The Hengwrt ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall.

[6-text p 132]

¶ Here bigynneth the tale.

[THE PROLOGUE.]

O hateful harm / condicion of pouerte Line 99 With thurst with cold / with hunger so confoundid To axen help / thee shameth in thyn herte If thou noon axe / with nede artow so woundid Line 102 That verray nede / vnwrappeth al thy wounde hid Maugree thyn heed / thou most for Indigence Or stele / or begge / or borwe thy despence Line 105

Thow blamest Crist and seist ful bitterly He mysdeparteth / richesse temporal Thy neghebore / thow witest synfully And seist thow hast to lite / and he hath al Line 109 Parfay seistow / som tyme he rekne shal Whan þat his tayl / shal brennen in the gleede ffor he noght helpeth / nedefulle in hir nede Line 112

[ [Rats.] [folio 113b] He]rke / what is the sentence of the wise Bet is to dyen / than haue Indigence Thy selue neghebor / wol thee despise If thow be pouere / fare wel thy reuerence Line 116 Yet of the wise man / tak this sentence Alle the dayes / of pouere men been wikke Be war ther fore / er thow come to that prikke Line 119

¶ If thou be pouere / thy brother hateth thee And alle thy freendes / fleen from thee allas O riche Marchauntz / ful of wele been ye O noble / O prudent folk / as in this cas Line 123 Youre bagges / been noght filled with ambes as But with sys cynk. that renneth for youre chaunce At Cristemasse / murye may ye daunce Line 126

[6-text p 133] Line 126

Ye seken lond and see / for youre wynnynges As wise folk ye knowen al thestat Of regnes / ye been fadres of tidynges And tales / bothe of pees and of debat Line 130 I were right now / of tales desolat Nere þat a Marchaunt / goon is many a yere Me taughte a tale / which þat ye shal heere Line 133

[6-text p 134]

[THE TALE.]

¶ In Surrye whilom / dwelte a compaignye Of chapmen riche / and ther-to sadde and trewe That wyde where / senten hir spicerye Clothes of gold / and Satyns riche of hewe Line 137 Hir cheffare / was so thrifty and so newe That euery wight hath deyntee to cheffare With hem / and eek to sellen hem hir ware Line 140

¶ Now fil it / that the maistres of that sort Han shapen hem / to Rome for to wende Were it for chaphod / or for desport Noon oother message / wolde they thider sende Line 144 But coomen hem self to Rome / this is the ende And in swich place / as thoughte hem auauntage ffor hir entente / they take hir herbergage Line 147

¶ Soiourned han thise Marchauntz / in that town [folio 114a] A certein tyme / as fil to hir plesaunce But so bifel / þat the excellent renoun Of the Emperours doghter / dame Custaunce Line 151 Reported was / with euery circumstaunce Vn to thise Surryen Marchauntz / in swich wise ffro day / to day / as I shal yow deuyse Line 154

¶ This was the commune voys / of euery man Oure Emperour of Rome / god hym se A doghter hath / þat syn the world bigan To rekne as wel / hir goodnesse as beautee Line 158 Nas neuere swich another / as is she I pray to god / in honour hir sustene And wolde she were / of al Europe the queene [¶ Europa est tercia pars mundi.]

[6-text p 135]

¶ In hire is heigh beautee / with oute pryde Youthe / with outen grenehede / or folye To alle hir werkes / vertu is hir gyde Humblesse / hath slayn in hire al tirannye Line 165 She is Mirour / of al curteisye Hir herte / is verray chambre of holynesse Hir hand Ministre / of fredam / for almesse Line 168

¶ And al this voys was sooth / as god is trewe But now to purpos / lat vs come agayn Thise Marchauntz / han doon fraught hir shippes newe And whan they han / this blisful mayden sayn Line 172 Hom to Surrye / been they went ful fayn And doon hir nedes / as they han doon yoore And lyuen in wele / I kan sey yow namoore Line 175

¶ Now fil it that thise Marchauntz stode in grace Of hym / that was the Sowdan of Surrye ffor whan they coome / from any straunge place He wolde / of his benygne curteisye Line 179 Maken hem good cheere / and bisily espye Tidynges / of sondry regnes for to leere The wondres / that they myghte seen or heere Line 182

¶ [Am]onges othere thynges specially [folio 114b] Thise Marchauntz han hym told / of dame Custaunce So greet noblesse / in ernest ceriously [.i. ceriose] That this Sowdan / hath caught so greet plesaunce Line 186 To han hir figure / in his remembraunce That al his lust / and al his bisy cure Was for to loue hire / whil his lyf may dure Line 189

¶ Parauenture / in thilke large book Which þat men clepe the heuene / ywriten was With sterres / whan þat he his birthe took/ That he for loue / sholde han his deth allas Line 193

[6-text p 136] Line 193 ffor in the sterres / clerer than is glas Is writen god woot who so koude it rede The deeth of euery man / with outen drede Line 196

¶ In sterres / many a wynter / ther biforn [

Ceptra phoronei / fratrum discordia Thebefflammam Phetontis Decalionis aqueIn stellis Priami species audacia TurniSensus vlixeus / herculeusque vigor.

] Was writen the deeth / of Ector / Achilles Of Pompei / Iulius / er they were born The stryf of Thebes / and of Hercules Line 200 Of Sampson / Turnus / and of Socrates The deeth / but mennes wittes been so dulle That no wight kan wel rede it atte fulle Line 203

¶ This Sowdan / for his priuee conseil sente And shortly / of this matere for to pace He hath to hem / declared his entente And seyde hem certein / but he myghte haue grace Line 207 To han Custaunce / with Inne a litel space He nas but deed / and charged hem in hye To shapen / for his lyf som remedye Line 210

¶ Diuerse men / diuerse thynges seyden They argumenten / casten vp and doun Many a subtil reson / forth they leyden They speken of Magyk / and Abusioun Line 214 But finally / as in conclusioun They kan nat seen / in that noon Auauntage Ne in noon oother wey / saue mariage Line 217

¶ Thanne sawe they ther Inne / swich difficultee [folio 115a] By wey of reson / for to speke al playn By cause / þat ther was swich diuersitee Bitwene hir bothe lawes / þat they sayn Line 221 They trowe / þat no cristen Prince wolde fayn Wedden his child / vnder oure lawes swete That vs was taught by Mahoun oure prophete Line 224

[6-text p 137] Line 224

¶ And he answerde / rather than I lese Custaunce / I wol be cristned doutelees I moot ben hires / I may noon oother chese I pray yow / hold youre argumentz in pees Line 228 Saueth my lyf / and beth noght recchelees To geten hire / þat hath my lyf in cure ffor in this wo / I may nat longe endure Line 231

