UCSti LIBRARY / f 7 - ' tflarnfom ttss Smes PIERS THE PLOWMAN SKEAT HENRY FROWDE, M.A. PUBLISHKR TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD LONDON, EDINBURGH NEW YORK AND TORONTO THE VISION OF WILLIAM CONGER NINO PIERS THE PLOWMAN BY WILLIAM LANGLAND (OR LANGLEY) ACCORDING TO THE VERSION REVISED AND ENLARGED BY THE AUTHOR ABOUT A. D. 1377 EDITED BY THE REV. WALTER W. SKEAT I.ITT.D., D.C.L., LL.D., PH.D. Elringion and Bos^uorth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the University of Cambridge Ninth Edition, Revised jforfc AT THE CLARENDON PRESS 1906 OXFORD PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS BY HORACE HART, M.A. PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION . vii CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE xlviii PROLOGUE: THE FIELD FULL OF FOLK ... i PASSUS I : THE VISION OF HOLY-CHURCH ... 9 PASSUS II: MEED AND FALSEHOOD -. . . . 16 PASSUS III : MEED AND CONSCIENCE , , . 24 PASSUS IV: MEED AND REASON 36 PASSUS V: THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS .... 43 PASSUS VI : PIERS THE PLOWMAN 67 PASSUS VII: THE PLOWMAN'S PARDON ... 79 Critical Notes 87 Notes to the Prologue 91 Notes to Passus I 106 Notes to Passus II 113 Notes to Passus III 118 Notes to Passus IV 125 Notes to Passus V 129 Notes to Passus VI 147 Notes to Passus VII 153 Glossarial Index . . * . . . . 157 Index to the Notes 215 INTROD UCTION. THE title ' Piers Plowman,' or, as I prefer to write it, ' Piers the Plowman,' is one which has been frequently misconstrued and misunderstood by many authors, and concerning which many text-books have blundered inextricably. It is most important that the reader should have a clear idea of what it means, and as it is rather a difficult point to explain accurately, I must ask him to give me his best attention ; and I cannot refrain from adding the hope that, if he succeeds in mastering the explanation of it, he will abstain from using the phrase in future in the old slovenly way. The difficulty is three-fold, as originating in a three-fold error. The three mistakes commonly made are these. First, Piers Plowman is used as though it were the name of an author a ; secondly, two poems which are quite distinct, and the respective titles of which are familiarly expressed as The Vision of Piers Plowman and Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, have been frequently confounded together ; and thirdly, the name of ' The Vision of Piers Plowman' is commonly given to what is really the 'Liber de Petro Plowman,' of which the ' Vision ' forms only about a third part b . I must ask the reader to bear in mind that, in what I am now going to say, I make no reference whatever to the Crede, and do not make any assertion about it till I again expressly mention it by its full title. Unless this be remembered, our chance of arriving at the truth is much lessened. Just as Christian is not the author of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Pro- gress, but only the subject of it, so Piers the Plowman is not the author of the Vision, but the subject of it ; he is the personage * This mistake occurs, for instance, in' Chaucer's England,' vol. ii. p. 230, by Matthew Browne ; who should have known better. b It was Crowley who originated this error, but I do not see why it need be perpetuated. Vlii INTRODUCTION. seen in a dream, not the dreamer himself. Neither does the Book describe one continuous dream, but a succession of several; in some of which Piers is neither seen nor mentioned. Yet the whole poem is named from him, because he is the most remarkable figure in the group of allegorical personages who pass successively before the dreamer's sleeping sight. He is of more importance than either Lady Holy-church, Lady Meed, Falsehood, Conscience, Reason, Hunger, or the impersonations of the Seven Deadly Sins ; for he is the type of a truly honest man . But we may dismiss the consideration of his character for the present. The true name of the dreamer, the poet, is not certainly known. The poem has been ascribed to one Langland, whose Christian name has been variously given as William, Robert, and John. Yet of the author's Christian name we are sure ; for in nearly all the numerous MSS. it is invariably given as William, not to mention that the author frequently calls himself Wille in various passages. The true surname is more doubtful, but in an able article in the North British Review (April, 1870), Professor C. H. Pearson has forcibly argued that the name must have been Langley rather than Langland ; nevertheless, I would rather adhere, for the present, to the traditional form. We have then advanced clearly as far as this, viz. that one William Langland, during the latter part of the fourteenth century, wrote an alliterative poem describing a series of dreams, in some of which he beheld the person whom he calls Piers the Plowman, after whom the poem (or part of the poem, at least) was named. Strictly speaking, only a part of the poem was at first named after Piers. The true title of the latter portion was originally Fisio ejusdem de Do-wel, Do-bet, et Do-best, or the Vision of the same [William] concerning Do-well, Do-better, and Do-best; but the two portions were subsequently treated as constituting one long Book, and the name Liber de Petro Plowman was conferred upon the whole. We must next consider the forms in which the whole poem exists. There are not less than forty-five MSS. of it still extant, c See p. xxviii for the full meaning of the name. THE THREE TEXTS OF THE POEM. IX (nearly all of which I have carefully examined at various times,) and from a comparison of these it is evident that it takes five or six distinct shapes, of which some are due merely to confusion, or to the carelessness of the scribes ; still, after all allowances for such causes of variation have been made, it is clear that three of the shapes are due to the author himself. It is certain that he altered, added to, and re-wrote the whole poem, not once only, but twice. It was the great work of his life, and may have occupied him, though not continuously, during nearly thirty years. Let us call the three forms of the poem, as at different times composed, the A-text, B-text, and C-text. They differ widely, and are marked by various peculiarities, and different dates may be with some accuracy assigned to them. Let us consider them separately. The A-text, which is distinguished by peculiar freshness and vigour, and a rather greater amount of vehemence and rapidity than either of the others, was certainly composed first, about A.D. 1362. As compared with the others, it is but a first rough sketch, and extends to not more than 2567 lines. In it, the Vision of Piers the Plowman, and the Vision of Do-wel, Do-bet, and Do-best are kept quite distinct, the former consisting of a Prologue and 8 Passus (1833 lines), and the latter of a Prologue and 3 Passus (734 lines). In the Prologue to the former Vision (which contains but 109 lines) the curious fable of the rats con- spiring to bell the cat is entirely omitted ; and in the description of the Seven Deadly Sins, the character of Wrath was, by a curious oversight, forgotten. The best MSS. of it are the Vernon MS. at Oxford, MS. Trin. Coll. Camb. R. 3. 14, Harl. 875, Univ. Coll. (Oxford) 45, and MS. Rawl. Poet. 137 in the Bod- leian Library. Long extracts from the Vernon MS. are given in 'Specimens of Early English,' Pt. II. ed. Morris and Skeat, 1872. A comparison of these with the corresponding passages of the present volume will shew more clearly than any detailed explanation what the A-text is like. The B-text. The curious ending of the A-text shews clearly that the author's original intention was to wind up his poem and have done with it. Not foreseeing the extraordinary popularity X INTRODUCTION. which his work was destined to enjoy, he had recourse to the not uncommon device of killing himself off, in words which may be thus modernized ' And when this work was wrought, ere Will might spy, Death dealt him a dint, and drove him to the earth,- And he is enclosed under clay; now Chrjst have his soul d l" And so the matter rested for nearly fifteen years. But the grief of the whole nation at the death of the Black Prince, the disquieting political events of 1377 (the last year of Edward III.), and the dissatisfaction of the commons with the conduct of the duke of Lancaster, roused our poet as they roused other men. Then it was that, taking his text from Ecclesi- asticus x. 1 6, Px terras ubi rex puer est, he composed his famous version of the well-known fable of the rats wishing to bell the cat, a fable which has never elsewhere been told so well or so effectively. Then it was that, taking advantage of his now more extensive acquaintance with Scripture, and his familiarity with the daily scenes of London life, he re-wrote and added to his poem till he had trebled the extent of it, and multiplied the number of his Latin quotations by seven. The additions are, most of them, exceedingly good, and distinguished by great freedom and originality of thought ; indeed, we may say that, upon the whole, the B-text is the best of the three, and the best suited for giving us a fair idea of the author's peculiar powers. It is with the B-text that the present volume is especially con- cerned, though only a portion of it is here printed. The complete text comprises the two Visions, viz. of Piers Plowman, and of Do-wel, Do-bet, and Do-best ; the former consisting of a Pro- logue and 7 Passus (as here printed), and the latter of three Prologues and 10 Passus, viz. a Prologue and 6 Passus of Do-wel, a Prologue and 3 Passus of Do-bet, and a Prologue and i Passus of Do-best. But in many (perhaps all) of the MSS. the distinc- tions between the component parts are not much regarded, and in some there is no mention of Do-wel, Do-bet, and Do-best d MS. Rawl. Poet. 137, fol. 31. But it is possible that these three lines (with four more preceding them) were added by one John Butt, whose name follows just afterwards. B-TEXT AND C-TEXT. XI whatever, but the whole is called Liter (but never Vuio) de petro plowman, and made to consist of a Prologue and twenty Passus. Not to go into further details, it is necessary to add that there are two perfect MSS. of the B-text which are of special ex- cellence, and do not greatly vary from each other ; from one of these, MS. Trin. Coll. Camb. B. 15. 17, Mr. Wright printed his well-known and convenient edition of the whole Book, and upon the other, MS. Laud 581, our text is based. The reader will now readily perceive that this volume contains the whole of the B-text of the Vision of Piers the Plowman, properly so called, but does not contain the Vision of Do-wel, Do-bet, and Do-best, which is appended to it in all the MSS. in order to complete the 'Liber.' If then, in the notes, I quote from Passus eleven, for instance, I quote from a Passus which is strictly the third of Do-ivel, but which is commonly called Passus 1 1 of Piers the Plowman, as being a more convenient notation. Concerning the C-text, I need not say much here. It was probably not composed till 1390 or even later, or, still more pro- bably, it contains additions and revisions made at various periods later than 1380. Throughout these the working of the same mind is clearly discernible, but there is a tendency to diffuse- ness and to a love for theological subtleties. It is of still greater length, containing 10 Passus of Piers the Plowman, 7 Passus of Do-wel, 4 Passus of Do-bet, and 2 Passus of Do-best; or, according to the shorter notation, it contains 23 Passus, all Prologues being ignored in this text only. It may be remarked that the short poem of Do-best stands almost exactly the same in both the B and C versions. Besides this extraordinary work, with its three varying editions, I have shewn (in my new edition of the C-text for the Early English Text Society) that we are indebted to the same author for a remarkable poem written in 1399, which has been twice printed by Mr. Wright, the more convenient edition being that published for the Camden Society in 1838 ; and I have again printed it, as an Appendix to the C-text, with a few corrections. This poem has no title, and Mr. Wright named it a Poem on the Deposition of Richard II. This cannot well be accepted, xii INTRODUCTION. because it is obvious, from internal evidence, that the poem was written in September, before Richard was deposed, and before the poet had any but the vaguest expectation that his depo- sition would take place. I have therefore given it } in my own reprint, the new title of ' Richard the Redeles ' (i. e. Richard devoid of counsel), having adopted this expression from the first line of the first Passus. It is proper to observe that Mr. Wright has expressed a different opinion concerning the author- ship of the poem, but he was misled by a marginal note in his MS. to which he attached some importance . The printed editions. The Book concerning Piers the Plowman has been several times printed. Robert Crowley printed at least three impressions of it in one year, A.D. 1550; from a copy of one of which Owen Rogers produced his edition of 1561. Crowley used a very good MS. of the B-text f , and his edition is of some value. Rogefs's reprint abounds in errors, and is worthless. Dr. Whitaker printed a C-text MS. in 1813, from a MS. then belonging to Mr. Heber, but afterwards purchased by the late Sir T. Phillipps. This edition, though evidently brought out with much care, is nevertheless disfigured by in- numerable errors of the editor, who has displayed more zeal than knowledge. But the MS. which he chose is the best of its class, and I have therefore reprinted it (with hundreds of corrections) for the Early English Text Society (1873). Mr. Wright printed his first "edition, from the Trinity B-text MS., in 1842, and his second and revised edition of the same in 1856. A complete critical edition of the whole poem, in all its three forms, from a comparison of all the best MSS., with various readings in the footnotes, accompanied by a volume containing full notes, glossary, and indices, has just been published by the Early English Text Society, and has been edited by myself. Vol. I., containing the A-text, was published in 1866; Vol. II., containing the B-text, appeared in 1869; Vol. III., containing See his Edition (Camd. Soc.) p. vi, where 'liber hie ' should have been printed ' liber homo," an error which vitiates the whole argument. ' This MS. was probably destroyed. At any rate, it has not yet been found. It contains a line about S. Gregory in Pass. V (fol. xxiii, 1. 6 of Crowley) which I cannot find elsewhere. THE PLOUGHMAN'S CREDE. xiii the C-text and 'Richard the Redeles', in 1873; and lastly Vol. IV., containing notes, glossary, &c., in 1877 and 1884. The text in this volume is taken from Vol. II. The notes will be found (in a fuller form) in Vol. IV. This is, perhaps, the best place to say a few last words about Pierce the Ploughman's Crede. The facts concerning it are these, viz. that about the year 1394, when the popularity of the ' Liber ' was well established, some writer of unknown name and of narrower views, wrote a short poem of 850 lines in alliterative verse, as a satire against the friars, to which he gave the name of Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, no doubt with the view of attract- ing attention. His conception of the Ploughman, however, is very different. In the ' Book,' the ploughman is a person seen in a dream, and is the personification of the honest and hardworking Christian ; but in the ' Crede,' the ploughman is a poor man with whom the author meets in the flesh, whose merit is that he knows all the articles of the Creed, of which the friars knew nothing. The ' Crede ' is written with great asperity, and is a very remarkable poem in many respects ; but I cannot believe that William can have been very much pleased with the com- pliment paid him, as it is marked by a lack of charity totally at variance with the widely charitable views by which many passages of the Book are distinguished, notwithstanding sharp words else- where. The confusion between the two poems no doubt arose from their being in the same metre, and of nearly the same date, and from the fact that the title of one was borrowed from that of the other ; and this confusion has been increased by the circum- stance that they have been three times printed in close contact with each other, viz. by Owen Rogers in 1561, by Dr. Whitaker in 18148, and by Mr. Wright. But this is not the place to enter into further details concerning it. The reader will find them fully given in my edition of the ' Crede,' published separately by the Early English Text Society in 1867. The most interesting result in connection with this poem is that the author of the * Dr. Whitaker's edition of the ' Crede ' is not bound up in the same volume with the ' Vision,' but was published in the same form and style, at nearly the same time. XIV INTRODUCTION. ' Crede ' was almost certainly the author of the ' Plowman's Tale,' which appears in some editions of Chaucer, though it is certainly not his h . The ' Crede ' may now conveniently be finally dismissed from our consideration. THE AUTHOR'S NAME AND LIFE. The author's Christian name was certainly William, as has been already said. The oldest evidence for his surname is an entry in one of the Dublin MSS. in a handwriting of the fifteenth century, to this effect : ' Memorandum, quod Stacy de Rokayle, pater Willielmi de Langlond, qui Stacius fuit generosus, et morabatur in Schiptone under Whicwode, tenens domini le Spenser in comitatu Oxon., qui praedictus Willielmus fecit librum qui vocatur Perys Ploughman.' Again, in a MS. belonging to Lord Ashburnham, is an early note to the effect that ' Robert, or Will/am langland made pers ploughman.' But I am bound to add that I have dis- covered a colophon, in three MSS. of the C-text (viz. Digby 102, Douce 104, and Lord Ilchester's MS.), which runs thus ' Explicit visio Willelmi .W. de Petro le Plowmaw. Et hie incipit visio eiusdem de Dowel.' This is testimony that is difficult of explanation; Professor Morley thinks that W. may stand for Whicwode, whilst I myself own to a fancy that it may be merely a title, such as Wigorniensis (i. e. of Worcester). It may serve to remind us that if we adopt the name of Langland (which, as being traditional, I prefer to Langley,) we do so chiefly for convenience. Bale has a short passage concerning our author, wherein he calls him Robertus Langelande, and says that he was born at Cleobury Mortimer, in Shropshire. Shipton-under- Wychwood, mentioned above, is in Oxfordshire, four miles from Burford, and not at any very great distance from Banbury*. h Mr. Morley, in his 'English Writers' (vol. ii. 442), cites Mr. Black's opinion that the composer of the ' Plowman's Tale ' was also author of a poem 'Against Lollardie,' a supposition which appears to me absurd, and like attributing a tract against reformation to Luther. The reader will observe, on the other hand, that in the Plowman's Tale we have a second instance of title-copying by William's imitator. 1 It is somewhat curious that the poet, in the C-text, Passus III., 1. Ill, goes rather out of his way to mention the ' beadle of Banbury,' as if he had a grudge against him. THE AUTHOR'S NAME. xv When these various assertions come to be tested, it is easily found that, as Professor Pearson says, ' the only known family of Langlands has a very distinct history in connection with Somer- setshire, Devonshire, and Dorsetshire, but never comes to view in the Midland Counties.' I remember finding the name over and over again in MS. Wood i, in the Bodleian Library, but always in connexion with the neighbourhood of East Brent in Somersetshire. See also MS. Addit. 5937, fol. 54 b, in the British Museum. But any trace of a Langland family in the Midland Counties is so entirely absent that the name ought perhaps to be given up ; at least such is the conclusion to which we seem to be led, though I cannot bring myself to disregard the old MS. notes. On the other hand, there are two places called Langley, from either of which the poet may have been named. One is the hamlet of Langley in the very parish of Shipton-under- Wychwood just mentioned ; and there was a family of Langleys of which Professor Pearson says ' The Langleys of Oxfordshire have not yet, we believe, found place in any county history. But their pedigree is abundantly proveable. They emerge into history with Thomas de Langley, who gives King John a hundred marks and a palfrey in 1 2 1 3 to replace Thomas Fitzhugh in the guardian- ship of Wychwood Forest (Rot. de Fin. 485). From that time the Langleys, William, Thomas, John, John, and Thomas successively, were wardens of Wychwood, and owned land in Shipton-under- Wychwood as early as 1278, and as late as 1362 (Rot. Hundred. ii. 739 ; Inquis. post Mortem, ii. 252). But the last Thomas died before the thirty -sixth year of Edward III., and was succeeded by his cousin and heir, Simon Verney (Inquis. post Mortem, ii. 252, 290).' This is quite sufficient to connect the name of Langley with Shipton, but does not quite solve the difficulty, as the poet probably did not belong to so good a family. The other hamlet is Langley near Acton Burnel, in Shropshire ; adjoining which is the hamlet of Ruckley or Rokele, which may be identified with Rokayle. f We find in Shropshire,' says Professor Pearson, ' that younger members of the Burnel family were occasionally known as Burnels de Langley (Inquis. post Mortem, i. 12, 253) ; that there were other Langleys on the estate or in the employ of the Burnel XVI INTRODUCTION. family ; and that even the name of Rokeyle may be traced in one instance with high probability to the Welsh border (Tearbook of 32 Edw. I. 298) A William de Langley was a tenant of William Burnel in 1228 (Testa de Ne-vill, 57). A Robert de Langley receives fifty marks due to Robert Burnel, afterwards Chancellor, in 1272 (Exchequer Issues, 87). A Robert de Langley was instituted clerk of Rokesley chapel some time between 1311 and 1349 (Eyton's Shropshire, vi. 147). Again, Henry de Rokesley and Richard de Waleys, whose name indicates a Welshman, both claimed to descend from Robert Paytevin ; and one of the few Paytevins who can be traced was a follower of Roger de Mor- timer, the lord of Cleobury Mortimer (Parliamentary Writs, iv. 1269). Seemingly therefore there were two families, one of Langley and one of Rokesle, who lived in adjoining hamlets, at- tached to the same manor, and of whom one was connected with the service of the Burnels, the other more remotely with the Mortimers, as being related to one of their dependants. Here then we perhaps get a clue to the poet's birth at Cleobury Mor- timer, which was a possession of the Mortimers (Inquis. post Mor- tem, i. 190, ii. 224). It remains to explain the connection with Shipton-under-Wychwood. Edward Burnel (born 1287, d. 1315) married Alicia, daughter of Hugh de Despenser, of whom we only know that she survived him (Eyton's Shropshire, vi. 135). And a Hugh de Despenser died in 1349, seized of the manor of Shipton- under-Wychwood (Inquis. post Mortem, ii. 160; Kennett's Parochial Antiquities, ii. 102). Now, whether the poet's ancestor was a Langley or a Rokesle, it seems easy from what has gone before to understand why he first held a farm under the Mortimers and afterwards under the Despensers. In fact, there was a group of great families connected by birth or position in Shropshire and Oxfordshire, and a group of small families who were naturally linked with their fortunes.' North British Review, April 1870, p. 244. From all this it seems tolerably clear that, of the ham- lets named Langley, either the Shropshire one or the Oxfordshire one may be considered as giving the poet his name, since the family seems to have removed from one to the other. There is yet one more consideration that establishes, perhaps, a slight con- s THE AUTHOR'S NAME. xvii y nection between Wychwood and Malvern (see Prol. 5). When the poet talks of his having been ' put to school,' and of his having re- ceived a clerical education, we may fancy that he may have passed his early days in one of the priories at Malvern, either at the famous priory at Great Malvern, or at the lesser one at Little Malvern, which was considered as 'in one and inseparable body with the church at Worcester' (Abingdon's Antiquities of Worcester Cathedral, p. 225). Now the Hugh le Despenser above men- tioned as dying in 1349, when Langley would be about seventeen years old, was son of the too famous Hugh le Despenser ' the younger' (put to death Nov. 29, 1326), who had married Eleanor, sister and co-heir of Gilbert de Clare, earl of Gloucester, and by that marriage had obtained the manor of Malvern, so that the manors of Malvern and Wychwood were in the hands of the same lord (see Sir H. Nicolas's Historic Peerage). Slight as all these traces are, they agree so well together as to render it highly probable that we are upon the right track. And there is yet one more point that may be observed, with reference to the poet's visit to London. This is, that, while the name of Langland does not appear in London, we do find that of Langley. About A. D. 1386, Adam Langele was a butcher in the parish of St. Nicholas 'in Macellas (sic), infra wardum de Farindon k '; and about A.D. 1395, we find another notice of a probable relation of the butcher, namely, ' Robertus Langeleye, alias Robertus Parterick, capellanus, London', [who possessed] unum messuag' et quatuor shope in Les Flesshambles in Parochia Sancti Nicho/ai, unum tene- mentum in parochia Sancti Nicho/^i in Veteri Piscaria, et redditus de 6s. exeunt' de quodam tenemento in Staninglane in parochia Beatae Marie' (Inquis. post Mortem, ii. 90, 194). We may even theorise yet further, and wonder whether the note that ' Robert or William made pers ploughman ' may not mean that our author had a brother named Robert, who may have been supposed to have assisted him. But we must stop somewhere, and it is best perhaps to stop here. It is right to add that the above account is not wholly free from difficulties, but I cannot solve them. k The Church of St. Nicholas Shambles stood in Bull Head Court, New- gate Street. b XVlii INTRODUCTION. For all other particulars, we must trust to allusions made in the poems themselves ; and if we rely upon these, and arrange the information they afford us, we may frame a brief sketch of his life which is quite consistent and which I believe to be true. I shall therefore assume their credibility, and give the reader the results, sometimes in the poet's own words. At the time of writing the B-text of Do-wel, he was forty-five years of age, and he was therefore born about A.D. 1332, probably at Cleobury Mortimer. His father and his friends put him to school (possibly in the monastery at Great Malvern),made a clerk or scholar of him, and taught him what holy writ meant. In 1362, at the age of about thirty, he wrote the A-text of the poem, with- out any thought of continuing or enlarging it. In this, he refers to Edward III. and his son the Black Prince, to the murder of Edward II., to the great pestilences of 1348 and 1361, to the treaty of Bretigny in 1360, and Edward's wars in Normandy, and also most particularly to the great storm of wind which took place on Saturday evening, Jan. 15, 1361-2 *. This version of the poem he describes as having been partly composed in May, whilst wandering on the Malvern Hills, thrice mentioned in the part rightly called the Vision of Piers the Plowman. In the In- troduction or Prologue to Do-wel, he describes himself as wan- dering about all the summer till he met with two Minorite Friars, with whom he discoursed concerning Do-wel. It was probably not long after this that he went to reside in London, with which he already had some acquaintance ; there he lived in Cornhill, with his wife Kitte and his daughter Calote, for many long years. In 1377, he began to expand his poem into the B-text, wherein he alludes to the last days of Edward III. in the words 'jif I regne any while' (4. 177), and also explicitly to the dearth in the dry month of April, 1370, when Chichestcr was mayor; a dearth due to the excessive rains in the autumn of 1369. Chichester was elected in 1369 (probably in October) and was still mayor in 1370. In Riley's Memorials of London, p. 344, he is mentioned 1 That is, the year 1362, which was formerly called 1361, when the year was supposed not to begin till March. See, for these allusions, 3. 1 86, 188 ; 4- 45 I aR d 5- T 4- THE AUTHOR'S LIFE. xix as being mayor in that very month of April in that very year in the words ' Afterwards, on the 25th day of April in the year above-mentioned, it was agreed by John de Chichestre, Mayor,' &c. It is important to insist upon this, because the MS. fol- lowed by Mr. Wright, in company with many inferior ones, has a corrupt reading which turns the words ' A )>ousande and thre hondreth tweis thretty and ten ' into ' twice twenty and ten,' occasioning a great difficulty, and misleading many modern writers and readers, since the same mistake occurs in Crowley's edition. Fortunately, the Laud MS. 581 and MS. Rawl. Poet. 38 set us right here, and all difficulty now vanishes ; for it is easily ascertained that Chichester was mayor in 1369-70, and at no other time, having never been re-elected. Stowe and other old writers have the right date. In the G-text, written at some time after 1390, the poet represents himself (apparently) as having left London, and in the commencement of Passus VI. gives us several particulars concerning himself, wherein he alludes to his own tallness, saying that he is too ' long ' to stoop low, and has also some remarks concerning the sons of freemen which imply that he was himself the son of a franklin or freeman, and born in lawful wedlock. He wore the clerical tonsure, probably as having taken minor orders, and earned a precarious living by singing the placebo, dirige, and 'seven psalms' for the good of men's souls; for, ever since his friends died who had first put him to school, he had found no kind of life that pleased him except to be in ' these long clothes,' and by help of such (clerical) labour as he had been bred up to he had contrived not only to live ' in Lon- don, but upon London ' also. The supposition that he was mar- ried (as he says he was) may perhaps explain why he never rose in the church. He has many allusions to his extreme poverty. Lastly, in the poem of ' Richard the Redeles,' he describes him- self as being in Bristol in the year 1399, when he wrote his last poem. This poem is but short, and in the only MS. wherein it exists, terminates abruptly in the middle of a page, and it is quite possible that it was never finished. This is the last trace of him, and he was then probably about sixty-seven years of age, so that he may not have long survived the accession of Henry IV. In XX INTRODUCTION. personal appearance, he was so tall that he obtained the nickname of 'Longe Wille,' as he tells us in the line 'I have lyued in londe," quod I ''my name is Longe wille m .' This nickname may be paralleled from Mr. Riley's Memorials of London, p. 457, where we read of John Edward, 'otherwise called Longe Jacke,' under the date 1382; and it is to the pur- pose to observe further, that the poet Gascoigne was commonly called ' Long George,' from his tallness. In Passus 15 (B-text) Will says that he was loath to reverence lords or ladies, or persons dressed in fur, or wearing silver ornaments ; he never would say ' God save you* to Serjeants whom he met, for all of which proud behaviour, then very uncommon, people looked upon him as a fool. It requires no great stretch of imagination to picture to ourselves the tall gaunt figure of Long Will in his long robes and with his shaven head, striding along Cornhill, saluting no man by the way, minutely observant of the gay dresses to which he paid no outward reverence. It ought also to be observed how very frequent are his allusions to lawyers, to the law-courts at West- minster, and to legal processes. He has a mock-charter, begin- ning with the ordinary formula Sciant pr&sentes et futuri (see p. 1 8), a form of making a will (see p. 70), and in one passage (B-text, Pass. XI) he speaks with such scorn of a man who draws up a charter badly, who interlines it or leaves out sentences, or puts false Latin in it, that I think we may fairly suppose him to have been conversant with the writing out of legal documents, and to have eked out his subsistence by the small sums received for doing so. The various texts of the poem are so consistent, and the different MSS. agree so well together, that I fully believe he was his own scribe in the first instance, though we cannot now point to any MS. as an autograph. Nevertheless, the very neatly written MS. Laud 581 is so extremely correct as regards the sense, and is marked for correction on account of such very minute errors, that we may be sure he must himself have perused it n . Respecting the poem itself there are some excellent remarks m See Wright's edition, p. 304, where 'quod /' is printed 'quod he'; an error which a collation of many MSS. has removed. n After carefully considering the question from every point, I think it quite possible that it is indeed an autograph. REMARKS BF MR. MARSH. XXI in the works of Mr. Marsh and Dean Milman, which I cannot do better than transcribe here, in part. But the reader should consult the books themselves. In Mr. Marsh's lectures on the Origin and History of the English Language, 8vo, 1862, p. 296, we read as follows: 1 Every great popular writer is, in a certain sense, a product of his country and his age, a reflection of the intellect, the moral sentiment, and the prevailing social opinions of his time. The author of Piers Ploughman, no doubt, embodied in a poetic dress just what millions felt, and perhaps hundreds had uttered in one fragmentary form or another. His poem as truly ex- pressed the popular sentiment, on the subjects it discussed, as did the American Declaration of Independence the national thought and feeling on the relations between the Colonies and Great Britain. That remarkable document disclosed no pre- viously unknown facts, advanced no new political opinions, pro- claimed no sentiment not warranted by previous manifestations of popular doctrine and the popular will, employed perhaps even no new combination of words, in incorporating into one pro- clamation the general results to which the American head and heart had arrived. Nevertheless, Jefferson, who drafted it, is as much entitled to the credit of originality, as he who has best expressed the passions and emotions of men in the shifting scenes of the drama or of song. ' The Vision of Piers Ploughman thus derives its interest, not from the absolute novelty of its revelations, but partly from its literary form, partly from the moral and social bearings of its subject the corruptions of the nobility and of the several de- partments of the government, the vices of the clergy and the abuses of the church in short, from its connection with the actual life and opinion of its time, into which it gives us a clearer insight than many a laboured history. Its dialect, its tone, and its poetic dress alike conspired to secure to the Vision a wide circulation among the commonalty of the realm, and by formu- lating to use a favourite word of the day sentiments almost universally felt, though but dimly apprehended, it brought them He means the Liber, the whole poem. xxii INTRODUCTION. into distinct consciousness, and thus prepared the English people for the reception of the seed, which the labours of Wycliffe and his associates were already sowing among them P . . . . ' The Vision of the Ploughman furnishes abundant evidence of the familiarity of its author with the Latin Scriptures, the writings of the fathers, and the commentaries of Romish expositors, but exhibits very few traces of a knowledge of Romance literature. Still the proportion of Norman-French words, or at least of words which, though of Latin origin, are French in form, is quite as great as in the works of Chaucer 1. The familiar use of this mixed vocabulary, in a poem evidently intended for the popular ear, and composed by a writer who gives no other evidence of an acquaintance with the literature of France 1 , would, were other proof wanting, tend strongly to confirm the opinion I have before advanced, that a large infusion of French words had been, not merely introduced into the literature, but incorporated into the common language of England ; and that only a very small propor- tion of those employed by the poets were first introduced by them. ' The poem, if not altogether original in conception, is abund- antly so in treatment. The spirit it breathes, its imagery, the turn of thought, the style of illustration and argument it employs, are as remote as possible from the* tone of Anglo-Saxon poetry, but exhibit the characteristic moral and mental traits of the Englishman, as clearly and unequivocally as the most national portions of the works of Chaucer or of any other native writer. ' The Vision has little unity of plan, and indeed considered as a satire against many individual and not obviously connected abuses in church and state it needed none. But its aim and P In other words, Long Will was certainly a prophet, a speaker-out. i The Prologue to Piers the Plowman and the first 420 lines of Chaucer's Prologue alike contain 88 per cent, of Anglo-Saxon words. See Marsh, Lectures on English, 1st Series, p. 124. The number of French words in our author is considerable. It is common to meet with the remark that Piers the Plowman is singularly free from any admixture of French ; but the remark is false, as the reader may see for himself. T He knew something of French, and quotes a couple of French proverbs. More than this, he appears to have read Le Chastel d'Amour and the poems of Rutebuef (see note to 5. 594), and a poem on Antichrist by Huon cle Meri (B. 20. 