Front matter (continued 6)

Allas, in wanhope?—nay, pardee! For I wol never dispeired be. 4435 If Hope me faile, than am I Ungracious and unworthy; In Hope I wol comforted be, For Love, whan he bitaught hir me, Seide, that Hope, wher-so I go, 4440 Shulde ay be relees to my wo. But what and she my balis bete, And be to me curteis and swete? She is in no-thing ful certeyn. Lovers she put in ful gret peyn, 4445 And makith hem with wo to dele. Hir fair biheest disceyveth fele, For she wol bihote, sikirly, And failen aftir outrely. A! that is a ful noyous thing! 4450 For many a lover, in loving, Hangeth upon hir, and trusteth fast, Whiche lese hir travel at the last. Of thing to comen she woot right nought; Therfore, if it be wysly sought, 4455 Hir counseille, foly is to take. For many tymes, whan she wol make A ful good silogisme, I drede That aftirward ther shal in dede Folwe an evel conclusioun; 4460 This put me in confusioun. For many tymes I have it seen, That many have bigyled been, For trust that they have set in Hope, Which fel hem aftirward a-slope. 4465 But natheles yit, gladly she wolde, That he, that wol him with hir holde, Hadde alle tymes [his] purpos clere, Withoute deceyte, or any were. That she desireth sikirly; 4470 Whan I hir blamed, I did foly. But what avayleth hir good wille, Whan she ne may staunche my stounde ille? That helpith litel, that she may do, Outake biheest unto my wo. 4475 And heeste certeyn, in no wyse, Withoute yift, is not to pryse. Whan heest and deed a-sundir varie, They doon [me have] a gret contrarie. Thus am I possed up and doun 4480 With dool, thought, and confusioun; Of my disese ther is no noumbre. Daunger and Shame me encumbre, Drede also, and Ielousye, And Wikked-Tunge, ful of envye, 4485 Of whiche the sharpe and cruel ire Ful oft me put in gret martire. They han my Ioye fully let, Sith Bialacoil they have bishet Fro me in prisoun wikkidly, 4490 Whom I love so entierly, That it wol my bane be, But I the soner may him see. And yit moreover, wurst of alle, Ther is set to kepe, foule hir bifalle! 4495 A rimpled vekke, fer ronne in age, Frowning and yelowe in hir visage, Which in awayte lyth day and night, That noon of hem may have a sight. Now moot my sorwe enforced be; 4500 Ful soth it is, that Love yaf me Three wonder yiftes of his grace, Which I have lorn now in this place, Sith they ne may, withoute drede Helpen but litel, who taketh hede. 4505 For here availeth no Swete-Thought, And Swete-Speche helpith right nought. The thridde was called Swete-Loking, That now is lorn, without lesing. [The] yiftes were fair, but not forthy 4510 They helpe me but simply, But Bialacoil [may] loosed be, To gon at large and to be free. For him my lyf lyth al in dout, But-if he come the rather out. 4515 Allas! I trowe it wol not been! For how shuld I evermore him seen? He may not out, and that is wrong, Bicause the tour is so strong. How shulde he out? by whos prowesse, 4520 Out of so strong a forteresse? By me, certeyn, it nil be do; God woot, I have no wit therto! But wel I woot I was in rage, Whan I to Love dide homage. 4525 Who was in cause, in sothfastnesse, But hir-silf, dame Idelnesse, Which me conveyed, thurgh fair prayere, To entre into that fair vergere? She was to blame me to leve, 4530 The which now doth me sore greve. A foolis word is nought to trowe, Ne worth an appel for to lowe; Men shulde him snibbe bittirly, At pryme temps of his foly. 4535 I was a fool, and she me leved, Thurgh whom I am right nought releved. She accomplisshed al my wil, That now me greveth wondir il. Resoun me seide what shulde falle. 4540 A fool my-silf I may wel calle, That love asyde I had not leyde, And trowed that dame Resoun seyde. Resoun had bothe skile and right. Whan she me blamed, with al hir might, 4545 To medle of love, that hath me shent; But certeyn now I wol repent. 'And shulde I repent? Nay, parde! A fals traitour than shulde I be. The develles engins wolde me take, 4550 If I my [lorde] wolde forsake, Or Bialacoil falsly bitraye. Shulde I at mischeef hate him? nay, Sith he now, for his curtesye, Is in prisoun of Ielousye. 4555 Curtesye certeyn dide he me, So muche, it may not yolden be, Whan he the hay passen me lete, To kisse the rose, faire and swete; Shulde I therfore cunne him maugree? 4560 Nay, certeynly, it shal not be; For Love shal never, [if god wil], Here of me, thurgh word or wil, Offence or complaynt, more or lesse, Neither of Hope nor Idilnesse; 4565 For certis, it were wrong that I Hated hem for hir curtesye. Ther is not ellis, but suffre and thinke, And waken whan I shulde winke; Abyde in hope, til Love, thurgh chaunce, 4570 Sende me socour or allegeaunce, Expectant ay til I may mete To geten mercy of that swete. 'Whylom I thinke how Love to me Seyde he wolde taken atte gree 4575 My servise, if unpacience Caused me to doon offence. He seyde, "In thank I shal it take, And high maister eek thee make, If wikkednesse ne reve it thee; 4580 But sone, I trowe, that shal not be." These were his wordis by and by; It semed he loved me trewly. Now is ther not but serve him wele, If that I thinke his thank to fele. 4585 My good, myn harm, lyth hool in me; In Love may no defaute be; For trewe Love ne failid never man. Sothly, the faute mot nedis than (As God forbede!) be founde in me, 4590 And how it cometh, I can not see. Now lat it goon as it may go; Whether Love wol socoure me or slo, He may do hool on me his wil. I am so sore bounde him til, 4595 From his servyse I may not fleen; For lyf and deth, withouten wene, Is in his hand; I may not chese; He may me do bothe winne and lese. And sith so sore he doth me greve, 4600 Yit, if my lust he wolde acheve To Bialacoil goodly to be, I yeve no force what felle on me. For though I dye, as I mot nede, I praye Love, of his goodlihede, 4605 To Bialacoil do gentilnesse, For whom I live in such distresse, That I mote deyen for penaunce. But first, withoute repentaunce, I wol me confesse in good entent, 4610 And make in haste my testament, As lovers doon that felen smerte:— To Bialacoil leve I myn herte Al hool, withoute departing, Or doublenesse of repenting.'

Coment Raisoun vient a L'amant.

4615 Thus as I made my passage In compleynt, and in cruel rage, And I not wher to finde a leche That couthe unto myn helping eche, Sodeynly agayn comen doun 4620 Out of hir tour I saugh Resoun, Discrete and wys, and ful plesaunt, And of hir porte ful avenaunt. The righte wey she took to me, Which stood in greet perplexite, 4625 That was posshed in every side, That I nist where I might abyde, Til she, demurely sad of chere, Seide to me as she com nere:— 'Myn owne freend, art thou yit greved? 4630 How is this quarel yit acheved Of Loves syde? Anoon me telle; Hast thou not yit of love thy fille? Art thou not wery of thy servyse That thee hath [pyned] in sich wyse? 4635 What Ioye hast thou in thy loving? Is it swete or bitter thing? Canst thou yit chese, lat me see, What best thy socour mighte be? 'Thou servest a ful noble lord, 4640 That maketh thee thral for thy reward, Which ay renewith thy turment, With foly so he hath thee blent. Thou felle in mischeef thilke day, Whan thou didest, the sothe to say, 4645 Obeysaunce and eek homage; Thou wroughtest no-thing as the sage. Whan thou bicam his liege man, Thou didist a gret foly than; Thou wistest not what fel therto, 4650 With what lord thou haddist to do. If thou haddist him wel knowe, Thou haddist nought be brought so lowe; For if thou wistest what it were, Thou noldist serve him half a yeer, 4655 Not a weke, nor half a day, Ne yit an hour withoute delay, Ne never [han] loved paramours, His lordship is so ful of shoures. Knowest him ought?' L'Amaunt. 'Ye, dame, parde!' Raisoun. 'Nay, nay.' L'Amaunt. 'Yes, I.' 4660 Raisoun. 'Wherof, lat see?' L'Amaunt. 'Of that he seyde I shulde be Glad to have sich lord as he, And maister of sich seignory.' Raisoun. 'Knowist him no more?' L'Amaunt. 'Nay, certis, I, 4665 Save that he yaf me rewles there, And wente his wey, I niste where, And I abood bounde in balaunce.' Raisoun. 'Lo, there a noble conisaunce! But I wil that thou knowe him now 4670 Ginning and ende, sith that thou Art so anguisshous and mate, Disfigured out of astate; Ther may no wrecche have more of wo, Ne caitif noon enduren so. 4675 It were to every man sitting Of his lord have knowleching. For if thou knewe him, out of dout, Lightly thou shulde escapen out Of the prisoun that marreth thee.' 4680 L'Amaunt. 'Ye, dame! sith my lord is he, And I his man, maad with myn honde, I wolde right fayn undirstonde To knowen of what kinde he be, If any wolde enferme me.' 4685 Raisoun. 'I wolde,' seid Resoun, 'thee lere, Sith thou to lerne hast sich desire, And shewe thee, withouten fable, A thing that is not demonstrable. Thou shalt [here lerne] without science, 4690 And knowe, withoute experience, The thing that may not knowen be, Ne wist ne shewid in no degree. Thou mayst the sothe of it not witen, Though in thee it were writen. 4695 Thou shalt not knowe therof more Whyle thou art reuled by his lore; But unto him that love wol flee, The knotte may unclosed be, Which hath to thee, as it is founde, 4700 So long be knet and not unbounde. Now sette wel thyn entencioun, To here of love discripcioun. 'Love, it is an hateful pees, A free acquitaunce, without relees, 4705 [A trouthe], fret full of falshede, A sikernesse, al set in drede; In herte is a dispeiring hope, And fulle of hope, it is wanhope; Wyse woodnesse, and wood resoun, 4710 A swete peril, in to droune, An hevy birthen, light to bere, A wikked wawe awey to were. It is Caribdis perilous, Disagreable and gracious. 4715 It is discordaunce that can accorde, And accordaunce to discorde. It is cunning withoute science, Wisdom withoute sapience, Wit withoute discrecioun, 4720 Havoir, withoute possessioun. It is sike hele and hool siknesse, A thrust drowned [in] dronkenesse, An helthe ful of maladye, And charitee ful of envye, 4725 An [hunger] ful of habundaunce, And a gredy suffisaunce; Delyt right ful of hevinesse, And drerihed ful of gladnesse; Bitter swetnesse and swete errour, 4730 Right evel savoured good savour; Sinne that pardoun hath withinne, And pardoun spotted without [with] sinne; A peyne also it is, Ioyous, And felonye right pitous; 4735 Also pley that selde is stable, And stedefast [stat], right mevable; A strengthe, weyked to stonde upright, And feblenesse, ful of might; Wit unavysed, sage folye, 4740 And Ioye ful of turmentrye; A laughter it is, weping ay, Rest, that traveyleth night and day; Also a swete helle it is, And a sorowful Paradys; 4745 A plesaunt gayl and esy prisoun, And, ful of froste, somer sesoun; Pryme temps, ful of frostes whyte, And May, devoide of al delyte, With seer braunches, blossoms ungrene; 4750 And newe fruyt, fillid with winter tene. It is a slowe, may not forbere Ragges, ribaned with gold, to were; For al-so wel wol love be set Under ragges as riche rochet; 4755 And eek as wel be amourettes In mourning blak, as bright burnettes. For noon is of so mochel prys, Ne no man founden [is] so wys, Ne noon so high is of parage, 4760 Ne no man founde of wit so sage, No man so hardy ne so wight, Ne no man of so mochel might, Noon so fulfilled of bounte, [But] he with love may daunted be. 4765 Al the world holdith this way; Love makith alle to goon miswey, But it be they of yvel lyf, Whom Genius cursith, man and wyf, That wrongly werke ageyn nature. 4770 Noon suche I love, ne have no cure Of suche as Loves servaunts been, And wol not by my counsel fleen. For I ne preyse that loving, Wher-thurgh man, at the laste ending, 4775 Shal calle hem wrecchis fulle of wo, Love greveth hem and shendith so. But if thou wolt wel Love eschewe, For to escape out of his mewe, And make al hool thy sorwe to slake, 4780 No bettir counsel mayst thou take, Than thinke to fleen wel, y-wis; May nought helpe elles; for wite thou this:— If thou flee it, it shal flee thee; Folowe it, and folowen shal it thee.' 4785 L'Amaunt. Whan I hadde herd al Resoun seyn, Which hadde spilt hir speche in veyn: Dame,' seyde I, 'I dar wel sey Of this avaunt me wel I may That from your scole so deviaunt 4790 I am, that never the more avaunt Right nought am I, thurgh your doctryne; I dulle under your disciplyne; I wot no more than [I] wist [er], To me so contrarie and so fer 4795 Is every thing that ye me lere; And yit I can it al parcuere. Myn herte foryetith therof right nought, It is so writen in my thought; And depe graven it is so tendir 4800 That al by herte I can it rendre, And rede it over comunely; But to my-silf lewedist am I. 'But sith ye love discreven so, And lakke and preise it, bothe two, 4805 Defyneth it into this letter, That I may thenke on it the better; For I herde never [diffyne it ere], And wilfully I wolde it lere.' Raisoun. 'If love be serched wel and sought, 4810 It is a sykenesse of the thought Annexed and knet bitwixe tweyne, [Which] male and female, with oo cheyne, So frely byndith, that they nil twinne, Whether so therof they lese or winne. 