A web-based edition of early seventeenth-century political poetry from manuscript sources. It brings into the public domain over 350 poems, many of which have never before been published.
Mii5 The greate assemblie of the parliamente
Notes. This poem on Bacon takes the popular libellous punning on his name to an extreme, as it develops a narrative of the parliament’s attack on him. Much of the humour depends on a correlation between political corruption and the physical corruption of a piece of bacon.
“On Sir Francis Bacons Lord Chanceler of Eng:”
The greate assemblie of the parliamente
Had thought farewell this fastinge time of Lente1
All though it had bin sometimes to theire coste
and to that end they gott the cheifest hoste.2
That might be founde, graund-senior of those hostes
5which ar so many in our English coasts.
But he did feare he should not give contente
& therefore in greate policie he hence wente3
By wich they greately disappointed were
& faine to fall unto their lenten fare.
10’till att the laste one speake, what naught but fish?
methinks this time we might have some choise dish
What say you to a daintie bitt of bacon
which if I be not suerly mistaken
It’s stately, fine, & most franke & free
15By a kind Freind lately bestowd on me.
Where is’t quoth all? We would we had it here
For sure good bacon now is daintie cheare.
They all desir’d it & was brought in hast
But when it came it greatly did distast
20Theire palletts & disliked much theire minde
The reason was some thought ’thad taken winde4
Others did say ’thad hunge too neere the pinn5
And was corrupte & putrified within
’tould never smell so else in each mans nose
25The Cooke6 was bidd the reason to disclose
Who tould them that he thought the faulte
Had bin especially for wante of salte7
But that I knew quoth he it had greate store
I seldome knew that any flesh had more
30this is the cause as I have heard it sayd
Some cankerd mettall8 was upon it laid
which stayned it, besides twas hunge so high9
& that so soone before ’twas through drie
yett great men in nae there faulte was none
35I meddled not but made lett all alone
now how to remedy this rustie10 bacon
I doe not know unless it be downe taken.
Source. Bodleian MS Eng. Poet. f.10, fols. 95v-96r
Mii5
1 Lente: some of the proceedings against Bacon took place in the period of Lent. <back>
2 the cheifest hoste: i.e. Mompesson, holder of the patent for licensing inns. <back>
3 in greate...wente: reference to Sir Giles Mompesson’s flight from England, in March 1621. <back>
4 taken winde: to “take wind” is to be divulged; here there is a pun on meat that has decayed. <back>
5 hunge...pinn: unclear; presumably punning on meat corroded by the metal on which it is hung, and a statesman corrupted by his proximity to a source of power. <back>
6 Cooke: i.e. Sir Edward Coke, a leading figure in the Commons and long-time rival of Bacon. <back>
7 for wante of salte: possibly punning on “salt” in the figurative sense, meaning that which gives freshness to a person’s character. <back>
8 cankerd mettall: punning reference to the bribes Bacon accepted. <back>
9 hunge so high: punning reference to Bacon’s political and judicial elevation. <back>
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