52). REMARKS BY DEAN MILMAN. xxiii purpose are one. It was not an expostulation with temporal and spiritual rulers, not an attempt to awaken their consciences or excite their sympathies, and thus induce them to repent of the sins and repair the wrongs they had committed ; nor was it an attack upon the theology of the Church of Rome, or a revolu- tionary appeal to the passions of the multitude. It was a calm, allegorical exposition of the corruptions of the state, of the church, and of social life, designed, not to rouse the people to violent resistance or bloody vengeance, but to reveal to them the true causes of the evils under which they were suffering, and to secure the reformation of those grievous abuses, by a united exertion of the moral influence which generally accompanies the possession of superior physical strength.' In Dean Milman's History of Latin Christianity, vol. vi. p. 536 (ed. 1855), occurs the following excellent passage. ' Before Chaucer, even before Wycliffe, appeared with his rude satire, his uncouth alliterative verse, his homely sense, and inde- pendence of thought, the author of Piers Ploughman's Vision . This extraordinary manifestation of the religion, of the language, of the social and political notions, of the English character, of the condition, of the passions and feelings of rural and provincial England *, commences, and with Chaucer and Wycliffe completes the revelation of this transition period, the reign of Edward III. Throughout its institutions, language, religious sentiment, Teu- tonism is now holding its first initiatory struggle with Latin Christianity. In Chaucer is heard a voice from the court, from the castle, from the city, from universal England. All orders- of society live in his verse, with the truth and originality of indi- vidual being, yet each a type of every rank, class, every religious and social condition and pursuit. And there can be no doubt that his is a voice of freedom, of more or less covert hostility to the hierarchial system, though more playful and with a poet's genial appreciation of all which was true, healthful, and beautiful in the old faith. In Wycliffe is heard a voice from the Uni- * This title is wrong, as has been shewn; he means ' The Book concern- ing Piers the Plowman.' * We may certainly say also of the lower classes in the city of London. INTRODUCTION. versity, from the seat of theology and scholastic philosophy, from the centre and stronghold of the hierarchy ; a voice of revolt and defiance, taken up and echoed in the pulpit throughout the land against the sacerdotal domination. In the Vision of Piers Ploughman is heard a voice from the wild Malvern Hills, the voice, it should seem, of an humble parson, or secular priest. He has passed some years in London, but his home, his heart is among the poor rural population of central Mercian England. .... Whoever he was, he wrote in his provincial idiom, in a rhythm perhaps from the Anglo-Saxon times familiar to the popular ear ; if it strengthened and deepened that feeling, no doubt the poem was the expression of a strong and wide-spread feeling. It is popular in a broader and lower sense than the mass of vernacular poetry in Germany and England. . . . ' The Visionary is no disciple, no precursor of Wycliffe in his broader religious views: the Loller of [the author of] Piers Ploughman is no Lollard; he applies the name as a term of reproach for a lazy indolent vagrant. The poet is no dreamy speculative theologian ; he acquiesces seemingly with unques- tioning faith in the Creed and in the usages of the Church. He is not profane but reverent as to the Virgin and the Saints. Pilgrimages, penances, oblations on the altar, absolution, he does not reject, though they are all nought in comparison with holi- ness and charity ; on Transubstantiation and the Real Presence and the Sacraments, he is almost silent, but his silence is that of submission, not of doubt. It is in his intense absorbing moral feeling that he is beyond his age : with him outward observances are but hollow shows, mockeries, hypocrisies without the inward power of religion. It is not so much in his keen cutting satire on all matters of the Church as his solemn installation of Reason and Conscience as the guides of the self-directed soul, that he is breaking the yoke of sacerdotal domination ; in his constant appeal to the plainest, simplest Scriptural truths, as in them- selves the whole of religion, he is a stern reformer. The sad serious Satirist, in his contemplation of the world around him, the wealth of the world and the woe, sees no hope, but in a new order of things, in which if the hierarchy shall subsist, it shall REMARKS BY DEAN MILMAN. XXV subsist in a form, with powers, in a spirit totally opposite to that which now rules mankind. The mysterious Piers the Plough- man seems to designate from what quarter that Reformer is to arise" ' With Wycliffe, with the spiritual Franciscans, Langland ascribes all the evils, social and religious, of the dreary world to the wealth of the Clergy, of the Monks, and the still more incongruous wealth of the Mendicants. With them, he asserts the right, the duty, the obligation of the temporal Sovereign to despoil the hierarchy of their corrupting and fatal riches . . . With the Fraticelli, to him the fatal gift of Constantine was the doom of true religion ; with them he almost adores poverty, but it is industrious down-trodden rustic poverty ; not that of the impostor beggar, common in his days, and denounced as sternly as by the political economy of our own, still less of the religious mendicant. Both these are fiercely excluded from his all-em- bracing charity. ' Langland is Antipapal, yet he can admire an ideal Pope, a general pacificator, reconciling the Sovereigns of the world to universal amity. It is the actual Pope, the Pope of Avignon or of Rome, levying the wealth of the world to slay mankind, who is the subject of his bitter invective. The Cardinals he de- nounces with the same indignant scorn ; but chiefly the Cardinal Legate, whom he has seen in England riding in his pride and pomp, with lewdness, rapacity, merciless extortion, insolence in his train. Above all, his hatred (it might seem that on this all honest English indignation was agreed) is against the Mendicant orders. Of the older monks there is almost total silence. For St. Benedict, for St. Dominic, for St. Francis he has the pro- foundest reverence. But it is against their degenerate sons. that he arrays his allegorical Host ; the Friars furnish every im- personated vice, are foes to every virtue : his bitterest satire, his " A sentence here follows, which is based on a misconception. The phrase 'Piers pardon the Ploughman* involves a very curious grammatical construc- tion (not uncommon in Early English), and signifies 'the pardon of (or given by) Piers the Ploughman.' But Dean Milman treats it as a proper name, 'Piers-Pardon-Ploughman,' which it cannot possibly be. Elsewhere we have ' Piers berne the Plowman,' meaning Piers the Ploughman's barn. INTRODUCTION. keenest irony (and these weapons he wields with wonderful poetic force) are against their dissoluteness, their idleness, their pride, their rapacity, their arts, their lies, their hypocrisy, their delicate attire, their dainty feasts, their magnificent buildings, even their proud learning ; above all their hardness,, their pitiless- ness to the poor, their utter want of charity, which with Lang- land is the virtue of virtues. ' Against the clergy he is hardly less severe ; he sternly con- demns their dastardly desertion of their flocks, when during the great plague they crowded to London to live an idle life ; that idle life he describes with singular spirit and zest. Yet he seems to recognise the Priesthood as of Divine institution. Against the whole host of officials, pardoners, summoners, archdeacons, and their functionaries ; against lawyers, civil as well as ecclesiastical, he is everywhere fiercely and contemptuously criminatory. ' His political views are remarkable. He has a notion of a king ruling in the affections of the people, with Reason for his chancellor, Conscience for his justiciary. On such a king the commonalty would cheerfully and amply bestow sufficient revenue for all the dignity of his office, and the exigencies of the state, even for his conquests. No doubt that commonalty would first have absorbed the wealth of the hierarchy. He is not absolutely superior to that hatred of the French, nor even to the ambition for the conquest of France engendered by Edward's wars and his victories. And yet his shrewd common sense cannot but see the injustice and cruelty of those aggressive and sanguinary wars.' After some remarks upon the language and the ailegory of the poem, (some of which require to be slightly modified to make them absolutely accurate,) and a slight sketch of the general plan of the poem considered as a whole, Dean Milman sums up the whole matter in the following just words : ' The poet who could address such opinions, though wrapt up in prudent allegory, to the popular ear, to the ear of the peasantry of England ; the people who could listen with delight to such strains, were far advanced towards a revolt from Latin Christianity. Truth, true religion, was not to be found with, it CHRONOLOGY OF THE POEM. XXV11 was not known by, Pope, Cardinals, Bishops, Clergy, Monks, Friars. It was to be sought by man himself, by the individual man, by the poorest man, under the sole guidance of Reason, Conscience, and of the Grace of God, vouchsafed directly, not through any intermediate human being, or even Sacrament, to the self-directing soul. If it yet respected all existing doctrines, it respected them not as resting on traditional or sacerdotal authority. There is a manifest appeal throughout, an uncon- scious installation of Scripture alone, as the ultimate judge ; the test of everything is a moral and purely religious one, its agreement with holiness and charity.' It should be remembered that several of the above remarks apply in particular to the C-text, which Dr. Milman seems to have examined the most attentively, doubtless because it is the longest and fullest. There are several points about the poem which render caution on the reader's part very necessary, if he would avoid being misled. One is, that the effect of its double revision has been to introduce occasional anachronisms. Thus, when the poet speaks of Reason as being set on the bench between the king and his son, he referred originally to Edward III. and the Black Prince, as the remark was made in 1362 ; but when the line was allowed to stand without change in the later versions, as occurring in a part of the poem which was not very much altered, the allusion was lost, and it must be taken merely as a general expression signifying that Reason was placed in a seat of dignity. Again, the allusion to the king's fear of death in the words 'jif I regne any while' is of less force when retained in the C-text than when first composed and inserted in the B-text. The usual date assigned to the poem, 1362, is very misleading ; for all depends upon which form of the poem is in question. It was in hand and subject to variation during twenty or thirty years, the date 1362 expressing merely the time of its commencement. Hence William was, in fact, absolutely con- temporaneous with Chaucer, and cannot fairly be said to have preceded him. A comparison between these two great writers is very instructive ; it is soon perceived that each is, in a great measure, the supplement of the other, notwithstanding the senti- xxviii INTRODUCTION. ments which they have in common. Chaucer describes the rich more fully than the poor, and shows us the holiday-making, cheerful, genial phase of English life ; but William pictures the homely poor in their ill-fed, hard-working condition, battling against hunger, famine, injustice, oppression, and all the stern realities and hardships that tried them as gold is tried in the fire. Chaucer's satire often raises a good-humoured laugh ; but William's is that of a man who is constrained to speak out all the bitter truth, and it is as earnest as is the cry of an injured man who appeals to Heaven for vengeance. Each, in his own way, is equally admirable, and worthy to be honoured by all who prize highly the English character and our own land. The extreme earnestness of our author and the obvious truthfulness and blunt honesty of his character are in themselves attractive, and lend a value to all he utters, even when he is evolving a theory or wanders away into abstract questions of theological speculation. It is in such a poem as his that we get a real insight into the inner every-day life of the people, their dress, their diet, their wages, their strikes, and all the minor details which picture to us what manner of men they were x . One very curious variation occurs in the character of Piers the Plowman himself. In the A-text, he is merely the highest type of the honest small farmer, whose practical justice and Chris- tianity are so approved of by truth (who is the same with God the Father), that he is entrusted with a bull of pardon of more value than even the Pope's. But towards the conclusion of the B-text, the poet strikes a higher note, and makes him the type of the human nature in its highest form of excellence, the human flesh within whom dwelt the divine soul of Christ our Saviour. By a sort of parody upon the text in i Cor. x. 4, he asserts that Petrus est Christus, that Piers is Christ, and he likens the Saviour to a champion who fights in Piers' armour, that is to say, in human flesh humana natura. When the fact is once fully perceived that, in a part of the poem, Piers is actually identified with our Lord and Saviour, the notion of imagining 1 Some of these remarks are repeated from my introduction to ihe Early English Text Society's edition, vol. i. p. iv. HISTORICAL ALLUSIONS. XXIX him to have been an old English author stands revealed in all its complete and irreverent absurdity. The reader should beware also of being much influenced by the mention of the Malvern Hills. The name of William of Malvern has been proposed for the poet, in order to meet the objection that his surname is not certainly known. In my opinion, such a name is hardly a fit one, as likely to add to the numerous misconceptions already current concerning him. One great merit of the poem is, that it chiefly exhibits London life and London opinions, which are surdy of more interest to us than those of Worcestershire. He does but mention Malveru three times, and those three passages may be found within the compass of the first eight Passus of Text A. But how numerous are his allusions to London ! He not only speaks of it several times, but he frequently mentions the law courts of West- minster ; he was familiar with Cornhill, East Cheap, Cock Lane in Smithfield, Shoreditch, Garlickhithe, Stratford, Tyburn, and Southwark, all of which he mentions in an off-hand manner. He mentions no river but the Thames, which is with him simply synonymous with river ; for in one passage he speaks of two men thrown into the Thames, and in another he says that rich men are wont to give presents to the rich, which is as superfluous as if one should fill a tun with water from a fresh river, and then pour it into the Thames to render it fuller y. To remember the London origin of a large portion of the poem is the true key to the right understanding of it. It is impossible to give here an adequate sketch of that portion of English history which the poem illustrates, but it is very im- portant that its close connection with history should be ever borne in mind. I will merely adduce one instance of this, one to which Mr. Wright has well drawn attention, and upon which I would lay even more stress than he has done. I allude to the y The words 'to woke with Temese' (see Wright's edition, p. 315), seem to mean ' to wet the Thames with.' Woke, left insufficiently explained by Mr. Wright, seems to mean to wet, to moisten, such appearing to be the sense required in another passage, in C. xv. 25. See my Notes to Piers Plowman (E. E. T. S.), p. 287. However, this is still uncertain, and further evidence is required. XXX INTRODUCTION. rebellion under Wat Tyler. It is most evident that Langland himself was intensely loyal ; if he would not reverence men whom he saw going about in rich clothing, he had a most profound re- verence and even affection for the king. In the Prologue to his poem upon Richard II., whom he rates soundly and spares not, he commences with words of most tender and even touching re- monstrance; it evidently goes to his heart that he should be compelled by a sense of duty to administer a severe reproof to ' his sovereign, whose subject he ought to be.' He nowhere recommends or encourages revolutionary ideas, but the contrary, and he never could have intended his words to have roused the flame of rebellion. But the outspoken manner of them was just that which delighted the populace ; his exaltation of the plough- man was gladly seized upon, and his bold words perverted into watchwords of insurgency. He had but lately elaborated his second text of the poem, when John Balle, 'the crazy priest of Kent,' wrote the following remarkable letter to the commons of Essex. ' John Schep, som tyme Seynt Marie prest of Jorke, and nowe of Colchestre, greteth welle Johan Nameles, and Johan the Mullere, and Johan Cartere, and biddeth hem that thei ware of gyle of borugh, and stondeth togiddir in Goddis name, and biddeth Peres Plou^man go to his werke, and chastise well Hobbe the robber, and taketh with 3ou Johan Trewman, and all his felaws, and no mo, and loke schappe 3ou to on heued, and no mo. Johan the Muller heth ygrownde smal, smal, smal; The Kyngis sone of hevene shalle paye for alle. Be ware or ye be wo, Knoweth Jour frende from Joure foo, Haveth ynowe, and scythe 'Hoo'; And do welle and bettre, and fleth synne, And seketh pees, and holde therynne ; And so biddeth Johan Trewman and alle his felawes.' For writing which, John Balle was drawn, hung, and quartered, July 15, 1381, just one month after Wat Tyler had been cut down by Sir William Walworth. See Thomae Walsingham Historia Anglicana, ed. Riley, vol. ii. p. 33. The reader will remark the mention, not only of Peres Plowman, but of do-welle SUMMARY OF THE POEM. XXXI and bettre ; besides which, the name of Schep (or shepherd) was probably adopted from the second line of the prologue, and the name of 1reis world w/ondres to here. Ac on a Afay mdrnynge ' on .Afaluerne hulles Me by/el a /erly of /airy, me thonjte ; I was wery fortoandred ' and went me to reste Vnder a fcrode 6anke bi a tornes side, And as I /ay and /ened and /oked in )>e wateres, I s/6mbred in a s/epyng it swe"yued so merye.' Line i has s for its rime-letter ; the sub-letters begin somer and seson; the chief-letter begins soft. The s beginning sonne may be regarded as superfluous and accidental. Line 2 shews sh used as a rime-letter. The syllables marked with a diaeresis are to be fully sounded, and counted as distinct syllables. The e at the end of shofe merely shows that the pre- ceding o is long, and is not syllabic. XXXV111 INTRODUCTION. Line 3 is very regular ; it reminds us that the vn- in imholy is a mere prefix, and that the true base of the word is holy, begin- ning with b. In line 4, the initial Win Went is superfluous. In line 5 , two loud syllables, viz. May and the first of mornynge, come together. This is rare, and not pleasing. In line 6, by- in byfel is a mere prefix ; and so is for- in for- ivandred in line 7. In line 8, the b in hi is unnecessary to the alliteration. In line 9, if a stress be laid upon as, there will be three loud syllables in the first half-line. In line 10, the chief-letter is s, but the sub-letters exhibit the combination si. The less forcible or secondary accents, not here accounted for, cause considerable difficulty. A few variations may be noticed. (a) The chief-letter may begin the second loud syllable of the second half-line ; as, Vn&ynde to her yn and to alle aistene;' I. 190. () Sometimes there are two rime-letters in the second half- line, and one in the first. Such lines are rare ; I give an example from the A-text of the poem, Pass. ii. 1. 1 1 2 : ' Tyle he had syluer for his sawes and his se'lynge.' (c) The chief-letter is sometimes omitted ; but this is a great blemish. Thus, in 1. 34 of the Prologue, nearly all the MSS. have synneles, instead of giltle s, which is the reading of MS. R. 3. 14 in Trinity College, Cambridge. (d) By a bold license, the rime-letter is sometimes found at the beginning of soft or subordinate syllables, as in the words/or, wbil, in the lines : ' panne I /rained hir /lire /or hym j?at hir made;' I. 58. 4 And K/ith him to K/onye with wo ' whil god is in heuene;' 2. 1 06. (e) It may be noted that k seems to have been sounded before ; hence kn is alliterated with k, as in Pass. 5. 1. i. Also, ise aren men on ]>is molde J)at moste harme worche/A To jje pore peple J>at parcel-mele buggew [buy].' This mixture of the -eth ending in worcheth, and the -en ending in buggen, occurs in at least six other MSS., and a careful ex- amination of many MSS. has convinced me that such an admix- Xl INTRODUCTION. ture of dialect is an essential mark of the poem, and of the dialect spoken by its composer. There are many traces of West of England speech also, and even some of Northern, but the latter may possibly be rightly considered as common to both North and West. The reader will therefore do well to remember that he has here to deal with a dialect of a peculiarly uncertain cha- racter, and that he cannot therefore always draw certain con- clusions. At the same time, the dialect is far from being such as to cause much difficulty by the introduction of uncommon words. The language is fairly intelligible after a slight amount of patience has been bestowed upon the first few hundred lines, and the occasional occurrence of hard words is chiefly due to the ex- traordinary extent of the author's vocabulary. Dr. Morris well observes, in his Introduction to ' Chaucer's Prologue,' &c., in the Clarendon Press Series that the number of Norman-French words in Chaucer is so great that ' he has been accused of corrupting the language by a large and un- necessary admixture of Norman-French terms. But Chaucer, with few exceptions, employed only such terms as were in use in the sfo&en language, and stamped them with the impress of his genius, so that they became current coin of the literary realm.' That this remark is true is shewn by the fact that William does the very same thing, employing Norman- French words freely whenever he wishes to do so. As regards the orthography, it may be remarked that the scribe of the Laud MS. seems to have added many final *-'s where the rules would not lead us to expect them, and has omitted many where they seem necessary. This is due, either to carelessness on his part, or to a peculiar orthographical system, or to the fact that the dialect is of a mixed character and more uncertain. The first supposition alone hardly suffices, as most MSS. of the B-text exhibit like irregularities. The chief points of the gram- mar are so well explained in the Introduction to Mr. Morris's Chaucer (Clarendon Press Series), pp. xxxi-xlii, that a very brief summary of some of them may be sufficient here. The scribe uses }> to represent th. In a great many cases he distinguishes between the sound of th in thin, and the sound of GRAMMATICAL REMARKS. xli th in thine. He denotes the former by tb written at length, as in precbeth, thinketh, and the like, and the latter by b, as in \e, Jw/, \>anne, and the like. This is his usual custom ; but there are several instances of the contrary. He also uses 3, as usual, with the sound of y at the beginning of a word, as in %e, *$oure, and with the guttural sound of gh in the middle of a word, as in tbouite, nautf. He employs very few contractions, all of which are here denoted by italics. Most of these involve the letter r; thus a curl above the line, which is really a corruption of the old form of e, stands for er or re; as in better, p;vched c . An i above the line means ri, as in cr/st. A roughly written a means ra, as in gn?ce. A roughly written v means vr or ar, as in honor. A p with a straight stroke through the tail means per or par, as in persoun, parfyt. A p with a curling stroke below means pro, as in profyt. A straight stroke above a letter means or m, as in mowzme, ma/z, where the stroke is over o and a respectively. A few words are written shortly, as Ire for lettre, coe for comune, qd for quod. When these contractions and a few others of rare occurrence are mastered, the difficulty of reading MSS. is not great. To read them correctly in all cases comes by practice only. N O U N S <*. Number. The nominative plural ends commonly in -es, as in shroudes, ivorkes ; sometimes in s, as in bidders, or in z, as in dlamantz. This z is written exactly like J, the symbol for y or gb. For -es, -is is sometimes found, as in . d These remarks are chiefly copied and adapted from Mr. Morris's Chaucer. Xlii INTRODUCTION. into -is, as In eattes, cattis ; other endings are very rare. The genitive plural sometimes ends in -en or -ene, as in clerken, kyngene. Childryn is also a genitive plural. The instances of these more unusual forms are readily found by help of the references in the Glossarial Index. Mannus (for men's) occurs once only. The dative case singular commonly ends in -e, as in to bedde. ADJECTIVES. The distinction between definite and indefinite adjectives is difficult to follow, owing to the irregularity of the alliterative rhythm ; and the scribe, not having much to guide him, may have been at fault sometimes, and has certainly added many final -e's after a long vowel, which he never intended to be pronounced as a separate syllable. He even writes fete for feet, shape for shoop, where there is no doubt about the final e being silent, and intended to be non-syllabic. Plural adjectives should end in -e, and commonly do so, as alle. The reduplication of a consonant when a syllable is added is worth notice ; thus alle is the plural of al, just as shullen is the plural of the auxiliary verb shal. Very rarely, plural adjectives of French origin end in -es\ I believe that cardinales -verities is the sole instance; cf. the phrase maistresfreres*. The comparative of heigh (high) is herre, the superlative hexte. Adjectives and ad- verbs ending in -ly sometimes form their comparatives and superlatives in -loker, -lokest, as ligbtloker, lightlokest. PRONOUNS. The pronouns are the same as in Chaucer ; but, besides sche, the older form heo is also used f ; and, besides }>', the older form h'j (ly)- These are instances of a confusion or admixture of dialect. Their is denoted by here, her, or bir ; them by hem. The dative case is used with impersonal verbs, as me byfel, him likede. The pronoun thou is often written tow, and at the same time Maistris Hers occurs in Pecock's Represser, ed. Babington, p. 478. 1 The form in Chaucer is sche, and never heo. GRAMMATICAL REMARKS. xliii joined to its verb, as seestow, seest thou, repentedestow, repent- edst thou. The genitive of e wateres, I slombred in a slepyng it sweyued so merye. 10 Thanne gan I to meten a merueilouse sweuene, That I was in a wildernesse wist I neuer where ; As I bihelde in-to J>e est an hiegh to }>e sonne, I seigh a toure on a toft trielich ymaked ; A depe dale binethe a dongeon ]>ere-Inne, 15 With depe dyches & derke and dredful of sight, A faire fekle ful of folke fonde I there bytwene, Of alle maner of men }>e mene and \>Q riche, Worchyng and wandryng as \>e worlde asketh a PROLOGUS. Some putten hem to )>e plow pleyed ful selde, 20 In settyng and in sovvyng swonken ful harde, And wonnen that wastours with glotonye destruyeth. And some putten hem to pruyde * apparailed hem \>ere- after, In contenauwce of clothyng comen disgised. In prayers and in penance putten hem manye, 35 Al for loue of owre lorde lyuedew ful streyte, In hope forto haue * heueneriche blisse ; As ancres and heremites that holden hem in here selles, And coueitcn nought in centre to kairen aboute, For no likerous liflode * her lykam to plese. 30 And so/me chosen chaffare they cheuen the bettere, As it semeth to owre syjt that suche men thryueth ; And sowme murthes to make as mynstralles conneth, And geten gold with herei sholde ; That Poule p/vcheth of hem I nel nought preue it here ; Qui turpiloquium loquitur is luciferes hyne. Bidders and beggeres fast aboute jede, 40 With her belies and her bagges -of bred ful ycrammed; Fayteden for here fode foujten atte ale ; In glotonye, god it wote gon hij to bedde, And risen with ribaudye tho roberdes knaues ; Slepe and sori sleuthe seweth hem cure. 45 Pilgrymes and palmers plijted hem togidere To seke seynt lames and seyntes in rome. Thei went forth in here wey with many wise tales, And hadden leue to lye al here lyf after. I seigh soffzme that seiden )>ei had ysoujt seyntes : 50 To eche a tale J?at ]>ei tolde here tonge was tewpred to lye, THE FIELD FULL OF FOLK. 3 More }>an to sey soth it semed bi here speche. Heremites on an heep With hoked staues, Wenten to Walsyngham and her? wenches after ; Crete lobyes and longe that loth were to swynke, 55 Clotheden hem in copis * to ben knowen fram And shopen hem heremites ' here ese to haue. ^j^, I fonde }>ere Freris alle )>e foure ordres, Preched j>e peple for profit of hem-seluen, Closed Jje gospel as hem good lyked, 60 For coueitise of copis construed it as J>ei wolde. Many of jns maistres Freris mowe clothen hem at lykyng, For here money and marchandise marchen togideres. For sith charite haj> be chapman and chief to shryue lordes, Many ferlis han fallen in a fewe jeris. 65 But holychirche and hij holde better togideres, The most myschief on molde is mountyng wel faste. pere prat hym-self myjte assoilen hem alle 70 Of falshed of fastyng of vowes ybroken. Lewed men leued hym wel and lyked his wordes, Comen vp knelyng ' to kissen his bulles ; He bonched hem with his breuet & blered here eyes, And raujte with his ragman rynges and broches ; 75 Thus j>ey geuen here golde glotones to kepe. Were ]>e bischop yblissed and worth bothe his eres, His seel shulde noujt be sent ' to deceyue J>e peple. Ac it is nau3t by }>e bischop |>at j>e boy precheth, 80 For the parisch prest and }>e pardonere parten ]>e siluer, That \>e poraille of J>e parisch sholde haue, jif J>ei nere. Persones and parisch prestes pleyned hem to l>e bischop, pat here parisshes were pore sith J>e pestilence tyme, B 2 4 PROLOG US. To haue a lycence and a leue at London to d\vclle, 8; And syngen j>ere for symonye for siluer is swete. Bischopes and bachelers bothe maistres and doctours, pat ban cure vnder criste and crounyng in tokne And signe J>at J>ei sholden * shryuen here paroschienes, Prechen and prey for hem and J>e pore fede, 90 Liggen in London in lenten, an elles. Sowme seruen \>e kyng and his siluer tellen, In cheker and in cbancerye . chalengen his dettes Of wardes and wardmotes * weyues and streyues. And some seruen as seruantz ' lordes and ladyes, 95 And in stede of stuwardes sytten and demen. Here messe and here matynes * and many of here cures Arn don vndeuoutlych ; drede is at )>e laste Lest crist in consistorie acorse ful manye. I parceyued of J>e power ]>at Peter had to kepe, 100 To bynde and to vnbynde as jje'boke telleth, How he it left wij> loue as owre lorde hight, Amonges foure vertues }>e best of all vertues, pat cardinales ben called & closyng jatis, pere crist is in kyngdome to close and to shutte, 105 And to opne it to hem and heuene blisse shewe. Ac of \>Q cardinales atte Courte j>at caujt of }>at name, And power presumed in hem a Pope to make, To ban )>at power )>at peter hadde inpugnen I nelle ; For in loue and letterure )>e elecciouw bilongeth, no For-)>i I can and can naujte of courte speke more. panne come J>ere a kyng knyjthod hym ladde, Mijt of J>e comunes made hym to regne, And j>anne cam kynde wytte and clerkes he made, For to conseille ]>e kyng and J>e comune saue. 115 The kyng and knyjthode * and clergye bothe Casten )>at }>e comune shulde hem-self fyndc. THE FIELD FULL OF FOLK. 5 pe comune contreued of kynde witte craftes, And for profit of alle j>e poeple plowmen ordeygned, To tilie and trauaile as trewe lyf aske]>. 120 pe kynge and j?e comune ' and kynde witte ]>e thridde Shope lawe & lewte eche man to knowe his owne. panne loked vp a lunatik a lene )>ing with-alle, And knelyng to )>e kyng clergealy he seyde ; ' Crist kepe Jje, sire kyng and ]>i kyngriche, 125 And leue ]>e lede J>i londe so leute ]>e louye, And for jn rijtful rewlyng be rewarded in heuene ! ' And sithen in ]>e eyre an hiegh An angel of heuene Lowed to speke in latyn for lewed men ne coude Tangle ne iugge ]?at iustifie hem shulde, 130 But suffren & seruen for-thi seyde ]>e angel, ' Sum Rex, sum Princeps ' neutrum fortasse deinceps ; qtii jura regis ' Christi specialia regis, Hoc quod agas melius iustus es, eslo pius I Nudum ius a te ' vestiri vult pielale ; 135 Qualia vis melere ' talia grana sere. Si ius nudatur nudo de iure metalur ; Si seritur pietas ' de pielate melas !' Thanne greued hym a Goliardeys a glotou of wordes, And to jje angel an hei3 answered after, 140 1 Dum rex a regere dicatur nomen habere, Nomen habet sine re ' nisi sludet iura lenere,' And j?anne gan alle j?e comune crye in vers of latin, To \>e kynges conseille construe ho-so wolde ' Precepta Regis ' sunt nobis vincula legis.' 145 Wi)> J>at ran }>ere a route of ratones at ones, And smale mys myd hem mo J>en a }>ousande, And comen to a conseille for here comune profit; For a cat of a courte cam whan hym lyked, And ouerlepe hem lyjtlich and laujte hem at his wille, 150 6 PROLOG US. And pleyde wij> hem pcrilouslych and possed hem aboute. ' For doute of dyuerse dredes \ve dar nou3te wel loke ; And jif we grucche of his gamen he wil greue vs alle, Cracche vs, or clowe vs and in his cloches holde, That vs lotheth }>e lyf or he lete vs passe. 155 Myjte we wi]> any witte his wille wilhstonde, We myjte be lordes aloft and lyuen at owre esc.' A raton of renon * most renable of tonge, Seide for a souereygne help to hym-selue ; ' I haue ysein segges/ quod he ' in J>e cite of london 160 Beren bijes ful brijte abouten here nekkes, And some colers of crafty werk ; vncoupled J>ei wenden BoJ>e in wareine & in waste where hem leue lyketh ; And otherwhile \>ei aren elles-where * as I here telle. Were jjere a belle on here beij bi Imi, as me thynkcth, 165 Men my3te wite where J>ei went and awei renne ! And rijt so,' quod ]>at ratoim ' reson me sheweth, To bugge a belle of brasse or of brijte syluer, And knitten on a coleranne here we mowen Where he ritt or rest or renneth to playe. 171 And jif him list for to laike Jjenne loke we mowen, And peren in his presence |>er-while hym plaie liketh, And jif him wrattheth, be ywar and his weye shonye.' Alle J)is route of ratones to \>is reson J>ei assented. 175 Ac J>o \>e belle was yboujt and on ]>e bei3e hanged, pere ne was ratouw in alle |>e route for alle |>e rewme of Frauwce, pat dorst haue ybounden )>e belle aboute }>e cattis nekke, Ne hangen it aboute \>e cattes hals al Engelonde to wynne ; And helden hem vnhardy and here conseille feble, 180 And leten here laboure lost & alle here longe studye. A mous pat moche good couthe, as me thoujte, THE FIELD FULL OF FOIJT. 7 Stroke forth sternly and stode biforn hem alle, And to ]>e route of ratones reherced j>ese wordes ; ' Thouj we culled |>e catte 3ut sholde \er come another, 185 To cracchy vs and al owre kynde J>ou3 we crope vnder benches. For-jn I conseille alle }>e comune to lat j?e catte worthe, And be we neuer so bolde J>e belle hym to shewe ; For I herde my sire seyn is seuene jere ypassed, pere J>e catte is a kitoun )>e courte is ful elyng; 190 pat witnisseth holiwrite who- so wil it rede, Ve terre vbi puer rex est, ere rest haue for ratones bi nyjte ; pe while he cacchej> conynges he coueiteth noujt owre caroyne, But fet hym al with venesou defame we hym neuere. For better is a litel losse }>an a longe sorwe, 195 pe mase amonge vs alle )>OU3 we mysse a schrewe. For many mannj malt we mys wolde destruye, And also 36 route of ratones rende mennes clothes, Nere }^at cat of j>at courte J>at can jow ouerlepe ; For had 36 rattes jowre wille 36 couthe nou3t reule jowre- selue. 200 I sey for me,' quod \>Q mous * ' I se so mykel after, Shal neuer |>e cat ne \>e kitouw * bi my conseille be greued, Ne carpyng of ))is coler |>at costed me neure. And ]?OU3 it had coste me catel biknowen it 1 nolde, But suffre as hym-self wolde to do as hym liketh, 205 Coupled & vricoupled to cacche what thei mowe. For-)n vche a wise wijte I warne * wite wel his owne.' What }>is meteles bemeneth 36 men )>at be merye, Deuine 36, for I ne dar bi dere god in heuene I 3it houed J>ere an hondreth in houues of selke, 210 Seriauntz it semed J>at serueden atte barre, 8 PROLOG US. Plededen for penyes and poundes \>e lawe, And noujt for loue of o\vre lorde vnlese here lippes onis. pow myjtest better mete j?e myste on maluerne hulles, pan gete a momme of here mouthe but money were shewed. 2 1 5 Barones an burgeis * and bonde-men als I seij in |>is assemble as je shul here after. Baxsteres & brewesteres and bocheres manye, Wollewebsteres and weueres of lynnen, Taillours and tynkeres & tolleres in marketes, 220 Masons and mynows and many other craftes. Of alkin libbyng laboreres * lopen forth sow/me, As dykers & delueres }>at doth here dedes ille, And dryuen forth J>e longe day with ' Dieu vous sane, Dame Emme I ' Cokes and here knaues crieden, 'hole pies, hotel 225 Code gris and gees gowe dyne, gowe 1 ' Tauerners vn-til hem * tolde \>e same, ' White wyn of Oseye and red wyn of Gascoigne, Of ]>e Ryne and of }>e Rochel J>e roste to defye.' Al Jjis seij I slepyng and seuene sythes more. 330 /l-j^-*-" PASSUS I. Passus Primtis de visione. WHAT this montaigne bymeneth and ]?e merke dale, And J>e felde ful of folke I shal jow faire schewe. A loueli ladi of lere in lynnen yclothed, Come down fram a castel and called me faire, And seide, ' Sone, slepestow * sestow Jjis poeple, 5 How bisi J?ei ben abouten |>e mase ? pe moste partie of J>is poeple ]?at passeth on jjis erthe, Haue J>ei worschip in j>is worlde ]>ei wilne no better ; Of other heuene J>an here holde ]>ei no tale.' I was aferd of her face j^eij she faire were, 10 And seide, ' mercy, Madame what is j^is to mene ? ' ' pe toure vp }>e toft,' quod she * ' treuthe is j>ere-Inne, And wolde )?at je wroujte as his worde techeth ; For he is fader of feith fourmed jow alle, Bothe with fel and with face and jaf 3ow fyue wittis 15 Forto worschip hym J>er-with j>e while jjat je ben here. And ]>erfore he hyjte )>e erthe to help jow vchone Of wollen, of lynnen of lyflode at nede, In mesurable manere to make jow at ese ; And comaunded of his curteisye * in comune )>ree Binges ; Arne none nedful but }>o and nempne hem I thinke, ai And rekne hem bi resouw reherce }?ow hem after. That one is vesture from chele }>e to saue, And mete atte mele for myseise of J>i-selue, IO PASSUS I. And drynke whan J>ow dryest ac do noujt out of resou, 25 That j>ow worth J>e werse whan JJQW worche shuldest. For-]>i drede delitable drynke and J>ow shalt do J>e bettere ; Mesure is medcyne J>OU3 J>ow moche jerne. 35 It is naujt al gode to j>e goste )?at J'e gutte axejj, Ne liflode to |>i likam J>at leef is to }>i soule. Leue not ]>i likam for a Iyer him techeth, That is J>e wrecched worlde \volde j?e bitraye. For J>e fende and }>i flesch folweth ]>e to-gidere, 40 This and }>at sueth Jn soule * and seith it in ]>in herte ; And for j>ow sholdest ben ywar I wisse J>e \>e beste.' ' Madame, mercy,' quod I ' me liketh wel jowre wordes, Ac \>e moneye of \>\s molde J>at men so faste holdeth, Telle me to whom, Madame * ]>at tresore appendeth?' 45 ' Go to )>e gospel,' quod she ' j)at god seide hym-seluen, Tho \>e poeple hym apposed wi}> a peny in ]je temple, Whether )>ei shulde }>er-with worschip ]>e kyng Sesar. And god axed of hem of whome spake }>e lettre, And ]>e ymage ilyke ]>at Jjere-inne stondeth ? 50 " Cesaris," \>e'\ seide " we sen hym wel vchone." " Reddite cesari" quod god " |>at cesari bifalleth. Et que sunt dei, deo or elles 56 done ille." For rijtful reson shulde rewle jow alle, And kynde witte be wardeyne jowre welthe to kepe, 55 And tutour of joure tresore and take it jow at nede ; For housbonderye & hij holden togideres.' panne I frained hir faire * for hym J>at hir made, 4 That dongeouw in }>e dale J>at dredful is of sijte, What may it be to mene ma-dame, I jow biseche ?' 60 1 pat is ])e castel of care who so cometh J>erinne May banne )?at he borne was * to body or to soule. perinne wonieth a wijte J>at wronge is yhote, THE VISION OF HOLY-CHURCH. II Fader of falshed and founded it hym-selue. Adam and Eue he egged to ille, 65 Conseilled caym to kullen his brother ; ludas he iaped with iuwen siluer, And sithen on an eller honged hym after. He is letter of loue and lyeth hem alle ; That trusten on his tresor * bitrayelh he sonnest.' 70 Thanne had I wonder in my witt what wowman it were pat such wise wordes of holy writ shewed ; And asked hir on J>e hieje name ar heo |>ennes jeode, What she were witterli f>at wissed me so faire ? ' Holicherche I am/ quod she ' |>ow oujtest me to knowe, I vnderfonge ]>e firste and J>e feyth taujte, 76 And broujtest me borwes my biddyng to fulfille, And to loue me lelly |>e while J>i lyf dureth.' Thanne I courbed on my knees ' and cryed hir of grace, And preyed hir pitousely prey for my synnes, 80 And also kenne me kyndeli on criste to bileue, That I mi3te worchen his wille )>at wroujte me to man ; ' Teche me to no tresore * but telle me jns ilke, How I may saue my soule }>at seynt art yholden ?' ' Whan alle tresores aren tried/ quod she * ' trewthe is }>e best; 85 I do it on deus carilas ' to deme \>e so]>e ; It is as derworth a drewery as dere god hym-seluen. Who-so is trewe of his tonge & telleth none other, And doth J>e werkis ]>er-with and wilneth no man ille, He is a god bi ]>e gospel agrounde and aloft, qo And ylike to owre lorde < bi seynte lukes wordes. pe clerkes )>at knowe)? |>is * shulde kenne it aboute, For cristene and vncristne clamej) it vchone. Kynges & knijtes shulde kepe it bi resoiw, Riden and rappe down in reumes aboute, 95 12 PASS US I. And taken trangressores and tyen hem faste, Til treuthe had ytermyned * her trespas to j>e ende. And J>at is ]>e pr0fessiou appertly * ]>at appendeth for knyjtes, And noujt to fasten a fryday in fyue score wynter ; But holden wi}> him & with hir * J>at wolden al treuthe, 100 And neuer leue hem for loue ne for lacchyng of syluer. For Dauid in his dayes dubbed kni3tes, And did hem swere on here swerde to serue trewthe eu^re ; And who-so passed J>at poynte was apostata in ]>e ordre. But criste kingene kynge kni3ted ten, 105 Cherubyn and seraphin suche seuene and an othre, And jaf hem myjte in his maieste \>e muryer hem J)oujte ; And ouer his mene meyne made hem archangeles, Taujte hem bi J>e Trinitee treuthe to knowe, To be buxome at his biddyng he bad hem noujte elles. 1 10 Lucifer wij> legiounes lerned it in heuene, But for he brake buxumnesse * his blisse gan he tyne, And fel fro J>at felawship in a fendes liknes, In-to a depe derke helle to dwelle j>ere for cure ; And mo J>owsandes wij> him ]>an man couthe noumbre 1 1 5 Lopen out wij> Lucifer in lothelich forme, For fei leueden vpon hym J>at lyed in j>is manere : Ponam pedem in aquilone, el similis ero altissimo. And alle j>at hoped it mi3te be so * none heuene mi3te hem holde, But fellen out in fendes liknesse nyne dayes togideres, Til god of his goodnesse gan stable and stynte, 1 20 And garte J>e heuene to stekye and stonden in quiete. Whan thise wikked went out wonderwise J>ei fellen, Sozwme in eyre, somme in erthe & so/wme in helle depe ; Ac lucifer lowest * lith of hem alle ; For pryde J>at he pult out his peyne hath none ende ; 125 And alle Jjat worche with wronge wenden hij shulle THE VISION OF HOLY-CHURCH. 13 After her deth day and dwelle wij> ]>at shrewe. Ac J)O j>at worche wel as holiwritt telleth, And enden, as I ere seide in treuthe, }>at is J>e best, Mo we be siker |>at her soule shal wende to heuene, 130 per treuthe is in Trinitee and troneth hem alle. For-}>i I sey, as I seide ere * bi sijte of }>ise textis, Whan alle tresores arne ytried * treuthe is ]>e beste. Lereth it jris lewde men for lettred men it knowen, pat treuthe is tresore J>e triest on er]>e.' 135 ' 3et haue I no kynde knowing,' quod I ' jet mote je kenne me better, By what craft in my corps it comseth, and where.' ' pow doted daffe,' quod she ' dulle arne J>i wittes ; To litel latyn j>ow lernedest lede, in }>i jouthe ; Heu mi'chi, quod sterilem duxi vitam iuuem'Iem ! It is a kynde knowyng/ quod she ' }>at kenneth in j>ine herte 140 For to louye }>i lorde leuer J>an J>i-selue ; No dedly synne to do dey J>ouj Jx>w sholdest : This I trowe be treuthe who can teche J>e better, Loke Jow suffre hym to sey and sithen lere it after. For thus witnesseth his worde worche JJQW J>ereafter; 145 For trewthe telle]? ]>at loue * is triacle of heuene ; May no synne be on him sene j>at vseth J>at spise, And alle his werkes he wroujte with loue as him liste ; And lered it Moises for J>e leuest jjing and moste like to heuene, And also j>e plante of pees moste precious of vertues. 150 For heuene my^te noujte holden it it was so heuy of hym -self, Tyl it hadde of J>e erthe yeten his fylle. And whan it haued of pis folde flessh^ & blode taken, Was neuere leef vpon lynde lijter J^er-after, 14 PASSUS I. And portatyf and persant as \>e poynt of a nedle, 155 That myjte non armure it lette ne none heij walles. For-}>i is loue leder of \>Q lordes folke of heuene, And a niene, as }>e Maire is bitwene Je kyng and |>e comune ; Ri^t so is loue a ledere and J>e lawe shapeth, Vpon man for his mysdedes }>e merciment he taxeth. 160 And for to knowe it kyndely it comseth bi myght, And in J>e herte J>ere is J>e heuede and J?e heij welle ; For in kynde knowynge in herte * }>ere a myjte bigynneth. And }>at falleth to J>e fader J>at formed vs alle, Loked on vs with loue * and lete his sone deye 165 Mekely for owre mysdedes to amende vs alle ; And jet wolde he hem no woo j?at wroujte hym j>at peyne, But mekelich with mouthe mercy he bisoujte To haue pite of J>at poeple j>at peyned hym to deth. Here myjtow see ensamples in hym-selue one, 170 That he was mijtful & meke and mercy gan graunte To hem }>at hongen him an heij and his herte juried. For-thi I rede jow riche haueth reuthe of J>e pouere ; Thouj je be myjtful to mote beth meke in 3owre werkes. For j>e same mesures }>at je mete amys other elles, 175 3e shullen ben weyen J>er-wyth whan je wende hennes ; Eadem mensura qua mensifueriiis, remecielur vobis. For j>ouj je be trewe of jowre tonge and trewliche wynne, And as chaste as a childe J>at in cherche wepeth, But if 36 louen lelliche * and lene j>e poure, Such goed as god jow sent godelich parteth, 180 3e ne haue na more meryte in masse ne in houres, pan Malkyn of hire maydenhode }>at no man desireth. For lames j;e gentil iugged in his bokes, That faith with-oute J^e faite is rijte no }>inge worthi, And as ded as a dore-tree but jif J>e dedes folwe; 185 THE VISION OF HOLY-CHURCH. 15 Fides sine operibus mortua esi, $c. For-thi chastite with-oute charite worth cheyned in helle ; It is as lewed as a laumpe }>at no lijte is Inne. Many chapeleynes arne chaste ac charite is awey; Aren no men auarousen? J>an hij * whan })ei ben auaunced ; Vnkynde to her kyn and to alle cristene, 190 Chewen here charite and chiden after more. Such chastite wijj-outen charite worth cheyned in helle ! , Many curatoures kepen hem clene of here bodies, Thei ben acombred wij> coueitise Jjei konne noujt don it fram hem, So harde hath auarice yhasped hem togideres. 195 And ]>at is no treuthe of j>e trinite but treccherye of helle, And lernyng to lewde men J>e latter for to dele. For-Jji ]?is wordes ben wryten in \>e gospel, Date $ dabitur vobis ' for I dele jow alle. And j>at is J>e lokke of loue and lateth oute my grace, 200 To conforte }>e careful acombred wij> synne. Loue is leche of lyf and nexte owre lorde selue, And also \>e graith gate }>at goth in-to heuene ; For-Jn I sey, as I seide ere by j>e textis, Whan alle tresores ben ytryed treuthe is j>e beste. 205 Now haue I tolde j>e what treuthe is pat no tresore is bettere, I may no lenger lenge J>e with now loke J>e owre lorde !' 207 PASSUS II. Passtis secundus de visj'one, vt supra. YET I courbed on my knees and cryed hir of grace, And seide, ' mercy, Madame * for Marie loue of heuene, That bar }>at blisful barne |>at boujte vs on ]>e Rode, Kenne me bi sowme crafte to knowe ]>e fals.' ' Loke vppon }>i left half and lo where he standeth, 5 Bothe fals and fauel and here feres manye ! ' I loked on my left half as j>e lady me taughte, And was war of a wo/man wortheli yclothed, Purfiled with pelure )>e finest vpon erthe, Y-crounede with a corone }>e kyng hath non better. 10 Fetislich hir fyngres were fretted with golde wyre, And )>ere-on red rubyes as red as any glede, And diamantz of derrest pris and double manere safferes, Orientales and ewages enuenymes to destroye. Hire robe was ful riche of red scarlet engreyned, 15 With ribanes of red golde and of riche stones ; Hire arraye me rauysshed * suche ricchesse saw I neuere j I had wondre what she was and whas wyf she were. ' What is J>is wowman,' quod I ' so worthily atired ? ' ' That is Mede )>e Mayde, quod she ' hath noyed me ful Oft, 20 And ylakked my lew/man J>at lewte is hoten, And bilowen hire to lorclcs [>at lawes han to kepe. In J>e popis paleys she is pryue as my-self, MEED AND FALSEHOOD. 