Title:  A Merry Dialogue Declaringe the Properties of Shrowde Shrews and Honest Wives

Author:  Desiderius Erasmus

Release Date:  December 7, 2004 [EBook #14282]

Language:  English

Character set encoding:  ASCII

*** Start of this project gutenberg EBOOK A Merry dialogue ***

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[Transcriber’s Note:  With the exception of hyphenation at the end of lines, the text version preserves the line breaks of the original; the html version has been treated similar to drama and starts a new paragraph for each change of speaker.  An illustration of the title page is included to give an impression of the original.]

A mery Dia-
logue, declaringe the propertyes
of shrowde shrewes, and ho-
nest wyues, not onelie verie
pleasaunte, but also not a
lytle profitable:  made
by ye famous clerke
D. Erasmus. 
Roteroda-
mus.

Translated into
Englyshe.

Anno.  M.CCCCC. 
LVII.

Eulalia.  God spede, & a thousand mine old acqueintance. xantippa. xan.  As many agayn, my dere hert.  Eulalia. me semets ye ar waren much faire now of late.  Eula.  Saye you so? gyue you me a mocke at the first dash. xan.  Nay veryly but I take you so.  Eula.  Happely mi new gown maketh me to loke fayrer then I sholde doe. xan.  Sothe you saye, I haue not sene a mynioner this many dayes, I reken it Englishe cloth.  Eu.  It is english stuff and dyed in Venis. xan.  It is softer then sylke what an oriente purpel colore here is who gaue you so rich a gift.  Eu.  How shoulde honeste women come by their gere? but by their husbandes. xan.  Happy arte thou that hathe suche an husband, but I wolde to god for his passyon, that I had maryed an husband of clowts, when I had maried col my good man.  Eula.  Why say ye so.  I pray you, are you at oddes now. xan.  I shal neuer be at one with him ye se how beggerly I go.  I haue not an hole smock to put on my backe, and he is wel contente with all:  I praye god I neuer come in heuen & I be not ashamed oftimes to shewe my head, when I se other wiues how net and trim they go that ar matched with farre porer men then he is.  Eula.  The apparell of honest wiues is not in the aray of the body, nor in the tirements of their head as saynte Peter the apostle teacheth vs (and that I learned a late at a sermon) but in good lyuynge and honest conuersacion and in the ornamentes of the soule, the common buenes ar painted up, to please manye mennes eies we ar trime ynough yf we please our husbands only. xan.  But yet my good man so euyll wylling to bestow ought vpon his wyfe, maketh good chere, and lassheth out the dowrye that hee hadde with mee no small pot of wine.  Eulaly, where vpon? xantipha, wheron hym lykethe beste, at the tauerne, at the stewes and at the