French Proverbs from 1611: Marriage is bliss. Well, sometimes.

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[Achete paix, & maison faitte:] [Prov.] [Buy peace, and a house (alreadie) made;] [like whereunto is]; [Il fault acheter maison faitte, & femme à faire:] [Pro.] [Purchase a house readie made, but let thy wife be of thine owne making.]
[Achette paix, & maison faicte:] [Prov.] [Peace, and a house thats built, are to be bought.]
[Il fault acheter maison faitte, & femme à faire:] [Pro.] [Purchase a house readie made, but let thy wife be of thine owne making.]
[Il faut acheter maison faicte, & femme à faire:] [Pro.] [(For by building is many a man vndone; and with a widow (if she list) any man shall haue ynough to doe.)]


[`A la quenouille le fol s'agenouille:] [Prov.] [Fooles kneele to distaues, weake men vnto women.]


[Amour de muge:] [Pro.] Faithfull loue of a wife to her husband; (The female Mullet will rather be caught by fishermen then abandon her Make.)


[Anjourd'huy marié demain marri:] [Prov.] [Maried to day, marred to morrow; to day wedded, to morrow wretched.]


[Argent faict rage, & amour mariage:] [Pro.] Money breeds rage, loue mariage.


[à rude asne rude asnier:] [Pro.] A stubborne seruant needs a froward master; a curst wife a curbing husband; a rebellious subiect a rigorous Soueraigne.


[Au batre faut l'amour:] [Pro.] By beating (the beloued) loue decayes.
[Au batre faut l'amour:] [Prov.] [Much loue is lost by them that beat their loues.]


[Aujourd'uy marié demain marri:] [Prov.] [To day wifefull, to morrow wofull.]


[Bonne mule mauvaise beste:] [Prov.] A good huswife is commonly no sheepe.


[Dame qui trop se mire peu file:] [Pro.] [She that looks too much at her selfe lookes too little to her selfe.]
[Dame qui trop se mire peu file:] [Prov.] She that heeds her beautie much, tends her benefit but little; a proud, and a good, huswife are incompatible.


[Entre promettre, & donner doit on la fille marier:] [Pro.] [Betweene giuing somewhat and promising much, a man may be honestly rid of a daughter.]
[Entre promettre, & donner doit on la fille marier:] [Prov.] Betweene promising, and giuing the maid ought to be maried;


[Femme bonne qui a mauvais mari, a bien souvent le coeur marri:] [Prov.] [The good wife of an ill husband hath often a sorrowfull heart of her owne.]
[Femme bonne qui a mauvais mari a bien souvent le coeur marri:] [Prov.] The good wife of a wilfull man hath many a wofull day; The like is; [Femme qui a mari mauvais a peu souvent le coeur en paix.]


[Femme lecheresse ne fera ia poré e espaisse:] [Prov.] [The lickerous houswife seldome makes thicke pottage.]
[Femme lecheresse ne fera ja poré e espaisse:] [Prov.] [A lickorous houswife seldome makes thicke pottage.]


[Femme mauvaise qui n'empire, encore n'est elle pas la pire:] [Prov.] A bad woman that paires not is not the worst of women.
[Femme mauvaise qui n'empire encore n'est elle pas la pire:] [Prov.] An ill wife that growes not worse is not of wiues the worst.


[Femme qui enuis file porte chemise vile:] [Pro.] Beggerie, and sluttishnesse are the fruits of ill huswiferie, and of lazinesse.
[Femme qui envis file porte chemise vile:] [Pro.] Beggerie, and nastinesse are the fruits of ill huswiuerie, and lazinesse.


[Femme qui ses levres mord, & qui son alleure tord, se mesle du mestier ord, ou fait à soy mesme tort:] [Pro.] The wife that bites her lips and treads askue, is to her husband, or her selfe, vntrue.


[Femme sage, & de faç on de peu remplit sa maison:] [Pro.] The wife, and well-behaued woman fils her house with little; or, a woman wise, and prouident by thrift doth stocke her tenement.


[Femme trop piteuse faict sa famille teigneuse:] [Pro.] The ouer gentle huswife marres her household.
[Femme trop piteuse fait sa famille teigneuse:] [Pro.] [A pitifull housewife makes a pitifull houshold;] [The like is]; [Mere piteuse fait sa fille roigneuse:] [Prov.]


[Fianç ailles chevauchent en selle, & repentailles en croupe:] [Prov.] Repentance sits full close (or dwells next doore) to mariage.


[Fille fenestriere, & trotiere rarement bonne mesnagere:] [Pro.] A gazing, and gadding maid seld proues good houswife.
[Fille fenestriere, & trotiere rarement bonne mesnagere:] [Prov.] Seldome proues gazer, or gadder a good houswife.


[Iamais grasse geline n'aima chapon:] [Pro.] [A wanton wife neuer loued a defectiue husband.]
[Iamais grasse geline n'aima chapon:] [Prov.] [A fat wife neuer loued a faint husband.]
[Iamais putain n'ayma preud hom, ny grasse geline chapon:] [Pro.] Neuer did whore loue honest man, nor wanton wife her weake man.


[Le fuseau doit suyvre le gorreau:] [Prov.] While the husband labours abroad the wife must not idle it at home; or, a wife is to follow her husband in what course of his fortune soeuer.


[Les sottes filles à marier sont fascheux troupeaux à garder:] [Prov.] Wenches fond of mariage are troublesome cattell to keepe.


[Par trop trotter la poule, & la femme se perdent facilement:] [Prov.] A gadding henne, and houswife are soone lost.
[Par trop trotter la poule, & la femme se perdent facilement:] [Prov.] [Women, and hennes, that gad oremuch, are quickly lost.]


[Petite pluy abat grand vent:] [Prov.] [(So sayd a mad fellow, who, lying in bed, bepist his farting wiues backe.)] {needsdef}


[Quand Marthe file, & Ambrose hable, leur cas est triste, & pitoyable:] [Prov.] [When wiues doe spinne, and husbands babble, their case is hard, and lamentable.]


[Qui a compagnon a maistre:] [Prov.] Hee that is tied vnto companie is tired with controlements; [(and therefore the way to be absolute is, to be alone.)]
[Qui a compagnon a maistre:] [Prov.] He that hath a fellow-ruler, hath an ouer-ruler.
[Qui a compagnon a maistre:] [Prov.] [He that hath a mate hath a maister.]


[Qui fait nopç es, & maison, met le sien en abandon:] [Prov.] [Much building, and often bridalls make bare pastures, and naked side-walls.]


[Qui femme a noise a:] [Prov.] [He that a wife hath strife hath.]


[Qui perd sa femme, & cinq fols c'est grand dommage de l'argent:] [Pro.] He that looses his wife, and six pence hath some losse by the money.


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