“IN nomine Patris, God keep me, et Filii, for charity, Et Spiritus
Sancti, where that I go by land or else by sea!
An usher I am ye may behold to a prince of high degree, That enjoys to
inform and teach all those that would thrive in prosperity.”
Should I meet with any man who either through inexperience or through
negligence knows naught of such things as I shall hereafter diligently
show, for my conscience’ sake I will instruct him; for methinks it is
charitable to teach virtue and good manners, in which most youths are
barren and dull. But if there be any who can nothing good and are not
willing to learn, give them a bauble to play with, for they will never
thrive.
────────────────
“As I rose out of my bed, in a merry season of May,
To sport me in a forest, where sights were fresh and gay,
I met with the forester; I prayed him to say me not nay,
That in his woodland I might walk among the deer away.
As I wandered at will, in the wood that was so green,
There lay three herds of deer, a seemly sight, I ween.
I beheld on my right hand the sun that shone so sheen;
I saw where walked a seemly young man, that slender was and lean.
His bow he took in hand toward the deer to stalk,
I prayed him his shot to leave and softly with me to walk.”
────────────────
Thereupon the young man was glad and loved to talk with me; but when I
inquired whom he served, he said: “God help me, sir, I serve myself and
else no other man.”
“Is thy governance good[118]?” I said. “My son, tell me if thou wilt.”
“I would I were out of this world,” said he; “I reck not how soon when!”
“Say not so, good son, beware! Methinks you mean amiss for God forbids
wanhope,[119] which is a horrible sin. Therefore, good son, open your
heart to me, peradventure I can relieve you. Remember that when
bale[120] is highest, boot[121] is nighest.”
“In truth, sir, I have sought far and near in many a wildsome way to get
me a master. But because I knew nothing good, and showed this wherever I
went, every man denied me; day by day, wanton[122] and over-nice,
reckless, lewd and chattering like a jay, every man refused me.”
“Now, good son, if I will teach, will you learn? Will you be a
serving-man, a ploughman, a labourer, a courtier, a clerk, a merchant, a
mason or an artificer, a chamberlain, a butler, a panter or a carver?”
“Teach me, sir, the duties of a butler, a panter or a chamberlain, and
especially, the cunning of a carver. If you will make me to know all
these, I will pray for your soul that it come never in pain!”
“Son, I will teach you with right good will, so as you will love and
fear God as is right and proper, be true to your master, and not waste
his goods, but love and fear him, and duly fulfil his commandments.”
_The Duties of a Panter or Butler_
“The first year, my son, you shall be panter or butler. In the pantry,
you must always keep three sharp knives, one to chop the loaves, another
to pare them, and a third, sharp and keen, to smooth and square the
trenchers with.[123]
“Always cut your lord’s bread, and see that it be new; and all other
bread at the table one day old ere you cut it, all household bread three
days old, and trencher-bread four days old.
“Look that your salt be fine, white, fair, and dry; and have your
salt-plane of ivory, two inches wide and three long; and see to it that
the lid of the salt-cellar touch not the salt.
“Good son, look that your napery be sweet and clean, and that your
table-cloth, towel, and napkin be folded neatly, your table-knives
brightly polished and your spoons fair washed—ye wot well what I mean.
“Look ye have two wine-augers, a greater and a less, some gutters of
boxwood that fit them, also a gimlet to pierce with, a tap and a bung,
ready to stop the flow when it is time. So when you broach a pipe, good
son, do after my teaching: pierce or bore with an auger or gimlet,
slanting upward, four fingers’ breadth from the lower rim, so as not to
cause the lees to rise—I warn you especially.”
[Here follows a list of fruits and preserves, which presently becomes a
mere dietary, ll. 73-108.]
“Take good heed to the wines, red, white, and sweet; look to them every
night with a candle, to see that they neither ferment nor leak. Never
forget to wash the heads of the pipes with cold water every night; and
always carry a gimlet, adze and linen clouts,[124] large and small. If
the wine ferment, ye shall know by its singing, so keep at hand a pipe
of _couleur de rose_,[125] that has been spent in drinking and add to
the fermentation the dregs of this, and it shall be amended. If sweet
wine be sick or pallid, put in a Romney to improve it.”