¶ What nedeth / gretter dilatacion I seye / by tretys / and embassadrye And by the Popes [[Inkt out in the MS, and byshop written over it.]] mediacion And al the chirche / and al the chiualrie Line 235 That in destruccion of Mawmetrie And in encrees / of Cristes lawe deere They been acorded / so as ye shal heere Line 238

¶ How þat the Sowdan / and his Baronage And alle his liges / sholde ycristned be And he shal han / Custaunce in mariage And certeyn gold / I noot what quantitee Line 242 And heer to / founden sufficient seuretee This same acord / was sworn on either syde Now faire Custaunce / al myghty god thee gyde Line 245

¶ Now wolde som men / waiten as I gesse That I sholde tellen / al the purueiaunce That Themperour / of his grete noblesse Hath shapen for his doghter / dame Custaunce Line 249 Wel may men knowen / þat so greet ordinaunce May no man tellen / in a litel clause As was arrayed / for so heigh a cause Line 252

[Bis]shopes been shapen / with hire for to wende [folio 115b] Lordes / ladies / knyghtes of renoun And oother folk ynowe / this is thende And notified is / thurgh out the town Line 256

[6-text p 138] Line 256 That euery wight with greet deuocioun Sholde preyen crist þat he this mariage Receyue in gree / and spede this viage Line 259

¶ The day is comen / of hir departynge I seye / the woful day fatal / is come That ther may be / no lenger taryynge But forthward they hem dresse / alle and some Line 263 Custaunce / that was with sorwe all ouercome fful pale arist and dresseth hire to wende ffor wel she seeth / ther nys noon oother ende Line 266

¶ Allas / what wonder is it/ thogh she wepte That shal be sent to straunge nacion ffro freendes / þat so tendrely hir kepte And to be bounden / vndur subieccion Line 270 Of oon / she knoweth noght his condicion Housbondes been alle goode / and han been yoore That knowen wyues / I dar sey yow namoore Line 273

¶ ffader she seyde / thy wrecched child Custaunce Thy yonge doghter / fostred vp so softe And ye my moder / my souereyn plesaunce Ouer alle thyng / outtaken crist on lofte Line 277 Custaunce youre child / hir recomaundeth ofte Vn to your grace / for I shal to Surrye Ne shal I neuere / seen yow moore with eye Line 280

¶ Allas / vn to the Barbre nacion I moste anon / syn þat it is youre wille But crist that starf for oure redempcion So yeue me grace / hise hestes to fulfille Line 284 I wrecche womman / no fors thogh I spille Wommen are born / to thraldom and penaunce And to been / vnder mannes gouernaunce Line 287

[6-text p 139] Line 287

¶ I trowe at Troye / whan Pirrus brak the wal [folio 116a] Or Ylion / brent hadde Thebes the Citee Nat Rome / for the harm thurgh Hanybal That Romayns / hath venquysshed tymes thre Line 291 Nas herd / swich tendre wepyng for pitee As in the chambre was / for hir departynge But forth she moot wher so she wepe or synge Line 294

¶ O firste moeuer / cruel firmament [¶ Vnde Ptholomeus libro .i^o. capitulum g[. . primi] motus celi duo sunt / quorum vnus est qui [movet totum] celum / semper ab Oriente in Occidentem vno [modo] super orbes &c / Ita aliter vero motus est qui mo[vet] orbem stellarum currencium / contra motum primum videlicet ab Occidente in Orientem super alios duos polos &c. [The MS is partly gnawn away by rats.]] With thy diurnal sweigh / þat crowdest ay And hurlest al / fro Est / til Occident That naturelly / wolde holde another way Line 298 Thy crowdyng / set the heuene in swich array At bigynnyng of this fiers viage That cruel Mars / hath slayn this mariage Line 301

¶ Infortunat ascendent tortuous Of which the lord / is helplees falle allas Out of his angle / in to the derkest hous O. Mars / o. Atazir / as in this cas Line 305 O fieble Moone / vnhappy been thy pas Thow knyttest thee / ther thow nart nat receyued Ther thow were wel / fro thennes artow weyued Line 308

¶ Inprudent Emperour of Rome / allas [¶ Omnes concordati sunt/ quod elecciones sint/ de|biles nisi in diuitibus / habent enim isti licet debilitentur eorum elecciones radicem .i. natiuitates eorum que confortat omnem / planetam / debilem in itinere &c.] Was ther no Philosophre / in al thy town Is no tyme bet than oother / in swich cas Of viage / is ther noon eleccioun Line 312 Namely / to folk of heigh condicioun Nat whan a roote / is of a burthe yknowe Allas / we been / to lewed or to slowe Line 315

¶ To shipe is broght this woful faire mayde Solempnely / with euery circumstaunce Now Ihesu crist be with yow alle / she seyde Ther nys namoore / but fare wel faire Custaunce Line 319

[6-text p 140] Line 319 She peyneth hire / to make good contenaunce And forth I lete hir Sayle / in this manere And turne I wole / agayn to my matere Line 322

¶ [T]he moder of the Sowdan / welle of vices [folio 116b] Espied hath / hir sones pleyn entente How he wol lete / his olde sacrifices And right anon / she for hir conseil sente Line 326 And they ben come / to knowen what she mente And whan assembled was / this folk in feere She sette hir down / and seyde as ye shal heere Line 329

¶ Lordes quod she / ye knowen euerychon How þat my sone / in point is for to lete The holy lawes / of oure Alkaron Yeuen by goddes message [[a late curl for er is over the g.]] Makomete But oon avow / to grete god I hete The lyf shal rather / out of my body sterte Than Makometes lawe / out of myn herte Line 336

¶ What sholde vs tiden / of this newe lawe But thraldom to oure bodies / and penaunce And afterward / in helle to be drawe ffor we reneyed / Mahoun oure creaunce Line 340 But lordes / wol ye maken assuraunce As I shal seyn / assentyng to my loore And I shal make vs sauf / for euere moore Line 343

¶ They sworen / and assenten euery man To lyue with hire and dye / and by hir stonde And euerich / in the beste wise he kan To strengthen hire / shal alle hise freendes fonde Line 347 And she hath / this emprise ytake on honde Which ye shal heren / þat I shal deuyse And to hem alle / she spak right in this wise Line 350

[6-text p 141] Line 350

¶ We shul first feyne vs / cristendom to take Coold water / shal nat greue vs but a lite And I shal / swich a feste / and reuel make That as I trowe / I shal the Sowdan quyte Line 354 ffor thogh his wyf / be cristned neuer so whyte She shal haue nede / to wasshe awey the rede Thogh she / a font ful water with hir lede Line 357

