That thou art blamed shall not be thy defect,
For slander's mark was ever yet the fair;
read more

That thou art blamed shall not be thy defect,
For slander's mark was ever yet the fair;
The ornament of beauty is suspect,
A crow that flies in heaven's sweetest air.
So thou be good, slander doth but approve
Thy worth the greater, being wooed of time;
For canker vice the sweetest buds doth love,
And thou present'st a pure unstained prime.

Done to death by slanderous tongues
Was the Hero that here lies.

Done to death by slanderous tongues
Was the Hero that here lies.

Your tittle-tattlers, and those who listen to slander, by my good
will should all be hanged--the former by their read more

Your tittle-tattlers, and those who listen to slander, by my good
will should all be hanged--the former by their tongues, the
latter by the ears.
[Lat., Homines qui gestant, quique auscultant crimina,
Si meo arbitratu liceat, omnes pendeant,
Gestores linguis, auditores auribus.]

And truly, I'll devise some honest slanders
To stain my cousin with. One doth not know
How read more

And truly, I'll devise some honest slanders
To stain my cousin with. One doth not know
How much an ill word may empoison liking.

Cut
Men's throats with whisperings.

Cut
Men's throats with whisperings.

Soft-buzzing Slander; silly moths that eat
An honest name.

Soft-buzzing Slander; silly moths that eat
An honest name.

Never throw mud. You may miss your mark, but you will have dirty hands.

Never throw mud. You may miss your mark, but you will have dirty hands.

Slander is the revenge of a coward, and dissimulation of his defense.

Slander is the revenge of a coward, and dissimulation of his defense.

There are . . . robberies that leave man or woman forever
beggared of peace and joy, yet kept read more

There are . . . robberies that leave man or woman forever
beggared of peace and joy, yet kept secret by the sufferer.