The Old Worlds Tragedie Poem by Francis Sabie

I sing of horrors sad and dreadfull rage,
Of stratagems wrought in the former age,
Contagious vice, and in conclusion,
Of massacres, death and confusion
Vouchsafe my muse, my dolefulst muse to tell
What made the King of heauen to be so fell
Sole Architect of earth and earthly landes,
So furiously the fabricke of his handes
To bring to ruine can Iehouah then
Poure out such fearfull threats on mortall men,
Full sixteen hundred years from worlds creation,
And fifty sixe by sacred computation
When liuing things replenished the ground.
And earth with mortall wights did first abound
A dolefull Tragedie was brought to passe,
Earth was the stage whereon it acted was,
Vpon the stage first came impietie,
Vaunting her selfe against the Deity.
She in short time began to growe to hed,
And all the earth at length she captiue led.
Then came in foule desire and lothsome lust,
She in short time seduced euen the just
Who gazing on the beautie of the wicked,
Began with lewd concupiscence be pricked,
In matrimony to their daughters linking
Their sonnes, and at sinnes detestable winking.

The Host was ofttimes slaine by lodged stranger,
Guest of his hoste stood many times in danger.
Vile Auarice all mortall hearts possessed,
The weaker lay in euery street oppressed
Men sought by cruell bloodshed gaine to gather,
The sonne for riches sought to slay his father
The brother mixed poyson for his brother,
She for her daughter daughter for her mother.
Pale enuie left her Adder-haunted den,
And rul'd on earth as supreame Queene of men,
Aspiring pride with weapons in her hand,
To warre against humility did stand,
Wherewith in fight she killed her at last,
And from the stage all massacred her cast.
Then dreadfull wrath met patience at the field,
And shortly she compelled her to yeeld.
Fals-hearted treason like a faithfull louer,
His woluish backe with sheepish skin did couer
And meeting with true friendship secretely,
Gaue her the stab (O monstrous villanie)
Fidelity lay slaine by treacherie,
Pure chastitie by lothsome letcherie.
Here lay the seruant by the master killed,
There masters blood lay by the seruant spilled.
Then might you see man-murthring falshood fiight
With verity, and ouercome her quite
Religion by Atheisme proud was banisht,
And she forthwith to heauenly kingdomes vanisht
As soone as ere good Conscience shew'd her head,
By disobedience she was stroken dead.
Then Gluttony vpon the stage made entrance
Prodigiously who slew dame Temperance.

Excesse appear'd with strange varietie,
And fiercelie put to flight Sobriety.
Enuious Anger vehementlie assailed
Dame Patience, and in the end preuayled.
Then mounted on the earth obliuious Sloth,
She Industrie and labor conquer'd both,
Iniustice lastlie with an hideous rout
Of hellish furies trac'd the stage about
Her visage sterne, her hands in blood imbrued
Her breast of Iron, vgly Toads she spued
Her standerd-bearer was ambitious pride,
And next vnto her went Don Homicide,
Next vnto them a ranke of Enuies brood,
Begirt with Adders, serpents were their food
Straight after them excesse and gluttonie,
Deformed Sloth, and impious Simphonie
A thousand other stygian hagges and moe,
Then with their Queen impietie did grow.
Whom just Astrea seeing in this sort,
A sudden feare amaz'd her mean report,
And leauing earth with all that hideous crew,
Vnto the skies without delay she flew.
And now huge Gyants vpon earth remained,
with whose vile ofspring al the earth was stained
Of them to Damsels faire committing seed,
A deuillish kind of people there did breed
A People fierce and of exceeding stature
Pestifferous, and prone to sin by nature.
These tyranniz'd and liued at their pleasure,
Oppressing weaker people without measure.
With dreadfull rigor keeping them in awe,
Despising iustice, breaking Natures law.

These heaped sinne on sinne, and fault on fault,
As high as Pelion or Olympus vault
As high as Pindus or steep Ossa either,
Were Pindus or steep Ossa clapt together,
When suddenly from his most glorious throne,
Whereon he sitting guides all things alone.
Iehouah founder of the starrie pole,
Of waterie seas, and of the earthly mole,
Daign'd vpon earth his sacred eies to cast,
Eies seeing all things in the world so vast.
He saw how vice had growne vnto a head,
Injustice all the earth had ouerspread
He saw how sinne and vile impietie
Vanted themselues against his Deitie.
The Adder-pawed gyants, mounts of euill
Touching the skies, base children of the deuill.
His sacred head heerat he gan to shake,
Wherat the skies, the earth, and all did quake
He sighed, and most sorrowfull he was,
That euer mortall man was brought to passe
He grieu'd in heart that euer he created
Man, who with sinne was so contaminated.
All things (quoth he) wherin remaineth breath,
I purpose to destroy with sudden death
This hand which fram'd all mortall things aliue
All earthlie things of life shall now depriue,
From man to beasts, from birds to things which creep,
All flesh shall taste of my displeasure deep.
The birds swift winges shall not his body saue,
The Lyons force, nor Grants courage braue,
Thus am I minded, thus doe I intend,
All liuing creatures now shall haue an end.