1) But sothenesse wolde noujt so for she is a bastarde. For fals was hire fader )?at hath a fykel tonge, 25 And neuere sothe seide sithen he come to erthe. And Mede is manered after hym rijte as kynde axeth ; Qualis faler, fall's filius; bona arbor bonum fruclum facit. I aujte ben herre )>an she I cam of a better. Mi fader ]>e grete god is and grounde of alle graces, O god with-oute gynnynge & I his gode doujter, 30 And hath joue me mercy to marye with my- self ; And what man be merciful and lelly me loue, Schal be my lorde and I his leef in J>e heije heuene. And what man taketh Mede myne hed dar I legge, That he shal lese for hir loue a lappe of carilatis. 35 How construeth dauid }>e kynge of men J>at taketh Mede, And men of J>is molde J>at meynteneth treuthe, d how je shal saue jow-self }>e Sauter bereth witnesse, Domine, quis habilabil in tabernaculo /uo, is Mede ymaried al to a mansed schrewe, To one fals fikel-tonge * a fendes bijete ; 40 Fauel J>orw his faire speche hath )>is folke enchauted, And al is lyeres ledyng j>at she is Jnis ywedded. To-morwe worth ymade )>e maydenes bruydale, And )>ere mijte ]>ow wite, if j?ow wolt which }>ei ben alle That longeth to }>at lordeship ]>e lasse and ]>e more. 45 Knowe hem J)ere if J>ow canst * and kepe ]>i tonge, And lakke hem noujt, but lat hem worth til lewte be iustice, And haue power* to punyschen hem ; * }>anne put forth J>i resou. Now I bikenne }>e criste,' quod she 'and his clenemoder, And lat no conscience acombre }>e for coueitise of Mede.' 50 Thus left me )>at lady liggyng aslepe, c Ho l8 PASS US II. And how Mede was ymaried in meteles me j>oti3te ; pat alle J>e riche retenauns J>at regneth with }>e false Were boden to }>e bridale on bothe two sydes, Of alle maner of men ]>e mene and \>e riche. 55 To marie jns maydene was many man assembled, As of knijtes and of clerkis and other comune poeple, As sysours and sompnours Shireues and here clerkes, Bedelles and Bailliues and brokoures of chaffare, Forgoeres and vitaillers and vokates of J>e arches ; 60 I can noujt rekene j>e route )>at ran aboute mede. Ac Symonye and cyuile and sisoures of courtes Were moste pryue with Mede of any men, me J>ou3te. Ac fauel was J>e first j>at fette hire out of boure, And as a brokour broujte hir to be with fals enioigned. 65 Whan Symonye and cyuile seij here beire wille, Thei assented for siluer to sei as bothe wolde. Thanne lepe Iyer forth, and seide ' lo here ! a chartre, That gyle with his gret othes * gaf hem togidere,' And preide cyuile to se and symonye to rede it. 70 Thanne Symonye and cyuile stonden forth bothe, And vnfoldeth )>e feffement pat fals hath ymaked, And jjus bigynneth \>es gomes to greden ful hei3 : ' Sciant presentes tyfuturi, at wonieth vpon );is erthe, pat Mede is y-maried more for here goodis, 75 pan for ani vertue or fairenesse or any free kynde. Falsenesse is faine of hire for he wote hire riche ; And fauel with his fikel speche feffeth bi }>is chartre To be prynces in pryde and pouerte to dispise, To bakbite, and to bosten and bere fals witnesse, 80 To scorne and to scolde * and sclaundere to make, Vnboxome and bolde * to breke }>e ten hestes ; And }>e Erldome of enuye and Wratthe togideres, MEED AND FALSEHOOD. IQ "tft/CtX. 9-\ i W-y^ With }>e chastelet of chest and chateryng-oute-of-resou#, pe counte of coueitise and alle j?e costes aboute, 85 That is, vsure and auarice alle I hem graunte, In bargaines and in brokages ' with al )>e borghe of theft.' ' Glotonye he gaf hem eke and grete othes togydere, And alday to drynke at dyuerse tauernes, And there to iangle and to iape and iugge here euene- cristene, And in fastyng-dayes to frete ar ful tyme were. 95 And )>anne to sitten and soupen til slepe hem assaille ; Tyl sleuth and slepe slyken his sides ; And j?anne wanhope to awake hym so with no wille to amende, For he leueth be lost ]>is is here last ende. 100 And pei to haue and to holde and here eyres after, A dwellyng with }>e deuel and dampned be for cure, Wijj al })e purtenaunces of purgatorie in-to J>e pyne of helle. 3eldyng for jns J>inge at one 3eres ende, .- Here soules to Sathan to suffre with hym peynes, 105 And with him to wonye with wo whil god is in heuene.' In witnesse of which )>ing wronge was J?e first, And Pieres J>e pardonere of paulynes doctrine, Bette }>e bedel * of Bokyngham-shire, Rainalde J>e Reue of Rotland sokene, 1 10 Munde J>e Mellere and many moo other. ' In )>e date of }>e deuil j>is dede I assele, Bi si3te of Sire Simonye and cyuyles leue.' penne tened hym theologye ' whan he ]>is tale herde, And seide to cyuile ' now sorwe mot |>ow haue, 115 Such weddynges to worche to wratthe with treuthe ; And ar )?is weddyng be wro^te wo \>e bityde 1 C 2 20 PASSUS II. For Mede is moylere of amendes engendreJ, And god graunteth to gyf Mede to treuthe, And J>ow hast gyuen hire to a gyloure now god gyf |>e sorwe! 120 Thi tixt telleth jje noujt so treuthe wote }>e sothe, For dignus esl operarius his hyre to haue, And jjow hast fest hire to fals fy on }>i lawe ! For al by lesynges J>ow lyuest and lecherouse werkes, Symonye and )>i-self schenden holicherche, 1 25 pe notaries and jee * noyeth j>e peple, 3e shul abiggen it bothe bi god }>at me made ! Wei je witen, wernardes but if jowre witte faille, That fals is faithlees and fikel in his werkes, And was a bastarde y-bore of belsabubbes kynne. 130 And Mede is moylere * a mayden of gode, And my^te kisse }>e kynge for cosyn, an she wolde. For-])i worcheth bi wisdome and bi witt also, And ledeth hire to londou ]>ere lawe is yshewed, If any lawe wil loke J>ei ligge togederes. 135 And J)OU3 Justices iugge hir to be ioigned with fals, 3et beth war of weddyng for witty is truthe, And conscience is of his conseille and knoweth jow vchone ; And if he fynde jow in defaute * and with J>e fals holde, It shal bisitte jowre soules ful soure atte laste I ' 140 Here-to assenteth cyuile ac symonye ne wolde, Tyl he had siluer for his seruise and also J>e notaries. Thanne fette fauel forth floreynes ynowe, And bad gyle to gyue golde al aboute, And namelich to ]>e notaries ]>at hem none ne faille, 145 And feffe false-witnes with floreines ynowe ; ' For he may mede amaistrye and maken at my wille.' Tho }>is golde was gyue grete was |>e })onkynge To fals and to fauel for her faire 3iftes, MEED AND FALSEHOOD. 21 And comen to conforte fram care )>e fals, 150 And seiden, ' certis, sire cesse shal we neuere Til Mede be j>i wedded wyf jxjrw wittis of vs alle. For we haue Mede amaistried with owre mery speche, That she graunteth to gon with a gode wille, To Londou;/ to loke jif fat j>e lawe wolde 155 lugge jow ioyntly in ioye for euere.' Thanne was falsenesse fayne and fauel as blithe, And leten sompne alle segges in schires aboute, And bad hem alle be bown beggeres and othere, To wendew wyth hem to Westmynstre to witnesse )>is dede. 160 Ac Jjanne cared )>ei for caplus to kairen hem |>ider, And fauel fette forth jjanne folus ynowe ; And sette Mede vpon a Schyreue shodde al newe, And fals sat on a sisoure Jat softlich trotted, And fauel on a flaterere fetislich atired. 165 Tho haued notaries none annoyed |>ei were, For Symonye and cyuile shulde on hire fete gange. Ac J>anne swore Symonye and cyuile bothe, That sompnoures shulde be sadled and s^rue hem vchone, And lat apparaille ]ns prouisoures in palfreis wyse ; 1 70 ' Sire Symonye hym-seluen shal sitte vpon here bakkes. Denes and suddenes drawe jow togideres, Erchdekenes and officiales and alle jowre Regystreres, Lat sadel hem with siluer owre synne to suffre, As auoutrie and deuorses and derne vsurye, 175 To bere bischopes aboute abrode in visytynge. Paulynes pryues * for pleyntes in \>e consistorie, Shul serue my- self J>at cyuile is nempned; And cartesadel J>e comissarie owre carte shal he lede. 180 And maketh of Iyer a longe carte to lede alle }>ese othere, 23 PASS US II. As Freres and faitours )>at on here fete rennen.' And thus fals and fauel fareth forth togideres, And Mede in )?e myddes and alle J>ise men after. I haue no tome to telle J>e taille j>at hem fohvelh, 185 Of many maner man J>at on ]>is molde libbeth ; Ac gyle was forgoer * and gyed hem alle. Sothenesse seij hym wel and seide but a litel, And priked his palfrey and passed hem alle, And come to j?e kynges courte and conscience it tolde, 190 And conscience to J>e kynge carped it after. ' Now by cryst,' quod |>e kynge ' and I cacche myjte Fals or fauel or any of his feres, I wolde be wroke of }>o wrecches J>at worcheth so ille, And don hem hange by ]>e hals and alle J>at hem meynteneth ! Shal neure man of molde meynprise }>e leste, 196 But rijte as }>e lawe wil loke late falle on hem alle.' And comanded a constable j>at come atte furst, To ' attache j>o tyrauntz * for eny thynge, I hote, And fettereth fast falsenesse for enykynnes jiftes, 200 And gurdeth of gyles hed and lat hym go no furthere. And ;if je lacche Iyer late hym noujt ascapen Er he be put on }>e pilorye for eny preyere, I hote ; And bryngeth Mede to me maugre hem alle.' Drede atte dore stode and J>e dome herde, 205 And how jje kynge comaunded constables and smantz, Falsenesse and his felawschip to fettren an to bynden. panne drede went wijtliche and warned )>e fals, And bad hym flee for fere and his felawes alle. Falsenesse for fere J>anne flei} to J>e freres, 210 And gyle do)> hym to go agast for to dye. Ac marchantz mette with hym and made hym abide, And bishetten hym in here shope to shewen here ware, And apparailled hym as a prentice J;e poeple to serue. MEED AND FALSEHOOD. 23 Li3tlichanne, 215 Lorkynge thorw lanes to-lugged of manye. He was nawhere welcome for his manye tales, Oner al yhowted and yhote trusse ; Tyl pardoneres haued pile and pulled hym in-to house. They wesshen hym and wyped hym and wonden hym in cloutes, 220 And sente hym with seles on sondayes to cherches, And gaf pardou for pens poundmel aboute. Spiceres spoke with hym to spien here ware, 225 For he couth of here craft and knewe many gommes. Ac mynstralles and messageres * mette with hym ones, And helden hym an half-3ere and elleuene dayes. Freres with faire speche fetten hym J>ennes, And for knowyng of comeres coped hym as a frere. 230 Ac he hath leue to lepe out as oft as hym liketh, And is welcome whan he wil and woneth wyth hem oft. Alle fledden for fere and flowen in-to hernes, Saue Mede J>e Mayde na mo durst abide. Ac trewli to telle she trembled for drede, And ek wept and wronge whan she was attached. *( PASSUS III Passus terlius. NOW is Mede J>e Mayde and namo of hem alle With bedellus & wi}> bayllyues broujt bifor J>e kyng. The kyng called a clerke can I nou^t his name, To take Mede ]>e mayde and make hire at ese. ' I shal assaye hir my-self and sothelich appose 5 What man of J>is molde j>at hire were leueste. And if she worche bi my witte ' and my wille folwe, I wil forgyue hir )>is gilte so me god help !' Curteysliche J>e clerke j>anne as J>e Kyng hight, Toke Mede bi J>e Middel and broi^te hir in-to chaumbre, 10 And J>ere was myrthe and mynstralcye Mede to plese. They ]>at wonyeth in Westmynstre worschiped hir alle ; Gentelliche wi]> ioye )>e Justices sowme Busked hem to jje boure )>ere ]>e birde dwelled, To conforte hire kyndely by clergise leue, 15 And seiden, ' mourne nought, Mede ne make J>ow no sorwe, For we wil wisse ]>e kynge and \\ wey shape, To be wedded at J>i wille and where |>e leue liketh, For al conscience caste * or craft, as I trowe !' Mildeliche Mede ]>anne mercyed hem alle 20 Of }>eire gret goodnesse and. gaf hem vchone Coupes of clene golde and coppis of siluer, Rynges with rubies and ricchesses manye, The leste man of here meyne a motouw of golde. MEED AND CONSCIENCE. 25 Thanne laujte j>ei leue }>is lordes, at Mede. 25 With that comen clerkis to conforte hir j>e same, And beden hire be blithe ' for we beth jjine owne, For to worche j?i wille j>e while j>ow myjte laste.' Hendeliche heo }>anne bihight hem j>e same, To 'loue jow lelli * and lordes to make, 30 And in J>e consistorie atte courte * do calle jowre names ; Shal no lewdnesse lette )>e leode }>at I louye, That he ne worth first auanced for I am biknowen J)ere konnyng clerkes shul clokke bihynde.' panne come )>ere a confessoure coped as a Frere, 35 To Mede J>e mayde he mellud J>is wordes, And seide ful softly in shrifte as it were, ' Theij falsenesse haued yfolwed J>e al ]is fyfty wyntre, I shal assoille j>e my-selue * for a seme of whete, 40 And also be \>i bedeman and bere wel J>i message, Amonges kni3tes and clerkis conscience to torne.' Thanne Mede for here mysdedes * to J>at man kneled, And shroue hire of hire shrewednesse shamelees, I trowe, Tolde hym a tale and toke hym a noble, 45 Forto ben hire bedeman and hire brokour als. Thanne he assoilled hir sone and sithen he seyde, ' We han a wyndowe a wirchyng wil sitten vs ful heigh ; Woldestow glase J>at gable and graue Jjere-inne )>i name, Siker sholde J>i soule be heuene to haue.' 50 4 Wist I that,' quod ]>at wowman ' I wolde noujt spare For to be jowre frende, frere and faille jow neure ; And I shal keure jowre kirke jowre cloystre do maken, 60 Wowes do whiten and wyndowes glasen, Do peynten and purtraye and paye for }>e makynge,. That eury segge shal seyn I am sustre of jowre hous.' 26 PASSUS Til. Ac god to alle good folke suche grmiynge defendeth, To writen in wyndowes of here wel dedes, 65 On auenture pruyde be peynted ]>ere and pompe of }>e worlde ; For crist knowej> Jri conscience and \>i kynde wille, And |-i coste and \>\ coueitise and who J>e catel ou3te. For-j>i I lere jow, lordes leuej? suche werkes, To writen in wyndowes of jowre wel dedes, 70 Or to greden after goddis men whan je delen doles ; An auenture je han jowre hire here and 3oure heuene als ; Nesciat sinistra quid facial dextra. Lat noujte ]>i left half late ne rathe, Wyte what J>ow worchest with J>i rijt syde ; For ]>us bit j>e gospel gode men do here almesse. 75 Meires and maceres that menes ben bitwene pe kynge and )>e comune to kepe J>e lawes, To punyschen on pillories and pynynge-stoles Brewesteres and bakesteres bocheres and cokes ; For )>ise aren men on J>is molde }>at moste harme worcheth To \>e pore peple Jjat parcel-mele buggen. 81 For they poysouw J>e peple priueliche and oft, Thei rychen jjorw regraterye * and rentes hem buggen With )?at |>e pore people shulde put in here wombe ; For toke J?ei on trewly J>ei tymbred noujt so heije, 85 Ne bou3te non burgages be 36 ful certeyne. Ac Mede )>e Mayde * |>e Maire hath bisoujte, Of alle suche sellers syluer to take, Or presentz with-oute pens as peces of siluer, Ringes or other ricchesse j>e regrateres to maynetene. 90 ' For my loue,' quod that lady ' loue hem vchone, And soffre hem to selle somdele ajeins resoun.' Salamon )>e sage a sarmouw he made, Foi to amende Maires and men |>at kepen lawes, MEED AND CONSCIENCE. ZJ And tolde hem J>is teme }>at I telle thynke ; 95 Ignis deuorabit tabernacula eorum qui h'benter accipiunt munera, Sfc. Amonge jns lettered ledes )>is latyn is to mene, That fyre shal falle, and brenne ' al to bio askes The houses and ]>e homes of hem }>at desireth 3iftes or jeresjyues bi-cause of here offices. The kynge fro conseille cam and called after Mede, 100 And ofsent hir alswythe with seriauntes manye, That broujten hir to bowre with blisse and with ioye. Curteisliche }>e kynge |?anne comsed to telle, To Mede ]>e mayde melleth ]>ise wordes : * Vnwittily, wozwman ! wroujte hastow oft, 105 Ac worse wroujtestow neure J?an )>o j>ow fals toke. But I forgyue }>e )?at gilte * and graunte J>e my grace ; Hennes to }>i deth day do so namore ! I haue a knyjte, conscience cam late fro bi3unde ; 5if he wilneth }>e to wyf wyltow hym haue ?' no ' 3e, lorde,' quod J>at lady ' lorde forbede elles ! But I be holely at jowre heste lat hange me sone !' And }>anne was conscience calde to come and appiere Bifor )>e Kynge and his conseille as clerkes and othere. Knelynge, conscience to )>e kynge louted, 115 To wite what his wille were and what he do shulde. ' Woltow wedde jns wowman/ quod \>Q kynge ' jif I wil assente, For she is fayne of )>i felawship for to be }>i make ?' Quod conscience to j>e kynge ' cryst it me forbede 1 Ar I wedde suche a wyf wo me bityde ! 120 For she is frele of hir feith fykel of here speche, And maketh men mysdo many score tymes ; Truste of hire tresore treieth ful manye. Wyues and widewes wantounes she techeth, 28 PASS US III. And lereth hem leccherye that loueth hire jiftes. 125 3owre fadre she felled jjorw fals biheste, And hath apoysounde popis and peired holicherche. Sisoures and sompnoures * suche men hir preiseth ; Shireues of shires were shent jif she nere ; For she doj> men lese here londe and here lyf bothe. 135 She leteth passe prisoneres * and payeth for hem ofte, And gyueth J>e gailers golde and grotes togideres, To vnfettre }>e fals fle where hym lyketh ; And take]) )>e trewe bi \>e toppe and tieth hym faste, And hangeth hym for hatred )>at harme dede neure. 140 To be cursed in consistorie she counteth nou3te a russhe ; For she copeth j;e comissarie and coteth his clerkis ; She is assoilled as sone as hir-self liketh, And may neije as moche do in a moneth one, As jawre secret seel in syx score dayes. 145 For she is priue with j>e pope prouisoures it knoweth, For sire symonye and hir-selue seleth hire bulles. She blesseth Jrise bisshopes j^e ]>ey be lewed, Prouendreth persones and prestes meynteneth, To haue lemmannes and lotebies alle here lif-dayes, 150 And bringen forth barnes asein forbode lawes. Ther^ she is wel with }>e kynge wo is )>e rewme, For she is fauorable to the fals and fouleth trewthe ofte. Bi ihmis, with here ieweles jowre Justices she shendeth, And lith a}ein J?e lawe and letteth hym )>e gate, 155 That feith may noujte haue his forth here floreines go so pikke. She ledeth )>e lawe as hire list and louedayes maketh, And doth men lese )>orw hire loue J>at lawe my3te wynne, pe mase for a mene man J^ouj he mote hir eure. Lawe is so lordeliche and loth to make ende, 160 MEED AND CONSCIENCE. 29 With-oute presentz or pens she pleseth wel fewe. Barounes and burgeys she bryngeth in sorwe, And alle J>e comune in kare j>at coueyten lyue in trewthe ; For clergye and coueitise she coupleth togideres. pis is j>e lyf of that lady now lorde jif hir sorwe ! 165 And alle that meynteneth here men meschaunce liem bityde ! For pore men mowe haue no powere to pleyne hem J>ou3 J>ei snvrte ; Suche a maistre is Mede amonge men of gode.' Thanne morned Mede * and mened hire to the kynge, To haue space to speke spede if she myjte. 1 70 The kynge graunted hir grace * with a gode wille ; * Excuse ]?e, jif JJQW canst I can namore seggen, For conscience acuseth J>e to congey j>e for euere.' ' Nay, lorde,' quod )>at lady ' leueth hym ]>e worse, Whan je wyten witterly where J>e wronge liggeth ; 1 75 There J>at myschief is grete Mede may helpe. And jjow knowest, conscience I cam noust to chide, Ne depraue jn p^rsone with a proude herte. Wei J>ow wost, wernard * but jif )>ow wolt gabbe, pow hast hanged on myne half elleuene tymes, 180 And also griped my golde gyue it where \>e liked ; And whi )>ow wratthest ]>e now wonder me thynketh. 5it I may, as I myjte menske )>e with 3iftes, And mayntene ]?i manhode more J>an ]?ow knoweste. Ac J>ow hast famed me foule bifor }>e Kynge here. 185 For kulled I neuere no kynge ne conseilled J?er-after, Ne dede as J>ow demest I do it on pe kynge ! In normandye was he nou3te noyed for my sake ; Ac J>ow J>i-self sothely shamedest hym ofte, Crope in-to a kaban for colde of )>i nailles, 190 Wendest }>at wyntre wolde haue lasted euere, And draddest to be ded for a dym cloude, 30 PASS US HI. And hiedest homeward for hunger of J>i wombe. Witp-out pile, piloure pore men pow robbedest, And bere here bras at pi bakke to caleys to selle. 195 There I lafte with my lorde his lyf for to saue, I made his men meri and mornyng lette. I batered hem on pe bakke and bolded here hertis, And dede hem hoppe, for hope * to haue me at wille. Had I ben Marschal of his men bi Marie of heuene 1 200 I durst haue leyde my lyf and no lasse wedde, He shulde haue be lorde of pat londe a lengthe and a brede, And also Kyng of pat kitthe his kynne for to helpe, pe leste brolle of his blode a barounes pere ! Cowardliche pow, conscience conseiledst hym pennes, 205 To leuen his lordeship for a litel siluer, That is pe richest rewme pat reyne ouer houeth 1 It bicometh to a kynge |>at kepeth a rewme, To jiue Mede to men pat mekelich hym serueth, TO alienes and to alle men to honoure hem with 3iftes; 210 Mede maketh hym biloued and for a man holden. EmpQ maistrye to haue ! ' ' Nay/ quod conscience to J>e Kynge and kneled to ]>e erthe, ' There aren two manere of Medes my lorde, with jowre leue. 330 pat one, god of his grace graunteth, in his blisse, To j>o )>at wel worchen whil J?ei ben here. The pr^phete precheth ]jer-of and put it in ]>e sautere, Domine, quis habitabit in tabernaculo tuo ? "Lorde, who shal wonye in Jn wones and with jnne holi seyntes, Or resten on ]>i holy hilles ? " )>is asketh dauid ; 235 And dauyd assoileth it hym-self as J?e sauter telleth, Qui ingredilur sine macula, $ operatur iusliciam, " Tho ]>at entren of o colour and of on wille, And han wroujte werkis with rijte and with reson ; And he J>at ne vseth naujte * }>e lyf of vsurye, And enfourmeth pore men and pursueth treuthe ; 240 Qui pecuniam suam non dedil ad vsuram, munera super innocentem, $c.; And alle j?at helpeth )>e innocent and halt with J?e rijtful, With-oute mede doth hem gode * and J>e trewthe helpeth " Suche manere men, my lorde shal haue ]>is furst Mede Of god, at a grete nede whan )?ei gone hennes. There is an-other Mede rnesurelees * jjat maistres desireth ; To meyntene mysdoers Mede jjei take ; 346 And j>ere-of seith j?e sauter in a salmes ende, In quorum manibus iniquitates sun/, dextera eorum repleta est muneribus ; And he Jjat gripeth her golde so me god helpe I Shal abie it bittere or J?e boke lyeth ! 32 PASS US III. Prestes and p^rsones ]>at plesynge desireth, 250 That taketh Mede and moneie for messes J>at j>ei syngeth, Taketh here mede here as Mathew vs techeth ; Amen, amen, reccperunt merccdem suam. That laboreres and lowe folke taketh of her maistres, It is no manere Mede but a mesurable hire. In marchandise is no mede I may it wel a'-vowe ; 255 It is a p^rmutaciouw apertly a penyworth for an othre. Ac reddestow neuere Regwn J>ow recrayed Mede, Whi j>e veniaunce fel on Saul and on his children? God sent to Saul bi Samuel ]>e pr^phete, pat agagi? of amalek* and al his peple aftre 260 Shulde deye for a dede J>at done had here eldres. " For-J>i," seid Samuel to Saul " god hym-self hoteth The be boxome at his biddynge his wille to fulfille : Wende to amalec with ]>yn oste and what J>ow fyndest J>ere, slee it; Biernes and bestes brenne hem to ded ; 265 Wydwes and wyues woflzmen and children, Moebles and vnmoebles and al )>at JJQW my3te fynde, Brenne it, bere it noujte awey be it neuere so riche For mede ne for moneie ; loke |>ow destruye it, Spille it and spare it nou3te J>ow shall spede ]>e bettere." 270 And for he coueyted her catel and }>e kynge spared, Forbare hym and his bestes bothe * as J>e bible witnesseth, Otherwyse pan he was warned of }>e prophete, God seide to Samuel J>at Saul shulde deye, And al his sede for j>at synne shenfullich ende. 275 Such a myschief Mede made Saul j>e kynge to haue, That god hated hym for euere and alle his eyres after. The culorum of )>is cas kepe I noujte to shewe ; An auenture it noyed men none ende wil I make. For so is jns worlde went wijj hem |>at han powers, 280 MEED AND CONSCIENCE. 33 That who -so seyth hem sothes is sonnest yblamed. I, conscience, knowe j>is for kynde witt me it taujte, pat resovw shal regne and rewmes gouerne ; And rijte as agag hadde happe shul so/wme. Samuel shal sleen hym and Saul shal be blamed, 285 And dauid shal be diademed and daunten hem alle, And one cristene kynge kepen hem alle. Shal na more Mede be maistre, as she is nouthe, Ac loue and lowenesse * and lewte togederes, pise shul be maistres on molde treuthe to saue. 390 And who-so trespasseth ayein treuthe or taketh ajein his wille, Leute shal don hym lawe and no lyf elles. Shal no s^riaunt for here se rewmes. Ac kynde loue shal come jit and conscience togideres, And make of lawe a laborere suche loue shal arise, And such a pees amonge ]>e peple and a p^rfit trewthe, pat iewes shal wene in here witte * and waxen wonder glade, pat Moises or Messie be come in-to j>is erthe, 301 And haue wonder in here hertis }>at men beth so trewe. Alle )>at bereth baslarde brode swerde or launce, Axe other hachet or eny wepne ellis, Shal be demed to )>e deth but if he do it smythye 305 In-to sikul or to sithe to schare or to kulter ; Conflabunl gladios suos in vomeres, c.; Eche man to pleye with a plow pykoys or spade, Spynne, or sprede donge or spille hym-self with sleuthe. Prestes and p^rsones * with placebo to hunte, And dyngen vpon dauid eche a day til cue. 310 Huntynge or haukynge if any of hem vse, 34 PASSUS m. His boste of his benefys worth bynome hym after. Shal neither kynge ne knyjte constable ne Meire Ouer-lede J>e comune ne to J>e courte sompne, Ne put hem in panel to don hem plijte here treuthe, 315 But after ]>e dede J>at is don one dome shal rewarde, Mercy or no mercy * as treuthe wil acorde. Kynges courte and comune courte consistorie and chapitele, Al shal be but one courte and one barou be Justice ; Thanne worth trewe-tonge, a tidy man ]>at tened me neuere. 320 Batailles shal non be ne no man bere wepne, And what smyth J?at ony smytheth be smyte j>r-with to dethe; Non leuabit gens contra gentem gladium, $c. And er jns fortune falle fynde me shal )>e worste, By syx sonnes and a schippe myddel of a mone shal make }>e iewes to torne, 325 And saracenes for |>at si3te shulle synge gloria in ex- celsis, 6fc., For Makomet & Mede myshappe shal )>at tyme ; For, melius est bonum nomen quam diuicie multe! Also wroth as j>e wynde wex Mede in a while, ' I can no latyn,' quod she 'clerkis wote )>e sothe. Se what Salamon seith in Sapience bokes, 330 That hij )>at 3iueth jiftes J>e victorie wynneth, & moche worschip had }>er-with as holiwryt telleth, Honorem adquiret qui dot munera, at J>i latyne be trewe ; Ac j>ow art like a lady J>at redde a lessotw ones, Was, omnia probate and J>at plesed here herte, 335 For )>at lyne was no lenger atte leues ende. Had she loked J>at other half and |>e lef torned, MEED AND CONSCIENCE. 35 She shulde haue founden fele wordis folwyng Jxfr-after, Quod bonum est tenete ; treuthe )>at texte made ! And so ferde 36, madame ! je couthe namore fynde, 340 Tho je loked on sapience sittynge in joure studie. pis tixte J>at je ban tolde were gode for lordes, Ac jow failled a cunnyng clerke \>at couthe J>e lef haue torned I And if je seche sapience eft fynde shal je J>at folweth, A ful teneful tixte to hem J>at taketh Mede, 345 And }>at is, animam. autem auferl accipientium, 6fC. : And J>at is )>e taille of J>e tixte * of )>at )>at je schewed, pat, \t\yt we wynne worschip and wi}> mede haue victorie, pe soule J>at ]>e sonde taketh bi so moche is bounde.' 349 D 2 PASSUS IV. Passus quartus de visione, vl supra. '/^ESSETH,' seith J>e kynge ' I suffre jow no lengere. \^r 3e shal saujtne for sothe and serue me bothe. Kisse hir,' quod )>e kynge ' conscience, I hote.' ' Nay, bi criste/ quod conscience ' congeye me for euere ! But resoun rede me j>er-to rather wil I deye !' 5 ' And I comaunde J>e,' quod J>e Kynge to conscience j>anne, ' Rape j>e to ride and resouw )>ow fecche ; Comaunde hym J>at he come my conseille to here. For he shal reule my rewme and rede me )>e beste, And acounte with j>e, conscience so me cryst helpe, 10 How )>ow lernest )>e peple J>e lered and ]>e lewede.' ' I am fayne of )>at forwarde ' seyde J>e freke J>anne, And ritt ri3te to resou and rowneth in his ere, And seide as J>e kynge badde and sithen toke his leue. 'I shal arraye me to ride,' quod resouw 'reste }>e a while ' 15 And called catoun his knaue curteise of speche, And also towme trewe-tonge- tell-me-no-tales- Ne-lesyng-to-lawje-of- * for-I-loued-hem-neuere ' And sette my sadel vppon suffre- til-I-se-my-tyme, And lete warrok it wel with witty-wordes gerthes, ao And hange on hym ]?e heuy brydel to holde his hed lowe, For he wil make wehe tweye er he be there.' Thanne conscience vppon his caple kaireth forth faste, MEED AND REASON. 37 And resou with hym rit rownynge togideres, Whiche maistries Mede maketh on j>is erthe. 25 One waryn wisdom And witty his fere Folwed hem faste for j>ei haued to done In J>e cheker and at j>e chauncerie to be discharged of )>mges ; And riden fast, for resou shulde rede hem j>e beste, For to saue hem, for siluer fro shame and fram harmes. 30 And conscience knewe hem wel )>ei loued coueitise, And bad resou ride faste and recche of her neither, ' pere aren wiles in here wordes and with Mede ]>ei dwelleth ; There as wratthe and wranglyng is J>ere wynne }>ei siluer ; Ac J>ere is loue and lewte * J>ei wil noujte come j>ere ; 35 Contricio $ infelidtas in vijs eorum, 6fc. pei ne gyueth noujte of god one gose wynge, Non esl timor del ante oculos eorum. For, wot god, j>ei wolde do more for a dozeine chickenes, Or as many capones or for a seem of otes, pan for loue of owre lorde or alle hise leue seyntes. For-jn, resouw, lete hem ride }>o riche, bi hem-seluen, 40 For conscience knoweth hem noujte ne cryst, as I trowe.' And }>anne rescue rode faste J>e rijte hei3e gate, As conscience hym kenned til j>ei come to J>e kynge. Curteisliche }>e kynge J>anne * come a3ein resoiw, And bitwene hym-self and his sone sette hym on benche, 45 And wordeden wel wyseli a gret while togideres. And )>anne come pees in-to parlement * and put forth a bille, How wronge ajeines his wille had his wyf taken. 1 Bothe my gees & my grys his gadelynges feccheth ; 51 I dar noujte for fere of hym fyjte ne chyde. He borwed of me bayard he brou3te hym home neure, 3 8 PASS US IV. Ne no ferthynge )>er-fore for nau3te I couthe plede. He meyneteneth his men to morther myne hewen, 55 Forstalleth my feyres and fijteth in my chepynge, And breketh vp my bernes dore * and bereth aweye my whete, And taketh me but a taile for ten quartzes of otes ; And jet he bet me j>er-to * and lyth bi my Mayde, I nam noujte hardy for hym vneth to loke.' 60 The kynge knewe he seide sothe for conscience hym tolde, pat wronge was a wikked luft and wroujte moche sorwe. Wronge was afered Jeanne * and wisdome he soujte To make pees with his pens and profered hym manye, And seide, 'had I loue of my lorde ]>e kynge litel wolde I recche, 65 Theije pees and his power* pleyned hym cure 1 ' po wan wisdome * and sire waryn j>e witty, For J>at wronge had ywroujte so wikked a dede, And warned wronge \>o with such a wyse tale ; ' Who-so worcheth bi wille * wratthe maketh ofte ; 70 I seye it bi jn-self J>ow shall it wel fynde. But if Mede it make * ]>i myschief is vppe, For bothe \>\ lyf and ]>i londe lyth in his grace' Thanne wowed wronge wisdome ful jerne, To make his pees w/tA his pens handi-dandi payed. 75 Wisdome and witte }>anne wenten togideres, And toke Mede myd hem mercy to winne. Pees put for)> his hed and his panne blody ; ' Wyth-outen gilte, god it wote gat I ]>is ska}>e, Conscience and ]>e comune * knowen J>e sothe.' 80 Ac wisdom and witt were about faste To ouercome }>e kyng with catel, $if )>ei myjte. pe kynge swore, bi crist and bi his crowne bothe, MEED AND REASON. 39 pat wronge for his werkis sholde wo polye, And comaunded a constable to casten hym in yrens, 85 ' And late hym noujte pis seuene jere seen his feet ones.' ' God wot/ quod wysdom ' pat were nau3te pe beste ; And he amendes mowe make * late raeynprise hym haue ; And be borwgh for his bale and biggen hym bote, And so amende pat is mysdo and euermore pe bettere.' 90 Witt acorded per-with and seide J>e same : ' Bettere is pat bote bale adoun brynge, pan bale be ybette & bote neuere |>e bettere.' And panne gan Mede to mengen here and mercy she bisought, And profred pees a present al of pure golde : 95 ' Haue pis, man, of me,' quod she ' to amende pi skape, For I wil wage for wronge * he wil do so namore.' Pitously pees panne prayed to pe kynge To haue mercy on pat man pat mys-did hym so ofte : ' For he hath waged me wel as wysdome hym taujte, 100 And I forgyue hym }>at gilte with a goode wille, So pat J>e kynge assent ; I can seye no bettere ; For Mede hath made me amendes I may namore axe.' ' Nay,' quod pe Kynge J>o ' so me cryst helpe ! Wronge wendeth noujte so awaye arst wil I wite more ; 105 For loupe he so lijtly laughen he wolde, And efte )>e balder be to bete myne hewen ; But resou haue reuthe on hym he shal rest in my stokkes, And pat as longe as he lyueth but lowenesse hym borwe.' Soffzme men redde Resouw po * to haue reuthe on pat schrewe, no And for to conseille pe kynge and conscience after, That Mede moste be meynp^rnowr resoun pei bisoujte. ' Rede me noujte,' quod resouw ' no reuthe to haue, Til lordes and ladies louien alle treuthe, 40 PASS US IV. And haten al harlotrye to her en it, or to mouthen it; 115 Tyl pernelles purfil ' be put in here hucche ; And childryn cherissyng be chastyng with jerdes ; And harlotes holynesse be holden for an hyne ; Til clerken coueitise be to clothe pe pore and to fede, And religious romares recordare in here cloistres, 120 As seynt Benet hem bad Bernarde and Frauceys ; And til prechoures p/vchyng * be preued on hem-seluen ; Tyl ]>e kynges conseille be J>e comune profyte ; Tyl bisschopes baiardes ben beggeres chambres, Here haukes and her houndes helpe to pore Religious; 125 And til seynt lames be sou3te J>ere I shal assigne, That no man go to Galis but if he go for euere ; And alle Rome-renneres for robberes of byjonde Bere no siluer ouer see J>at signe of kynge shewe]?, Noyther graue ne vngraue golde neither siluer, 130 Vppon forfeture of ]>at fee who-so fynt hym at Douere, But if it be marchauwt or his man or messagere with \etteres, Prouysoun? or prest or penaunt for his synnes. And ;et,' quod resou, ' bi )>e Rode I shal no reuthe haue, While Mede hath ]>e maistrye in }>is moot-halle. 135 Ac I may shewe ensaumples * as I se other- while ; I sey it by my-self,' qod he ' and it so were That I were kynge with crowne to kepen a Rewme, Shulde neuere wronge in J>is worlde * J>at I wite myjte, Ben vnpunisshed in my power* for peril of my soule I 140 Ne gete my grace for giftes so me god saue ! Ne for no Mede haue mercy but mekenesse it make. For nullum malum J>e man mette with inpunitum, And badde nullum bonum be irremuneralum. Late jowre confessoure, sire Kynge construe J>is vn- glosed; 145 And jif je worken it in werke I wedde myne eres, MEED AND REASON. 4! That lawe shal ben a laborere and lede a-felde donge, And loue shal lede )>i londe as )>e lief lyketh ! ' Clerkes )>at were confessoures coupled hem togideres, AUe to construe )>is clause and for j>e kynges profit, 150 Ac noujte for conforte of ]>e comune ' ne for )>e kynges soule. For I sei3e mede in the moot-halle on men of lawe wynke, And J>ei lawghyng lope to hire and lafte resoun manye. Waryn wisdome * wynked vppon Mede, And seide, ' Madame, I am jowre man what so my mouth iangleth ; 155 I falle in floreines,' quod ]>at freke ' an faile speche ofte.' Alle ri3tful recorded ]?at resouw treuthe tolde, And witt acorded }>er-with and comended his wordes, And )?e moste peple in J>e halle and manye of \>e grete, And leten mekenesse a maistre and Mede a mansed schrewe. 160 Loue lete of hir Ii3te and lewte 3it lasse, And seide it so hei3e )>at al |>e halle it herde, ' Who-so wilneth hir to wyf for welth of her godis, But he be knowe for a koke-wolde kut of my nose ! ' Mede mourned )>o and made heuy chere. 165 Ac a sysoure and a sompnoure sued hir faste, And a schireues clerke byschrewed al }>e route, ' For ofte haue I,' qod he ' holpe 3ow atte barre, And jit jeue je me neuere Je worthe of a russhe.' 170 The kynge called conscience * and afterwardes resouw, And recorded ]>at resouw had ri3tfullich schewed, And modilich vppon Mede with myjte \>e Kynge loked, And gan wax wrothe with lawe for Mede almoste had shent it, And seide, ' j>orw jowre lawe, as I leue I lese many chetes ; Mede ouer-maistrieth lawe and moche treuthe letteth. 176 4 PASSUS IV. Ac resouw shal rekene with jow jif I regne any while, And deme jow, bi j?is day as 30 han deserued. Mede shal noujte meynprise sow bi J>e Marie of heuene ! I wil haue leute in lawe * and lete be al jowre ianglyng, 180 And as moste folke witnesseth wel wronge shal be demed.' Quod conscience to }>e kynge ' but the comune wil assent, It is ful hard, by myn hed * here-to to brynge it, Alle jowre lige leodes to lede ]>us euene.' ' By hym |>at rau3te on Je rode ' quod resou to }>e kynge, ' But if I reule J>us jowre rewme rende out my ribbes 1 186 3if je bidden buxomnes be of myne assente.' ' And I assent/ seith }>e kynge ' by seynte Marie my lady, Be my conseille comen * of clerkis and of erlis. Ac redili, rescue )>ow shall noujte ride fro me, 190 For as longe as I lyue * lete }>e I nelle.' ' I am aredy/ quod resou ' to reste with 3ow euere, So conscience be of owre conseille I kepe no bettere.' ' And I graunt,' qwod the kynge ' goddes forbode it faile ! A Is longe as owre lyf lasteth lyue we togideres.' 195 p PASSUS V. Passus quintus de Visione. THE kyng and his knightes * to the kirke wente To here matynes of \>e day and j?e masse after, panne waked I of my wynkynge and wo was with-alle, pat I ne hadde sleped sadder and ysei3en more. Ac er I hadde faren a fourlonge feyntise me hente, 5 That I ne myjte ferther a-foot for defaute of slepynge ; And sat softly adown and seide my bileue, And so I babeled on my bedes \>ei broujte me a-slepe. And J?anne saw I moche more }>a.n I bifore tolde, For I say \>e felde ful of folke )>at I bifore of seyde, 10 And how resou gan arrayen hym alle \>Q reume to p/vche, And with a crosse afor \>Q kynge comsed ]>\is to techen. He preued ]>at J>ise pestilences were for pure synne, And J>e southwest wynde on saterday at euene Was pertliche for pure pryde and for no poynt elles. 15 Piries and plomtrees were puffed to ]>e erthe, In ensample, je segges * je shulden do ]?e bettere. Beches and brode okes were blowen to )>e grounde, Torned vpward her tailles * in tokenynge of drede, pat dedly synne at domesday shal fordon hem alle. 20 Of jjis matere I myjte mamely ful longe, Ac I shal seye as I saw so me god helpe I How pertly afor J>e poeple resou gan to preche. He bad wastour; go worche what he best couthe, 44 PASS us v. And wynnen his wastyng with somme manere crafte. 35 And preyed p^ronelle her pwrfyle to lete, And kepe it in hir cofre for catel at hire nede. Tho/wme stowue he taujte to take two staues, And fecche felice home fro J>e wyuen pyne. He warned watt his wyf was to blame, 30 pat hire hed was worth halue a marke ' his hode notrjte worth a grote. And bad bette kut a bow other tweyne, And bete betoun )>er-with but if she wolde worche. And )>anne he charged chapmen to chasten her childeren ; ' Late no wynnynge hem forweny whil }>ei be jonge, 35 Ne for no pouste of pestilence plese hem noujte out of resou. My syre seyde so to me and so did my dame, pat j>e leuere childe * J>e more lore bihoueth, And Salamon seide J>e same }>at Sapience made, Qut parcit virge, odii filium. pe Englich of J>is latyn is who-so wil it knowe, 40 Who-so spareth }>e sprynge spilleth his children.' And sithen he preyed prdatz and prestes to-gideres, ' pat je pre peple preue it on 3owre-seluen, And doth it in dede * it shal drawe jow to good ; If je lyuen as 36 leren vs we shal leue jow j?e bettere.' 45 And sithen he radde Religiouw here reule to holde ' Leste ]?e kynge and his conseille jowre comunes appayre, And ben stuwardes of jowre stedes * til je be ruled bettre.' And sithen he conseilled Jje kynge ]>e comune to louye, ' It is J>i tresore, if tresou ne were and triacle at }>i nede.' And sithen he prayed j?e pope haue pite on holicherche, 51 And er he gyue any grace ' gouerne firste hym-selue. ' And je that han lawes to kepe * late treuthe be jowre coueytise, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 45 More }>an golde or other gyftes if je wil god plese ; For who-so contrarieth treuthe he telleth in J>e gospel, 55 That god knoweth hym noujte ne no seynte of heuene ; Amen dico vobis, nescio vos. And je ]>at seke seynte lames and seintes of Rome, Seketh seynt treuthe * for he may saue jow alle; Qui cum patre $ filio ' ]>at feire hem bifalle pat suweth my sermon ; ' and J>us seyde resou. 60 Thanne ran repentance and reherced his teme, And gert wille to wepe water with his eyen. SUPERBIA. Peronelle proude-herte platte hir to j>e erthe, And lay longe ar she loked and ' lorde, mercy 1 ' cryed, And byhijte to hym |?at vs alle made, 65 She shulde vnsowen hir serke and sette J>ere an heyre To affaiten hire flesshat fierce was to synne : ' Shal neuere heije herte me hente but holde me lowe, And suffre to be myssayde and so did I neuere. But now wil I meke me and mercy biseche, 70 For al J>is I haue hated in myne herte.' LUXURIA. panne lecchoure seyde ' alias ! ' and on owre lady he cryed, To make mercy for his mis-dedes bitwene god and his soule, With J>at he shulde J>e saterday seuene jere |>ere-after, Drynke but myd )>e doke and dyne but ones. 75 INUIDIA. Enuye with heuy herte asked after schrifte, And carefullich mea culpa he comsed to shewe. 46 PASS us v. He was as pale as a pelet in J>e palsye he semed, And clothed in a caurimaury I couthe it noujte discreue ; In kirtel and kourteby and a knyf bi his syde ; 80 Of a freres frokke were ]>e forsleues. And as a leke hadde yleye longe in {>e sonne, So loked he with lene chekes lourynge foule. His body was to-bolle for wratthe J>at he bote his lippes, And wryngynge he jede with J>e fiste to wreke hym-self he Jxnrjte 85 With werkes or with wordes whan he seighe his tyme. Eche a worde }>at he warpe was of an Addres tonge, Of chydynge and of chalangynge * was his chief lyflode, With bakbitynge and bismer and beryng of fals witnesse ; pis was al his curteisye where }>at euere he shewed hym. 90 4 1 wolde ben yshryue,' quod ]?is schrewe ' and I for shame durst ; I wolde be gladder, bi god }>at gybbe had meschaunce, Than J>ou3e I had J>is woke yvvonne a weye of essex chese. I haue a neighbore neyje me I haue ennuyed hym ofte, And lowen on hym to lordes to don hym lese his siluer, 95 And made his frendes ben his foon thorw my false tonge ; His grace and his good happes greueth me ful sore. Bitwene many and many I make debate ofte, pat bothe lyf and lyme is lost )>orw my speche. And whan I mete him in market )>at I moste hate, 100 I hailse hym hendeliche as I his frende were ; For he is doujtier J>an I I dar do non other. Ac hadde I maystrye and my^te god wote my wille 1 And whan I come to )>e kirke and sholde knele to }>e Rode, And preye for j>e poeple * as J>e prest techeth, 105 For pilgrimes and for palmers for alle )>e poeple after, panne I crye on my knees J>at cryste 3if hem sorwe THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 47 pat baren awey my bolle and my broke schete. Awey fro }>e auter J>anne turne I myn eyghen, And biholde how Eleyne hath a newe cote ; no I wisshe }>anne it were myne and al )>e webbe after. And of mennes lesynge I laughe J>at liketh myn herte ; And for her wynnynge I wepe and waille j?e tyme, And deme J>at hij don ille J>ere I do wel worse ; Who- so vndernymeth me he-of I hate hym dedly after. I wolde }>at vche a wyght were my knaue, 116 For who-so hath more }>an I )>at angreth me sore. And )>us I lyue louelees lyke a luther dogge, That al my body bolneth * for bitter of my galle. I myjte noujte eet many jeres as a man oujte, iao For enuye and yuel wille is yuel to defye. May no sugre ne swete }>inge asswage my swellynge, Ne no diapenidion dryue it fro myne herte, Ne noyther schrifte ne shame but ho-so schrape my mawe ?' '3us, redili,' quod repentaunce and radde hym to }>e beste, 125 4 Sorwe of synnes is sauacioun of soules.' ' I am sori,' quod ]>at segge ' I am but selde other, And J>at maketh me Jms megre for I ne may me venge. Amonges Burgeyses haue I be dwellynge At Londoiw, And gert bakbitinge be a brocoure to blame mennes ware. Whan he solde and I noujte }>anne was I redy 131 To lye and to loure on my neighbore * and to lakke his chaffare. I wil amende }>is, jif I may ]>orw myjte of god almy3ty.' IRA. Now awaketh wratthe with two whyte eyen, And nyuelynge with |>e nose * and his nekke hangynge. 