cronicler or storier writith therof, saue Girald in his book clepid Cosmographia Hiberniæ; and othere storiers and croniclers aftir him taking oonli of him. And he seith that "the oold enemy made thilk voice in the eir." [There is an edited work of Gi|raldus Cambrensis, entitled Topo|graphia Hiberniæ, in which this passage does not occur: there is, however, another treatise of his extant in MS., called Descriptio Mundi, in which it may possibly be found. See Cave's Hist. Lit. s. v. It will be observed that Sprott's account, quoted above, agrees with that of Giraldus, from whom it is no doubt copied.] Wherfore ech man, which wole trowe that thilk voice was seid in the eir, ouȝte answeringli trowe that thilk voice was spokun bi the feend, and not by a [an, MS. (accidentally?).] good aungel. And if this be trewe, whi and wherto schulden we bileeue his seiyng to be trewe; sithen he is oure enemy and oure bigiler, as Scripture witnessith, ie. Pet. ve. capitulum.; and sithen he is a lier and the fader of lesing, as Crist him silf wit|nessith, Iohun viije. capitulum.?
The ije. resoun into the same purpos is this: If it were seid or witnessid of me that y seid certein wordis in a certeyn place, or that y seide hem after that y hadde do a certeyn deede; if it kouthe be knowe sureli or bi sufficient likelihode that y neuere was in thilk place, or that y neuere dide thilk deede, thilk witnessing so mad upon me were not to be bileeued, neither were worthi to be trowid trewe. Wherfore, bi lijk skile, sithen it is so that ech fundamental storie speking of this seid voice seith and storieth, that it was mad in the eir, aftir that the first Con|stantyn Emperour was baptisid at Rome of Siluester Pope, and aftir that he hadde endewid the Pope Sil|uester and the chirche of Rome, as it is open in the now bifore fundamental cronicle or storie of Girald, (and no man storieth therof saue he, and thei that sithen hise daies taken the same of him,) it folewith