But yet on earth one only man there dwelled
All other men in justice who excelled
The third from Enoch was he in discent,
Enoch who all his life vprightly spent
Enoch of life who neuer was bereauen,
Enoch, who liuing was rapt into heauen.
Methushelah who all men did surpasse
In length of life, his Grandsire cleped was.
It was just Noah, Lamechs sonne vpright
Three sonnes he had, Shom, Ham & Iaphet hight
He loued vertue, vice he did eschew,
Iehouah therfore fauour did him shew.
Againe Earths founder his all-seeing eyes
Cast on the world from top of Cerule skies.
Againe he saw all wickednes abound,
In all the earth no justice could be found.
The children bathed in their fathers blood,
All nought he saw, and nothing that was good
Vast fields of sin, Abysses fraught with lewdnes
Realmes full of errors, mountaines huge of shrewdnes.
The height whereof vnto his throne ascended,
And with their stench his nostrils fore offended
Then vnto Noah, Lamechs sonne he spake,
An end of all things now I meane to make
All flesh wherin remaineth liuing spirit,
Of vitall breath I purpose to disherit.
Ah how it grieues me now that I haue framed
Man, who with sin the earth hath so defamed.
Make thee an Arke of Pine trees verie strong,
Three hundred cubits shalt thou make it long.
Threescore in breadth, and thirty cubits hie,
Make rooms in it where seueral things may lie.

Three sundrie stories shalt thou in it frame,
And round about with pitch close vp the same
For I vpon the earth a flood will bring,
Wherwith I will subuert ech liuing thing,
But vnto thee my couenant will I make,
My couenant which I neuer meane to breake;
Thou with thy wife, thy sons, & thy sons wiues
Shal in the arke be shut and saue your liues.
Of euery lining creature also twaine,
A male and female shall with thee remaine,
And lay vp food for thee and euery creature,
Euen seuerall food according to their nature.
The ark was made, & al things brought to passe
As God commanded, so it framed was.
Then spake Iehouah vnto him, goe thou
Into the arke with all thy houshold now
For seu'n dayes hence shall mighty rain abound
Wherwith I mean to couer al the ground.
Then Noah with his family also
Iust eight persons into the arke did goe,
And now the hower was neer, the fatal hower
Wherin Iehouah meant to shew his power
Sixetimes Aurora with her blushing hew
Had seene the earth all darke with hoary dew.
Now pitchie night six times gan dim the skies,
Last night of sollace vnto mortall eyes
O Luna still detaine thy blackish horse,
Let neuer dismall Tytan run his course,
Bright Vesper still continue thou thy race.
Let neuer fatall, day-star thee deface.
Who can alas, expresse the dolefull ruin,
And piteous horror of the day ensuin.

Now fro her chamber comes the scowling morning,
Her selfe still in a night-gowne blacke adorning
Tytan arose, but yet his glorious head
With pitch-resembling cloudes was ouerspread,
Blacke foggie mystes rose from the earthly mole,
Ascending vp vnto the aery pole.
Windes thronged foorth, and stroue in skies aloft,
As ciuill warres among them had been wrought,
As craggie hils had broken been by charmes,
As all Eolia had beene vp in armes.
Windes, ayre and cloudes, all meant the ayre to sacke,
O now or neuer goes the world to wracke,
Then thou (O woe) heauens Architect began
To poure thy feareful threats on mortall man
The glowring skies resounded like a thunder,
As though heauens sacred vault had cleft in sunder,
As though ten thousand Cannons huge discharged
Their roaring sounds with fall offorts enlarged.
His right hand shoke the earth, his left hand crushed.
The clouds, then raine in great aboundance rushed.
Raine poured foorth, yet not content, his anger
Enforced swelling tydes on earth to wander.
Then broken were the heads of watrie fountaines,
They gushed from the feet of craggie mountaines.
Seas lent them waues their courses to maintaine,
Earth made them passage to his vtter bane,
Now had the morne still clad in mourning weeds,
Thrise open'd gates to Phæbus fiery steeds,
Steeds smoking wet, yet from his flaming carre,
No light did come, blacke mystes his light did scarre
And now the three dayes raine and flowing flouds
Had spoyled quite green hearbs and pleasant buds