4815 The roote springith, thurgh hoot brenning, Into disordinat desiring For to kissen and enbrace, And at her lust them to solace. Of other thing love recchith nought, 4820 But setteth hir herte and al hir thought More for delectacioun Than any procreacioun Of other fruyt by engendring; Which love to god is not plesing; 4825 For of hir body fruyt to get They yeve no force, they are so set Upon delyt, to pley in-fere. And somme have also this manere, To feynen hem for love seke; 4830 Sich love I preise not at a leke. For paramours they do but feyne; To love truly they disdeyne. They falsen ladies traitoursly, And sweren hem othes utterly, 4835 With many a lesing, and many a fable, And al they finden deceyvable. And, whan they her lust han geten, The hoote ernes they al foryeten. Wimmen, the harm they byen ful sore; 4840 But men this thenken evermore, That lasse harm is, so mote I thee, Disceyve them, than disceyved be; And namely, wher they ne may Finde non other mene wey. 4845 For I wot wel, in sothfastnesse, That [who] doth now his bisynesse With any womman for to dele, For any lust that he may fele, But-if it be for engendrure, 4850 He doth trespasse, I you ensure. For he shulde setten al his wil To geten a likly thing him til, And to sustene[n], if he might, And kepe forth, by kindes right, 4855 His owne lyknesse and semblable, For bicause al is corumpable, And faile shulde successioun, Ne were ther generacioun Our sectis strene for to save. 4860 Whan fader or moder arn in grave, Hir children shulde, whan they ben deede, Ful diligent ben, in hir steede, To use that werke on such a wyse, That oon may thurgh another ryse. 4865 Therfore set Kinde therin delyt, For men therin shulde hem delyte, And of that dede be not erke, But ofte sythes haunt that werke. For noon wolde drawe therof a draught 4870 Ne were delyt, which hath him caught. This hadde sotil dame Nature; For noon goth right, I thee ensure, Ne hath entent hool ne parfyt; For hir desir is for delyt, 4875 The which fortened crece and eke The pley of love for-ofte seke, And thralle hem-silf, they be so nyce, Unto the prince of every vyce. For of ech sinne it is the rote, 4880 Unlefulle lust, though it be sote, And of al yvel the racyne, As Tullius can determyne, Which in his tyme was ful sage, In a boke he made of Age, 4885 Wher that more he preyseth Elde, Though he be croked and unwelde, And more of commendacioun, Than Youthe in his discripcioun. For Youthe set bothe man and wyf 4890 In al perel of soule and lyf; And perel is, but men have grace, The [tyme] of youthe for to pace, Withoute any deth or distresse, It is so ful of wildenesse; 4895 So ofte it doth shame or damage To him or to his linage. It ledith man now up, now doun, In mochel dissolucioun, And makith him love yvel company, 4900 And lede his lyf disrewlily, And halt him payed with noon estate. Within him-silf is such debate, He chaungith purpos and entent, And yalt [him] into som covent, 4905 To liven aftir her empryse, And lesith fredom and fraunchyse, That Nature in him hadde set, The which ageyn he may not get, If he there make his mansioun 4910 For to abyde professioun. Though for a tyme his herte absente, It may not fayle, he shal repente, And eke abyde thilke day To leve his abit, and goon his way, 4915 And lesith his worship and his name, And dar not come ageyn for shame; But al his lyf he doth so mourne, Bicause he dar not hoom retourne. Fredom of kinde so lost hath he 4920 That never may recured be, But-if that god him graunte grace That he may, er he hennes pace, Conteyne undir obedience Thurgh the vertu of pacience. 4925 For Youthe set man in al folye, In unthrift and in ribaudye, In leccherye, and in outrage, So ofte it chaungith of corage. Youthe ginneth ofte sich bargeyn, 4930 That may not ende withouten peyn. In gret perel is set youth-hede, Delyt so doth his bridil lede. Delyt thus hangith, drede thee nought, Bothe mannis body and his thought, 4935 Only thurgh Youthe, his chamberere, That to don yvel is customere, And of nought elles taketh hede But only folkes for to lede Into disporte and wildenesse, 4940 So is [she] froward from sadnesse. 'But Elde drawith hem therfro; Who wot it nought, he may wel go [Demand] of hem that now arn olde, That whylom Youthe hadde in holde, 4945 Which yit remembre of tendir age, How it hem brought in many a rage, And many a foly therin wrought. But now that Elde hath hem thurghsought, They repente hem of her folye, 4950 That Youthe hem putte in Iupardye, In perel and in muche wo, And made hem ofte amis to do, And suen yvel companye, Riot and avouterye. 4955 'But Elde [can] ageyn restreyne From suche foly, and refreyne, And set men, by hir ordinaunce, In good reule and in governaunce. But yvel she spendith hir servyse, 4960 For no man wol hir love, ne pryse; She is hated, this wot I wele. Hir acqueyntaunce wolde no man fele, Ne han of Elde companye, Men hate to be of hir alye. 4965 For no man wolde bicomen olde, Ne dye, whan he is yong and bolde. And Elde merveilith right gretly, Whan they remembre hem inwardly Of many a perelous empryse, 4970 Whiche that they wrought in sondry wyse, How ever they might, withoute blame, Escape awey withoute shame, In youthe, withoute[n] damage Or repreef of her linage, 4975 Losse of membre, sheding of blode, Perel of deth, or losse of good. 'Wost thou nought where Youthe abit, That men so preisen in her wit? With Delyt she halt soiour, 4980 For bothe they dwellen in oo tour. As longe as Youthe is in sesoun, They dwellen in oon mansioun. Delyt of Youthe wol have servyse To do what so he wol devyse; 4985 And Youthe is redy evermore For to obey, for smerte of sore, Unto Delyt, and him to yive Hir servise, whyl that she may live. 'Where Elde abit, I wol thee telle 4990 Shortly, and no whyle dwelle, For thider bihoveth thee to go. If Deth in youthe thee not slo, Of this journey thou maist not faile. With hir Labour and Travaile 4995 Logged been, with Sorwe and Wo, That never out of hir courte go. Peyne and Distresse, Syknesse and Ire, And Malencoly, that angry sire, Ben of hir paleys senatours; 5000 Groning and Grucching, hir herbergeours, The day and night, hir to turment, With cruel Deth they hir present, And tellen hir, erliche and late, That Deth stant armed at hir gate. 5005 Than bringe they to hir remembraunce The foly dedis of hir infaunce, Which causen hir to mourne in wo That Youthe hath hir bigiled so, Which sodeynly awey is hasted. 5010 She wepeth the tyme that she hath wasted, Compleyning of the preterit, And the present, that not abit, And of hir olde vanitee, That, but aforn hir she may see 5015 In the future som socour, To leggen hir of hir dolour, To graunt hir tyme of repentaunce, For hir sinnes to do penaunce, And at the laste so hir governe 5020 To winne the Ioy that is eterne, Fro which go bakward Youthe [hir] made, In vanitee to droune and wade. For present tyme abidith nought, It is more swift than any thought; 5025 So litel whyle it doth endure That ther nis compte ne mesure. 'But how that ever the game go, Who list [have] Ioye and mirth also Of love, be it he or she, 5030 High or lowe, who[so] it be, In fruyt they shulde hem delyte; Her part they may not elles quyte, To save hem-silf in honestee. And yit ful many oon I see 5035 Of wimmen, sothly for to seyne, That [ay] desire and wolde fayne The pley of love, they be so wilde, And not coveite to go with childe. And if with child they be perchaunce, 5040 They wole it holde a gret mischaunce; But what-som-ever wo they fele, They wol not pleyne, but concele; But-if it be any fool or nyce, In whom that shame hath no Iustyce. 5045 For to delyt echon they drawe, That haunte this werk, bothe high and lawe, Save sich that ar[e]n worth right nought, That for money wol be bought. Such love I preise in no wyse, 5050 Whan it is given for coveitise. I preise no womman, though [she] be wood, That yeveth hir-silf for any good. For litel shulde a man telle Of hir, that wol hir body selle, 5055 Be she mayde, be she wyf, That quik wol selle hir, by hir lyf. How faire chere that ever she make, He is a wrecche, I undirtake, That loveth such one, for swete or sour, 5060 Though she him calle hir paramour, And laugheth on him, and makith him feeste. For certeynly no suche [a] beeste To be loved is not worthy, Or bere the name of druery. 5065 Noon shulde hir please, but he were wood, That wol dispoile him of his good. Yit nevertheles, I wol not sey [But] she, for solace and for pley, May a Iewel or other thing 5070 Take of her loves free yeving; But that she aske it in no wyse, For drede of shame of coveityse. And she of hirs may him, certeyn, Withoute sclaundre, yeven ageyn, 5075 And ioyne her hertes togidre so In love, and take and yeve also. Trowe not that I wolde hem twinne, Whan in her love ther is no sinne; I wol that they togedre go, 5080 And doon al that they han ado, As curteis shulde and debonaire, And in her love beren hem faire, Withoute vyce, bothe he and she; So that alwey, in honestee, 5085 Fro foly love [they] kepe hem clere That brenneth hertis with his fere; And that her love, in any wyse, Be devoid of coveityse. Good love shulde engendrid be 5090 Of trewe herte, iust, and secree, And not of such as sette her thought To have her lust, and ellis nought, So are they caught in Loves lace, Truly, for bodily solace. 5095 Fleshly delyt is so present With thee, that sette al thyn entent, Withoute more (what shulde I glose?) For to gete and have the Rose; Which makith thee so mate and wood 5100 That thou desirest noon other good. But thou art not an inche the nerre, But ever abydest in sorwe and werre, As in thy face it is sene; It makith thee bothe pale and lene; 5105 Thy might, thy vertu goth away. A sory gest, in goode fay, Thou [herberedest than] in thyn inne, The God of Love whan thou let inne! Wherfore I rede, thou shette him out, 5110 Or he shal greve thee, out of doute; For to thy profit it wol turne, If he nomore with thee soiourne. In gret mischeef and sorwe sonken Ben hertis, that of love arn dronken, 5115 As thou peraventure knowen shal, Whan thou hast lost [thy] tyme al, And spent [thy youthe] in ydilnesse, In waste, and woful lustinesse; If thou maist live the tyme to see 5120 Of love for to delivered be, Thy tyme thou shall biwepe sore The whiche never thou maist restore. (For tyme lost, as men may see, For no-thing may recured be). 5125 And if thou scape yit, atte laste, Fro Love, that hath thee so faste Knit and bounden in his lace, Certeyn, I holde it but a grace. For many oon, as it is seyn, 5130 Have lost, and spent also in veyn, In his servyse, withoute socour, Body and soule, good, and tresour, Wit, and strengthe, and eek richesse, Of which they hadde never redresse.' 5135 Thus taught and preched hath Resoun, But Love spilte hir sermoun, That was so imped in my thought, That hir doctrine I sette at nought. And yit ne seide she never a dele, 5140 That I ne understode it wele, Word by word, the mater al. But unto Love I was so thral, Which callith over-al his pray, He chasith so my thought [alway], 5145 And holdith myn herte undir his sele, As trust and trew as any stele; So that no devocioun Ne hadde I in the sermoun Of dame Resoun, ne of hir rede; 5150 It toke no soiour in myn hede. For alle yede out at oon ere That in that other she dide lere; Fully on me she lost hir lore, Hir speche me greved wondir sore. 5155 [Than] unto hir for ire I seide, For anger, as I dide abraide: Dame, and is it your wille algate, That I not love, but that I hate Alle men, as ye me teche? 5160 For if I do aftir your speche, Sith that ye seyn love is not good, Than must I nedis say with mood, If I it leve, in hatrede ay Liven, and voide love away 5165 From me, [and been] a sinful wrecche, Hated of all that [love that] tecche. I may not go noon other gate, For either must I love or hate. And if I hate men of-newe 5170 More than love, it wol me rewe, As by your preching semeth me, For Love no-thing ne preisith thee. Ye yeve good counseil, sikirly, That prechith me al-day, that I 5175 Shulde not Loves lore alowe; He were a fool, wolde you not trowe! In speche also ye han me taught Another love, that knowen is naught, Which I have herd you not repreve, 5180 To love ech other; by your leve, If ye wolde diffyne it me, I wolde gladly here, to see, At the leest, if I may lere Of sondry loves the manere.' 5185 Raison. 'Certis, freend, a fool art thou Whan that thou no-thing wolt allowe That I [thee] for thy profit say. Yit wol I sey thee more, in fay; For I am redy, at the leste, 5190 To accomplisshe thy requeste, But I not wher it wol avayle; In veyne, perauntre, I shal travayle. Love ther is in sondry wyse, As I shal thee here devyse. 5195 For som love leful is and good; I mene not that which makith thee wood, And bringith thee in many a fit, And ravisshith fro thee al thy wit, It is so merveilous and queynt; 5200 With such love be no more aqueynt.

Comment Raisoun diffinist Amistie.