¶ O Sowdanesse roote of Iniquitee [folio 117a] Virago / thow Semyrame the secounde O Serpent/ vnder femynynytee Lyk to the Serpent/ depe in helle ybounde Line 361 O feyned womman / al that may confounde Vertu and Innocence / thurgh thy malice Is bred in thee / as nest of euery vice Line 364

¶ O Sathan enuyous / syn thilke day That thow were chaced / from oure heritage Wel knowestow to wommen / the olde way Thow madest Eua / brynge vs in seruage Line 368 Thow wolt fordoon / this cristen mariage Thyn Instrument so weylawey the while Makestow of wommen / whan thou wolt bigile Line 371

¶ This Sowdanesse / whom I thus blame and warye Leet pryuely hir conseil / goon his way What sholde I in this tale / lenger tarye She rideth to the Sowdan / on a day Line 375 And seyde hym / þat she wolde reneye hir lay And cristendom / of preestes handes fonge Repentynge hire / she hethen was so longe Line 378

¶ Bisekyng hym / to doon hire that honour That she moste han / the cristen folk to feste To plesen hem / I shall do my labour The Sowdan seith / I wol doon at youre heste Line 382

[6-text p 142] Line 382 And knelynge / thanketh hire of that requeste So glad he was / he nyste what to seye She kiste hir sone / and hom she gooth hir weye Line 385

[PART II.]

¶ Arryued been this cristen folk to londe In Surrye / with a gret solempne route And hastily / this Sowdan sente his sonde ffirst to his moder / and al the regne aboute Line 389 And seyde his wyf / was comen out of doute And preyde hire / for to ryde agayn the queene The honour / of his regne to sustene Line 392

¶ Greet was the prees / and riche was tharray [folio 117b] Of Surryens / and Romayns met yfeere The moder of the Sowdan / riche and gay Receyueth hire / with also glad a cheere Line 396 As any moder / myghte hir doghter deere And to the nexte Citee / ther bisyde A softe paas / solempnely they ryde Line 399

¶ Naught trowe I / the triumphe of Iulius Of which þat lucan / maketh swich a boost Was roiallour / ne moore curyus Than was the assemblee / of this blisful oost Line 403 But this scorpion / this wikked goost The Sowdanesse / for al hir flaterynge Caste vnder this / ful mortally to stynge Line 406

¶ The Sowdan cometh hym self / soone after this So roially / þat wonder is to telle He welcometh hire / with alle ioye and blys And thus in myrthe and Ioye / I lete hem dwelle Line 410

[6-text p 143] Line 410 The fruyt of this matere / is þat I telle Whan tyme cam / men thoughte it for the beste That reuel stynte / and men go to hir reste Line 413

¶ The tyme cam / this olde Sowdanesse Ordeyned hath this feste / of which I tolde And to the feste / cristen folk hem dresse In general / ye bothe yonge and olde Line 417 Heer may men feste / and roialtee biholde And deyntees mo / than I kan yow deuyse But al to deere / they boghte it er they ryse Line 420

¶ O sodeyn wo / that euere art Successour [¶ nota de inopinato dolore ¶ Semper mundane leticie / tristicia repentina succedit / Mundana igitur felicitas multis ama|ritudinibus est respersa extrema gaudij luctus occupat / Audi ergo salubre consilium in die bonorum ne inmemor sis malorum.] To worldly blisse / spreynd with bitternesse The ende of the ioye / of oure worldly labour Wo ocupieth / the fyn of oure gladnesse Line 424 Herke this conseil / for thy sikernesse Vp on thy glade day / haue in thy mynde The vnwar wo / or harm / þat comth bihynde Line 427

¶ ffor shortly / for to tellen / at a word [folio 118a] The Sowdan / and the cristen euerychone Been al to-hewe / and stiked at the bord But it were oonly / dame Custaunce allone Line 431 This olde sowdanesse / cursed krone Hath with hir freendes / doon this cursed dede ffor she hir self / wolde al the contree lede Line 434

¶ Ne ther nas Surryen noon / þat was conuerted That of the conseil / of the Sowdan woot That he nas al tohewe / er he asterted And Custaunce / han they take anon foot hoot Line 438 And in a ship / al sterelees / god woot They han hir set and bidde hir lerne Sayle Out of Surrye / agaynward to Itaille Line 441

[6-text p 144] Line 441

¶ A certein tresor / that she thider ladde And sooth to seyn / vitaille gret plentee They han hir yeuen / and clothes eek she hadde And forth she sayleth / in the salte see Line 445 O my Custaunce / ful of benygnytee O Emperours / yonge doghter deere He þat is lord of ffortune be thy steere Line 448

¶ She blisseth hire / and with ful pitous voys Vn to the cros of Crist/ thus seyde she O clere / o weleful Auter / holy croys Reed of the lambes blood / ful of pitee Line 452 That wesshe the world / fro the olde Iniquitee Me fro the feend / and fro his clawes kepe That day / þat I shal drenchen in the depe Line 455

¶ Victorious tree / proteccion of trewe That oonly / worthy were for to bere The kyng of heuene / with his woundes newe The white lamb / that hurt was with a spere Line 459 fflemere of feendes / out of hym and here On which thy lymes / feithfully extenden Me kepe / and yeue me myght my lyf tamenden Line 462

[Ye]res and dayes / fleet this creature [folio 118b] Thurgh out the see of Grece / vn to the Strayte Of Marrok as it was hir auenture O many a sory meel / now may she bayte Line 466 After hir deth / ful often may she wayte Er þat the wilde wawes / wol hir dryue Vn to the place / ther she shal arryue Line 469

Men myghten axen / why she was noght slayn Eek at the feste / who myghte hir body saue And I answere / to that demaunde agayn Who saued Danyel / in the horrible Caue Line 473

[6-text p 145] Line 473 Ther euery wight saue he / maister and knaue Was with the leon frete / er he asterte No wight but god / þat he bar in his herte Line 476

¶ God liste to shewe / his wonderful miracle In hire / for we sholde seen / his myghty werkes Crist/ which þat is / to euery harm triacle By certein menes ofte / as knowen clerkes Line 480 Dooth thyng for certein ende / þat ful derk is To mannes wit þat for oure ignoraunce Ne konne noght knowe / his prudent purueiaunce Line 483

