Book of the Knight of La Tour-Landry : compiled for the instruction of his daughters : translated from the original French into English in the reign of Henry VI / [by Geoffroy de La Tour Landry] ; edited ... with an introduction and notes by Thomas Wright

CHAPTER LXII.

[Of a roper's wife who was false to her husband.]

I wolde ye knew an ensaumple of a Ropers wiff that was not trew in kepinge of her mariage to her husbonde; and there was a false bauude that was her godsib, and toke mede of a Riche lecherous prioure to gete the ropers wyff to do his foly with her, the whiche the bauude entreted her to. And thanne, for yeftes and juelles that the Prioure gaue to the wiff, and for the entysing of the bauude, the wiff graunted hym to do her foule lust to- gedre. And therfor it is a true sawe, that a woman that takithe yeftes of ani man, sekitℏ her selff. And so it happed on a night that the prioure come to lige bi the wiff whanne her husbonde was aslepe; and whanne the prioure had done his foule delit, he rose, and wolde haue gone his waye, and the fyre light sodenly in the chemeney, and the good man sawe hym goo oute. And he sterte up and asked what that was. And his wiff saide she wost neuer; but the good man was in gret sorw and heuinesse, and ferde lest hys wyff had done amys. And the wiff, whiche was fuƚƚ of malice, yede and spake and tolde the bauude, her godsib, aƚƚ how it happed. And the bauude bade lete her allone with hym, and she wolde excuse her weƚƚ ynow. And she aspied he was going to the londes, spenyng his cordes, and came afore hym with a rocke under a gerdeƚƚ spynning blak woƚƚ. And whanne he come, she hadde on her rocke white woƚƚ, and within [fol/col 26/2] a liteƚƚ while of blacke wolle. And aƚƚ way as he come to and from she chaunged her woƚƚ. " Wha!" saide the good man, "godsyb, me thought right now ye had a rocke of blacke wuƚƚ under youre gerdeƚƚ." "Nay, forsothe," said she; and after

he come agein, and she had chaunged her rocke. "What, godsib, me thought right now, ye spanne whit wolle." "What, godsib," saide she, "what aylithe you ? y trow there be sum thinge wronge with you; yt hathe be to night a night that folke wened that they haue sayne thinges the whiche were none suche. I trow," quod she, " ye aile sumwhat, it nis not aright with you." And the good man wende she had saide soth, and saide to her bi mouthe, "By my trouthe, godsib, y wende y had sayne to night gone oute of my chaumbre a blacke thinge, y not what." "A! godsib," quod she, "it was no thinge but the day and the night that stroue to- gedre : and there was gret lyghteninge." And thus she apesed the good man of his thought by her falshede. Another tyme it happed that he rose erliche, and he wende to haue take a liteƚƚ poke atte hys beddes fete, to haue gone to the market iij myle from hys hous, forto haue brought home fisshe ; and he toke the prioures breke, and putte hem in his sleue. And whanne he hadde bought that he wolde haue atte the market., he wende to take oute his poke, and to haue putte inne his fysshe, and he fonde that it was a breche. And whan he sawe it, he was fuƚƚ of anger and sorugℏ. And whanne the monke was ryse that laye betwene the bedde and the waƚƚ, hym lacked hys breche, and [fol/col 26b/1] fonde no thinge but a litteƚƚ poke. And whanne the wiff wost therof, she was fuƚƚ of sorugℏ, for she supposed wel that her husbonde had take the brecℏ instede of the liteƚƚ poke. And she yede to her godsib, the bauude, and tolde her that was behapped, and praied her of her helpe ; and the bauude said̛ to her, " Ye shaƚƚ take a breche on you, and y wiƚƚ take another, and whan youre husbonde comithe home, I woƚƚ teƚƚ hym that ye and y weritℏ breches." And whanne the good man was comen home, aƚƚ foƚƚ of heuinesse and sorw, the fals godsib come to welcome hym home, and asked hym "what chere," and asked hym yef he hadde aught lost of his good, for he made so heui chere; and he saide " Nay, me ayleth sumwhat ellis." And so she dede so moche with hym, that he tolde her what hym ayled, and how he had founde a breche atte his beddes fete. And w hanne she had herde hym, she beganne to laugℏ, and