[Then follows a list of the sweet wines, and a long recipe for
_Hippocras_, ll. 117-176.]
_The Buttery_
“See that your cups and pots be clean, both within and without. Serve no
ale till it is five days old, for new ale is wasteful.[125] And look
that all things about you be sweet and clean.
“Be fair of answer, ready to serve, and gentle of cheer, and then men
will say; ‘There goes a gentle officer.’
“Beware that ye give no person stale drink, for fear that ye bring many
a man into disease for many a year.[125]
“My son, it is now the time of day to lay the table. First, wipe it with
a cloth ere it be spread, then lay on it a cloth called a _cowche_.[125]
You take one end and your mate the other, and draw it straight; and lay
a second cloth with its fold on the outer edge of the table.[126] Lift
the upper part and let it hang even. And then lay the third cloth with
its fold on the inner edge, making a _state_[126] half a foot wide, with
the top. Cover your ewery-cupboard[127] with a diapered-towel, and put a
towel round your neck,[126] for that is courtesy, and put one end of it
mannerly over your left arm; and on the same arm place your lord’s
napkin, and on it lay eight loaves of bread, with three or four
trencher-loaves. Take one end of the towel in your left hand, as the
manner is, together with the salt-cellar—look you do this—and take the
other end of the towel in your right hand with the spoons and knives.
“Set the salt on your lord’s right hand, and to the left of your salt,
one or two trenchers, and to the left again, your knife by itself and
plain to see, and the white rolls, and beside them a spoon upon a fair
folded napkin. Cover your spoon, napkin, trencher and knife, so that
they cannot be seen; and at the other end of the table place a salt with
two trenchers.
“If you wish to wrap up your lord’s bread in a stately fashion, first
square off the bread sharply and evenly, and see that no bun or loaf be
larger in proportion to the others, and so shall ye be able to wrap it
up mannerly for your master. Take a towel of Rennes cloth,[128] two and
a half yards long, fold it lengthwise[128] and lay it on the table. Roll
up a handful from each end tightly and stiffly, then in the middle of
the towel place eight loaves or buns, bottom to bottom, and then wrap
them wisely and skilfully. To tell you more plainly for your
information: take the ends of the towel that lies on the bread, draw
them out and twist tightly a handful nearest the bread and smooth the
wrapper stiffly. When it is ready, you must open one end all in a moment
before your lord.
[Illustration]
When your sovereign’s table is dressed in this array, place salts on all
the other tables, and lay trenchers and cups; and then set out your
cupboard with gay silver and silver-gilt, and your ewery board with
basins and ewers, and hot and cold water, each to temper the other. Look
that you have ever enough napkins, spoons and cups for your lord’s
table; also, for your own dignity, that your pots for ale and wine be as
clean as possible, and beware ever of flies and motes, for your own
sake.
“With lowly courtesy, make the surnape[129] with a cloth under a double
of fair napery; fold the two ends of the towel to the outer edge of the
cloth, and so hold the three ends together; then fold them all so that
there is a pleat at about a foot’s distance, and lay it fair and smooth
for your lord to wash after meat, if he will. At the right side of the
table, you must guide it along, and the marshal must slip it further—the
right side up of all three cloths—and let it be drawn straight and even,
both in length and breadth; then raise the upper part of the towel and
lay it without wrinkling straight to the other side so that half a yard
or an ell hangs down at each end, where the sewer[129] may make a
_state_, and so please his master. When your lord has washed, you must
take up the surnape with your two arms, and carry it back to the ewery
yourself.
“Carry a towel about your neck when serving your lord, bow to him,
uncover your bread and set it by the salt. Look that all have knives,
spoons and napkins, and always when you pass your lord, see that you bow
your knees.
“Go forth to the _port-payne_[130] and there take eight loaves, and put
four at each end of the table, and be sure that each person has a spoon
and a napkin.
“Watch the sewer to see how many pottages he covers, and do ye for as
many, and serve each according to his degree; and see that none lack
bread, ale or wine.
“Be glad of cheer, courteous of knee, soft of speech; have clean hands
and nails and be carefully dressed.
