XXXI. lected by John Bale, at the request of a faithful friend of CHAP. his, beginning," I acknowledge unto my eternal and ever"lasting God, that of mine own nature I am, as others, Anno 1550. "but a carnal thing, and the miserable child of Adam, "justly exiled with him in his transgression," &c. CHAP. XXXII. (265) Bible. The English Bible and other books set forth this year. Vezy, Bishop of Exeter, resigns. Sir Martin Bowes, of the Mint, gives up his office. Some account of him. THIS year the holy Bible, translated by Miles Coverdale, Coverdale's was printed in quarto, by Andrew Hester, for the more common and private use of Christians; as he had set it forth in folio the year before: which is commonly called Tyndal's Bible. The same year (viz. 1550.) he set forth also the New Testament in octavo, conferred with the trans- And Testalation of William Tyndal, and printed by Reinold Wolf. About this time also certain sermons of Ochine, the Italian, Ochine's being five and twenty in number, concerning the predestination and election of God, were printed by John Day, in octavo. Having been translated out of Italian into English, by A. C. Gentlewoman: which capital letters, I make no question, meant Anne Cook, one of the learned daughters of Sir Anthony Cook, married after to Sir Nic. Bacon, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. ment. sermons. Now did Thomas Paynel, an old servant of King Henry, A book call print a book, entitled, The pith and most noble sayings of The Pith all Scripture: gathered by Thomas Paynel, after the man- noble Sayings of ner of common places, very necessary for all those that de-Scripture. light in the consolations of the Scripture. It was dedicated to the right excellent and most gracious Lady, the Lady Mary's good Grace. In which dedication it appeared, that after he had made these collections out of Scripture, he was advised by a learned man to publish them for men's consolation and learning. And assigning the cause why he chose I. BOOK her to patronize this his work, he wrote, " that it was her "Grace's fiery and fervent mind to virtuous and godly Anno 1550, “living, her true intent and natural inclination to the same, "her liberal hand and favour to those which diligently ex"ercised themselves in the spiritual and moral studies of "the sincere word of God, and lastly, her Grace's benignity “and gentleness of long time bountifully to him declared, "enforced him to publish it in her Grace's name." Then he exhorted her, "to read the fruitful lessons thereof, and "to digest them thoroughly, to practise and prove in very "deed how sweet the Lord's words be: to use the profit"able doctrines of that little book. For so doing, her Grace "should learn daily more and more truly to know the Lord, "to taste, relish, and to ensue his holy and sweet word, "to love and fear him, to be his faithful and obsequious "handmaiden, and a diligent ensuer of his will and steps, "most pleasantly and voluntariously to bear the yoke of "his most comfortable commandments." Thus he gravely bespake her upon this occasion, as though he hoped hereby to win her to the Gospel. epigrams. (266) This year also Robert Crowley printed one and thirty Crowley's epigrams compiled by him. Wherein, as the title tells, are briefly touched so many abuses, that may and ought to be put away. They mainly drive at exposing the common vices and vicious men of that age; and they shew several customs and practices of that time. Though the verses are old-fashioned rhymes, yet they want not sometimes good fancy and wit. And these are the various subjects of them, as they are placed alphabetically by the author: Óf Abbayes. Alehouses. Alleyes. Almeshouses. Of Baylif arrants. Bauds. Beggars. Bear bayting. Brawlers. Blasphemous swearers. Of collyars. Commotioners. Common drunkards. Common lyars. Of dice players. Double beneficed men. Of the Exchequer. Of flatterers. Fools. Forestallers. Of godless men. Of idle persons. Inventers of strange news. Of laymen that take tithes. Leasemongers. Of merchants. Men that have divers offices. Of nice wives. Of obstinate Papists. Of rent-raisers. Of vain writers. XXXII. Vain talkers and vain hearers. Unsatiable purchasers. CHAP. Usurers. Whereby a notable insight is given into matters, customs, and abuses of these times. But to give a taste of Anno 1550. these epigrams, I refer the reader to the Repository. 00. Now was the Vision of Pierse Plowman the second time Pierse printed by the foresaid Crowley. To which were added Plowman. certain notes and quotations in the margin, giving light to the reader. The book was very ancient, written in the reign of King Edward III. For in the second side of the sixtyeighth leaf mention is made of a dear year, John Chichester being then Mayor of London, which was anno 1350. In which time it pleased God to open the eyes of many to see the truth; giving them boldness of heart to open their mouths, and cry out against the works of darkness, as did Wickliff; who also in these days translated the holy Bible into the mother tongue. The writer of this book, whoever he was, in reporting certain visions and dreams that he feigned himself to have had, did Christianly instruct the weak, and sharply rebuke the obstinately blind. Nor was