And shortly did the husband man complaine,
That all his whole years trauell and his paine
Were brought to ruin, corne and goodly flowers
Were prostrate laid with ouer-flowing showers.
The sillie birds with violence of weather
In bushes thicke did shroud themselues together
Beasts shrinking vnder grouie hedges stood
Halfe drown'd with wet, halfe dead for want of food.
By this time waters all the earth did couer,
The falling raine and rising flouds ran ouer
All champion countries, where men lately plowed
Now waters stood, and Scullers might haue rowed.
O then on earth was heard a piteous crie,
Men crying out, beasts roaring plaintiuely.
Then first of all began the Gyants sterne
To shake for feare, and flinty hearts to yerne.
Raine falling, and seas rising without pittie,
Made entrance into euerie house and cittie
As when a Fort or sacked citties walles,
With violence of rampir'd engines falles,
The furious foe runnes raging through the streets,
With bloody weapons killing whom he meetes.
An hideous cry and sound arriseth then
Of maymed women and distressed men.
Men seeing weapons come to worke their bane,
Yet could not shun them O what greater paine?
So far'd it with the people of this time,
Some vpon roofes and turrets high did clime,
One takes the highest mountaine he can see,
Another sits a fishing in a tree.
One thrusts himselfe into a wherry boat,
And desperately vpon the waues doth floate.

And euery one did seeke to clyme aloft,
For eurie one to shun the waters sought,
They saw the waters come to stop their breath,
Yet could not shun't, O greater griefe then death.
Their dollours might haue been compared well
To one that dying heares the passing bell.
Some were already drown'd, thus stood the case,
He liu'd the longest who had highest place
And now were turrets high and mountaines couered,
And leauie trees which in the aire erst houered
O lend me words the dollours to display,
The Fatall horrors of this dismall day.
There might you see how louingly the mother
With her sweet daughter kissed one the other
One piteoussy requesting others help,
Yet neither of them knew to ayd himselfe.
The dying sonne now at the latest gaspe,
About his clasping fathers neck did claspe.
And ready now to bid their last farewell,
Were snatched both with seas and billows fel
The Lord & seruant both at one time snatched,
One furiously hold on the other catched.
And still in surging waues together cleft,
Till both of breath together were bereft.
The tyrannizing Giants bodies grim
Now with the criples liuelesse corps did swim.
The subject with the scepter-bearing king,
The murthring billows spar'd no liuing thing.
Some might you see half dead and halfe aliue,
Like water-fowles now rise, & now to diue.
Some turning round, and violently borne
Al headlong downe, their lims in sunder torn.

The brisle-bearing bore, and gentle sheepe
Swam both together in the surging deep.
The silly Lambe was with the rauening Wolfe
Drown'd in the vast no-pitie taking gulfe.
The liuelesse Lyon in the deep did swim,
Nought did the Tygers courage profit him,
Nought booted it the Beare to roar and grind,
No profit by his swiftnesse got the Hind.
And hauing long time with exceeding paine
Flowne through the aire, disturbed still with raine,
The wearie bird not finding any ground,
Fals downe in seas, and at the last is drown'd.
And now the Arke where Noah did abide,
Was hoisted vp with ouer-swelling tide.
One while all hidden to the earth it fell,
As though it would haue gone to visit hell,
One while againe it seemed to arrise,
And suddenly would mount vp to the skies
No sterne it had, no mast, no sayle, no guide,
But caried was at pleasure of the tide.
Twise twenty dayes as blacke as any cole
The murthering raine distilled from the Pole.
The tallest mountaines in the world so wide,
Now couered were with ouer-swelling tide.
The ayrie Alpes and eke Pernassus faire
Now hidden were with waues, a woonder rare,
Snow-bearing Pindus and Olympus steep,
Both at this time lay hidden in the deep.
Now first of all igniferous Aetnas caues,
And Ciclops flames were quench'd with salt-sea waues,
Sweet-smelling Ide and sacered Ismarus,
Aspiring Pelion and hard Caucasus,