“Do not cough or spit or retch too loud, or put your fingers into the
cups to seek bits of dust.
“Have an eye to all grumbling and fault-finding, and prevent backbiting
of their fellows among the lords at meat, by serving all with bread, ale
and wine; and so shall ye have of all men good love and praise.”
_Simple Conditions_
“I will that ye eschew forever the ‘simple conditions’ of a person that
is not taught.
“Do not claw your head or your back as if you were after a flea, or
stroke your hair as if you sought a louse.
“Be not glum,[131] nor twinkle with your eyes, nor be heavy of cheer;
and keep your eyes free from winking and watering.[132]
“Do not pick your nose or let it drop clear pearls, or sniff, or blow it
too loud, lest your lord hear.
“Twist not your neck askew like a jackdaw; wring not your hands with
picking or trifling or shrugging, as if ye would saw [wood]; nor puff up
your chest, nor pick your ears, nor be slow of hearing.
“Retch not, nor spit too far, nor laugh or speak too loud. Beware of
making faces and scorning; and be no liar with your mouth. Nor yet lick
your lips or drivel.
“Do not have the habit of squirting or spouting with your mouth, or
gape, or yawn, or pout. And do not lick a dish with your tongue to get
out dust.
“Be not rash or reckless—that is not worth a clout.
“Do not sigh with your breast, or cough, or breathe hard in the presence
of your sovereign, or hiccough, or belch, or groan never the more. Do
not trample with your feet, or straddle your legs, or scratch your
body—there is no sense in showing off. Good son, do not pick your teeth,
or grind, or gnash them, or with puffing and blowing cast foul breath
upon your lord.... These gallants in their short coats—that is ungoodly
guise. Other faults on this matter, I spare not to disapprove in my
opinion, when [a servant] is waiting on his master at table. Every sober
sovereign must despise all such things.
“A man might find many more conditions than are named here; but let
every honest servant avoid them for his own credit.
“Panter, yeoman of the cellar, butler and ewerer, I will that ye obey
the marshal, sewer and carver.”
“Good sir, I pray you teach me the skill of carving, and the fair
handling of a knife, and all the ways that I shall break open, unlace
and penetrate all manner of fowl, flesh and fish—how I shall demean me
with each.”
[_Office of a Carver_]
“My son, thy knife must be clean and bright; and it beseems thee to have
thy hands fair washed. Hold always thy knife surely, so as not to hurt
thyself, and have not more than two fingers and the thumb on thy keen
knife.
“Midway in thy hand, set the end of thy haft firmly; and unlace and
mince with the thumb and two fingers only. In cutting and placing bread,
and voiding of crumbs and trencher, look you have skill with two fingers
and the thumb. Likewise, never use more for fish, flesh, beast or
fowl—that is courtesy.
“Touch no manner of meat with thy right hand, but with thy left, as is
proper. Always with thy left hand grasp the loaf with all thy might; and
hold thy knife firmly, as I have instructed thee. Ye do not right to
soil your table, nor to wipe your knives on that, but on your napkin.
“First take a loaf of trenchers in your left hand, then your
table-knife, as I have said before; and with its edge raising your
trencher up by you as near the point as you may, lay it before your
lord. Right so set four trenchers, one by another, four square, and upon
them a single trencher alone. And take your loaf of light bread, as I
have told you, and cut with the edge of the knife near your hand; first
pare the quarters of the loaf round all about, and cut the upper
crust[133] for your lord, and bow to him; and suffer the other part to
remain still at the bottom, and so nigh spent out,[134] and lay him of
the crumbs a quarter of the loaf.
“Touch not the loaf after it is so trimmed; put it on a platter or on
the beforenamed alms-dish. Make clean your board that ye be not blamed;
and so shall the sewer serve his lord, and neither of you be vexed.”
[Here follows a list of _Fumosities_, indigestibilities, as Dr.
Furnivall calls them, ll. 349-68. The young man then says:]
“Now fair befal you, father, and well may ye [a]chieve
For these points by practice I hope full well to prove;
And yet shall I pray for you daily while that I live,
Both for body and soul that God you guide from grief.”