'Love of Frendshipe also ther is, Which makith no man doon amis, Of wille knit bitwixe two, That wol not breke for wele ne wo; 5205 Which long is lykly to contune, Whan wille and goodis ben in comune; Grounded by goddis ordinaunce, Hool, withoute discordaunce; With hem holding comuntee 5210 Of al her goode in charitee, That ther be noon excepcioun Thurgh chaunging of entencioun; That ech helpe other at hir neede, And wysly hele bothe word and dede; 5215 Trewe of mening, devoid of slouthe, For wit is nought withoute trouthe; So that the ton dar al his thought Seyn to his freend, and spare nought, As to him-silf, without dreding 5220 To be discovered by wreying. For glad is that coniunccioun, Whan ther is noon suspecioun [Ne lak in hem], whom they wolde prove That trew and parfit weren in love. 5225 For no man may be amiable, But-if he be so ferme and stable, That fortune chaunge him not, ne blinde, But that his freend alwey him finde, Bothe pore and riche, in oon [e]state. 5230 For if his freend, thurgh any gate, Wol compleyne of his povertee, He shulde not byde so long, til he Of his helping him requere; For good deed, done [but] thurgh prayere, 5235 Is sold, and bought to dere, y-wis, To hert that of gret valour is. For hert fulfilled of gentilnesse Can yvel demene his distresse. And man that worthy is of name 5240 To asken often hath gret shame. A good man brenneth in his thought For shame, whan he axeth ought. He hath gret thought, and dredith ay For his disese, whan he shal pray 5245 His freend, lest that he warned be, Til that he preve his stabiltee. But whan that he hath founden oon That trusty is and trew as stone, And [hath] assayed him at al, 5250 And found him stedefast as a wal, And of his freendship be certeyne, He shal him shewe bothe Ioye and peyne, And al that [he] dar thinke or sey, Withoute shame, as he wel may. 5255 For how shulde he ashamed be Of sich oon as I tolde thee? For whan he woot his secree thought, The thridde shal knowe ther-of right nought; For tweyn in nombre is bet than three 5260 In every counsel and secree. Repreve he dredeth never a del, Who that biset his wordis wel; For every wys man, out of drede, Can kepe his tunge til he see nede; 5265 And fooles can not holde hir tunge; A fooles belle is sone runge. Yit shal a trewe freend do more To helpe his felowe of his sore, And socoure him, whan he hath nede, 5270 In al that he may doon in dede; And gladder [be] that he him plesith Than [is] his felowe that he esith. And if he do not his requeste, He shal as mochel him moleste 5275 As his felow, for that he May not fulfille his voluntee [As] fully as he hath requered. If bothe the hertis Love hath fered, Joy and wo they shul depart, 5280 And take evenly ech his part. Half his anoy he shal have ay, And comfort [him] what that he may; And of his blisse parte shal he, If love wol departed be. 5285 'And whilom of this [amitee] Spak Tullius in a ditee; ["A man] shulde maken his request Unto his freend, that is honest; And he goodly shulde it fulfille, 5290 But it the more were out of skile, And otherwise not graunt therto, Except only in [cases] two: If men his freend to deth wolde dryve, Lat him be bisy to save his lyve. 5295 Also if men wolen him assayle, Of his wurship to make him faile, And hindren him of his renoun, Lat him, with ful entencioun, His dever doon in ech degree 5300 That his freend ne shamed be, In this two [cases] with his might, Taking no kepe to skile nor right, As ferre as love may him excuse; This oughte no man to refuse." 5305 This love that I have told to thee Is no-thing contrarie to me; This wol I that thou folowe wel, And leve the tother everydel. This love to vertu al attendith, 5310 The tothir fooles blent and shendith. 'Another love also there is, That is contrarie unto this, Which desyre is so constreyned That [it] is but wille feyned; 5315 Awey fro trouthe it doth so varie, That to good love it is contrarie; For it maymeth, in many wyse, Syke hertis with coveityse; Al in winning and in profyt 5320 Sich love settith his delyt. This love so hangeth in balaunce That, if it lese his hope, perchaunce, Of lucre, that he is set upon, It wol faile, and quenche anon; 5325 For no man may be amorous, Ne in his living vertuous, But-[if] he love more, in mood, Men for hem-silf than for hir good. For love that profit doth abyde 5330 Is fals, and bit not in no tyde. [This] love cometh of dame Fortune, That litel whyle wol contune; For it shal chaungen wonder sone, And take eclips right as the mone, 5335 Whan she is from us [y]-let Thurgh erthe, that bitwixe is set The sonne and hir, as it may falle, Be it in party, or in alle; The shadowe maketh her bemis merke, 5340 And hir hornes to shewe derke, That part where she hath lost hir lyght Of Phebus fully, and the sight; Til, whan the shadowe is overpast, She is enlumined ageyn as faste, 5345 Thurgh brightnesse of the sonne bemes That yeveth to hir ageyn hir lemes. That love is right of sich nature; Now is [it] fair, and now obscure. Now bright, now clipsy of manere, 5350 And whylom dim, and whylom clere. As sone as Poverte ginneth take, With mantel and [with] wedis blake [It] hidith of Love the light awey, That into night it turneth day; 5355 It may not see Richesse shyne Til the blakke shadowes fyne. For, whan Richesse shyneth bright, Love recovereth ageyn his light; And whan it failith, he wol flit, 5360 And as she [groweth, so groweth] it. 'Of this love, here what I sey:— The riche men are loved ay, And namely tho that sparand bene, That wol not wasshe hir hertes clene 5365 Of the filthe, nor of the vyce Of gredy brenning avaryce. The riche man ful fond is, y-wis, That weneth that he loved is. If that his herte it undirstood, 5370 It is not he, it is his good; He may wel witen in his thought, His good is loved, and he right nought. For if he be a nigard eke, Men wole not sette by him a leke, 5375 But haten him; this is the soth. Lo, what profit his catel doth! Of every man that may him see, It geteth him nought but enmitee. But he amende him of that vyce, 5380 And knowe him-silf, he is not wys. 'Certis, he shulde ay freendly be, To gete him love also ben free, Or ellis he is not wyse ne sage No more than is a gote ramage. 5385 That he not loveth, his dede proveth, Whan he his richesse so wel loveth, That he wol hyde it ay and spare, His pore freendis seen forfare; To kepe [it ay is] his purpose, 5390 Til for drede his eyen close, And til a wikked deth him take; Him hadde lever asondre shake, And late his limes a sondre ryve, Than leve his richesse in his lyve. 5395 He thenkith parte it with no man; Certayn, no love is in him than. How shulde love within him be, Whan in his herte is no pite? That he trespasseth, wel I wat, 5400 For ech man knowith his estat; For wel him oughte be reproved That loveth nought, ne is not loved. 'But sith we arn to Fortune comen, And [han] our sermoun of hir nomen, 5405 A wondir wil I telle thee now, Thou herdist never sich oon, I trow. I not wher thou me leven shal, Though sothfastnesse it be [in] al, As it is writen, and is sooth, 5410 That unto men more profit doth The froward Fortune and contraire, Than the swote and debonaire: And if thee thinke it is doutable, It is thurgh argument provable. 5415 For the debonaire and softe Falsith and bigylith ofte; For liche a moder she can cherishe And milken as doth a norys; And of hir goode to hem deles, 5420 And yeveth hem part of her loweles, With grete richesse and dignitee; And hem she hoteth stabilitee In a state that is not stable, But chaunging ay and variable; 5425 And fedith hem with glorie veyne, And worldly blisse noncerteyne. Whan she hem settith on hir whele, Than wene they to be right wele, And in so stable state withalle, 5430 That never they wene for to falle. And whan they set so highe be, They wene to have in certeintee Of hertly frendis [so] gret noumbre, That no-thing mighte her stat encombre; 5435 They truste hem so on every syde, Wening with hem they wolde abyde In every perel and mischaunce, Withoute chaunge or variaunce, Bothe of catel and of good; 5440 And also for to spende hir blood And alle hir membris for to spille, Only to fulfille hir wille. They maken it hole in many wyse, And hoten hem hir ful servyse, 5445 How sore that it do hem smerte, Into hir very naked sherte! Herte and al, so hole they yeve, For the tyme that they may live, So that, with her flaterye, 5450 They maken foolis glorifye Of hir wordis [greet] speking, And han [there]-of a reioysing, And trowe hem as the Evangyle; And it is al falsheed and gyle, 5455 As they shal afterwardes see, Whan they arn falle in povertee, And been of good and catel bare; Than shulde they seen who freendis ware. For of an hundred, certeynly, 5460 Nor of a thousand ful scarsly, Ne shal they fynde unnethis oon, Whan povertee is comen upon. For [this] Fortune that I of telle, With men whan hir lust to dwelle, 5465 Makith hem to lese hir conisaunce, And nourishith hem in ignoraunce. 'But froward Fortune and perverse, Whan high estatis she doth reverse, And maketh hem to tumble doun 5470 Of hir whele, with sodeyn tourn, And from hir richesse doth hem flee, And plongeth hem in povertee, As a stepmoder envyous, And leyeth a plastre dolorous 5475 Unto her hertis, wounded egre, Which is not tempred with vinegre, But with poverte and indigence, For to shewe, by experience, That she is Fortune verely 5480 In whom no man shulde affy, Nor in hir yeftis have fiaunce, She is so ful of variaunce. Thus can she maken high and lowe, Whan they from richesse ar[e]n throwe, 5485 Fully to knowen, withouten were, Freend of effect, and freend of chere; And which in love weren trew and stable, And whiche also weren variable, After Fortune, hir goddesse, 5490 In poverte, outher in richesse; For al [she] yeveth, out of drede, Unhappe bereveth it in dede; For Infortune lat not oon Of freendis, whan Fortune is goon; 5495 I mene tho freendis that wol flee Anoon as entreth povertee. And yit they wol not leve hem so, But in ech place where they go They calle hem "wrecche," scorne and blame, 5500 And of hir mishappe hem diffame, And, namely, siche as in richesse Pretendith most of stablenesse, Whan that they sawe him set onlofte, And weren of him socoured ofte, 5505 And most y-holpe in al hir nede: But now they take no maner hede, But seyn, in voice of flaterye, That now apperith hir folye, Over-al where-so they fare, 5510 And singe, "Go, farewel feldefare." Alle suche freendis I beshrewe, For of [the] trewe ther be to fewe; But sothfast freendis, what so bityde, In every fortune wolen abyde; 5515 They han hir hertis in suche noblesse That they nil love for no richesse; Nor, for that Fortune may hem sende, They wolen hem socoure and defende; And chaunge for softe ne for sore, 5520 For who is freend, loveth evermore. Though men drawe swerd his freend to slo, He may not hewe hir love a-two. But, in [the] case that I shal sey, For pride and ire lese it he may, 5525 And for reprove by nycetee, And discovering of privitee, With tonge wounding, as feloun, Thurgh venemous detraccioun. Frend in this case wol gon his way, 5530 For no-thing greve him more ne may; And for nought ellis wol he flee, If that he love in stabilitee. And certeyn, he is wel bigoon Among a thousand that fyndith oon. 5535 For ther may be no richesse, Ageyns frendship, of worthinesse; For it ne may so high atteigne As may the valoure, sooth to seyne, Of him that loveth trew and wel; 5540 Frendship is more than is catel. For freend in court ay better is Than peny in [his] purs, certis; And Fortune, mishapping, Whan upon men she is [falling], 5545 Thurgh misturning of hir chaunce, And casteth hem oute of balaunce, She makith, thurgh hir adversitee, Men ful cleerly for to see Him that is freend in existence 5550 From him that is by apparence. For Infortune makith anoon To knowe thy freendis fro thy foon, By experience, right as it is; The which is more to preyse, y-wis, 5555 Than [is] miche richesse and tresour; For more [doth] profit and valour Poverte, and such adversitee, Bifore than doth prosperitee; For the toon yeveth conisaunce, 5560 And the tother ignoraunce. 'And thus in poverte is in dede Trouthe declared fro falsehede; For feynte frendis it wol declare, And trewe also, what wey they fare. 5565 For whan he was in his richesse, These freendis, ful of doublenesse, Offrid him in many wyse Hert and body, and servyse. What wolde he than ha [yeve] to ha bought 5570 To knowen openly her thought, That he now hath so clerly seen? The lasse bigyled he sholde have been And he hadde than perceyved it, But richesse nold not late him wit. 5575 Wel more avauntage doth him than, Sith that it makith him a wys man, The greet mischeef that he [receyveth], Than doth richesse that him deceyveth. Richesse riche ne makith nought 5580 Him that on tresour set his thought; For richesse stont in suffisaunce And no-thing in habundaunce; For suffisaunce al-only Makith men to live richely. 5585 For he that hath [but] miches tweyne, Ne [more] value in his demeigne, Liveth more at ese, and more is riche, Than doth he that is [so] chiche, And in his bern hath, soth to seyn, 5590 An hundred [muwis] of whete greyn, Though he be chapman or marchaunt, And have of golde many besaunt. For in the geting he hath such wo, And in the keping drede also, 5595 And set evermore his bisynesse For to encrese, and not to lesse, For to augment and multiply. And though on hepis [it] lye him by, Yit never shal make his richesse 5600 Asseth unto his gredinesse. But the povre that recchith nought, Save of his lyflode, in his thought, Which that he getith with his travaile, He dredith nought that it shal faile, 5605 Though he have lytel worldis good, Mete and drinke, and esy food, Upon his travel and living, And also suffisaunt clothing. Or if in syknesse that he falle, 5610 And lothe mete and drink withalle, Though he have nought, his mete to by, He shal bithinke him hastely, To putte him out of al daunger, That he of mete hath no mister; 5615 Or that he may with litel eke Be founden, whyl that he is seke; Or that men shul him bere in hast, To live, til his syknesse be past, To somme maysondewe bisyde; 5620 He cast nought what shal him bityde. He thenkith nought that ever he shal Into any syknesse falle. 