The chronicle of Iohn Hardyng. Containing an account of public transactions from the earliest period of English history to the beginning of the reign of King Edward the Fourth. Together with the continuation by Richard Grafton, to the thirty fourth year of King Henry the Eighth. The former part collated with two manuscripts of the author's own time; the last, with Grafton's duplicate edition. To which are added a biographical and literary preface, and an index, by Henry Ellis.

The. xvi. Chapiter.

¶ Howe, by lawe Troyane, the souerayntie belongeth to the eldest brother or syster.

AS, after the lawes of Troye, y^e soueraintie, [Fol. xvii.] And all resorte of ryght doth apertayne To the eldest brother in propertie, The eldest syster ryghte, so by ryght shulde bene Souerayne lady, and ouer thiem all quene [the quene.] , By equytie of that ylke lawe and ryghte, In place where it is holden lawe perfyghte.

¶ This kyng Brutus made people faste to tylle [Brutus ordered y^e people to sowe corne.] The lande aboute, in places [place.] both farre and nere, And sowe with sede, and get theim corne full wele To lyue vpon, and haue the [theire.] sustynaunce clere. [And so in feldes both farre and nere] [And his people he severde here and there.] ; [By his] [Thus by.] wysdome and his [his high.] sapience, He sette the lande in all suffycience.

And as the fate of death doth [it dide.] assygne That nedes he muste his ghoost awaye relees, To his goddas Dyane he dyd resygne His corps to be buryed withouten lees, In the temple of Apolyne; to encreace [meres.] His soule amonge the goddes euerychone, After his merytes trononized [intronozed.] highe in trone.

Fro beginnyng [the begynnynge.] of the worlde, to Brutus Into this isle entred fyrste at Totnesse, Foure thousande yere. lxxx. and. iiii. were thus, As the chronycles therof beareth witnesse; And after [afore.] the incarnacion, [to] expresse, A thousande hole, a hundreth and fyftene; And of Hely Iudge in Iury [Iude.] was eyghtene.

In the thyrde age he came into this ysle, And in the yere as it is afore expressed; But howe longe y^t he reygned, or shorte whyle, Walter of Oxforde hath confessed, Foure and twenty yere, as he hath inpressed; And other sayne he reigned thre and fourty yere; But Marian saith thre score he reygned here:

¶ Whiche is moste lyke to be verifyed, By all his workes and greate operacions, Whiche in shorte tyme myght not been edifyed, Ne performed [perfournyshed.] with shorte occupacyons, But in longe tyme by good consyderacyons: Rather it is lyke he reigned thre score yere, By his greate workes and beginninges [beeldynges.] y^t appeare.