7331

7339

And Falssemblant, the theef, anoon
Ryght in that ilkė samė place,
That hadde of tresoun al his face
Ryght black withynne and white withoute,
Thankyth hym, gan on his knees loute.
Thanne was ther nought but 'Every man
Now to assaut that sailen can,'
Quod Love, and that full hardyly!'
Thanne armed they hem communly
Of sich armour as to hem felle.
Whanne the were armed fers and felle,
They wente hem forth all in a route,
And set the castel al aboute.
They will nought away for no drede,
Till it so be that they ben dede,
Or till they have the castel take.
And fourė batels they gan make,
And parted hem in foure anoon,
And toke her way and forth they gone,
The fourė gates forto assaile,

Of whiche the kepers wole not faile. 7350
For they ben neithir sike ne dede,
But hardy folk and stronge in dede.

Now wole I seyn the countynaunce
Of Falssemblant and Abstynaunce,
That ben to Wikkid-Tonge went.
But first they heelde her parlement
Whether it to done were

To maken hem be knowen there,
Or elles walken forth disgised.

But at the laste they devysed
That they wolde gone in tapinage,
As it were in a pilgrimage,
Lyke good and hooly folk unfeyned.
And Dame Abstinence-Streyned
Toke on a robe of kamelyne,
And gan hir graithe as a Bygynne.
A large coverechief of threde
She wrapped all aboute hir heede;
But she forgate not hir sawter ;

7360

A peire of bedis eke she bere
Upon a lace all of white threde,
On which that she hir bedės bede.
But she ne bought hem never a dele,
For they were geven her I wote wele,
God wote, of a full hooly frere,
That seide he was hir fadir dere
To whom she hadde ofter went
Than ony frere of his covent.
And he visited hir also,

And many a sermoun seide hir to;
He noldė lette for man on lyve
That he ne wolde hir ofte shryve,
And with so great devocion
They made her confession,
That they had oftė, for the nones,
Two heedes in one hoode at ones.

7370

7380

Of fayre shappe I devyse her the,
But pale of face somtyme was she;
That false traytouresse untrewe,
Was lyke that salowe horse of hewe, 7390
That in the Apocalips is shewed,
That signifyeth tho folke beshrewed,
That ben al ful of trecherye
And pale through hypocrisye.
For on that horse no colour is,
But onely deed and pale y-wis,
Of suche a colour enlangoured
Was Abstynence i-wys coloured ;
Of her estate she her repented,
As her visage represented.

She had a burdowne al of Thefte,
That Gyle had yeve her of his yefte;
And a skryppe of Faynte Distresse,
That ful was of elengenesse.
And forthe she walked sobrely;

And False Semblant saynt je vous die,
Had, as it were for suche mistere,
Done on the cope of a frere.
With chere symple and ful pytous,
Hys lokyng was not disdeynous
Ne proude, but meke and ful pesyble.
About his neck he bare a byble,
And squierly forthe gan he gon;

7385-7576 are lost from G.
7387. Th. devysed.

7392. Th. to; cp. note to 7270.

7400

7410

7406. saynt is generally taken for ceint, 'girdled'; but no such Eng. adj. is known. Fr. is qui bien se ratorne.' ? read faynt, i.e. paie. 7407. MSS. And for Hat.

7419

7430

And, for to rest his lymmes upon, He had of Treson a potent; As he were feble his way he went. But in his sleve he gan to thring A rasour sharpe, and wel bytyng, That was forged in a forge, Whiche that men clepen Coupé-gorge. So longe forthe her waye they nomen, Tyl they to Wicked-Tongé comen. That at his gate was syttyng, And sawe folke in the way passyng. The pilgrymes sawe he faste by, That beren hem ful mekely, And humbly they with him mette, Dame Abstynence first him grette, And sythe him False-Semblant salued, And he hem; but he not remeued For he ne dredde hem not a dele. For whan he sawe her faces wele, Alway in herte hem thought so, He shulde knowe hem bothe two; For wel he knewe Dame Abstynaunce, But he ne knewe not Constreynaunce. He knewe nat that she was constrayned, Ne of her thevės lyfe [y-]fayned, But wende she come of wyl al free; But she come in another degree; And if of good wyl she beganne That wyl was faylėd her [as] thanne. And False-Semblant had he sayne alse, But he knewe nat that he was false. Yet false was he, but his falsnesse Ne coude he nat espye nor gesse ; For Semblant was so slye wrought, That Falsenesse he ne espyed nought.

