The babees book, Aristotle's A B C, Urbanitatis, Stans puer ad mensam, The lvtille childrenes lvtil boke, The bokes of nurture of Hugh Rhodes and John Russell, Wynkyn de Worde's Boke of keruynge, The booke of demeanor, The boke of curtasye, Seager's Schoole of vertue, &c. &c. with some French and latin poems on like subjects, and some forewords on education in early England. Ed. by Frederick J. Furnivall ...

The Young Children's Book.

[From the Ashmolean MS. 61 (Bodleian Library), ab. 1500 A.D., fol. 20.]

Who so euer wylle thryue or the, Muste vertus lerne, & curtas be; Fore who in ȝowthe no vertus vsythe, Yn Age All men hym refusythe. Line 4 Clerkys þat canne þe scyens seuene, Seys þat curtasy came fro heuen When gabryell owre lady grette, And elyȝabeth with here mette. Line 8 All vertus be closyde in curtasy, And Alle vyces in vilony. Aryse be tyme oute of thi bedde, And blysse þi brest & thi forhede, Line 12 Than wasche thi hondes & thi face, Keme þi hede, & Aske god grace The to helpe in All þi werkes; Thow schall spede better what so þou carpes. Line 16 Than go to þe chyrche, & here A messe, There aske mersy fore þi trespasse. To whom þou metys come by þe weye, Curtasly 'gode morne' þou sey. Line 20 When þou hast done, go breke thy faste With mete & drynke of gode repaste: Blysse þi mouthe or þou it ete, The better schalle be þi dyete. Line 24

Line 24 Be-fore þi mete sey þou þi grace, Yt ocupys bot lytell space;— Fore oure mete, & drynke, & vs, Thanke we owre lord Ihesus;— Line 28 A pater noster & Aue mary Sey fore þe saulys þat in peyne ly; Than go labour as þou arte bownde, And be not Idylle in no stounde: Line 32 Holy scryptour þus it seyth To þe þat Arte of cristen feyth, "Yffe þou labour, þou muste ete That with þi hondes þou doyste gete;" Line 36 A byrde hath wenges forto fle, So man hath Armes laboryd to be. Luke þou be trew in worde & dede, Yn Alle þi werkes þan schall þou spede: Line 40 Treuth wyt neuer his master schame, Yt kepys hym out offe synne & blame. The weys to heuen þei bene þus tweyne, Mercy & treuthe, As clerkes seyne; Line 44 Who so wyll come to þe lyfe of blysse, To go þe weys he may not mysse. Make no promys bot it be gode, And kepe þou it with myght & mode; Line 48 Fore euery promys, it is dette, That with no falsed muste be lette. God & þi neybores lufe all wey; Welle is þe, than may þou sey, Line 52 Fore so þou kepys All þe lawe With-oute Any fere, drede, or awe. Vn-callyd go þou to no counselle; That longes to þe, with þat thow melle. Line 56 Scorne not þe pore, ne hurte no mane; Lerne of hym þat the teche cane; Be no glosere nor no mokere, Ne no seruantes no wey lokere. Line 60

Line 60 Be not prowd, bot meke & lynd, And with thi better go þou be-hynd. When þi better schewys his wylle, To he haue seyd þou muste be stylle. Line 64 When þou spekes to Any mane, Hande, fote, & fynger, kepe þou styll þan, And luke þou vppe in to his face, And curtase be in euery place. Line 68 With þi fynger schew þou no thynge, Nor be not lefe to telle tydinge. Yff Any man sey welle of þe, Or of thi frendes, thankyd muste be. Line 72 Haue few wordes, & wysly sette, Fore so þou may thi worschyppe gete. Vse no suerynge noþer lyenge, Yn thi sellynge & thi byenge, Line 76 Fore & þou do þou arte to blame, And at þe last þou wylle haue schame. Gete þi gowd with trewe[t]h & wynne, And kepe þe out of dette & synne. Line 80 Be loth to greue, & leffe to ples; Seke þe pes, & lyfe in es. Offe whome þou spekes, where & when, A-vyse þe welle, & to what men. Line 84 When þou commys vn to A dore, Sey "god be here," or þou go ferre: Wer-euer þou commys, speke honestly To ser or dame, or þer meny. Line 88 Stand, & sytte not furth-with-alle Tylle he byde þe þat rewlys þe halle; Where he bydis, þer must þou sytte, And fore none oþer change ne flyte; Line 92 Sytt vp-ryght And honestly, Ete & drinke, & be feleyly, Parte with hem þat sytes þe by, Thus teches þe dame curtasy. Line 96

Line 96 Take þe salt with thi clene knyfe; Be cold of spech, & make no stryfe; Bakbyte no man þat is A-weye, Be glad of Alle men wele to sey. Line 100 Here & se, & sey thou nought, Than schall þou not to profe be brought. With mete & drynke be-fore þe sette, Hold þe plesyd, & aske no bette. Line 104 Wype thi mouthe when þou wyll drinke, Lest it foule thi copys brinke; Kepe clene thi fyngeres, lypes, & chine, Fore þou may thi wyrschype wynne. Line 108 Yn þi mouth when þi mete is, To drinke, or speke, or lauȝh, I-wys Dame curtasy fore-bydes it the: Bot prayse thi fare, wer-so-euer þou be, Line 112 Fore be it gode or be it badde, Yn gud worth it muste be had. When þou spytes, be welle were Where to þou spytes, nyȝe or fere; Line 116 Hold þi hand be-fore thi mouth When þou spytes, & hyde it couth. Kepe þi knyfe both clene & scherpe, And be not besy forto kerpe; Line 120 Clens þi knyfe with some cutte bred, Not with thi cloth, As I þe rede: With Any fylth to fowle þe clothe, A curtase mane he wylle be lothe. Line 124 In þi dysch sette not þi spone, Noþer on þe brynke, os vn-lernyd done. When þou sopys, make no no[y]se With thi mouth As do boys. Line 128 The mete þat on þi trencher is, Putte it not in-to þi dysch. Gete þe sone A-voyde, And sone A-voyd þou thi trenchere. Line 132

Line 132 When thi better take þe tho coppe, Drinke thi selffe, & sette it vppe, Take tho coppe with thi hondes Lest it falle þer As þou stondes. Line 136 When thi better spekes to the, Do offe thi cape & bow þi kne. At thi tabull noþer crache ne claw, Than men wylle sey þou arte A daw. Line 140 Wype not thi nose nor þi nos-thirlys, Than mene wylle sey þou come of cherlys. Make þou noþer cate ne hond Thi felow at þou tabull round; Line 144 Ne pleye with spone, trenchere, ne knyffe. Yn honesty & clenys lede þou thi lyffe. This boke is made for chylde ȝonge At the scowle þat byde not longe: Line 148 Sone it may be conyd & had, And make them gode iff þei be bad. God gyffe them grace, vertuos to be, Fore than þei may both thryff & the. Line 152

Amen! quod Kate.