there any manner of vice that reigned in any state or order of men, which he did not learnedly and wittily lash. And (of which much notice is wont to be taken) at the fiftieth leaf something is writ by way of prediction of the fall of abbeys. The printer Crowley, being a learned man, and desirous to know the name of the author, and the time of his writing, got together such ancient copies as he could come by, and consulted such men as he knew to be more exercised in the study of antiquity. And by some of them he learnt the author's name was Langland, a Shropshire man, born in Cleybury, about eight miles from Malvern hills. And among the ancient copies, one was noted to be written in the year MIIIICIX. The book is writ in metre, but much different from the manner of our modern verse, there being no rhithms or chiming of words; but the nature of the metre is, that three words at the least of each verse begin with one and the same letter. As for example, the two first verses of the book run upon the letter S, the next upon H, and the next upon W; viz. BOOK 1. Anno 1550. (267) prayers and anthems. In a Summer Season, when Set was the Sun On a Mey Morning on Malvern hills, Me beFel a Ferly of Fayin me thought, &c. Marbeck's Now also John Marbeck, an excellent musician for church music, once belonging to the choir at Windsor, now of the King's chapel, published prayers and anthems, set by him for the use of the said chapel, in quarto, printed by Grafton. I shall not pretend to so much skill as to make observations upon the compositions; but I cannot but remark how in the Office of Burial, the prayer there, after the corpse was put into the earth, varied from our present Office: in that prayer is made for the deceased, and the soul departed is held to be in a middle state till the last judgment. For thus it ran: "We commend into thy hands of mercy, most mer"ciful Father, the soul of this our brother departed, N. and "his body we commit to the earth. Beseeching thine infi"nite goodness to give us grace to live in thy fear and love, "and to die in thy favour: that when the judgment shall "come which thou hast committed to thy well-beloved Son, "both this our brother and we may be found acceptable in "thy sight, and receive that blessing," &c. And then follows: "Almighty God, we give thee hearty thanks for thy "servant whom thou hast delivered from miseries of this "wretched world, from the body of death and all tempta"tion; and, as we trust, hast brought his soul, which he com"mitted into thy holy hands, into sure consolation and rest; grant, we beseech thee, that at the day of judgment his "soul, and all the souls of thy elect departed out of this "life, may with us, and we with them, fully receive thy "promises, and be made perfect altogether, through the "glorious resurrection of thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord." And again, after some psalms and versicles, this prayer: "O Lord, with whom do live the spirits of them that be "dead, and in whom the souls of them that be elected, after XXXII. "they be delivered from the burthen of the flesh, be in joy CHAP. "and felicity; grant unto this thy servant, that the sins. "which he committed in this world be not imputed unto Anno 1550. "him, but that he, escaping the gates of hell, and the pains " of eternal darkness, may ever dwell in the region of light "with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the place where is "no weeping, sorrow, nor heaviness. And when that "dreadful day of the general resurrection shall come, make "him to rise also with the just and righteous, and receive "his body again to glory, then made pure and incorrup"tible: set him on the right hand of thy Son Jesus Christ, "among the holy and elect.. That then he may hear with "them these most sweet and comfortable words, Come to 66 me, ye blessed of my Father, possess the kingdom which "hath been prepared for you from the beginning of the "world. Grant this, we beseech thee, O merciful Father, "through Jesus Christ our Mediator," &c. Jug, citizen and stationer of London, had a licence from (268) For printthe King, dated in January, or his sufficient deputies, to ing the New print the New Testament in English, as well in great vo-Testament. lumes as in small, for the space of certain years. Pole's book. Cardinal Pole writ and finished, the thirteenth of the ca- Cardinal lends of February, a book, De summo Pontifice Christi in terris Vicario, &c. but not printed before the year 1569, at Lovain. batu Sacer Richard Smith, of Oxford, now set forth a book, De De Cœlicælibatu sacerdotum, et votis monasticis contra Petrum dotum. Martyrem, octavo: which he afterwards recanted in Lon don and Oxford. book of the But chiefly, Archbishop Cranmer's book must not be Cranmer's forgotten, published this year by him in octavo, entitled, 4 Sacrament. defence of the true and Catholic doctrine of the Sacrament of the body and blood of our Saviour Christ: with a confutation of sundry errors concerning the same. Grounded and established upon God's holy word, and approved by the consent of the most ancient Doctors of the Church. Printed by Reynold Wolf at London. The same book was after- Lavateri ward printed in Latin at Embden, anno 1557. Of which ex- Hist. sa |