tracioun and juggement, and in the might and power of hise enemys. / For Salomon seith: "leveth me, and yeveth credence to that I shal seyn; I seye," quod he, "ye peple, folk, and governours of holy chirche, to thy sone, to thy wyf, to thy 2945 freend, ne to thy brother / ne yeve thou never might ne maistrie of thy body, whyl thou livest."/ Now sithen he defendeth, that man shal nat yeven to his brother ne to his freend the might of his body, / by a strenger resoun he defendeth and forbedeth a man to yeven him-self to his enemy. And nathelees I conseille you, that ye mistruste nat my lord. / For I woot wel and knowe verraily, that he is 2950 debonaire and meke, large, curteys, / and nothing desyrous ne coveitous of good ne richesse. For ther nis no-thing in this world that he desyreth, save only worship and honour./ Forther-more I knowe wel, and am right seur, that he shal no-thing doon in this nede with-outen my conseil. / And I shal so werken in this cause, that, by grace of our lord god, ye shul been reconsiled un-to us.' /

§ 66. Thanne seyden they with o vois, worshipful lady, we putten us and our goodes al fully in your wil and disposi2955 cioun; and been redy to comen, what

day that it lyke un-to your noblesse to limite us or assigne us, / for to maken our obligacioun and bond as strong as it lyketh un-to your goodnesse; that we mowe fulfille the wille of yow and of my lord Melibee.' /

§ 67. Whan dame Prudence hadde herd the answeres of thise men, she bad hem goon agayn prively; / and she retourned to hir lord Melibee, and tolde him how she fond hise adversaries ful 2960 repentant, / knowlechinge ful lowely hir

sinnes and trespas, and how they were
redy to suffren al peyne, / requiringe
and preyinge him of mercy and pitee. /
§ 68. Thanne seyde Melibee, 'he is wel
worthy to have pardoun and foryifnesse
of his sinne, that excuseth nat his sinne, /
but knowlecheth it and repenteth him,
axinge indulgence. / For Senek seith:
"ther is the remissioun and foryifnesse,

whereas confessioun is "; / for confession 2965 is neighebore to innocence. And he seith in another place: "he that hath shame for his sinne and knowlecheth it, is worthy remissioun." And therfore I assente and conferme me to have pees; / but it is good that we do it nat with-outen the assent and wil of our freendes.' /

§ 69. Thanne was Prudence right glad and joyeful, and seyde, / Certes, sir,' quod she, 'ye han wel and goodly answered. For right as by the conseil, 2970 assent, and help of your freendes, ye han been stired to venge yow and maken werre, right so with-outen hir conseil shul ye nat accorden yow, ne have pees with your adversaries. For the lawe seith: "ther nis no-thing so good by wey of kinde, as a thing to been unbounde by him that it was y-bounde."'/

and

§ 70. And thanne dame Prudence, with-outen delay or taryinge, sente anon hir messages for hir kin, and for hir olde freendes whiche that were trewe and wyse, and tolde hem by ordre, in the presence of Melibee, al this matere as it is aboven expressed and declared; / and 2975 preyden hem that they wolde yeven hir avys and conseil, what best were to doon in this nede. And whan Melibees freendes hadde taken hir avys and deliberacioun of the forseide matere, hadden examined it by greet bisinesse and greet diligence, / they yave ful conseil for to have pees and reste; / and that Melibee sholde receyve with good herte hise adversaries to foryifnesse and mercy./ 2980 § 71. And whan dame Prudence hadde herd the assent of hir lord Melibee, and the conseil of hise freendes, / accorde with hir wille and hir entencioun, she was wonderly glad in hir herte, and seyde/ther is an old proverbe,' quod she, 'seith: that "the goodnesse that thou mayst do this day, do it; and abyde nat ne delaye it nat til to-morwe." / 2985 And therfore I conseille that ye sende your messages, swiche as been discrete and wyse, un-to your adversaries; tellinge hem, on your bihalve, / that if they wole trete of pees and of accord, / that

they shape hem, with-outen delay or tarying, to comen un-to us.' Which 2990 thing parfourned was in dede. / And whanne thise trespassours and repentinge folk of hir folies, that is to seyn, the adversaries of Melibee, / hadden herd what thise messagers seyden un-to hem, / they weren right glad and joyeful, and answereden ful mekely and benignely, yeldinge graces and thankinges to hir lord Melibee and to al his companye; / and shopen hem, with-outen delay, to go with the messagers, and obeye to the 2995 comandement of hir lord Melibee. /

