Complete Works of Edmund Spenser

by Edmund Spenser

  EUDOXUS Nowe truelie, Irenius, you have, meseemes, very well handled this pointe touchinge inconvenyences in the Common Lawe there, by you observed, and yt seemeth that you have had a myndefull regard unto the thinges that may concerne the good of that Realme. And yf you cann aswell goe through with the Statute Lawes of that lande, I will thincke you have not lost all your tyme there. Therefore, I praye you, nowe take them to you in hande and tell us what you thincke to be amisse in them.

  IRENIUS The Statutes of that realme are not manie, and therefore wee shall the sooner run through them. And yet of those fewe there are sondrie impertinent and unnecessarie: the which perhappes though at the tyme of the making of them were very needful, yet nowe through chainge of time are cleane antiquated, and altogether idle: As that which forbiddeth any to weare theire beardes all on theire upper lip, and none under the chynne, and that which putteth away saffron shirts and smockes, and that which restryneth the usinge of guylte bridles and pettronells, and that which appointed to the recorders and Clarkes of Dubline and Drodagh, to take but ijd. for the Coppie of a playnt, and that which commandeth bowes and arrowes, and that which maketh that all Irishmene that shall converse amonge the Englishe shalbe taken for spies, and soe punished, and that which forbiddeth persons ameanable to lawa to enter and distrayne in the lands in the which they have tittle; and many other the like which I could rehearse.

  EUDOXUS These, trulie, which you have repeated, seme very fryvolous and fruitles; for by the breach of them little dammage or inconvenience cann come to the Common-Wealth, nether, indeede, yf any transgresse them, shall he seeme worthie of punishment, scarce of blame, savinge be that they abide by the names of lawes. But lawes ought to be suche, as that the keepinge of them should be greatlie for the behoofe of the Common-Wealth, and the violatinge of them should be very haynous, and sharply punishable. But tell us of some more weightie dislikes in the Statutes then these, and that may be more behouefull importe the reformacon of them.

  IRENIUS There is one or two statutes which make the wrongfull destrayninge of any mans goods against the forme of Common Lawe to be fellony. The which statutes seeme surelie to have benn at firste meant for the greate good of that Realme, and for restrayninge of a fowle abuse, which then raigned commonly amongst that people, and yet is not altogether layed aside; that when anyone was indebted to another, he would first demaunde his debt, and yf he were not paied, he would streighte goe and take a distres of his goods or Cattel, where he could finde them, to the value: which he would keepe tyll he were satisfied, and this the simple Churle (as they call him) doth commonly use to doe yet, thorough ignorance of his misdoing, or evill use that hath longe settled amongest them. But this, though it be sure most unlawfull, yet surely me seemes to hard to make it death, since there is no purpose in the partie to steale the others goods, or to conceale the distres, but doth yt openly, for the most parte before witnesses. And againe, the same statutes are soe slackelie pende, besides that latter of them is so vnsensiblye contryved that yt scarse carrieth any reason in yt, that they are often and very easily wrested to the fraude of the subjecte; as yf one goinge to distrayne upon his land or Tenemente, where lawfully he may, yet yf in doinge therof he transgres the leaste point of the Common Lawe, he streightly commiteth fellonie. Or if one by any other occasion take any thing from another, as boys use sometimes to cap one another, the same is straight fellony. This is a very harde lawe.

  EUDOXUS Nevertheles the evill use of distrayninge another mans goods, you will not deny but is to be abolished and taken awaye.

  IRENIUS Yt is soe, but not by takinge awaye the subjecte withall; for that is to violent a medycine, speciallie this use beinge permitted, and made lawfull to some, and to other some, death. As to most of the Corporate Townes there, it is graunted by theire charter, that they may, every man by himselfe, without an officer (for that were more tollerable) for any debt, to distrayne the goods of any Irishe, beinge founde within theire liberty, or but passinge through theire Townes. And the first permissyon of this was for that in those tymes when that graunt was made, the Irishe were not amesnable to lawe, soe as yt was not saifetie for the Townesman to goe to him forth to demaund his debt, nor possible [to] drawe him into lawe, soe that he had leve to be his owne bayliffe, to arrest his saide debtors goods within his owne franchise. The which the Irish seinge, thought yt as lawfull for them to distrayne the Townesmans goods in the countrey where they founde yt. And soe [by] ensample of that graunt to Townes-men, they thought yt lawfull, and made yt an use to distrayne one anothers goods for smale debtes. And to say truth, me thinkes yt hard for every tryflyng debt of 2 or 3s. to be dryven to lawe, which is so far from them sometymes to be sought, for which me thinkes yt were an heavy ordinance to geve death, especyally to a rude man that is ignorant of Lawe, and thinketh a common use or graunt to other men a lawe for himselfe.