135 ' I am wrath,' quod he ' I was sum -tyme a frere, 48 PASSUS V. And J>e couentes Gardyner for to graffe ympes ; On limitoures and listres lesynges I ymped, Tyl J>ei bere leues of low speche lordes to plese, And sithen ]>ei blosmed obrode in boure to here shriftes. And now is fallen )>er-of a frute |?at folke ban wel leuer* 141 Schewen her schriftes to hem )an shryue hem to her p^rsones. And now persones han parceyued j>at Freres parte with hem, pise possessioneres preche and depraue freres, 144 And freres fyndeth hem in defaute as folke bereth witnes, That whan J>ei preche )>e poeple in many place aboute, I, wrath, walke with hem and wisse hem of my bokes. pus ]?ei speken of spin'/ualte )>at eyther despiseth other, Til )>ei be bothe beggers and by my spzhVualte libben, Or elles alle riche and riden aboute. 150 I, wrath, rest neuere ]>at I ne moste folwe This wykked folke for suche is my grace. I haue an aunte to nonne and an abbesse bothe, Hir were leuere swowe or swelte j>an suffre any peyne. I haue be cook in hir kichyne * and J>e couent serued 155 Many monthes with hem and with monkes bothe. I was )>e priouresses potagere and other poure ladyes, And made hem ioutes of iangelynge J>at dame lohanne was a bastard, And dame Clarice a knijtes doujter ac a kokewolde was hire syre, And dame Peronelle a prestes file Priouresse worth she neuere. 160 Of wykked wordes I, wrath here wortes I-made, Til " )>ow lixte" and " }>ow lixte" lopen oute at ones, And eyther hitte other vnder )>e cheke ; 164 THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 49 Hadde )>ei had knyues, bi cryst * her eyther had killed other. Seynt Gregorie was a gode pope and had a gode forwit, pat no priouresse were prest for J>at he ordeigned. pei had )>anne ben in/amis \>e firste day jjei can so yuel hele conseille. Amonge monkes I mijte be ac many tyme I shonye ; For J>ere ben many felle frekis my feres to aspye, 170 Bothe Prioure an suppr/oure and owre pater abbas ; And if I telle any tales J>ei taken hem togyderes, And do me faste frydayes to bred and to water, And am chalanged in J>e chapitelhous * as I a childe were, For-]>i haue I no lykyng with }>o leodes to wonye. 176 I etc there vnthende fisshe and fieble ale drynke ; Ac other while, whan wyn cometh whan I drynke wyn at cue, I haue a fluxe of a foule mouthe wel fyue dayes after. Al J>e wikkednesse ]>at I wote * bi any of owre bretheren, 180 I couth it in owre cloistre )>at al owre couent wote it.' ' Now repent ]>e,' quod Repentauce ' and reherce J>ow neure Conseille ]>at J>ow cnowest * bi contenauce ne bi rijte ; And drynke nou3te ouer delicatly ne to depe noyther, pat \\ wille bi cause \>er-of ' to wrath myjte torne. 185 Esto sobrius,' he seyde and assoilled me after, And bad me wilne to wepe my wikkednesse to amende. AUARICIA. And Janne cam coueytise can I hym nou;te descryue, So hungriliche and holwe sire Heruy hym loked. He was bitelbrowed and baberlipped also, 190 With two blered eyghen as a blynde hagge ; And as a letheren purs lolled his chekes, E 50 PASS us v. Wei sydder fan his chyn f ei chiueled for elde ; And as a bondman of his bacou * his berde was bidraueled. With an hode on his hed a lousi hatte aboue, 195 And in a tauny tabarde of twelue wynter age, Al totorne and baudy and ful of lys crepynge ; But if fat a lous couthe haue lopen f e bettre, She sholde noujte haue walked on fat welche so was it thredebare. ' I haue ben coueytouse,' quod f is caityue ' I biknowe it here ; 200 For some tyme I serued Symme atte Stile, And was his prentis ypli3te his profit to wayte. First I lerned to lye a leef other tweyne, Wikkedlich to weye was my furst lessouw. To Wy and to Wynchestre I went to ]>e faire, 305 With many maner* marchandise as my Maistre me hi3te ; Ne had f e grace of gyle ygo amonge my ware, It had be vnsolde f is seuene jere so me god helpe I Thanne drowe I me amonges draperes * my donet to lerne, To drawe fe lyser alonge fe lenger it semed ; 310 Amonge f e riche rayes I rendred a lessouw, To broche hem with a paknedle * and plaited hem togyderes, And put hem in a presse and pynned hem f erinne, Tyl ten jerdes or twelue hadde tolled out threttene. My wyf was a webbe and wollen cloth made; 815 She spak to spynnesteres to spynnen it oute. Ac ]>e pounde fat she payed by poised a quarteroun more, Than myne owne auncer* who-so weyjed treuthe. I boujte hir barly make she brewe it to selle, Peny-ale and podyng-ale she poured togideres 220 For laboreres and for low folke ; fat lay by hym-selue. The best ale lay in my boure or in my bedchambre, And who-so bumtmed f er-of boujte it fer-after, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. $1 A galou for a grote god wote, no lesse ; And sit it cam in cupmel * )?is crafte my wyf vsed. 125 Rose ]>e regratere was hir rijte name ; She hath holden hokkerye * al hire lyf-tyme. Ac I swere now, so the ik * J>at synne wil I lete,' And neuere wikkedliche weye ne wikke chaffare vse, But wenden to Walsyngham and my wyf als, 230 And bidde }>e Rode of bromeholme brynge me oute of dette.' ' Repentedestow J>e euere,' quod repentance ' ne restitu- tion/* madest ? ' * 3us, ones I was herberwed,' quod he * ' with an hep of chapmen, I roos whan j>ei were arest and yrifled hen? males.' ' That was no restitution*,' quod repentance 'but a robberes thefte, 335 pow haddest be better worthy be hanged |>erfore pan for al J>at j>at Jx>\v hast here shewed.' ' I wende ryflynge were restitution//,' quod he ' ' for I lerned neuere rede on boke, And I can no frenche in feith but of j>e ferthest ende of norfolke.' ' Vsedestow euere vsurie,' quod repentau;;ce * ' in alle }>i lyf-tyme ? ' 240 ' Nay, sothly/ he seyde ' saue in my jouthe. I lerned amonge lumbardes * and iewes a lessou, To wey pens with a peys and pare |>e heuyest, And lene it for loue of }>e crosse to legge a wedde and lese it; Suche dedes I did wryte jif he his day breke. 245 I haue mo maneres jorw rerages * }>an j>orw misereiur $ comodat. I haue lent lordes * and ladyes my chaffare, And ben her brocour after and bou3te it my-self. E 3 53 PASS US V. Eschaunges and cheuesances with suche chaffare I dele, And lene folke J>at lese wol * a lyppe at euery noble. 250 And with lumbardes k//res I ladde golde to Rome, And toke it by taille here and tolde hem j>ere lasse.' 4 Lenlestow euere lordes for loue of her mayntenaunce ?' ' 3e, I haue lent lordes loued me neuere after, And haue ymade many a knyjte * bothe mercere & drapers, 255 pat payed neuere for his prentishode nou3te a peire gloues.' 4 Hastow pile on pore men }>at mote nedes borwe ? ' 1 1 haue as moche pite of pore men as pedlere hath of cattes, pat \volde kille hem, yf he cacche hem myjte * for coueitise of here skynnes.' ' Artow manlyche amonge J>i neijbores of Jri mete and drynke?' 260 'I am holden,' quod he 'as hende as hounde is in kychyne, Amonges my neighbores, namelich such a name ich haue.' 4 Now god lene neure/ quod repentance * ' but J>ow repent }>e rather, pe grace on jris grounde \>i good wel to bisette, Ne }>ine ysue after J>e haue ioye of )>at J>ow wynnest, 265 Ne ]>i excecutours wel bisett j>e siluer j>at J>ow hem leuest ; And )>at was wonne with wronge with wikked men be despended. For were I frere of J>at hous J>ere gode faith and charite is, I nolde cope vs with Jn catel ne owre kyrke amende, Ne haue a peny to my pitaunce of J>yne, bi my soule hele, 270 For ]>e best boke in owre hous J>eije brent golde were j*e leues, And I wyst wytterly J>ow were suche as )>ow tellest, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 53 Or elles }>e knowe it by any kynnes wise. Seruus es alter ius ' cumfercula pinguia queris, Pane tuo pocius vescere, liber en's. *75 Thow art an vnkynde creature * I can }>e noujte as- soille ; Til )>ow make restituciou and rekne with hem alle, And sithen }>at resouw rolle it in j>e regystre of heuene, That }>ow hast made vche man good I may )>e noujte assoille ; Non dimitiilur peccatum, donee restiluatur ablalum, &c. For alle j>at haue of jn good haue god my trouthe ! 280 Ben holden at )>e heighe dome to helpe J>e to restitue. And who so leueth noujte \>\s be soth loke in ]>e sauter glose, In miserere met deus ' where I mene treuthe ; Ecce enim veritatem dilexisti, &c. Shal neuere werkman in )>is worlde )>ryue wyth )?at J>ow wynnest ; Cum sanclo sanctus en's ' construe me Jat on englische.' 285 Thanne wex )>at shrewe in wanhope and walde haue hanged hi/-self, Ne hadde repentaunce )>e rather reconforted hym in |>is manere, ' Haue mercye in J>i mynde and with ]>i mouth biseche it, For goddes mercye is more )>an alle hise other werkes ; Misericordia eius super omnia opera eius, &c. And al )>e wikkednesse in )>is worlde )?at man myjte worche or thynke, 290 Ne is no more to }>e mercye of god }>an in ]>e see a glede ; Omnis iniquitas quantum ad misericordiam dei, est quasi sintilla in media man's. For-}>i haue mercy in j?i mynde and marchandise, leue it, For J)ow hast no good grounde to gete |>e with a wastel, 54 PASS us v. But if it were with thi tonge or ellis with J>i two hondes. For )>e good J>at ]>ow hast geten bigan al with falsehede, 295 And as longe as j>ow lyuest }>er-\vith |>ow jeldest noujte, but borwest. And if J>ow wite neuere to whiche ne whom to restitue, Bere it to J>e bisschop and bidde hym of his grace, Bisette it hym-selue as best is for Jn soule. For he shal answere for }>e at J>e heygh dome, 300 For )>e and for many mo J>at man shal jif a rekenynge, What he lerned jow in lente leue }>ow none other, And what he lent jow of owre lordes good to lette jow fro synne.' GULA. Now bigynneth glotou for to go to schrifte, And kaires hym to-kirke-ward his coupe to schewe. 305 Ac Beton J>e brewestere bad hym good morwe, And axed of hym with }>at whiderward he wolde. ' To holi cherche,' quod he ' forto here masse, And sithen I wil be shryuen and synne namore.' ' I haue gode ale, gossib/ quod she * ' glotown, willow assaye ? '' 310 ' Hastow aujte in )>i purs any hote spices?' ' I haue peper and piones/ quod she ' and a pounde of garlike, A ferthyngworth of fenel-seed for fastyngdayes.' panne goth glotouw in and grete othes after ; Cesse \>Q souteresse sat on j>e benche, 315 Watte J>e warner and hys wyf bothe, Tymme |>e tynkere and tweyne of his prentis, Hikke J>e hakeneyman and huglv )>e nedeler, Clarice of cokkeslane and J>e clerke of }>e cherche, Dawe |>e dykew and a dozeine other; 320 THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 55 Sire Piers of Pridie and Peronelle of Flaundres, A ribibour, a ratonere a rakyer of chep^, A ropere, a redyngkyng and Rose )>e dissheres, Godfrey of garlekehithe and gryfin \>G walshe morwe 325 Geuen glotoun with glad chere good ale to hansel. Clement }>e cobelen? cast of his cloke, And atte new faire he nempned it to selle ; Hikke )>e hakeneyman hitte his hood after, And badde bette \>e bochenf ben on his side. 330 pere were chapmen y-chose J)is chaffare to preise ; Who-so haueth )>e hood shuld haue amendes of J>e cloke. Two risen vp in rape * and rouned togideres, And preised ]>ese peny worthes apart bi hem-selue ; pei couth nou3te bi her conscience * acorden in treuthe, 335 Tyl Robyn Jje ropere arose bi ]>e southe, And nempned hym for a noumpere ]>at no debate nere, For to trye ]>is chaffare bitwixen hem ]>re. Hikke )>e hostellere hadde ]?e cloke, In couenaunte |>at Clement shulde J>e cuppe fille, 340' And haue Hikkes hode hostellere and holde hym yserued ; And who-so repented rathest shulde arise after, And grete sire glotouw with a galouw ale. pere was laughyng and louryng and ' let go }>e cuppe,' And seten so til euensonge and songen vmwhile, 345 Tyl glotouw had y-globbed a galouw an a lille. He myjte neither steppe ne stonde er he his staffe hadde ; And )>anne gan he go * liche a glewmannes bicche, So7me tyme aside and somme tyme arrere, As who-so leyth lynes forto lacche foules. 355 And whan he drowgh to J>e dore * ]>anne dymmed his eighen, 55 PASSUS v. He stumbled on )>e thresshewolde an threwe to }>e erthe. Clement j>e cobeler* caujte hym bi )>e myddel, For to lifte hym alofte and leyde him on his knowes ; 359 With al J>e wo of J>is worlde * his wyf and his wenche Baren hym home to his bedde and broujte hym )>erinne. And after al }>is excesse he had an accidie, 366 pat he slepe saterday and sonday til sonne jede to reste. panne waked he of his wynkyng and wiped his eyghen ; pe fyrste worde )>at he warpe was, ' where is J>e bolle ? ' His wif gan edwite hym j>o how wikkedlich he lyued, 370 And repentance ri3te so rebuked hym )?at tyme : ' As )>ow with wordes and werkes hast wrou^te yuel in Jji lyue, Shryue )?e and be shamed )>er-of and she we it with ]>i mouth.' ' I, glotouw,' quod \>e gome ' gylti me jelde, pat I haue trespassed with my tonge I can nou3te telle how ofte, 375 Sworen ' goddes soule ' and ' so god me help and halidom,' pere no nede ne was nyne hundreth tymes ; And ouer-seye me at my sopere and some tyme at nones, pat I glotou girt it vp er I hadde gone a myle, And y-spilte J>at myjte be spared and spended on sowme hungrie ; 380 Ouerdelicatly on fastyng-dayes drunken and eten bothe, And sat some tyme so longe J>ere )>at I slepe and ete at ones. For loue of tales, in tau^rnes to drynke ]>e more, I dyned, And hyed to }>e mete er none whan fastyng-dayes were.' ' This shewyng shrifte,' quod repentance ' shal be nvryte to J*.' 385 And J>anne gan glotoun grete and gret doel to make For his lither lyf J>at he lyued hadde, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 57 And avowed to fast ' for hunger or for thurst Shal neuere fisshe on )>e fryday defien in my wombe, Tyl abstinence myn aunte * haue jiue me leue ; 390 And jit haue I hated hir al my lyf-tyme/ ACCIDIA. panne come sleuthe al bislabered viitfi two slymy eijen, ' I most sitte/ seyde j>e segge ' or elles shulde I nappe ; I may noujte stonde ne stoupe ne with-oute a stole knele.' ' What ! awake, renke ! ' quod repentance ' and rape j?e to shrifte.' ' If I shulde deye bi Jns day me liste noujte to loke ; 400 I can noujte perfitly my pa.ter-nos/er as }>e prest it syngeth, But I can rytnes of Robyn hood and Randolf erle of Chestre, Ac neither of owre lorde ne of owre lady )>e leste J>at euere was made. I haue made vowes fourty and for-jete hem on }>e morne ; I parfourned neure penaunce as )>e prest me hijte, 405 Ne ryjte sori for my synnes jet was I neuere. And jif I bidde any bedes but if it be in wrath, pat I telle with my tonge is two myle fro myne herte. I am occupied eche day haliday and other, With ydel tales atte ale and otherwhile in cherches ; 410 Goddes peyne and his passiouw ful selde J>ynke I }>en?-on. I visited neuere fieble men ne fettered folke in puttes, I haue leuere here an harlotrie or a somer-game of souteres, Or lesynges to laughe at * and belye my neighbore, pan al J>at euere Marke made Mathew, John, & lucas. 415 And vigilies and fastyng-dayes alle jjise late I passe, Tyl matynes and masse be do and J>anne go to }>e freres ; 58 PASSUS v. Come I to He, missa est I holde me yserued. I nam noi^te shryuen some tyme * but if sekenesse it make, 420 Noujt tweies in two jere and }>anne vp gesse I schryue me. I haue be prest and persoun ' passynge thretti wynter, 3ete can I neither solfe ne synge ne seyntes lyues rede ; But I can fynde in a felde or in a fourlonge an hare, Better }>an in beaius vir or in leati omnes 425 Construe oon clause wel and kenne it to my parochienes. ' I can holde louedayes and here a Reues rekenynge, Ac in canou ne in J>e decretales I can noujte rede a lyne. 3if I bigge and borwe it but jif it be ytailled, I forjete it as jerne and $if men me it axe 430 Sixe sithes or seuene I forsake it with othes, And )>us tene I trewe men ten hundreth tymes. And my seruauntz some tyme her salarye is bihynde, Reuthe is to here J>e rekenynge whan we shal rede acomptes ; So with wikked wille and wraththe my werkmen I paye. 435 3if any man doth me a benfait or helpeth me at nede, I am vnkynde ajein his curteisye * and can noujte vnder- stonde it ; For I haue and haue hadde * some dele haukes maneres, I nam nou3te lured with loue but j>ere ligge aujte vnder J>e thombe. The kyndenesse |>at myne euene-cristene kidde me fernyere, 440 Sixty sythes I, sleuthe haue forjete it sith, In speche and in sparynge of speche yspilte many a tyme Bothe flesche & fissche * and many other vitailles ; Bothe bred and ale butter, melke, and chese Forsleuthed in my s^ruyse til it myjte serue noman. 445 I ran aboute in jouthe and jaf me noujte to lerne, And euere sith haue be begger* for my foule sleuthe ; THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 59 Heu michi, quod sterilem ' vi/am duxi luuenilem !' 1 Repentestow )>e naujte?' quod repentance and rijte with ]>at he swowned, Til vigilate J>e veille fette water at his ey^jen, 450 And flatte it on his face and faste on hym criede, And seide, ' ware J>e fram wanhope wolde )>e bitraye. " I am sori for my synnes " sey so to j-selue, And bete Jn-selue on J>e breste and bidde hym of grace ; For is no gult here so grete ]>at his goodnesse nys more.' panne sat sleuthe vp and seyned hym swithe, 456 And made avowe to-fore god for his foule sleuthe, ' Shal no sondaye be J>is seuene 3ere but sykenesse it lelte, pat I ne shal do me er day to J>e dere cherche, And heren matines and masse * as I a monke were. 460 Shal none ale after mete holde me }>ennes, Tyl I haue euensonge herde I behote to J>e Rode. And jete wil I jelde ajein if I so moche haue, Al )>at I wikkedly wan sithen I wytte hadde. And j>ough my liflode lakke leten I nelle, 465 pat eche man ne shal haue his ar I hennes wende : And with \>e residue and }e remenaunt bi J>e Rode of chestre ! I shal seke treuthe arst ar I se Rome !' Robert )>e robbere on reddite lokede, And for }>er was noujte wher-of he wepe swithe sore. 470 Ac jet }'e synful shrewe seyde to hym-selue, ' Cryst, J>at on caluarye vppon }>e crosse deydest, Tho dismas my brother bisoujte jow of grace, And haddest mercy on j>at man for memento sake, So rewe on jns robbere }>at reddere ne haue, 475 Ne neuere wene to wynne with crafte, )>at I owe. But for }>i mykel mercy mitigaciouw I biseche ; Ne dampne me noujte at domesday for }>at I did so ille.' 60 PASS us v. What bifel of )>is felouw I can noujte faire schewe, Wei I wote he wepte faste water with bo|>e his eyen, 480 And knowleched his gult to cryst jete eftsones, pat penitencia his pyke he shulde polsche newe, And lepe with hym ouer londe * al his lyf-tyme. And |>anne had repentauce reuthe and redde hem alle to knele, 485 ' For I shal biseche for al synful * owre saueoure of grace, To amende vs of owre mysdedes and do mercy to vs alle. Now god/ quod he, ')>at of Jn goodnesse gonne j?e worlde make, And of noujte madest aujte and man moste liche to J>i- selue, And sithen suffredest for to synne a sikenesse to vs alle, 490 And al for J>e best, as I bileue what euere j>e boke telleth, felix culpa ! ~o necessarium peccatum ade ! c. For }>ourgh J>at synne Jn sone sent was to jns erthe, And bicam man of a mayde mankynde to saue, And madest j>i-self with }>i sone and vs synful yliche, Faciamus hominem ad ymaginem et similitudinem nostram ; El alibi : qui mane/ in cari/a/e, in deo mane/, $ deus in eo ; And sith with J>i-self sone in owre sute deydest 495 On godefryday for mannes sake ' at ful tyme of |>e daye, pere j>i-self ne }>i sone no sorwe in delh feledest ; But in owre secte was J>e sorwe and \\ sone it ladde, Captiuam dux it capiiuitatem. pe sonne for sorwe }>er-of les syijte for a tyme Aboute mydday, whan most Ii3te is and mele-tyme of seintes ; 500 Feddest with Jn fresche blode owre forfadres in derknesse, THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 6 1 Populus qui ambulabat in tenebris, vidit lucem magnam ; And thorw J>e ItyQ )>at lepe oute of Je lucifer was blent, And blewe alle jn blissed in-to j>e blisse of paradise. J)e thrydde daye after J>ow jedest in owre sute, A synful Marie J>e seighe * ar seynte Marie ]>i dame, 505 And al to solace synful J>ow suffredest it so were : Non vent vocare iustos, set peccalores ad penitenciam. And al )>at Marke hath ymade mathew, lohan, and lucas, Of )>yne doujtiest dedes were don in owre armes ; Verbum carofaclum esf, et habilauit in nobis. And bi so moche, me semeth )>e sikererc we mowe Bydde and biseche if it be )>i wille, 510 pat art owre fader and owre brother be m^rciable to vs, And haue reuthe on jnse Ribaudes j>at repente hem here sore, pat euere jjei wratthed )>e in )>is worlde in worde, jjoujte, or dedes.' panne hent hope an home ' of deus, tu conuersus viuificabis nos, And blew it with Beati quorum ' remisse sunt iniquitates, 515 pat alle seyntes in heuene songen at ones, Homines & iumenla saluabis, quemadmodum mulliplicasti miser icordiam iuam, deus, &c. A thousand of men )>o thrungen togyderes ; Criede vpward to cryst and to his clene moder, To haue grace to go with hem treuthe to seke. Ac }>ere was wyjte non so wys ]>e wey j>ider couthe, 520 But blustreden forth as bestes ouer bankes and hilles, Til late was and longe J>at )>ei a lede mette, Apparailled as a paynym in pylgrymes wyse. He bare a burdou ybounde with a brode liste, In a withewyndes wise ywounden aboute. 555 A bolle and a bagge he bare by his syde ; 62 PASS US V. An hundreth of ampulles * on his hatt seten, Signes of synay and shelles of galice ; And many a cruche on his cloke and keyes of Rome, And }>e vernicle bifore for men shulde knowe, 530 And se bi his signes whom he soujte hadde. pis folke frayned hym firste fro whennes he come ? ' Fram synay,' he seyde ' and fram owre lordes sepulcre ; In bethleem and in babiloyne I haue ben in bothe, In ermonye, in Alisaundre in many other places. 535 3e may se bi my signes ]>at sitten on myn hatte, pat I haue walked ful wyde * in wete and in drye, And sou^te gode seyntes * for my soules helth.' ' Knowestow oujte a corseint }>at men calle treuthe ? Coudestow aujte wissen vs )?e weye where )>at wy dwelleth ? ' 540 ' Nay, so me god helpe ! ' seide }>e gome J>anne, ' I seygh neuere palmere with pike ne with scrippe Axen after hym er til now in J>is place.' ' Peter 1 ' quod a plowman * and put forth his hed, ' I knowe hym as kyndely as clerke do}> his bokes ; 545 Conscience and kynde witte kenned me to his place, And deden me suren hym sikerly to serue hym for euere, Bothe to sowe and to sette }>e while I swynke myghte. I haue ben his folwar al Jjis fifty wyntre ; Bothe ysowen his sede and sued his bestes, 550 With-Inne and with-outen * wayted his profyt I dyke and I delue I do J>at treuthe hoteth ; Some tyme I sowe and some tyme I thresche, In tailoures crafte and tynkares crafte what treuthe can deuyse, I weue an I wynde and do what treuthe hoteth. 555 For J)OU3e I scye it my-self I serue hym to paye ; Ich hr.ue myn huire of hym wel and otherwhiles more ; THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 63 He is ]>e prestest payer J>at pore men knoweth ; He ne with-halt non hewe his hyre \>at he ne hath it at euen. He is as low as a lombe and loueliche of speche, 560 And 5if 36 wilneth to wite where )>at he dwelleth, I shal wisse jow witterly )>e weye to his place.' ' 3e, leue Pieres,' quod jns pilgrymes and profered hym huire For to wende with hem to treuthes dwellyng place. ' Nay, bi my soules helth/ quod pieres and gan forto swere, 565 ' I nolde fange a ferthynge for seynt Thomas shryne ! Treuthe wolde loue me ]>e lasse a longe tyme )>eris is Je weye thider, pat I shal say to yow and sette vow in )>e soj>e. 5e mote go |x)urgh mekenesse bothe men and wyues, 570 Tyl je come in-to conscience }>at cryst wite ]>e sothe, pat je louen owre lorde god leuest of alle jjinges, And Jeanne jowre neighbores nexte * in non wise apeyre Otherwyse |?an J>ow woldest he wroujte to ]>i-selue. And so boweth forth bi a broke beth-buxum-of- speche, 575 Tyl 36 fynden a forth 5owre-fadres-honoureth, Honor a pair em & matrem, dec. : Wade]) in }>at water and wascheth jow wel j^ere, And 36 shul lepe }>e Ii3tloker al jowre lyf-tyme. And so shallow se swere-noujte- but-if-it-be-for-nede- And-namelich-an-ydel- * }>e-name-of-god-almy5ti. 580 panne shallow come by a crofte but come }>ow noujte Jxre-Inne ; That crofte hat coueyte-noujte- mennes-catel-ne-her-wyues- Ne-none-of-her-s^ruauntes- ' {jat-noyen-hem-myjte. Loke je breke no bowes }>ere but if it be jowre owne. 64 PASS us v. Two stokkes \>cre stondeth ac stynte 36 nou^te j>ere, 585 They hatte stele-nou}te, ne-slee-noiyte stryke forth by bothe ; And leue hem on }>{ left halfe and loke nou3te j>ere-after ; And holde wel J>yne haliday heighe til euen. Thanne shallow blenche at a bergh^ bere-no-false-witnesse, He is frithed in with floreines and other fees many ; 590 Loke ]>ow plukke no plante J>ere for peril of Jn soule. panne shal je se sey-soth- so-it-be-to-done- In-no-manere-ellis-naujte- for-no-mannes-biddynge sonne, pe mote is of mercy J>e manere wallis ben of witte to holden wille oute ; And kerneled with crystendome man-kynde to saue, Boterased with bileue-so- or-Jjow-beest-noujte-ysaued. And alle J>e houses ben hiled halles and chambres, With no lede, but with loue and lowe-speche-as-bre- theren. 600 pe brugge is of bidde-wel- J>e-bette-may-j>ow-spede ; Eche piler is of penaunce * of preyeres to seyntes, Of almes-dedes ar ]>e hokes j>at ]>e gates hangen on. Grace hatte }>e gateward * a gode man for sothe, Hys man hatte amende-jow * for many man him knoweth ; 605 Telleth hym }>is tokene J'at treuthe wite )>e sothe ; ' I parfourned \>e penaunce )>e preest me enioyned, And am ful sori for my synnes and so I shal euere, Whan I )?inke j>ere-on j^eighe I were a pope.' Biddeth amende-jow meke him til his maistre ones, 610 To wayue vp )>e wiket j>at J>e wowman shette, Tho Adam and Eue eten apples vnrosted ; Per euam cunctis clausa esl, & per mariam virginem iterum patefacta est ; For he hath J>e keye and |>e cliket JJDUJ )>e kynge slepe. THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. 65 And if grace graunte }>e to go in in j>is wise, pow shalt see in J>i-selue treuthe sitte in )>ine herte, 615 In a cheyne of charyte as }>ow a childe were, To suffre hym and segge noujte ajein J>i sires wille. Ac bewar )>anne of wrath-J>e }>at is a wikked shrewe, He hath enuye to hym )>at in jnne herte sitteth ; And pukketh forj> pruyde to prayse )>i-seluen. 620 pe boldnesse of Jn bienfetes * maketh )>e blynde }>anne, And ]>anne worstow dryuen oute as dew and ]>e dore closed, Kayed and cliketed to kepe \>e with-outen ; Happily an hundreth wyntre ar ]>ow eft entre. pus myght j>ow lesen his loue to late wel by )>i-selue, 625 And neuere happiliche efte entre but grace JJQW haue. Ac }>ere aren seuene sustren ]>at seruen treuthe euere, And aren porteres of )>e posternes that to J>e place longeth. pat one hat abstenence and humilite an other, Charite and chastite ben his chief maydenes, 630 Pacience and pees moche poeple |?ei helpeth, Largenesse )>e lady heo let in ful manye ; Heo hath hulpe a }>ousande oute of J>e deueles ponfolde. And who is sibbe to )>is seuene so me god helpe I He is wonderliche welcome and faire vnderfongen. 635 And but if 36 be syb to suwme of |>ise seuene, It is ful harde bi myne heued,' qod Peres ' for any of jow alle To geten ingonge at any gate J>ere but grace be ]>e more.' ' Now, bi cryst,' quod a cutpurs ' I haue no kynne jjere !' ' Ne I/ quod an ape war de ' bi aujte ]>at I knowe 1' 640 ' Wite god/ quod a wafrestre ' wist I J>is for sothe, Shulde I neuere ferthere a fote for no freres pr^chyng^.' ' 3us,' quod Pieres J)e plowman and pukked hem alle to gode, ' Mercy is a maydene )>ere hath myjte ouer hem alle ; F 66 PASSUS V. And she is syb to alle synful and her sone also ; 645 And ]>oruje }>e helpe of hem two (hope pow none other), pow myjte gete grace j>ere bi so }>ow go bityme.' ' By seynt Poule,' quod a pardoners ' pere, I wil go fecche my box with my breuettes and a bulle with bisshopes k//res ! ' ' By cryst,' quod a comune wowman ' \>i companye wil I folwe, pow shalt sey I am J>i sustre I ne wot where \>ei bicome.' 65 1 PASSUS VI. Passus Sexlus. 1 *~ I "HIS were a wikked way but who-so hadde a gyde JL That wolde folwen vs eche a fote ; ' J>us J>is folke hew mened. Quatj Perkyn |>e plouman ' bi seynt Peter of Rome, I haue an half acre to erye bi ]>e heigh? way ; Hadde I cried J>is half acre and sowen it after, 5 I wolde wende with 3ow and )>e way teche.' ' pis were a longe lettynge ' qod a lady in a sklayre, ' What sholde we wo/wmen worche J*re-whiles 1 ' ' Sowzme shal sowe J>e sakke/ quod Piers ' for shedyng of ]>e whete ; And je, louely ladyes with joure longe fyngres, 10 pat je han silke and sendal to sowe, whan tyme is, Chesibles for chapelleynes * cherches to honoure. Wyues and wydwes wolle & flex spynneth, Maketh cloth, I conseille jow and kenneth so jowre doujtres ; pe nedy and J>e naked nymmeth hede how hij liggeth, 15 And casteth hem clothes for so comaundeth treuthe. For I shal lene hem lyflode * but jif )>e londe faille, Flesshe and bred bothe to riche and to pore, As longe as I lyue for J>e lordes loue of heuene. And alle manere of men J>at j*>rw mete and drynke lybbeth, 20 F 2 68 PASSUS VI. Helpith hym to worche wi3tliche j>at vvynneth jowre fode.' ' Bi crist/ quod a knyjte J>o ' he kenneth vs j>e best ; Ac on )>e teme trewly tau3te was I neuere. Ac kenne me,' quod ]>e knyjte ' and, bi cryst, I wil assaye !' ' Bi seynt Poule,' quod Perky n * ' je profre 30 w so faire, 25 pat I shal swynke and swete * and sowe for vs bothe, And oj>er laboures do for }>i loue al my lyf-tyme, In couenauwt j?at ]>ow kepe holikirke and my-selue Fro wastoures and fro wykked men J>at }>is worlde struyeth. And go hunte hardiliche to hares and to foxes, 30 To bores and to brockes |>at breketh adown myne hegges, And go affaite }>e faucones wilde foules to kille ; For suche cometh to my croft and croppeth my whete.' Curteislich J>e kny3te J>anne * comsed J)ise wordes, ' By my power, Pieres,' quod he ' I pli3te J>e my treuthe 35 To fulfille jns forward J>owj I fi3te sholde ; Als longe as I lyue I shal |>e mayntene.' ' $e, and jit a poynt,' quod Pieres ' I preye 3ow of more ; Loke 36 tene no tenauwt but treuthe wil assent. And }>owgh 36 mowe amercy hew late mercy be taxoure, 40 And mekenesse }>i mayster maugre medes chekes ; And J>owgh pore men profre jow * presentis and jiftis, Nym it nau3te, an auenture 36 mowe it nau3te deserue ; For J)ow shalt 3elde it a3ein at one 3eres ende, In a ful p^rillous place * purgatorie it hatte. 45 And mysbede nou3te jn bonde-men * )>e better may J>ow spede ; powgh he be \>yn vnderlynge here wel may happe in heuene, pat he worth worthier sett; and with more blisse, pan }>ow, bot J>ou do belte And lyue as J>ow shulde ; Amice, ascende super ius. For in charnel atte chirche cherles ben yuel to knowe, 50 Or a km'3te fram a knaue ))ere knowe )>is in J)in herte. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 69 And }>at }>ow be trewe of \>i tonge and tales J>at }>ow hatie, But-if J>ei ben of wisdome or of witte J>i werkmen to chaste. Holde with none harlotes ne here noi^te her tales, And nameliche atte mete suche men eschue ; 55 For it ben ]>e deueles disoures I do \>e to vnderstande.' ' I assente, bi seynt lame ' seyde J>e knijte J>anne, ' Forto worche bi j?i wordes |>e while my lyf dureth.' ' And I shal apparaille me,' quod Per-inne j For I wil sowe it my-self and sitthenes wil I wende 65 To pylgrymage as palmers don * pardouw forto haue. Ac who so helpeth me to erie or sowen here ar I wende, Shal haue leue, bi owre lorde to lese here in heruest, And make hem mery J>ere-mydde * maugre who-so bigrucch- eth it. And alkyn crafty men j?at konne lyuen in treuthe, 70 I shal fynden hem fode * J?at feithfulliche libbeth. Saue lakke J>e iogeloure and lonet of }>e stues, And danyel J>e dys-player* and denote J>e baude, And frere )>e faytoure and folke of his ordre, And Robyn j>e Rybaudoure for his rusty wordes. 75 Treuthe tolde me ones and bad me tellen it after, Dekantur de libra viuenlium I shulde noujte dele with hem ; For holicherche is hole of hem no tythe to take, Quta cum lus/t's non scribanlur ; They ben ascaped good auentwre now god hem amende !' Dame worche-whan-tyme-is Pieres wyf hi3te, 80 His dou3ter hijte do-^hte-so- or-J>i-dame-shal-J>e-bete, 70 PASS us vi. His sone hijte suffre-]n-souereynes- to-hauen-her-wille- Deme-hez-nou3te-for-if-j)ow-doste-'})ow-shalt-it-dere-abugge. ' Late god yworth with al * for so his worde techeth ; For now I am olde and hore and haue of myn owen, 85 To penaunce and to pilgrimage I wil passe with J>ise other. For-Jn I wil, or I wende do wryte my biqueste. In dei nomine, amen I make it my-seluen. He shal haue my soule Jjat best hath yserued it, And fro J>e fende it defende for so I bileue, 90 Til I come to his acountes as my credo me telleth, To haue a relees and a remissiouw on J>at rental, I leue. pe kirke shal haue my caroigne and kepe my bones ; For of my corne and catel he craued }>e lythe. I payed it hym p/vstly for peril of my soule, 95 For-thy is he holden, I hope to haue me in his masse, And mengen in his memorye amonge alle crystene. My wyf shal haue of J?at I wan with treuthe and nomore, And dele amonge my doujtres and my dere children. For Jiowghtf I deye to-daye my dettes ar quitte, 100 I bare home j>at I borwed * ar I to bedde jede. And with )>e residue and ]>e remenaunte bi }>e Rode of Lukes ! I wil worschip |>er-with treuthe by my lyue, And ben his pilgryme atte plow for pore mennes sake. My plow-fote shal be my pyk-staf and picche atwo ]>e rotes, 105 And helpe my culter to kerue and dense ]>e forwes.' Now is perkyn and his pilgrymes to J>e plowe faren ; To erie ]>is halue acre holpyn hym manye. Dikeres & delueres digged vp ]>e balkes ; pere-with was perkyn apayed and preysed hem faste. no Other werkemen J>ere were j>at wroujten ful 3erne, Eche man in his manere made hym-self to done, PIERS THE PLOWMAN. Jl And some to plese perkyn piked vp |>e wedes. At heighe pryme peres lete }>e plowe stonde, To ouersen hem hym-self ; * and who-so best wrou3te, 115 He shulde be huyred }>er-after * whan heruest-tyme come. And J>anne seten somme and songen atte nale, And hulpen erie his half acre * with 'how! trolli-lolli!' 'Now, bi j>e p^ril of my soule!' quod Pieres al in pure tene, 'But je arise j>e rather and rape jow to worche, 120 Shal no greyne jjat groweth glade jow at nede ; And j>ough je deye for dole ]?e deuel haue }>at reccheth!' Tho were faitoures aferde and feyned hem blynde, So/wme leyde here legges aliri as suche loseles conneth, And made her mone to pieres and preyde hym of grace: 125 'For we haue no lymes to laboure with lorde, y -graced be 5 el Ac we preye for jow pieres and for jowre plow bothe, J)at god of his grace jowre grayne multiplye, And jelde jow of jowre almesse * }>at je 3iue vs here ; For we may noujte swynke ne swete suche sikenesse vs eyleth.' 130 'If it be soth/ quod pieres, 'J>at je seyne * I shal it sone asspye I 3e ben wastoures, I wote wel * and treuthe wote J>e sothe! And I am his olde hyne * and hijte hym to warne Which )>ei were in Jns worlde his werkemen appeyred. 3e wasten J>at men wynnen * with trauaille and with tene, 135 Ac treuthe shal teche jow his teme to dryue, Or je shal etc barly bred * and of j>e broke drynke. But if he be blynde or broke-legged or bolted with yrnes, He shal ete whete bred and drynke with my-selue, Tyl god of his goodnesse amendement hym sende. 140 72 PASSUS VI. Ac 36 myjte trauaille as treuthe wolde and take mete & huyre To kepe kyne in j>e felde \t corne fro ]>e bestes, Diken or deluen or dyngen vppon sheues, Or helpe make morter or bere mukke a-felde. In lecherye and in losengerye je lyuen, and in sleuthe, 145 And al is jjorw suffrance )>at veniauwce 3O\v ne taketh. Ac ancres and hrremytes j>at eten no3t but at nones, And namore er morwe * myne almesse shul \>ei haue, And of my catel to cope hem with J>at han cloistres and cherches. Ac robert renne-aboute shal nowjte haue of myne, 150 Ne posteles, but J>ey pr*che conne and haue power* of ]>e bisschop ; They shal haue payne and potage and make hem-self at ese, For it is an vnresonable Religioun J>at hath ri3te nou3te of c^rteyne.' And Jjanne gan a wastoure to wrath hym and wolde haue yfou3te, And to Pieres J>e plowman he profered his gloue ; 155 A Bry toner*, a braggen? a-bosted pieres als ' Wiltow or neltow we wil haue owre wille, Of J)i flowre and of jri flessche fecche whan vs liketh, And make vs myrie j>er-myde * maugre Jri chekes!' 160 Thanne Pieres }>e plowman pleyned hym to )>e kny3te, To kepe hym, as couenaunte was fram cursed shrewes, And fro jris wastoures wolueskynnes )>at maketh ]>e worlde dere: ' For J>o waste and wynnen nou3te and |>at ilke while Worth neuere plente amonge pe poeple j)(?r-while my plow liggeth.' 165 PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 73 Curteisly J>e knyjte J>anne as his kynde wolde, Warned wastoun; and wissed hym bettere, 'Or )>ow shalt abugge by J>e lawe by J>e ordre J>at I bere !' 'I was nou3t wont to worche,' quod wastour 'and now wil I noujt bigynne .!' And lete lijte of ]>e lawe and lasse of J>e knyjte, 170 And sette Pieres at a pees and his plow bothe, And manaced pieres and his men jif J>ei mette eft sone. 'Now, by ]>e p^ril of my soule!' quod pieres 'I shal apeyre jow alle!' And houped after hunger J>at herd hym atte firste: A-wreke me of ]>ise wastoures,' quod he 'J>at J>is worlde schendethl' 175 Hunger in haste J>o hent wastour bi J>e mawe, And wronge hym so bi )>e wombe ]>at bothe his eyen wattered ; He buffeted }>e Britoner aboute J>e chekes, pat he loked like a lanterne al his lyf after. He bette hem so bothe he barste nere here [ribbes;] 180 Ne hadde Pieres with a pese-lof preyed hunger to cesse, They hadde ben doluen bothe ne deme ]>ow non other. ' Suffre hem lyue,' he seyde 'and lete hem ete with hogges, Or elles benes and bren ybaken togideres, Or elles melke and mene ale' )>us preyed pieres for hem. 185 Faitoures for fere her-of flowen in-to bernes, And flapten on with flayles fram morwe til euen, That hunger was nou3t so hardy on hem for to loke, For a potful of peses J>at peres hadde ymaked. An heep of heremites henten hem spades, 190 And ketten here copes and courtpies hem made, And wenten as werkemen with spades and with schoueles, And doluen and dykeden to dryue aweye hunger. Blynde and bedreden were botened a jjousande, 74 PASS us vi. pat seten to begge syluer sone were |>ei heled. 195 For J>at was bake for bayarde was bote for many hungry, And many a beggen? for benes buxome was to swynke, And eche a pore man wel apayed to haue pesen for his huyre, And what pieres preyed hem to do as prest as a sperhauke. And J>ere-of was peres proude and put hem to werke, 200 And jaf hem mete as he myjte aforth and mesurable huyre. panne hadde peres pite and preyed hunger to wende Home in-to his owne erd* and holden hym )>ere. ' For I am wel awroke now of wastoures, jjorw Jn myjte. Ac I preye }>e, ar J>ow passe' quod Pieres to hunger, 205 ' Of beggeres and of bidderes what best be to done? For I wote wel, be JJQW went J>ei wil worche ful ille; For myschief it maketh j>ei beth so meke nouthe, And for defaute of her fode J>is folke is at my wille. pey are my blody brethren,' quod pieres * ' for god boujte vs alle ; 210 Treuthe taujte me ones to louye hem vchone, And to helpen hem of alle Jnnge ay as hem nedeth. And now wolde I witen of J>e what were jje best, And how I myjte amaistrien hem and make hem to worche.' 214 'Here now/ quod hunger 'and holde it for a wisdome: Bolde beggeres and bigge |>at mowe her bred biswynke, With houndes bred and hors bred holde vp her hertis, Abate hem with benes * for bollyng of her wombe ; And jif )>e gomes grucche bidde hem go swynke, And he shal soupe swettere whan he it hath deseruid. 220 And if )>ow fynde any freke ]>at fortune hath appeyred, Or any maner fals men * fonde ]>o\v suche to cnowe; Conforte hem with \\ catel for crystes loue of heuene, Loue hem and lene hem so lawe of god techeth: PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 75 Alter al/en'us oner a por tale. And alle maner of men J>at j>ow myjte asspye, 335 That nedy ben, and naujty helpe hem with }>i godis, Loue hem and lakke hem noirjte late god take Je veniaunce ; Theigh }>ei done yuel late }>ow god y-worjse : Michi vindicta, $ ego retribuam. And if JJQW wilt be graciouse to god do as J>e gospel techeth, And biloue )>e amonges low men so shaltow lacche grace, Facile vobts amicos de mamona iniquilatis' 'I wolde noujt greue god,' quod piers 'for al J>e good on grounde; 231 Mijte I synnelees do as J>ow seist?' seyde pieres J>anne. *3e, I bihote \>e,' quod hunger 'or ellis )>e bible lieth; Go to Genesis ]>& gyaunt J>e engendroure of vs alle; "In sudore and swynke J>ow shall ]?i mete tilye, 335 And laboure for J>i lyflode" and so owre lorde hyjte. And sapience seyth jje same * I seigh it in J>e bible; "Pj'ger pro f rigor e ' no felde nolde tilye, And j>erfore he shal begge and bidde and no man bete his hunger." Mathew with mannes face mouthed j^ise wordes, 240 pat seruus nequam had a nam and for he wolde noujte chaf- fare, He had maugre of his maistre for euermore after; And binam hym his Mnam for he ne wolde worche, And jaf j>at Mnam to hym j>at ten Mnames hadde, And with }>at he seyde j>at holicherche it herde, 245 "He )>at hath shal haue and helpe J^ere it nedeth, And he )>at noujt hath, shal nou3t haue and no man hym helpe ; And }>at he weneth wel to haue I wil it hym bireue." Kynde witt wolde )>at eche a wyght wroujte j6 <^s p-dsstts vi. Or in dykynge or in deluynge or trauaillynge in preyeres, 250 Contemplatyf lyf or actyf lyf cryst wolde men wroujte. PC sauter seyth in }je psalme * of beati omnes, pe freke Jjat fedeth hym-self * with his feythful labour*, He is blessed by J>e boke in body and in soule: Labores manuum iuarum, &c' '3et I prey jow,' quod pieres 'par charite, and je kunne Eny leef of lechecraft lere it me, my dere. 256 For somme of my s*ruauntz and my- self bothe Of al a wyke worche noujt so owre wombe aketh.' 'I wote wel/ quod hunger 'what sykenesse jow eyleth, 3e han maunged ouer-moche and J>at maketh jow grone. 260 Ac I hote ]>e,' quod hunger 'as j>ow }>yne hele wilnest, pat jjow drynke no day * ar ]>ow dyne somwhat. Ete noujte, I hote Jje ar hunger Jje take, And sende f>e of his sauce to sauoure with jji lippes; And kepe some tyl sop*r-tyme and sitte noujt to longe, 265 Arise vp ar appetit haue eten his fulle. Lat noujt sire surfait sitten at Jji borde; Leue him noujt, for he is lecherous and likerous of tonge, And after many maner* metes his maw is afyngred. And jif jjow diete J?e Jjus I dar legge myne eres, 270 pat phisik shal his furred hodes for his fode selle, And his cloke of calabre with alle Jje knappes of golde, And be fayne, bi my feith his phisik to lete, And lerne to laboure with londe for lyflode is swete ; For morthereres aren mony leches lorde hem amende I 275 pei do men deye Jjorw her* drynkes ar destine it wolde.' 'By seynt Poule,' quod pieres '{use aren profitable wordis ! Wende now, hunger, whan J>ow wolt Jjat wel be })ow euerel For Jjis is a louely lessou lorde it }>e for-jelde!' 'By-hote god,' quod hunger * 'hennes ne wil I wende, 280 PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 77 Til I haue dyned bi j?is day and ydronke bothe.' ' I haue no peny,' quod peres ' poletes forto bigge, Ne neyther gees ne grys but two grene cheses, A fewe craddes and creem and an hauer cake, And two loues of benes and bran y-bake for my fauntis. And }et I sey, by my soule I haue no salt bacouw, 286 Ne no kokeney, bi cryst coloppes forto maken. Ac I haue p^rcil and porettes and many kole-plantes, And eke a cow and a kalf * and a cart-mare To drawe a-felde my donge ]>e while )>e drought lasteth. 