And this appeareth euidently by the workes of many learned men, who wrote about the time of Charlemaines raigne in the Empire Occidentall, where the Christian Religion, became through the excessive authoritie of Popes, and deepe deuotion of Princes strongly fortified and established by erection of orders Monastical in which many simple clerks for deuotion sake & sanctitie were receiued more then for any learning, by which occasion & the solitarinesse of their life, waxing studious without discipline or instruction by any good methode, some of them grew to be historiographers, some Poets, and following either the barbarous rudenes of the time, or els their own idle inuentions, all that they wrote to the fauor or prayse of Princes, they did it in such maner of minstrelsie, and thought themselues no small fooles, when they could make their verses goe all in ryme as did the Schoole of Salerno, dedicating their booke of medicinall rules vnto our king of England, with this beginning.
  Anglorum Regi scripsit tota schola Salerni
  Sivus incolumem, sivis te reddere sanicari
  Curas tolle graues, irasci crede prophanum
  Necretine ventram nec stringas as fortiter annum.

And all the rest that follow throughout the whole booke more curiously
than cleanely, neuerthelesse very well to the purpose of their arte.  In
the same time king Edward the iij. him selfe quartering the Armes of
England and France, did discouer his pretence and clayme to the Crowne of
Fraunce, in these ryming verses.
  Rex sum regnorum bina ratione duorum
  Anglorum regnio sum rex ego iure paterno
  Matris iure quidem Francorum nuncupor idem
  Hinc est armorum variatio facta meorum.

Which verses Philip de Valois then possessing the Crowne as next heire
male by pretexte of the law Salique, and holding our Edward the third,
aunswered in these other of as good stuffe.
  Praedo regnorum qui diceris esse duorum
  Regno materno priuaberis atque paterno
  Prolis ius nullum ubi matris non fuit vllum
  Hinc est armorum variatio stulta tuorum.

It is found written of Pope Lucius, for his great auarice and tyranny
vsed ouer the Clergy thus in ryming verses.
  Lucius est piscis rex et tyrannus aquarum
  A quo discordat Lucius iste parum
  Deuorat hic hom homines, his piscibus insidiatur
  Esurit hic semper hic aliquando satur
  Amborum vitam si laus aquata notaret
  Plus rationis habet qui ratione caret.

And as this was vsed in the greatest and gayest matters of Princes and Popes by the idle inuention of Monasticall men then raigning al in their superlative.  So did every scholer & secular clerke or versifier, when he wrote any short poeme or matter of good lesson put it in ryme, whereby it came to passe that all your old Proverbes and common sayinges, which they would have plausible to the reader and easy to remember and beare away, were of that sorte as these.
  In mundo mira faciunt duo nummias & ira
  Molleficant dura peruertunt omnia iura.