[He then begs to be taught the art of “carving of fish and flesh[133]
after the cook’s care,” and receives detailed instructions for every
sort of food, roasted, baked and fried, for the serving of soups, making
of sauces and carving of fish, ll. 377-649. He then says:]
“Now, father, fair fall ye, and Christ you have in cure,
For of the nurture of carving, I suppose that I be sure.
But yet another office there is, save I dare not endure
To ask you any further, for fear of displeasure.
For to be a sewer I would I had the cunning,
Then durst I do my devoir[135] with any worshipful to be woning;[136]
Since that I know the course and the craft of carving,
I would see the sight of a sewer, what way he showeth in serving.”
_Office of a Sewer_
“Now since, my son, you wish to learn this science, dread nothing of
great difficulty; I will gladly teach you, if you will but listen.
“Take heed when the worshipful head of any household has washed before
meat and begins to say grace, then hie you to the kitchen where the
servants must attend and take your orders. First ask the panter or
officer of the spicery for fruits, such as butter, plums, damsons,
grapes and cherries, which are served before dinner according to the
season to make men merry, and ask if any such are to be served that day.
Then commune with the cook and surveyor[137] as to what meats and how
many dishes are prepared. When they two have agreed with you, then must
the cook dress up all dishes to the surveying-board,[138] and the
surveyor must soberly and without turmoil deliver up the dishes to you,
that you may convey them to your lord. When you are at the board of
service, see that you have courtly and skilful officers to prevent any
dish being stolen, which might easily cause a scandal to arise in your
service as sewer. See that you have proper servants to carry the dishes,
marshals, squires and serjeants-at-arms, if they be there, to bring the
dishes without delay or injury from the kitchen, and you need not fear
to set them on the table yourself.”[139]
[Then follow various menus, ll. 686-858. The young man answers:]
“Now fair fall you, father, in faith, I am full fain;
For lovesomely ye have taught me this nurture again.
Pleaseth it you to certify me with one word or twain,
The courtesy to conceive conveniently for every chamberlain?”
_The Office of a Chamberlain_
“The duty of a chamberlain is to be diligent in office, neatly clad, his
clothes not torn, hands and face well washed and head well kempt.
“He must be ever careful—not negligent—of fire and candle. And look
you[140] give diligent attendance to your master, be courteous, glad of
cheer, quick of hearing in every way, and be ever on the lookout for
things to do him pleasure; if you will acquire these qualities, it may
advance you well.
“See that your lord has a clean shirt and hose, a short coat,[141] a
doublet, and a long coat, if he wear such, his hose well brushed, his
socks at hand, his shoes or slippers as brown as a water-leech.[140]
“In the morning, against your lord shall rise, take care that his linen
be clean, and warm it at a clear fire, not smoky, if [the weather] be
cold or freezing.
“When he rises make ready the foot-sheet, and forget not to place a
chair or some other seat with a cushion on it before the fire, with
another cushion for the feet. Over the cushion and chair spread this
sheet so as to cover them; and see that you have a kerchief and a comb
to comb your lord’s head before he is fully dressed.
“Then pray your lord in humble words to come to a good fire and array
him thereby, and there to sit or stand pleasantly; and wait with due
manners to assist him. First hold out to him his tunic, then his doublet
while he puts in his arms, and have his stomacher well aired to keep off
harm, as also his vamps[142] and socks, and so shall he go warm all day.
“Then draw on his socks and his hose by the fire, and lace or buckle his
shoes, draw his hosen on well and truss them up to the height that suits
him, lace his doublet in every hole, and put round his neck and on his
shoulders a kerchief; and then gently comb his head with an ivory comb,
and give him water wherewith to wash his hands and face.
“Then kneel down on your knee and say thus: ‘Sir, what robe or gown doth
it please you to wear to-day?’ Then get him such as he asks for, and
hold it out for him to put on, and do on his girdle, if he wear one,
tight or loose, arrange his robe in the proper fashion, give him a hood
or hat for his head, a cloak or _cappe-de-huse_,[143] according as it be
fair or foul, or all misty with rain; and so shall ye please him. Before
he goes out, brush busily about him, and whether he wear satin,
sendal,[144] velvet, scarlet[145] or grain,[146] see that all be clean
and nice.