¶ Now sith she was nat / at the feste yslawe Who kepte hire / fro the drenchyng in the see Who kepte Ionas / in the fisshes mawe Til he / was spowted vp at Nynyuee Line 487 Wel may men knowe / it was no wight but hee That kepte peple Ebrayk / from hir drenchyng With drye feet thurgh out the see passyng Line 490

¶ Who bad / the foure Spiritz of tempest That power han / tanoyen lond and See Bothe North and South / and also west and Est Anoyeth neither / See / ne land / ne tree Line 494 Soothly / the comaundour of that was hee That fro the tempest ay this womman kepte As wel / whan she wook as whan she slepte Line 497

¶ Wher myghte this womman / mete and drynke haue [folio 119a] Thre yeer and moore / how lasteth hir vitaille Who fedde the Egipcien Marie / in the Caue Or in desert / no wight but crist sanz faille Line 501 ffyue thousand folk / it was as greet meruaille With loues fyue / and fisshes two to fede God sente his foyson / at hir grete nede Line 504

[6-text p 146] Line 504

¶ She dryueth forth / in to oure Occian Thurgh out the wilde see / til at the laste Vnder an hoold / þat nempnen I ne kan ffer in Northumberland / the wawe hir caste Line 508 And in the sond / hir shipe stiked so faste That thennes wolde it noght of al a tyde The wyl of crist was þat she sholde abyde Line 511

¶ The Constable of the Castel / down is fare To seen this wrak and al the shipe he soghte And foond this wery womman ful of care He foond also / the tresor þat she broghte Line 515 In hir langage / mercy she bisoghte The lyf / out of hir body for to twynne Hir to deliuere / of wo that she was Inne Line 518

¶ A manere latyn corrupt was hir speche But algates / ther by was she vnderstonde The Constable / whan hym liste no lenger seche This woful womman / broghte he to the londe Line 522 She kneleth doun / and thanketh goddes sonde But what she was / she wolde no man seye ffor foul ne fair / thogh þat she sholde deye Line 525

¶ She seyde / she was so mazed in the See That she forgat hir mynde / by hir trouthe The Constable / hath of hire so greet pitee And eek his wyf / that they wepten for routhe Line 529 She was so diligent with outen slouthe To serue and plese / euerich in that place That alle hir louen / that looken on hir face Line 532

This Constable / and dame Hermengyld his wyf [folio 119b] Were payens / and that contree euery where But hermengyld / loued hire right as hir lyf And Custaunce / hath so longe soiourned there Line 536

[6-text p 147] Line 536 In orisons / with many a bitter teere Til Ihesu / hath conuerted thurgh his grace Dame hermengyld / Constablesse of thilke place Line 539

¶ In al that land / no cristen dorste route Alle cristen folk / been fled fro that contree Thurgh Payens / þat conquereden al aboute The plages of the North / by land and see Line 543 To Walys / fledde the cristianytee Of olde Britons / dwellyng in this Ile Ther was hir refut for the mene while Line 546

¶ But yet nere cristen Britons / so exiled That ther nere somme / þat in hir pryuetee Honoured crist and hethen folk bigiled And neigh the Castel / swiche ther dwelten thre Line 550 That oon of hem / was blynd and myghte nat se But it were / with thilke eyen of his mynde With whiche men seen / after þat they been blynde Line 553

¶ Bright was the sonne / as in that Someres day ffor which the Constable / and his wyf also And Custaunce / han ytake the righte way Toward the see / a furlong wey / or two Line 557 To pleyen / and to romen to and fro And in hir walk this blynde man they mette Croked and old / with eyen faste yshette Line 560

¶ In name of Crist cryde this blynde Britoun Dame Hermengyld / yif me my sighte agayn This lady / weex affrayed of the sown Lest þat hir housbonde / shortly for to sayn Line 564 Wolde hire / for Ihesu cristes loue han slayn Til Custaunce made hir boold / and bad hir wirche The wyl of Crist as doghter of his chirche Line 567

[6-text p 148] Line 567

¶ The Constable / weex abasshed of that sight [folio 120a] And seide / What amounteth al this fare Custaunce answerde / sire it is Cristes myght That helpeth folk / out of the feendes snare Line 571 And so ferforth / she gan oure lay declare That she the Constable / er þat it was eue Conuerteth / and on Crist made hym bileue Line 574

¶ This Constable / was no thyng lord of this place Of which I speek ther he Custaunce fond But kepte it strongly / many wynter space Vnder Alla / kyng of al Northumberlond Line 578 That was ful wys / and worthy of his hond Agayn the Scottes / as men may wel heere But turne I wole / agayn to my matere Line 581

¶ Sathan / þat euere vs waiteth to bigile Saugh of Custaunce / al hir perfeccion And caste anon / how he myghte quite hir while And made a yong knyght þat dwelte in that town Line 585 Loue hire hote / of foul affeccioun That verraily / hym thoughte he sholde spille But he of hire / myghte ones haue his wille Line 588

¶ He woweth hire / but it auailleth noght She wolde do no synne / by no weye And for despit he compassed in his thoght To maken hire / on shameful deeth to deye Line 592 He wayteth / whan the Constable was aweye And priuely / vp on a nyght he crepte In Hermengildes chambre / whil she slepte Line 595

¶ Wery for-waked / in hir orisons Slepeth Custaunce / and hermengild also This knyght thurgh Sathans temptacions Al softely / is to the bed ygo Line 599

[6-text p 149] Line 599 And kitte the throte / of Hermengild atwo And leyde the blody knyf / by dame Custaunce And wente his wey / ther god yeue hym meschaunce Line 602

[So]one after / cometh this Constable hom agayn [folio 120b] And eek Alla / that kyng was of that lond And saw his wyf / despitously yslayn ffor which ful ofte / he weepe and wrong his hond Line 606 And in the bed / the blody knyf he fond By dame Custaunce / allas what myghte she seye ffor verray wo / hir wit was al aweye Line 609

¶ To kyng Alla / was told al this meschaunce And eek the tyme / and where / and in what wise That in a shipe / was founde this Custaunce As her biforn / þat ye han herd deuyse Line 613 The kynges herte / of pitee gan agryse Whan he saw / so benygne a creature ffalle in disese / and in mysauenture Line 616

¶ ffor as the lomb / toward his deeth is broght So stant this Innocent bifore the kyng This false knyght þat hath this treson wroght Bereth hire on hond / þat she hath doon this thyng Line 620 But nathelees / ther was greet moornyng Among the peple / and seyn they kan nat gesse That she had doon / so greet a wikkednesse Line 623