  EUDOXUS Yea, but the Judge, when it commeth before him to triall, may easilie deside this doubte, and lay open the intent of the lawe by his better discrecon.

  IRENIUS Yea, but yt is daingerous to leave the sense of a lawe unto the reason or will of Judges, whoe are men and may bee miscaryed, by affeccions, and many other meanes. But the lawes ought to be like to stony tables, playne, stedfast, and ymmoveable. There is allso suche another statute or twoe, which make Coigne or lyverye to bee treason, no lesse inconvenient then the former, beinge, as yt is penned, howe ever the first purpose thereof were expedient; for thereby nowe noe man cann goe into anothers howse for Lodginge, nor to his owne Tenants howse to take victuall by the waye, notwithstandinge that there is no other meanes for him to have lodgings or horse meate, nor mans meate, there beinge noe Innes, nor none otherwise to bee bought for money, but that he is indaingered to that Statute of Treason, whensoever he shall happen to falle out with his Tennant, or that his said hoste list to complaine of grevance, as oftentymes I have seene them very malishiouslie doe thorowe the least provocation.

  EUDOXUS I do not well knowe, but by gesse, what you doe meane by these termes of Coigne and Lyvery: therefore, I praye you explaine them.

  IRENIUS I knowe not whether the wordes be Englishe or Irishe, but I suppose them rather to be auncyent Englishe, for the Irishemen Englishe cann make no derivacon or analogie of them. What lyverie is, wee by Common use doe knowe well enough, that it is allowance of horsemeate, as commonly they use the word in stabline, as to keep horses at liverye; the which worde, as I gesse, is deryved of liveringe or delivering forth theire nightlie foode. Soe in greate howses, the lyvery is said to be served up for all night, that is theire eveninges allowance of drinke. And lyvery is allso called the [upper] garment which a serving man weareth, soe called, as I suppose, for that yt was delyvered or taken from him at pleasure: So yt is apparant, that by the worde Liverie is there meante horsemeate, like as by the word Coigny is understood mans meat: But whence the worde is deryved is very hard to tell. Some say of coyne, for that they vsed [commonly] in theire Coignes, not only to take meate, but coyne allso; and that that takinge of money was specyally meante to be prohibited by that statute: But I thinke rather this word Coignye is deryved of the Irishe. The which is a common use amongest the cheife landelords, to have a common spendinge upon theire Tennants; for all theire tennants, being commonly but tennants att will, they use to take of them what victuall they list, ffor of victualls they were wounte to make smale reconinge: neither in this was the Tennante wronged, for yt was an ordinarie and knowen custome, and his lord commonly used so to covenante with him, which yf at any tyme the tennante disliked, he might freelie departe at his pleasure. But nowe by this statute the Irishe lord is wronged, for that he is cutt of from his customary services, of the which this was one, besides many other of the like, as Cuddie, Cossherie, Bonnagh, Shragh, Sorehin, and such others, the which I thinke at first were customes brought in by the Englishe upon the Irishe, the which were never wonte, and yet are loath to yeilde any certen rent, but onlye such spendinges: for theire common sayinge is: Spende me and defende me.

 
EUDOXUS Surely I take yt as you saye, that therein the Irishe Lord hath wronge, since yt was an auncyent custome, and nothinge contrarie to lawe, for to the willinge there is no wronge done: And this right well I wott, that, even here in England, there are in many places as strange Customes as that of Coygnie and lyverye. But I suppose by your speache, that yt was the first meaninge of the [statute] to forbid the violent takinge of victualls upon other mens Tenants against theire willes, which surelie is a greate outraige, and yet not soe greate me seemes, as that yt shoulde be made Treason: for consideringe that the nature of Treason is concerninge the royall estate or person of the prince, or practizinge wyth his enemies to the derogacon and dainger of his crowne and dignitie, yt is hardlie wrested to make this treason. But as you erst said, Better a mischiefe then an inconvenience.