'And though it falle, as it may be, That al betyme spare shal he 5625 As mochel as shal to him suffyce, Whyl he is syke in any wyse, He doth [it], for that he wol be Content with his povertee Withoute nede of any man. 5630 So miche in litel have he can, He is apayed with his fortune; And for he nil be importune Unto no wight, ne onerous, Nor of hir goodes coveitous; 5635 Therfore he spareth, it may wel been, His pore estat for to sustene. 'Or if him lust not for to spare, But suffrith forth, as nought ne ware, Atte last it hapneth, as it may, 5640 Right unto his laste day, And taketh the world as it wolde be; For ever in herte thenkith he, The soner that [the] deeth him slo, To paradys the soner go 5645 He shal, there for to live in blisse, Where that he shal no good misse. Thider he hopith god shal him sende Aftir his wrecchid lyves ende. Pictagoras himsilf reherses, 5650 In a book that the Golden verses Is clepid, for the nobilitee Of the honourable ditee:— "Than, whan thou gost thy body fro, Free in the eir thou shalt up go, 5655 And leven al humanitee, And purely live in deitee."— He is a fool, withouten were, That trowith have his countre here. "In erthe is not our countree," 5660 That may these clerkis seyn and see In Boece of Consolacioun, Where it is maked mencioun Of our countree pleyn at the eye, By teching of philosophye, 5665 Where lewid men might lere wit, Who-so that wolde translaten it. If he be sich that can wel live Aftir his rente may him yive, And not desyreth more to have, 5670 That may fro povertee him save: A wys man seide, as we may seen, Is no man wrecched, but he it wene, Be he king, knight, or ribaud. And many a ribaud is mery and baud, 5675 That swinkith, and berith, bothe day and night, Many a burthen of gret might, The whiche doth him lasse offense, For he suffrith in pacience. They laugh and daunce, trippe and singe, 5680 And ley not up for her living, But in the tavern al dispendith The winning that god hem sendith. Than goth he, fardels for to bere, With as good chere as he dide ere; 5685 To swinke and traveile he not feynith, For for to robben he disdeynith; But right anoon, aftir his swinke, He goth to tavern for to drinke. Alle these ar riche in abundaunce, 5690 That can thus have suffisaunce Wel more than can an usurere, As god wel knowith, withoute were. For an usurer, so god me see, Shal never for richesse riche bee, 5695 But evermore pore and indigent, Scarce, and gredy in his entent. 'For soth it is, whom it displese, Ther may no marchaunt live at ese, His herte in sich a were is set, 5700 That it quik brenneth [more] to get, Ne never shal [enough have] geten; Though he have gold in gerners yeten, For to be nedy he dredith sore. Wherfore to geten more and more 5705 He set his herte and his desire; So hote he brennith in the fire Of coveitise, that makith him wood To purchase other mennes good. He undirfongith a gret peyne, 5710 That undirtakith to drinke up Seyne; For the more he drinkith, ay The more he leveth, the soth to say. [This is the] thurst of fals geting, That last ever in coveiting, 5715 And the anguisshe and distresse With the fire of gredinesse. She fighteth with him ay, and stryveth, That his herte asondre ryveth; Such gredinesse him assaylith, 5720 That whan he most hath, most he faylith. Phisiciens and advocates Gon right by the same yates; They selle hir science for winning, And haunte hir crafte for greet geting. 5725 Hir winning is of such swetnesse, That if a man falle in sikenesse, They are ful glad, for hir encrese; For by hir wille, withoute lees, Everiche man shulde be seke, 5730 And though they dye, they set not a leke. After, whan they the gold have take, Ful litel care for hem they make. They wolde that fourty were seke at onis, Ye, two hundred, in flesh and bonis, 5735 And yit two thousand, as I gesse, For to encresen her richesse. They wol not worchen, in no wyse, But for lucre and coveityse; For fysyk ginneth first by fy, 5740 The fysycien also sothely; And sithen it goth fro fy to sy; To truste on hem, it is foly; For they nil, in no maner gree, Do right nought for charitee. 5745 'Eke in the same secte are set Alle tho that prechen for to get Worshipes, honour, and richesse. Her hertis arn in greet distresse, That folk [ne] live not holily. 5750 But aboven al, specialy, Sich as prechen [for] veynglorie, And toward god have no memorie, But forth as ypocrites trace, And to her soules deth purchace, 5755 And outward [shewen] holynesse, Though they be fulle of cursidnesse. Not liche to the apostles twelve, They deceyve other and hem-selve; Bigyled is the gyler than. 5760 For preching of a cursed man, Though [it] to other may profyte, Himsilf availeth not a myte; For oft good predicacioun Cometh of evel entencioun. 5765 To him not vailith his preching, Al helpe he other with his teching; For where they good ensaumple take, There is he with veynglorie shake. 'But lat us leven these prechoures, 5770 And speke of hem that in her toures Hepe up her gold, and faste shette, And sore theron her herte sette. They neither love god, ne drede; They kepe more than it is nede, 5775 And in her bagges sore it binde, Out of the sonne, and of the winde; They putte up more than nede ware, Whan they seen pore folk forfare, For hunger dye, and for cold quake; 5780 God can wel vengeaunce therof take. [Thre] gret mischeves hem assailith, And thus in gadring ay travaylith; With moche peyne they winne richesse; And drede hem holdith in distresse, 5785 To kepe that they gadre faste; With sorwe they leve it at the laste; With sorwe they bothe dye and live, That to richesse her hertis yive, And in defaute of love it is, 5790 As it shewith ful wel, y-wis. For if these gredy, the sothe to seyn, Loveden, and were loved ageyn, And good love regned over-alle, Such wikkidnesse ne shulde falle; 5795 But he shulde yeve that most good had To hem that weren in nede bistad, And live withoute fals usure, For charitee ful clene and pure. If they hem yeve to goodnesse, 5800 Defending hem from ydelnesse, In al this world than pore noon We shulde finde, I trowe, not oon. But chaunged is this world unstable; For love is over-al vendable. 5805 We see that no man loveth now But for winning and for prow; And love is thralled in servage Whan it is sold for avauntage; Yit wommen wol hir bodies selle; 5810 Suche soules goth to the devel of helle.'

FRAGMENT C.

Whan Love had told hem his entente, The baronage to councel wente; In many sentences they fille, And dyversly they seide hir wille: 5815 But aftir discord they accorded, And hir accord to Love recorded. Sir,' seiden they, 'we been at oon, By even accord of everichoon, Out-take Richesse al-only, 5820 That sworen hath ful hauteynly, That she the castel nil assaile, Ne smyte a stroke in this bataile, With dart, ne mace, spere, ne knyf, For man that speketh or bereth the lyf, 5825 And blameth your empryse, y-wis, And from our hoost departed is, (At leeste wey, as in this plyte,) So hath she this man in dispyte; For she seith he ne loved hir never, 5830 And therfor she wol hate him ever. For he wol gadre no tresore, He hath hir wrath for evermore. He agilte hir never in other caas, Lo, here al hoolly his trespas! 5835 She seith wel, that this other day He asked hir leve to goon the way That is clepid To-moche-Yeving, And spak ful faire in his praying; But whan he prayde hir, pore was he, 5840 Therfore she warned him the entree. Ne yit is he not thriven so That he hath geten a peny or two, That quitly is his owne in hold. Thus hath Richesse us alle told; 5845 And whan Richesse us this recorded, Withouten hir we been accorded. 'And we finde in our accordaunce, That False-Semblant and Abstinaunce, With alle the folk of hir bataile, 5850 Shulle at the hinder gate assayle, That Wikkid-Tunge hath in keping, With his Normans, fulle of langling. And with hem Curtesie and Largesse, That shulle shewe hir hardinesse 5855 To the olde wyf that [kepeth] so harde Fair-Welcoming within her warde. Than shal Delyte and Wel-Helinge Fonde Shame adoun to bringe; With al hir hoost, erly and late, 5860 They shulle assailen [thilke] gate. Agaynes Drede shal Hardinesse Assayle, and also Sikernesse, With al the folk of hir leding, That never wist what was fleing. 5865 'Fraunchyse shal fighte, and eek Pitee, With Daunger ful of crueltee. Thus is your hoost ordeyned wel; Doun shal the castel every del, If everiche do his entente, 5870 So that Venus be presente, Your modir, ful of vassalage, That can y-nough of such usage; Withouten hir may no wight spede This werk, neither for word ne dede. 5875 Therfore is good ye for hir sende, For thurgh hir may this werk amende.' Amour. 'Lordinges, my modir, the goddesse, That is my lady, and my maistresse, Nis not [at] al at my willing, 5880 Ne doth not al my desyring. Yit can she som-tyme doon labour, Whan that hir lust, in my socour, [Al my nedis] for to acheve, But now I thenke hir not to greve. 5885 My modir is she, and of childhede I bothe worshipe hir, and eek drede; For who that dredith sire ne dame Shal it abye in body or name. And, natheles, yit cunne we 5890 Sende aftir hir, if nede be; And were she nigh, she comen wolde, I trowe that no-thing might hir holde. 'My modir is of greet prowesse; She hath tan many a forteresse, 5895 That cost hath many a pound er this, Ther I nas not present, y-wis; And yit men seide it was my dede; But I come never in that stede; Ne me ne lykith, so mote I thee, 5900 Such toures take withoute me. For-why me thenketh that, in no wyse, It may ben cleped but marchandise. 'Go bye a courser, blak or whyte, And pay therfor; than art thou quyte. 5905 The marchaunt oweth thee right nought, Ne thou him, whan thou [hast] it bought. I wol not selling clepe yeving, For selling axeth no guerdoning; Here lyth no thank, ne no meryte, 5910 That oon goth from that other al quyte. But this selling is not semblable; For, whan his hors is in the stable, He may it selle ageyn, pardee, And winne on it, such hap may be; 5915 Al may the man not lese, y-wis, For at the leest the skin is his. Or elles, if it so bityde That he wol kepe his hors to ryde, Yit is he lord ay of his hors. 5920 But thilke chaffare is wel wors, There Venus entremeteth nought; For who-so such chaffare hath bought, He shal not worchen so wysly, That he ne shal lese al outerly 5925 Bothe his money and his chaffare; But the seller of the ware The prys and profit have shal. Certeyn, the byer shal lese al; For he ne can so dere it bye 5930 To have lordship and ful maistrye, Ne have power to make letting Neither for yift ne for preching, That of his chaffare, maugre his, Another shal have as moche, y-wis, 5935 If he wol yeve as moche as he, Of what contrey so that he be; Or for right nought, so happe may, If he can flater hir to hir pay. Ben than suche marchaunts wyse? 5940 No, but fooles in every wyse, Whan they bye such thing wilfully, Ther-as they lese her good [fully]. But natheles, this dar I saye, My modir is not wont to paye, 5945 For she is neither so fool ne nyce, To entremete hir of sich vyce. But truste wel, he shal paye al, That repente of his bargeyn shal, Whan Poverte put him in distresse, 5950 Al were he scoler to Richesse, That is for me in gret yerning, Whan she assenteth to my willing. 'But, [by] my modir seint Venus, And by hir fader Saturnus, 5955 That hir engendrid by his lyf, But not upon his weddid wyf! Yit wol I more unto you swere, To make this thing the seurere; Now by that feith, and that leautee 5960 I owe to alle my brethren free, Of which ther nis wight under heven That can her fadris names neven, So dyvers and so many ther be That with my modir have be privee! 5965 Yit wolde I swere, for sikirnesse, The pole of helle to my witnesse, Now drinke I not this yeer clarree, If that I lye, or forsworn be! (For of the goddes the usage is, 5970 That who-so him forswereth amis, Shal that yeer drinke no clarree). Now have I sworn y-nough, pardee; If I forswere me, than am I lorn, But I wol never be forsworn. 5975 Sith Richesse hath me failed here, She shal abye that trespas dere, At leeste wey, but [she] hir arme With swerd, or sparth, or gisarme. For certes, sith she loveth not me, 5980 Fro thilke tyme that she may see The castel and the tour to-shake, In sory tyme she shal awake. If I may grype a riche man, I shal so pulle him, if I can, 5985 That he shal, in a fewe stoundes, Lese alle his markes and his poundes. I shal him make his pens outslinge, But-[if] they in his gerner springe; Our maydens shal eek plukke him so, 5990 That him shal neden fetheres mo, And make him selle his lond to spende, But he the bet cunne him defende. 'Pore men han maad hir lord of me; Although they not so mighty be, 5995 That they may fede me in delyt, I wol not have hem in despyt. No good man hateth hem, as I gesse, For chinche and feloun is Richesse, That so can chase hem and dispyse, 6000 And hem defoule in sondry wyse. They loven ful bet, so god me spede, Than doth the riche, chinchy grede, And been, in good feith, more stable And trewer, and more serviable; 6005 And therfore it suffysith me Hir goode herte, and hir leautee. They han on me set al hir thought, And therfore I forgete hem nought. I wolde hem bringe in greet noblesse, 6010 If that I were god of Richesse, As I am god of Love, sothly, Such routhe upon hir pleynt have I. Therfore I must his socour be, That peyneth him to serven me; 6015 For if he deyde for love of this, Than semeth in me no love ther is.' 