Die Kildare-gedichte; die ältesten mittelenglischen denkmäler in anglo-irischer überlieferung von Dr. W. Heuser ...

V b.

Cf. E. E. T. S. 54, p. 52.

Sunt infelices, qui[a] matres sunt meretrices. [folio 13b] Þere scho is weld [Sk. wel] wiþ ony kyng: wo is þe reme, For scho is fauorable to þe fals: þe woch defouleþ trowþe. By Iesus wiþ hir Iuweles: þe Iustice scho scheueþ; Scho lyeþ aȝenes þe law: and letteþ hym þe gate, Þat faiþe may [Sk. may not haue hus forþ: hure florines ...] haue no forþ: for florens goþ so þyck; And ledeþ þe law as hir lust: þat lewte myȝt wyn, [Sk. abweichend, = 2 Verse.] Ȝe mase [Sk. The mase] for a mene man: þeȝth he mote euer. Law is so lordely: and loȝth to mak an ende, Wiþ out presentes oþer pans: he pleseþ ful few. [folio 14] Trew burgeis and bond: to noȝt scho bryngeþ oft, And al þe comune in care: and in couetys; Religioun scho al torent and out of rule to libbe. Þere is [Sk. nys] cyte vnder sone: ne non so riche reume, Þere scho is lowed or let by: þat last schal ony whyle, Wiþ outen wer oþer wo: oþer wyked lawes And costomes of couetys: þe comune to distrw. Vnsittyng sufferans: hir suster, and hir sylf Han al most mad: but Mary þe help, Þat þe lond ne loueþ þe: and ȝit lest þyn ouen. For clerkes and couetys: mede haþ knet togyders, Þat al þe wit of þe world: is waxen to gyle. Þus ledeþ þis lady þi lond: now, lord, ȝif hir sorow!

For pore men dar noȝth pleyn: ne non pleynt schew, Such a maister is mede: among men of gode! Þan mourned scho and mened hir to þe kyng, To haue space to spek: sped ȝif scho myȝth. Þe kyng graunt hir grace: wiþ a god will. "Excuse þe, ȝif þou canst: I can no mor sig; For consciens accusceþ þe: to conge þe for euer." "Nay lord", quod þat lady: "leue hym þe wors, Whan ye wote witterly: in whom þe wrang lygeþ. Þere þat myschef is gret: mede may help. And þat þou knowest, consciens: I can noȝt chide, Ne depraue þi persone: wiþ a proud hert. Wel þou wost whi: but þou wilt gab, Þou hast hanget at my half: [Sk. hals] eleuen tymes, And al so gryp [Sk. grypen of] my gold: and gyuen it, wer þe likeþ. Why þou wreþest þe now: wondir me þynkeþ, Ȝit y may, as y myȝth: menske þe wiþ ȝiftis And mayntene þi manhod: mor þan þou knowest. Ac þou hast famed me foule: byfor þe kyng here. For kylde I neuer no kyng: ne consail [Sk. consailed] so to don, Ac y haue saued my sylf: sexty [Sk. and sexty] þousand lyues, Boþ here and ellys where: In al kyn londes. Ac þou þi sylf sothely: who so hit sig durst, [folio 14b] Hast hartyd [Sk. arwed] many hardy man: þat had wil to fyȝth, To brent and to bowen: [Sk. To brennen and to bruten] to beten doun streynghes. [Sk. strengthes] In contrees þer þe kyng come: consciens hem [Sk. hym] let, Þat he fell [Sk. felde] noȝth his foes: þo fortune hit wold, And as his wardys wer ordeyned: at þe wil of our lord. Kaytifly þou, consciens: consayled [Sk. consailedist] þe kyng to lett In his enemys handis: his eritage of Fraunce. Vnkyndely is þat, consciens: a kyngdom to syll, For þat [Sk. þat yse] conquerit þroȝth a commune help: a kyngdom or a duchery. Hit may noȝt be sold so liȝthely so many part [Sk. here part] axeþ At [Sk. Of, Ms. ac] folk þat feȝth þere for: and folowt þe kynges wyl. Þe lest lad þat longeþ wiþ hym: [Sk. to hym] be þe lond won,

Lokeþ aftyr lordchip: or ellis large mede, Wher by he may as a man for euer more liue after. And þat is þe kynd of a kyng: þat conquereþ on [Sk. of] his enemys, To help ylich [Sk. heyeliche] al his ost: or ellis graunt Þat al his men may [Sk. mowen] wyn: do þere wiþ har best. For þi I consaile no kyng: ony consail aske At consciens þat couetiþ: [Sk. yf he c.] to conquer a reume. For schuld neuer consciens be my consaile: "wer I kyng", quod mede, [etwas geändert, Sk. hat 2 Reihen.] "Ne be marechal ouer my men: þer y most fiȝth. Ac had y, mede, be his marachal: ouer his men in Fraunce, I durst haue leid my lif: and no las wed, He schold haue Ibe lorde of þat londe: of leyngþ and of brede etc.