  IRENIUS Another statute I remember, which havinge been an ancyent Irishe custome is nowe upon advisement made an Englishe lawe, and that is called the Custome of Kincougish, which is, that every heade of everie sept and every chiefe of every kindred or familie, should be required answerable and bound to bring foorth every one of that sept and kindred under it at all times to be justified, when he should be required or charged with any treason, felony or other haynous crime.

  EUDOXUS Whie, surely this seemes a very necessary lawe. For considering that many of them bee such losells and scatterlinges, as that they cannot easily by any sheriffe, Constable, Bayliffe, or other ordinary officer be gotten, when they are challenged for any such facte; this is a very good meanes to gett them to be brought in by him that is the heade of the septe or chiefe of that howse: wherefore I wonder what [just] excepcon ye cann make against the same.

  IRENIUS True, Eudoxus, in the pretence of the good of this statute, yee have nothinge erred, for yt seemeth very expedient and necessarie: But the hurte which cometh thereby is greater then the good. For, whilest every chiefe of a septe standeth soe bounde to the lawe for every man that is of his bloud or sept that is under him inclusive, every one of his sept is put under him and he is made greate by the commaundinge of them all. For yf he may not commaund them, then that lawe doth wronge that bindeth him to bringe them forth to bee justified: and yf he may commaund them, then he may commaund them aswell to yll as to good. Hereby the lords and captaines of the countries, the principalls and heades of septs, are made stronger, whome yt shoulde be a most specyall care in pollicie to weaken, and to sett up, and strengthen divers of his underlines against him, which whensoever he shall offer to swarve from dutye, may be able to bearde him; for it is very daingerous to leave the command of soe many as some septes are, beinge v or vi thowsande persons, to the will of one man, whoe may leade them to what he will, as he himselfe shall be inclyned.

  EUDOXUS In very deede, Irenius, yt is very daingerous, especially seinge the disposicon of those people not allwayes inclynable to the best. And therefore I hold yt noe wisedome to leave unto them, to much commaund over theire kindred, but rather to withdrawe theire followers from them asmuch as may bee, and to gather them under the commaund of lawe by some better meane than this custome of Kincougish. The which word I woulde bee glad to knowe what yt namely signifieth, for the meaninge thereof I seeme to understand reasonabe well.

  IRENIUS It is a worde mingled of Englishe and Irish together, so I am partlye led to thinke, that the custome thereof was first Englishe and afterwardes Irish, for suche an other lawe they had here in Englande, as I remember, made by Kinge Alured, that every gentleman should contynually bringe forth his kindred and followers to the lawe. So Kin is Englishe and Coughish signifieth affinitie in Irishe.

  EUDOXUS Sith then that wee have thus reasonablie handled the inconveniences in the lawes, lett us nowe passe unto your second parte, which was, as I remember, of the abuses of Customes; in which, me seemes, yee have a fayre champion laied open unto you, in which yee may at large stretch out your discourse into many sweete remembrances of Antiquities, from whence yt seemeth that the customes of that natyon proceede.

  IRENIUS Indeede, Eudoxus you say very true; for all the customes of the Irishe which I have very often noted and compared with that I have red, would mynister occasion of most ample discourse of the first originall of them, and the antiquitie of that people, which in truth I doe thinke to bee more auncient then most that I know in this ende of the worlde; so as yf it were in the handlinge of some man of sound judgement and plentifull readinge, it would be most pleasant and profitable. But yt may bee wee may, at some other time of meetinge, take occasion to treate thereof more at large. Here only it shall suffice to touch such Customes of the Irish as seeme offensive and repugnant to the good government of that Realme.

  EUDOXUS Followe then your owne corse, for I shall the better content my selfe to forbeare my desire nowe, in hope that you will, as you say, some other time more abuondantly satisfie yt.

  IRENIUS Before wee enter into the treatise of theire Customes, yt is first needfull to consider from whence they sproung, for from the sundrie mannors of the nations, from whence that people which nowe are called Irishe were derived, some of the customes which nowe remayne amongest them have benn fetcht, and since they have benn contynwed amongest them; for not of one nacyon was that people as yt is, but of sondrie people of different condicons and manners: But the chief which have first possessed, and inhabited yt, I suppose to be Scythians.