'Sir,' seide they, 'sooth is, every del, That ye reherce, and we wot wel Thilk oth to holde is resonable; 6020 For it is good and covenable, That ye on riche men han sworn. For, sir, this wot we wel biforn; If riche men doon you homage, That is as fooles doon outrage; 6025 But ye shul not forsworen be, Ne let therfore to drinke clarree, Or piment maked fresh and newe. Ladyes shulle hem such pepir brewe, If that they falle into hir laas, 6030 That they for we mowe seyn "Allas!" Ladyes shuln ever so curteis be, That they shal quyte your oth al free. Ne seketh never other vicaire, For they shal speke with hem so faire 6035 That ye shal holde you payed ful wel, Though ye you medle never a del. Lat ladies worche with hir thinges, They shal hem telle so fele tydinges, And moeve hem eke so many requestis 6040 By flatery, that not honest is, And therto yeve hem such thankinges, What with kissing, and with talkinges, That certes, if they trowed be, Shal never leve hem loud ne fee 6045 That it nil as the moeble fare, Of which they first delivered are. Now may ye telle us al your wille, And we your hestes shal fulfille. 'But Fals-Semblant dar not, for drede 6050 Of you, sir, medle him of this dede, For he seith that ye been his fo; He not, if ye wol worche him wo. Wherfore we pray you alle, beausire, That ye forgive him now your ire, 6055 And that he may dwelle, as your man, With Abstinence, his dere lemman; This our accord and our wil now.' 'Parfay,' seide Love, 'I graunte it yow; I wol wel holde him for my man; 6060 Now lat him come:' and he forth ran. Fals-Semblant,' quod Love, 'in this wyse I take thee here to my servyse, That thou our freendis helpe alway, And hindre hem neithir night ne day, 6065 But do thy might hem to releve, And eek our enemies that thou greve. Thyn be this might, I graunt it thee, My king of harlotes shalt thou be; We wol that thou have such honour. 6070 Certeyn, thou art a fals traitour, And eek a theef; sith thou were born, A thousand tyme thou art forsworn. But, natheles, in our hering, To putte our folk out of douting, 6075 I bid thee teche hem, wostow how? By somme general signe now, In what place thou shalt founden be, If that men had mister of thee; And how men shal thee best espye, 6080 For thee to knowe is greet maistrye; Tel in what place is thyn haunting.' F. Sem. 'Sir, I have fele dyvers woning, That I kepe not rehersed be, So that ye wolde respyten me. 6085 For if that I telle you the sothe, I may have harm and shame bothe. If that my felowes wisten it, My tales shulden me be quit; For certeyn, they wolde hate me, 6090 If ever I knewe hir cruelte; For they wolde over-al holde hem stille Of trouthe that is ageyn hir wille; Suche tales kepen they not here. I might eftsone bye it ful dere, 6095 If I seide of hem any thing, That ought displeseth to hir hering. For what word that hem prikke or byteth, In that word noon of hem delyteth, Al were it gospel, the evangyle, 6100 That wolde reprove hem of hir gyle, For they are cruel and hauteyn. And this thing wot I wel, certeyn, If I speke ought to peire hir loos, Your court shal not so wel be cloos, 6105 That they ne shal wite it atte last. Of good men am I nought agast, For they wol taken on hem nothing, Whan that they knowe al my mening; But he that wol it on him take, 6110 He wol himself suspecious make, That he his lyf let covertly, In Gyle and in Ipocrisy, That me engendred and yaf fostring.' 'They made a ful good engendring,' 6115 Quod Love, 'for who-so soothly telle, They engendred the devel of helle! 'But nedely, how-so-ever it be,' Quod Love, 'I wol and charge thee, To telle anoon thy woning-places, 6120 Hering ech wight that in this place is: And what lyf that thou livest also, Hyde it no lenger now; wherto? Thou most discover al thy wurching, How thou servest, and of what thing, 6125 Though that thou shuldest for thy soth-sawe Ben al to-beten and to-drawe; And yit art thou not wont, pardee. But natheles, though thou beten be, Thou shalt not be the first, that so 6130 Hath for soth-sawe suffred wo.' F. Sem. 'Sir, sith that it may lyken you, Though that I shulde be slayn right now, I shal don your comaundement, For therto have I gret talent.' 6135 Withouten wordes mo, right than, Fals-Semblant his sermon bigan, And seide hem thus in audience:— Barouns, tak hede of my sentence! That wight that list to have knowing 6140 Of Fals-Semblant, ful of flatering, He must in worldly folk him seke, And, certes, in the cloistres eke; I wone no-where but in hem tweye; But not lyk even, sooth to seye; 6145 Shortly, I wol herberwe me There I hope best to hulstred be; And certeynly, sikerest hyding Is undirneth humblest clothing. 'Religious folk ben ful covert; 6150 Seculer folk ben more appert. But natheles, I wol not blame Religious folk, ne hem diffame, In what habit that ever they go: Religioun humble, and trewe also, 6155 Wol I not blame, ne dispyse, But I nil love it, in no wyse. I mene of fals religious, That stoute ben, and malicious; That wolen in an abit go, 6160 And setten not hir herte therto. 'Religious folk ben al pitous; Thou shalt not seen oon dispitous. They loven no pryde, ne no stryf, But humbly they wol lede hir lyf; 6165 With swich folk wol I never be. And if I dwelle, I feyne me I may wel in her abit go; But me were lever my nekke atwo, Than lete a purpose that I take, 6170 What covenaunt that ever I make. I dwelle with hem that proude be, And fulle of wyles and subtelte; That worship of this world coveyten, And grete nedes cunne espleyten; 6175 And goon and gadren greet pitaunces, And purchace hem the acqueyntaunces Of men that mighty lyf may leden; And feyne hem pore, and hem-self feden With gode morcels delicious, 6180 And drinken good wyn precious, And preche us povert and distresse, And fisshen hem-self greet richesse With wyly nettis that they caste: It wol come foul out at the laste. 6185 They ben fro clene religioun went; They make the world an argument That hath a foul conclusioun. "I have a robe of religioun, Than am I al religious:" 6190 This argument is al roignous; It is not worth a croked brere; Habit ne maketh monk ne frere, But clene lyf and devocioun Maketh gode men of religioun. 6195 Nathelesse, ther can noon answere, How high that ever his heed he shere With rasour whetted never so kene, That Gyle in braunches cut thrittene; Ther can no wight distincte it so, 6200 That he dar sey a word therto. 'But what herberwe that ever I take, Or what semblant that ever I make, I mene but gyle, and folowe that; For right no mo than Gibbe our cat 6205 [Fro myce and rattes went his wyle], Ne entende I [not] but to begyle; Ne no wight may, by my clothing, Wite with what folk is my dwelling; Ne by my wordis yet, pardee, 6210 So softe and so plesaunt they be. Bihold the dedis that I do; But thou be blind, thou oughtest so; For, varie hir wordis fro hir dede, They thenke on gyle, withouten drede, 6215 What maner clothing that they were, Or what estat that ever they bere, Lered or lewd, lord or lady, Knight, squier, burgeis, or bayly.' Right thus whyl Fals-Semblant sermoneth, 6220 Eftsones Love him aresoneth, And brak his tale in the speking As though he had him told lesing; And seide: 'What, devel, is that I here? What folk hast thou us nempned here? 6225 May men finde religioun In worldly habitacioun?' F. Sem. 'Ye, sir; it foloweth not that they Shulde lede a wikked lyf, parfey, Ne not therfore her soules lese, 6230 That hem to worldly clothes chese; For, certis, it were gret pitee. Men may in seculer clothes see Florisshen holy religioun. Ful many a seynt in feeld and toun, 6235 With many a virgin glorious, Devout, and ful religious, Had deyed, that comun clothe ay beren, Yit seyntes never-the-les they weren. I coude reken you many a ten; 6240 Ye, wel nigh alle these holy wimmen, That men in chirchis herie and seke, Bothe maydens, and these wyves eke, That baren many a fair child here, Wered alwey clothis seculere, 6245 And in the same dyden they, That seyntes weren, and been alwey. The eleven thousand maydens dere, That beren in heven hir ciergis clere, Of which men rede in chirche, and singe, 6250 Were take in seculer clothing, Whan they resseyved martirdom, And wonnen heven unto her hoom. Good herte makith the gode thought; The clothing yeveth ne reveth nought. 6255 The gode thought and the worching, That maketh religioun flowring, Ther lyth the good religioun Aftir the right entencioun. 'Who-so toke a wethers skin, 6260 And wrapped a gredy wolf therin, For he shulde go with lambis whyte, Wenest thou not he wolde hem byte? Yis! never-the-las, as he were wood, He wolde hem wery, and drinke the blood; 6265 And wel the rather hem disceyve, For, sith they coude not perceyve His treget and his crueltee, They wolde him folowe, al wolde he flee. 'If ther be wolves of sich hewe 6270 Amonges these apostlis newe, Thou, holy chirche, thou mayst be wayled! Sith that thy citee is assayled Thourgh knightis of thyn owne table, God wot thy lordship is doutable! 6275 If they enforce [hem] it to winne, That shulde defende it fro withinne, Who might defence ayens hem make? Withouten stroke it mot be take Of trepeget or mangonel; 6280 Without displaying of pensel. And if god nil don it socour, But lat [hem] renne in this colour, Thou moost thyn heestis laten be. Than is ther nought, but yelde thee, 6285 Or yeve hem tribute, doutelees, And holde it of hem to have pees: But gretter harm bityde thee, That they al maister of it be. Wel conne they scorne thee withal; 6290 By day stuffen they the wal, And al the night they mynen there. Nay, thou most planten elleswhere Thyn impes, if thou wolt fruyt have; Abyd not there thy-self to save. 6295 'But now pees! here I turne ageyn; I wol no more of this thing seyn, If I may passen me herby; I mighte maken you wery. But I wol heten you alway 6300 To helpe your freendis what I may, So they wollen my company; For they be shent al-outerly But-if so falle, that I be Oft with hem, and they with me. 6305 And eek my lemman mot they serve, Or they shul not my love deserve. Forsothe, I am a fals traitour; God iugged me for a theef trichour; Forsworn I am, but wel nygh non 6310 Wot of my gyle, til it be don. 'Thourgh me hath many oon deth resseyved, That my treget never aperceyved; And yit resseyveth, and shal resseyve, That my falsnesse never aperceyve: 6315 But who-so doth, if he wys be, Him is right good be war of me. But so sligh is the [deceyving That to hard is the] aperceyving. For Protheus, that coude him chaunge 6320 In every shap, hoomly and straunge, Coude never sich gyle ne tresoun As I; for I com never in toun Ther-as I mighte knowen be, Though men me bothe might here and see. 6325 Ful wel I can my clothis chaunge, Take oon, and make another straunge. Now am I knight, now chasteleyn; Now prelat, and now chapeleyn; Now prest, now clerk, and now forstere; 6330 Now am I maister, now scolere; Now monk, now chanoun, now baily; What-ever mister man am I. Now am I prince, now am I page, And can by herte every langage. 6335 Som-tyme am I hoor and old; Now am I yong, [and] stout, and bold; Now am I Robert, now Robyn; Now frere Menour, now Iacobyn; And with me folweth my loteby, 6340 To don me solas and company, That hight dame Abstinence-Streyned, In many a queynt array [y]-feyned. Right as it cometh to hir lyking, I fulfille al hir desiring. 6345 Somtyme a wommans cloth take I; Now am I mayde, now lady. Somtyme I am religious; Now lyk an anker in an hous. Somtyme am I prioresse, 6350 And now a nonne, and now abbesse; And go thurgh alle regiouns, Seking alle religiouns. But to what ordre that I am sworn, I take the strawe, and lete the corn; 6355 To [blynde] folk [ther] I enhabite, I axe no-more but hir abite. What wol ye more? in every wyse, Right as me list, I me disgyse. Wel can I bere me under weed; 6360 Unlyk is my word to my deed. Thus make I in my trappis falle, Thurgh my pryvileges, alle That ben in Cristendom alyve. I may assoile, and I may shryve, 6365 That no prelat may lette me, Al folk, wher-ever they founde be: I noot no prelat may don so, But it the pope be, and no mo, That made thilk establisshing. 6370 Now is not this a propre thing? But, were my sleightis aperceyved, [Ne shulde I more been receyved] As I was wont; and wostow why? For I dide hem a tregetry; 6375 But therof yeve I litel tale, I have the silver and the male; So have I preched and eek shriven, So have I take, so have [me] yiven, Thurgh hir foly, husbond and wyf, 6380 That I lede right a Ioly lyf, Thurgh simplesse of the prelacye; They know not al my tregetrye. 'But for as moche as man and wyf Shuld shewe hir paroche-prest hir lyf 6385 Ones a yeer, as seith the book, Er any wight his housel took, Than have I pryvilegis large, That may of moche thing discharge; For he may seye right thus, pardee:— 6390 "Sir Preest, in shrift I telle it thee, That he, to whom that I am shriven, Hath me assoiled, and me yiven Penaunce soothly, for my sinne, Which that I fond me gilty inne; 6395 Ne I ne have never entencioun To make double confessioun, Ne reherce eft my shrift to thee; O shrift is right y-nough to me. This oughte thee suffyce wel, 6400 Ne be not rebel never-a-del; For certis, though thou haddest it sworn, I wot no prest ne prelat born That may to shrift eft me constreyne. And if they don, I wol me pleyne; 6405 For I wot where to pleyne wel. Thou shall not streyne me a del, Ne enforce me, ne [yit] me trouble, To make my confessioun double. Ne I have none affeccioun 6410 To have double absolucioun. The firste is right y-nough to me; This latter assoiling quyte I thee. I am unbounde; what mayst thou finde More of my sinnes me to unbinde? 6415 For he, that might hath in his hond, Of alle my sinnes me unbond. And if thou wolt me thus constreyne, That me mot nedis on thee pleyne, There shal no Iugge imperial, 6420 Ne bisshop, ne official, Don Iugement on me; for I Shal gon and pleyne me openly Unto my shrift-fadir newe, (That hight not Frere Wolf untrewe!) 6425 And he shal chevise him for me, For I trowe he can hampre thee. But, lord! he wolde be wrooth withalle, If men him wolde Frere Wolf calle! For he wolde have no pacience, 6430 But don al cruel vengeaunce! He wolde his might don at the leest, [Ne] no-thing spare for goddis heest. And, god so wis be my socour, But thou yeve me my Saviour 6435 At Ester, whan it lyketh me, Withoute presing more on thee, I wol forth, and to him goon, And he shal housel me anoon, For I am out of thy grucching; 6440 I kepe not dele with thee nothing." Thus may he shryve him, that forsaketh His paroche-prest, and to me taketh. And if the prest wol him refuse, I am ful redy him to accuse, 6445 And him punisshe and hampre so, That he his chirche shal forgo. 