his _Cesure_ fall vpon the fourth sillable, and leaue sixe behind him
thus.
_I serue at ease, and gouerne all with woe._

This meeter of twelue sillables the French man calleth a verse
_Alexandrine_, and is with our moderne rimers most usuall: with the
auncient makers it was not so. For before Sir _Thomas Wiats_ time they
were not vsed in our vulgar, they be for graue and stately matters fitter
than for any other ditty of pleasure. Some makers write in verses of
foureteene sillables giuing the _Cesure_ at the first eight, which
proportion is tedious, for the length of the verse kepeth the eare too
long from his delight, which is to heare the cadence or the tuneable
accent in the ende of the verse. Neuerthelesse that of twelue if his
_Cesure_ be iust in the middle, and that ye suffer him to runne at full
length, and do not as the common rimers do; or their Printer for sparing
of paper, cut them of in the middest, wherin they make in two verses but
halfe rime. They do very wel as wrote the Earle of Surrey translating the
booke of the preacher.
_Salomon Davids sonne, king of Ierusalem._

This verse is a very good _Alexandrine_, but perchaunce woulde haue
sounded more musically, if the first word had bene a dissillable, or two
monosillables and not a trissillable: hauing his sharpe accent vppon the
_Antepenultima_ as it hath, by which occasion it runnes like a _Dactill_,
and carries the two later sillables away so speedily as it seemes but one
foote in our vulgar measure, and by that meanes makes the verse seeme but
of eleuen sillables, which odnesse is nothing pleasant to the eare. Iudge
some body whether it would haue done better (if it might) haue bene fayd
thus,
_Robóham Dauids sonne, king of Ierusalem._