¶ ffor they han seyn hire / euere so vertuous And louyng Hermengild / right as hir lyf Of this baar witnesse / euerich in that hous Saue he þat Hermengild / slow with his knyf Line 627 This gentil kyng hath caught a gret motyf Of this witnesse / and thoghte he wolde enquere Depper in this / a trouthe for to lere Line 630

[6-text p 150] Line 630

¶ Allas Custaunce / thow nast no champion Ne fighte kanstow noght so weilawey But he þat starf / for oure redempcion And bond Sathan / and yet lyth ther he lay Line 634 So be thy stronge champion this day ffor but if Crist / open miracle kythe With outen gilt thow shalt been slayn as swythe Line 637

¶ She sette hir down on knees / and thus she sayde [folio 121a] Immortal god / that sauedest Susanne ffro fals blame / and thow merciful mayde Marie I mene / doghter to Seint Anne Line 641 Biforn whos child / Aungels synge Osanne If I be giltlees / of this felonye My socour be / for ellis shal I dye Line 644

¶ Haue ye nat seyn som tyme / a pale face Among a prees / of hym þat hath be lad Toward his deeth / wher as hym gat no grace And swich a colour / in his face hath had Line 648 Men myghte knowe his face / þat was bistad Amonges alle the faces / in that route So stant Custance / and looketh hire aboute Line 651

¶ O Queenes / lyuynge in prosperitee Duchesses / and ye ladies euerichon Haueth som reuthe / on hir aduersitee An Emperours doghter / stant allone Line 655 She hath no wight / to whom to make hir mone O blood roial / that stondest in this drede ffer be thy freendes / at thy grete nede Line 658

¶ This Alla kyng hath swich compassioun As gentil herte / is fulfild of pitee That from his eyen / ran the water doun Now hastily / do fecche a book / quod he Line 662

[6-text p 151] Line 662 And if this knyght. wol sweren how þat she This womman slow / yet wol we vs auyse Whom þat we wole / that shal been oure Iustise Line 665

A Briton book writen with Euaungiles Was fet and on this book he swoor anon She gilty was / and in the mene whiles An hand hym smoot vp on the nekke bon Line 669 That doun he fel / atones / as a stoon And bothe hise eyen / broste out of his face In sighte / of euery body in that place Line 672

[A vo]ys was herd / in general audience [folio 121b] And seyde / thow hast disclaundred giltlees The doghter of holy chirche / in heigh presence Thus hastow doon / and yet I holde my pees Line 676 Of this meruaille / agast was al the prees As mazed folk / they stoden euerychone ffor drede of wreche / saue Custance allone Line 679

¶ Greet was the drede / and eek the repentaunce Of hem / þat hadden wrong suspecion Vp on / this sely Innocent Custaunce And for this miracle / in conclusion Line 683 And by Custaunces mediacion The kyng and many another in that place Conuerted was / thanked be Cristes grace Line 686

¶ This false knyght was slayn for his vntrouthe By Iuggement of Alla hastily And yet Custaunce / hadde of his deeth greet routhe And after this / Ihesus of his mercy Line 690 Made Alla / wedden ful solempnely This holy mayden / þat is so bright and shene And thus hath Crist maad Custance a queene Line 693

[6-text p 152] Line 693

¶ But who was woful / if I shal nat lye Of this weddyng but Donegild and namo The kynges moder / ful of tirannye Hir thoughte / hir cursed herte brast atwo Line 697 She wolde noght hir sone had doon so Hir thoughte a despit þat he sholde take So straunge a creature / vn to his make Line 700

¶ Me list nat of the chaf / ne of the stree Maken so long a tale / as of the corn What sholde I tellen / of the realtee At mariages / or which cours gooth biforn Line 704 Who bloweth in trompe / or in an horn The fruyt of euery tale / is for to seye They ete and drynke / and daunce / & synge & pleye Line 707

¶ They goon to bedde as it was skile and right [folio 122a] ffor though þat wyues / been ful holy thynges They moste take / in pacience at nyght Swich manere necessaries / as been plesynges Line 711 To folk / that han ywedded hem with rynges And laye a lite / hir holynesse asyde As for the tyme / it may noon oother bityde Line 714

¶ On hire / he gat a knaue child anon And to a bisshope / and his Constable eke He took his wyf to kepe / whan he is gon To Scotlondward / his foomen for to seke Line 718 Now faire Custaunce / þat is so humble & meke So longe is goon with childe / til þat stille She halt hir chambre / abidyng cristes wille Line 721

¶ The tyme is come / a knaue child she beer Mauricius at the font stoon / they hym calle This Constable / dooth forth come a Messager And wroot vn to his kyng þat clepyd was Alle Line 725

[6-text p 153] Line 725 How þat / this blisful tidynge is bifalle And othere tidynges / speedful for to seye He tath the lettre / and forth he goth his weye Line 728

¶ This Messager / to doon his auauntage Vn to the kynges moder / rideth swithe And salueth ful faire / in his langage Ma dame quod he / ye may be glad and blithe Line 732 And thanketh god / an hundred thousand sithe My lady queene / hath child with outen doute To ioye and blisse / of al this regne aboute Line 735

¶ Lo here the lettres / seled of this thyng That I moot bere / with al the haste I may If ye wol aught vn to youre sone the kyng I am youre seruaunt bothe nyght and day Line 739 Donegild answerde / as now at this tyme nay But here al nyght I wol thow take thy reste To morwe / wol I seye thee what me leste Line 742

[Thi]s Messager / drank sadly ale and wyn [folio 122b] And stolen were / his lettres pryuely Out of his box / whil he sleep as a swyn And countrefeted / was ful subtilly Line 746 Another lettre / wroght ful synfully Vn to the kyng direct of this matere ffro his Constable / as ye shal after heere Line 749

¶ The lettre spak / the queene deliuered was Of so horrible / a fendlich creature That in the Castel / noon so hardy was That any while / dorste ther endure Line 753 The moder was an Elf / by auenture Ycomen / by charmes / or by sorcerye And euerich / hateth hir compaignye Line 756

[6-text p 154] Line 756

¶ Wo was this kyng whan he this lettre hadde seyn But to no wight he tolde his sorwes soore But of his owene hond / he wroot ageyn Welcome the sonde of Crist / for euere moore Line 760 To me / þat am now lerned in his loore Lord / welcome be thy lust and thy plesaunce My lust I putte al in thyn ordinaunce Line 763

¶ Kepeth this child / al be it foul or feir And eek my wyf / vn to myn hom comynge Crist whan hym list may sende me an heir Moore agreable than this / to my likynge Line 767 This lettre he seleth / pryuely wepynge Which to the Messager / was take soone And forth he goth / ther is namoore to doone Line 770