290 And bi J>is lyflode we mot lyue til lammasse tyme; And bi ]?at, I hope to haue heruest in my croft ; And }>anne may I di3te J>i dyner as me dere liketh.' Alle \>e pore peple jx> pesecoddes fetten, Benes and baken apples ])ei broujte in her lappes, 295 Chibolles and cheruelles * and ripe chiries manye, And profred peres )>is present to plese with hunger. Al hunger eet in hast and axed after more, panne pore folke for fere * fedde hunger jerne 299 With grene poret and pesen to poysouw hunger J>ei Jjoujte. By )>at it neighed nere heruest * newe corne cam to chepynge ; panne was folke fayne and fedde hunger with J>e best, With good ale, as glotou taujte and gerte hunger go slepe. And Jx> wolde wastour noujt werche * but wandren aboute, Ne no begger ete bred J>at benes Inne were, 305 But of coket or clerematyn * or elles of clene whete ; Ne none halpeny ale in none wise drynke, But of J>e best and of J>e brounest J>at in borgta is to selle. Laboreres ]>at haue no lande * to lyue on but her handes, Deyned noujt to dyne a-day * nyjt-olde wortes. 310 May no peny-ale hem paye ne no pece of bakouw, But if it be fresch flesch other fische fryed other bake, And ]>at chaude or plus chaud for chillyng of here mawe. 7 8 PASS us vi. And but if he be heighlich huyred ellis wil he chyde, And J>at he was werkman wroujt waille \>e tyme, 315 Ajeines catones conseille comseth he to iangle : Paupertatis onus pacienter ferre memento. He greueth hym ajeines god and gruccheth ajeines resou, And )>anne curseth he )>e kynge and al his conseille after, Suche lawes to loke laboreres to greue. Ac whiles hunger was her maister J>ere wolde none of hem chyde, 320 Ne stryue ajeines his statut so sterneliche he loked. Ac I warne jow, werkemen wynneth while je mowe, For hunger hiderward hasteth hym faste, He shal awake with water wastoures to chaste. Ar fyue jere be fulfilled suche famyn shal aryse, 325 Thorwgh flodes and J>ourgh foule wederes frutes shul faille, And so sayde saturne and sent jow to warne : Whan je se j>e sonne amys and two monkes hedes, And a Mayde haue j>e maistrie and multiplie bi eight, panne shal deth withdrawe and derthe be iustice, 330 And dawe )>e dyker deye for hunger, But if god of his goodnesse graunt vs a trewe. 332 PASSUS VII. Passus vy us - de visiotie, vt supra. 'T^REUTHE herde telle her-of and to peres he sent, JL To taken his teme * and tulyen {>e erthe, And purchaced hym a pardotw * a pena Sf a culpa, For hym, and for his heires for euermore after. And bad hym holde hym at home * and eryen his leyes, 5 And alle J>at halpe hym to erie to sette or to sowe, Or any other myster * ]?at myjte pieres auaille, Pardoun with pieres plowman treuthe hath ygraunted. Kynges and knyjtes }>at kepen holycherche, And ryjtfullych in reumes reulen J>e peple, 10 Han pardoun thourgh pwrgatorie to passe ful lyjtly, With patriarkes and pr0phetes * in paradise to be felawes. Bisshopes yblessed jif J>ei ben as }>ei shulden, Legistres of bothe }>e lawes J>e lewed ]*re-with to p/vche, And in as moche as )>ei mowe amende alle synful, 15 Aren peres with )>e apostles (j>is pardoun Piers sheweth), And at J>e day of dome * atte heigh deyse to sytte. Marchauntz in )>e margyne hadden many jeres, Ac none a pena $ a culpa ' j>e Pope nolde hem graunte, For )>ei holde noujt her halidayes * as holicherche techeth, 20 And for J>ei swere by her soule * and ' so god moste hem helpe,' Ajein clene conscience her catel to selle. Ac vnder his secret seel treuthe sent hem a leffce, 8o PASS us vii. That J>ey shulde bugge boldely |>at hem best liked, And sithenes selle it ajein and saue J>e wynnynge, 25 And amende mesondieux J^re-myde and myseyse folke helpe, And wikked wayes wi3tlich hem amende ; And do bote to brugges )>at to-broke were, Marien maydenes or maken hem nonnes ; Pore peple and prisounes fynden hem here fode, 30 And sette scoleres to scole or to soffzme other craftes ; Releue Religious and renten hem bettere ; ' And I shal sende jow my-selue seynt Michel myn arch- angel, pat no deuel shal 30w dere ne fere jow in jowre deying*, And witen 3ow fro wanhope if je wil jms worche, 35 And send jowre sowles in safte to my seyntes in ioye.' panne were Marchauwtz mery many wepten for ioye, And preyseden pieres |>e plowman J>at pwrchaced j?is bulle. Men of lawe lest pardouw hadde j>at pleteden for Mede, For J>e sauter saueth hem nou3te such as taketh jiftes, 40 And namelich of innocentz * }>at none yuel ne kunneth ; Super innocentem munera non accipies. Pledoures shulde peynen hem to plede for such, an helpe, Prynces and prelates shulde paye for her trauaille ; A regibus $ pryncipibus erit merces eorum. Ac many a iustice an iuroun? wolde for lohan do more, pan pro dei pie late leue J>ow none other! 45 Ac he ]>at spendeth his speche and spekejj for J>e pore pat is Innocent and nedy and no man appeireth, Conforteth hym in j>at cas with-oute coueytise of jiftes, And scheweth lawe for owre lordes loue as he it hath lerned, Shal no deuel at his ded-day deren hym a myjte, 50 pat he ne worth saufand his sowle j>e sauter bereth witnesse; THE PLOWMAN'S PARDON. Si Domine, quis habitabit in tabernaculo luo, Sfc. Ac to bugge water, ne wynde ne witte, ne fyre J>e fierthe, pise foure J>e fader of heuene * made to jns folde in comune; pise ben treuthes tresores * trewe folke to helpe, pat neu^re shal wax ne wanye with-oute god hymselue. 55 Whan jjei drawen on to deye and Indulgences wolde haue, Her pardoiw is ful petit * at her partyng hennes, pat any Mede of mene men for her motyng taketh. 3e legistres and lawyeres holdeth j>is for treuthe, pat, jif }>at I lye Mathew is to blame, 60 For he bad me make jow J>is * and )>is prouerbe me tolde, Quodcumque vultis vtfaciant vobis homines, facile eis. Alle lybbyng laboreres J>at lyuen with her hondes, pat trewlich taken and trewlich wynnen, And lyuen in loue and in lawe * for her lowe hertis, Haueth J>e same absolucioun J>at sent was to peres. 65 Beggeres ne bidderes ne beth noujte in )>e bulle, But if )>e suggestiouw be soth J>at shapeth hem to begge. For he J>at beggeth or bit but if he haue nede, He is fals with }>e fende and defraudeth the nedy, And also he bigileth \>e gyuen? ageines his wil. 70 For if he wist he were noujte nedy he wolde jiue J>at an other, pat were more nedy J>an he so J>e nediest shuld be hulpe. Catoutt kenneth men jms and |>e clerke of j>e stories, Cut des, videto is catoues techyng^, And in the stories he techeth to bistowe J>yn almes ; 75 Sit elemosina tua in manu iua, donee studes cut des. Ac Gregori was a gode man and bad vs gyuen alle pat asketh, for his loue J?at vs alle leneth : Non eligas cut miser earis, ne forte pretereas ilium qui merelur accipere. Quia incerium est pro quo Deo magis placeas. G 82 . PASSUS VII. For wite je neu^re who is worthi ac god wote who hath nede, In hym ]>at taketh is J>e treccherye * if any tresou wawe ; For he ]>at jiueth, jeldeth and jarketh hym to reste, So And he j>atbiddeth, borweth and bryngeth hym-self in dette. For beggeres borwen euermo * and her borgh* is god almyjti, To jelden hem J>at jiueth hem and jet vsure more : Quare non dedisli peccuniam meam ad mensam, vt ego veniens cum vsuris exegissem illam? For-)>i biddeth noujt, je beggeres but if je haue gret nede ; For who-so hath to buggen hym bred j?e boke bereth witnesse, 85 He hath ynough J>at hath bred ynough )>ough he haue noujt elles : Satis diues est, qui non indiget pane. Late vsage be jowre solace of seyntes lyues redyng*, pe boke banneth beggarie and blameth hem in Jns manere: Junior fui, etenim senui; et non vidi iustum dereltctum, nee semen eius querens panem. For je lyue in no loue ne no lawe holde ; 89 Many of jow ne wedde noujt . J>e wotfzmen )>at je with delen, And bryngeth forth barnes * J>at bastardes men calleth. 92 Or J>e bakke or some bone he breketh in his jouthe, And sitthe gon faiten with joure fauntes * for euermore after. pere is moo mysshape peple * amonge J)ise beggeres, 95 pan of alle maner men )>at on jns molde walketh ; And J>ei J>at lyue Jms her lyf mowe lothe )je tyme, pat euere he was man wroujt whan he shal hennes fare. Ac olde men & hore )>at helplees ben of strengthe, And women with childe t>at worche ne mowe, 100 Blynde and bedered and broken heris myschief mekelych as meseles and othere, THE PLOWMAN'S PARDON. 83 Han as pleyne pardoun as \>e plowman hym-self; For loue of her lowe hertis owre lorde hath hem graunted Here penaunce and her prgatorie * here on jns erthe. 105 ' Pieres/ quod a prest )>o ' j?i pardoiw most I rede, For I wil construe eche clause and kenne it J>e on engliche pardoun vnfoldeth, And I bihynde hem bothe bihelde al )>e bulle. Al in two lynes it lay and noujt a leef more, no And was writen rijt Jms in witnesse of treuthe : Et qui bona egerunl, ibunl in vitam eternam; Qui vero mala, in ignem eternum. ' Peter ! ' quod J>e prest J>o ' I can no pardou/x fynde, But " dowel, and haue wel and god shal haue Jn sowle, And do yuel, and haue yuel * hope ]>ow non other But after jn ded-day )>e deuel shal haue |>i sowle 1"' 115 And pieres for pure tene pulled it atweyne, And seyde, ' si ambulauero, in media vmbrc moslis, non limebo mala ; quoniam tu mccum es. I shal cessen of my sowyng,' quod pieres * 'and swynk nou3t so harde, Ne about my bely-ioye so bisi be namore ! Of preyers and of penaunce my plow shal ben her-after, And wepen whan I shulde slepe J>ough whete-bred me faille. i ao pe prophete his payn ete in penaunce and in sorwe, By )?at J)e sauter seith so dede other manye ; pat loueth god lelly his lyflode is ful esy : Fuerunt michi lacrime mee panes die ac nocle* And, but if Luke lye he lereth vs bi foules, We shulde noujt be to bisy aboute |>e worldes blisse; 125 Ne solliciti silis ' he seyth in \>e gospel, And sheweth vs bi ensamples * vs selue to wisse. pe foules on jje felde who fynt hem mete at wynter ? G 2 84 PASS us vii. Haue J>ei no gernere to go to but god fynt hem allc.' ' What 1 ' quod J>e prest to perkyn ' peter ! as me pinketh, pow art lettred a litel who lerned J>e on boke ?' 131 ' Abstinence J>e abbesse/ quod pieres ' myne a. b. c. me taujte, And conscience come afterward and kenned me moche more.' ' Were j)ow a prest, pieres,' quod he ' J>ow mijte p;vche where Jxnv sholdest, As deuynour in deuynyte with dixii insipiens to jri teme.' 135 'Lewed lorel!' quod Pieres 'litel lokestow on J>e bible, On salomones sawes selden J>ow biholdest, Eice der i 'sores el iurgia cum eis, ne ere scant, Sfc' pe prest and perkyn apposeden eyther other, And I ]>orw here wordes a-woke and waited aboute, And seighe J>e sonne in J>e south sitte )>at tyme, 140 Metelees and monelees on Maluerne hulles, Musyng on Jjis meteles ; and my waye ich jede. Many tyme }>is meteles hath maked me to studye Of )>at I seigh slepyng if it so be myjte, And also for peres J>e plowman ful pensyf in herte, 145 And which a pardouw peres hadde alle }>e peple to conforte, And how j>e prest impugned it with two propre wordes. Ac I haue no sauoure in songewarie for I se it ofte faille ; Catou# and canonistres conseilleth vs to leue To sette sadnesse in songewarie for, sompnia ne cures. 150 Ac for )>e boke bible bereth witnesse, How danyel deuyned }>e dremes of a kynge, pat was nabugodonosor nempned of clerkis. Daniel seyde, ' sire Kynge J>i dremeles bitokneth, pat vnkouth knyjtes shul come \\ kyngdom to cleue; 155 Amonges lowere lordes \\ londe shal be departed.' And as danyel deuyned in dede it felle after, THE PLOWMAN'S PARDON. 85 pe kynge lese his lordship and lower men it hadde. And ioseph mette merueillously how J>e mone and }>e sonne, And J>e elleuene sterres hailsed hym alle. 160 panne Jacob lugged iosephes sweuene : ' Beau fillz', quod his fader 'for defaute we shullen, I my-self and my sones seche ]?e for nede.' It bifel as his fader seyde in pharaoes tyme, pat ioseph was iustice * egipte to loken, 165 It bifel as his fader tolde his frendes )>ere hym soi^te. And al J>is maketh me on jns meteles to Jjynke ; And how J>e prest preued no pardou to dowel, And demed J>at dowel indulgences passed, Biennales and triennales and bisschopes L?//res, 170 And how dowel at J>e day of dome is dignelich vnderfongen, And passeth al J>e pardou of seynt petres cherche. Now hath \>e pope power* pardou to g/vmnte pe peple With-outen eny penaunce to passen in-to heuene; pis is owre bileue as lettered men vs techeth, 175 Quodcumque ligaueris super lerram, en't ligalum et in celis, 6fc. And so I leue lelly (lordes forbode ellis !) pat pardou and penaunce and preyeres don saue Soules }>at haue synned seuene sithes dedly. Ac to trust to )>ise triennales trewly me }>inketh, Is noujt so syker for J>e soule certis, as is dowel. 180 For-Jri I rede 30 w, renkes J>at riche ben on }>is erthe, Vppon trust of jowre tresoure triennales to haue, Be je neuere J?e balder to breke j?e ten hestes ; And namelich, 36 maistres mayres and iugges, pat han j>e welthe of J>is worlde * and for wyse men ben holden, 185 To purchace 30 w pardoun and \>e popis bulles. 86 PASS us vn. At J>e dredeful dome whan dede shullen rise, And comen alle bifor cryst acountis to jelde, How }>ow laddest Jn lyf here . and his lawes keptest, And how }>ow dedest day bi day * j>e dome wil reherce ; 190 A poke ful of pardouw J>ere ne prouinciales le fraternete of alle J>e foure ordres, And haue indulgences double-folde but if dowel jow help, I sette jowre patentes and 3owre pardouwz at one pies hele ! For-J>i I conseille alle cristene to crye god mercy, 195 And Marie his moder be owre mene bitwene, pat god gyue vs grace here ar we gone hennes, Suche werkes to werche while we ben here, pat after owre deth-day dowel reherce, At J>e day of dome we dede as he hijte. aoc Explicit visio willelmi de petro plowman. _ CRITICAL NOTES. The text is printed exactly as it stands in MS. Laud 581, excepting in the following instances, where improvements have been suggested by a collation of the text with several other MSS. See note to prol. 39 just below. Prologue, 1. 20. Here we must read pvtten, as in 1. 23; but the Laud MS. has put in this line. 34. gillies is taken from the text printed by Crowley. The MSS.h.:ve syrvieles. 39. The words is luciferes hyne are omitted in MS. Laud, but are found in the MS. in Trinity College, Cambridge, and in many others. I shall iu future denote the Laud MS. by the letter L ; the Trinity College MS. by T ; MS. Rawlinson Poet. 38, by R ; the Oriel MS. by O ; and the Cam- bridge folio MS. (Dd. I. 17) by C. 41. belies; so in T ; but most MSS., including LCO, read befy. bagges; L has bagge, but TCO have the plural form. 67. myschief; misspelt mychief in L. 99. consistorte ; so in TCO ; spelt constorie in L. 140. answered : so in CTO ; but LR have the present tense, answere*. I may here note tnat when two or three MSS., as CTO, are mentioned together, I give the spelling of the one which stands_/frs/. 147. The form myd (found in MS. T) suits the alliteration ; but L and others read with. 151. MSS. LT omit the second hem; but it occurs in RCO, and should be retained. 179. L omits it, which is retained in all the other MSS. 1 86. L has croupe instead of crope, which is the reading in R ; C has crepe ; T. has cropen. 197. The curious (West-Midland) spelling rnannus is found both in L and R ; other MSS. read marines. 215. money is misspelt monoy in L in this place, but is rightly spelt else- where in our MS. 224. longe ; so in TCO; but L has dere. MSS. of the A-class read longe. 226. and is miswritten a in L; MS. C has an, which is very com- 88 CRITICAL NOTES. monly used instead of and, and shews that the final d was frequently not sounded. Passus I, 1. 37. The words pat leef is to }>i soule Leue not \>i likam are wrongly omitted in LTC ; but they are found in RO, and in MSS. of the A-class. The omission was clearly due to the repetition of the word likam. 41. sueth; so in R. The other readings hardly make sense; they are seest, L ; see}, TO ; seip in MS. L. 4. 14 in the Cambridge University Library. Many MSS. of the A-class read schendeth, which means harm. Sueth means pursue. 81. kenne ; so in TCRO; L corruptly has leende. 107. mitryer ; so in CT. In L it is curiously spelt murger, and in R murgur. 139. The Latin quotation is evidently a hexameter, and hence quod is the right reading ; but nearly all the MSS. (including L) have quia. The reading quod is adopted from a MS. in the Cambridge University Library, of which the class-mark is Ff. 5. 35. 145. For worche (which occurs in C and O) MS. L reads worcheth, which produces a false concord ; worcheth is plural, but ]>ow is singular. 150. plante. MSS. of the A-class shew this to be the right reading. MS. L and most others of the B-class have plente. Passus II, 1. 27. In the Latin quotation, LTO have bonus instead of lona. The latter occurs in C. 59. Our MS. has chaffre here ; but see Prol. 1. 31. 87. For borghe, the reading in C and R, L has the false spelling borgthe. Two MSS., T and O, have burghe. Borghe, burghe are various spellings of the word now spelt borough or burgh. 1 1 6. weddynges; so in TRO; L has wendynges. 118. engendred; so in TO ; LCR read engendreth. 165. flaterere; so in TCRO; but L has/atere. 175. deuorses. In both LR we find deuoses, by a curious omission of the r. C has deuorses, T diuorces, and O deuorces. 227. mynstralles. This is of course right, but MS. L has mynstalles (omitting r) both here and in a later passage. Passus III, 1. 17. L omits wil, retained in RT. 48. Instead offul, as in other MSS., L has weL 6 1. whiten; so in C ; spelt whitten in L. 73. ne ; so in TCR ; L has no. 95. thynlte; miswritten thyiiko in L. 97. brenne ; so in TCO ; preferable to berne in L. 98. L omits pat, retained in other MSS. 107. L. omits ]>e, found in RTO, in the last two of which it is spelt pee. 127. L omits the second and, found in TRO. 187. L omits it, found in TRO. 227. Qiod ; so in TCRO; L has Quat}. CRITICAL NOTES. 89 251. 269. tnone'ie ; so in C ; L has mone. 252. receperunt; so in O; most MSS. (L included) have recipiebant. 304. other, R ; corruptly spelt orther in L. 322. smytheth, TO ; smyteth in L; smithie, R. 337, 338. she; so in TC; L corruptly has }e before sakke ; the other MSS. retain it. 49. This line is from C ; LTRO omit it. 138. or, TCRO ; and, L ; in the first instance. 147. o3/, TCO ; LR omit it. 1 80. ribbes ; so in the Vernon MS. ; others have gnttes. 206. L omits to, which other MSS. retain. 223. hem; so in RO ; LT have hym. 228. y-worthe; soinT; LR have the inferior spelling aworthe ; CO have worthe. For vindicta, all the MSS. have vindictam. 229. wilt; so in TCO; L has wil. 230. biloue ; so in TCO ; bilow in L ; byloive in R. 243. L omits hym by mistake. 323. L omits the r in hidenvard, by mistake. 325. %ere ; so in E ; yer in O ; LTC omit it. Passus VII, 1. 1 6. Jus; so in TCO; LR have }. 35. wynnynge; miswritten wynnyge in L. 75. LR omit the first tua, which TCO retain. 77. In the Latin quotation, for Deo (as in T), LCRO have Deiim. 83. In the quotation, exegissem is from CR; L has exigerem; TO have exigere. The last word, illam, is not in the MSS. I have supplied it from the Vulgate. 88. LTR omit qiierens pattern ; OC retain it. 94. And ; miswritten A in L. 115. But; so in TCO ; L and R have ]>at. 137. In the quotation, Eice (the old spelling of Ejice) is from O ; LTRC wrongly have Ecce. 183. ten; so in CRO ; LT have x. 187. dede; so in TCR; L has ded. NOTES. [The text generally follows MS. Land Misc. 581, as explained in the Critical Notes.] Title. The English title is a translation of the title found in numerous MSS., viz. ' Visio Willelmi de Petro Plowman.' The first division of the poem, or Prologue, is marked by the Latin word Prologns in one MS. only ; in most others, it has no heading. In our Laud MS., however, we find here ' Incipit liber de petro plowman,' nearly obliterated. 1. soft, mild, warm. 2. I shope me, &c. ; I put myself into clothes, as if I were a shepherd, i.e. I put on (rough) clothes, so that I looked like a shepherd. Shope, lit. shaped ; the phrase I shope me generally means I got myself ready, as in he shope hym for to walken, he got ready to set off walking ; Pass. xi. 1. 404. We know that shepe here means shepherd, because shepherd is the reading of many MSS. It more often means sheep, but a few instances of the signification shepherd occur. Thus, in an old and very rude hexameter which gives the names of the leaders in Wat Tyler's rebellion, we have 'Jak Chep, Tronche, Jon Wrau, Thorn Myllere, Tyler, Jak Strawe;' where another reading for Chep is Schep. See Political Poems, ed. Wright, vol. i. p. 230. This statement has been questioned, but Dr. Morris assures me he has seen schepe used for shepherd more than once, and so have I ; but we have both lost the references. Still there need be no doubt about it : compare the Chaucerian word hunte in the sense of hunter. So too we find pristine used to mean, not a gaol, but a prisoner ; Genesis and Exodus, ed. Morris, 1. 2044. In the same poem prisuner also occurs, but it means the gaoler ; 1. 2042. So again message means messenger, in the MSS. of Chaucer's Man of Lawes Tale, 1. 333. And again, in the Ancren Riwle, p. 212, last line, occurs the remarkable form slep, meaning ' a sleeper.' But the most sure confirmation of the above interpretation is in the fact that, since the first edition of this work was published, the word has been discovered still exist- ing in Lincolnshire. Shep for ' shepherd ' is given in Mr. Peacock's Glossary of Words used in Manley and Corringham. More than this, I have re- covered one of my lost references. The expression ' A chepys croke,' i. e. a shepherd's crook, occurs in Lydgate's ' Chorl and Bird,' as printed in Ashmole's Theatrum Chemicum, p. 223. It will be observed, that I have, in relation to the word shope, quoted from 92 NOTES Passus eleven. Properly speaking, the poem has but seven Passus ; but in all MSS. of the B-class, it is followed by another poem, entitled Vita De Dowel, Do-bet, et Do-best, and the two are taken together so as to form one long poem, comprising a Prologue and twenty Passus. The name of the whole work, both parts together, is Liber de petro plowman, as distinct from the Visio, yet inclusive of it. For the meaning of A-class, B-class, C-class, see the Preface. 3. In habile as an heremite. The simple shepherd's dress resembled that of a hermit. Vnholy of worses. This Dr. Whitaker paraphrases by ' not like an anchorite who keeps his cell, but like one of those unholy hermits who wander about the world to hear and see wonders.' Or it may simply be supposed to be inserted parenthetically, and to express the author's opinion of hermits in general ; an opinion which he elsewhere repeats more than once. Cf. 1. 28, and note to 1. 53. 5. May mornynge; readers of Chaucer will remember how fond he is (like other Early English poets) of the month of May. On a May morning is nearly equivalent to once upon a time. Malverne hulles ; the poet men- tions Malvern hills three times, here, at the end of this Prologue, and in Pass. vii. It may be that the first sketch of the poem was composed in that locality ; but, at the time when it was re-cast into the shape here printed, he may have been living in London. At any rate, it is certain that he was at that time very familiar with London, and we may consider London as being the real scene of the greater part of the poem. The importance of this remark will be seen as we advance. 6. A ferly, a wonder. Cf. 'And I will show youferlies three; ' Sir W. Scott : Ballad of Thomas the Rhymer. Of fairy, due to fairy contrivance. See Tyrwhitt's note to 1. 6441 of the Cant. Talcs. Me thonghte, it seemed to me. There is a difference in form between A.S. kit \>inriS, it seems (G. es dunkt) and A. S. \encan, to think (G. denken). Several other verbs bear a similar construction ; thus, another reading for \>oiv dryest (Pass. i. 25) is \e drieth, i. e. it drieth thee, thou art dry. 7. Forwandred, tired out by wandering. See Glossary. Went me, turned me, went ; to wend originally meant to turn. Mr. Hales suggests that me is here an ethic dative, as it so commonly is in our old dramatists. I do not think that it is so in this particular passage, but remain of the opinion that went me is for turned myself. So in Caedmon, ed Thorpe, p. 56, 1. 28 ; Ancren Riwle, p. 52 ; and the phrase wend thee in a quotation in Halli well's Diet. s. v. Disposed. And again, himzelue wende in Spec, of Eng. ed. Morris and Skeat, Pt. II. p. 105, 1. 226. But the clearest example is iu the Ayenbite of Inwyt, ed. Morris, p. 180 'ase )>e wedercoc )>et is ope [upon] pe steple, pet him uent mid eche winde.' Cf. shape mem 1. 2 ; and see 1. 57. jo. Sweyued so merye, sounded so pleasantly. II. Meten, to dream ; sweuene, a dream. Another word for a dream is metels, or meteles. See the Glossary. TO THE PROLOGUE. 93 13. Bikelde into the es-t, looked towards the east, on high, towards the sun. 14. Seigh, saw. The tower on the toft is explained (Pass. i. 12) as being the abode of Truth, i.e. of God the Father; and it may remind us of Bunyan's Celestial City. Truth's abode is afterwards minutely described (Pass. v. 594). 15. The dungeon in the nere, if they were not ; i. e. if there were no such people ; if it were not for them. H 98 NOTES 83. Pleyned hem, made their complaints ; lit. complained themselves, hem being here used reflexively. For other examples of pleyne followed by hem, see the Glossarial Index. 84. Pestilence tyme, time of pestilence ; cf. note to iii. 19. There were three great pestilences which were long remembered ; we may even count a fourth. For the dates of the two first, see note to Pass. v. 1. 13 ; the third lasted from July 2 to Sept. 29, 1369. The first was also called the great pestilence, and is probably here meant. In Pass. v. 13, William speaks of these pestilences, obviously with reference to theirs/ and second ones. Cf. Chaucer, Prol. 442. 85. To have, i.e. and petitioned the bishop that they might have. Cf. Chaucer, Prologue, where he says of the good parish priest, ' He sette not his benefice to huyre .... And ran to Londone, unto seynte Ponies, To seelten him a chattnterie for soitles.' 87. The whole of the passage in 11. 87-209 is peculiar to the B-text of the poem, and is not found in the A-text, or earliest draught. It is of much interest and importance, and refers entirely to London ; it was probably inserted here because London has just been mentioned. 88. Crounyng, tonsure. See Mrs. Jameson, Legends of Monastic Orders, p. xxxii ; WycliPs Works, ed. Arnold, iii. 447. 91. 'Lie (i.e. lodge, dwell) in London during Lent, and at other times.' 92. Tellen, count. Formerly, the three principal courts of law, the King's Bench, the Common Pleas, and the Exchequer, had a separate juris- diction. The Exchequer decided only such cases as related to the collection of the revenue, and hence the ecclesiastics who held office in it are said here to challenge, i. e. to claim the King's debts from the various wards or divi- sions of the city. The wardmote is the court, or meeting, held in each ward. They also claimed for the King all waifs and strays, i. e. property without an owner and strayed cattle. But see streyues in the Glossary. 4 Summe beth in ofice wid the king, and gaderen tresor to hepe, And the fraunchise of holi cherche hii laten ligge slepe.' Political Songs (Camd. Soc. 1839), p. 325. We read also in the Complaint of the Ploughman (Polit. Poems, i. 325), the following account of the ' canons seculer : ' They have great prebendes and dere, Some two or three, and some mo ; A personage to ben a playing fere, And yet they serve the King also, And let to ferme all that fare To whom that woll most give therefore;' &c. 95. Wycliffe complains in the same strain ' But our Priests ben so busie about wordlie [worldly] occupation, that they seemen better Baylifs or Reues, than ghostlie Priests of Jesu Christ. For what man is so busie about TO THE PROLOGUE. 99 marchandise, and other wordly doings, as bene Preists that showld bee light of heauenlie life to al men about them.' Two Treatises against Friars, ed. James, p. 16. And see Wyclifs Works, ed. Arnold, iii. 215, 277, 335. In Pecock's Represser, ii. 324, 366, is an answer to the charge brought by the Wycliffites that some bishops and abbots held courts and decided causes. 97. Messe, mass ; oures, hours, or prayers repeated at stated times of the day. Cf. Pass. i. 181. 98. Drede is, there is a fear, it is to be feared. 99. Consislorie, also frequently spelt conslorie, a church council or assembly of prelates. It is here used of the Last Great Assembly held by Christ at the day of Judgment. IO2. I. e. Peter deputed the power of the Keys to the four cardinal virtue?, viz. to Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude, and Justice. The old English names are Sleight, Temperance, Strength, and Doom ; see Ayenbite of Inwyt, p. 124. where we read further that 'Thise uour uirtues byeth y-cleped cardinals, uor thet hi byeth he^Aest amang the uirtues, huer-of the yealde [old] filosofes speke. Vor be thise uour uirtues the man gouerneth himzelue ine thise wordle, as the apostles gouerneth holy cherche be his cardinals.' In Pass. xix. Conscience reproves evildoers by telling them that without the cardinal virtues they will be lost ; whereupon a shameless vicar replies that if so, many a man will be lost, and that he never knew a 'cardinal* but such as came from the pope. The same play upon the word occurs here. So in Shakesp. Hen. VIII, iii. I. 103 ' Upon my soul, two reverend cardinal virtues I But cardinal sins and hollow hearts I fear ye.* 104. Cloyng $atis, closing gates. This is a sort of translation of the Latin cardinalis, which is derived from cardo, a hinge. The power of the keys is, as it were, made for the moment into a power of the hinges. 105. There, tfc., where Christ reigns. This sense of there should be carefully observed. Cf. 1. 190. 107. Atte Courte, at the court, sc. of Rome. Cau$t of, received. 111. I can speak more, for I have much I could say about them; yet I cannot speak more, out of reverence, for the power of electing a pope is a high and holy thing. Such seems to be William's meaning. 112. Tyrwhitt supposed that this part of the poem was written after the death of the Black Prince, when his son Richard was heir-apparent. In fact, the date of composition of this portion of the poem seems to be the earlier part of the year 1377. Line 113 it very signi- ficant. In many MSS., 11. 113 and 195 are underscored as worthy of attention. 114. Kynde wytte (a common phrase in our author) is what we now call common sense, i.e. natural intelligence. 117. Hem-self fynde, provide for themselves. Hem-self is ambiguous. It H 2 100 NOTES may mean that the king and his knights decided that the commons ought to support them, or that they ought to support themselves. The latter is more immediately meant ; cf. Chaucer, Nonne Prestes Tale, 1. 9. 1 1 8. Of liynde witte craftes, handicrafts that could be pursued by help of common intelligence. Besides the king, knights, clergy, and commons there was a fifth class, of ploughmen, &c., mere tillers of the soil, who were looked upon as inferior to the rest. Yet the importance of agriculture among the crafts was well recognised. 123. I have no doubt that the lunatic is William himself. He is here expressing his favourite loyal hope that the king may so govern as to be beloved by all loyal subjects. For the use of lunatic there are three reasons : (1) it conveys a touch of satire, as though it were a mad thing to hope for; (2) a lunatic is privileged to say strange things ; and (3) he expressly declares, at the beginning of Pass, xv, that people considered him a/oo/, and that he raved. This opinion he bitterly adopts. He makes the lunatic, however, speak clergealy, i. e. like a scholar. The word thing does not neces- sarily imply contempt ; it merely signifies a creature, a person. Cf. 'For he was a ful dughti thing;' Cursor Mundi, C-text, 1. 8182; ed. Morris. 126. Leue, grant. No two words have been more hopelessly confused than hue and lene. See Leue in the Glossary. The line means ' And grant thee to govern thy land, so that loyalty (i. e. thy lieges) may love thee.' 128. The angel descends and begins to speak, but only in Latin, since common people ought not to be told how to justify themselves ; all who could not understand Latin or French had best suffer and serve. The angel's reproof to the king is in Leonine or riming verses, of which the first is a hexameter, and the first four words of it are quoted as from the mouth of the king himself. The remaining six are alternate hexameters and penta- meters, and contain the angel's charge to the king. The verses may have been composed by William himself, and may be thus translated. (You say) I am a king, I am a prince," (but you will be) neither perhaps hereafter. O thou who dost administer the special laws of Christ the King, That thou mayst do this the better, as you are just, be merciful I Naked justice requires to be clothed by thee with mercy, Whatever crops thou wouldst reap, such be sure to sow. If justice is stripped bare, let it be meted to thee of naked justice; If mercy is sown, mayest thou reap of mercy 1 It may be added, that long pieces of advice to kings are common at this period of English. Thus, in Gower's Confessio Amantis, lib. vii, is a long disquisition on politics. Again, there is Occleve's poem, entitled De Re- gimine Principum. Both these, and many like them, are founded on a spurious treatise ascribed to Aristotle, and entitled Secretum Secretorum. TO THE PROLOGUE. IO1 Gower, like William, addresses his advice to Richard II, and with much freedom. So also Chaucer, in his Balade on Lack of Steadfastness. See Warton ; Hist. E. P. ii. 230; ed. 1840. 139. Goliardeys. 'Un goliardois, Fr. ; Goliardus, or Goliardensis, Lat. This jovial sect seems to have been so called from Golias, the real or assumed name of a man of wit, towards the end of the thirteenth century, who wrote the ApocalypsisGoliz, and other pieces in burlesque Latin rimes, some of which have been falsely attributed to Walter Map ... In several authors of the thirteenth century, quoted by Du Cange, the Goliardi are classed with the joculatores et biijfones.' Tyrwhitt ; note on 1. 562 of Chaucer's Cant. Tales. But it would appear that Golias is the sole invention of Walter Map, and that the original ' Golias ' poems are really his. He named his imaginary Bishop Golias after the Philistine slain by David ; not without some reference, perhaps, to the O. Fr. goule, Lat, gvla, gluttony. Soon after, Goliardus meant a clerical buffoon ; later still, it meant any jougleur, or any teller of ribald stories; in which sense it is used by Chaucer. See Morley's English Writers, vol. i. p. 586. William's Goliardeys is a glutton of words, one full of long pieces which he could recite; cf. the Latin phrase helluo librorum. He is here made to quote, in an altered form, two lines which are also found as under : 'O rex, si rex es, rege te, vel eris sine re, rex; Nomen habes sine re, nisi te recteque regas, rex.' Political Poems, ed. Wright, i. 278. Compare also ' Legem quoque dicimus regis dignitatem Regere; nam credimus esse legem lucem, Sine qua concludimus deviare ducein.' Political Songs (Camd. Soc.), p. 115. Also Non a regnando rex est, sed iure regendo.' Political Poems, i. 57. 143. The commons are not supposed to have understood the angel's advice given in Latin, but they just knew as much as was good for them to know ; they could say ' Precepta regis sunt nobis vincula legis.' 146. This well-known fable, of the rats and mice trying to hang a bell round the cat's neck, is nowhere so well told as here. Mr. Wright says ' The fable is found in the old collection, in French verse of the fourteenth century, entitled Ysopet ; and M. Robert has also printed a Latin metrical version of the story from a MS. of the same century. La Fontaine has given it among his fables.' It is a well-known story in Scottish history, that this fable was narrated by Lord Gray to the conspirators against the fa- vourites of King James III, when Archibald, Earl of Angus, exclaimed, ' I am he who will bell the cat;' from which circumstance he obtained the name of 102 NOTES Archibald Bell-the-Cat ; see Marmion, note 3 Y. In the present instance, the rats are the burgesses and more influential men among the commons ; the mice, those of less importance. The cat can be no other than the old King Edward III, whilst the kitten is Richard, his grandson, afterwards Richard II. On the death of the Black Prince, which took place on June 8, 1376, his son Richard became heir-apparent. The date of this part of the present version of the poem seems to be the early part of 1377, shortly before the death of Edward on June 21 of that year. Compare the note to Pass. iii. 398, where there is evidently a reference to the proclamation of Edward's jubilee in February of the same year. Hence the date is limited to the months of March, April, and May, 1377; which gives us a very close approximation. I am indebted to some excellent remarks on this subject by M. J. J. Jusserand, who published some ' Observations sur la Vision de Piers Plowman ' at Paris, in 1879. 152. Doute in Old English almost always means/ear, as here. Lolte, look about us; cf. 1. 172. 153. 'And if we grumble about his play,' &c. 155- V* lotheth, it loathes us, i. e. we loathe; cf. 1. 174. Or, ere. 157. Aloft, on high, above his reach. 158. Renable, contracted from resonable. Thus, in Myrc's Duties of a Parish Priest (ed. Peacock, 1868), the Cotton MS. has ' renabulle tonge' where the Douce MS. has ' resonable.' But it was often regarded as if formed from the verb renne, to run ; hence it is still used in Norfolk in the form runnable; i. e. glib, loquacious. In the following it has, apparently, the older meaning : Hir maners might no man amend j Of long she was trew and renable, And of hir semblant soft and stabile.' Ywaine and Gawaine, I. 208; in Ritson's Met. Rom. vol. i. p. 10. So also renably for reasonably in Chaucer, C. T. 7091. The C-text has resonable. 159. ' For a sovereign remedy for himself;' i.e. as far as he was him- self concerned. Cf./or me, 1. 201. 161. Bighes, necklaces. Colers of crafty werk, collars of skilful work- manship ; alluding to the gold or metal chains, such as are still worn by sheriffs, &c. 164. And at other times they are elsewhere, viz. away from London, living in retirement. 1 80. ' And thought themselves not daring enough,' &c. 181. Leten, considered, esteemed; cf. Pass. iv. 1. 160. 185. Sholde, would ; as in 1. 79 above. 185. To lot the catte worthe, to let the cat be, to let it alone. Worthe is the A. S. weorftan, to be. When Alexander tamed Bucephalus, we read that TO THE PROLOGUE. 103 4 Soone hee leapes on-loft and lete hym worthe To fare as hym lyst faine in feelde or in towne.* William of Palernc, &c. ; ed. Skeat, 1867; p. 2 1 6. 189. 7s sevene $ere ypassed, i. e. seven years have past, seven^ years ago. 190. The expressive word elyng, elenge, or ellinge, still common in Kent, includes the meanings sad and solitary. Henry VIII, in a letter to Anne Bullen, speaks of ' his ellengness since her departure;' Hearne's edition of Avesbury, p. 360. The word is used both by Chaucer and Occleve. 191. 'Vse tibi, terra, cujus rex puer est, et cujus principes mane come- dunt;' Ecclesiastes x. 16. In MS. Digby 53 is a note to this effect par ]>e child is kinge and J>e cuerl [churl] is alderman, and be wale [stranger] biscop, wa )>ene lede [wo to the people"] ; unde versus, 'Ve populo cujus puer est rex, censor agrestis, Exterus antistes ; hii mala multa movent.' A similar saying is attributed to Beda; O. Eng. Miscellany, ed. Morris, p. 184. When Robert Crowley reprinted Piers Plowman, in the time of Edward VI, he added, for obvious reasons, this sidenote : ' Omnium doc- tissimorum suffragio, dicuntur hec de lassiuis, fatuis, aut ineptis principibus, non de etate tenellis. Quasi dicat, ubi rex puerilis est.' In this and other quotations, I follow the peculiar spellings of the originals. The use of e for , thou, is found in A.S. after the letter t, as in acealtu = scealt bw, shall thou. So here, slepetlow = slepest-tow = slepesl thou. 6. Mase, confused medley of people. Cf. note to iii. 159. 8. Hatie thei worschip, if they have honour. Wilne, desire ; different both from vrille, intend, and uyssche, wish. 9. Holde thei no tale, they keep no account, they regard not. II. What is this to mene, what is the meaning of this; or, how is this to be explained ? To mene takes the place of A.S. gerund, where to is a preposition governing the dative case, and mene is for mcenanne, a dative formed from the infinitive mcenan, to mean. Thus to mcenanne is, literally, for a meaning. 12. Vp, upon. The tower is that mentioned in the Prologue, 1. 14. Truth is here synonymous with the Father of Faith, i.e. God the Father and Creator. 15. Fyue wittis, five senses, viz. of hearing, sight, speech, smelling, feeling, according to the enumeration in Grosteste's Castle of Love. But for speech we commonly have lasting. In Pass. xiv. 53, is the passage ' Bi so that thow be sobre of syjte and of tonge, In etynge .and in handlynge and in alle thi fyue wittis.' Compare Tennyson's Song of the Owl: ' Alone and warming his Jive wits, The white owl in the belfry sits.' 17. Hyghte, commanded. To help yow of, to provide you with. 20. In coniune three tkinges, three things in common ; these are clothing, meat, and drink. ' The chief thing for life is water, and bread, and clothing, and an house to cover shame.' Ecclus. xxix. 21 ; cf. xxxix. 26. Hence, in Spenser, F. Q. i. x. 37-39, the first three of the seven headmen supply lodging, meat, drink, and clothing. 23. From chele, &c., to keep thee from a chill. TO PASSUS I. 107 24. For myseise, as a remedy against disease or discomfort. This curious use of for is worth notice. It is sufficiently common; cf. vi. 62. 26. That thow worth, so that thou become the worse for it. 35. ' Moderation is a remedy, though thou yearn for much.' The same line reappears in Richard the Redeles, ii. 139, a poem which I attribute to the author of Piers Plowman : ' But mesure Is a meri mene, Jouj men moche yerne.' Cf. Deposition of Rich. II. (Camd. Soc.), p. 12. 'Mesure is a mery mene* is quoted as a proverb by Skelton and Heywood. Another form of it is Measure is treasure ; Dyce's Skelton, ii. 238, 241. 36, 37. This means Not all which the body desires is good for the soul, nor is all that is dear to the soul a source of life to the body. 38. 'Believe not thy body, for a liar this wretched world teaches it, and would betray thee.' 41. ' Both this (the fiend) and that (thy flesh) pursue thy soul, and sug- gest things to thy heart.' 42. Ywar, wary. This is an instance of the prefix y-, the A.S. ge-, being prefixed to an adjective. It is the A.S. geweer, wary, cautious, from which our aware seems to have been corrupted, though its form would correspond better to the A.S. on ware, in caution, on guard. / wisse, I teach, is to be distinguished from the adverb I-wis, certainly, with which it is only too often confounded ; and both again are different from I wot, I know, and / wiste, I knew, which are from the verb to wit. 46. 'Go to the gospel, (and see there) that which God said himself.' 49. 'And God (i.e. Jesus) enquired of them of whom spake the superscription.' 50. Ilyke, like; see note to I. 42. The word was is understood before Ilyke, but is not in the MSS. of the B-text. But it is found in those of the A-text. 52. 'Et ait illis Jesus : Cujus est imago haec, et superscriptio ? Dicunt ei, Czsaris. Tune ait illis : Reddite ergo quse sunt Czsaris, Czsari ; et quae sunt Dei, Deo.' Matt. xxii. 20, 21 (Vulgate). 