  EUDOXUS How commeth it then to passe, that the Irish doe derive themselves from Gathelus the Spaniard.

  IRENIUS They doe indeed, but (I conceive) without any good ground. For if there were any such notable transmission of a colony hether out of Spaine, or any such famous conquest of this kingdome by, Gathelus, a Spaniard, as they would faine believe, it is not unlikely, but the very Chronicles ofSpaine (had Spaine then beene in so high regard as they now have it) would not have omitted so memorable a thing, as the subduing of so noble a realme to the Spaniard, no more then they doe now neglect to memorize their conquest of the Indians, especially in those times, in which the same was supposed, being nearer unto the flourishing age of learning and writers under the Romanes. But the Irish doe heerein no otherwise, then our vaine English-men doe in the Tale of Brutus, whom they devise to have first conqured and inhabited this land, it being as impossible to proove, that there was ever any such Brutus of Albion or England, as it is, that there was any such Gathelus of Spaine. But surely the Scythians (of whom I earst spoke) which at such tyme as the Northerne Nations overflowed all Christendome, came downe to the Sea coste, where enquiringe for other countryes abroade, and gettinge intelligence of this Countrye of Irelande, finding shippinge convenient, passed over thither, and arived in the North parte thereof, which is now called Ulster, which first inhabiting, and afterwardes stretchinge themselves forth into the Ilande as theire nombers encreased, named yt all of themselves Scuttenlande, which more briefly is called Scutland, [or] Scotland.

  EUDOXUS I wonder, Irenius, whether you runne so farre astraye; for whilst wee talke of Ireland me thinkes you rippe up the originall of Scotland; but what is that to this?

  IRENIUS Surelie very much, for Scotland and Ireland are one and the same.

  EUDOXUS That seemeth more strange; for wee all knowe right well that they are distinguished, with a greate sea runninge betweene them; or else there are twoe Scotlands.

  IRENIUS Never the more are there twoe Scotlands, but twoe kindes of Scotts there were indeede, as you may gather out of Buchanan, the one Irine or Irishe Scotts, the other Albyne Scotts; for those Scotts or Scythians arrived, as I supposed, in the North parts of the Island, where some of them afterwards passed into the next coaste of Albyne, nowe called Scotland, which, after much trouble, they possessed, and of themselves named yt Scotland; but in process of tyme, as is commonly seene, the denominac[o]n of the part prevailed in the whole, for the Irishe Scotts puttinge away the name of Scotts, were called only Irishe, and Albyne Scotts, leavinge the name of Albyne, were called only Scotts. Therefore yt cometh of some wryters, that Ireland is called Scotia-major, and that which nowe is named Sco
tland, is called Scotia-minor.

  EUDOXUS I doe nowe well understande your distinguishing of the twoe sortes of Scotts, and twoe Scottlands, howe that this which is nowe called Irelande was auncyently called Erine, and afterwardes of some wrytten Scotland, and that which is nowe called Scotland was formerlie called Albyn, before the cominge of the Scutts thither: But what other Nations inhabited thother partes of Irelande?

  IRENIUS After this people thus planted in the north or before, (for the certaintie of tymes in thinges soe farre from all knowledge cannot bee justlie avouched), another nation cominge out of Spaine aryved in the West part of Irelande, and findinge it waste, or weakelie inhabited, possessed yt; who whether they were native Spaniards, or Gaules or Affricans or Goaths, or some other of those Northerne Nations which did spread all over-spred all Christendome, it is impossible to affirme, onlie some naked conjectures may be gathered; but that out of Spaine certenlie they came, that doe all the Irishe Cronicles agree.

  EUDOXUS You doe verie boldlie, Irenius, venture upon the histories of auncyent tymes, and leane too confidently unto those Irishe Cronicles which are moste fabulous and forged, in that out of them you dare take in hande to laye open the Originall of a nation soe antique, as that noe monument remaynes of her begynninge and [firste] inhabitinge there; specially havinge bene allwayes without letters, but only bare tradicons of tymes and remembrances of bardes, which use to forge and falsifye every thinge as they liste to please or displease any man.