¶ O Messager / fulfild of dronkenesse [¶ Quid turpius ebrioso / cui fetor in ore / tremor in corpore / qui promit stulta / prodit occulta / cui mens alienatur / facies transformatur / nullum enim latet secretum vbi regnat ebrietas.] Strong is thy breeth / thy lymes faltren ay And thow biwreyest al secrenesse The mynde is lorn / thow ianglest as a Iay Line 774 Thy face is turned / in a newe array Ther dronkenesse regneth / in any route Ther is no conseil hid / with outen doute Line 777

¶ O Donegild / I ne haue noon englissh digne [folio 123a] Vn to thy malice / and thy tirannye And ther fore / to the feend I thee resigne Lat hym enditen / of thy traitorie Line 781 ffy mannyssh fy / o nay by god I lye ffy fendlich spirit for I dar wel telle Thogh thow heere walke / thy spirit is in helle Line 784

¶ This Messager / comth fro the kyng agayn And at the kynges modres Court he lighte And she was / of this Messager ful fayn And plesed hym / in al that euere she myghte Line 788

[6-text p 155] Line 788 He drank / and wel his girdel vnder pighte He slepeth / and he fnorteth in his gyse Al nyght til the sonne gan aryse Line 791

¶ Eft were his lettres / stolen euerichon And countrefeted lettres / in this wyse The kyng comaundeth / his Constable anon Vp peyne of hangyng and on heigh Iuyse Line 795 That he ne sholde suffren / in no wyse Custance / in with his regne for tabyde Thre dayes / and a quarter of o tyde Line 798

¶ But in the same Shipe / as he hir fond Hire and hir yonge sone / and al hir geere He sholde putte / and crowde hir fro the lond And charge hire / þat she neuere eft coome there Line 802 O my Custaunce / wel may thy goost haue fere And slepyng in thy dreem / been in penaunce Whan Donegild / caste al this ordinaunce Line 805

¶ This Messager / on morwe whan he wook Vn to the Castel / halt the nexte wey And to the Constable / he the lettre took And whan þat he / this pitous lettre sey Line 809 fful ofte / he seyde allas and weilawey Lord crist quod he / how may this world endure So ful of synne / is many a creature. Line 812

[O] myghty god / if that it be thy wille [folio 123b] Sith thow art rightful Iuge / how may it be That thow wolt suffren / Innocentz to spille And wikked folk / regnen in prosperitee Line 816 O goode Custaunce / allas so wo is me That I moot be thy tormentour / or deye On shames deeth / ther nys noon oother weye Line 819

[6-text p 156] Line 819

¶ Wepen bothe yonge and olde / in al that place Whan þat the kyng this cursed lettre sente And Custance / with a dedly pale face The ferthe day / toward hir shipe she wente Line 823 But nathelees / she taketh in good entente The wyl of Crist / and knelyng on the Stronde She seyde lord / ay wel come be thy sonde Line 826

¶ He þat me kepte / fro the false blame Whil I was on the lond / amonges yow He kan me kepe / fro harm and eek fro shame In salte see / al thogh I se noght how Line 830 As strong as euere he was / he is yet now In hym triste I / and in his moder deere That is to me / my Sayl and eek my steere Line 833

¶ Hir litel child / lay wepyng in hir arm And knelyng pitously to hym she seyde Pees litel sone / I wol do thee noon harm With that hir couerchief / ouer hir hed she breyde Line 837 And ouer his litel eyen / she it leyde And in hir arm / she lulleth it ful faste And in to heuene / hir eyen vp she caste Line 840

¶ Moder quod she / and mayden bright Marie Sooth is / þat thurgh wommans eggement Mankynde was lorn / and dampned ay to dye ffor which thy child / was on a croys yrent Line 844 Thy blisful eyen / sawe al his torment Thanne is ther / no comparison bitwene Thy wo / and any wo man may sustene Line 847

¶ Thow saw thy child / yslayn bifor thyne eyen [folio 124a] And yet now / lyueth my litel child parfay Now lady bright to whom alle woful cryen Thow glorie of wommanhod / thow faire may Line 851

[6-text p 157] Line 851 Thow hauen of refut brighte sterre of day Rewe on my child / that of thy gentillesse Rewest on euery rewful in distresse Line 854

¶ O litel child / allas what is thy gilt That neuere wroghtest synne / as yet pardee Why wil thyn harde fader / han thee spilt O mercy deere Constable / quod she Line 858 As lat my litel child / dwelle here with thee And if thow darst noght sauen hym for blame So kys hym ones / in his fader name Line 861

¶ Ther with she looketh / bakward to the londe And seyde / fare wel housbonde routhelees And vp she rist and walketh doun the Stronde Toward the shipe / hir folweth al the prees Line 865 And euere / she preyeth hir child / to holde his pees And taketh hir leue / and with an holy entente She blesseth hire / and in to shipe she wente Line 868

¶ Vitailled was the shipe / it is no drede Habundantly for hire / ful longe space And othere necessaries / þat sholde nede She hadde ynow / heryed be goddes grace Line 872 ffor wynd and weder / almyghty god purchace And brynge hir hom / I kan no bettre seye But in the see / she dryueth forth hir weye Line 875

[PART III.]

¶ Alla the kyng comth hom soone after this Vn to his Castel / of the which I tolde And axeth / where his wyf / and his child is The Constable / gan aboute his herte colde Line 879

[6-text p 158] Line 879 And pleynly / al the manere he hym tolde As ye han herd / I kan telle it no bettre And sheweth the kyng his seel and his lettre Line 882

[A]nd seyde lord / as ye comaunded me [folio 124b] Vp peyne of deeth / so haue I do certein This Messager / tormented was / til he Moste biknowe / and tellen plat and pleyn Line 886 ffro nyght to nyght in what place he had leyn And thus by wit and subtil enquerynge Ymagined was / by whom this harm gan sprynge Line 889

¶ The hond was knowe / þat the lettre wroot And al the venym / of this cursed dede But in what wise / certeynly I noot Theffect is this / þat Alla out of drede Line 893 His moder slow / that may men pleynly rede ffor that she traytour was / to hir ligeaunce Thus endeth olde Donegild with meschaunce Line 896

¶ The sorwe þat this Alla / nyght and day Maketh for his wyf / and for his child also Ther is no tonge / that it telle may But now wol I / vn to Custaunce go Line 900 That fleteth in the See / in peyne and wo ffyue yeer and moore / as liked Cristes sonde Er þat hir shipe / approched vn to londe Line 903

