An Epitaph upon the death of the honorable, syr Edward Saunders
Knight, Lorde cheefe Baron of the Exchequer, who dyed the .19. of November. 1576.
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YOU Muses weare your mourning weedes, strike on the fatal Drome,
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Sounde Triton out the Trumpe of Fame, in spite of Parcas dome:
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Distyll Parnassus pleasant droppes, possesse Pierides plase,
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Apollo helpe with dolefull tune, to wayle this wofull case.
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Wring hard your handes, wayle on your losse, lament the fate that fell,
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With sobbes and sighes to Saunders say, oh Saunders nowe farewell.
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Whom Phoebus fed with Pallas pappe, as one of Sibils seede,
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Loe here where Death did rest his corpes, the vermines foule to feede:
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Whom Impes of Jove with Nectar sweete, long in Libethres noursht,
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Behold howe dreadfull Death him brought, to that whence he came first.
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Lycurgus he for learned lawes, Rhadamanthus race that ranne,
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Another Nestor for advise, Zaleucus fame that wanne.
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A Damon deare unto his freend, in faith like Phocion found,
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A Cato that could counsell geve, to prince a subject sound:
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Not Athens for their Solon sage, not Rome for Numa waile,
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As we for Saunders death have cause, in flooddes of teares to saile.
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Not Sparta card for Chilos death, ne proud Prienna prest,
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To weepe for Bias as we wayle, our Saunders late possest.
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His learned pathes his talentes rare, so nowe by Death appeares,
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As he that Salomon sought to serve, in prime and youthfull yeares,
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His counsell sadde, his rules, his lawes, in countrey soyle so wrought,
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As though in Cuma he had been, of sage Sibilla taught:
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His vertuous life was such I say, as Vertue did embrace,
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By Vertue taught in vertuous schoole, to growe in vertuous race:
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Might tender babes, might orphantes weake, might widowes rere the cry,
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The sound thereof should pearce the cloudes, to skale the empire sky:
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To bidde the goddes to battel bend, and to dissend in sight,
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Though farre unfit, and mates unmeete, with mortall men to fight.
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Too late (alas) we wyshe his life, to soone deceived us Death,
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Too little witte we have to seeke, the dead agayne to breath.
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What helplesse is, must carelesse be, as Natures course dooth shewe,
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For Death shall reape what life hath sowen, by Nature this we knowe:
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Where is that erce Achilles fled, where is king Turnus shroude,
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What is become of Priamus state, where is Periander proude:
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Hector, Hanno, Hanibal, dead, Pompei, Pirrhus spild,
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Scipio, Cirus, Caesar slayne, and Alexander kild.
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So long there Fortune fast dyd floe, and charged Fame to sound,
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Tyll frowning Fortune foyld by fate, which fawning Fortune found:
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Shun Fortunes feates, shake Fortune of, to none is Fortune sound,
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Sith none may say of Fortune so, I Fortune faithfull found.
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Beholde where Fortune flowed so fast, and favoured Saunders lure,
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Tyl fickle Fortune false agayne, did Saunders death procure.
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Lo clothed could in cloddes of clay, in drossy dust remayne,
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By fate returnd from whence he came, to his mothers wombe agayne.
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Who welnigh thirtie yeeres was Judge, before a Judge dyd fall,
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And judged by that mighty Judge, which Judge shall judge us all.
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The heavens may of right rejoyce, and earth may it bewayle,
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Sith heaven wan, and earth hath lost, the guide and arke of vayle.
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There gayne is much, our losse is great, there myrth our mone is such,
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That they may laugh as cause doo yeelde, and we may weepe as much:
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O happy he, unhappy we, his happe dooth aye encrease,
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Happy he, and haplesse we, his hap shall never cease.
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We live to dye, he dyed to live, we want, and he possest,
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We bide in bandes, he bathes in blisse, the gods above him blest.
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Being borne to live, he lived to dye, and dyed to God so plaine,
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That birth, that life, that death, doo shewe, that he shall live agayne:
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His youth to age, his age to death, his death to fame applied,
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His fame to tyme, his time to God, thus Saunders lived and dyed.
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O happy life, O happier Death, O tenne times happy he,
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Whose happe it was such happe to have, a Judge this age to be.
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Oh joyfull time, oh blessed soyle, where Pallas rules with witte,
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O noble state, O sacred seate, where Saba sage dooth sitte.
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Like Susan sound, like Sara sadde, with Hesters mace in hande,
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With Judiths sworde Bellona like, to rule this noble lande.
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I had my wyll, you have your wishe, I laugh, rejoyse you may,
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I wan now much, you gaine no lesse, to see this happy day.
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Wherein I died, wherein you live, Oh treble happy cost,
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Wherein I joyed in glory greate, wherein you triumpth most.
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Kneele on your knees knocke hard your brests, sound forth the joyful Drome,
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Clappe loude your hands, sounde Eccho say, the golden worlde is come.
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Rejoyce you Judges may of right, your mirth may now be such,
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As never earst you Judges had, in England mirth so much.
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Here Cuma is, here Sibill raignes, on Delphos seate to sitte,
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Here shee like Phoebus rules, that can Gordius knotte unknitte.
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I lived to nature long yenough, I lived to honor much,
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I lived at wish, I died at wyll, to see my country such.
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As neither needes it Numas lawes nor yet Apollos sweard,
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For Mauger Mars, yet Mars shalbe of this our Queene afeard.
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O peerlesse pearle, O Diamond deer, O Queene of Queenes farwell,
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Your royall Majestie god preserve, in England long to dwell.
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Farwell the Phoenix of the woorld, farwell my soveraigne Queene,
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Farwell most noble vertuous prince, Minervas mate I weene.
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No Juel, Gemme, no Gold to geve, no perles from Pactolus lo,
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No Persian Gaze, no Indian stones, no Tagus sandes to show.
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But faith and will to native soyle alive and dead I finde,
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My hart my mind my love I leave, unto my prince behinde.
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Farwell you nobles of this land, farwell you Judges grave,
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Farwell my felowes freends and mates, your Queene I say God save.
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What rise in time in time dooth fall, what floweth in time dooth ebbe,
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What lives in time. in time shall die, and yeelde to Parcas webbe.
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The sunne to darknesse shall be turnde, the starres from skies shall fall,
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The Moone to blood, the worlde with fire shall be consumed all.
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As smoke or vapour vanishe streight, as bubbles rise and fall,
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As clowdes doo passe, or shadowe shiftes we live, we die so all.
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Our pompe our pride, our triumph most, our glory greate herein,
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Like shattering shadowe passe away, as though none such had bin.
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Earth, water, ayre, and fyre, as they were earst before,
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A lumpe confused, and Chaos calld, so shall they once be more.
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And all to earth, that came from earth, and to the grave descend,
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For earth on earth, to earth shall goe, and earth shalbe the end:
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As Christ descended up in cloudes, so Christ in cloudes shall come,
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To judge both good and badde on earth, at dreadfull day of dome.
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From whence our fleshe shall ryse agayne, even from the drossy dust,
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And so shall passe, I hope unto, the mansion of the just.
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