§ 72. And right anon they token hir wey to the court of Melibee, / and token with hem somme of hir trewe freendes, to maken feith for hem and for to been hir borwes. / And whan they were comen to the presence of Melibee, he seyde hem thise wordes: / 'it standeth thus,' quod Melibee, and sooth it is, that ye, causeless, and with-outen skile and 3000 resoun, han doon grete injuries and wronges to me and to my wyf Prudence, and to my doghter also. For ye han entred in-to myn hous by violence, and have doon swich outrage, that alle men knowen wel that ye have deserved the deeth; and therfore wol I knowe and wite of yow, whether ye wol putte the punissement and the chastysinge and the vengeance of this outrage in the wil of me and of my wyf Prudence; or ye wol 3005 nat?' /

§ 73. Thanne the wyseste of hem three answerde for hem alle, and seyde:/ 'sire,' quod he, we knowen wel, that we been unworthy to comen un-to the court of so greet a lord and so worthy as ye been. For we han so greetly mistaken us, and han offended and agilt in swich a wyse agayn your heigh lordshipe, / that trewely we han deserved the deeth./ But yet, for the grete goodnesse and debonairetee that all the world witnesseth 3010 of your persone, / we submitten us to the

excellence and benignitee of your gracious lordshipe, / and been redy to obeie to alle your comandements;/ bisekinge yow, that of your merciable pitee ye wol con

sidere our grete repentaunce and lowe submissioun, and graunten us foryevenesse of our outrageous trespas and offence. For wel we knowe, that your liberal grace and mercy strecchen hem ferther in-to goodnesse, than doon our outrageouse giltes and trespas in-to wikkednesse; al-be-it that cursedly and 3013 dampnably we han agilt agayn your heigh lordshipe.' /

$74. Thanne Melibee took hem up fro the ground ful benignely, / and receyved hir obligaciouns and hir bondes by hir othes up-on hir plegges and borwes,/ and assigned hem a certeyn day to retourne un-to his court, for to accepte and receyve the sentence and jugement that Melibee wolde comande to be doon on hem by the causes afore-seyd;/ whiche 3029 thinges ordeyned, every man retourned to his hous. /

§ 75. And whan that dame Prudence saugh hir tyme, she freyned and axed hir lord Melibee, what vengeance he thoughts to taken of hise adversaries? /

§ 76. To which Melibee answerde and seyde, certes,' quod he, 'I thinke and purpose me fully / to desherite hem of al that ever they han, and for to putte heri in exil for ever.' /

3025

§ 77. Certes,' quod dame Prudence, 'this were a cruel sentence, and muchel agayn resoun. / For ye been riche ynough, and han no nede of other mennes good; and ye mighte lightly in this wyse gete yow a coveitous name, / which is a vicious thing, and oghte been eschewed of every good man. / For after the sawe of the word of the apostle : "coveitise is rote of alle harmes." And 3030 therfore, it were bettre for yow to lese so muchel good of your owene, than for to taken of hir good in this manere. / For bettre it is to lesen good with worshipe, than it is to winne good with vileinye and shame. And every man oghte to doon his diligence and his bisinesse to geten him a good name. / And yet shal he nat only bisie him in kepinge of his good name, but he shal also enforcen him alwey to do som-thing by which ho

3035 may renovelle his good name; for it is writen, that "the olde good loos or good name of a man is sone goon and passed, whan it is nat newed ne renovelled." / And as touchinge that ye seyn, ye wole exile your adversaries, / that thinketh me muchel agayn resoun and out of mesure, considered the power that they han yeve yow up-on hem-self. And it is writen, that "he is worthy to lesen his privilege that misuseth the might and 3040 the power that is yeven him." And I sette cas ye mighte enjoyne hem that peyne by right and by lawe, / which I trowe ye mowe nat do, / I seye, ye mighte nat putten it to execucioun per-aventure, and thanne were it lykly to retourne to the werre as it was biforn. / And therfore, if ye wole that men do yow obeisance, ye moste demen more cur3045 teisly; this is to seyn, ye mosto yeven more esy sentences and jugements. / For it is writen, that "he that most curteisly comandeth, to him men most obeyen." And therfore, I prey yow that in this necessitee and in this nede, ye caste yow to overcome your herte. / For Senek seith: that "he that overcometh his herte, overcometh twyes." / And Tullius seith: "ther is no-thing 3050 so comendable in a greet lord / as whan he is debonaire and meke, and appeseth him lightly." And I prey yow that ye wole forbere now to do vengeance, in swich a manere, that your goode name may be kept and conserved; / and that men mowe have cause and matere to preyse yow of pitee and of mercy ;/ and that ye have no cause to repente yow of 3055 thing that ye doon. / For Senek seith: "he overcometh in an yvel manere, that repenteth him of his victorie." Wherfore I pray yow, lat mercy been in your minde and in your herte, / to th'effect