55. Kynde witle, common sense; cf. Prol. 114. 56. ' And Common Sense should be preserver of your treasure, and should bestow it on you in your need.' 57. Housbonderye, economy; as in Shakespeare, Macbeth, ii. I. 5, 'There's husbandry in heaven," because no stars were out. The line signifies that ' economy and they (viz. reason and wit) hold well together.' Hij, put for Ay, they. Holden togideres ; see note to Prol., 1. 66. 58. For hym, for the sake of Him who made her. 59. The dungeon is that spoken of in Prol., 1. 15. 62. To body, so as to possess a body. Cf. 1. 82, where wroughte me to man means wrought me so that I became a matt. 108 NOTES 64. And founded it, and he founded it. Here it refers to falsehood, not to the castle of care; for, with our author, to found is to originate. 66. Caym, Cain. See note to Prol., 1. 58. 67. luwen, of Jews. The gen. pi. ending is -en or -ene ; see 1. 105. 68. The idea that Judas hanged himself upon an elder occurs in Shake- speare, Love's Labour's Lost, v. 2 ; and in Ben Jonson ' He shall be your "judos, and you shall be his elder-tree to hang on ; ' Every Man out of Hum. iv. 4. See Nares. On the other hand, we read that ' the Arbor Juda is thought to be that whereon Judas hanged himself, and not upon the elder- tree, as it is vulgarly said ;' Gerrard's Herbal, ed. Johnson, p. 1428 ; quoted by Brand, Pop. Ant. iii. 283. Mr. Wright points out a passage in Sir John Maundeville, who says that the very elder-tree was still in existence when he visited Jerusalem ; see p. 93 of Halliwell's edition. 69. Letter, stopper, hinderer, destroyer. Lyeth hem, lieth to them. 70. That, Those who. 73. Yeode, or yede, went. See note to Prol., 1. 40. 74. Wissed, taught. See note to 1. 42. 76. 7 vnderfonge ]>e, I received thee, viz. at baptism. 77- Borwes, sureties, viz. the sponsors in baptism. 82. Wroughte me to man, shaped me so that I became a man. There are other instances of this phrase. Cf. 1. 62. 83. Teche me to, direct me to. Teach is here used in its original sense, to indicate, point out by a token or sign. This illte, this same, this very thing. The word tresore alludes to 1. 45 ; the dreamer now alters his question. 84. ' Tell me, thou who art considered holy, how may I save my soul ? ' 86. 7 do it on deits caritas, I appeal to the text God is love (l John iv. 8) as my authority. Cf. Pass. iii. 187. 88. None other, nothing else but the truth. The Vernon MS. has not elles. 90. Bi the gospel, by what the gospel says, according to the gospel. In the next line we are referred to St. Luke, that is, to the parable of the un- just steward, where those to whom are to be committed the 'true riches* are taught to be faithful in that which is least ; Luke xvi. 10-13. See also Luke viii. 21. 93. Christians and heathens alike claim to learn the truth. 96. Trans gressoret is marked in the MSS. as a Latin word. Latin words are strongly underlined, frequently with a red stroke. 98. Appendeth for, pertains to. Another reading is apendeth to. 99. A Fryday, one single Friday. A Friday generally means on Friday, but not here. Another reading is o, i. e. one. Cf. ' all of a size.' 100. Him and hir, i.e. every man and woman; as in Ch. Man of Lawes Tale, 460 (Cant. Tales, 4880). TO PASS US I. 109 *O2. David, &c. This may refer to i Sam. xxii. 2, to I Chron. xi. 1-3, or, still more probably, to I Chron. xii. 17, 18. When King Horn was dubbed a knight, as told in the romance of that name, he was girt with a sword, his spurs were fastened on him, and he was set upon a white steed. A few lines lower, at 1. 105, we find Christ described as knighting the angels. 104. An apostata was one who quitted his order after he had completed the year of his noviciate. This is very clearly shewn by the following statement of a novice, Out of the ordre thof I be gone, Apostata ne am I none, Of twelve monethes me wanted one. And odde days nyen or ten.' Monumenta Franciscana, p. 606. The writer of this was one who had been a novice in the order of St. Francis, but left it to become a Wycliffite. See my preface to Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, p. xiii. 105. Kyngene kynge, king of kings. The genitive plural in -ene is from the A. S. ending -ena, as in Witena gemot, meeting of wits (wise men). Wyclifte says, in speaking of true religion, that Jesu Christ and his Apostles bene chiefe knights thereof, and after them Holy Martirs and Confessours ' ; Two Treatises against Friers, ed. James, p. 19. So too Chaucer, C. T., Group G, 383 (Second Nonnes Tale). Ten ; so in all the MSS., otherwise we should have expected nine ; for the angels were generally distributed into three hierarchies of three orders each : first, seraphim, cherubim, and thrones ; second, dominions, virtues, and powers ; third, principalities, archangels, and angels. William here enu- merates the seraphim and cherubim, seven suck orders more, and one other. But the one other is the order over which Lucifer presided, as implied by 1. ill. This makes up the ten orders, as having been the original number. And that this is the true explanation is rendered certain by a passage in Early English Homilies, ed. Morris, 1 868, p. 219, where the preacher enu- merates the nine orders, and adds that the tenth order revolted and became evil ; that the elder of the tenth order was called ' leoht berinde* i. e. light- bearing or Lucifer, who was beautifully formed, but who grew moody and said that he would sit in the north part of heaven, and be equal to the Almighty. For this sin he was driven out of heaven with his host. It must be added, that this tenth order was above, not below, the other nine ; for the Franciscan Friars used to call themselves the Seraphic Order, having installed their founder, St. Francis, ' above the Seraphim, upon the throne from which Lucifer fell.' See Southey's Book of the Church, ed. 1848, p. 182. Speak- ing of the Chester Mystery of the Fall of Lucifer, Dean Milman says, This drama, performed by the guilds in a provincial city in England, solves the insoluble problem of the origin of evil through the intense pride of IIO NOTES Lucifer. God himself is present on the scene ; the nine Orders remonstrate against the overweening haughtiness of Lucifer, who, with the devils, is cast down into the dark dungeon prepared for them.' Hist, of Lat. Christ, vi. 409. See also the Ormulum, i. 34; Chambers' Book of Days, i. 635; Mr. Kitchin's note on Spenser's Faerie Queene, i. 12. 39; Warton's Hist. Eng. Poetry, ed. Hazlitt, iii. 233, note 4, &c. Allusions to this fall of Lucifer are very common; see the beginning of Chaucer's Monkes Tale; Wycliffe's Two Treatises, p. 35 ; Ayenbite of Inwyt, ed. Morris, 1868, p. 182 ; Genesis and Exodus, ed. Morris, 1865, p. 3 ; Caedmon, ed. Thorpe, p. 18, &c. See a long note by myself in Notes and Queries, 3rd S. xii. 1 10 ; and cf. note to !. 118. 107. The muryer, the more pleasant it seemed to them. 118. Ponant pedem, &c. An inexact quotation from Isaiah xiv. 13, 14: 'In ccelum conscendam, super astra Dei exaltabo solium meum, sedebo in monte testamenti, in lateribus aquilonis. Ascendam super altitudinem nu- bium ; similis ero Altissimo.' It is curious that wherever the fall of Lucifer is mentioned, as in most of the places cited in the note above, there is men- tion also of Lucifer's sitting in the north. We find it even in Milton, P. L. v- 755-76o: At length into the limits of the north. They came; and Satan to his royal seat, The palace of great Lucifer? &c. So in Skelton's Colin Clout : ' Some say ye sit in trones [thrones] Like princes aquilonis.' So in the Anglo-Saxon Version of the Hexameron of St. Basil, ed. Norman, 1849, p. 16, which agrees closely with Isaiah. In Chaucer's Freres Tale, 115, the fiend lives 'in the north centre.' In Text C of Piers Plowman, William inquires why Lucifer chose the north side, but fears he shall offend Northern men if he says much about it. Yet he hints that the north is the place for cold and discomfort, and suitable enough for the fallen angel. In the Icelandic Gylfaginning we find ' m'Sr ok norSr liggr Helvegr,' i.e. ' downwards and northwards lieth the way to Hell." 119. Nyne dayes. So Milton 'Nine days they fell'; P. L. vi. 871. 123. Mr. Wright says 'In the Master of Oxford's Catechism, written early in the fifteenth century, and printed in Reliquiae Antiquae, vol.i. p. 231, we have the following question and answer C. Where be the anjelles that God put out of heven, and bycam devilles? M. Som into hell, and som reyned in the skye, and som in the erth, and som in waters and in wodys.' This was an easy way of accounting for all classes of fairies, some of whom were supposed to be not malignant ; for the fallen spirits were supposed to be not all equally wicked. The Rosicrucians, in like manner, placed the TO PASSUS I. Ill sylphs in the air, the gnomes in the earth, the salamanders in the fire, the nymphs in the water ; and as Pope says, in his Introduction to the Rape of the Lock 'The gnomes, or demons of earth, delight in mischief; but the sylphs, whose habitation is the air, are the best-conditioned creatures imaginable.' 1 25. Pull out, put out, put forth, exhibited. 132. The texts are, Reddite Ceesari, 1. 52, and Deus caritas, 1. 86. This line is repeated at 1. 204. Bi si;te, according to the evidence. 134. Lereth it this lewde men, Teach it to these unlearned men. To lere is to teach, lerne to learn. Lerne sometimes also means to teach, as in prov. English, but lere is never (I think) to learn in our author, as it is in Chaucer. This and thise are both used as plurals of this. 136. Kynde knowing, natural understanding. 137. Craft, power, potentiality. Comseth, commenceth, originates. 1 39. I have not yet traced the original of this Latin rimed (or Leonine) hexameter ; it recurs at v. 448. 140. Here the 'kynde knowyng 1 is identified with conscience. Kenneth, makes known, makes manifest. 146. Triacle. ' Theriaca, from which treacle is a corruption, is the name of a nostrum, invented by Andromachus, who was physician to Nero ' ; Bacon's Advancement of Learning, ed. Wright ; note at p. 296. A full account of the word is given by Professor Morley, in his Library of Eng. Literature, part i. p. 21. 147. That spice, that species, that kind of remedy for sin. It refers to love, which is the theme of the succeeding context. 149. Lered it Moises, taught it Moses ; viz. in Deut. vi. 5, x. 12, &c. 150. Plante, plant. MSS. of the A-type have plaunte, plante, plonte, &c., which can only mean plant. Plente (which is another reading) would mean plenty, fulness. See the Critical Note. 151. //, sc. love ; here used of the love of Christ, which heaven could not contain, till it had ' eaten its fill of the earth,' i. e. participated in the human nature by Incarnation. When it had taken flesh and blood, it became light as a linden-leaf, and piercing as a needle. 154. ' As light as leaf on linden ' was an old proverb. It occurs in Chaucer's Clerk es Tale, Group E, rail. The leaves of the tree are easily stirred by the wind. 160. He, i.e. love. The merciment iaxelh, assesses (or imposes) the fine. Cf. vi. 40, where amercy = fine, and taxoure = assessor. Fines were of fixed amount ; but amerciaments were arbitrarily imposed. 161. To knowe it kyndely, to understand it by natural reason ; cf. 11. 136, 140. In Pass, ix, near the beginning, there is a description of the castle of Caro (man's body), which is guarded by the constable Invnt (conscience) ; and it is said of Inwit and the five senses that In the herte is hir home " and hir moste reste;' 1. 55. 113 NOTES 164. That falleth, &c. That belongs to the Father, i. e. it is God the Father who implanted Conscience in man's heart. 167. He, sc. God the Son. 1 70. One, alone ; dat. case of on, one, A. S. an. 173. Compare ' Cogitate, diuites, qui uel quales estis, Quod in hoc iudicio facere potestis,' &c. Poems of Walter Map, ed. Wright, p. 53. 176. Eadem. &c. Matthew vii. 2 ; Luke vi. 38. Rtmecietur is no mis- print. Some Latin words are not always spelt alike in old MSS. Thus scintilla is frequently spelt sintilla, as in Pass. v. 291, and commodat is spelt comodat, as in Pass. v. 246. 177. A childe, &c. This probably means a babe who is being baptized, baptism being sometimes accompanied by tears on the part of the infant. 179. Lent the poure, lend to the poor. Potire is for povre, more fre- quently spelt pouere, i.e.povere. 182. Malkyn was a proverbial name for an unchaste slattern. It occurs in Chaucer's Man of Lawes Prologue, 1. 30. 185. For dore-tre some MSS. have dore-nayl. Note that Ire is expressly used here, as elsewhere in Old English, in the sense of wood that is cut down and dead. So too in the modern axle-tree ; so that dore-tre means a door-post. As dead as a door-nail is still a common proverb, but it is older even than William's poem, as it occurs twice in the alliterative romance of William of Palerne, written about A.D. 1 350. The Vulgate edition of the Bible has ' Sicut enim corpus sine spiritu mortuum est, ita et fides sine operibus mortua est.' S. Jacob, ii. 26. 1 86. Worth, shall be. The present is often used for the future in Middle English, as in Anglo-Saxon. We even find iu our Bibles, ' we also go with thee,' John xxi. 3. This line is repeated below, 1. 192. 187. Dan Michel, in his Ayenbite of Inwyt (ed. Morris, p. 233), says that virginity without love is as a lamp without oil, and refers to the parable of the foolish virgins. No doubt William also was thinking of that parable. 191. Chewen here charite, &c. They chew up their charity; i.e. they eat up what they should give away, and then cry out for more. This striking expression, chewen charite, was copied from William by his imitator, the author of the Ploughman's Crede ; see the Crede, ed. Skeat, 1. 663. 194. Thei ben, i. e. and yet they are. 197. And lernyng, &c. ; and an instruction to unlearned men, to distribute (alms) all the later, i.e. to put off giving away. For the sense of dele, see 1. 199. 199. Date et dabitur vobis (S. Luke vi. 38) is the commencement of the verse already partially quoted above; see 1. 176. 203. Graith gate direct way. The expression occur* in the History of Wallace, v. 135, TO PASSUS II. IJ3 For thair sloith-hund the graith gate till him yeid ;' i.e. their sleuth-hound went straight towards him. Cf. Pass. iv. 42. 204. Repeated from above ; see 11. 132, 133. 207. Lenge the with, linger with thee. Lake the, guard thee ; i.e. may our Lord guard thee I PASSUS II. 5, 6. ' See where he [Falsehood] stands ; and not he only, but Favel [Flattery] also, and their many companions.' Occleve, in his De Regimine Principum, ed. Wright, pp. 106, III, describes favelle or flattery, and says ' In wrong preisyng is all his craft and arte.' Cf. Wiat's 2nd Satire, 1.67, in Specimens of English, ed. Skeat. 8. A womman. Here William carefully describes the Lady Meed, who represents both Reward in general, and Bribery in particular ; the various senses of Meed are explained in iii. 230-256. Female dress at this date was very extravagant, and we may compare with the text the following remarks in Lingard's History. ' Her head was encircled with a turban or covered with a species of mitre of enormous height, from the summit of which ribbons floated in the air like the streamers from the head of a mast. Her tunic was half of one colour, and half of another : a zone deeply embroidered, and richly or- namented with gold, confined her waist, and from it were suspended in front two daggers in their respective pouches ;' vol. iv. p. 91. This part of Piers Plowman appears in the early text of 1362, otherwise William's description of Meed would have served admirably for Alice Ferrers, who obtained a grant of Queen Philippa's jewels, and employed her influence to impede the due administration of justice in favour of those who had purchased her pro- tection; 1 and against whom the following ordinance was made in 1376: ' Whereas complaint has been brought before the king, that some women have pursued causes and actions in the king's courts by way of main- tenance, and for hire and reward, which thing displeases the king, the king forbids that any woman do it hereafter ; and in particular Alice Ferrers,' &c. See Lingard, iv. 142. Indeed it is very likely that William perceived this likeness in revising his poem, for the description of Meed's clothing is ampli- fied in the B-text, and he adds the very significant line, ' I had wondre what she was ' and whas wyf she were.' How Alice treated King Edward in his last illness is well known. Whitaker suggests that the Lady Meed is the original of Spenser's Lady Munera ; see Spenser, F. (^ bk. v. c. ii. st. 9. 9. Pelure, fur. The laws about the kinds of furs to be worn by different ranks were very minute. Furred hoods, in particular, were much in fashion. 14. Enuenymes to destroys. It was a common belief that precious stones could cure diseases, and that they were as antidotes against poisons. Thui Richard Preston, citizen and grocer, gave to the shrine of St. Erkenwald I 1 14 NOTES his best sapphire stone, for curing of infirmities of the eyes,' &c. ; note in Milman's Lat. Christ, vi. 375 ; where Milman quotes from Dugdale, p. 21. So also, in the Ancren Riwle, pp. 134-136, ed. Morton, Christ is likened to the agate which the poison of sin cannot approach. 15. Engreyned, i.e. dyed of a fast colour. See the note in Smith's Student's Manual of English Literature, by P. Marsh, p. 55. Add to the illustrations there given the following : " In crammasyn cled and granyt violat ; ' Gawin Douglas, in Specimens of English, ed. Skeat, p. 127. 19. What, who. But it implies something more, viz. what sort of a person. So in Layamon, 1. 13844, ' Ich the wullen cu'Sen what cnihtes we beoS,' i. e. 'I will inform thee what knights (what sort of knights) we are." This is spoken by Hengist, who then proceeds to describe himself and his companions fully. 20. Mede, i. e. Meed, or Reward ; but here used in a bad sense, as the per- sonification of Bribery. In the twelfth year of Henry III a common seal was granted to the city of London, and it was ordered that any one who shewed reasonable cause should be permitted to use it, ' and that no mede schulde be take no [nor] payed of eny man in no manner wyse for the said seall ; ' Chron. of London, p. 13. It is just in this sense that William uses it. 21. Lewte, Loyalty. William arrays Love, Loyalty, Soothness, Reason, Conscience, Wisdom, and Wit on the one side, and Meed (daughter of False), Wrong, Favel or Flattery, Simony, Civil, Liar, and Guile upon the other. Wisdom and Wit waver in their allegiance, but are won back again. Lines 27-38 are not in the A-text. 27. As leynde axeth, as nature requires or provides. For bona some MSS. have bonus, for the sake of euphony, much as in French we have mon for ma before nouns beginning with a vowel. 30. O god, one God. Wright's text has So, but it is a misprint for Oo. 31. To marye with myself; we should now arrange the words to marry my- self with. With in Middle English is always near its verb, a puzzling arrange- ment to a learner. So in the Crede, ' to coueren with our bones,' 1. 1 1 6. So, in 1. 116 below, to wratthe with treuthe means 'to anger Truth with.' Mercy is here the dowry which Holy Church brings to the man who espouses her. 38. See Ps. xv. i (called xiv. in the Vulgate). 39. Mansed, cursed. The word moused in Mr. Wright's text is a mis- print, as he explains in a note on p. 537, and in his Glossary. 43. Brnydale, bride-ale or bridal. An ale means a feast merely. There were leet-ales, scot-ales, church-ales, clerk-ales, bid-ales, and bride-ales. The bride-ales were so called because the bride brewed some ale for her wedding- day, which her friends purchased at a high price, by way of assisting her and amusing themselves at the same time. This led to abuses, and we find in the court-roll of Hales Owen, in the I5th year of Elizabeth, an order ' that persons brewing wedding-ale to sell, should not brew above 12 strike of malt at most.' See Brand's Popular Antiquities, ed. Ellis, ii. 144. TO PASSUS IT. 115 47. Lot hem worth, &c. ; let them be, till Loyalty be a justice. Cf. note to Prologue, 1. 187. 49. / bikenne the criste, I commend thee to Christ ; criste is the dative case of en's/. 50. -For, on account of; ' on account of greediness of reward.' 59. Brokoures. In the reign of Edward I. a law was passed that ' no one shall be broker, but those who are admitted and sworn before the Mayor.' Liber Albus, ed. Riley, p. 505. 62. In Passus xx. the church is described as assailed by numerous enemies. One is Simony, who causes good faith to flee away, and falseness to abide, and who boldly vanquishes much of the wit and wisdom of Westminster Hall by the use of many a bright noble. He is also there described as con- Iriving divorces. By Cyuile is meant one skilled in the civil law. A fisoter was (i) a person deputed to hold assizes; and (2) a juror, though not quite in the modern sense. See Polit. Songs, ed. Wright, p. 344; Tale of Gamelyn.l. 871. 65. Brokour is here used in the general sense of a contriver of bargains, a match-maker. Brokage (1. 87) is a treaty made by an agent. 66. Here beire wille, the will of them both. See Beire in the Glossary. 73. Hei$, loudly ; ' to cry out very loudly,' ' to proclaim aloud.' 74. The form of this mock charter may be compared with that of the charter whereby the Black Prince was invested, in 1362 (the very year in which William wrote the first version of his poem) with the principality of Acquitaine. It is given at length in Barnes's Life of Edward III. 76. Free Jtynde, liberal nature, liberality of nature, generosity. Cf. fredom liberality, in Chaucer, Prol. 46. Or it may mean 'gentle blood.' 78. Fejfeth, grants to them ; lit. enfeojfs, i. e. invests them with a fief or fee. 80. To bakbite, to defame. See note to v. 89. 85. 'The County of Covetousness, and all the coasts around it;' where coasts = borders, neighbouring country. See Matt. viii. 34. 95. Frete, to eat, viz. before the proper time for eating arrived. 98. Here is a sudden change from the plural to the singular; his seems to refer to Falsehood. In 1. loo there is a sudden change to the plural again, since here means their. But other passages show that his and hym may be used indefinitely, as we now use one's and one. 102. A dwellyng, a habitation; the ace. after holde. 103. In-to (invariably in Lowland Scotch, and occasionally in old English) has the force of in merely. 104. $eldyng, giving up in return. Cf. the phrase 'to yield a crop;' Cymb. iv. 2. 180. See Pass. v. 296. 108. Of Paulynes doctrine, of the doctrine (or order) of the Paulines. In the same yere [1310] began the order of Pavlyns, that is to say, Crowched Freres.' A Chronicle of London (edited in 1827, and published by Longmans), p. 43. But Matthew Paris says that the order of Crutched Friars came into England A.D. 1 244. In a poem called the Image of Ypo- I 2 Il6 NOTES crisie, written about A.D. 1533, a list is given of orders of monks, which in- cludes the Paulines, the Antonines, Bernardines, Celestines, &c. The C-text has, Of Paulynes queste, i. e. of the Paulines' inquest or jury ; observe also that the word Paulynes occurs again below, 1. 177. in connection with ecclesiastical law-courts. 109. Bedel. ' The duties of the beadle, in ancient times, lay more on the farm than in the law-court. ... In many places, the bedelry and the hay- wardship were held together by one person,' &c. See Nooks and Corners of English Life, by Timbs; p. 233. The oath of the Bedels is given at p. 273 of the Liber Albus. They were to suffer no persons of ill repute to dwell in the ward of which they were bedels, to return good men upon inquests, not to be regrators themselves, nor to suffer things to be sold secretly. And at p. 289 of the same we find 'Item, that the bedel have a good horn, and loudly sounding.' It is re/narkable that in Text C, William changed Bokyngham-shire (which may merely have been chosen for the alliteration) into ' Banbnry solten? This may have been an intentional fling at the beadle of Banbury, with whom he may have quarrelled. For it is to be noted that Banbury is at no great distance from Shipton-under-Wychwood, where William's father is said to have farmed land. 122. Dignus eit enitn operarius mercede sua ; Luke x. "]. 128. But (/"might very well have been printed btit-if, with a hyphen, as it is here practically one word, with the meaning except. 129. Fikel, treacherous, not changeable ; so also in Hi. 121. Cf. Havelok, ed. Skeat, 1. 1210. 132. For cosyti, as if she were his cousin. An she wolde, if she wished. 137. Witty is truthe, wise is Truth. It must be remembered that Truth means God the Father, as in Pass. i. 12. 140. Bisitte, sit close to, oppress. Soure, bitterly, lit. sourly ; not sorely ; cf. note to Selections from Chaucer, ed. Skeat, Group. B, 1. 2012. 143. Floreines, florins; the name of which is derived from the city of Florence. We read in Fabyan (ed. Ellis, p. 455) under the year 1343 ' In this yere also, kynge Edward made a coyne of fine gold, and named it the floryne, that is to say, the peny of the value of vis. viiuf., the halfe peny of the value of iiis. iiiirf., and the farthinge of the value of xx 13334. He toke me certain gold, I wote it well.' Whether the noble or florin was first coined, and what was the exact value of them, seem somewhat doubtful, unless we can depend upon the statement of Fabyan quoted above, Pass. ii. 143, and upon the following statement of the same, under the year 1339, ' ^ n tn ' s vere a ' so tne kynge chaungyd his coyne, and made the noble & the halfe noble of the value of vi s. viii d., which at this day is worthe viii s. ix d. or x d., & the halfe noble after the rate, if they kepe the trewe weyght,' &c. There is a similar statement in A Chronicle of London, p. 57, under the fourteenth year of Edward III, which seems, as ia Fabyan, to signify 1339 rather than 1340: 'also the kyng made the coyne of goold : that is for to seyne, the noble, the halfe noble, and the ferthyng.' Walsingham gives the date 1343 for the coinage 120 NOTES of florins; but some consider the true date to be 1344. In the English Cyclopaedia, under the heading Coin, we are told that ' it is from Edward III that the series of English gold coins really commences, for no more occurs till 1344, when that prince struck florins. The half and quarter-florin were struck at the same time. The florin was then to go for six shillings, though now it would be intrinsically worth nineteen. This coin being inconvenient, as forming no aliquot part of larger ideal denominations, seems to have been withdrawn. None have yet been found, but a few quarter-florins are pre- served in cabinets, and one half-florin is known. In consequence, in the same year, the noble was published, of 6 s. 8 d. value, forming half a mark, then the most general ideal form of money. The obverse represents the king standing on a vessel, asserting the dominion of the sea. The noble was also attended by its half and quarter. This coin, sometimes called the rose noble, together with its divisions, continued the only gold coin, till the angels of Edward IV, 1465, and the angelets or half-angels, were substi- tuted in their place. Henry V is said to have diminished the noble, still making it go for its former value. Henry VI restored it to its size, and caused it to pass for IO s., under the new name of ryal," &c. William clearly intimates that florins were by no means scarce, and this seems at first sight to contradict that which is said above. But the fact is simply, that most of the florins were coined abroad, chiefly at Florence ; and it was ordered that florins de Escu, and florins of Florence, should be current along with the sterlings, according to their value. See Ruding's Annals of the Coinage. 48. A wyndowe. A list of people who glazed windows for a new church of the Friars Minors is given in Monumenta Franciscana, p. 515. One of the names of subscribers to the expense is that of Isabella, mother of Edward III. The practice of glazing windows is satirized also by William's imitator in the Crede, 11. 123-128. It was usual to introduce portraits of the bene- factors in stained glass. Wil sitten vs, will ' sit ' us very highly ; we should now say will stand us in a very high amount, i. e. will cost us a great deal. 67. Thi kynde wille, and thi coste ; thy natural disposition, and thy expenses. 71. Or to greden after goddis men, or to cry out for God's men, i. e. to send for the friars. Nescial dnistra, &c. ; Matt. vi. 3. 75. Bit, biddeth; so ritt, contracted form of rideth, Pass. iv. 13, where most MSS. have ryt or rit, and one has ridilh; and again halt, for holdeth, in 1. 241 below. Mr. Wright's edition has by, a misprint for byt. 78. Pillories. Under the xvth year of Edward IV, Fabyan tells us that 'this yere this mayer [Robert Basset, salter] dyd sharp correccion vpon bakers for makynge of lyght brede, in so moche that he sette dyuerse vpon the pyllory and a woman named Agnes Deyntie was also there punysshed for sellyng of false myngyd [mixed] butter.' Lydgate has a ballad about Fraudulent Millers and Bakers, whose true heritage is the pillory (MS. Harl. 2255). Pynynge-stoles, stools of punishment, also called clicking- TO PASS US III. 121 stools. The cucking-stool was a seat of ignominy ; see Chambers' Book of Days, i. 211. 'In Scotland, an ale-wife who exhibited bad drink to the public was put upon the Cock stale, and the ale, like such relics of John Girder's feast as were totally uneatable (see Bride of Lammermoor), was given to the poor folk.' It was different from the ducking-stool, which was a punishment for scolds. See Brand ; Popular Antiquities, iii. 102 (note), and 103. Brand seems to confound the two. See also a long note in Hudibras, ed. Bell, vol. i. p. 231. Cf. note to Pass. iv. 126. 8 1. Parcel-mele, by small parcels, i.e. retail. 83. Regraterye, selling by retail. The wholesale dealer was called an Engrosser (whence our grocer), because he sold in the gross or great piece. The retail dealer was called a Regrater or Regrateress; cf. Pass. v. 226. The frauds and adulterations of the regraters were a constant source of annoyance, and were continually being complained of. Compare ' Si status conspicimus, nullus excusatur : Quod in shopis venditur, male mensuratur ; Quilibet perjurio vel fraude lucratur,' &c. Monumenta Franciscana, ed. Brewer, p. 593. Engrossers and Regraters are not to cause clearness of victuals ; Riley's Liber Albus, p. 547. Cotgrave explains O. F. regraietir by ' an huckster; mender, dresser, scowrer, trimmer up of old things for sale.' 85. Tymbred noug/it, would not have built. 89. Presentz. Presents made, not in money, but in silver cups, &c. 95. The quotation is not from Solomon, but from Job. xv. 34 : ' fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.' 99. 3eres$yues, lit. yeargifts. ' Jeresgive [read Yeresgive] is a toll or fine taken by the king's officers on a person's entering an office ; or rather, a sum of money or bribe, given to them to connive at extortion or other offence in him that gives it. (See Chart. Hen. II. ; fourth Chart. Hen. III. ; and ninth Chart. Hen. III.) ; ' Privilegia Londini, by W. Bohun, of the Middle Temple, 1723; qu. in N. and Q. 4 S. iv. 560. This definition perfectly suits the pre- sent passage, but we may fairly assume, from the form of the word, that it once meant an annual donation, like the modern Christmas-box. It came to be so troublesome that we find special exemptions from it, as in the follow- ing : ' Also, that the city of London shall be quit of Brudtol, and Childewite, and Yeresgive, and Scotale;' Liber Albus, ed. Riley, pp. 117, 138. TOO. The kynge. This passage is retained even in the latest version, which is later than 1380. But the description was originally intended for Edward III, for whom it is much mere suitable. See notes to 11. 126 and 1 86. 1 26. Alluding to the deposition and death of Edward II. 137. Grotes, lit. great coins, perhaps because, until they were coined, there was no silver coin larger than the penny; but the name arose in Bremen. ' ID this yere [1349] tne ^ynge caused to be coyned grotes and half grotes, the 122 NOTES whiche lacked of the weyghte of his former coyne, ii. s. vi d. in a It. [libra, pound] Troy.' Fabyan, p. 461. The groat should have been equal to four silver pennies, but was only equal to about three and a half. A drawing of one may be seen in Knight's Pictorial Hist. England, i. 837. 146. Provisors. A writ summoning one to appear for contempt of the sovereign was called pramunire, from its first word. ' Numerous statutes have defined what shall be such a contempt as amounts to a praemuuire. Most of the earlier are directed against promisors, as they were called, or persons who purchased from Rome provisions for holding abbeys or priories, &c., before those benefices were vacant (25 Edw. Ill, Stat. 5, c. 22. Stat. 6), or for exemption from obedience to their proper ordinary (2 Hen. IV, c. 3) or bulls for exemptions from tithes/ &c. English Cyclopaedia, s. v. Praemunire. William seems to allude to the purchase of sees in particular, as he speaks of 'these bishops,' 1. 148. 155. ' And lieth against the law, and hindereth it (in its) way.' Gafe = way, as in i. 203. Forth in 1. 156 signifies passage, means of egress. 157. Louedayes. Days on which extra services were rendered to the lord in seed-time or harvest were sometimes called boon-days or love-days ; ' but it more commonly meant a law-day, a day set apart for a leet or manorial court, a day of final concord and reconciliation: ' as we read in the Coventry Mysteries : ' Now is the love-day mad of us foure fynially, Now may we !eve in pes as we were wonte.' ' Hock-day was usually set apart for a love-day, law-day, or court-leet.' Timbs' Nooks and Corners of English Life, pp. 224, 228. [Hock-day was the second Tuesday after Easter.] William uses the term again, Pass. v. 1. 427, and it occurs in Chaucer, Prol., 1. 258. It was so called because the object was the amicable settlement of differences. 159. The mase, &c. It is bewilderment for a poor man, though he plead here ever.' Some MSS. have plede instead of mote ; several omit hir, which is also spelt hire, here, heer. The verb to hear is also sometimes spelt hire. Cf. 1. 167. 164. Clergye most frequently means learning, as opposed to lewdness, ignorance. It probably means so here, as bribery makes clever men covetous. 174. It is a mark of respect for Meed to address the king in the plural number, and a mark of familiarity or contempt to address Conscience in the singular. This distinction is very carefully observed by Chaucer, William, and the author of William of Palerne. 180. Hanged on myne half, hung upon my side, clung to my party. The word is never here written hah [neck] in MSS. of the B-class, although, curiously enough, the Vernon MS. has nek/te, probably by mistake. 183. Yit I may, Sec. ' Yet I may perhaps, as far as I might have the power, honour thee with gifts.' TO PASSUS in. 123 1 86. Cf. I. 1 26. Meed here repudiates the charge, and appeals to the king himself (Edward III). 1 88. This alludes to Edward's wars in Normandy, and, in particular, to the treaty sealed at Bretigny, near Chartres, on the 8th of May, 1360. Edward renounced his claim to the crown of France, and his claim to Nor- mandy, Anjou, Touraine, and Maine, and restored all his conquests except Calais and Guisnes ; but reserved Poitou, Guienne, and the county of Ponthieu. The dauphin agreed to pay, for the ransom of his father King John, the sum of 3,0x20,000 scutes (escus) or crowns of gold. See Lingard, iv. Il8; Thomas Walsingham, i. 290; Fabyan, p. 471. The sufferings of the English in their previous retreat from Paris to Bretagne were very great, and they encountered a most dreadful tempest near Chartres, with violent wind and heavy hail. Hence the allusions in the text to the cold, to the lengthening out of winter till May, to the dim cloud, and to the famine from which the army suffered. It is to be noted,' says Stow, ' that the 14 day of April, and the morrow after Easter Day (1360), King Edward with his host lay before the city of Paris ; which day was full dark of mist and hail, and so bitter cold, that many men died on their horsebacks with the cold ; wherefore unto this day it hath been called the Black Monday.' Meed suggests that instead of exacting money, Edward should have foregone it, or even have paid some, to secure to himself the kingdom of France. The articles agreed to at Bretigny were never fulfilled. 190. For colde, i.e. to keep off the cold. See note to vi. 62. 200. Marshal. ' When the king summoned his military tenants, the earl constable and earl mareschal held the principal command under the sove- reign ; but in armies raised by contract, he appointed two or more mareschals, whose duty it was to array the forces and to direct their movements.' Lin- gard, iv. 190. 220. The Itynge hath mede, &c. The context shews that mede is here to be taken in a good sense. It must therefore refer to the king's lawful tribute, and not to the fact that even the king sometimes accepted a bribe to make peace between neighbours. 224. Alkynnes crafty men, skilled men (craftsmen) of every kind. 230. Here Conscience distinguishes between the two meanings of Meed, viz. (l) divine reward, shewn by God to well-doers, and (2) corruption or bribery. 233. This and the two next quotations are from Psalm xv, called Ps. xiv in the Vulgate. 236. Assoileih it, solves the question. 237. Of o colour, of one colour, pure, spotless. 240. The quotation ends innocentem non accepit. 241. Halt, holdeth ; cf. bit, biddeth, &c. 247. Ps. xxvi. 10 (xxv. 10 in the Vulgate). 252. Matt. vi. 5. Most MSS. read recipiebant. 1 24 NOTES 2 57. Regum, the book of Kings; i.e. the first book, generally called the first book of Samuel. See I Sam. xv. 258. There is no apparent alliteration, but William considers and /to answer to one another, as in Pass. ii. 60, so that veniaunce rimes to fel ; in the second half of the verse the alliteration fails. 261. See Exod. xvii. 8 for the sin of Amalek. 262, 263. Hoteth the be boxome, bids thee to be obedient. 267. Cf. ' Movable good, as cuppe, or chalice, mytir, bacul, or nnmovable good, as hous, feeld, wode ' ; Pecock's Represser, ii. 386. 279. ' In case it should annoy men, I will make no ending,' i. e. draw no conclusion. 284. Somme, to some ; dat. plural. 291. His wille, the will of Truth, i. e. of God. 292. Leute, &c. 'Loyalty and no one else, shall execute the law upon him.' See Lyf in the Glossary. 293. Sillte howue, (white) silk hood. Cf. note to Prol. 1 10. 295. Ofmysdoeres, out of misdoers, from amongst misdoers. 296. Oner lordes lawes, superseding lords' laws. 298. With this line Pass iii., in the A-text, abruptly terminates. The admirable addition here made was suggested, I feel confident, by the recent proclamation of a jubilee, in the last year of Edward III (Feb. 1377), pro- claimed because the kins; had attained tl;e fiftieth year of his reign. Taking his cue from this, the poet hopes that the new reign of Richard II, soon to begin, may usher in a new era of perfect peace; but, in 1. 323, he sud- denly prophesies that certain rather unlikely events will first happen, thus revealing his fear that no such good time was really at hand. I find this suggestion confirmed by a similar passage in John of Bridlington's pretended prophecies, bk. iii. c. viii. ; cf. note to 1. 323. 303. Baslarde. ' Temp. Rich. II, civilians wore swords called baselards or badelaires. Example ; monument of a civilian, King's Sombourne Church, Hants, 1380.' Godwin's Handbook of English Archaeology, p. 261. 'The baselard was of two kinds, straight and curved ... By Statute 12 Rich. II, c. vi, it was provided that " null servant de husbandrie on laborer ne ser- vant de artificer ne de vitailler porte desore enavant baslard, dagger, nespee [nor sword} stir forfaiture dicelle." Priests were strictly inhibited from wearing this instrument of war, but the rule was constantly broken.' Note by Peacock to Myrc's Instructions for Parish Priests (Early English Text Society). The frequent enactments against the wearing of weapons by civilians, &c., in the reigns of Edward III and Richard II, show how often this law was disregarded. See Liber Albus, pp. 335, 554, 555. See also note to 1. 309, below. 306. See Isaiah ii. 4, quoted in note to 1. 322. 307. Pykoys, a mattock; now cleverly corrupted to 'pick-axe.' 309. To hunt (not with hounds, but) with placebo means to be diligent TO PASSUS IV. 125 in singing placebo, i. e. in studying the breviary. In Pass. xv. we find the author speaking of ploughing with placebo : 4 Sire Johan and sire Geffrey * hath a girdel of silver, A baselard or a ballok-knyf with botons over-gilte, Ac a porthors, that sholde be his plow placebo to sigge, Hadde he nevere service to save silver therto seith it with ydel wille.' Piers PI. ed. Wright, p. 302 ; or ed. Skeat, B. xv. 120. A later spelling of porthors is portotis; it means a breviary. The placebo was the Office for the Dead at Vespers, which began ' Placebo domino in regione viventium' (Ps. cxvi. 9, or cxv. 9 in the Vulgate). To ' sing placebo' came to be used in a humorous sense, to signify complaisance. Hence the name Placebo for a flattering character in Chaucer's Marchauntes Tale. 316. After the dede, according to the deed; cf. 'neither reward us after our iniquities ' in the Litany. 322. Isaiah ii. 4: 'Et judicabit gentes, et arguet populos multos: et con- flabunt gladios suos in vomeres, et lanceas suas in falces : non levabit gens contra gentem gladium, nee exercebuntur ultra ad przlium.' Cf. Wyclifs Works, ed. Arnold, i. 321, 322. 323. Fanciful prophecies were then in vogue ; see those of John of Brid- lington, in Political Poems, ed. Wright, vol. i. William has another similar one at the end of Pass. vi. This present one merely vaguely hints at a final time when Jews and Mahometans shall be converted. Line 325 is easily explained. The middle of a moon is the full moon, and to turn in M. E. means to be converted. It means thoughts upon the Paschal full moon will convert the Jews. As to the six suns, compare ' three suns' in 3 Hen. VI., ii. I. 25. 327. Prov. xxii. I. 330. The question is not from the book of Wisdom, but from Prov. xxii. 9. Meed quotes only half of it, for which Conscience reproves her, and quotes the rest, 1. 345. The full verse is ' Victoriam et honorem acquire! qui dat munera ; animam autem aufert accipientium.' 333. / leue wel, I well believe, I fully grant. 334. The lady read but half the text. It is ' Omnia autem probate, quod bonum est tenete.' I Thess. v. 21. 342. Were gode, would be good. 344. Seche sapience eft, refer to the book of Wisdom [Proverbs] again. 349. Sonde, gift. Conscience here adds the res>t of the quotation, which Meed, less accurate, had omitted PASSUS IV. 5. But resoun rede me, unless Reason advise me. 17. Tomme trewe-tonge; mentioned before, Pass. iii. 320. 1 8. Le&yng, leasing, lying, an idle tale to laugh at. 126 NOTES ' Trofels sal i yow nane tell, Ne lesinges forto ger [make] yow lagh.' Ywaine and Gawin (Ritson's Met. Rom.), I. 150. 19. Reason tells his servant Cato (so named, probably, from Dionysius Cato, whom our author often quotes) to put a saddle upon Patience, and to restrain Patience further by means of girths and a heavy bridle, as he will be sure to shew signs of impatience before long. To make wehe is to make a neighing sound, to neigh, wehe being an imitation of that sound, as in the Welsh wihi. In the Ayenbite of Inwyt (ed. Morris, 1868, p. 204) is a similar passage. ' Thanne the bodiliche wyttes byeth ase thet hors thet yernth wyth-oute bridle zuo thet hit deth falle his Ihord. Ac the herte chaste ham ofhalt mid the bridle of skele ; ' i. e. then the bodily wits are as the horse that runneth without bridle, so that it causes its lord to fall. But the chaste heart restrains them with the bridle of discernment. 