¶ Vnder an hethen Castel / atte laste Of which the name / in my text noght I fynde Custaunce and eek hir child / the see vp caste Almyghty god / that saueth al mankynde Line 907 Haue on Custaunce / and on hir child som mynde That fallen is / in hethen hand eft soone In point to spille / as I shal telle yow soone Line 910

[6-text p 159] Line 910

¶ Down fro the Castel / comth ther many a wight To gauren on this Shipe / and on Custaunce But shortly from the Castel / on a nyght The lordes Styward / god yeue hym meschaunce Line 914 A theef / that hadde reneyed oure creaunce Cam in to shipe allone / and seyde he sholde Hir lemman be / wher so she wolde or nolde Line 917

¶ Wo was this wrecched womman tho bigon [folio 125a] Hir child cryde / and she cryde pitously But blisful Marie / heelp hire right anon ffor with hir strogelyng wel and myghtily Line 921 The theef / fil ouer bord / al sodeynly And in the see / he dreynte for vengeaunce And thus hath Crist vnwemmed kept Custaunce Line 924

¶ O foule lust of luxurie / lo thyn ende [¶ O. extrema libidinis turp[itudo] que non solum men|tem effemi[nat] set eciam corpus eneruat/ se[mper] sequntur dolor & penitencia post &[c].] Nat oonly / þat thou fayntest mannes mynde But verraily / thow wolt his body shende Thende of thy werk/ or of thy lustes blynde Line 928 Is compleynyng how many oon may men fynde That noght for werk som tyme / but for thentente To doon this synne / been outher slayn or shente Line 931

¶ How may this wayke womman / han this strengthe Hir to defende / agayn this renegat O. Golias / vnmesurable of lengthe How myghte dauid / make thee so maat Line 935 So yong and of armure so desolat How dorste he looke / vp on thy dredful face Wel may men seen / it was but goddes grace Line 938

¶ Who yaf Iudith / corage / or hardynesse To sleen hym Olofernus / in his tente And to deliueren / out of wrecchednesse The peple of god / I sey for this entente Line 942

[6-text p 160] Line 942 That right as god / spirit of vigour sente To hem / and saued hem / out of meschaunce So sente he myght and vigour to Custaunce Line 945

¶ fforth gooth hir shipe / thurgh out the narwe mouth Of Iubaltare / and Septe / dryuyng ay Som tyme West and som tyme North and South And som tyme Est ful many a wery day Line 949 Til Cristes moder / blissed be she ay Hath shapen / thurgh hir endelees goodnesse To make an ende / of al hir heuynesse Line 952

[N]ow lat vs stynte of Custaunce / but a throwe [folio 125b] And speke we / of the Romayn Emperour That out of Surrye / hath by lettres knowe The slaughtre of cristen folk / and dishonour Line 956 Doon to his doghter / by a fals traytour I mene / the cursed wikked Sowdanesse That at the feeste / leet sleen bothe moore and lesse Line 959

¶ ffor which this Emperour / hath sent anon His Senatour / with Roial ordinaunce And othere lordes / god woot many oon On Surryens / to taken heigh vengeaunce Line 963 They brennen / sleen / and brynge hem to meschaunce fful many a day / but shortly this is thende Homward to Rome / they shapen hem to wende Line 966

¶ This senatour / repaireth with Victorie To Romeward / saylynge ful Roially And mette the ship dryuynge / as seith the stori In which Custaunce / sit ful pitously Line 970 No thyng ne knew he / what she was / ne why She was in swich array / ne she nyl seye Of hir estaat thogh she sholde deye Line 973

[6-text p 161] Line 973

¶ He bryngeth hire to Rome / and to his wyf He yaf hire / and hir yonge sone also And with the Senatour / she ladde hir lyf Thus kan oure lady / bryngen out of wo [Maria mater omnium virtu|tum. [in a late hand]] Woful Custaunce / and many another mo And longe tyme / dwelled she in that place In holy werkes euere / as was hir grace [R Wryne] [[in the same late hand]] Line 980

¶ The senatours wyf / hir Aunte was But for al that she knew hir neuer the moore I wol no lenger / taryen in this cas But to kyng Alla / which I spak of yoore Line 984 That for his wyf / wepeth and siketh soore I wol retourne / and lete I wole Custaunce Vnder the Senatours gouernaunce Line 987

¶ Kyng Alla / which þat hadde his moder slayn [folio 126a] Vp on a day / fil in swich repentaunce That if I shortly / tellen shal and playn To Rome he cometh / to receyuen his penaunce Line 991 And putte hym / in the Popes ordinaunce In heigh and logh / and Ihesu Crist bisoghte fforyeue / his wikked werkes þat he wroghte Line 994

¶ The fame anon / thurgh Rome town is born How Alla kyng shal comen in pilgrymage By herbergeours / that wenten hym biforn ffor which the Senatour / as was vsage Line 998 Rood hym agayns / and many of his lynage As wel to shewen / his heighe magnyficence As to doon / any kyng a reuerence Line 1001

¶ Greet cheere / doth this noble Senatour To kyng Alla / and he to hym also Euerich of hem / dooth oother greet honour And so bifel / þat in a day / or two Line 1005

[6-text p 162] Line 1005 This Senatour / is to kyng Alla go To feste / and shortly / if I shal nat lye Custaunces sone / wente in his compaignye Line 1008

¶ Som men wolde seyn / at requeste of Custaunce This Senatour / hath lad this child to feste I may nat tellen / euerich circumstaunce Be as be may / ther was he atte leste Line 1012 But sooth is this / þat at his modres heste Biforn Alla / duryng the metes space The child stood / lookynge in the kynges face Line 1015

¶ This Alla kyng hath of this child greet wonder And to the Senatour / he seyde anon Whos is that faire child / that stondeth yonder I noot quod he / by god and by Seint Iohn Line 1019 A moder he hath / but fader hath he non That I of woot/ and shortly in a stounde He tolde Alla / how þat this child was founde Line 1022

[Bu]t god woot quod this Senatour also [folio 126b] So vertuous a lyuere / in my lyf Ne saw I neuere as she / ne herde of mo Of worldly wommen / mayde ne of wyf Line 1026 I dar wel seyn / hir hadde leuere a knyf Thurgh out hir brest/ than been a womman wikke Ther is no man / koude brynge hire to that prikke Line 1029

¶ Now was this child / as lyk vn to Custaunce As possible is / a creature to be This Alla / hath the face in remembraunce Of dame Custaunce / and ther on mused he Line 1033 If þat the childes moder / were aught she That is his wyf / and pryuely he sighte And spedde hym fro the table that he myghte Line 1036

