Fiue hundred pointes of good husbandrie
The East, a forbearer, no manner of thing:
The South, as vnkind, draweth sicknesse too neere,
The North, as a friend, maketh all againe cleere.
[Sidenote: God is the gouerner of winde and weather.]
4
With temperate winde we be blessed of God,
With tempest we finde we are beat with his rod:
All power we knowe to remaine in his hand,
How euer winde blowe, by sea or by land.
5
Though windes doe rage, as windes were wood,
And cause spring tydes to raise great flood,
And loftie ships leaue anker in mud,[E65]
Bereafing many of life and of blud;
Yet true it is, as cow chawes cud,
And trees at spring doe yeeld forth bud,
Except winde stands as neuer it stood,
It is an ill winde turnes none to good.[E66]
14.
[Not in 1577.]
¶ _Of the Planets.
Chap._ 14.
1
As huswiues are teached, in stead of a clock,
how winter nights passeth, by crowing of cock;
So here by the Planets, as far as I dare,
some lessons I leaue for the husbandmans share.
[Sidenote: Of the rising and going down of the sun.]
2
If day star appeareth, day comfort is ny,
If sunne be at south, it is noone by and by:
If sunne be at westward, it setteth anon,
If sunne be at setting, the day is soone gon.
[Sidenote: Of the Moone changing.]
3
Moone changed, keepes closet three daies as a Queene,
er she in hir prime will of any be seene:
If great she appereth, it showreth out,
If small she appereth, it signifieth drout.[E67]
At change or at full, come it late or else soone,
maine sea is at highest, at midnight and noone:
But yet in the creekes it is later high flood,
through farnesse of running, by reason as good.
[Sidenote: Of flowing and ebbing to such as be verie sick.]
4
Tyde flowing is feared, for many a thing,
great danger to such as be sick it doth bring:
Sea eb by long ebbing some respit doth giue,
and sendeth good comfort to such as shal liue.[E68]
15.
¶ _Septembers Abstract.
Chap._ 15.
1[1]
Now enter John,
old fermer is gon.
2
What champion vseth,
that woodland refuseth.
3
Good ferme now take,
kéepe still, or forsake.
4
What helpes to reuiue
the thriuing to thriue.
5
Plough, fence, & store
aught else before.
6
By tits and such
few gaineth much.
7
Horse strong and light
soone charges quite.[2]
Light head and purse,
what lightnes wurse.
8
Who goeth[3] a borrowing,
goeth a sorrowing.[E69]
Few lends (but fooles)
their working tooles.[4]
9
Gréene rie haue some,
er Mihelmas come.
10
Grant soile hir lust,
sowe rie in the dust.
11
Cleane rie that sowes,
the better crop mowes.
12
Mix rie aright,
with wheat that is whight.
13
Sée corne sowen in,
too thick nor too thin.
For want of séede,
land yéeldeth wéede.
14
With sling or bowe,
kéepe corne from Crowe.
15
Trench hedge and forrow,
that water may thorow.
Déepe dike saues much,
from drouers and such.
16
Amend marsh wall,
Crab holes and all.
17
Geld bulles and rams,
sewe ponds, amend dams.
Sell webster thy wull,
fruite gather, grapes pull.
For fear of drabs,
go gather thy crabs.
18
Plucke fruite to last,
when Mihell[5] is past.
19
Forget it not,
fruit brused will rot.
Light ladder and long
doth trée least wrong.
Go gather with skill,
and gather that will.
20
Driue hiue, good conie,
for waxe and for honie.
No driuing of hiue,
till yéeres past[6] fiue.
21
Good dwelling giue bée,
or hence goes[7] shée.
22
Put bore in stie,
for Hallontide nie.
23
With bore (good Cisse)
let naught be amisse.
24
Karle hempe, left gréene,
now pluck vp cléene.
Drowne hemp as ye néed,
once had out his séed.
I pray thee (good Kit)
drowne hempe in pit.
25
Of al the rest,
white hempe is best.
Let skilfull be gotten
least hempe prooue rotten.
26
Set strawberies, wife,
I loue them for life.
27
Plant Respe and rose,
and such as those.
28
Goe gather vp mast,
er[8] time be past.
