From ‘The Plaine Man's Pathway to Heaven’, first published in 1601 (STC 6626), a didactic work written earlier (c. 1590) by the puritan Arthur Dent (d. 1607). The extract is taken from pp. 408–9. ‘Elynor Rumming’ is linked here with a number of popular and (by Dent's standards) immoral works: ‘The Court of Venus’, first published c. 1538 (STC 24650); William Painter's ‘The Palace of Pleasure’, which appeared in at least five editions from 1565 (STC 19121–5); the enormously popular ‘Bevis of Hampton’, of which there are at least ten pre-1640 editions (STC 1987–96); ‘The Merry Jest of the Friar and the Boy’, first published c. 1580 and surviving in five editions (STC 14522–4.3); ‘Clem of the Clough, Adam Bell…’, extant in at least eight edition (STC 1806–13); and ‘The Pretie Conceit of John Splinters last will and Testament’ (STC 23102), published c. 1520. (I have been unable to identify ‘The odd tale of William, Richard and Homfrey’.) All these works are condemned in the course of the following dialogue, together with Skelton's poem, as Catholic ploys to divert men from the proper study of the Bible. For comparable lists of popular works involving Skelton see the extracts from Puttenham (No. 13b) and Drayton (No. 16).
Antile: … If you will goe home with me, I can glue you a speedy remedy: for I haue many pleasant and merry bookes, which if you should heare them read, would soone remedy you of this melancholy. I haue the Court of Venus, the Pallace of pleasure, Beuis of Southampton, Ellen of Rumming, The mery Jest of the Friar and the Boy: The pleasaunt story of Clem of the Clough, Adam Bell, and William of Cloudesley. The Odde Tale of William, Richard, and Homfrey. The pretie Conceit of John Splinters last will, and Testament: which al are excellent and singular bookes against hartquames: and to remove such dumpishnesse, as I see you are now fallen into.
Asune: Youre vaine and friuolous bookes of Tales, Iests and lies, would more increase my griefe, & strike the print of sorrow deeper into my heart.
Phila: … How came you by all these good bookes? I should haue saide, so much trashe, and rubbish…. They be goodly geare, trimme stuffe. They are good to kindle a fire, or to scoure a hotte Oven withall. And shal I tel you mine opinion of them? I doo thus thinke, that they were deuised by the diuel: seene, and allowed by the Pope: Printed in hel: bound vp by Hobgoblin: and first published and dispearsed in Rome, Italy and Spaine. And all to this ende, that thereby men might be kept from the reading of the Scriptures.