Cf. E. E. T. S. 54, p. 139.

Quod [Quod ausgeschrieben] Perkyn þe ploughman: "be seint Peter of Rome, [folio 35a] I haue an half acre to ere: by þe hey wey. Had I erred þis half acre: and sowed affter, I wold wend wiþ ȝou: and þe hey way tech." "Þat were a long lettyng": quod a lady in a schare, [Sk. skleire] What schuld we women: worch in þe whiles?" "I pray ȝou for ȝour profite": quod Peres to þe ladyes, "Þat sum sow þe sake: ffor schedyng of þe whete; And þe [Sk. ȝe] worthy women: wiþ ȝour long fyngers Þat ȝe on silk an [so Ms.] on sendel: sew, whan tyme is, Chesebles for chapelens: churches to honour. Wyffes and wodowes: wol and flex spynnen; Consciens consaileþ ȝou: cloþe for to make, For profite of þe pore: and plesaunce of ȝour silfen. For y schal lene hem liflod: but þe lond faile, As long as I lyue: for þe lordis loue of heuene. And al maner men: þat by þe mold susteyneþ, Helpeþ hem to worch witterly: þat wynnen ȝour fode." [folio 35b] "By Cryst", quod a kneȝth þo: "he kenneþ vs þe beste,

Ac a[l] þat tyme trewly: taugh [Sk. on þe teeme trewely: tauht] was I neuer. I wold, y couþe", said þe kneȝth: "by Crist and his modir, I wold assay sum tyme: for solas as hit were." "Sikirly, sir kneȝth": said Peres þan, "I schald [Sk. shal] swynke and swete: and sow for vs boþ And labour for þo þat þou louest: al my [Sk. for þe while þou lyuest al þy . .] liue tyme, In couenante þat þou kep: holy kyrke and my silfe For wastours and fro wicked men: þat þis world strueþ. And go hunte hardely: to hares and to foxes, To berres [Sk. bores] and to buckes: þat br[e]kkeþ [Ms. bkkeþ (Sk. brekeþ)] adoun my hegges, And affaite þi facouns: to kyl þe wyle [Sk. wylde] fowles, For þei comeþ to my croft: my corne to defoule." etc.

Cf. E. E. T. S. 54, p. 264.

Omnis sanctus in tempore oportuno. [folio 67a] Þan consciens comford vs: boþ clerge and scriptour And seide "Cor contritum et humiliatum: deus, non despicies". Paciens was wel apaide: of þis propir seruice, And mad myry wiþ þis mette: ac I mourned euer, For a doctour at þe hey dees: drank wyne faste — Ve vobis qui potentes estis: ad bibendum vinum — And ete many sondry mettes: morturus [Sk. mortrews] and podynges, Braune and blod of gees: bacoun and colopus. Þan said I to my silf: so paciens hit herde: "Hit is noȝth þre dayes don: þis doctour þat he preched At Poules byfor þe pepil: what penance þei suffered, [folio 67b] All þat couete to come: to any kyn Ioy, And how Poule þe appostil: what penance he þolled For our lordis loue, as holy letter telliþ: "In fame and frig[ore]" Ac me wondereþ in my witte: why þat þei ne precheþ, As Poul þe appostil: preched to þe pepill ofte "Periculum est in falsis fratribus!" Holy writte biddiþ men be war: and wysely hem kepe,

Þat no fals frere: þrogh flateryng hem begyle. Ac me þynkeþ loþe þoȝth: þoȝ I latyn knew, to lac any sect, For al be we bretheren: þoȝth we be diuerse cloþed. Ac I wist neuer freke, þat frere is Icalled: Of þe four mendinauntz [Sk. Of þe fyue mendynauns . and made eny sarmon] Þat tok hit for his teme: and told hit wiþ out glose. Þei precheþ þat penaunce: is profitable to þe soule, And what mychef and male ese: Crist for man þolled. Ac þis doctour and diuinour, quod I, and decretister of canoun [Sk. canon, Ms. canom] And also a gredy glotoun: wiþ two grete chekes, Haþ no pite of vs pore: he perfowromeþ euel. "Þat he precheþ, he proueþ noȝth:" paciens I tolde And wissed [Sk. wisshede] witterly: wiþ wil ful egre, Þat in þe maw of þat mayster: al þo mettes were, Boþ dissches and dublers: wiþ al þe dentees after.