And somme putten hem to Foughten at the ale. And geten gold with hire glee, Giltles, I leeve. Ac japeres and jangeleres, Judas children, Feynen hem fantasies, And fooles hem maketh, And han hire wit at wille To werken, if thei wolde. That Poul precheth of hem 75 I wol nat preve it here; But Qui loquitur turpiloquium Is Luciferes hyne. Bidderes and beggeres Faste aboute yede, With hire belies and hire In glotonye, God woot, 8 94 Pilgrymes and palmeres Plighten hem togidere, For to seken seint Jame, And seintes at Rome. They wenten forth in hire wey, With many wise tales, And hadden leve to lyen Al hire lif after. I seigh somme that seiden Thei hadde y-sought seintes ; To ech a tale that thei tolde Hire tonge was tempred to lye, Moore than to seye sooth, It semed bi hire speche. Heremytes on an heep With hoked staves Wenten to Walsyngham, And hire wenches after, Grete lobies and longe That lothe were to swynke; Clothed hem in copes, To ben knowen from othere; And shopen hem heremytes, Hire ese to have. I fond there freres, Alle the foure ordres, Prechynge the peple For profit of hemselve; Glosed the gospel, As hem good liked; For coveitise of copes, Construwed it as thei wolde Many of thise maistre freres Now clothen hem at likyng, 104 114 124 He 145 bouched hem with his In cheker and in chauncelrie, 180 Of wardes and of wardemotes, Weyves and streyves. And somme serven as ser vauntz Lordes and ladies, And in stede of stywardes Hire messe and hire matyns I perceyved of the power That Peter hadde to kepe, 190 200 201 To bynden and unbynden, 211 To han that power that Peter hadde, Impugnen I nelle; 220 For in love and in lettrure Thanne kam ther a kyng, And thanne cam kynde wit, And clerkes he made, The kyng and knyghthod, The commune contreved Of kynde wit craftes, And for profit of al the peple To tilie and to travaille, 280 240 The kyng and the commune, And kynde wit the thridde, 242 Shopen lawe and leauté, Ech man to knowe his owene. Thanne looked up a lunatik, A leene thyng with-alle, And, knelynge to the kyng, Clergially he seide: 250 "Crist kepe thee, sire kyng! An aungel of hevene Talia grana sere. Nudo de jure metatur; 270 260 Thanne greved hym a goliardeis, A gloton of wordes, And to the aungel an heigh 279 Of ratons at ones, And possed aboute. 801 "For doute of diverse dredes, Er he late us passe. A raton of renoun, Moost renable of tonge, 810 817 Help to hymselve: [quod he "I have y-seyen 840 To bugge a belle of bras, Al this route of ratons 850 route, For al the reaume of Fraunce, That dorste have bounden the belle segges," About the cattes nekke, 854 "Though we killen the cat, Yet sholde ther come another To cacchen us and al oure kynde, Though we cropen under benches. "I seye for me," quod the "I se so muchel after, Shal nevere the cat ne the kiton For-thi I counseille al the By my counseil be greved, Thorugh carpynge of this coler That costed me nevere 405 And though it hadde costned me catel, Bi-knowen it I nolde But suffren, as hymself wolde, warne, Wite wel his owene." What this metels by-meneth, Ye men that ben murye CO nyngnes, [oyne, He coveiteth noght your car Devyne ye, for I ne dar, By deere God in hevene. 417 NOTES ON THE SELECTION FROM PIERS PLOUGHMAN. 1. Somer, A.-S. sumer, Dan. sommer, from the same root, probably, as sam, together; spelled somer by Wycliffe, sommer, F. Q. I. i. 7.; sommer and somer by Gower. The second m indicates short sound of o or u, § 18 (2), and is not pronounced. - Seson, season. Fr. saison. The French ai had the sound of the A.-S. |