25. Whiche, what sort of, what kind of; a common meaning of whiche. 31-41. These lines are not in the earliest version (A-text). 34. There as, there where. Contricio, &c. This quotation and the next are from Ps. xiv. 7 (xiii. 3, Vulgate) : ' Contritio et infelicitas in viis eorum, et viam pacis non cognoverunt : non est timor Dei ante oculos eorum.' 45. His sone, Edward the Black Prince, a great favourite with the people. He did not leave England to take possession of Acquitaine till Feb. 2, 1363. William, having once inserted this in the earliest version of his poem, does not seem to have thought it worth while to alter it, as he retains the ex- pression his sone even in his latest version (C-text). Cf. note to 1. 173. 47. Put forth a bille ; in the Vernon MS., put up a bille, which is the more usual expression, as in Fabyan's Chronicles [1410-11] : 'The com- mons of this lande put vp a bylle vnto the kyng,' &c.. 48. Wronge is a representative of the oppressive tribe known as the king's purveyors. The peasantry often complained of them bitterly, accusing them of taking things by violence ; see note to 1. 58. In the poem of King Edward and the Shepherd (printed by Hartshorne in his Ancient Metrical Tales) is the following : ' I hade catell, now have I non ; Thay take my bestis, and don thaim slon, And payen but a slick of tre . . . . Thai take geese, capons and henne, And alle that ever thei may with renne, And reves us our catell .... Thei toke my hennes and my geese, And my schepe with all the fleese, And ladde them forth away.' So in Political Songs (Camd. Soc. 1839), p. 186 'Est vitii signum pro victu solvere lignum? TO PASSUS IV. 127 So in God spede the Plough, printed at the end of Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, ed. Skeat, 1867, p. 70 : ' The kingis pnruiours also they come, To haue whete and otys at the kyngis nede ; And over that befe and Mutton, And butter and pulleyn [poultry], so God me spede I And to the kyngis court we moste it lede, And our payment shalbe a slyk of A bough; And yet we moste speke faire for drede I praye to God, spede wele the plough ! ' 55- To maintain was the legal term for to aid and abet in wrongdoing; cf. Pass. iii. 90, 149. 56. ' Forestalls my (sales at) fairs.' See Forsfalleth in the Glossary. 58. And taketh me, &c. ; and gives me a tally (and nothing else) for ten quarters of oats ; cf. note to iii. 45. The statements in the note to 1. 48 were often true in two senses ; the peasants were paid (i) by a wooden tally, and (2) by a beating, as William says in the next line. An exchequer tally was an account of a sum lent to the Government. The tally itself was a rod of hazel (one of a pair that tallied), with notches on it to indicate the sum lent. It was not easy to realise this sum afterwards. Cf. Chaucer, Prol. 570. 72. But if Mede, &c. ; unless Meed arrange matters for you, thy mis- fortune is aloft. Myschief means, in Middle English, mishap, ill-luck. Vppe is here an adverb, on high, aloft, in the ascendent. 73- Lyth in his grace. Offenders convicted of great crimes were put in the king's grace, who could hang them and confiscate their property, unless he were pleased to shew mercy. Sometimes he was satisfied with exacting a heavy fine ; see 11. 88, 89. 86. Severn ^ere, seven years ; a proverbial expression for a long period. So also in Pass. v. 208. 109. But laumesse hym borwe, unless submission go bail for him. 112. Moste be, might be. Meynpernour ; see note to 1. 196 of Pass. ii. Cf. 'And to prison he goth, he gette[th] no bettir, Till his maynfernour his areste unfettir,' &c. Occlere, de Regim. Princip. ed. Wright, p. 86. 115. Harlotrye, ribaldry, buffoonery, jester's tales. 116. Perntlle or Peronelle (from Petronilla) was a proverbial name for a gaily dressed bold-faced woman ; it would be long before she put away her finery in a box. May 31 was dedicated to S. Petronilla the Virgin. She was supposed to be able to cure the quartan ague ; Chambers' Book of Days, ii. 389. Hucche, a clothes-box; see Our English Home, p. IOI. 117. And childryn, &c. ; and the cherishing of children be, that they be chastised with rods. To cherish is to cocker, spoil. Childryn is the genitive plural, like clerken in 1. 119. 1 28 NOTES 118. Harlotes, ribalds, jesters, buffoons; it is applied to both sexes, but much more commonly to males in Early English. Be holdenfor an hyne, be considered of small value, i. e. be no longer rare ; see Hyne in the Glossary. The Harleian MS. 875 reads be preised fid highe. 1 20. And religious romares, &c.; and pilgrims stay at home and sing recordare in their cloisters. Recordare is the first word of a mass for avoid- ing sudden death, appointed by Pope Clement at Avignon, the recital of which secured to the hearers 260 days' indulgence. This is best shewn by the following rubric from the Sarum Missal, 1532; fol. lij. ' Missa pro mortalitate evitanda, quam dominus papa clemens fecit et constituit in col- legio, cum omnibus cardinalibus ; et concessit omnibus penitentibus vere contritis et confessis sequentem missam audientibus .cclx. dies indulgence. Et omnes audientes sequentem missam debent portare in manu vnam can- delam ardentem dum missam audiunt per quinque dies sequentes ; et tenere earn in manu per totam missam genibus flexis : et eis mors subitanea nocere non poterit ; et hoc est certum et approbatum in auinione et in partibus cir- cumuicinis.' Then follows ' Officium. Recordare, domine, testamenti tui, et die angelo percutienti, cesset jam manus tua : vt non desoletur terra : et ne perdas omnem animam viuani:* &c. By Clement must be meant Clement V, who removed the papal see to Avignon in 1309, and died in 1314. It was he who first made public sale of indulgences in 1313, and whose decretals and constitutions, known as the Clementines, were collected and published in 1308. 121. Saint Benedict, founder of the Benedictine order of monks, was born about A.D. 480, and died about A.D. 542. Saint Bernard, of Cistercium or Citeaux, near Chalons, better known as S. Bernard of Clairvaux, founded the order of Cistercians or Bernardines ; he was born A.D. 1091, died 1153. St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan order of friars or Friars Minorites, was born 1182, died 1226. 124. ' Till bishops' horses be turned into beggars' chambers;* i.e. till the money spent by bishops on horses go to furnish rooms for beggars. 126. There I shal assigne, where I (Reason) shall ordain. There is no need to go to Gallicia, where is the shtine of St. James of Compostella. See note to Prol. 1. 47, and compare But, bi seint Jame of Galice, that many man hath souht, The pilory and the cucking-stol beth i-mad for nouht." Political Songs (Camden Soc.), p. 345- In the C-text, Reason does assign places to find S. James in ; viz. prisons, poor cottages, and sick-rooms. 128. Rome-renneres, runners to Rome. ' And all Rome-runners bear no silver over sea that bears the image of the king, for the sake of enriching robbers that dwell beyond sea.' Part of the procurator's oath to the Eng- lish king was ' that he would not send money out of the kingdom without the royal license." Lingard, iv. 205. In 1376, the commons presented a TO PASSUS V. 729 petition to the king, stating that the taxes paid yearly by them to the pope amounted to five times the royal revenue. ' In the reign of Henry III, the Italians who were beneficed here, drew from England more than thrice the amount of the king's revenues, fleecing, by means of priests, who were aliens also, the flock which they never fed.' Southey ; Book of the Church, p. 187 (6th ed., 1848). Fabyan says that in 1365, Peter's pence were com- manded to be no more gathered, but he adds ' neuerthelesse at this present tyme [Henry VII.] they be gaderyd in sondry shyres of Englande ; ' p. 477. 143. ' For the man named nullum malum met with one called impunitum,' &c. This is merely a way of introducing the words in italics. The ori- ginal passage is ' Ipse est index iustus . . . qui nullum malum praeterit im- punitum, nullum bonum irremuneratum'; Pope Innocent, De Contemptu Mundi, lib. Hi. c. 15. 145. Construe this vnglosed, interpret this without a commentary. 149-156. Not in the earliest version. 156. 1 falle in, I fall amongst, I meet with. Warm Wisdom used to meet with a florin (of course by accident), and suddenly find himself unable to plead. I73~ 1 82. Not in the earliest version. Observe that in 1. 177 is the phrase if I reign any while. This phrase is a little difficult. It does not seem to imply that the king had just' come t6 the throne, but that his reign was nearly at an end. It is thus equivalent to ' if I reign much longer.' The allusion is to Edward III, weakened by old age and expecting death. This suits with 1. 195, which in the A-text took the vaguer form ' As long as I live.' 1 89. Be my conseille comen, when my council is come. The Trinity MS. (printed by Mr. Wright") has By my covnseil commune, by my common council ; which is certainly a corrupt reading. PASSUS V. 3. Then waked I. Here the first vision ends, viz. that of the Field Full of Folk, Holy Church, and Lady Meed. In 1. 8, the second vision begins and may be called the Vision of the Seven Deadly Sins, and of Piers the Plowman. This vision begins with a view of the field before spoken of, whilst Reason preaches a sermon to the folk there collected. 13. Thise pestilences. There were three (some reckon four) terrible pesti- lences at this period, which were long remembered, and which proved such scourges that the land was left partly untilled, so that severe famine ensued. They took place in 1348 and 1349, 1361 and 1362, and 1369; a fourth was in 1375 and 1376. The two first are here alluded to. The first of these is computed to have begun at various dates. Mr. Wright gives an extract from one of the Cotton MSS., and says that it began May 31, 1348. Lingard says that it reached Dorchester in August, and London in Sep- tember, 1348. Fabyan says it began in August, 1348. Sir H. Nicola?, in K 130 NOTES The Chronology of History, p. 345, says May 31, 1349, which is surely the wrong year. It terminated on the 29th September, 1349. This was the plague called the black death, which occasioned Boccaccio's Decamerone. The second pestilence is the one to which William more immediately alludes. It lasted from August 15, 1361,10 May 3, 1362. Some records are dated from the times of these plagues. Allusions to them as God's punishments for sin are common in the writers of the period. 14. Southwest wynde. Tyrwhitt first pointed out that this is an allusion to the violent tempest of wind on Jan. 15, 1362, which was a Saturday. He refers to the mention of it by Thorn, Decem Script, col. 2122 ; by Wal- singham (see Riley's edition, vol. i. p. 296) ; and by the Continuator of Adam Murimuth, p. 115. The last notice is the most exact. 'A.D. m.ccc.lxii, xv die Januarii, circa horam vesperarum, ventus vehemens notus Australis Africvs tanta rabie erupit,' &c. Walsingham calls it no/Aus Auster Africus. It is alluded to by many other chroniclers also. Fabyan says, p. 475 'In this xxxvii yere, vpon the daye of seynt Mauryce, or the xv daye of Januarii, blewe so excedynge a wynde that the lyke therof was nat seen many years passed. This began about euynsong tyme in the South? &c. He says it lasted for five days. We find the same notice again in A Chronicle of London, p. 65, where it is said to have taken place, in the year 1361, on ' seynt Maurys day.' This means the same year (viz. 1361-2), which was called 1361 during the months of January and February, and 1362 after- wards ; according to the old reckoning. Fabyan wrongly calls it the day of St. Maurice ; the I5th of January is the day of St. Maur, a disciple of St. Bennet. It is noticed again in Hardyng's Chronicles, ed. Ellis, 1812, p. 330. Blomefield tells us that it blew down the spire of Norwich Cathedral. It will be observed that the second great pestilence was prevailing at the time. 24, 25. Cf. Prol. 22, and the latter part of Pass. vi. 26, 27. Cf. note to Pass. iv. 116, and see 1. 63 below. 28. Thomme Stowue, &c. A difficult passage. Whitaker has Stone and wynen, and explains it ' He taught Thorn. Stone to take two sticks, and fetch home Felice, his spouse, from drinking wine.' This does not explain pyne. The MSS. have Stowue, stouue, Stoive, of stowue ; in the unprinted Trinity MS. the other word is clearly wyuene. Like byngene, clerken, it is a genitive plural, and as pyne invariably means punishment, wyuene pyne is only one more allusion to the women's punishment, the cucking-stool. I suppose the sentence to mean that Tom Stowe, who had neglected his wife and let her get into bad ways, or who had allowed her to be punished as a scold, had much better fetch her home than leave her exposed to public derision. Such an errand would require a strong arm, and two staves would be very useful in dispersing the crowd. I do not think it is meant that he is to beat her, for then one would have sufficed ; nor would Reason give such bad advice. TO PASSUS V, 131 30. Watt, the contraction of Water, which was another form of Walter, and by no means uncommon. 'NoutWillam ne Water;' Ancren Riwle, P- 34- 31. Hire hed. Nothing so invited satire as the head-dresses of the females. Chaucer makes the wife of Bath's to have weighed ten pounds ! The hair was generally enveloped in a caul of network of gold, which fitted close to both sides of the face. Thus, in the Crede, we read of ' great-headed queans, with gold by the eyes,' 1. 84. 32. Bette, a male name, as in ii. 109. It is the same as Bat, \. e. Bar- tholomew. 33. Betoiin, evidently Bette's daughter. Cf. 1. 306. 35> 3^- * Let no anxiety for gain cause your children a moral loss, nor unreasonably indulge them because you fear the power of the pestilence." For-weny means to spoil, lit. to for-wean, i. e. to wean amiss. Hence the k.S.forwened means proud, i.e. spoilt, over-humoured; and in his poem of Richard the Redeles, Pass. i. 1. 27, our author says of King Richard's courtiers that they ' walwed in her willis forweyned in here youthe.' The phrase forwened child = a spoilt child, occurs also in O. Eng. Homilies, ed. Morris, 2nd Ser. p. 41, where it is opposed to wel-^eaud child, or well-behaved child. Lines 36-41 are not in the A-text. At the time when they were added, both the third and fourth pestilences, viz. of 1369 and 1375, had taken place. Hence there was additional reason to fear that the anxiety to rear children would lead to excessive indulgence to them. 38. The leuere childe, &c. ; to the dearer child, the more teaching is ne- cessary. This was a common proverb, as pointed out by Mr. Wright, and is found in the proverbs of Hendyng, written about 1300 ' Luef child lore bykoueth, Quoth Hendyng.' See Specimens of Early English, ed. Morris and Skeat, pt. ii. p. 36 ; or Reliq. Antiq. i. p. HO. So in the poem called How the Goodwife Taught her Daughter ' And jif thou loue thin childryn, loke thou holde hem lowe ; Jif any of hem do amys, curse hem nought ne blowe, But take a smerte rodde, and bete hem alle by rowe, Til thei crye mercy, and be here gylte aknowe.' Hazlitt's Early Pop. Poetry, vol. i. p. 191. The original source is Prov. xiii. 24 ' Qui parcit virgz, odit filium suum ; qui autem diliget ilium, instanter erudit.' 43. That ye prechen, that which ye preach. Cf. Pass. iv. 122. 49-56. Not in the A-text. Added, probably, in 1377, as a hint to the new king. In the latest version (C-text), he further adds some advice to the commons, not to quarrel amongst themselves. He also, in that version, lengthens out his advice to the pope ; but the advice to the judges he omits. 56. Quoted from Matt. xxv. 12. 58. Seynt treuthe, i.e. the Truth of the Divine Nature, formerly spoken of K 2 132 NOTES as being God the Father, but here spoken of as being the Holy Ghost. MS. Harl. 3954 makes Piers Plowman equivalent to Christ, and its last P.;ssus ends thus ' Explicit tractus de perys plowman . . . qui cum patrf. el spiritu sancto vivit et regnat per omnia sacula scEculornm. Atnen.' If for spiriiu sancto we substitute filio, we have the true Latin ending of Reason's sermon in full. To it, however, the preacher adds a pious wish for the welfare of those who follow his advice. Compare ' And whan this frere had sayd al his entent, With qui cum patre forth his way he went.' Chaucer, Somp. Tale, 25. 6r. ' Then ran Repentance, and repeated Reason's theme, and made Will weep water with his eyes.' Will means the author himself, who calls him- self Will in many other places, in the same off-hand manner. 62. Superbia. One of the commonest of subjects in old authors is a description of the Seven Deadly Sins. See Chaucer's Persones Tale,/>ass/w; an anonymous poem called ' Gyf me lysens to lyue in Ease,' and a poem of The Mirror of the Periods of Man's Life, both edited for the Early English Text Society by Mr. Furnivall, the first in Political, Religious, and Love Poems, p. 215; the second in Hymns to the Virgin and Christ, p. 58. In these, the opposite* of the sins are given, as here enumerated, (i) Superbia, Pride; opposed to Humilitas, Humility. (2) Luxuria, Lechery; Castitas, Chastity. (3) Invidia, Envy ; Caritas, Love. (4) Ira, Anger ; Patientia, Patience. (5) Avaritia, Coveitise or Covetousness ; Eleemosyna, Largeness or Bounty. (6) Gula, Gluttony ; .Abstinentia, Abstinence, Measure, or Moderation. (7) Accidia, Sloth ; Vigilantia, Business. Our author him- lelf supplies names for the opposites, in Pass. v. 11. 629-632 ; but he puts Pees for the opposite of Anger, and Patience for that of Sloth. Of all the Seven Sins, Pride is the chief, and the root and spring of the rest. It is expressed in Shakespeare by ambition : Cromwell, I charge thee, fling away ambition; By that sin fell the angels.' Henry VIII, iii. 2, 441. Cf. note to Pass. i. 105. It is singular that it is the only vice which William personifies by a female. He doubtless does so with particular reference to extravagance in dress, to repress which a special Statute was passed in 1363. See Lingard, iv. 91 (note). In the C-text, however, is a long additional passage, in which the confession of Peronel Proud-heart is supplemented by that of a male example of Pride. In Pass. xix. Pride is made leader of the Vices, who attack the Church of Unity. 66. An keyre, a hair shirt. 'She made grete abstynence, and wered the hayre upon the Wednesday and upon the fryday ' ; Knight de la Tour, ed. Wright, p. 193. 72. Luxuria. In all the versions of his poem, William purposely curtails his description of this vice. His chief warning is against getting drunk upon TO PASS US V. 133 a Saturday, when work was over sooner than on other days, as it was the eve of Sunday. To drink with the duck (1. 75) is to drink water, as a duck does when she is thirsty. 76. Invidia. The reader should compare the descriptions in William with those in Dunbar's Dance of the Seven Deadly Sins, and in Spenser's Faerie Queene, bk. i. canto iv. stanzas 8-35. 77. Mea calpa. The form of confession contained the words 'Peccavi nimis cogitatione, locutione, et opere : mea culpa.' See Procter on the Common Prayer, p. 193. 78. A pelet, a pellet, ball used as a war-missile, commonly made of stone. whence the present simile. 89. Bakbitynge. ' Bacbitares, be biteS oSre men bihinden,' backbiters that bite other men behind, i. e. defame them ; Ancren Riwle, p. 86. In the Rolls of Parliament, at the opening of the Parliament of 2 Richard II, in the year 1378, we find ' Qi. sont appellez Bacbyters, sont auxi come chiens qi mangeont les chars crues,' &c. See Jesse's Anecdotes of the British Dog, v. a. p. 94. 92. Gybbe, short for Gilbert; whence Gibbs and Gibson. A Gib-cat means a male-cat ; we now say a Tom-cat. See Gib-cat in Nares. 94. Ennuyed, annoyed ; the Trinity MS. has anoyed. It is not envyed, envied, for this would spoil the alliteration. 101. I salute him courteously, as if I were his friend.' 108. Bolle. The 'bowl' and the 'broken (i.e. torn or ragged) sheet' were things of no value, but Envy could not refrain from cursing the thief. The bowl was probably a large wooden one, used to contain scraps of broken victuals. It was sometimes large enough to contain a baby. ' And at the londes ende laye a litell crom-bolle, And thereon lay a little childe lapped in cloutes.' Crede, 1. 437. 110. The early version has ' How Heyne hab a new cote and his wyf anot]>er.' The coat was an article of female as well as of male attire, but the word is much more often used in the latter sense, to which it is now restricted. Cf. Solomon's Song, v. 3. 111. Al be webbe after, and (I wish that) the whole piece of cloth (from which the coat was cut) were mine too. 112. Of, at. That liketh, that pleases. 114. And deme, &c. ' And judge that they do ill, where I do far worse.' 121. Is yuel to defye, are difficult to digest. 122-124. 'Cannot any sugar or sweet thing (be found to) assuage my swelling, nor any expectorant drive it out of my heart, nor any kind of penance or shame (relieve me), except some one were (actually) to scrape my maw ? ' A forcible way of expressing the question ' can none but the most violent measures relieve my moral sickness ? ' Diapenidion answers 134 NO'TES almost exactly to the modern barley-sugar, being a kind of sweet stuff twisted into a thread, and used to relieve coughs, &c. The prefix Dia ii explained by Cotgrave as ' a tearme set before medicinall confections, or electuaries, that were devised by the Greeks.' Hence our author says elsewhere (B. xx. 173) that Life strove to drive Death away ' with dias and drugs.' The termina- tion penidion means a little twist (of thread, originally), being a diminutive of the Greek irf)vrj, thread. This penidion became penide in French, and pennet in English, according to Cotgrave's explanation, who says Penide, f. a Pennet ; the little wreath of sugar taken in a cold.' This puzzling word is thus completely explained ; it only remains to add that I am indebted for the explanation of it to Professor Morley. 127. 'I am sorry; I am but seldom otherwise." Surely a most clever rejoinder. 129-187. Not in the earliest version. Observe that William now intro- duces the words dwelling in London. 130. And gert, ' And caused detraction to be made by means of a broker, to find fault with other men's ware.' That is, he employed brokers to depreciate his neighbours' goods. Be is the preposition by. The oath of the brokers, given at p. 273 of the Liber Albus, obliged them not to be them- selves dealers in the merchandize in which they were brokers, nor to make any bargain unless they bring buyer and seller together, and lawfully witness the sale. 134. Ira. Curiously enough, William entirely omitted this vice in his earliest version. Seeing his mistake, he elaborated the character with great care. He makes Wrath to have been a friar, the nephew of an abbess ; he was first employed as gardener to the convent, and afterwards as cook in the kitchen. Wilttam doubtless refers to the terrible wrath then displayed by the secular clergy against the friars, and by the friars against them, and even by one order of friars against another. Compare the description of Ire in Chaucer, Somp. Tale, 299. 138-150. A slightly difficult, but important passage. It means 'I (continually) grafted lying tales upon limitors and lectors, till they bare leaves of servile speech, to flatter lords with, and afterwards they blossomed abroad in (my lady's) bower, to hear confessions. And now there is fallen therefrom a fruit, that folk have much rather shew their schrifts to them than shrive themselves to their own parsons. And now that the parsons have found out that friars share (the profits of confession) with them, these possessioners preach (to the people) and calumniate the friars ; and the friars (on the other hand) find them to be in fault, as people bear witness, (and say) that when they preach to the people, in many places about (it will be found), that I, i. e. Wrath, go with them, and teach them out of my books. Thus both parties talk about spiritual power, so that each despises the other, till either they are both beggars, and live by the spiritual authority which I give them, or else they aie all rich, and ride about (like rich people). TO PASSUS V. 135 I Wrath never rest from following about this wicked folk for such is my grace.' Wrath here insinuates that the quarrel generally terminates in one of two ways : either the secular clergy turn beggars like the friars, or the friars obtain wealth enough to buy horses like the secular clergy. The quarrel was, as to which should hear confessions. 138. Limitours were members of a convent to whom a certain limited district was assigned to beg in, in order that, each mendicant having a certain round to make, no family might be left unsolicited. Bread, bacon, cheese, logs of wood, &c., were often ready for the limitour when he called. See Massingberd's Eng. Reformation, p. no; and Chaucer, Prol., 1. 209; and Somp. Tale, 1. 3. Listres are lectors. This is ascertained by the following entry in the Promptorium Parvulorum, A.D. 1440. 'Lyysterre [various read- ings lystyr, lystore, listyr] Lector.' The editor, Mr. Way, says this is ' the reader, who occupied the second place in the holy orders of the Church. By second place is meant second in ascending order. The seven orders, excluding the bishop, were the ostiary (door-keeper), lector, exorcist, aco- lyth, sub-deacon, deacon, and presbyter. Some MSS. have legistres, but this would mean lawyers and would be out of place ; cf. Pass. vii. 14. In this passage, however, it is best to take lector in the more important sense of 'preacher' or ' lecturer.' O. F. listre or litre = Lat. lector. Lister as a proper name is quite a different word, being corrupted from litster, a dyer. 144. Possessions ; see Chaucer's Sompnoures Tale, 1. 14. Tyrwhitt says ' An invidious name for such religious communities as were endowed with lands. The Mendicant orders professed to live entirely upon alms.' Mr. Wright says ' the regular orders of monks, who possessed landed property and enjoyed rich revenues,' &c. Wycliffe remarks that ' some receauen dymes and dotations, as don these possessioners, but some forsaken al such tythes and possessions, as Friers mendicants' ; Two Treatises, ed. James, p. 6. But it is probable that, in the present passage, a possessioner means one of the beneficed clergy, as the word persones is used as an equi- valent. And it is worth remarking, that this same explanation will suit the context in Chaucer's Sompnoures Tale just as well as if we suppose monks to be intended. Observe, for instance, 1. 19 : Nought for to hold a prest jolif and gay ; ' and, farther on, the friar says, 'These curates ben ful negligent and slowe;' This every lewed vicory or parsoun Can say, how ire engendreth homicide,' &c. Nothing can give us so clear an idea of a friar as the commencement of this tale of Chaucer's. 154. Hir were leuere, &c. 'She had rather swoon or die,' &c. Lit. ' it were liefer to her.' 162. I-made is the past tense, which is sometimes, but not often, found 136 NOTES with this prefix. Two MSS. read made. C(. I. 507. The sense of the line is I fed them with wicked words ; lit. I prepared their vegetables with wicked words. There is a sort of play upon words and worts, as in Shak., Merry Wives, 5. I. 124. 163. Thow lixte, thou liest. Cf. Crede, 542. 165. Her eyther, each of them. Other, the other. 166. Seynt Gregorie. ' It appears that some Abbesses did at one time attempt to hear the confessions of their Nuns, and to exercise some other smaller parts of the clerical function ; but this practice, I apprehend, was soon stopped by Gregory IX, who has forbidden it in the strongest terms. De- cretal. 1. v. tit. 38. c. x. ; ' Tyrwhitt, Introd. Discourse to Cant. Tales, note 7. Tyrwhitt gives the Latin text of the Decretal. 167. Were prest, should be a priest; i. e. should hear confessions. 168. In/amis; so in the MSS. It is put for the nom. plural. Thei can, &c., ' They can so ill conceal counsel,' ' they can so badly keep their own counsel.' 172. Thei taken, &c., 'They take counsel together;' they combine to devise a punishment. I77 Fieble, weak, poor, thin, watery. So in Havelok, 1. 323, a maiden is ill-treated, and clothed ' \nfeble wede,' i. e. in poor or miserable clothing. 184. 'Nor too deeply neither.' This use of neither is still common. 186, 187. Esto sobrius; cf. 'sobrii estote,' I Pet. v. 8. Me and my are evident blunders ; but they seem to have emanated from William him- self, as the six best MSS. all have this reading. It would seem also that William afterwards himself perceived and corrected the blunder, for in the C-text or latest version, vii. 1 68, we find kym instead of me, in both places, and hus ( = his) instead of my. 189. Skelton has the same name for a covetous man. And Haruy Hafter, that well coude picke a male.' Skelton (ed. Dyce), i. 35. 194. 0/=by. ' His beard was beslobbered, as a bondman's is by bacon.' 196. Tabard; see Chaucer's Prol. 20, 541 ; and cf. note above, to ii. 185. 198. Hatte lopen ]>e bettere, could have been (i.e. were) a particularly good jumper. Hazlitt, in his Book of Proverbs, p. 216, has ' If a louse miss its footing on his coat, 'twill be sure to break its neck.' 203. A leef other tweyne, a leaf or two. Avarice talks of his first lesson in the next line, and of learning his Donet in 1. 209. So here, still keeping up the metaphor of reading a book, he learns to lie for a leaf or two, as much, that is, as would fill a couple of leaves. All ambiguity is removed by a passage in Richard the Redeles, where the poet [William himself, as I have elsewhere shewn] says that his poem will do the king good if he will look over a leaf or two of it : ' 3if him list to loke a leef other tweyne;' Prol. 1. 37. 205. Wy, Weyhill near Andover in Hampshire, as conjectured by Warton, TO PASSUS V. 137 in a note too long to quote entire ; see Hist. F.ng. Poetry, ii. 55, ed. 1840. Weyhill fair is still a most famous one to this day, and lasts eight days. The fair for horses and sheep is on Oct. 10; that for cheese, hops, and general ware?, on Oct. II, and the six days following. 'The tolls derived from the sheepfair form part of the stipend of the rector of Weyhill'; Standard newspaper, Oct. II, 1870. Warton says 'One of the chief of them [the fairs] seems to have been that of St. Giles's hill or down, near Winchester, to which our poet here refers .... In the fair, several streets were formed, assigned to the sale of different commodities ; and called the Drapery, the Pottery, the Spicery,' &c. Fairs long continued to be the principal marts for purchasing necessaries in large quantities. Winchester fair is mentioned temp. Edw. I ; see Liber Albus, p. 201. 207. ' The grace (or favour) of guile ' is a satirical expression. We speak rather of ' the grace of God.' 209. Donet, primer. ' Properly a Grammar, from JEliiis Donatus, the Grammarian .... Among the books written by bishop Pecock, there is the Donat into Christian religion, and the Folower to the Donat.' Warton's Hist. Eng. Poet. ii. 56. See also the note in Dyce's ed. of Skelton, ii. 343. 210. In 1353, statutes were passed regulating the length and breadth of cloth. Thorn. Walsingham, ed. Riley, i. 277. 211. Rayes, striped cloths. Ray means properly a ray, streak, stripe; but it was commonly used in the above sense. It was enacted ' that cloths of ray shall be 28 ells in length, measured by the list [edge], and 5 quarters in width.' Liber Albus, p. 631. 'A long gown of rays' occurs in Lydgate's London Lyckpeny; Spec, of Eng., ed Skeat, p. 25. 212. To broche, &c. ; 'To pierce them with a packing-needle, and fasten them together ; and then I put them in a press, and penned them fast in it," &c. 215. Webbe, properly a male weaver, webster being the feminine; but the rule is not always observed. Observe spynnestres, i.e. female spinners, in the next line. 217. Ac the poutide, &c. She paid the people whom she employed by the pound, and used too heavy a weight ; thus cheating them of their dues. 218. Auncere, a kind of steelyard ; see the Glossary. In A.D. 1356, we find ' one balance, called an avncere, 1 valued at lid.; and ' 2 balances, called aunceres? valued at 6s. See Riley 's Memorials of London, p. 283. 220. Peny-ale is common ale, thin ale, as is certain from its being spoken of as a most meagre drink, suitable for strict-living friars, in Pass. xv. Podyng-ale (puddynge-ale in Trin. MS.) was probably named from its being thick like pudding. Thus in Pass, xix., a fraudulent brewer boasts of draw- ing thick ale and thin ale out of one hole in a cask. The penny-ale was sold at a penny a gallon, but the best ale at 4oruth eue weren iloken, And poruth oure swete ladi Ajein hui beoji nouj>e open.' Political, Rel. and Love Poems, ed. Furnivall, p. 230. And in Morris's edition of Chaucer, vol. vi. p. 310, will be found the line ' Paradise yettis all opin be throu the," where the person addressed is the Virgin Mary. The idea seems to have been taken from St. Jerome ; see Migne's edition, vol. xi. coll. 127, 141. 625. To late wel by tkiselue, to think much of thyself; cf. 1. 620. 627. Seuene siistren, seven sisters. To counteract the seven deadly sins, seven Christian virtues were enumerated by early theologians. Thus, in the Ayenbite of Inwyt (ed. Morris, p. 159) we find this list. ' Bo3samnesse, a-ye [against] Prede. Loue, a-ye Enuye. Mildenesse, a-ye Felhede. Prou- esse, a-ye Slacnesse. Largesse, a-ye Scarsnesse. Chastete, a-ye Lecherie. Sobrete, a-ye Glotounye." See note to 1. 62 above, where all the ' seven sisters ' are mentioned except ' Peace,' who takes the place of Business. 638. But grace be the more, unless mercy be extended. 639. Cutpnrs, thief. On cut-purse?, see Chambers' Book of Days, ii. 669. 641. Wile God, God defend us, God protect us, an old oath ; quite dis- tinct from the expression God wot, God knows. See Witen in the Glossary. 644. Mercy is identified here with the Virgin Mary, as in the quotation at 1. 61:. 651. Where thei bicome. The modern equivalent phrase is ' where they are gone to,' or ' what has become of them.' Cf. the first line of the next Passus. PASSUS VI. 2. Eche afote, each foot of the way, every step of the way. 4. Erye, to plough. Cf. Chaucer, Knightes Tale, 1. 28 ' I have, God wot, a large feeld to ere.' 9. For shedyng, to prevent spilling. Cf. note to 1. 62. 19. For the lordes love of heuene ; for love of the Lord of heaven. Observe the difference of arrangement. So, in Chaucer, Sq. Tale, 1. 209, the Grebes hors Sifion, is the hors of Sinon the Greek. Cf. 1. 223 below. 28. Lord Cobham, speaking of the duties of knights, said ' They ought also to preserve God's people from oppressors, tyrants, and thieves ; and to L 2 148 NOTES see the Clergy supported, so long as they teach purely, pray rightly, and minister the sacraments freely.' Southey's Book of the Church, p. 204. Cf. Gower, Conf. Amant. iii. 380 (ed. Pauli); Wyclif's Works, ed. Arnold, iii. 206. 40. ' And if you fine any man, let mercy assess the fine ;' i. e. let it be a light one. 50. Ytiel, difficult, hard; so yuel to defye = hard to digest, in Pass. v. 1. 121. All are equal in the grave. 54. Harlotes, ribalds ; a term generally applied to tellers of loose stories, whence our author calls them ' the devil's diseurs,' i. e. the devil's story- tellers. They held forth in the hall ' atte mete,' whilst their employers were eating. They were men, as said in 1. 55. See Warton's Hist, of Eng. Poet, i. 68 (ed. 1840). 62. For colde, as a remedy against cold. For very often has this sense of against. Cf. i. 24, and Chaucer's Sir Thopas, B. 2052. 69. Maugre, &c., ' in spite of any one who grumbles about it.' 72. logeloure, juggler ; Lat. joculator. See Tyrwhitt's note to Chaucer, C. T. 1. 11453. 'The name ofjogeloiir was, in a manner, appropriated to those, who, by sleight of hand and machines, produced such illusions of the senses as are usually supposed to be effected by enchantment. This species of jogelour it [also] called a Tregetour.' Cf. Chaucer's House of Fame, iii. 169 ' There saugh I pleyen jngelours, Magiciens, and tregetours' &c. Tyrwhitt's note is long and full. Se also Ritson, Metrical Romances, i. p. ccv. of Preface, where he insists that jougleotir ought never to be misspelt jongleur, as is often done. This, however, is a question of date ; jongleur occurs frequently in later French than that in which we find jongleur ; the was inserted, as in langoitste from loctistum, concombre from cucumerem. And compare ' There myghtist thou se these flowtours, Mynstrales, and eke jogelours, That wel to synge dide her peyne.' Romaunt of the Rose, 763. Jack Juggler is the name of a play, in Dodsley's Old Plays, ed. Hazlitt, vol. ii. 77. 'Deleantur de libro viventium, et cum iustis non scribantur,' Ps. Ixviii. 29 (Vulgate). The last part of the quotation William interprets to mean that churchmen ought not to receive tithes from such people. 79. They ben ascaped, &c. Dr. Whitaker paraphrases this by ' they have escaped payment by good luck' which is probably right. For atten- tnre the Vernon MS. reads thrift, success. 84. Here Piers again begins speaking. Late god yworth, may God be. 88. Lines 88 101 contain Piers' biqneste, i.e. his will. It begins with a common formula In del nomine. He bequeaths his soul to his Maker, his body to the church to which he paid tithes, his money to his wife and chil- TO PASS US VI. 149 dren. Whitaker remarks upon this passage ' To commit the soul to Him who made it, was, in the course of a century and a half after this time, accounted so heretical, that the church would not have kept the testator's bones. For this very offence, and for omitting the names of the Virgin Mary and other saints, as joint legatees, the body of a Mr. Tracy was dug up out of his grave.' See Trade's will, in Massingberd, Eng. Ref. p. 165; also in Chambers' Book of Days, ii. 429. 94. He, i.e. the persona ecclesiae, the parson. 97. Memorye, commemoration of benefactors. 102. For Lukes, MSS. of the A-type have Chestre ; cf. Pass. r. 467. Lukes is Lucca, formerly also spelt Luca, where there was a famous cross. 105. The definition of plough-foot, as given in Fitzherbert's Boke of Husbandry, fol. 2 back, is as follows : ' The plongh-fote is a lyttell pece of wodde, with a croked ende set before in a morteys in the ploughe-beame, sette fast with wedges, to dryue vppe and downe, and it is a staye to order of what depenes the ploughe shall go.' In a modern plough, small wheels take the place of it. I am indebted for this reference to Dr. Morris, who has kindly contributed many useful hints, much to the improvement of the present edition of this work. 107. Perkyn, little Piers or Peter ; the same as Peterkin. It is merely a familiar term for Piers in this passage. 114. High prime. This expression is copied in a poem by Lydgate, which is better known, perhaps, than any other of his, named ' The London Lick- peny:' ' Then to Westmynster gate I presently went, When the sonn was at hyghe prytne.' Specimens of English, ed. Skeat, p. 35. It seems to mean, when prime was ended, and it certainly marks the first break in the day's work. Prime is commonly explained to mean six in the morning, but Cotgrave explains it as the first hour of the artificial day (or day according to the sun) which begins at about 8 in winter, 4 in summer, and at 6 only at the equinoxes. Again, some explain prime to be the/or/A part of the natural day, viz. from 6 to 9 A.M. always; see Tyrwhitt's note, Cant. Tales, 1. 3904. But putting together the various passages where Chaucer uses the word prime, I have shewn, in my edition of Chaucer's Astrolabe, p. Ixii, that the term was commonly used in the sense suggested by Tyrwhitt, viz. as meaning the period from 6 to 9 A.M. ; but, when restricted to a particular moment, it meant the end of that period, or 9 A.M. only. It was probably to obviate the vagueness in the use of the word that high prime is the term employed here ; it doubtless signifies that the period of prime was ended, or that it was nine o'clock. Perhaps the same thing is expressed by the term fully prime, in Chaucer's Sir Thopas (Group B, 2015); whilst a little past the hour of nine is denoted by prime large in the Squyeres Tale, 1. 360. Mr. Dyce says ' concerning this word see Du Gauge's Gloss, in 150 NOTES Prima and Horse Canonicse, Tyrwhitt's Gloss, to Canterbury Tales, Sibbald's Gloss, to Chron. of Scot. Poetry, and Sir F. Madden's Gloss, to Syr Gawayne.' See also Timbs, Nooks and Corners of English Life, p. 222. It is clear from 11. 115 and 1 1 6, that Piers was a 'head harvest-man.' See Knight's Picto- rial Hist, of England, i. 840 ; and a good article on the duties of a plough- man in Chambers' Book of Days, i. 96. 117. Atte nale = alien ale or at then ale, i. e. at the ale. In the same way atten ende (at the end) was afterwards corrupted into at the nende. See Warton, Hist. E. P., vol. ii. p. 79, note. 118. 'How! trollilolli ' is the burden of a song, answering nearly to the modern tol de rol. In Ritson's Ancient Songs, vol. ii. p. 7, is a song, with a burden of trolly loley occurring at every third line. In the Chester Plays (ed. Wright, p. 136) when the shepherds sing, we find the direction ' Singe troly loly, troly loe? Here is meant, that all which some of the men did towards ploughing the half acre was to sit and sing choruses over their cups. 122. Have that reccheth, take him who cares. Reccheth = recketh. 123. Feyned hem blynde. Compare ' Also Fryers saien, that it is meed- ful to leaue the cowmiandemet of Christ, of giving of alms to poore feble men, to poore crooked men, to poore blinde men, and to bedredden men, and giue this almes to Hypocrits, that fainen hem holie and needie.' Wycliffe ; Two Treatises against Friers, p. 25. 147. 'The day's work was supposed to be completed at the ninth hour three in the afternoon according to our reckoning. This hour was called high noon, and the meal then taken was called a noonshun or nuncheon.' Timbs; Nooks and Corners, &c., p. 222. It is certain that nones originally meant about three o'clock in the afternoon at the equinoxes, but it was afterwards shifted so as to mean midday, our modern noon. See Wedgwood, $. v. Noon. There seem to have been two principal meal- times, viz. dinner at about nine or ten A.M., and supper at about five or six P.M. ; cf. 11. 262, 265. See Wright's Hist, of Domestic Manners, p. 155. But there is here reference to the one meal at twelve o'clock, to which an- chorites and hermits restricted themselves. In this they adopted the rule for fasting-days, viz. to have dinner at twelve instead of nine, and no supper. 151. Posteles, apostles, i. e. preachers, probably preaching friars. Not to be confused with postills, i.e. commentaries, which were things preached. 163. Wolvesltynnes, of the kind or nature of a wolf. Cf. ' Thei ben wilde werwolves that wiln the folk robben." P. Ploughman's Crede, 1. 459. 164. That ilke while worth, &c., in the meanwhile there will be no abun- dance, &c. Worth, lit. becomes ; but it is often used as a future. Liggeth, lies idle. 171. 'And accounted Piers at the value of a pea ; ' i. e. set him at naught. 191. 'And cut their copes, and made them into jackets.' 'They had also,' says Camden (Remains, p. 234, or p. 196, ed 1657), 'a gowne called TO PASSUS VI. 151 a git, a jacket without sleeves called a hdketon, a loose jacket like a tabard, a short gabbardin called a cottrtpie, a gorget called a chevesail, for as yet they used no bandes about their necke ; a pouche called a gipser' &c. Strutt, Manners and Customs, ii. 85. It was easier to work in jackets. 196. Bayarde, a common name for a horse, and used by Chaucer. The passage refers to the custom of giving horses bread to eat, as is still common on the continent. Cf. 1. 