saide hym, "Godsib, now y see weƚƚ ye be deseyued, and in wey to be tempted to do my godsib youre wyff shame, and youre selff, thorugℏ fals supposinge. And therfor leue it; y sure you that there nis not a truer wiff to her husbonde in this towne, nor kepithe her selff clenner nor trulyer to her husbonde; for in good sothe she and y weren breches for because of the harlotis that handelithe women, and takithe hem hastely bi thaire priuite. And that ye may see that this is true, seithe youre selff." And she toke up her clothes, and shewed hym how she was breched ; and [he] saw she saide [fol/col 26b/2] sothe, and beleued her. And thus that fals bauude, his godsib, saued the wiff twies, that he might haue no knoulache of his wiffes falshede ; but atte the laste the deueƚƚ woƚƚ that the orible synne shulde be know. The good man thought that his wiff went ofte to the priori, and she had not to do there, and he defended her, in payne of her lyff, she shulde no more come there, for it was not his wiƚƚ that she yode thedir for no thinge. And so on a tyme, to saye what she wulde do, her husbonde saide he welde gone oute of towne; and he hidde hym priuely to loke what she wolde do. And she, that was fuƚƚ of synne, and tempted with the deueƚƚ, yede anone with the prioure ; and her husbonde saw, and yode after her and brought her ageyn, and saide, " here, dame, thou hast broke myn comaundement." And thanne he yode into the towne, and made couienaunt with a surgeon to hele two broken legges and whanne he had done, he come home and toke a pesteƚƚ and brake bothe his wyfes ys leggys, and saide to her, " atte the hardest, for a while, thou wilt not goo ferre, and breke myn comaundement, nother y fynde the contrarye." And thanne he brought her a bedde. And there she laye so longe tiƚƚ the deueƚƚ tempted her ; for, whanne she was almost hole, she made the prioure come lye with her ther she laye, euene by her husbonde bi night in the bedde. And the good man douted hym that there was sum man with his wyff, and made semblaunt that he had slepte [fol/col 27/1] , and routed; and whanne they were doing the foule dede of synne, he hastely toke oute a long kniff and

persed hem bothe thorugℏ into the bedde. And thus he slougℏ hem bothe in doinge this orible synne. And whanne he had done, he called his neygℏboures and the officres of the lawe, and sheued hem what he had don; the whiche saide, aƚƚ with one uoys, that it was wel done to ponisshen hem in suche wise. And thanne thei had moche meruaile that she wolde loue and take that gret fatte black foule prioure, and lefte to loue a goodly yonge man, wise and riche, that she had to her husbonde; but mani woman farithe as the femaƚƚ of the wolff, that chesithe to her make the foulest wolff of aƚƚ that ben in the wode. And so dede the leude woman, thorugℏ temptacion of the deueƚƚ, chase this foule monke. And therfor take hede, the more the synne is abhominable the egerlyer thei be tempted bi the deueƚƚ, as he that was a man of religion, and she a wedded woman. And so it farithe hy a woman, yef she synne with her kynne or godsyb, the nere thei be of kyn the gretter is the temptacion, and the more sinfuƚƚ brenning wiƚƚ thei shaƚƚ [? Cut out either "will" or "shall."] haue. And therfor it is a trew prouerbe, þat "the potte may goo so longe to water, that atte the laste it is broken;" as this leude woman that had her husbonde ten tymes fairer thanne the prioure the whiche she toke, and that she was ascaped bi the helpe of the false bauude her godsib of ij suche periles that her husbond̛ [fol/col 27/2] hadde founde by her, and after that she had broken her husbondes comaundement, and therfor he brake her legges, and yet [MS. "yest"] she wolde not be chastised. And therfor, doughtres, here ye may see that it is foly, and the temptacion of the deueƚƚ, that temptithe and enflamithe the hertis of folke to do this orible synne of lecherye, the whiche ys a foule stinking synne. Notwithstonding, doughters, be ware bi this woman, and of her [? and other] afore in this boke, and that ye take no man saue youre husbonde, and that ye take no yeftes, nor leuithe none eueƚƚ counsaile, as dede this woman of her godsib. Now haue y shewed you diuerse ensaumples of the Bible, and of gestys of kinges, and of other thinges, how that lecheri and the disguisyng of youre array displesid God, and how aƚƚ the world was stroied therfor, saue

.viij. persones, and how Sodom and Gomor, and other .v. Citees, was brent in stinking sulfure, and sank to heƚƚ, and how moche werres [and] manslaughter hathe faƚƚ and fallithe there from day to day, and how the synne of lechery stinkithe afore God and his aungeles. And takithe hede how the uirgines had leuer be martered rather thanne they wolde do that foule synne, for no yefte, nor for no promesse, that might be made to hem; as seint Katerine, seint Margarete, seint Luce, elleuene thousand̛ uirgines, and other mani uirgines, the whiche were to long to compte the tenthe party of her fermete, for they ouercome the deueƚƚ and hys [fol/col 27b/1] temptaciones, and wanne the kingdom of heuene. And y saie you, doughtres, it is no maistri to absent you from that synne, yef ye woƚƚ use you to kepe you clene. And this shaƚƚ helpe to kepe you, that is, to loue and drede God and youre husbonde, and bethenke you what sorw, harme, and worldes shame hathe and may faƚƚ therof, and ye do amisse; and how ye lese the loue of God, and of youre husbonde, kyn, frendes, and of aƚƚ the worlde that knouithe you and heres therof; and therfor, doughters, yef temptacion assailethe you, haue mynde day and night to make recistens ageynes hem, to kepe you clene and ferme in goodnesse. And bethenke what ye are, and whennes ye come, and what shame and dishonour may faƚƚ ["faƚƚ" repeated in the MS.] you yef ye do eueƚƚ.