“If he be prince or prelate or other potentate, before he go to church
see that all things for the pew be made ready, and forget not cushion,
carpet, curtain, beads or book.
“Then return in haste to your lord’s chamber, strip the clothes off the
bed and cast them aside, and beat the feather-bed, but not so as to
waste any feathers, and see that the blankets and sheets be clean. When
you have made the bed mannerly, cover it with a coverlet, spread out the
bench-covers,[147] and cushions, set up the head-sheet[148] and pillow,
and remove the basin. See that carpets[149] be laid round the bed and
dress the windows, and the cupboard with carpets[149] and cushions. See
there be a good fire conveyed into the chamber, with plenty of wood and
fuel to make it up....
“_The Wardrobe_
“You must attend busily to your lord’s wardrobe, to keep the clothes
well, and to brush them cleanly. Use a soft brush, and remember that
overmuch brushing easily wears out cloth.
“Never let woollen clothes or furs go a sevennight without being brushed
or shaken, for moths be always ready to alight in them and engender; so
always keep an eye on drapery and skinnery.
“If your lord take a nap after his meal to digest his stomach, have
ready kerchief and comb, pillow and head-sheet; yet be not far from
him—take heed what I say—for much sleep is not good in the middle of the
day, and have ready water and towel so that he may wash after his sleep.
“When he has supped and goes to his chamber, spread forth your
foot-sheet, as I have already shown you, take off his gown or whatever
garment by the license of his estate he wears,[150] and lay it up in
such place as ye best know. Put a mantle on his back to keep his body
from cold, set him on the foot-sheet, made ready as I have directed, and
pull off his shoes, socks and hosen, and throw these last over your
shoulder, or hold them on your arm. Comb his hair, but first kneel down,
and put on his kerchief and nightcap wound[150] in seemly fashion. Have
the bed, head-sheet and pillow ready; and when he is in bed, there to
sleep safe and sound, draw the curtains round about the bed, set there
his night-light with wax or Paris-candle,[150] and see that there is
enough to last the night, drive out the dog and the cat, giving them a
clout, take no leave of your lord, but bow low to him and retire, and
thus shall ye have thanks and reward whensoever it fall.”
“_A Bath or Stew so-called_
“If your lord wishes to bathe and wash his body clean, hang sheets round
the roof, every one full of flowers and sweet green herbs, and have five
or six sponges to sit or lean upon, and see that you have one big sponge
to sit upon, and a sheet over so that he may bathe there for a while,
and have a sponge also for under his feet, if there be any to spare, and
always be careful that the door is shut. Have a basin full of hot fresh
herbs and wash his body with a soft sponge, rinse him with fair warm
rose-water, and throw it over him; then let him go to bed; but see that
the bed be sweet and nice; and first put on his socks and slippers that
he may go near the fire and stand on his foot-sheet, wipe him dry with a
clean cloth, and take him to bed to cure his troubles.”
“_The Making of a Medicinable Bath_
“Boil together hollyhock,[151] mallow, wall pellitory and brown fennel,
danewort, St. John’s wort, centaury, ribwort and camomile, heyhove,
heyriff, herb-benet, bresewort, smallage, water speedwell, scabious,
bugloss (?), and wild flax which is good for aches—boil withy leaves and
green oats together with them, and throw them hot into a vessel and put
your lord over it and let him endure for a while as hot as he can, being
covered over and closed on every side; and whatever disease, grievance
or pain ye be vexed with, this medicine shall surely make you whole, as
men say.”
“_The Office of Usher and Marshal_
“An usher or marshal, without fail, must know all the estates of the
Church, and the excellent estate of a king with his honourable blood.
This is a notable nurture, cunning, curious and commendable.
