---

The Parliament of late hath oft been broken;

Whence divers men have diversly thus spoken.

Because the Parliament at once did give

Five Subsidies, they could not after live

Upon their meanes; thence came it (out of doubt)

5

That it did breake, and proved banke-route.

An other it to steele did thus compare;

Which heated oft, and quench’t, is brickle ware;

The Parliament hath oft beene in a heate,1

And hath beene quench’t as oft; but by this feate,

10

’Tis growne to bee so brickle2 now att last,

That it doth breake in two, at every blast.

One did express his judgment by a Fable;

There were two potts, the one was strong and able,

An iron pott; the other was but weake,

15

A Pott of Earth, and apter so to breake.

These undertooke a jorney both one way,

But that of iron did so oversway,

That th’Earthen pott did alwaies goe to wracke,

Hitting, or hitt, it still receiv’d a cracke.

20

This to bee likely cannott bee deny’d,

And so hee left it of, to bee apply’d.3

---

Source. BL MS Harley 4955, fol. 85v

Oiii14

Quick links to other poems within this section

Select page here O0. Introduction Oi1. The Parliament sitts Oi2. Oh honoured England Oi3. Our digby digd’e Oi4. The base on which Oi5. There was a man Oi6. There was a great fleete Oi7. There was a Munkye Oi8. Yee Spanyards Oi9. There was some policye Oi10. The Kinge and his wyfe Oi11. Why did the fond Oi12. Fower Cheyffe Justices Oi13. Justice of late hath Oi14. Ould Ned Cooke Oi15. Rex and Grex Oi16. Come heare, Lady Muses Oi17. There is a man Oii1. when the uncivill civill Oii2. It makes mee to muse Oii3. Great Buckinghame Oii4. In reading these Oii5. And wilt thou goe Oii6. Charles would yee Prevaile Oii7. Rejoice, brave English Oii8. Why was the varlett Oii9. One askte me Oii10. Oure crossrow’s turnd Oii11. The noblest brave Oii12. And art return’d againe Oii13. All you that will goe Oii14. As sick men feare Oiii1. O Admirall! Oiii2. The wisest King Oiii3. The warrlike King Oiii4. Excuse me Eliott Oiii5. Avaunt you giddie Oiii6. Here Dr Lambe Oiii7. If heav’n rejoyce Oiii8. For Lambe go ringe Oiii9. Heare lyes the Impostar Oiii10. Our state’s a Game Oiii11. When onely one doth Oiii12. Of Brittish Beasts Oiii13. To hunt the Doe Oiii14. The Parliament of late Oiii15. A thinge gott by candle

¹   The Parliament...in a heate: alluding to the frequent and often contentious meetings of parliament in the 1620s. <back>

²   brickle: brittle. <back>

³   to bee apply’d: the poet refuses to apply the fable to contemporary political circumstances. At least two readings of the fable are plausible. The first would identify the strong “iron pott” as the King, whose clashes with parliament (the “Earthen pott”) resulted in injury to parliament, not monarchy. The second would identify the “iron pott” as the favourite Buckingham, whose clashes with parliament left him unscathed, and parliament under the King’s displeasure. <back>