XXVI. XXX. In his triumphant throne imperial, And eke they shall have such agility, With his mother, the Virgin Queen of In one instant to pass for their pleasure, queens. There shall be seen the court celestial: Apostles, martyrs, confessors and virgins, Brighter than Phoebus, in his sphere that shines : The patriarchs and prophets venerable, There shall be seen in glore inestimable. XXVII. Ten thousand miles in twinkling of an eye, So that their joys shall be without measure; They shall rejoice to see the great dolour Of damned folk in hell, and their torment, Because it is of God the just judgment. XXXI. Subtilty they shall have marvellous ; And with their spiritual eyes shall be Supposing that there were a wall of brass, seen, That light which is most superexcellent, A glorified body may right hastily, Out through the wall without impediment pass, Such like as doth the sunbeam through the glass; As Christ to his disciples did appear, All entries close, and none of them did steir. XLIII. We see the great globe of the firmament Until that day, they travel aye in pain, XLIV. And all the angels of the orders nine, Until that day, I make it to thee kend. names of Dilligence, Divine Correction, Good Counsel, Chastity, and Verity; and the latter under those of Wantonness, Sensuality, Falsehood, Deceit, and Flattery, the three last, with the habit of friars, assuming the disguised names of of Sapience, Discretion, and Devotion, The subject of contention is the control of King Humanity, and the Three Estates of his realm; Spirituality, personifying the clergy, Temporality, the landholders, and Merchantman, the burgesses. There are some other incidental characters, as Pauper, a Pardoner; a Sowtar (shoemaker); a Tailor, a Sowtar's wife, and a Tailor's wife, whose ludicrous exhibitions display most of the coarseness, and much of the rude wit of the piece. Besides the abstractions, Placebo (sycophancy); and Solace THE SATIRE OF THE THREE (indulgence); as counsellors of the King, ESTATES. IN COMMENDATION OF VIRTUE, AND IN VITUPERATION OF VICE. While the sub-title correctly defines the author's purpose, and classifies his play_as_belonging to the second stage of the dramatic art-that of the Moralities; yet, its advance in the direction of the regular drama, so far beyond any contemporary production in the language, gives it an historical interest in addition to that which it merits on account of the ingenuity of its structure, and the genuine glimpses of contemporary society which it preserves. It may be summarily described as a conflict between the Virtues and the Vices; the former personified under the I End, object. and others of a miscellaneous character, there is that of the Common-good, under the designation of John the Commonweal. During the early part of King Humanity's reign, the Vices have it all their own way, his majesty, through the influence of Solace and Wantonness, being mostly under the dominion of Sensuality, while the affairs of the state are left to the control of Falsehood, and Deceit. They have Flattery, banished Good Counsel from court, and on Verity making her appearance there, they call in Spirituality, with several ecclesiastics, who, on finding an English New Testament in her possession, denounce her as a heritic, and put her in the stocks. Chastity next tries to gain admission, but finding no favour at the hands of the courtiers, she turns to the ders, as Common Theft (representing the Border thieves), and Falsehood and Deceit are executed; and Flattery saves his own neck by undertaking the office of hangman to his fellows. craftsmen, and is entertained by a tailor | several of the most prominent offen- Divine Correction now appears upon the scene, and procures the release of i Hue Verity and Chastity, while Sensuality is banished from court. By his advice In the stage directions for the execution of Falsehood, it is ordered that 'ane craw or ane kae sall be castin up as it war his saull," 66 The play concludes with a sort of tail-piece dialogue between Dilligence and Folly, in which the latter, after a coarse introduction, intimates that he has hats to dispose of suitable for the fools that he insinuates are a very plentiful crop in all ranks, from the highest to the lowest. PART THE SECOND. The second part opens with an interlude to amuse the people while the more refined portion of the audience are away refreshing themselves. It sets forth, in Of your alms, good folk, for God's love of a ludicrous but striking fashion, the Pauper, the Poor man. heaven; For I have motherless bairns six or seven; Wish me the right way till St Andrews. Dilligence. What devil ails this crooked carl? Marry, meikle sorrow : I cannot get, though I gasp, to beg nor to borrow. Dilligence. Where devil is this thou dwells, or what's thy intent? Pauper. On the parliament being convened, John the Commonweal represents to the King the disasters which the Three Estates, under the guidance of the Vices, have brought upon the realm, and Verity and Chastity make special charges against the Spirituality. The Where would thou be, carl? the sooth Vices are now in their turn put into the stocks, and a general reform of the I dwell intill Lothian ane mile frae Tranent. to me shaw. Pauper. administration is brought about, while Sir even to St Andrews for to seek law. Show me the matter, man, with all the The third cow he cleikèd by the head. Their upmaist claes 3 that was of raploch gray,4 circumstances; How that thou has happened on thir We had ane mare that carried salt and The devil stick him, he curst me for my coal, And everilk year she brought us home a foal. We had three kye, that was both fat and fair, Nane tidier into the town of Ayr. My father was so weak of blood and bone That he died, wherefore my mother made great moan; Then she died within ane day or two, And there began my poverty and woe. Our good gray mare was baitand on the field, And our lands laird took her for his heryeild, 5 The vicar took the best cow by the head, Incontinent when my father was dead. teind ;5 And holds me yet under that same process That gart me want the sacrament at Pasche. In good faith, sir, though he would cut my throat, I have nae gear except ane English groat; Whilk I purpose to give ane man of law. Dilligence. Thou art the daftest fool that ever I saw ; Trows thou, man, by the law, to get remeid Of men of kirk? Nae, not till thou be dead. Pauper. |