7440

But haddest thou knowen hym beforne Thou woldest on a boke have sworne, 7450 Whan thou him saugh in thylke araye, That he that whilome was so gaye, And of the dauncė joly Robyn, Was tho become a Iacobyn. But sothely what so menne hym calle, Freres Prechours bene good menne alle, Her order wickedly they beren, Suche myn[e]strelles if they weren.

So bene Augustyns and Cordyleres And Carmes, and eke Sacked freeres 7460 And allé freres, shodde and bare,

7442. MSS. omit as.

7459. Augustyns, read Austins.

As we be wonte, herborowe we crave
Your lyfe to amendė, Christ it save,
And so it shulde you nat displese,
We wolden, if it were your ese,
A shorte sermon unto you sayne.'
And Wicked-Tonge answered agayne:

'The house,' quod he, such as ye se Shal nat be warned you for me, Say what you lyst, and I wol here.'

'Graunt mercy, swetė sir, dere,' Quod alderfirst Dame Abstynence, And thus began she her sentence :

'Sir, the firste vertue certayne, The greatest, and moste soverayne That may be founde in any man For havynge or for wytte he can, That is his tonge to refrayne. Therto ought every wight him payne, 7486. Th. doughty.

7500

For it is better styllė be
Than for to speken harme, parde;
And he that herkeneth it gladly,
He is no good man sykerly.

And, sir, aboven al other synne,
In that arte thou moste gylty inne.
Thou spake a jape not long a-go
(And, sir, that was ryght yvel do)
Of a yonge man, that here repayred
And never yet this place apayred.
Thou saydest he awayted nothyng
But to disceyve Fayre-Welcomyng.
Ye saydė nothyng sothe of that ;
But, sir, ye lye, I tel you plat ;

7511

7520

There muse, musarde, al the daye. 7560
Thou wakest night and day for thought;
I-wis thy traveyle is for nought.
And Ielousye, withouten fayle,
Shal never quyte the thy traveyle.
And skathe is that Fayre-Welcomyng
Withoutén any trespassyng,

Shal wrongfully in prison be,
There wepeth and languyssheth he.
And though thou never yet, y-wis,
Agyltest manne no more but this,-
Take nat a grefe,-it were worthy
To putte the out of this bayly,
And afterwards in prison lye,

I trowe ye shal him never se. Fayre-Welcomyng in prison is,

7530

That ofte hath played with you er this
The fayrest games that he coude,
Withouté fylthé, styl or loude;
Nowe dare he nat him selfe solace.
Ye han also the manne do chace,
That he dare neyther come ne go;
What meveth you to hate him so,
But properly your wicked thought,
That many a false lesyng hath thought,
That meveth your foole eloquence,
That jangleth ever in audyence,
And on the folke areyseth blame,
And doth hem dishonour and shame, 7540
For thynge that maye have no prevyng
But lykelynesse, and contryvyng?

7550

For I dare sayne that reason demeth, It is nat al sothe thynge that semeth ; And it is synne to controve Thynge that is to reprove; This wote ye wele; and, sir, therfore Ye arne to blame [wel] the more. And nathelesse he recketh lyte He yeveth nat nowe therof a myte, For if he thoughtė harme, parfaye, He wolde come and gone al daye ; He coudé himselfe nat abstene. Nowe 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 folke, algate. And thou her watchest at the gate, With speare in thyne arest alwaye; 7531. Th. she nat her selfc.