[6-text p 163] Line 1036

¶ Parfay thoughte he / fantome is in myn heed I oghte deme / of skilful Iugement That in the salte see / my wif is deed And afterward / he made his argument Line 1040 What woot I / if þat Crist hath hider sent My wif by see / as wel as he hir sente To my contree / from thennes þat she wente Line 1043

¶ And after noon / hom with the Senatour Goth Alla / for to seen this wonder chaunce This Senatour / dooth Alla greet honour And hastily / he sente after Custaunce Line 1047 But tristeth wel / hir liste noght to daunce Whan that she wiste / wher fore was that sonde Vnnethe / vp on hir feet she myghte stonde Line 1050

¶ Whan Alla saugh his wyf / faire he hir grette And weepe / that it was routhe for to se ffor at the firste look / he on hir sette He knew wel verraily / þat it was she Line 1054 And she for sorwe / as domb stant as a tree So was hir herte shet in hir distresse Whan she remembred / his vnkyndenesse Line 1057

¶ Twies she swowneth / in his owene sighte [folio 127a] He weepe / and hym excuseth pitously Now god quod he / and his halwes brighte So wisly on my soule / as haue mercy Line 1061 That of youre harm / as giltlees am I. As is Maurice my sone / so lyk youre face Ellis the feend / me fecche out of this place Line 1064

¶ Long was the sobbyng and the bitter peyne Er þat / hir woful hertes myghte cesse Greet was the pitee / for to heere hem pleyne Thurgh whiche pleintes / gan hir wo encresse Line 1068

[6-text p 164] Line 1068 I pray yow / al my labour to relesse I may nat telle hir wo / vn til to morwe I am so wery / for to speke of sorwe Line 1071

¶ But finally / whan þat the sooth is wist/ That Alla / giltlees was of hir wo I trowe / an hundred tymes been they kist And swich a blisse / is ther bitwix hem two Line 1075 That saue the ioye / þat lasteth eueremo Ther is noon lyk / þat any creature Hath seyn / or shal / whil þat the world may dure Line 1078

¶ Tho preyde she / hir housbond mekely In relief / of hir longe pitous pyne That he wolde praye / hir fader specially That of his magestee / he wolde enclyne Line 1082 To vouche sauf / som day with hym to dyne She preyde hym eek he sholde by no weye Vn to hir fader / no word of hir seye Line 1085

¶ Som men wolde seyn / how þat the child Mauryce Dooth this message / vn to this Emperour But as I gesse / Alla was noght so nyce To hym þat was / of so souereyn honour Line 1089 As he þat is / of cristen folk the flour Sente any child / but it is bet to deme He wente hym self and so it may wel seme Line 1092

[Thi]s Emperour / hath graunted gentilly [folio 127b] To come to dyner / as he hym bisoghte And wel rede I / he looked bisily Vp on this child / and on his doghter thoghte Line 1096 Alla gooth to his In / and as hym oghte Arrayed for this feste in euery wise As ferforth / as his konnyng may suffise Line 1099

[6-text p 165] Line 1099

¶ The morwe cam / and Alla gan hym dresse And eek his wyf / this Emperour to meete And forth they ryde / in Ioye and in gladnesse And whan she say / hir fader in the Streete Line 1103 She lighte doun / and falleth hym to feete ffader quod she / youre yonge child Custaunce Is now ful clene / out of youre remembraunce Line 1106

¶ I am youre doghter Custance / quod she That whilom ye han sent / vn to Surrye It am I fader / that in the salte See Was put allone / and dampned for to dye Line 1110 Now goode fader / mercy I yow crye Seend me namoore / vn to noon hethenesse But thonke my lord heere / of his kyndenesse Line 1113

¶ Who kan the pitous Ioye / tellen al Bitwix hem thre / syn they be thus ymette But of my tale / make an ende I shal The day goth faste / I wol no lenger lette Line 1117 This glade folk to dyner they hem sette In ioye and blisse / at mete I lete hem dwelle A thousand fold / wel moore than I kan telle Line 1120

¶ This child Maurice / was sithen Emperour Maad by the Pope / and lyued cristenly To cristes chirche / he dide greet honour But I lete / al this storie passen by Line 1124 Of Custaunce / is my tale specially In the olde Romayn gestes / may men fynde Maurices lyf / I bere it noght in mynde Line 1127

¶ This kyng Alla / whan he his tyme say [folio 128a] With his Custaunce / his holy wif so swete To Engelond / been they com the righte way Wher as they lyue / in ioye and in quiete Line 1131

[6-text p 166] Line 1131 But litel while it lasteth I yow heete [¶ A mane vsque [ad vesperam mu]tabitur tempus / t[enent tympa]num & gaudent ad s[onum organi]. [MS is gnawn away by rats.]] Ioye of this world / for tyme wol nat abyde ffro day to nyght it chaungeth as the tyde Line 1134

¶ Who lyued euere / in swich delit / a day That hym ne moeued / outher Conscience [¶ Quis vnquam vnicam diem totam [duxit] in sua dileccione iocundam / quem [in ali]qua parte diei reatus con|sciencie / v[el] impetus ire / vel motus concupiscen[tie] non tur|bauerit/ quem liuor Inuidie vel ardor auaricie / vel tumor superbie non vexauerit / quem aliqua iactura vel offensa / vel passio non commouerit &c. [The MS is partly gnawn away.]] Or Ire / or talent or som kyn affray Enuye / or pryde / or passion / or offence Line 1138 I ne seye / but for this ende this sentence That litel while / in ioye / or in plesaunce Lasteth the blisse of Alla with Custaunce Line 1141

¶ ffor deeth that taketh / of heigh and logh his rente Whan passed was a yeer / euene as I gesse Out of this world / this kyng Alla he hente ffor whom Custaunce / hath ful greet heuynesse Line 1145 Now lat vs prayen god / his soule blesse And dame Custance / fynally to seye Toward the town of Rome / gooth hir weye Line 1148

¶ To Rome is come / this holy creature And fyndeth hir freendss / hoole and sownde Now is she scaped / al hir auenture And whan that she / hir fader hath yfownde Line 1152 Doun on hir knees / falleth she to grownd Wepynge for tendrenesse / in herte blythe She herieth god / an hondred thousand sythe Line 1155

¶ In vertue / and holy almes-dede They lyuen alle / and neuere asonder wende Til deeth departeth hem / this lyf they lede And fareth now wel / my tale is at an ende Line 1159 Now Ihesu crist that of his myght may sende Ioye after wo / gouerne vs in his grace And kepe vs alle / that been in this place Amen. [6-text p 479] Line 1162

¶ Here is ended / the tale / of the man of Lawe.