ere long,
Will shew her selfe abroad in spight of wrong:
And of your Patience you shall not repent,
But be auenged to your owne content:
Yet some may say the Counsell I hauehave giuen,
Is hard to follow, strict, and too vneuen,
And whatsoeuer show I seeme to make,
Such as my selfe would hardly vndertake.
Know you that thinke so; I am not afraid.
If that it be a burthen I hauehave laid,
To bear't my self; Nay, I hauehave vndergone
If this be hard, a more vneasie one:
For but of late, a friend of mine in show,
Being (indeed) a spightfull secret foe,
I know not why, (for I did ne're in ought
Wrong him I'me sure; no not in an ill thought.)
Yet this man hauing wisely watcht his Time,
When I (a stranger, in another Clime)
Left my owne Country; did meane while repaire,
To my best friends, and with dissemblings faire,
And showes of louelove and griefe, did there vnfold,
The grosest slander, euer Villaine told.
A dam'nd inuention so exceeding vile,
That gallants 'twould hauehave made your bloud to boile
And out of your abused bodies start,
I know it would hauehave broken veines or heart:
I say if you had felt that cruell sting,
You would hauehave fret, fum'd, stampt, done any thing
Or angry rag'd like mad-men in their fit,
Till mercilesse Reuenge, had quenched it:
But what did I? at first I must confesse,
I was a little mou'd, who could be lesse?
But when I felt my troubled thoughts begin
To ioyne with brutish Passion within,
And raise disquiet humors in my brest,
I fear'd if I should yeeld 'twould mar my rest.
And therefore to my selfe I Patience tooke,
VVhichWhich whil'st I hauehave about me I can brooke
Any misfortune. Then that Patience,
Grew so much stronger through my Innocence
That I forgot both wrong and vengeance too;
Some thinke 'twas cause that I lack't Might to doe
The hurt I would; No, it was onelyonly Will
For I had power enough to doe him ill;
…t is well knowne the coward dares not stand
T' abide the Vengeance of my wronged hand
Were his strength tripled; Nay were I in bands
Of impotencie wrapt, and had no hands,
Yet I hauehave friends (whom if I had not prai'd
And beg'd vntounto, to hauehave their fury stai'd)
Had chopt him, and made dogs meat for my sake
Of his vile Carkas; yea and he would quake,
A twelue-month after, had he but the daring,
To thinke vponupon the vengeance was preparing
For that lewd slanderous tale of his; which he
Might better raise on one vnborne then me:
Now though that course my Reason did gain-say,
I was allow'd Reuenge a better way,
Both Law add Iustice, proffer'd me a scourge,
To whip him for it, which my friends did vrge:
Shewing me motiues to allure me to it:
Yet still was I vnwilling for to doe it:
For though I might (beside submission) gaine,
No little summes; my heart doth much disdaine,
For to encrease my substance through his shame,
Or raise it with the ruines of my fame:
Now for because there's some may thinke I faine,
Or speake a matter fram'd by mine owne braine:
Know, this back-biter liues and may doe long
To doe me more, and many others wrong:
And though I doe not mind to staine my verse,
The name of such a Monster to rehearse,
For others satisfaction and to grace it,
VponUpon the Margent here I thought to place it:
But that perhaps would Vengeance counted be,
Whereas it shall not be reueng'd for me:
Yet Gallants you may see I wish you to
No other thing, then I my selfe would doe,
You heare that I was wrong'd, and yet withstood
My owne mad Passion in the heate of bloud:
And am not I in as good case as those,
That hauehave reueng'd themselues with stabs & blows
In my opinion it is as well,
As if that I should pack his soule to hell
With danger of mine owne; and heere remaine,
To greeue and wish he were aliue againe;
Nay now tis best, for why, he may repent,
And I with a safe conscience liue content:
Ther's some (perhaps) misdeem'd my innocence,
Because they saw that I with Patience
Indur'd the wrong: tis thought that I did know,
My selfe in fault, because I tooke it so.
Indeed tis true, I let him scot-free passe,
What should I doe vntounto him? say an Asse
Had strooke me with his heeles; how should I qui…
The harme he doth me? you would blame my wit
If I should kill him; If I went to law
Who would not count me the most asse? a daw;
The worst of fooles; I pray what were I lesse,
If I had don't to his vnworthinesse?
One that's more ignorant of his offence,
And seemes as if he had no sparke nor sence
Of humane goodnesse: one, whom if I touch,
Or offer to lay hands on, tis as much,
As if I in my anger would begin
To breake the stoole that erst had broke my shin.
I knew in this, and that, the case was one,
And therefore I did let Reuenge alone:
Yet will I note him, for this cause indeed,
That other men may know him and take heed:
And therefore marke, the greatest feast ith' yeare
And ioyfullest his name at full doth beare.
A sacred syllable makes the first part;
Which since tis there alone, and not in's heart:
Take it from thence with the ensuing letter,
And the remainder will befit him better:
Hereof enough; for why there doth remaine,
Some more of these mad humors to explaine,
Besides those I first nam'd; for their brother,
They cannot their Reuengefull Nature smother;
And for because they dare not deale with swords:
Like valiant Champions fight it out with words.
Such fraies hauehave made me oftentimes to smile,
And yet they proue shrewd combats other while,
For from such braules do sodaine stabs arise,
And somtime in reuenge the quart-pot flies;
Ioyne-stooles, and glasses makes a bustling rumor:
Yea this is growne a Gentleman-like humor:
But in my mind, he that so wel can fight,
Deserues for to be dubd an Ale-house knight:
Ist not a shame that men should at their meeting,
Welcome each other with a friendly greeting,
As I hauehave seene, and yet before they part,
Bandy their swords at one anothers heart?
Wondrous inhumane, the Sauage bore,
The wild Armenean heards wil do no more:
Sure such beleeue not it is God hath said,
Vengeance is his and must by him be paid.
For if they did I thinke there would not be,
Such caruers for themselues: But we may see,
The Diuel doth so much possesse them than,
They hauehave no honest thought of God or Man.
As in this Humor you shall see't explain'd,
Two falling out, would fight, but are restrain'd:
Yet stil they striue to be each others fall,
Which shewes their louelove to man-kind none at all:
But curbed of their wills through standers by,
Forth breakes their fury, and they straight let flye,
Such horrid, bloody, fearefull cannon oathes,
As theirs no honest Christian eare but loathes,
Almost to heare them nam'd they seeme to teare
Christs Man-hood peece-meal from him when they sweare
For foot, heart, nailes, stil vsing God withall
Their foule-mouth'd-rackets like a tennise ball
Doth bandy too and fro: His blood and wounds,
Set forth their vaunts they think with brauest sounds,
And makes the simple people to admire;
Their courage which is but as a flame on fire.
Thrice valiant Champions whereby should one gather
They hauehave a thought of God that's good? but rather
That they are vile blasphemers; for when they
Cannot hauehave Vengeance they desired, why,
As if they scorn'd th' Almighties fearefull rod,
Thus thinke they to auenge themselues on God,
Who were he not as merciful as iust,
Might with a blast consume them into dust.