In Scythian mounts, where murthering Tygres hanted
Now vgly shapes of monstrous sea-fish vanted
The Dolphins woonders vnder watrie floods,
To see faire turrets and thicke grouie woods.
In steed of sacrifice on Altars faire
Sit seemly Marmaydes combing of their haire,
In Churches eke their Organists now wanting,
Melodious Odes and ditties now recanting.
The vglie dog-fish and deuouring Whales
Gainst pinacles did dash their shining skales
And where the Goat was woont her food to swallow,
Foule Porposses and seaish monsters wallow.
Now from his glorious pallace heauens creator
Look'd downe, and saw the world a sea of water
All was a sea yet wanted it a coast,
Then thought he on the Arke and Noah tost
Through all the world and earth, which manie a night
Hid vnder seas, had seen no cheerfull light.
Foorthwith he charg'd the foggie mysts to vanish,
Then all the windes tempestuous did he banish
And then retreyt vnto the water soundes,
Commanding it to keepe within his bounds
Commanding it his fountaines to restraine,
And them to stop their springing heads againe.
Clouds foorthwith fled, and tempestes were appeased,
The seas return'd, and running fountaines ceased.
The scowling morne now left his mourning robe,
And smilinglie blush'd on the watery globe.
And shortly might you see meane turrets peepe,
And tops of Pine-trees from the flouds to creepe
The fleeting arke which long had cleft in sunder
the vast deluge, both caried vp and vnder,

Now vnto East, and now vnto the west,
At length in mounts of Armeny did rest.
Twise twentie times had Phœbus drencht his beames,
And Car in graue Oceanus his streames.
When as the framer of the subtill Barke,
A window did set open in th Arke.
And foorth he sent a Rauen thence, to know
If waters still the land did ouerflow.
Foorth flew she, but returned presently
So went and came vntill the earth was drie.
Againe, he sends a siluer-winged Doue,
To see if still the waters were aboue.
Out flies the Doue, & through the aire doth go
As swift as any arrow from a bowe.
Much aire she cuts, and in the earth not seeing
One liuing creature any where haue being.
Nor any ground wheron she might remaine,
With weary wings returnes to him againe.
Then rested he vntill the day-star bright
Seuen times remoou'd the canopie of night
Then once againe the Doue he sendeth out,
She mounts aloft and flieth round about.
And finding much dry ground on earth, presumes
To fall theron, and rouse her ruffled plumes,
Now shakes her selfe, and with her bill them peckes,
Now layes them downe and orderly them deckes.
And hauing long time frolik'd at her will,
Returned with a green leafe in her bill,
By this knew Noah that the Flood decreased,
Yet other seuen dayes in the arke he rested
And when bright Vesper in the Welkin pale
Had thrise and foure times drawne the clowdy vale,

The third time forth againe he sends the Doue,
She swiftly in the aire her wings doth mooue
And finding food her body to sustaine,
And ground to rest on, neuer came againe.
Yet rested Lamechs ofspring in the Arke,
Till seuen times againe in Welkin darke
Bootes guider of the greater Beare,
Had showne himself, and then expelling feare
Sets ope the doore, and plainely did espie
Floods quite decreas'd, and face of earth all dry.
And then the lord commandment to him gaue
That he with all things els the Arke should leaue.
No stay they made, all things man, bird and beastes,
VVhom Titan saw from either of his restes
Aliue on earth, came foorthwith from the arke,
There stretcht their limmes, vnweldy yet and starke.
There Enochs ofspring to his God erected
An altar, who from Floods had him protected
And theron for his preseruation
Did offer vp a just oblation
The smell wherof vnto his throne arose,
And cast a pleasant odour to his nose.
Expelling quite that detestable stinke
VVhich erst ascended from worldes filthy sinke.
Delighted therfore in this pleasant sauour,
He blest all mankind with his gracious fauour
Hencefoorth (quoth he) no more my wrathfull curse
Vpon the world or man I will disburse.
For all his thoughts with wickednes are stayned
Euen from his birth, to time that he is wayned.
Hencefoorth in season shall he plant and sow,
In season shall he after reape and mowe.

In his due course hot Sommer will I send
And winter, till the earth shall haue an end
Increase aboundantly, bring foorth and breed,
And earth againe replenish with your seed.
Beholde, your feare all creatures shall appall,
Rule thou as Lord and maister ouer all.
Whoso shall man bereaue of vitall breath,
His life shall be abridg'd with cruell death.
Blood will haue blood, whoso shall cut mans life,
His also shall be cut with blooudy knife.
Encrease aboundantly, bring foorth and breed,
The earth againe replenish with your seed.
Behold, with thee I make a couenant sure,
A couenant which for euer shall endure,
With earth, and all thinges which thereon remaine,
That I will neuer drowne the world againe,
And to confirme my promised decree,
A certaine seale therof I giue to thee.
This is the seale a Bowe I meane to shrowde
Of diuers collours in a pitchie clowd.
This is the seale, and this shall be a token,
That this my league at no time shall be broken.
And when I shall all-hiding heauen cloake
With clouds, foorth-pouring mystie raine like smoke,
Then I in cloudes will place my certaine seale,
Mine euer-during promise to reueale.
With surging billowes and impartiall raine
That earth shall neuer be destroy'd againe.
And this a signe infallible shall be,
Of mine eternall-durable decree.