'But who-so hath in his feling The consequence of such shryving, Shal seen that prest may never have might 6450 To knowe the conscience aright Of him that is under his cure. And this ageyns holy scripture, That biddeth every herde honeste Have verry knowing of his beste. 6455 But pore folk that goon by strete, That have no gold, ne sommes grete, Hem wolde I lete to her prelates, Or lete hir prestis knowe hir states, For to me right nought yeve they.' Amour. 'And why is it?' 6460 F. Sem. 'For they ne may. They ben so bare, I take no keep; But I wol have the fatte sheep;— Lat parish prestis have the lene, I yeve not of hir harm a bene! 6465 And if that prelats grucchen it, That oughten wroth be in hir wit, To lese her fatte bestes so, I shal yeve hem a stroke or two, That they shal lesen with [the] force, 6470 Ye, bothe hir mytre and hir croce. Thus Iape I hem, and have do longe, My priveleges been so stronge.' Fals-Semblant wolde have stinted here, But Love ne made him no such chere 6475 That he was wery of his sawe; But for to make him glad and fawe, He seide:—'Tel on more specialy, How that thou servest untrewly. Tel forth, and shame thee never a del; 6480 For as thyn abit shewith wel, Thou [semest] an holy heremyte.' F. Sem. 'Soth is, but I am an ypocryte.' Amour. 'Thou gost and prechest povertee?' F. Sem. 'Ye, sir; but richesse hath poustee.' 6485 Amour. 'Thou prechest abstinence also?' F. Sem. 'Sir, I wol fillen, so mote I go, My paunche of gode mete and wyne, As shulde a maister of divyne; For how that I me pover feyne, 6490 Yit alle pore folk I disdeyne. 'I love bet the acqueyntaunce Ten tymes, of the king of Fraunce, Than of pore man of mylde mode, Though that his soule be also gode. 6495 For whan I see beggers quaking, Naked on mixens al stinking, For hungre crye, and eek for care, I entremete not of hir fare. They been so pore, and ful of pyne, 6500 They might not ones yeve me dyne, For they have no-thing but hir lyf; What shulde he yeve that likketh his knyf? It is but foly to entremete, To seke in houndes nest fat mete. 6505 Let bere hem to the spitel anoon, But, for me, comfort gete they noon. But a riche sike usurere Wolde I visyte and drawe nere; Him wol I comforte and rehete, 6510 For I hope of his gold to gete. And if that wikked deth him have, I wol go with him to his grave. And if ther any reprove me, Why that I lete the pore be, 6515 Wostow how I [mot] ascape? I sey, and swerë him ful rape, That riche men han more tecches Of sinne, than han pore wrecches, And han of counseil more mister; 6520 And therfore I wol drawe hem ner. But as gret hurt, it may so be, Hath soule in right gret poverte, As soul in gret richesse, forsothe, Al-be-it that they hurten bothe. 6525 For richesse and mendicitees Ben cleped two extremitees; The mene is cleped suffisaunce, Ther lyth of vertu the aboundaunce. For Salamon, ful wel I woot, 6530 In his Parables us wroot, As it is knowe of many a wight, In his [thrittethe] chapitre right: "God, thou me kepe, for thy poustee, Fro richesse and mendicitee; 6535 For if a riche man him dresse To thenke to moche on [his] richesse, His herte on that so fer is set, That he his creatour foryet; And him, that [begging] wol ay greve, 6540 How shulde I by his word him leve? Unnethe that he nis a micher, Forsworn, or elles [god is] lyer." Thus seith Salamones sawes; Ne we finde writen in no lawes, 6545 And namely in our Cristen lay— (Who seith "ye," I dar sey "nay")— That Crist, ne his apostlis dere, Whyl that they walkede in erthe here, Were never seen her bred begging, 6550 For they nolde beggen for nothing. And right thus were men wont to teche; And in this wyse wolde it preche The maistres of divinitee Somtyme in Paris the citee. 6555 'And if men wolde ther-geyn appose The naked text, and lete the glose, It mighte sone assoiled be; For men may wel the sothe see, That, parde, they mighte axe a thing 6560 Pleynly forth, without begging. For they weren goddis herdis dere, And cure of soules hadden here, They nolde no-thing begge hir fode; For aftir Crist was don on rode, 6565 With [hir] propre hondis they wrought, And with travel, and elles nought, They wonnen al hir sustenaunce, And liveden forth in hir penaunce, And the remenaunt [yeve] awey 6570 To other pore folk alwey. They neither bilden tour ne halle, But [leye] in houses smale withalle. A mighty man, that can and may, Shulde with his honde and body alway 6575 Winne him his food in laboring, If he ne have rent or sich a thing, Although he be religious, And god to serven curious. Thus mote he don, or do trespas, 6580 But-if it be in certeyn cas, That I can reherce, if mister be, Right wel, whan the tyme I see. 'Seke the book of Seynt Austin, Be it in paper or perchemin, 6585 There-as he writ of these worchinges, Thou shalt seen that non excusinges A parfit man ne shulde seke By wordis, ne by dedis eke, Although he be religious, 6590 And god to serven curious, That he ne shal, so mote I go, With propre hondis and body also, Gete his food in laboring, If he ne have propretee of thing. 6595 Yit shulde he selle al his substaunce, And with his swink have sustenaunce, If he be parfit in bountee. Thus han tho bookes tolde me: For he that wol gon ydilly, 6600 And useth it ay besily To haunten other mennes table, He is a trechour, ful of fable; Ne he ne may, by gode resoun, Excuse him by his orisoun. 6605 For men bihoveth, in som gyse, Som-tyme [leven] goddes servyse To gon and purchasen her nede. Men mote eten, that is no drede, And slepe, and eek do other thing; 6610 So longe may they leve praying. So may they eek hir prayer blinne, While that they werke, hir mete to winne. Seynt Austin wol therto accorde, In thilke book that I recorde. 6615 Justinian eek, that made lawes, Hath thus forboden, by olde dawes, "No man, up peyne to be deed, Mighty of body, to begge his breed, If he may swinke, it for to gete; 6620 Men shulde him rather mayme or bete, Or doon of him apert Iustice, Than suffren him in such malice." They don not wel, so mote I go, That taken such almesse so, 6625 But if they have som privelege, That of the peyne hem wol allege. But how that is, can I not see, But-if the prince disseyved be; Ne I ne wene not, sikerly, 6630 That they may have it rightfully. But I wol not determyne Of princes power, ne defyne, Ne by my word comprende, y-wis, If it so fer may strecche in this. 6635 I wol not entremete a del; But I trowe that the book seith wel, Who that taketh almesses, that be Dewe to folk that men may see Lame, feble, wery, and bare, 6640 Pore, or in such maner care, (That conne winne hem nevermo, For they have no power therto), He eteth his owne dampning, But-if he lye, that made al thing. 6645 And if ye such a truaunt finde, Chastise him wel, if ye be kinde. But they wolde hate you, percas, And, if ye fillen in hir laas, They wolde eftsones do you scathe, 6650 If that they mighte, late or rathe; For they be not ful pacient, That han the world thus foule blent. And witeth wel, [wher] that god bad The good man selle al that he had, 6655 And folowe him, and to pore it yive, He wolde not therfore that he live To serven him in mendience, For it was never his sentence; But he bad wirken whan that nede is, 6660 And folwe him in goode dedis. Seynt Poule, that loved al holy chirche, He bade thapostles for to wirche, And winnen hir lyflode in that wyse, And hem defended truaundyse, 6665 And seide, "Wirketh with your honden;" Thus shulde the thing be undirstonden. He nolde, y-wis, bidde hem begging, Ne sellen gospel, ne preching, Lest they berafte, with hir asking, 6670 Folk of hir catel or of hir thing. For in this world is many a man That yeveth his good, for he ne can Werne it for shame, or elles he Wolde of the asker delivered be; 6675 And, for he him encombreth so, He yeveth him good to late him go: But it can him no-thing profyte, They lese the yift and the meryte. The goode folk, that Poule to preched, 6680 Profred him ofte, whan he hem teched, Som of hir good in charite; But therof right no-thing took he; But of his hondwerk wolde he gete Clothes to wryen him, and his mete." 6685 Amour. 'Tel me than how a man may liven, That al his good to pore hath yiven, And wol but only bidde his bedis, And never with honde laboure his nedis: May he do so?' F. Sem. 'Ye, sir.' Amour. 'And how?' 6690 F. Sem. 'Sir, I wol gladly telle yow:— Seynt Austin seith, a man may be In houses that han propretee, As templers and hospitelers, And as these chanouns regulers, 6695 Or whyte monkes, or these blake— (I wole no mo ensamplis make)— And take therof his sustening, For therinne lyth no begging; But other-weyes not, y-wis, 6700 [If] Austin gabbeth not of this. And yit ful many a monk laboureth, That god in holy chirche honoureth; For whan hir swinking is agoon, They rede and singe in chirche anoon. 6705 'And for ther hath ben greet discord, As many a wight may bere record, Upon the estate of mendience, I wol shortly, in your presence, Telle how a man may begge at nede, 6710 That hath not wherwith him to fede, Maugre his felones Iangelinges, For sothfastnesse wol non hidinges; And yit, percas, I may abey, That I to yow sothly thus sey. 6715 'Lo, here the caas especial: If a man be so bestial That he of no craft hath science, And nought desyreth ignorence, Than may he go a-begging yerne, 6720 Til he som maner craft can lerne, Thurgh which, withoute truaunding, He may in trouthe have his living. Or if he may don no labour, For elde, or syknesse, or langour, 6725 Or for his tendre age also, Than may he yit a-begging go. 'Or if he have, peraventure, Thurgh usage of his noriture, Lived over deliciously, 6730 Than oughten good folk comunly Han of his mischeef som pitee, And suffren him also, that he May gon aboute and begge his breed, That he be not for hungur deed. 6735 Or if he have of craft cunning, And strengthe also, and desiring To wirken, as he hadde what, But he finde neither this ne that, Than may he begge, til that he 6740 Have geten his necessitee. 'Or if his winning be so lyte, That his labour wol not acquyte Sufficiantly al his living, Yit may he go his breed begging; 6745 Fro dore to dore he may go trace, Til he the remenaunt may purchace. Or if a man wolde undirtake Any empryse for to make, In the rescous of our lay, 6750 And it defenden as he may, Be it with armes or lettrure, Or other covenable cure, If it be so he pore be, Than may he begge, til that he 6755 May finde in trouthe for to swinke, And gete him clothes, mete, and drinke. Swinke he with hondis corporel, And not with hondis espirituel. 'In al thise caas, and in semblables, 6760 If that ther ben mo resonables, He may begge, as I telle you here, And elles nought, in no manere; As William Seynt Amour wolde preche, And ofte wolde dispute and teche 6765 Of this matere alle openly At Paris ful solempnely. And al-so god my soule blesse, As he had, in this stedfastnesse, The accord of the universitee, 6770 And of the puple, as semeth me. 'No good man oughte it to refuse, Ne oughte him therof to excuse, Be wrooth or blythe who-so be; For I wol speke, and telle it thee, 6775 Al shulde I dye, and be put doun, As was seynt Poul, in derk prisoun; Or be exiled in this caas With wrong, as maister William was, That my moder Ypocrisye 6780 Banisshed for hir greet envye. 'My moder flemed him, Seynt Amour: This noble dide such labour To susteyne ever the loyaltee, That he to moche agilte me. 6785 He made a book, and leet it wryte, Wherin his lyf he dide al wryte, And wolde ich reneyed begging, And lived by my traveyling, If I ne had rent ne other good. 6790 What? wened he that I were wood? For labour might me never plese, I have more wil to been at ese; And have wel lever, sooth to sey, Bifore the puple patre and prey, 6795 And wrye me in my foxerye Under a cope of papelardye.' Quod Love, 'What devel is this I here? What wordis tellest thou me here?' F. Sem. 'What, sir?' Amour. 'Falsnesse, that apert is; Than dredist thou not god?' 6800 F. Sem. 'No, certis: For selde in greet thing shal he spede In this world, that god wol drede. For folk that hem to vertu yiven, And truly on her owne liven, 6805 And hem in goodnesse ay contene, On hem is litel thrift y-sene; Such folk drinken gret misese; That lyf [ne] may me never plese. But see what gold han usurers, 6810 And silver eek in [hir] garners, Taylagiers, and these monyours, Bailifs, bedels, provost, countours; These liven wel nygh by ravyne; The smale puple hem mote enclyne, 6815 And they as wolves wol hem eten. Upon the pore folk they geten Ful moche of that they spende or kepe; Nis none of hem that he nil strepe, And wryen him-self wel atte fulle; 6820 Withoute scalding they hem pulle. The stronge the feble overgoth; But I, that were my simple cloth, Robbe bothe robbed and robbours, And gyle gyled and gylours. 6825 By my treget, I gadre and threste The greet tresour into my cheste, That lyth with me so faste bounde. Myn highe paleys do I founde, And my delytes I fulfille 6830 With wyne at feestes at my wille, And tables fulle of entremees; I wol no lyf, but ese and pees, And winne gold to spende also. For whan the grete bagge is go, 6835 It cometh right with my Iapes. Make I not wel tumble myn apes? To winne is alwey myn entent; My purchas is better than my rent; For though I shulde beten be, 6840 Over-al I entremete me; Withoute me may no wight dure. I walke soules for to cure. Of al the worlde cure have I In brede and lengthe; boldely 6845 I wol bothe preche and eek counceilen; With hondis wille I not traveilen, For of the pope I have the bulle; I ne holde not my wittes dulle. I wol not stinten, in my lyve, 6850 These emperouris for to shryve, Or kyngis, dukis, and lordis grete; But pore folk al quyte I lete. I love no such shryving, pardee, But it for other cause be. 6855 I rekke not of pore men, Hir astate is not worth an hen. Where fyndest thou a swinker of labour Have me unto his confessour? But emperesses, and duchesses, 6860 Thise quenes, and eek [thise] countesses, Thise abbesses, and eek Bigyns, These grete ladyes palasyns, These Ioly knightes, and baillyves, Thise nonnes, and thise burgeis wyves, 6865 That riche been, and eek plesing, And thise maidens welfaring, Wher-so they clad or naked be, Uncounceiled goth ther noon fro me. And, for her soules savetee, 6870 At lord and lady, and hir meynee, I axe, whan they hem to me shryve, The propretee of al hir lyve, And make hem trowe, bothe meest and leest, Hir paroch-prest nis but a beest 6875 Ayens me and my company, That shrewis been as greet as I; For whiche I wol not hyde in hold No privetee that me is told, That I by word or signe, y-wis, 6880 [Nil] make hem knowe what it is, And they wolen also tellen me; They hele fro me no privitee. And for to make yow hem perceyven, That usen folk thus to disceyven, 6885 I wol you seyn, withouten drede, What men may in the gospel rede Of Seynt Mathew, the gospelere, That seith, as I shal you sey here. 