Two Dyaloges

. What and yf thou dranke asmoche as thou coudest well holde in thy mouthe, after the manner of a gargarisme & spyt it out agayne.

Po. That wolde do me no good at all, but take me not with suche a faute I trow, for the wyne is very bad and if I do so.

Canni. But what and yf thou drynke thy skynne full as thou art wont to do, whê thou comest where good wyne is.

Poliphe. Mary there is nothyng more godly or heuynly.

Canni

.It warmes you at the stomacke, it settes your body in a heate, it makes you loke with a ruddy face, and setteth your hart vpon a mery pynne.

Poliphe. That is suerly so as ye saye in dede.

Canni. The gospell is suche a lyke thynge of all this worlde, for after that it hathe ones persed & entered in the veynes of the mynd it altereth, transposeth, and cleane changeth vpsodowne the whole state of mã, and chaungeth hym cleane as it were into a nother man.

Polip. Ah ha, nowe I wot wherabout ye be, belyke ye thîke that I lyue not accordynge to the gospell or as a good gospeller shulde do.

Canni

. There is no man can dyssolue this questiõ better then thy selfe.

Poli. Call ye it dissoluynge? Naye and yf a thynge come to dyssoluynge gyue me a good sharpe axe in my hande and I trow I shall dyssolue it well inoughe.

Canni. What woldest thou do, I praye the, and yf a man shulde say to thy teth thou lyest falsely, or elles call the by thy ryght name knaue in englysshe.

Poli. What wolde I do quod he, that is a question in dede, mary he shulde feele the wayghte of a payre of churlyshe fystes I warrant the.

Canni. And what and yf a man gaue you a good cuffe vpon the eare that shulde waye a pounde?

Poliphe. It were a well geuen blowe that wolde aduauntage hym. xx. by my trouthe and he escaped so he myght say he rose vpon his ryght syde, but it were maruayle & I cut not of his head harde by his shulders.

Canni. Yea but good felowe thy gospell boke teacheth the to geue gentle answers, and fayre wordes agayne for fowle, and to hym that geueth the a blowe vpon the ryght cheke to holde forth the lyfte.

Poliphe. I do remembre I haue red suche a thinge in my boke, but ye must pardone me for I had quyte forgotten it.

Can. Well go to, what saye ye to prayer I suppose ye praye very ofte.

Poli. That is euyn as very a touche of a pharesey as any can be.

Cannius. I graunt it is no lesse thê a poynte of a pharesey to praye longe and faynedly vnder a colour or pretêce of holynes, that is to saye when a man prayeth not frõ the bothum of his hart but with the lyppes only and from the tethe outward, and that in opyn places where great resort of people is, bycause they wold be sene. But thy gospel boke teacheth the to praye contynually, but so that thy prayer come from the bothu of the hart.

Poli. Yea but yet for all my sayenge I praye sumtyme.

Can. When I beseche the when y

art a slepe?

Poli. When it cometh in to my mynde, ones or twyse may chaunce in a weke.

Can. what prayer sayst thou?

Poliphe. The lordes prayer, the Pater noster.

Canni. Howe many tymes ouer?

Poli. Onis, & I trowe it is often inoughe, for the gospell forbyddeth often repetynge of one thynge.

Canni. Can ye saye your pater noster through to an ende & haue youre mynde runnynge vpon nothynge elles in all that whyle?

Poli. By my trouthe and ye wyll beleue me I neuer yet assayed nor proued whether I coulde do it or no. But is it not sufficient to saye it with my mouthe?

Can. I can not tell whether it be or no. But I am sure god here vs not excepte we praye from the bothum of our harte. But tell me another thyng I wyll aske the. Doest thou not fast very often?

Poli. No neuer in all my lyfe tyme and yf it were not for lacke of meate.

Can. And yet thy boke alowes and commendes hyghly bothe fastynge and prayer.

Polip. So coulde I alowe them but that my belly can not well affare nor a way with fastyng.

Canni

. Yea but Paule sayth they are not the seruauntes of Iesus Christe whiche serue theyr belly & make it theyr god. Do you eate fleshe euery day?

Po. No neuer when I haue none to eate, but I neuer refuse it when it is set before me, and I neuer aske question not for cõscience but for my belly sake.

Can. Yea but these stronge sturdy sydes of suche a chuffe and a lobbynge lobye as thou arte wolde be fed well inoughe with haye and barke of trees.

Poliphe. Yea but chryste sayd, that which entereth in at the mouthe defyleth not the man.

Canni. That is to be vnderstand thus yf it be measurably taken, and without the offendinge of our christian brother. But Paule the disciple of chryst had rather peryshe & sterue with hunger then onys to offende his weyke brothren w

his eatynge, and he exhorteth vs to followe his example that in all thynges we maye please all men.

Poli. What tel ye me of Paule, Paule is Paule and I am I.

Canni

. Do you gladly helpe to releue the poore and the indygent with your goodes?

Poli. Howe can I helpe them whiche haue nothynge to gyue them, and scant inoughe for my selfe.

Cannius. ye myght spare somthynge to helpe thê with yf thou woldest playe the good husband in lyuynge more warely, in moderatynge thy superfluous expenses, and in fallynge to thy worke lustely.

Poliphem

. Nay then I were a fole in dede, a penyworth of ease is euer worth a peny, and nowe I haue found so moch pleasure in ease that I can not fall to no labour.

Canni. Do you kepe the commaundementes of god?