I saye? is there any holy matter in the boke?
Poli. what mã it is the gospell boke, I trow there
is nothynge can be more holye. Cannius. God for
thy grace what hathe Poliphemus to do withe the
gospell? ||Poli. Nay why do ye not aske what a
chrysten man hathe to do with christe? Cannius.
I can not tell but me thynkes a rousty byll or a
halbard wold become such a great lubber or a
slouyn as thou arte a great deale better, for yf
it were my chaûce to mete such one and knewe
him not upon seeborde, and he loked so lyke a
knaue and a ruffyã as thou dost I wolde take hym
for a pirate or a rouer upon the see/ and if I met
such one in the wood for an arrante thefe, and a
man murderer. Poli. yea good syr but the gospell
teache vs this same lesson, that we shuld not
iudge any person by his loke or by his externall &
outwarde apparaunce. For lyke wyse as many tymes
vnder a graye freers coote a tyrannous mynde lyeth
secretly hyd, eue so a polled heed, a crispe or a
twyrled berde, a frowninge, a ferse, or a dogged
loke, a cappe, or a hat with an oystrich fether, a
soldyers cassocke, a payre of hoose all to cut and
manglyd, may co||uer an euangelycall mynde.
Cannius. why not, mary God forbyd elles, yea &
many tymes a symple shepe lyeth hyd in a wolfes
skynne, and yf a man maye credite and beleue the
fables of Aesope, an asse maye lye secretely
unknowen by cause he is in a lyons skynne.
Poliphe. Naye I knowe hym whiche bereth a shepe