'Upon the chaire of Moyses— 6890 Thus is it glosed, douteles: That is the olde testament, For therby is the chaire ment— Sitte Scribes and Pharisen;— That is to seyn, the cursid men 6895 Whiche that we ypocritis calle— Doth that they preche, I rede you alle, But doth not as they don a del, That been not wery to seye wel, But to do wel, no wille have they; 6900 And they wolde binde on folk alwey, That ben to [be] begyled able, Burdens that ben importable; On folkes shuldres thinges they couchen That they nil with her fingres touchen.' Amour. 'And why wol they not touche it?' 6905 F. Sem. 'Why? For hem ne list not, sikirly; For sadde burdens that men taken Make folkes shuldres aken. And if they do ought that good be, 6910 That is for folk it shulde see: Her burdens larger maken they, And make hir hemmes wyde alwey, And loven setes at the table, The firste and most honourable; 6915 And for to han the first chaieris In synagoges, to hem ful dere is; And willen that folk hem loute and grete, Whan that they passen thurgh the strete, And wolen be cleped "Maister" also. 6920 But they ne shulde not willen so; The gospel is ther-ageyns, I gesse: That sheweth wel hir wikkidnesse. 'Another custom use we:— Of hem that wol ayens us be, 6925 We hate hem deedly everichoon, And we wol werrey hem, as oon. Him that oon hatith, hate we alle, And coniecte how to doon him falle. And if we seen him winne honour, 6930 Richesse or preys, thurgh his valour, Provende, rent, or dignitee, Ful fast, y-wis, compassen we By what ladder he is clomben so; And for to maken him doun to go, 6935 With traisoun we wole him defame, And doon him lese his gode name. Thus from his ladder we him take, And thus his freendis foes we make; But word ne wite shal he noon, 6940 Til alle his freendis been his foon. For if we dide it openly, We might have blame redily; For hadde he wist of our malyce, He hadde him kept, but he were nyce. 6945 'Another is this, that, if so falle That ther be oon among us alle That doth a good turn, out of drede, We seyn it is our alder dede. Ye, sikerly, though he it feyned, 6950 Or that him list, or that him deyned A man thurgh him avaunced be; Therof alle parceners be we, And tellen folk, wher-so we go, That man thurgh us is sprongen so. 6955 And for to have of men preysing, We purchace, thurgh our flatering, Of riche men, of gret poustee, Lettres, to witnesse our bountee; So that man weneth, that may us see, 6960 That alle vertu in us be. And alwey pore we us feyne; But how so that we begge or pleyne, We ben the folk, without lesing, That al thing have without having. 6965 Thus be we dred of the puple, y-wis. And gladly my purpos is this:— I dele with no wight, but he Have gold and tresour gret plentee; Hir acqueyntaunce wel love I; 6970 This is moche my desyr, shortly. I entremete me of brocages, I make pees and mariages, I am gladly executour, And many tymes procuratour; 6975 I am somtyme messager; That falleth not to my mister. And many tymes I make enquestes; For me that office not honest is; To dele with other mennes thing, 6980 That is to me a gret lyking. And if that ye have ought to do In place that I repeire to, I shal it speden thurgh my wit, As sone as ye have told me it. 6985 So that ye serve me to pay, My servyse shal be your alway. But who-so wol chastyse me, Anoon my love lost hath he; For I love no man in no gyse, 6990 That wol me repreve or chastyse; But I wolde al folk undirtake, And of no wight no teching take; For I, that other folk chastye, Wol not be taught fro my folye. 6995 'I love noon hermitage more; Alle desertes, and holtes hore, And grete wodes everichoon, I lete hem to the Baptist Iohan. I quethe him quyte, and him relesse 7000 Of Egipt al the wildirnesse; To fer were alle my mansiouns Fro alle citees and goode tounes. My paleis and myn hous make I There men may renne in openly, 7005 And sey that I the world forsake. But al amidde I bilde and make My hous, and swimme and pley therinne Bet than a fish doth with his finne. 'Of Antecristes men am I, 7010 Of whiche that Crist seith openly, They have abit of holinesse, And liven in such wikkednesse. Outward, lambren semen we, Fulle of goodnesse and of pitee, 7015 And inward we, withouten fable, Ben gredy wolves ravisable. We enviroune bothe londe and see; With al the world werreyen we; We wol ordeyne of alle thing, 7020 Of folkes good, and her living. 'If ther be castel or citee Wherin that any bougerons be, Although that they of Milayne were, For ther-of ben they blamed there: 7025 Or if a wight, out of mesure, Wolde lene his gold, and take usure, For that he is so coveitous: Or if he be to leccherous, Or [thefe, or] haunte simonye; 7030 Or provost, ful of trecherye, Or prelat, living Iolily, Or prest that halt his quene him by; Or olde hores hostilers, Or other bawdes or bordillers, 7035 Or elles blamed of any vyce, Of whiche men shulden doon Iustyce: By alle the seyntes that we pray, But they defende hem with lamprey, With luce, with elis, with samons, 7040 With tendre gees, and with capons, With tartes, or with cheses fat, With deynte flawnes, brode and flat, With caleweys, or with pullaille, With coninges, or with fyn vitaille, 7045 That we, undir our clothes wyde, Maken thurgh our golet glyde: Or but he wol do come in haste Roo-venisoun, [y]-bake in paste: Whether so that he loure or groine, 7050 He shal have of a corde a loigne, With whiche men shal him binde and lede, To brenne him for his sinful dede, That men shulle here him crye and rore A myle-wey aboute, and more. 7055 Or elles he shal in prisoun dye, But-if he wol [our] frendship bye, Or smerten that that he hath do, More than his gilt amounteth to. But, and he couthe thurgh his sleight 7060 Do maken up a tour of height, Nought roughte I whether of stone or tree, Or erthe, or turves though it be, Though it were of no vounde stone, Wrought with squyre and scantilone, 7065 So that the tour were stuffed wel With alle richesse temporel; And thanne, that he wolde updresse Engyns, bothe more and lesse, To caste at us, by every syde— 7070 To bere his goode name wyde— Such sleightes [as] I shal yow nevene, Barelles of wyne, by sixe or sevene, Or gold in sakkes gret plente, He shulde sone delivered be. 7075 And if he have noon sich pitaunces, Late him study in equipolences, And lete lyes and fallaces, If that he wolde deserve our graces; Or we shal bere him such witnesse 7080 Of sinne, and of his wrecchidnesse, And doon his loos so wyde renne, That al quik we shulde him brenne, Or elles yeve him suche penaunce, That is wel wors than the pitaunce. 7085 'For thou shalt never, for nothing, Con knowen aright by her clothing The traitours fulle of trecherye, But thou her werkis can aspye. And ne hadde the good keping be 7090 Whylom of the universitee, That kepeth the key of Cristendome, [They] had been turmented, alle and some. Suche been the stinking [fals] prophetis; Nis non of hem, that good prophete is; 7095 For they, thurgh wikked entencioun, The yeer of the incarnacioun A thousand and two hundred yeer, Fyve and fifty, ferther ne ner, Broughten a book, with sory grace, 7100 To yeven ensample in comune place, That seide thus, though it were fable:— "This is the Gospel Perdurable, That fro the Holy Goost is sent." Wel were it worth to ben [y]-brent. 7105 Entitled was in such manere This book, of which I telle here. Ther nas no wight in al Parys, Biforn Our Lady, at parvys, That [he] ne mighte bye the book, 7110 To copy, if him talent took. Ther might he see, by greet tresoun, Ful many fais comparisoun:— "As moche as, thurgh his grete might, Be it of hete, or of light, 7115 The sunne sourmounteth the mone, That troubler is, and chaungeth sone, And the note-kernel the shelle— (I scorne nat that I yow telle)— Right so, withouten any gyle, 7120 Sourmounteth this noble Evangyle The word of any evangelist." And to her title they token Christ; And many such comparisoun, Of which I make no mencioun, 7125 Might men in that boke finde, Who-so coude of hem have minde. 'The universitee, that tho was aslepe, Gan for to braide, and taken kepe; And at the noys the heed up-caste, 7130 Ne never sithen slepte it faste, But up it sterte, and armes took Ayens this fals horrible book, Al redy bateil for to make, And to the Iuge the book to take. 7135 But they that broughten the book there Hente it anoon awey, for fere; They nolde shewe it more a del, But thenne it kepte, and kepen wil, Til such a tyme that they may see 7140 That they so stronge woxen be, That no wight may hem wel withstonde; For by that book they durst not stonde. Away they gonne it for to bere, For they ne durste not answere 7145 By exposicioun ne glose To that that clerkis wole appose Ayens the cursednesse, y-wis, That in that boke writen is. Now wot I not, ne I can not see 7150 What maner ende that there shal be Of al this [boke] that they hyde; But yit algate they shal abyde Til that they may it bet defende; This trowe I best, wol be hir ende. 7155 'Thus Antecrist abyden we, For we ben alle of his meynee; And what man that wol not be so, Right sone he shal his lyf forgo. We wol a puple on him areyse, 7160 And thurgh our gyle doon him seise, And him on sharpe speris ryve, Or other-weyes bringe him fro lyve, But-if that he wol folowe, y-wis, That in our boke writen is. 7165 Thus moche wol our book signifye, That whyl [that] Peter hath maistrye, May never lohan shewe wel his might. 'Now have I you declared right The mening of the bark and rinde 7170 That makith the entenciouns blinde. But now at erst I wol biginne To expowne you the pith withinne:— [And first, by Peter, as I wene, The Pope himself we wolden mene] 7175 And [eek] the seculers comprehende, That Cristes lawe wol defende, And shulde it kepen and mayntenen Ayeines hem that al sustenen, And falsly to the puple techen. 7180 [And] Iohan bitokeneth hem [that] prechen, That ther nis lawe covenable But thilke Gospel Perdurable, That fro the Holy Gost was sent To turne folk that been miswent. 7185 The strengthe of Iohan they undirstonde The grace in which, they seye, they stonde, That doth the sinful folk converte, And hem to Iesus Crist reverte. 'Ful many another horriblete 7190 May men in that boke see, That ben comaunded, douteles, Ayens the lawe of Rome expres; And alle with Antecrist they holden, As men may in the book biholden. 7195 And than comaunden they to sleen Alle tho that with Peter been; But they shal nevere have that might, And, god toforn, for stryf to fight, That they ne shal y-nough [men] finde 7200 That Peters lawe shal have in minde, And ever holde, and so mayntene, That at the last it shal be sene That they shal alle come therto, For ought that they can speke or do. 7205 And thilke lawe shal not stonde, That they by Iohan have undirstonde; But, maugre hem, it shal adoun, And been brought to confusioun. But I wol stinte of this matere, 7210 For it is wonder long to here; But hadde that ilke book endured, Of better estate I were ensured; And freendis have I yit, pardee, That han me set in greet degree. 7215 'Of all this world is emperour Gyle my fader, the trechour, And emperesse my moder is, Maugre the Holy Gost, y-wis. Our mighty linage and our route 7220 Regneth in every regne aboute; And wel is worth we [maistres] be, For al this world governe we, And can the folk so wel disceyve, That noon our gyle can perceyve; 7225 And though they doon, they dar not saye; The sothe dar no wight biwreye. But he in Cristis wrath him ledeth, That more than Crist my bretheren dredeth. He nis no ful good champioun, 7230 That dredith such similacioun; Nor that for peyne wole refusen Us to correcten and accusen. He wol not entremete by right, Ne have god in his eye-sight, 7235 And therfore god shal him punyce; But me ne rekketh of no vyce, Sithen men us loven comunably, And holden us for so worthy, That we may folk repreve echoon, 7240 And we nil have repref of noon. Whom shulden folk worshipen so But us, that stinten never mo To patren whyl that folk us see, Though it not so bihinde hem be? 7245 'And where is more wood folye, Than to enhaunce chivalrye, And love noble men and gay, That Ioly clothis weren alway? If they be sich folk as they semen, 7250 So clene, as men her clothis demen, And that her wordis folowe her dede, It is gret pite, out of drede, For they wol be noon ypocritis! Of hem, me thinketh [it] gret spiteis; 7255 I can not love hem on no syde. But Beggers with these hodes wyde, With sleighe and pale faces lene, And greye clothis not ful clene, But fretted ful of tatarwagges, 7260 And highe shoes, knopped with dagges, That frouncen lyke a quaile-pype, Or botes riveling as a gype; To such folk as I you devyse Shuld princes and these lordes wyse 7265 Take alle her londes and her thinges, Bothe werre and pees, in governinges; To such folk shulde a prince him yive, That wolde his lyf in honour live. And if they be not as they seme, 7270 That serven thus the world to queme, There wolde I dwelle, to disceyve The folk, for they shal not perceyve. 'But I ne speke in no such wyse, That men shulde humble abit dispyse, 7275 So that no pryde ther-under be. No man shulde hate, as thinketh me, The pore man in sich clothing. But god ne preiseth him no-thing, That seith he hath the world forsake, 7280 And hath to worldly glorie him take, And wol of siche delyces use; Who may that Begger wel excuse? That papelard, that him yeldeth so, And wol to worldly ese go, 7285 And seith that he the world hath left, And gredily it grypeth eft, He is the hound, shame is to seyn, That to his casting goth ageyn. 