¶ Artycles made there were many one mo
But as it lyked the kynge / all was do
And reason was also it sholde be so
For for his sake

¶ This thynge of pleasure was there vndertake
For in his presence thys pastyme to make
Was to cause solace in hym to awake
This theyr entente

¶ Was verely after my Jugement

And fyrst of all of Rycharde erle of Kent

And in lyke wyse of all the remanent
And in party

¶ For to say true I exsteme verely

Euery man of them was the more redy
Perceyuynge that our yonge prince Henry
Sholde it beholde

¶ Whiche was to them more conforte manyfolde
Than of the worlde all the treasure and golde
His presence gaue theym courage to be bolde
And to endure

¶ Syth our prynce moost comly of stature
Is desyrous to the moost knyghtly vre
Of armes to whiche marcyall auenture

Is his courage

¶ Notwithstondynge his yonge and tender aege He is moost comly of his parsonage

And as desyrous to this ourage

As prynce may be

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200

210

¶ And thoughe a prynce / and kynges sone be he
It pleaseth hym of his benygnyte

To suffre gentylmen of lowe degre
In his presence

¶ To speke of armes and of other defence
Without doynge vnto his grace offence
But and I sholde do all my delygence
Yet in no wyse

¶ Can I determyne who that wanne the pryce
For eche man dyde the best he coude deuyse
And therfore I can none of them dyspyse
They dyde so well

¶ The Juges that marked it best can tell
And the herodes that wrote euery dell
Who wan the gree to me it is councell
But in this wyse

This weerly vsage and martes entrepryse

These monthes twayne yonge folke dyde exercyse Not onely therof to haue the practyse

But the chyef thynge

220

230

Was to shewe pleasure to our souerayne the kynge

Henry of that name the seuenth in rekenynge

After the conquest / for whose preseruynge

Lete vs styll pray

That he may lyue prosperously alway
And after this lyfe that he also may

Joye amonge aungelles for euer and ay
And his yssue

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¶ After hym longe to reygne and contynue

And that theyr subgectes to them may be true
And that they may perceuer in vertue
And come to blysse

¶ Perpetuall

Where euer is

Hath be and shall

Joye eternall

Amen say we

For charyte

¶ Some are so accustomed euyll to reporte

250

That with grete payne / skantly they can say well
For and one were stronge / as Sampson le forte
As manly as Hector / that dyde excell
As wyse as sage Salamon in councell

Or had wonne conquestes / as dyde Alexandre
Yet false tonges wolde be redy to sklaundre

Lyke wyse yf they / that dyde Just and tourney
Had done as well / as Launcelot du lake
Some of enuy dysdeynously wolde say
The entrepryse was fondly vndertake
But it was done but onely for the sake
Of kynge Henry our naturall souerayne lorde
And of the prynce / who lyste it to remorde

260

Adam Bel Clym of the Cloughe and Wyllyam of Cloudesle.

Adam bel Clym of the cloughe and wyllyam of cloudesle.1 [Colophon.] Imprinted at London in Lothburye by Wyllyam Copland.

Other editions: 1605, 4to; 1616, 4to; 1632, 4to; 1648, 4to; 1668, 4to; 1683, 4to; 1698, 18mo; by A. M, for W. Thackeray, at the Angel in Duck Lane, n. d., 4to, 11 leaves."

In 1605, a continuation, called the "Second Part," was first added; but it is unworthy of the subject, and was probably penned by some hack-writer of the day. This second part was republished in 1616, 4to; but not afterwards, it seems. Besides these editions, there is a fragment of a very old one in the possession of Mr. Collier, which that gentleman believes to be more ancient than Copland's. At the editor's request, Mr. Collier, with characteristic kindness and promptitude, placed his fragment in his hands for inspection and collation, and the editor feels satisfied that Mr. Collier is right in his opinion. The text is far more accurate and genuine than that of Copland, which may be said to abound in corruptions; and the

This title is over a woodcut of three archers, which was subsequently employed without much discrimination for other purposes. It occurs on the title-page of A True Tale of Robbin Hood, by Martin Parker, 1632, 8vo.

2 There is an edition, Newcastle, 1772, 12mo, with a woodcut on the title-page representing an ancient Morris-dance, and wholly unconnected with the present story.

type is clearly older. It is very like Wynkyn de Worde's type, and a comparison with a tract printed by the latter in 1533 tempts the editor to form a conclusion that Mr. Collier's edition of Adam Bel, &c, came from that press, or from Robert Copland's. R. C. was De Worde's apprentice, and probably printed books as early as 1520.

In the Registers of the Stationers' Company are the following particulars relative to this performance :— "[1557-8.] To John Kynge, to prynte this boke Called Adam bell, &c, and for his lycense he geveth to the howse.

[no sum]."

On the 15th January, 1581-2, John Charlwood obtained a licence to reprint this and other fugitive tracts, and in August, 1587, a similar right was granted to Edward White in favour of "a ballad of William Cloudisley, never printed before,” which was, very probably, the present production, since, indeed, Cloudesley, and not Bell, is the principal character in it. On the other hand, it may have been a ballad confined to the story about Cloudesley and the apple.'

Of these impressions there does not seem to be any longer the slightest trace. Mr. Collier (Extracts from Registers of the Stationers' Company, i. 15) seems to think that King may have resigned his interest in the work to [W.] Copland, and this supposition may be strengthened by King having apparently paid nothing to the Company.

This charming story which, in one of its leading features, bears a close resemblance to the traditional account of an

1 The legend is alluded to under the title of Clym of the Clough alone by Ben Jonson in the Alchemist, by John Davies in an eclogue attached to W. Browne's Shepheards Pipe, 1614, and by Drayton. Drayton's words are:

"Come, sit we downe under this Hawthorne tree;

The morrowes light shall lend us daie enough—

And tell a tale of Gawen or Sir Guy,

Of Robin Hood, or of good Clem of the Clough."
Idea. the Shepheards Garland, 1593.

But in all the impressions which have passed under the editor's notice there is the same order of precedence as regards the heroes' names.