7570

7590

To seye me shame, and eke reprove
With sory happe, to youre bihove?
Am I to day youre herbegere?
Go herber yow elles-where than heere,
That han a lyer called me !
Two tregetours art thou and he,
That in myn hous do me this shame,
And for my sothe-saugh ye me blame.
Is this the sermoun that ye make?
To all the develles I me take,
Or elles, God, thou me confounde!
But er men diden this castel founde,
It passith not ten daies or twelve
But it was tolde right to my selve,
And as they seide, right so tolde I:
He kyst the Rosé pryvyly!
Thus seide I now and have seid yore;
I not where he dide ony more.
Why shulde men sey me such a thyng
If it hadde bene gabbyng?
Ryght so seide I and wol seye yit;

I trowe I lied not of it.

And with my bemes I wole blowe
To alle neighboris a-rowe,
How he hath bothé comen and gone.'
Tho spake Falssemblant right anone :
All is not gospel, oute of doute,
That men seyn in the towne aboute ;
7603. bemes, 'besuines,' trumpets.

7600

7620

(This knowe ye, sir, as wel as I)
That lovers gladly wole visiten
The places there her loves habiten.
This man yow loveth and eke honoureth,
This man to serve you laboureth,
And clepith you
"his freend so deere,"
And this man makith you good chere,
And every-where that [he] you meteth
He yow saloweth and he you greteth.
He preseth not so ofte that ye
Ought of his come encombred be;
Ther presen other folk on yow
Fúll ofter than he doth now.
And if his herte hym streyned so,
Unto the Rosé forto go,

7630

Ye shulde hym sene so ofté nede,
That ye shulde take hym with the dede.
He cowde his comyng not forbere
Though he hym thrilled with a spere ;
It nere not thanne as it is now.
But trustith wel, I swere it yow,
That it is clene out of his thought;
Sir, certis he ne thenkith it nought,
No more ne doth Faire-Welcomyng,
That sore abieth al this thing.
And if they were of oon assent,
Full soone were the Rosé hent,
The maugre youres wolde be.
And, sir, of o thing herkeneth me:
Sith ye this man that loveth yow
Han seid such harme and shame now,
Witeth wel if he gessed it,

Ye may wel demen in youre wit
He nolde no thyng love you so,
Ne callen you his freende also;
But nyght and day he wolde wake
The castell to destroie and take,
If it were soth as ye devise;
Or some man in some maner wise,
Might it warne hym everydele,

7612. hym, etc., indefinite pronouns.

7640

7650

Fals Semblant proveth so this thing, That he can noon answeryng, And seth alwey such apparaunce, That nygh he fel in repentaunce

7670

And seidė hym :- Sir, it may wel be,
Semblant, a good man semen ye;
And, Abstinence, full wise ye seme;
Of o talent you bothe I deme.
What counceil wole ye to me yeven?'
'Ryght heere anoon thou shalt be shryven,
And sey thy synne withoutė more;
Of this shalt thou repenté sore.
For I am prest, and have pouste
To shryve folk of most dignyte
That ben, as wide as world may dure,
Of all this world I have the cure,
And that hadde never yit persoun,
Ne vicarie of no maner toun.
And, God wote, I have of thee
A thousand tymė more pitee
Than hath thi preest parochial,
Though he thy freend be special.
I have avauntage in o wise

That youre prelatis ben not so wise,
Ne half so lettred as am I.
I am licenced boldėly

To rede in Divinite

And to confessen, out of drede.

If ye wol you now confesse,

And leve your sinnės more and lesse
Withoute abood, knele down anon,
And you shal have absolucion.'

7660. MSS. wote for doth.

7680

7690

7662. Iolyly is generally interpreted to be a strengthening adverb equivalent to 'bien' of Fr.; but that is translated by douteles. Such a use of 'jollyly' is difficult to explain. ?fully. 7691. G ends here with

To reden in Divinite And longe have red.

The French original goes on 9488 verses further.