'But unto you dar I not lye: 7290 But mighte I felen or aspye, That ye perceyved it no-thing, Ye shulden have a stark lesing Right in your hond thus, to biginne, I nolde it lette for no sinne.' 7295 The god lough at the wonder tho, And every wight gan laughe also, And seide:—'Lo here a man aright For to be trusty to every wight!' 'Fals Semblant,' quod Love, 'sey to me, 7300 Sith I thus have avaunced thee, That in my court is thy dwelling, And of ribaudes shall be my king, Wolt thou wel holden my forwardis?' F. Sem. 'Ye, sir, from hennes forewardis; 7305 Hadde never your fader herebiforn Servaunt so trewe, sith he was born.' Amour. 'That is ayeines al nature.' F. Sem. 'Sir, put you in that aventure; For though ye borowes take of me, 7310 The sikerer shal ye never be For ostages, ne sikirnesse, Or chartres, for to bere witnesse. I take your-self to record here, That men ne may, in no manere, 7315 Teren the wolf out of his hyde, Til he be [flayn], bak and syde, Though men him bete and al defyle; What? wene ye that I wole bigyle? For I am clothed mekely, 7320 Ther-under is al my trechery; Myn herte chaungeth never the mo For noon abit, in which I go. Though I have chere of simplenesse, I am not weary of shrewednesse. 7325 My lemman, Streyned-Abstinence, Hath mister of my purveaunce; She hadde ful longe ago be deed, Nere my councel and my reed; Lete hir allone, and you and me.' 7330 And Love answerde, 'I truste thee Withoute borowe, for I wol noon.' And Fals-Semblant, the theef, anoon, Right in that ilke same place, That hadde of tresoun al his face 7335 Right blak withinne, and whyt withoute, Thanketh him, gan on his knees loute. Than was ther nought, but 'Every man Now to assaut, that sailen can,' Quod Love, 'and that ful hardily.' 7340 Than armed they hem communly Of sich armour as to hem fel. Whan they were armed, fers and fel, They wente hem forth, alle in a route, And set the castel al aboute; 7345 They wil nought away, for no drede, Til it so be that they ben dede, Or til they have the castel take. And foure batels they gan make, And parted hem in foure anoon, 7350 And toke her way, and forth they goon, The foure gates for to assaile, Of whiche the kepers wol not faile; For they ben neither syke ne dede, But hardy folk, and stronge in dede. 7355 Now wole I seyn the countenaunce Of Fals-Semblant, and Abstinaunce, That ben to Wikkid-Tonge went. But first they helde her parlement, Whether it to done were 7360 To maken hem be knowen there, Or elles walken forth disgysed. But at the laste they devysed, That they wold goon in tapinage, As it were in a pilgrimage, 7365 Lyk good and holy folk unfeyned. And Dame Abstinence-Streyned Took on a robe of camelyne, And gan hir graithe as a Begyne. A large coverchief of threde 7370 She wrapped al aboute hir hede, But she forgat not hir sautere; A peire of bedis eek she here Upon a lace, al of whyt threde, On which that she hir bedes bede; 7375 But she ne boughte hem never a del, For they were geven her, I wot wel, God wot, of a ful holy frere, That seide he was hir fader dere, To whom she hadde ofter went 7380 Than any frere of his covent. And he visyted hir also, And many a sermoun seide hir to; He nolde lette, for man on lyve, That he ne wolde hir ofte shryve. 7385 And with so gret devocion They maden her confession, That they had ofte, for the nones, Two hedes in one hood at ones. Of fair shape I devyse her thee, 7390 But pale of face somtyme was she; That false traitouresse untrewe Was lyk that salowe hors of hewe, That in the Apocalips is shewed, That signifyeth tho folk beshrewed, 7395 That been al ful of trecherye, And pale, thurgh hypocrisye; For on that hors no colour is, But only deed and pale, y-wis. Of suche a colour enlangoured 7400 Was Abstinence, y-wis, coloured; Of her estat she her repented, As her visage represented. She had a burdoun al of Thefte, That Gyle had yeve her of his yefte; 7405 And a scrippe of Fainte Distresse, That ful was of elengenesse, And forth she walked sobrely: And False-Semblant saynt, ie vous die, [Had], as it were for such mistere, 7410 Don on the cope of a frere, With chere simple, and ful pitous; His looking was not disdeinous, Ne proud, but meke and ful pesible. About his nekke he bar a bible, 7415 And squierly forth gan he gon; And, for to reste his limmes upon, He had of Treson a potente; As he were feble, his way he wente. But in his sleve he gan to thringe 7420 A rasour sharp, and wel bytinge, That was forged in a forge, Which that men clepen Coupegorge. So longe forth hir way they nomen, Til they to Wicked-Tonge comen, 7425 That at his gate was sitting, And saw folk in the way passing. The pilgrimes saw he faste by, That beren hem ful mekely, And humblely they with him mette. 7430 Dame Abstinence first him grette, And sith him False-Semblant salued, And he hem; but he not remued, For he ne dredde hem not a-del. For when he saw hir faces wel, 7435 Alway in herte him thoughte so, He shulde knowe hem bothe two; For wel he knew Dame Abstinaunce But he ne knew not Constreynaunce. He knew nat that she was constrayned, 7440 Ne of her theves lyfe feyned, But wende she com of wil al free; But she com in another degree; And if of good wil she began, That wil was failed her [as] than. 7445 And Fals-Semblant had he seyn als, But he knew nat that he was fals. Yet fals was he, but his falsnesse Ne coude he not espye, nor gesse; For semblant was so slye wrought, 7450 That falsnesse he ne espyed nought. But haddest thou knowen him beforn, Thou woldest on a boke have sworn, Whan thou him saugh in thilke aray That he, that whylom was so gay, 7455 And of the daunce Ioly Robin, Was tho become a Iacobin. But sothely, what so men him calle, Freres Prechours been good men alle; Hir order wickedly they beren, 7460 Suche minstrelles if [that] they weren. So been Augustins and Cordileres, And Carmes, and eek Sakked Freres, And alle freres, shodde and bare, (Though some of hem ben grete and square) 7465 Ful holy men, as I hem deme; Everich of hem wolde good man seme. But shalt thou never of apparence Seen conclude good consequence In none argument, y-wis, 7470 If existence al failed is. For men may finde alway sophyme The consequence to envenyme, Who-so that hath the subteltee The double sentence for to see. 7475 Whan the pilgrymes commen were To Wicked-Tonge, that dwelled there, Hir harneis nigh hem was algate; By Wicked-Tonge adoun they sate, That bad hem ner him for to come, 7480 And of tydinges telle him some, And sayde hem:—'What cas maketh yow To come into this place now?' Sir,' seyde Strained-Abstinaunce, We, for to drye our penaunce, 7485 With hertes pitous and devoute, Are commen, as pilgrimes gon aboute; Wel nigh on fote alway we go; Ful dusty been our heles two; And thus bothe we ben sent 7490 Thurghout this world that is miswent, To yeve ensample, and preche also. To fisshen sinful men we go, For other fisshing ne fisshe we. And, sir, for that charitee, 7495 As we be wont, herberwe we crave, Your lyf to amende; Crist it save! And, so it shulde you nat displese, We wolden, if it were your ese, A short sermoun unto you seyn.' 7500 And Wikked-Tonge answerde ageyn, The hous,' quod he, 'such as ye see, Shal nat be warned you for me, Sey what you list, and I wol here.' Graunt mercy, swete sire dere!' 7505 Quod alderfirst Dame Abstinence, And thus began she hir sentence: Const. Abstinence. 'Sir, the first vertue, certeyn, The gretest, and most sovereyn That may be founde in any man, 7510 For having, or for wit he can, That is, his tonge to refreyne; Therto ought every wight him peyne. For it is better stille be Than for to speken harm, pardee! 7515 And he that herkeneth it gladly, He is no good man, sikerly. And, sir, aboven al other sinne, In that art thou most gilty inne. Thou spake a Iape not long ago, 7520 (And, sir, that was right yvel do) Of a yong man that here repaired, And never yet this place apaired. Thou seydest he awaited nothing But to disceyve Fair-Welcoming. 7525 Ye seyde nothing sooth of that; But, sir, ye lye; I tell you plat; He ne cometh no more, ne goth, pardee! I trow ye shal him never see. Fair-Welcoming in prison is, 7530 That ofte hath pleyed with you, er this, The fairest games that he coude, Withoute filthe, stille or loude; Now dar [he] nat [him]self solace. Ye han also the man do chace, 7535 That he dar neither come ne go. What meveth you to hate him so But properly your wikked thought, That many a fals lesing hath thought? That meveth your foole eloquence, 7540 That iangleth ever in audience, And on the folk areyseth blame, And doth hem dishonour and shame, For thing that may have no preving, But lyklinesse, and contriving. 7545 For I dar seyn, that Reson demeth, It is not al sooth thing that semeth, And it is sinne to controve Thing that is [for] to reprove; This wot ye wel; and, sir, therefore 7550 Ye arn to blame [wel] the more. And, nathelesse, he rekketh lyte; He yeveth nat now thereof a myte; For if he thoughte harm, parfay, He wolde come and gon al day; 7555 He coude him-selfe nat abstene. Now cometh he nat, and that is sene, For he ne taketh of it no cure, But-if it be through aventure, And lasse than other folk, algate. 7560 And thou here watchest at the gate, With spere in thyne arest alway; There muse, musard, al the day. Thou wakest night and day for thought; Y-wis, thy traveyl is for nought. 7565 And Ielousye, withouten faile, Shal never quyte thee thy travaile. And scathe is, that Fair-Welcoming, Withouten any trespassing, Shal wrongfully in prison be, 7570 Ther wepeth and languissheth he. And though thou never yet, y-wis, Agiltest man no more but this, (Take not a-greef) it were worthy To putte thee out of this baily, 7575 And afterward in prison lye, And fettre thee til that thou dye; For thou shalt for this sinne dwelle Right in the devils ers of helle, But-if that thou repente thee.' 7580 'Ma fay, thou lyest falsly!' quod he. What? welcome with mischaunce now! Have I therfore herbered you To seye me shame, and eek reprove? With sory happe, to your bihove, 7585 Am I to-day your herbergere! Go, herber you elleswhere than here, That han a lyer called me! Two tregetours art thou and he, That in myn hous do me this shame, 7590 And for my soth-sawe ye me blame. Is this the sermoun that ye make? To alle the develles I me take, Or elles, god, thou me confounde! But er men diden this castel founde, 7595 It passeth not ten dayes or twelve, But it was told right to my-selve, And as they seide, right so tolde I, He kiste the Rose privily! Thus seide I now, and have seid yore; 7600 I not wher he dide any more. Why shulde men sey me such a thing, If it hadde been gabbing? Right so seide I, and wol seye yit; I trowe, I lyed not of it; 7605 And with my bemes I wol blowe To alle neighboris a-rowe, How he hath bothe comen and gon.' Tho spak Fals-Semblant right anon, Al is not gospel, out of doute, 7610 That men seyn in the toune aboute; Ley no deef ere to my speking; I swere yow, sir, it is gabbing! I trowe ye wot wel certeynly, That no man loveth him tenderly 7615 That seith him harm, if he wot it, Al be he never so pore of wit. And sooth is also sikerly, (This knowe ye, sir, as wel as I), That lovers gladly wol visyten 7620 The places ther hir loves habyten. This man you loveth and eek honoureth; This man to serve you laboureth; And clepeth you his freend so dere, And this man maketh you good chere, 7625 And every-wher that [he] you meteth, He you saleweth, and he you greteth. He preseth not so ofte, that ye Ought of his come encombred be; Ther presen other folk on yow 7630 Ful ofter than [that] he doth now. And if his herte him streyned so Unto the Rose for to go, Ye shulde him seen so ofte nede, That ye shulde take him with the dede. 7635 He coude his coming not forbere, Though ye him thrilled with a spere; It nere not thanne as it is now. But trusteth wel, I swere it yow, That it is clene out of his thought. 7640 Sir, certes, he ne thenketh it nought; No more ne doth Fair-Welcoming, That sore abyeth al this thing. And if they were of oon assent, Ful sone were the Rose hent; 7645 The maugre youres wolde be. And sir, of o thing herkeneth me:— Sith ye this man, that loveth yow, Han seid such harm and shame now, Witeth wel, if he gessed it, 7650 Ye may wel demen in your wit, He nolde no-thing love you so, Ne callen you his freend also, But night and day he [wolde] wake, The castel to destroye and take, 7655 If it were sooth as ye devyse; Or som man in som maner wyse Might it warne him everydel, Or by him-self perceyven wel; For sith he might not come and gon 7660 As he was whylom wont to don, He might it sone wite and see; But now al other-wyse [doth] he. Than have [ye], sir, al-outerly Deserved helle, and Iolyly 7665 The deth of helle douteles, That thrallen folk so gilteles.' Fals-Semblant proveth so this thing That he can noon answering, And seeth alwey such apparaunce, 7670 That nygh he fel in repentaunce, And seide him:—'Sir, it may wel be. Semblant, a good man semen ye; And, Abstinence, ful wyse ye seme; Of o talent you bothe I deme. 7675 What counceil wole ye to me yeven?' F. Sem. 'Right here anoon thou shalt be shriven, And sey thy sinne withoute more; Of this shall thou repente sore; For I am preest, and have poustee 7680 To shryve folk of most dignitee That been, as wyde as world may dure. Of al this world I have the cure, And that had never yit persoun, No vicarie of no maner toun. 7685 And, god wot, I have of thee A thousand tymes more pitee Than hath thy preest parochial, Though he thy freend be special. I have avauntage, in o wyse, 7690 That your prelates ben not so wyse Ne half so lettred as am I. I am licenced boldely In divinitee to rede, And to confessen, out of drede. 7695 If ye wol you now confesse, And leve your sinnes more and lesse, Without abood, knele doun anon, 7698 And you shal have absolucion.'