Ingenuous Strength, a Body sound;
Prudent Plainness, Friends equal found;
An artless Board, with ease Fare;
A Night not Drunk, yet void of Care;
A Bed not sowre, and yet that's Chaste;
Sound Sleep, that makes Night seem to haste;
Nought else, but what thou art, to wish to be.
The last Hour not to fear, or haste to see.

Of these three, certainly (with the modern spelling) Surrey shows
his age the least! There is nothing that suggests the peculiarities
of the epoch as does the line

A Night not Drunk, yet void of Care!

Aside from the obvious fact that Surrey is by far the greatest poet
of the three, it is worthy of note that there is scarcely one of his
phrases that is not today in common usage, whereas in both of the
others some phrases seem strained. Clearly in his time it was
possible to write standard English.

And the fact is obvious that Surrey is giving poetic value to
his version of the Latin. The objection may be raised that the
effect is gained by the easy device of comparing him with inferior
writers. Fortunately the same piece has been translated by the
well-known Clément Marot. ¹

Marot, voici, si tu le veux savoir,
Qui fait à l'homme heureuse vie avoir:
Successions, non biens acquiz à peine,
Feu en tout temps, maison plaisante et saine,
Jamias procès, lea membres bien dispos,
Et au dedans un esprit à repos;
Contraire à nul, n'avoir aucuns contraires;
Peu se mesler des publique affaires;
Sage simplesse, amys à soy pareilz,
Table ordinaire et sans graus appareilz;
Facilement avec toutes gens vivre;
Nuict sans nul soing, n'estre pas pourtant yvre;
Femme joyeuse, et chaste néantmoins;
Plus haut qu'on n'est ne vouloir point attaindre;
Ne desirer la mort ny ne la craindre.
Voylà, Marot, si tu le veux sçavoir,
Qui faict à l'homme heureuse vie avoir.

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