“The estate of the Pope has no peer, an emperor is next him everywhere
and a King is correspondent, a high cardinal next in dignity, then a
King’s son (ye call him prince), an archbishop his equal; a duke of the
blood royal; a bishop, marquis and earl coequal; a viscount, legate,
baron, suffragan and mitred abbot; a baron of the exchequer, the three
chief justices and the Mayor of London; a cathedral prior, unmitred
abbot and knight bachelor; a prior, dean, archdeacon, knight and body
esquire; the Master of the Rolls (as I reckon aright), and puisne judge;
clerk of the crown and the exchequer, and you may pleasantly prefer the
Mayor of Calais.[152]
“A provincial,[153] doctor of divinity and prothonotary[154] may dine
together; and you may place the pope’s legate or collector with a doctor
of both laws. An ex-mayor of London ranks with a serjeant-at-law, next a
Mastery of Chancery, and then a worshipful preacher of pardons,[155]
masters of arts, and religious orders, parsons and vicars, and parish
priests with a cure, the bailiffs of a city, a yeoman of the crown, and
serjeant-of-arms with his mace, with him a herald, the King’s herald in
the first place, worshipful merchants and rich artificers, gentlemen
well-nurtured and of good manners, together with gentlewomen and lords’
foster-mothers[156]—all these may eat with squires.
“Lo, son, I have now told you, after my simple wit, the rank of every
estate according to his degree, and now I will show you how they should
be grouped at table in respect of their dignity, and how they should be
served.
“The pope, an emperor, king, cardinal, prince with a golden royal
rod,[157] archbishop in his pall—all these for their dignity ought not
to dine in the hall.
“A bishop, viscount, marquis, goodly earl may sit at two messes if they
be agreeable thereunto.
“The Mayor of London, a baron, a mitred abbot, the three chief justices,
the Speaker of Parliament—all these estates are great and honourable,
and they may sit together in chamber or hall, two or three at a mess, if
it so please them; but in your office you must try to please every man.
“The other estates, three or four to a mess, equal to a knight’s, are:
unmitred abbot or prior, dean, archdeacon, Master of the Rolls, all the
under judges and barons of the king’s exchequer, a provincial, a doctor
of divinity or of both laws, a prothonotary, or the pope’s collector, if
he be there, and the Mayor of the Staple.
“Other ranks you may set four to a mess, of persons equal to a squire in
dignity, serjeants-at-law and ex-mayors of London, the masters of
Chancery, all preachers, residencers, and parsons, apprentices of the
law, merchants and franklins—these may sit properly at a squire’s table.
“Each estate shall sit at meat by itself, not seeing the others, at
meal-time or in the field or in the town; and each must sit alone in the
chamber or in the pavilion.
“The Bishop of Canterbury shall be served apart from the Archbishop of
York, and the Metropolitan shall be served alone. The Bishop of York
must not be served in the presence of the Primate of England.[158]
“Now, son, from divers causes, as equally from ignorance, a marshal is
often puzzled how to rank lords of royal blood who are poor, and others
not of royal blood who are rich, also ladies of royal blood wedded to
knights, and poor ladies marrying those of royal blood. The lady of
royal blood shall keep her rank, the lady of low blood and degree shall
take her husband’s rank. The substance of livelihood[159] is not so
digne[160] as royal blood, wherefore this prevails in chamber and hall,
for some day blood royal might attain to the kingship.
“If the parents of a pope or cardinal be still alive, they must in no
wise presume to be equal to their son, either sitting or standing. The
estate of their son will not allow them either to sit or stand by
him—nor should they desire it; wherefore they should have a separate
chamber assigned to them.
“A marshal must look to the birth of each estate, and arrange officers
such as chancellor, steward, chamberlain, treasurer, according to their
degree.
“He must honour foreign visitors, and strangers to this land, even when
they are resident here. A well-trained marshal should think beforehand
how to place strangers at the table, for if they show gentle cheer and
good manners, he thereby doth honour his lord and bring praise to
himself.
“If the king send any messenger to your lord, if he be a knight, squire,
yeoman of the crown, groom, page or child, receive him honourably as a
baron, knight, squire, yeoman or groom,[161] and so forth, from the
highest degree to the lowest, for a king’s groom may dine with a knight
or a marshal.
“A commendable marshal must also understand the rank of all the
worshipful officers of the commonalty of this land, of shires, cities
and boroughs—such must be placed in due order, according to their rank.
“The estate of a knight of [good] blood and wealth is not the same as
that of a simple and poor knight. Also, the Mayor of Queenborough[162]
is not of like dignity with the Mayor of London—nothing like of degree;
and they must on no account sit at the same table.
