ht.

But that was pretie of a certaine sorrie man of law, that gaue his Client
but bad councell, and yet found fault with his fee, and said: my fee, good
frend, hath deserued better counsel. Good master, quoth the Client, if
your selfe had not said so, I would neuer haue beleeued it; but now I
thinke as you doo. The man of law perceiuing his error, I tell thee (quoth
he) my counsel hath deserued a better fee. Yet of all others was that a
most ridiculous, but very true exchange, which the yeoman of London vsed
with his Sergeant at the Mace, who said he would goe into the countrie,
and make merry a day or two, while his man plyed his busines at home: an
example of it you shall finde in our Enterlude entituled Lustie London:
the Sergeant, for sparing of hors-hire, said he would goe with the Carrier
on foote. That is not for your worship, saide his yeoman, whereunto the
Sergeant replyed.
_I wot what I meant Iohn, it is for to stay
And company the knaue Carrier, for loosing my way._

The yeoman thinking it good manner to soothe his Sergeant, said againe,
_I meant what I wot Sir, your best is to hie,
And carrie a knaue with you for companie._

Ye see a notorious exchange of the construction, and application of the
words in this: _I wot what I meane_; and _I meane what I wot_, and in the
other, _company the knaue Carrier_, and _carrie a knaue in your company_.
The Greekes call this figure [_Hipallage_] the Latins _Submutatio_, we in
our vulgar may call him the [_under-change_] but I had rather haue him
called the [_Changeling_] nothing at all sweruing from his originall, and
much more aptly to the purpose, and pleasanter to beare in memory:
specially for our Ladies and pretie mistresses in Court, for whose
learning I write, because it is a terme often in their mouthes, and
alluding to the opinion of Nurses, who are wont to say, that the Fayries
vse to steale the fairest children out of their cradles, and put other ill
fauoured in their places, which they called changelings, or Elfs: so, if
ye mark, doeth our Poet, or maker play with his wordes, vsing a wrong
construction for a right, and an absurd for a sensible, by manner of
exchange.

_CHAP. XVI._

_Of some other figures which because they serue chiefly to make the
meeters tunable and melodious, and affect not the minde but very little,
be placed among the auricular._

[Sidenote: _Omoioteleton_, or the Like loose.]
The Greekes vsed a manner of spe