Mast fats vp swine,
Mast kils vp kine.
29
Let hogs be roong,
both old and yoong.
30
No mast vpon oke,
no longer[9] vnyoke.
If hog doe crie,
giue eare and eie.
31
Hogs haunting corne
may not be borne.
32
Good neighbour thow
good custome alow,
No scaring with dog,
whilst mast is for hog.
33
Get home with the brake,
to brue with and bake,
To couer the shed
drie ouer the hed,
To lie vnder cow,
to rot vnder mow,[10]
To serue to burne,
for many a turne.
34
To sawpit drawe
boord log, to sawe.
Let timber be haile,
least profit doe quaile.
Such boord and pale
is readie sale.
35
Sawne slab let lie,
for stable and stie,
sawe dust spred thick,
makes alley trick.
36
Kéepe safe thy fence,
scare breakhedge thence.
A drab and a knaue
will prowle to haue.
37
Marke winde and moone,
at midnight and noone.
Some rigs thy plow,
some milks thy cow.
38
Red cur or black,
few prowlers lack.
39
Some steale, some pilch,
some all away filch,
Mark losses with gréefe,
through prowling théefe.
Thus endeth Septembers abstract, agréeing with Septembers
husbandrie.[11]
¶ Other short remembrances.[12]
[40]
Now friend, as ye wish,
goe seuer thy fish:
When friend shall come,
to be sure of some.
[41]
Thy ponds renew,
put éeles in stew,
To léeue[13] till Lent,
and then to be spent.
[42]
Set priuie or prim,
set boxe like him.
Set Giloflowers[14] all,
that growes on the wall.
[43]
Set herbes some more,
for winter store.
Sowe séedes for pot,
for flowers sowe not.
Here ends Septembers short remembrances.[15]
[1] Stanzas 1 and 2 not in 1577.
[2] quight. 1577.
[3] goes. 1577.
[4] After st. 8, in 1577, follow sts. 36, 37, of August's Abstract.
Many stanzas of Sept. Abst., 1577, occur as Aug. Works after harvest in
1580.
[5] Migchel. 1577.
[6] nere. 1577.
[7] goeth. 1577.
[8] nere. 1577.
[9] lenger. 1577.
[10]
To lie under mow,
to rot under kow. 1577.
[11] This and similar notes under other months do not occur in 1577.
[12] This and similar notes under other months do not occur in 1577.
[13] liue. 1577.
[14] Gelliflowers. 1577.
[15] This and similar notes under other months do not occur in 1577.
16.
¶ _Septembers husbandrie.
Chap._ 15.
September blowe soft,
Till fruite be in loft.
Forgotten, month past,
Doe now at the last.[1]
1[2]
At Mihelmas lightly new fermer comes in,
new husbandrie forceth him new to begin:
Old fermer, still taking the time to him giuen,
makes August to last vntill Mihelmas euen.[E70]
2
New fermer may enter (as champions say)
on all that is fallow, at Lent ladie day:
In woodland, old fermer to that will not yeeld,
for loosing of pasture, and feede of his feeld.[E71]
[Sidenote: Ferme take or giue over.]
3
Prouide against Mihelmas,[3] bargaine to make,
for ferme to giue ouer, to keepe or to take:
In dooing of either, let wit beare a stroke,
for buieng or selling of pig in a poke.[E72]
[Sidenote: Twelue good properties.]
4
Good ferme and well stored, good housing and drie,
good corne and good dairie, good market and nie:
Good shepheard, good tilman, good Jack and good Gil,
makes husband and huswife their cofers[4] to fil.
[Sidenote: Haue euer a good fence.]
5
Let pasture be stored, and fenced about,
and tillage set forward, as needeth without:
Before ye doe open your purse to begin,
with anything dooing for fancie within.
[Sidenote: Best cattle most profit.]
6
No storing of pasture with baggedglie tit,
with ragged,[5] with aged, and euil athit:[6]
Let carren and barren be shifted awaie,
for best is the best, whatsoeuer ye paie.
[Sidenote: Strong and light.]
7
Horse, Oxen, plough, tumbrel, cart, waggon, & waine,
the lighter and stronger, the greater thy gaine.