“The Abbot of Westminster is the highest in the land, and the Abbot of
Tintern the poorest; both are abbots, yet Tintern shall neither sit nor
stand with Westminster.[162] Also, the Prior of Dudley may in no wise
sit with the Prior of Canterbury.[162] And remember, as a general rule,
that a prior who is a prelate of a cathedral church, shall sit above any
abbot or prior of his own diocese, in church, chapel, chamber or hall.
“Reverend doctors of twelve years’ standing shall sit above those of
nine years’, although the latter may spend more largely of fine red
gold. Likewise, the younger aldermen shall sit or stand below their
elders, and so in every craft, the master first, and then the ex-warden.
“All these points, with many more, belong to the duty of a marshal; and
so before every feast think what estates shall sit in the hall, and
reason with yourself before your lord shall call upon you. If you are in
any doubt, go either to your lord or to the chief officer, and then
shall you do no wrong or prejudice to any state; but set all according
to their birth, riches or dignity.
“Now, good son, I have shown you the courtesy of the court, and how to
manage in pantry, buttery, cellar or in carving, as a sewer or as a
marshal. I suppose ye be sure in these sciences, which in my day I
learned with a royal prince, to whom I was usher and also marshal.
“All the officers I have mentioned have to obey me, ever to fulfil my
commandment when I call, for our office is the chief in spicery and
cellar, whether the cook be lief or loth.[163]
“All these divers offices may be filled by a single person, but the
dignity of a prince requireth each office to have its officer and a
servant waiting on him. Moreover, all must know their duties perfectly,
for doubt and fear are a hindrance in serving a lord and pleasing his
guests.
“Fear not to serve a prince—God be his speed! Take good heed to your
duties, and be ever on the watch, and thus doing as ye should, there
will be no need to doubt.
“Tasting is done only for those of royal blood, as pope, emperor,
empress, cardinal, king, queen, prince, archbishop, duke or earl—none
other that I call to remembrance. It is done for fear of poison, so let
each man in office keep his room secure and close his safe,[164] chest
and storehouse for fear of conspiracy.
“The steward and chamberlain of a prince of the blood must know about
homages, services and fewte;[165] and as they have the oversight of all
other offices and of the tasting, they must tell the marshal, sewer or
carver, how to do it; and he must be in no fear when he tasteth.
“As the evening draws in, and I cannot tarry, I do not propose to
contrive more of this matter. This treatise that I have entitled, if ye
would prove it, I myself assayed in youth, when I was young and lusty;
and I enjoyed these aforesaid matters, and took good heed to learn. But
crooked age hath now compelled me to leave the court, so assay for
yourself, my son, and God speed you!”
“Now, fair befall you, father, and blessings be on you for thus teaching
me! I shall dare to do diligent service to divers dignitaries, where
before I was afraid for the scantiness of my knowledge; I perceive the
whole matter so perfectly that I am ready to try my part, and some good
I may learn from practice and exercise. I am bound always to pray God
reward you for your gentle teaching of me!”
“Now, good son, thyself and others that shall succeed thee to note,
learn and read over this book of nurture, pray for the soul of John
Russell, servant to Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester. Pray for that peerless
prince, and for the souls of my wife and my father and mother, unto
Mary, Mother and Maid, that she defend us from our foes, and bring us
all to bliss when we go hence. Amen.”
[The _envoi_ may have been added later[166]]
“Go forth, little book, and lowly thou me commend,
Unto all young gentlemen that list to learn or entend,[167]
And specially to them that have experience, praying them to amend,
And correct what is amiss, whereas I fail or offend.
And if so that any be found as through my negligence,
Cast the cause on my copy, rude and bare of eloquence,
Which to draw out [I] have done my busy diligence,
Readily to reform it by reason and better sentence.
As for rhyme or reason, the fore-writer was not to blame,
For as he found it before him, so wrote he the same,
And though he or I in our matter digress or degrade,
Blame neither of us, for we never it made;
Simple, as I had insight, somewhat the rhyme I correct.
Blame I could no man, I have no person suspect.
Now, good God, grant us grace our souls never to infect,
Then we may reign in thy region eternally with thine elect.”