§ 78. Whanne Melibee hadde herd the grete skiles and resouns of dame Prudence, and hir wise informaciouns and techinges, his herte gan enclyne to the 3060 wil of his wyf, consideringe hir trewe entente; and conformed him anon, and assented fully to werken after hir conseil; and thonked god, of whom procedeth al vertu and alle goodnesse, that him sente a wyf of so greet discrecioun. And whan the day cam that hise adversaries sholde apperen in his presence, he spak unto hem ful goodly, and seyde in this wyse : / 'al-be-it so that 3065 of your pryde and presumpcioun and folie, and of your necligence and unconninge, ye have misborn yow and trespassed un-to me; / yet, for as much as I see and biholde your grete humilitee, / and that ye been sory and repentant of your giltes, it constreyneth me to doon yow grace and mercy. / Therfore I re- 3070 ceyve yow to my grace, and foryeve yow outrely alle the offences, injuries, and wronges, that ye have doon agayn me and myne; / to this effect and to this ende, that god of his endelees mercy / wole at the tyme of our dyinge foryeven us our giltes that we han trespassed to him in this wrecched world. / For doutelees, if we be sory and repentant of the sinnes and giltes whiche we han trespassed in the sighte of our lord god, / he 3075 is so free and so merciable, that he wole foryeven us our giltes, and bringen us to his blisse that never hath ende. Amen.'/

3078

For I am perilous with knyf in honde,
Al be it that I dar nat hir withstonde, 3110
For she is big in armes, by my feith,
That shal he finde, that hir misdooth or
seith.

But lat us passe awey fro this matere.
My lord the Monk,' quod he, 'be mery
of chere;

3115

For ye shul telle a tale trewely.
Lo! Rouchestre stant heer faste by!
Ryd forth, myn owene lord, brek nat our
game,
(30)
But, by my trouthe, I knowe nat your name,
Wher shal I calle yow my lord dan John,
Or dan Thomas, or elles dan Albon? 3120
Of what hous be ye, by your fader kin?
I vow to god, thou hast a ful fair skin,
It is a gentil pasture ther thou goost;
Thou art nat lyk a penaunt or a goost.
Upon my feith, thou art som officer, 3125
Some worthy sexteyn, or som celerer,
For by my fader soule, as to my doom,
Thou art a maister whan thou art at hoom;
No
povre
cloisterer, ne no novys,
But a governour, wyly and wys.
And therwithal of brawnes and of bones
A wel-faring persone for the nones.
I pray to god, yeve him confusioun
That first thee broghte un-to religioun ;
Thou woldest han been a trede-foul aright.
Haddestow as greet a leve, as thou hast
might

(51)

31.30

3136

To parfourne al thy lust in engendrure,
Thou haddest bigeten many a creature.
Alas! why werestow so wyd a cope?
God yeve me sorwe! but, and I were a pope,

(61)

And feble, that they may nat wel engendre.
This maketh that our wyves wol assaye
Religious folk, for ye may bettre paye 3150
Of Venus payements than mowe we;
God woot, no lussheburghes payen ye!
But be nat wrooth, my lord, for that I
pleye;

Ful ofte in game a sooth I have herd seye.'
This worthy monk took al in pacience,
And seyde, 'I wol doon al my diligence,
As fer as souneth in-to honestee,
3157
To telle yow a tale, or two, or three. (80)
And if yow list to herkne hiderward,
I wol yow seyn the lyf of seint Edward;

3161

Or elles first Tragedies wol I telle
Of whiche I have an hundred in my celle.
Tragedie is to seyn a certeyn storie,
As olde bokes maken us memorie,
Of him that stood in greet prosperitee 3165
And is y-fallen out of heigh degree
Into miserie, and endeth wrecchedly.
And they ben versifyed comunly
Of six feet, which men clepe exametron.
In prose eek been endyted many oon, 3170
And eek in metre, in many a sondry wyse.
Lo! this declaring oughte y-nough suffise.

(90)

Now herkneth, if yow lyketh for to here; But first I yow biseke in this matere, 3174 Though I by ordre telle nat thise thinges, Be it of popes, emperours, or kinges, After hir ages, as men writen finde, (99) 'But telle hem som bifore and som bihinde, As it now comth un-to my remembraunce; Have me excused of myn ignoraunce.' 3180

Explicit.