The soile and the seede, with the sheafe and the purse,
the lighter in substance, for profite the wurse.
[Sidenote: Hate borowing.]
8
To borow to daie and to-morrow to mis,
for lender and borower, noiance it is:
Then haue of thine owne, without lending vnspilt,
what followeth needfull, here learne if thou wilt.[7]
* * * The stanzas of No. 16 are continued after the following
Digression.
17.
A digression to husbandlie furniture.
[Sidenote: Barne furniture.]
1
Barne locked, gofe ladder, short pitchforke and long,
flaile, strawforke and rake, with a fan that is strong:
Wing, cartnaue and bushel, peck, strike readie hand,
get casting sholue,[E73] broome, and a sack with a band.
[Sidenote: Stable furniture.]
2
A stable wel planked, with key and a lock,
walles stronglie wel lyned,[8] to beare off a knock:
A rack and a manger, good litter and haie,
swéete chaffe and some prouender euerie daie.
3
A pitchfork, a doongfork, seeue, skep[E74] and a bin,
a broome and a paile to put water therein:
A handbarow, wheelebarow, sholue and a spade,
a currie combe, mainecombe, and whip for a Jade.
4
A buttrice[9] and pincers, a hammer and naile,
an aperne[E75] and siszers for head and for taile:
Hole bridle and saddle, whit lether[E76] and nall,
with collers and harneis, for thiller and all.
5
A panel and wantey, packsaddle and ped,[E77]
A line to fetch litter, and halters for hed.
With crotchis and pinnes, to hang trinkets theron,
and stable fast chained, that nothing be gon.
[Sidenote: Cart furniture.]
6
Strong exeltred cart, that is clouted[10] and shod,[11][E78]
cart ladder and wimble, with percer and pod:
Wheele ladder for haruest, light pitchfork and tough,
shaue, whiplash[12] wel knotted, and cartrope ynough.
[Sidenote: A Coeme is halfe a quarter.]
7
Ten sacks, whereof euerie one holdeth a coome,[E79]
a pulling hooke[E80] handsome, for bushes and broome:
Light tumbrel and doong crone, for easing sir wag,
sholue, pickax, and mattock, with bottle and bag.
[Sidenote: Husbandry tooles.]
8
A grinstone, a whetstone, a hatchet and bil,
with hamer and english naile, sorted with skil:
A frower of iron, for cleaning of lath,
with roule for a sawpit, good husbandrie hath.
9
A short saw and long saw, to cut a too logs,
an ax and a nads,[E81] to make troffe for thy hogs:
A Douercourt beetle,[E82] and wedges with steele,
strong leuer to raise vp the block fro the wheele.
[Sidenote: Plough furniture.]
10
Two ploughs and a plough chein, ij culters, iij shares,
with ground cloutes & side clouts for soile that so tares:
With ox bowes and oxyokes, and other things mo,
for oxteeme and horseteeme, in plough for to go.[E83]
11
A plough beetle, ploughstaff,[E84] to further the plough,
great clod to a sunder that breaketh so rough;
A sled for a plough, and another for blocks,
for chimney in winter, to burne vp their docks.
12
Sedge collers[13] for ploughhorse, for lightnes of neck,
good seede and good sower, and also seede peck:
Strong oxen and horses, wel shod and wel clad,
wel meated and vsed, for making thee sad.
13
A barlie rake toothed, with yron and steele,
like paier of harrowes, and roler doth weele:
A sling for a moether,[E85] a bowe for a boy.
a whip for a carter, is hoigh de la roy.[E86]
14
A brush sithe and grasse sithe, with rifle to stand,
a cradle[E87] for barlie, with rubstone and sand:
Sharpe sikle and weeding hooke, haie fork and rake,
a meake for the pease, and to swinge vp the brake.
[Sidenote: Haruest tooles.]
15[14]
Short rakes for to gather vp barlie to binde,
and greater to rake vp such leauings behinde:
A rake for to hale vp the fitchis that lie,
a pike for to pike them vp handsom to drie.
16[15]
A skuttle or skreine, to rid soile fro the corne,
and sharing sheares readie for sheepe to be shorne:
A fork and a hooke, to be tampring in claie,[16]
a lath hammer, trowel, a hod, or a traie.
17