217. A statute of Edward III orders that horse- bread be made only of beans and peas, without other mixture. The making of horsebread was formerly a regular part of a baker's business. See Toulmin Smith's English Gilds, p. 366. 203. Owne erde, native place or country. Cf. A.S. ' on ]>inum earde,' in thine own country ; Luke iv. 23. Not the same word as erthe (earth). 214. Make hem to worche. After the pestilence of 1349, there was a want of labourers. Edward published a proclamation, compelling men and women, in good health, and under sixty years of age, to work at stated wages. But it was evaded, and, in harvest -time especially, exorbitant wages were both demanded and given. See Lingard, Hist. Eng. (3rd ed.) iv. 89, and Liber Albus, pp. 584, 634. 218. Abate, keep them thin. For bollyiig, to prevent swelling; as in 1.62. 224. Lene hem, give to them; lit. lend to them. Alter alterius, &c. : Gal. vi. 2. 226. Naughty, having naught ' She had an idea from the very sound That people with naught were naughty? Hood ; Miss Kilmansegg. 228. Late god yworthe, let God alone; cf. Prol. 187. Micki vindicta, &c. : Rom. xii. 19. Vindictam is the reading of the MSS. ; the reading of the Vulgate is vindicta. But the passage is often quoted with the reading vindictam. See Ancren Riwle, pp. 184, 286. 230. Cf. Luke xvi. 9. 238. ' Propter frigus piger arare noluit; mendicabit ergo sestate, et non dabitur illi;' Prov. xx. 4. Sapience means the book of Wisdom; William frequently refers to the wrong book of the Bible for his quotations. 240. With marines face. An allusion to a common representation of the evangelists, which likens Matthew to a man (sometimes represented by a mans face only), Mark to a lion, Luke to a bull, and John to an eagle ; Rev. iv. 7. Sometimes the arrangement varied; see the Ormulum, ed. White, vol. i. p. 201. 241. Nam, a mina. It is glossed in the Laud MS. by the words 'a besaunt,' which is the word used in Wyclifs version; Luke xix. 16. The parable occurs both in Matt. xxv. and Luke xix. ; but the use of the word nam shews that our author was thinking rather of St. Luke's account, where 152 NOTES the word pva is used. In 1. 243 we have the better spelling mnam. For the value of a besant, see Ormulum, cd. White, ii. 390. 251. Richard Rolle de Hampole, amongst others, carefully distinguishes between active life, or bodily service of God, and contemplative life or ghostly (i.e. spiritual) service. See his prose treatises, ed. Perry (E. E. T. S. 1866), p. 19 ; and see p. xi. of Mr. Perry's preface. 252. Beati omnes, qui timent Dominum, qui ambulant in viis eius. Labores manuum tuarum quia manducabis : beatus es, et bene tibi erit.' Ps. cxxvii. I, 2 (Vulgate). 269. Afyngred, greatly hungry. It is corrupted from the A.S. of-hingrian, to be very hungry. The word occurs in the Vox and Wolf, in Hazlitt's Early Popular Poetry, vol. i. p. 58 (also printed in Reliquiae Antiqux, ii. 272, from MS. Digby 86), where the fox is described as afingret. 272. Cf. 'And Jit ther is another craft that toucheth the clergie, That ben thise false fisiciens that helpen men to die,' &c. Polit. Songs (Camd. Soc.), p. 333. See Chaucer's Prologue, 11. 411-444, where the Doctour of Phisik is de- scribed. A ' cloke of calabre' means a cloke trimmed with Calabrian fur. In the Coventry Mysteries, p. 242, we read 'Here colere splayed, and furryd with ermyn, calabere, or satan.' A person who wore an amice trim- med with calabere was himself called a ' calaber amyse," as appears from an extract from a Chapter Minute of Christ Church, Dublin, quoted in Todd's introduction to The Book of Obits, &c. of Christ Church, p. xcii. Cf. Notes and Queries, 3rd S. vol. xi. It appears that calabre was a grey fur, the belly of which was black. Riley, Memorials of London, p. 329. 282. ' In the parish of Hawsted, Suffolk, the allowance of food to the labourer in harvest was, two herrings per day, milk from the manor dairy to make cheese, and a loaf of bread, of which fifteen were made from a bushel of wheat. Messes of potage made their frequent appearance at the rustic board.' Knight, Pict. Hist, of England, i. 839.- 287. We find mention of ' colopys of venyson ' and ' colypes of the wyld dere' in Hazlitt's Early Pop. Poetry, vol. i. pp. 24, 28. Brand says, ' Slices of this kind of meat (i.e. salted and dried) are to this day termed collops in the north, whereas they are called steaks when cut off from fresh or unsalted flesh.' Pop. Antiq. vol. i. p. 62. 291. Lammasse, i.e. Loaf-mass, Aug. I. In Anglo-Saxon times, a loaf was offered on this day, as an offering of first-fruits. See Chambers' Book of Days, ii. 154. 306. 'Panis de coltet* is mentioned in a MS. of Jesus Coll. Oxford, I Arch. i. 29, fol. 268, as being slightly inferior to wastel bread. The fine kinds of white bread were called simnel bread or pain demaigne (Chaucer's Sir Thopas, 1. 14), wast el bread, coket, clere matyn, and manchet bread. The common kinds of brown bread were tourte, trete, and bis. TO PASSUS VII. 153 Cf. Riley, Memorials of London, p. 644; Chambers' Book of Days, i. 119 ; Andrew Boorde's Introduction of Knowledge, ed. Furnivall, pp. 258-282 ; and see Coltet in the Glossary. 307. Halpeny ale. See note to Pass. v. 22O, and cf. 1. 311 below. 314. As to the high wages of labourers, see note to 1. 214 above. The statutes concerning them are alluded to in 1. 318 below. 316. Dionysius Cato is the name commonly assigned to the author of a Latin work in four books, entitled Dionysii Catonis Disticha de Moribus ad Filium. The real author is unknown, but the work may perhaps be referred to the fourth century. It was very popular, both in Latin, and in English and French versions. William here quotes part of the 2ist distich of the first book, which nms thus : ' Infantem nudum quum te natura crearit, Paupertatis onus patienter ferre memento.* 324. Water, i.e. floods ; cf. 1. 326. 327. Great disasters were often attributed to the malign influence of the planet Saturn. Besides this, great foresight was attributed to the god Saturn. This is very well illustrated by Chaucer's Knightes Tale, 11. 1585- 1620. In the A-text (earliest version), the Passus ends with this line. LI. 328-333 were added afterwards; in them William imitates, not per- haps without ridicule, the mysterious prophecies which were then popular ; such as, for instance, the prophecies of John of Bridlington. Lines 328, 329, are, of course, inexplicable, but the rest is clear enough. By deth is meant such a great pestilence as that which earned the name of the Black Death. The pestilence shall withdraw, Famine shall then be the judge, and Dawe the ditcher (cf. Pass. v. 320) shall die for hunger, unless God grant us a truce. As regards famines and dearths, cf. Polit. Songs (Camd. Soc.), P- 3^9- PASSUS VIL I . This Passus is called Passus Octavus in MSS. of the earliest version. 3. A pcena et culpa. On this expression see Milman, Hist, of Lat. Chris- tianity, vi. 254 (note), 2nd edit. ; and the note to Wyclifs Works, ed. Arnold, i. 136. See 1. 19 below, where it means plenary remission. 1 4. Botfte the lawes ; referring (perhaps) to the civil and canon laws. 17. ' To sit at the high dais," i.e. in a seat of honour. 18. Many yeres, i. e. many years' remission of purgatory. 23. Treuthe, i. e. God the Father, as before. See 1. 33. 26. Mesondieitx, put for maisons de dieu, houses of God. A hospital was called a maison-dieu or masondewe. Halliwell remarks that, till within the last few years, there was an ancient hospital at Newcastle so caHed. There was another, I believe, at Ospringe, Kent. 27. Wikked wayes, bad road?. See Pass. vi. I. 154 NOTES 31. Sette scoleres to scale. To pay for the education of poor scholars, especially at Oxford, was justly esteemed an excellent form of charity. Cf. Chaucer, Prol. 301, 302. In later times, the demand of poor scholars foi money was a tax that fell rather heavily upon the poorer class of farmers. Than commeth clerkys of Oxford and make their mone, To her scole hire they most haue money.' God Spede the Plough, 75. 33. It was thought that ' unto Michael alone belonged the office of leading each soul from earth to the judgment-seat of Christ ;' Rock, Church of our Fathers, iii. 149, and 210. 41. ' Qui pecuniam suam non dedit ad usuram, et munera super inno- centem non accepit.' Ps. xiv. 5 (Vulgate). The first verse of the same Psalm, which in English Bibles is Ps. xv., is quoted below, at 1. 51. 43. I do not know the source of this quotation. It somewhat resembles Ecclus. xxxviii. 2 ' A Deo est enim omnis medela, et a rege accipiet donationem.' 44. Johan is apparently some unscrupulous fellow of middle rank, not John of Gaunt. In Pass. xxii. 288, it is the name of a cook. 50. ' No devil, at his death-day, shall harm him a mite, so that he may not be safe, and his soul too.' Worth is here a verb ; the construction is awkward to express. It was believed that dying men beheld devils all around them. Cf. Hampole's Prick of Conscience. 11. 2220-2233. 52. 'But to buy water, nor wind, nor wit, nor fire (which is the fourth thing) is a thing which Holy Writ never permitted.' The words italicised must be understood ; they occur in the A-text. For ne, i. e. nor, we should now write or. Wit here takes the place of earth, along with three of the four elements. 56. Thei, i. e. they who take fees from the poor ; see 1. 58. 61. See Matt. vii. 12 ; cf. Luke vi. 31. 62. With, i. e. by means of. 68. Bit; a contracted form of biddeth, i.e. begs. 73. Catottn, Cato. See note to Pass. vi. 316. Prefixed to Cato's Dis- tiches are some ' Breves sentential,' of which the twenty-third consists only of the words Cm des, videto. Mr. Wright says that by the clerk of the stories is meant Peter Comestor (died about 1198), to whom Lydgate, in his Minor Poems (p. 102, ed. Halliwell) gives the title of maister of storyes. The title clerk of stories refers to the Historia Scholastica, of which Peter Comestor was the author. The passage referred to is one in which Peter Comestor abridges the passage in the book of Tobit, iv. f-li. There are remarks on almsgiving, very similar to this, in the Compendium by Peter Cantor, who was bishop of Tournay, A.D. 1191 : they may be found at p. 150, vol. 205, of Migne's Patrologiae Cursus Completus. Peter Cantor also quotes the sentence cui des, videto. Cf. ' Circumstantiae eleemosynarum hae sunt quis, quid, quantum, cui, ubi, quando, quare ; ' Alani de Insulis TO PASS US VII. 155 Summa de Arte Predicatoria, ed. Migne, col. 175. ' Idem inbeneficio faciam ; videbo quando dem, cui dem, quemadmodum, quare;' Seneca, de Beneficiis, 1. iv. cap. x. 'Si benefeceris, scito cui feceris;' Ecclus. xii. I. 76. Gregory the Great was pope from A.D. 590 to 604. I doubt if the quotation is really from his works. It seems rather to be from the following. ' Ne eligas cui bene facias. . . . Incertum est enim quod opus magis placeat Deo.' S. Eusebii Hieronymi Comment, in Ecclesiasten, cap. xi. ; vol. 23, col. 1103, of Migne's edition. Instead of ' Gregory,* William should have said ' Jerome." The four chief ' Latin fathers ' were S. Gregory, S. Jerome, S. Augustine, and S. Ambrose. 83. See Luke xix. 23. 85. Hath to buggen hym bred, hath (enough) to buy himself bread. 86. This quotation is not from the Bible, but from St. Jerome, Epist. cxxv ; ed. Migne, i. 1085. A similar statement is that of St. Paul, in Tim. vi. 8. Cf. Prov. of Hendyng, st. 15. 88. See Ps. xxxvi. 25 (Vulgate). 93. He breketh, one of you breaketh ; he is used quite indefinitely, as in Chaucer, Kn. Tale, 1 754. That beggars broke their own children's bones is a fact. In the next line gon=ye go. 98. Hennesfare, go hence, depart hence, i.e. die. IO2. Myschief. misfortune ; as in Chaucer, Prol. 493. Meseles, lepers. 111. ' Et ibunt hi in supplicium aeternum ; iusti autem in vitam leternam.' Matt. xxv. 46. 112. Peter I An exclamation meaning .'by St. Peter 1' Cf. Pass. v. 544, and the note. 1 1 6. See Ps. xxii. 4 (Vulgate). 121. His payn ete, ate his bread ; see Psalm xii. 4, xxxiii. 20 (Vulgate). 123. 'He that truly loves God, his sustenance is easily procured.' 126. ' Nolite solliciti esse,' &c.; Luke xii. 22. But William was thinking of the parallel passage ' ne solliciti sitis,' &c. ; Matt. vi. 25. 128. Fynt hem mete, finds food for them. Fynt is a contraction offynd- eth ; see 1. 1 29. 129. Haue thei, inverted for they have; or it stands for 'though they have.' 135. Dixit iitfipiens, Ps. xiii. I (Vulgate). The priest suggests that Piers might suitably take for his text ' The fool hath spoken ! ' 136. Lorel. Spenser has lewde lorrell in his Sheph. Kal. (July), and the Glosse interprets it thus ' Lorrell, a losell.' It is another spelling of losell, and both are from the verb to lose. A lorel is a lost man, an abandoned fellow ; see note on Lorel in the Promptorium Parvulorum. Palgrave has ' I play the lorell or the loyterer, Je loricarde ; ' also ' It is a goodly syght to se a yonge lourdayne play the lorell on this facyon.' 137. Eice is old MS. spelling for Ejice. ' Eice derisorem, et exibit cum eo iurgium, cessabuntque causae et contumeliae.' Prov. xxii. 10. 1 56 NOTES. 141. ' Without food or money.' Here is the third and last reference to Malvern hills, which were mentioned twice in the Prologue. 146. Which a, what sort of a. Such is the usual meaning of which a in Middle English. 150. ' Somnia ne cures, nam mens humana quod op tans, Dum vigilat, sperat, per somnum cernit id ipsum.' Dion. Cato ; Distich, ii. 31. Cf. Chaucer's Nonne Prestes Tale, 1. 120, and Tyrwhitt's note, quoted by Dr. Morris. 154. See Daniel ii. 39. Our author seems rather to have been thinking of the handwriting on the wall, as explained to Belshazzar ; cf. Dan. v. 28. 158. Lese, better spelt lees, i.e. lost ; the old strong past tense of the verb lesen, meaning ' to lose.' 159. Gen. xxxvii. 9, to. 162. Beaufllz, fair son. Some MSS. have Beaitfitz. It does not seem, from the account in Genesis, that Jacob expected Joseph's dream to be ful- filled, but rather the contrary. 169. The pope allowed the Dominican friars to sell indulgences. Wyclif declared them to be futile ; Works, ed. Arnold, i. 60, iii. 256, 362, 400, 459- 171. Dignelich vnderfongen, worthily received, held as acceptable. 175. See Matt. xvi. 19. 191. These ' letters provincial ' or 'letters of fraternity' were letters of indulgence granted by a provincial, or monastic superior of a province. 192. Foure ordres, of friars. See note to Prol. 1. 58. 194. Pies hele, probably a pie-cover, pie-crust. But the Cambridge MS. has pese hule, i. e. a pea's hull, a pea-shell, husk of a pea. The result is much the same ; for in either case it means something of no value. 199, 200. 'That, after our death-day, Do-well may declare, at the day of doom, that we did as he bade us.' Here terminates the part of the poem which is strictly termed ' Visio de petro plowman.' The name of the remaining portion of the B-text is ' Visio de Do-wel, Do-bet, et Do-best, secundum Wit et Resoun,' which consists of thirteen Passus, commonly numbered viii. to xx. GLOSSARIAL INDEX. The principal contractions used are the following : Moeso-Goth. (or Goth.) = Mceso- Gothic. O.F. (or O. Fr.) = Old French. O.H.G. = Old High-German. Prompt.Parv. =Promptorium Parvu- lorum, ed. Way, Camden Society, 1865. Roq. = Roquefort's Glossaire. S. = Anglo-Saxon. Sc. = Scottish. Sp. = Spanish. Suio-Goth. = Ihre's Glossarium Suio- Gothicum (Old Swedish). W. = Welsh. A.S. (or S.) = Anglo-Saxon. Dan. = Danish. Du. = Dutch. E. = English. F. (or Fr.) = French. G. = German. Gk. = Greek. Icel. = Icelandic (Cleasby's Diet). It. = Italian. Lat. = Latin. M.H.G. = Middle High-German. M.E. = Middle English. (See particu- larly Stratmann's O. E. Diction- ary.) The reader is also requested to observe that the contraction v. denotes a verb in the infinitive mood; pr. s. or pt. s. means the third person singular of the present or past tense, unless I p. (first person) or 2 p. (second person) is added ; so also pr. pi. means the third person plural of the present tense ; imp. s. means the second person singular of the imperative mood, &c. Other contractions, as sb. for substantive, pp. for past participle, are readily under- stood. In the references, I. 99 means Passus i. 1. 99, &c. ; and pr. denotes the Prologue. to buy back, redeem. From this word (abvy) comes the corruption abide, as in Milton, P. L. iv. 87. Ac, conj. S. but. Accidie, sb. F. sloth, a fit of sloth- fulness, 5. 366. Ch. Pers. Tale. Acombre, v. F. to encumber, clog, overload, overwhelm, 3. 50: pp. Acombred, I. 194, 201. A, one, a single, 1 . 99. MS. T. has o. A, contr. form of on, signifying in or on, 3. 48, 202. Abate, imp. s. F. reduce, keep under, 6. 218. A-b-c, i.e. the alphabet, 7. 132. Abie, v. S. to pay the penalty, atone for, 3. 249. See Abugge. Abiggen, the same as Abie, 2. 127. Abosted, pt. s. defied in a bragging manner, 6. 156. W. bostio, to boast, brag. Abouten, prep. S. about, i. 6. Abugge, r. S. to pay the penalty, atone for. 6. 83, 1 68. A..S.dbycgan, Acorden, v. F. to agree, 5. 335 ; Acorde, to account, grant, 3. 317 ; pt. s. Acorded, agreed, 4. 91. Acorse, pr. s. subj. S. curse, excom- municate, pr. 99. A.S. corsian, to curse. A-day, lit. on the day, 6. 310. It probably means here ' at morn.' Adoun, down, 4. 92 ; A-down, 5. 7. GLOSS ARIAL INDEX. from A.S. of-dune, off the down, off the hill. A-felde, lit. on the field, hence, to the field, 4. 147, 6. 144. Afered, pp. S. frightened, afraid, 4. 63; Aferde, 6. 123; Aferd, I. 10. Affaiten, v. F. to tame, 5. 37. Affaite )>e, imp. s. tame for thyself, 6. 32 ; where some MSS. read qffaite J',tame thy. O. Fr. afaiter, to prepare, from Lat. affectare. A-foot, on foot, 5. 6. Afor, prep, before, 5. 12. A.S. on foran or al-foran, before. Aforth, v. afford, 6. 201. Cf. A.S. forftian, to further, aid, assist. [This is very much against Mr. Wedgwood's derivation of afford from Lat./on/w. See gefor"Sian in O. E. Homilies, ed. Morris, 1st ser. p. 31, 1. 15 ; and the note upon it, p. 308.] Afyngred, pp. S. very hungry,. 6. 269. It is from the A.S. of- hyngriqn, to hunger exceedingly. Agast, pp. terrified, in fear, 2. 211. See Aghast in my Etym. Diet. Agrounde, on the ground, beneath, in this world, I. 60. Al a, the whole of a, 6. 258. Aliri, across (?), 6. 124. Or perhaps it means loosely stretched out. The only instance I have met with of a similar word is llrylong, in the Spurious Prologue in Urry's ed. of Cant. Tales, p. 596, I. 310 ; ' He fond hir ligging lirylong ' (found her lying lirylong). Alisaundre, Alexandria, 5. 533. Alkin, pr. 222 ; Alkyn, 6. 70. Both contr. from Alkynnes (3. 224), of every kind. Alkynnes crafty men = craftsmen of every kind; it differs from ' every kind of crafts- men,' when we have regard to its grammatical construction. Almes, sb. S. alms, 7. 75. The full form is Almesse, 3. 75- Cf. A.S. e and alse swtye, shewing that the first part of the word is als, not al. Amaistrye, v. F. to teach, instruct, govern, manage, i. 147 ; Amai- strien, 6. 214; pp. Amaistried, 2. 153. Amaister, to teach, is given as a Shropshire word by Hartshorne. O. Fr. maistrier, to act as a master. Amercy, v. F. to amerce, fine, 6. 40. Amonges, prep. S. amongst, 5. 209, 7. 156. A.S. onmang, among. Ampulles, sb. pi. F. small phials, 5.527. See note. Cf. 'thisaw- piilla, or vial,' in Ben Jonson's The Fox, Act ii. sc. I. An, (i) conj. and, 7. 44 ; (2) conj. if, 2. 132 ; (3) prep, on, as in an hiegh = on high, pr. 13; an auen- ture, on adventure, in case, 3. 72 ; an ydel, in an idle manner, 5. 580. An, one; An-othre, one other, another (i.e. a tenth), i. 106. The line means, ' Cherubin, Sera- phin, seven more such, and one other.' Ancres, sb. pi. S. anchorites, pr. 28, 6. 147. A.S. ancra, an anchorite, from Gk. ava\/>/Apparailled, 5. 523. O.F. aparailler, to make to suit, from pareil, equal, which from Low Lat. pariculus, a diminutive of par. Appayre, 3 p. pi. pr. svbj. injure, 5. 47. See Apeyre. Appeireth, pr. s. injures, 7. 47 ; pt. pi. Appeyred, 6. 134; pp. 6. 221. See Apeyre. Appendeth, pr. s. belongs, I. 45. From Lat. pendeo. Appertly, adv. openly, evidently, i. 98. See Apertly. Appiere, v. F. to -appear, 3. 113. Appose, v. F. to put questions to, 3. 5 ; pt. s. or pi. Apposed, 1.47; pt. pi. Apposeden, disputed, as in Apposeden eyther other, disputed one against the other, 7- i$8- AT, adv. S. ere, before, i. 73, 3. 120, &c. A. S. />. F. advanced, 1. 189, 3- 33- F. avancer, It. avanzare, from Lat. ab ante, which gives the It. avanti or avante, before. Auenture, s&.F. ad venture, chance ; hence good auenture = by good luck, 6. 79. An auenture, in case, 3. 72, 279; 6. 43 ; better written On auenture, 3. 66. Auncere, sb. a kind of weighing machine, 5.218. It is spelt aun- cere, auncer, aunser, auncel, and aunsel in the MSS. From the de- scriptions by Cowell (in Halliwell) and Phillips, it may be the steel- yard commonly known as the 'Danish steelyard,' which has a fixed weight and a moveable ful- crum. Probably from lanx ; whence launcere l'auncere. Auoutrie, sb. F. adultery, 2. 175. Lat. adulterium, whence O. F. avulterie, avouterie. Auowe, sb. F. vow, 5. 457. Not derived from F. sb. veu, but from the vb. avouer. See next word. Avowe, v. to make oath concern- ing, 3. 255 ; pt. s. Avowed, made a vow, 5. 388. From Low Lat. aduoare, which from Low Lat. votare, to vow ; which from Lat. uouere. Auter, sb. F. altar, 5. 109. Aujte, sb. S. put for something, 5. 439 ; everything, 5. 489. Used adverbially, in the sense of at all, 5- 311, 540. A.S. dwiht, from a, ever, and wiht, a whit ; cf. O.H.G. eowihe, from eo or to, ever, and wiht. See Waujte. Auste, i p. s. pt. I ought, 2. 28. A.S. ic dhte, I owned, possessed, from dgan, to own. Cf. Moeso- Goth. aigan, to own, pr. t. ik aih, I own, pt. t. ik aihta, I owned. Note that M.E. owe, to possess, is the mod. E. own. To owe a debt is to have to pay it. See Owe, Owen. Awreke, imp. s. S. revenge, take vengeance on, 6. 1 75 ;/>/>. Awroke, PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 161 avenged, 6. 204. A. S. dwrecan, to avenge ; cf. MoesoGoth. /r- Jtan, wrakjan, to persecute, Du. ivreken, G. r'dchen, E. wreak. Axe, v. S. to ask, 4. 102 ; Axeii, v. 5- 543 : /" pl- * vb J- Axe 5- 43 > pr. s. Axeth, 2. 27 ; pt. s. Axed, i. 49' 5- 37> 6. 298. A..S.dcsian, dxian, dhsian, dscian, to ask. Ay, adv. S. aye, ever, 6. 212. A.S. a, aa, O.H.G. eo, G. y, ever. Asein, prep. S. against, 3. 155, 291 ; in a direction opposite to ; hence, come ajein = came to meet, 4. 44; in return for, 5. 437. Spelt Ayein, 3. 291. See Ajeines. A;ein, adv. S. again, 6. 44, 7. 25. Ajeines, />re/>. against, 4. 48, 6. 316, 7. 70 ; Ajeins, 3. 92. A.S. ongedn, is both acfv. (again) and />rep. (against). We do not find ongednes, but we find togednes, prep, against. Cf. Su. Goth, gen, against, gena, to go to meet, G. gegen, against. B. Babeled, I p. s. pt. I babbled, said my prayers in a mumbling manner, 5. 8. Du. babbelen, to chatter; Fr. babiller. A word formed from the repetition of the syllables ba, ba, by a child. Cf. Mamely. Babexiipped, adj. having full, large, thick lips, 5. 190. Cf. Fr. babines, the lips, Du. babbel, the mouth. Formed from the sound ba, made by the lips. See word above. Bachelors, sb. pl. F. novices in the church, pr. 87. A bacheler is a novice, generally in arms or arts. From Low Lat. baccalarius, a cowherd, or man attached to a baccalaria, or grazing-farm, so named from Low Lat. bacca, a cow = Lat. uacca (Brachet). In like manner the French berger, a shepherd, is the Low Lat. ber- becarius, from berbex = ueritex, a sheep. Bad. See Bidde. Baiardes, sb. pl. F. horses, 4. 1 24. Bayard was a favourite name for horses, and originally meant a fray- horse, from Lat. badius, brown, whence Fr. bat. Bailliues, sb. pl. F. bailiffs, 2. 59. Lat. baiulus, a tutor, O. f.baillir, to take charge of. Bakbite, v. S. to backbite, slander, 2. 80. Back frequently means in the wrong direction, as in M. E. back-friend, a secret enemy, back- slide, to slide into error. Cf. Ice!. bakbordi, the left side of a ship. Bakbitynge, sb. S. slander, 5. 89. Bake, pp. S. baked, 6. 196 ; Baken, pp. 6. 295. Bakesteres. See Baxteres. Balder, adj.comp. S. bolder, 4. 107; 7. 182. A.S. beald, bold, Mceso- Goth. balthaba, boldly, O.H.G. bait, bold. Bale, sb. S. evil, injury, wrong, 4. 89, 92. A. S. bealo, torment, wickedness, Mceso-Goth. balwjan, to torment. Balkes, sb. pl. S. balks, 6. 109. ' Balk, a ridge of greensward left by the plough in ploughing, or by design, between different occu- pancies in a common field.' (Halliwell). Cf. A.S. balca, (I) a heap, ridge ; (2) a beam. Icel. bdlkr, a wooden division. Banne, v. S. to curse, i. 62 ; pr. *. Banneth, forbids, prohibits severely, 7. 88. Cf. G. bann, a ban. Bar, pt. s. bore. See Bere. Barne, sb. S. a child, 2.3; pl. Barnes, 3. 151, 7. 92. A. S. beam, Mceso-Goth. barn, Sw. barn, Sc. bairn. Cf. E. bear. Barste, pt. s. S. burst, 6. 180. A.S. berstan, to burst, break ; pt. t. ic beers t, I burst. GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Baslarde, sb. F. 3. 303. The Baselard was a kind of long dagger, which was suspended to the girdle . . . Knighton tells us that Sir Wm. Walworth put Jack Straw [? Wat Tyler] to death with a bassilard.' Way, in note to Promptorium Parvulorum. It was also called a badelaire, which is perhaps connected with Low Lat. balteus, a belt, which is also the root of E. bauldric, bawdric, or baldrick. See also the note. Bat allies, sb. pi. F. battles, 3. 321. Batered, I p. s. pt. I battered, I patted, 3. 198. It is the frequen- tative of beat, which is repre- sented both by A.S. bedtan and F. battre. Baudy, adj. dirty, 5. 197. W. baw, dirt, bawaidd, dirty. Baxteres, sb. pi. S. bakers (pro- perly female bakers), pr. 218; Bakesteres, 3. 79. A. S. bcecere, a man who bakes ; bceceslre, a woman who bakes. Bayarde, sb. F. a horse, 6. 196; Bayard, 4. 53. See Baiardes. Bayllyues, sb. pi. F. bailiffs, 3. a. See Bailliues. Be, v. S. to be, pr. 79, &c. ; I p. pi. pr. we Beth, 3. 27; a p. $e Ben, 6. 132 ; 3 p. they Ben, 6. 79 ; Aren, 3. 80 ; 3 p. s. pr. (in future sense) Beest, shall be, 5. 598 5 3 P- Pi- Beth, shall be, 7. 66 ; imp. pi. I p. Be we, pr. 188 ; 3 p. Be je, 7. 183; imp. pi. (without ye) Beth, a. 137; pr. s. subj. Be = if (my council) be, 4. 189; 2 p. Be bow = if thou be, 6. 307 ; pt. s. subj. Were, pr. 165 ; pp. Be, 5. 129, 155. Other parts of the verb present no forms worth notice. See "Were. With A. S. be6n, to be, cf. G. ich bin, I am, Lat. /', 7 was, Gk. tpvvai, to be. With 7 was, cf. A. S. ic wees, G. ic war, from A.S. wesan, G. ivesen, to be. With we are, cf. Icel. v&r erttm, and Lat. esse. The three Sanskrit roots are (i) bhu, (a) vas, (3) as; which seem to be distinct. "Be, prep. S. by, 5. 130. Beau filtz, = fair son, 7. i6a. Fr. beaufils. Bech.es, sb. pi. S. beech-trees, 5. 18. The A. S. has both bece and bdc. Bedel, sb. a beadle, apparitor, or summoner, a. 109 ; pi. Bedelles, beadles, officers, 2. 59 ; Bedellus, 3. 2. O. F. bedel, a beadle, F. bedeaii. Bedeman, sb. S. one who prays for another, 3. 41, 46. Edie Ochil- tree, in the 'Antiquary,' was a King's Bedesman. A. S. gebed, a piayer, Du. bede. Bedered, S. bedridden, 7. 101. MS. T. has bedreden ; MS. O. has bed- rede. The latter is nearest to the A.S. bedredda or bedrida, one who is bedridden, from bed and rida, a rider ; so that bedridden is an early corruption ofbedride, having the sense of bedrider. We also find the spelling Bedreden, 6. 194. Bedes, sb. pi. S. prayers, 5. 8, 407. To bid one's beads is, properly speaking, to pray one's prayers ; but the name beads was after- wards transferred to the balls strung upon a string, by which the prayers were counted off. See Bedeman. Beest, 2 p. s. pr. shalt be, 5. 598. The A.S. beon, to be, was most commonly used in a future sense ; thus ]>u earl = thou art ; b byst = thou shalt be. Behote, I p. s. pr. S. I promise, vow, 5. 462. A.S. behdtan, to vow; cf. G. heissen, Du. heeten, Mceso-Goth. kailan, to name, call. Beire, gen. pi. of both, a. 66. It is a corruption of begra, the gen. pi. of A. S. bd, both. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. Bei3, sb. S. an ornament for the neck, neck-ring, a sort of collar of bright metal, pr. 165, 176; pi. Bijes, pr. 161. A.S. beak, a neck-ring, a crown, any circular ornament ; prob. from biigan, to bend, pt. t. ic bedh. Belsabubbes, gen. case, Beelze- bub's, 2. 130. Bely, sb. S. belly, pr. 41. MS. T. has the pi. belies, Bely-ioye, sb. appetite, delight in food, lit. belly-joy, 7. 118. Belye, v. S. to lie against, slander, 5- 4M. Bemeneth,/r. s. S. means, signifies, pr. 208. A.S. ni(nan,to intend, G. meinen, Du. meenen, Lat. me- minisse, Sanskrit man, to think, deem. Cf. Lat. metis, E. mind. Ben, 3 p. pi. pr. they are, 6. 79. Observe the curious construction it ben^ihey are, 6. 56. So in the A.S. Gospels, ic hit eom, I it am (It is I), S. John vi. 20. Benefys, sb. F. benefice, 3. 312. Benes, sb. pi. S. beans, 6. 184. Benfait, sb. F. a benefit, kind deed, 5. 436. F. bienfait, a thing well done. Berde, sb. S. beard, 5. 194. Bere, imp. s. S. bear, carry, 3. 268 ; pt. s. Bar, bare, 2. 3 ; Bare, 5. 524; 2 p. s. Bere, didst bear, 3. 195 ; pt. pi. Baren, 5. 108, 365; Bere, pt.pl. subj. 5. 139. A.S. beran, pt.t. ic tczr.pl. webceron, pp. boren. Berghe, sb. S. a hill, 5. 589. A. S. beorg or beorh, G. and Du. berg. Cf. Mceso-Goth. bairgan, to hide, A.S. beorgan, G. and Du. bergen. Bernes, sb. pi. S. barns, 6. 186. A.S. be bischop (pr. 80) may mean either with reference to the bishop, or by the bishop's permission. Mr. Aldis Wright takes the former view (Bible Word-book, p. 83) ; but the latter seems better. See the note. Bicche, sb. S. bitch, 5. 353. A.S. bicce. Bicome, pt. pi. 5. 651; where pei bicome = where they have gone to. It is also used as a past tense in M 2 164 GLOSS ARTAL INDEX. Joseph of Arimathie, cd. Skeat (E.E.T.S.) 1. 607, in the phrase * wher the white kniht bicom? i. e. where the white knight had got to. Cf. A. S. bicnman, Du. bijkomen, to happen, G. beikom- men, to reach to. Bicometh. to, pr. s. is suitable for, becomes, 3.208. See the preceding word. Bidde, V. S. to pray, 5. 231 ; to beg, 6. 239 ; I p. s. pr. Bidde, pray (see Bedes), 5. 407 ;pr. s. Biddeth, beg?, 7. 8 1 ; Bit (contracted form of biddeth), begs, 7. 68; bids, commands, 3. 75 ; Bidden, pr. pi. beg, solicit, 3. 218 ; Bidde, imp. s. pray, 5. 454 ; Biddeth, imp. pi. beg ye, ask ye, pray ye, 5. 610, 7. 84 ; pt. s. Bad, commanded, 7. 5. A. S. biddan, to beg, to pray, Du. bidden, G. bitten, to beseech. Bidders, sb. pi. S. beggars, pr. 40 ; spelt Bidderes, 6. 206 ; 7. 66. See Bidde. Biddynge, sb. S. praying (to God), prayers, 3, a 1 8. See Bidde. Bidraueled, pp. S. slobbered, covered with grease, 5. 194. Cf. A. S. drabbe, dregs ; Low G. drabbelen, to slobber, drabbelbart, one who dirties his beard in eat- ing. Bienfetes, sb. pi. F. (lit. benefits) good deeds, 5. 621. The phrase means ' presumption arising from trusting to your own good actions.' Biennales, fb. pi. F. biennials, 7. 1 70. As (rentals means a series of masses said daily for thirty aays, so I suppose biennales to mean masses said for a space of two years, and triennales masses said for three years. They must have been expensive luxuries. Cf. the term annuellere in Chaucer. Biernes, sb. pi. S. men, 3. 265. A. S. beorn, a chief, a man. Bifalle, 3 p. s. pr. subj. S. it may befall, it may happen (feire being an adv. = well), 5. 59 ; pr. s. Bi- falleth, belongs, i. 52 ; pt. s. Bifel, happened, 5. 479, 7. 164. Bifor, Biforn, prep. S. pr. 183, 7. 188. A. S. biforan. Bigge, Biggen, v. S. to buy, 4. 89, 6. 282 ; I p. s. pr. Bigge, I buy, 5. 429. A. S. bycgan, to buy. Bigileth, pr. s. beguiles, cheats, 7. 70. O.F. guile, from a Teutonic source ; cf. A. S. wile, wiliness. Bigruccheth, pr. s. begrudges, re- pines at, murmurs at, 6. 69. O. Fr. grocer, groucher, to murmur ; cf. G. grunzen, to grunt. Bihelde, I p. s. pt. S. I beheld, 7- i9- Biheste, sb. S. promise, 3. 126. A.S. behaes, a promise. Cf. next word. Bihight, pt. s. S. promised, 3. 29. A.S. behdtan, to vow, promise. See Behote. Bihote, I p. s. pr. S. I promise, 6. 233. See Behote, Bihight. Bihoueth, pr. s. S. needs, requires, (not "impersonal) 5. 38. A. S. behofian, to need. Bikenne, i p. s. pr. S. I commit (thee to Christ), 3. 49. See Kenne. Biknowen, v. S. to acknowledge, confess, pr. 204 ; I p. s. pr. Bi- knowe, 5. 200 ; pp. Biknowen, acknowledged, well known, favour- ably received, 3. 33. Bileue, sb. S. belief, creed, 5. 7, 7. 175. Cf. A. S. geledfa, creed. Bille, sb. F. a bill, petition, 4. 47. Mr. Wedgwood rightly con- nects it with bull, a sealed docu- ment, from Lat. btdla, Low Lat. billa, a leaden seal. The diminu- tive of it is the F. and E. billet. Biloue (be), imp. s. S. makes thyself beloved, 6. 230; pp. Biloued.be- loved, 3. ail. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 165 Bilowen, pp. S. told lies about, be- lied, 2. 22. A. S. leogan, to lie, pt. t. ic leag, pp. logen. Binam, pt. s. S. took away from, 6. 243. A.S. beniman, to deprive. See Nam. Biqueste, sb. S. bequest, will, 6. 87. A.S. becw&an, to bequeath ; from eweftan, to say. Cf. Quod. Birde, sb. S. lady, 3. 14. Apparently the same as bride, A.S. bryd ; see Burde in Allit. Poems, ed. Morris, B. 653. Cf. M.E. brid for the modem word bird. Bireue, v. S. bereave, take it away by force, 6. 348. A. S. bereafian, from redfian, to reave, rob. Cf. Du. berooven, from rooven, to rob ; O. F. rober, Sp. robar, It. rubare, Dan. rove, to rob, Icel. raw/a. Connected also with robe. Bisette, v. S. to bestow, 5. 264, 299. A.S. settan, to set,- place. Cf. O. Fries, bisetta, and see Chaucer, C. T. 3299, 7534. Bishetten, pt.pl. S. shut up, 2. 213. A.S. scyttan, to shut up, fcyttels, a bar, bolt. Bisitte, v. S. to sit close to, beset, oppress, 2. 140. A.S. bisittan, to sit near, besiege. Bisi, Bisy, adj. S. busy, 7. 1 18, 125. Bislabered, pp. beslobbered, be- dabbled, dirty, 5. 392. G. schlab- bern, E. slabber, slobber, slubber ; cf. slop. Bismer, sb. S. calumny, 5. 89. A.S. bismer, reproach ; from bismerian, to besmear (lit. to cover with fat, from A. S. smero, fat). Biswynke, v. S. to obtain by work, to earn by labour, 6. 216. A.S. ftvincan, to toil. Bit, short for Biddeth. See Bidde. Bitelbrowed, adj. S. with beetling brows, having prominent brows, 5. 190. The A.S. bitel means the insect called a beetle, lit. the biter ; the M.E. adj. bitel means biting, sharp ; hence perhaps the meaning of toothlike, projecting. Bitter, sb. S. bitterness, 5. 119. Bittere, adv. S. bitterly, 3. 249. Bitwixen,/yv/>.S. betwixt.amongst, 5- 338. A. S. betwix, b,tvm, be- tween; from /if a, two, tuy, double. Bityme, adv. S. betimes, soon, 5. 647. Bijes. See Beij. Bi;ete, sb. S. offspring, 2. 40. From bigitan, to obtain ; cf. modem E. beget. Bijuude, adv. S. beyond, 3. 109. Blame, to, gerund, to blame, 7. 60. Blenche, v. S. to blink, blench ; hence, to flinch at, turn from, glance or turn aside, 5. 589. Cf. Du. blinken, to glitter, AS.blican, to glitter, Sc. blent, a glance. Blent, pp. S. blinded, 5. 502. A.S. blendan, to blind. Blered, />f. s. made dim, blurred ; blered here eyes = cast a mist over their eyes, i.e. deceived them, pr. 74. Cf. Bavarian plerren, a blotch, plerr, a mist before the eyes. Probably only another spelling of blurred. Blered, pp. bleared, sore, inflamed, 5. 191. Perhaps blurred; but Mr. Wedgwood makes a difference be- tween this word and the preceding one. Cf. Low G. bleeroged, with red wet eyes. Blisful, adj. S. full of happiness (which He bestows on others), 2.3. Blissed, pp. S. rendered happy, filled with bliss, 5. 503. A.S. blissian, to make happy, which is distinct from bletsian, to bless. Bio, adj. S. blue, livid, 3. 97. Blody, related by blood, near akin, 6. 2IO. Blosmed, pt. pi. S. blossomed, 5. 140. A.S. bldstmian, from blostma, a blossom, bloom. Blowen, pp. S. blown, 5. 18. Blustreden, pt. pi. wandered blind- i66 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. ]y about, 5.521. Very ra re but ' blustreden as blyude,' = 'wandered about like blind people,' occurs in Alliterative Poems, B. 886; ed. Morris, 1864. Bochere, sb. F. a butcher, 5. 330; pi. Bocheres, pr. 218, 3. 79. Boden, /#. S, bidden, invited, 2. 54. See Bidde. Boke, sb. S. book, 7. 85, 88. Bolded, I p. s. pt. S. I emboldened, 3- 198- Bolle, sb. S. bowl, wooden platter, 5. 108, 369, 526. A.S. bolla. Bollyng, sb. swelling, 6. 2l8. For bollyng of her wombe = to prevent swelling of their bellies, to prevent their growing too fat. Cf. Dan. bulne, to swell, bullen, swollen. See next word. Bolneth, pr. s. swells, 5. 119. See the preceding word. Bolted, pp. S. supported by iron bands, 6. 138. A. S. bolt, an arrow ; hence, a bar. Benched, pt. s. struck, lit. banged, pushed, knocked about, pr. 74. ' Bunchon, tutido, trudo.' Prompt. Parv. ' To bounche or pusshe one ; he buncheth me and beateth me, il me pousse.' Palsgrave. Dan. banlte, Du. bonlien, to knock, rap. Bondman, sb. S. peasant, 5. 194. A.S. bonda, a husbandman, Suio- Goth. and Dan. bonde, a peasant ; from A.S. buan, Icel. biia, G. batten, Du. botiwen, to till, of which Icel. buandi, bdndi was originally the present participle. Hence E. boor (from Du. boer), a tiller, peasant, husband, the man- ager of the house. No connec- tion with to bind. Bondemen, pi. of Bondman, q. v. ; pr. 216, 6. 46. Borde, sb. S. board, table, 6. 267. Bores, sb. pi. S. boars, 6. 31. Borghe, sb. S. borough, town, 2. 87, 6. 308. Borghe, sb. S. pledge, security, 7 83 ; Borwgh, surety, bail, 4. 89 ; pi. Borwes, I. 77. A.S. borh, Du. borg, a pledge. Both this word and the preceding are from A. S. beorgan, to secure. See Borwe. Bornes, gen. s. of Borne, sb. S. a brook, bourn, pr. 8. A.S. burne, Du. borne, a stream, spring, G. brunnen. Often confused with F. borne, a bound, limit, from a quite different root. Borwe, v. S. to borrow, 5. 257; I p. s. pr. I borrow, or rather, I promise to pay, 5. 429 ; pr. s. Borweth, 7. 81 ; pr. pi. Borwen, 7. 82 ; i p. s. pt. Borwed, 6. 101 ; pt. s. Borwed, 4. 53 ; pr. s. subj. Borwe, give security for, 4. 109. See Borghe, a pledge. Bote, sb. S. boot, remedy, restora- tion, amendment, 4. 89, 6. 196, 7. 28. From the root of better. Bote, pt. s. bit, 5. 84. A.S. bitan, pt. t. ic bat. Botened, pp. S. restored, assisted, bettered, 6. 194. See Bote, sb. Boterased, pp. F. buttressed, fur- nished with buttresses, 5. 598. F. bonier, to thrust, but. Boure, sb. S. bower, lady's chamber, 2. 64, 3. 14, 5. 222 ; Bowre, 3. 102. A.S. bur. Bou3te, pt. s. and pi. bought, 2. 3, 3. 86, 6. 210. See Bigge. Bow, sb. S. bough, 5. 32 ; pi. Bowes, 5. 584. Boweth, imp. pi. S. bend, turn, 5. 575- Bown, adj. ready, 2. 159. Icel. bi'tinn, pp. of vb. bua, to prepare. Now corrupted into bound, as in ' bound for New York.' Boxome. See Buxome. Bras, sb. brass, 3. 195 ; i.e. money, as in Matt. x. 9. Bredcorne, bread-corn, 6. 64. Breadcorn is corn to be ground into breadmeal, for brown bread. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 167 Farmers allow their bailiffs bread- corn in Lincolnshire, at 40$. per quarter (Peacock's Line. Glossary). In this case, Piers uses some of it for sowing. Brede, sb. S. breadth, 3. 202. Breke, v. S. to break, 7. 183; pr.pl. Breketh, 6. 31 ; 2 p. pi. pr. subj. Breke, 5. 584 ; pt. s. sub). Breke, should break, miss, 5. 245. Bren, sb. F. bran, 6. 184, 285. F. bran, bren, W. bran, a husk. Brenne, v. S. to burn, 3. 97 ; imp. s. Brenne, 3. 265 ; pp. Brent, burnt, i.e. very bright, 5. 271. Breuet, sb. F. a letter of indulgence, pr. 74 ; pi. Breuettes, 5. 649. O. F. brievet, a little letter, from Lat. breiiis. Cf. F. brevet, a commis- sion, indenture. Brewestere, sb. S. a female brewer, 5. 306 ; pi. Brewesteres, pr. 2 1 8, 3- 79- Bridale, sb. S. bride-ale (wedding- feast) now corrupted into bridal, 2. 54 ; Bruydale, 2. 43. Britoner, sb. an inhabitant of Brittany, a Frenchman (a term of reproach), 6. 178. Brookes, sb. pi. S. badgers, 6. 31. A.S. broc, Dan. brok; cf. Dan. bro- get, pie-bald ; W. broc, grizzled. The badger had two other names, viz. bausin and grey ; Juliana Ber- ners, Book of St. Alban's, sig. D vi. Br occur, fb. broker, 5. 130, 248; Brokour, 2. 65, 3. 46. Brokages, sb.pl. F. brocages, com- missions, a. 87. Broke, *6. S. brook, 6. 137. Cf. A.S. bryce, a fracture. Broke, pp. S. broken, torn, 5. 108. Brolle, sb. a child, brat, 3. 204. It occurs in P. Ploughman's Crede, 745- Bmgge, sb. S. a bridge, 5. 601 ; pi. Brugges, 7. 28. Bruydale. See Bridale. Brytonere, 6. 1 56. See Britoner. Bugge, v. S. to buy, pr. 168, 7. 24; Buggen, 7. 85 ; pr. pi. Buggen, 3.8i. Bulle, sb. F. a bull, papal rescript, pr. 69, 7. 107 ; pi. Bulles, 3. 147 Lat. bull a, a boss, a name given to the lump of metal which formed the seal of a bull. Bummed,/)/, s. tasted, 5. 223. Pro- bably from the sound made by the lips; W. bwmp, a hollow sound, Du. bommen, to sound hollow, bom, a drum ; and E. boom. Burdoun, sb. F. a staff, 5. 524. Fr. bourdon. It. bordone. Burgages, sb. pi. F. lands or tene- ments in towns, held byaparticulai tenure, 3. 86. From F. bourg, town. Burgeis, Burgeys, sb. pi. F. bur- gesses, pr. 216, 3. 162 ; less fre- quently spelt Burgeyses, 5. 129. Busked hem, pt. pi. prepared themselves, got ready to go ; hence, repaired, went, 3. 14. Icel. buask, to prepare oneself, reflexive form of biia, to prepare. See Phil. Soc. Trans. 1866, p. 83. But, conj. S. except, 3. 112, 6. 120; But if, except, 3. 305, 5. 420. A.S. bute, but an. See But in my Etym. Diet. Buxome, adj. S. obedient, humble, I. no, 6. 197; Boxome, 3. 263. A.S. buhsom, obedient, from bugan, to bow. Buxomnes, sb. S. obedience, 4. 187 ; Buxumnesse, I. 112. By, By bat. See Bi. Bydde, 5. 510. See Bidde. Byfel me, happened to me, pr. 6. See Bifalle. Byhiste, pt. s. vowed, 5. 65. See Bihight. Byhote god, I vow to God, 6. 280. See Behote. Bymeneth, i. i. See Bemeneth. Bynome, pp. taken away; worth 1 68 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. bynome hym, shall be taken away from him, 3. 312. See Bin am. Byechrewed, pt. s. cursed, 4. 168. A mere derivative from the sb. threw. From A. S. scredwa, a shrew-mouse, once thought to be venomous. C. Cacche, v. F. to catch, pr. ao6, 2 . 1 9 2. O. F. cacfiier, F. chasser, It. cac- ciare. Only a variation of E. chase. Caityue, sb. F. a wretch, a caitiff, 5. 200. From Lat. captiuns, whence It. cattivo, a captive, F. chettf, wretched, poor. Cake, i-b. a loaf (lit. a cake), 6. 284. In prov. Eng. cake is a loaf. Calabro, 6. 272. See note. Caleys,/>r. name, Calais, 3. 195. Cam, pt. s. came, pr. 114. See Comen. Can, I p. s. pr. I know, 3. 3, 329, 5. 239, 401 ; Can, pr.s. can, is able to, pr. 199. A. S. ctmnan, to know, pr. s. can. Canoun, sb. 5. 428. As this is mentioned with the decretals, it probably means the canon-law, with special reference to that part of it which had received the as- sent of our kings ; see Canon in Hook's Church Dictionary. Other- wise, it must mean the most solemn part of the service of the mass, called Canon Misste, or the Canon of the Mass. See Burguy, and Proctor on the Common Prayer, p." 319. A. S. canon, a rule, from Lat. canon, Gk. icavuiv. Canonistres, sb. pi. professors of the canon-law, men skilled in ec- clesiastical law, 7. 149. Caple, sb. a horse, 4. 23 ; pi. Caples, 2. 161. O. Icel. Itapall, W. ceffyl, Lat. caballus, a horse. Cardinales, pi. adj. F. pr. 104. In M. E. pi. adjectives from the French sometimes take a final s. Cared, pt.pl. S. were anxious about, 2. 161. Carefullich, adv. S. anxiously, sor- rowfully, 5. 77- A. S. cearu, M.- Goth, kara, anxiety. Caroigne, sb. F. carcase, body, 6. 93. Caroyne, pr. 193. F. cka- rogne, O. Fr. caroigne, from Lat. caro, flesh ; now spelt carrion. Carped, pt. s. said, told, 2. 191. 'Carpyn or talkyn. Fabulor? Prompt. Parv. Carpyng, sb. talking, discussion, pr. 203. It means nor should there be any talk about, &c. Cartesadel, imp. s. harness, 2. 179. Lit. saddle for the cart. Cas, sb. F. mishap, misfortune, 7- 48. Lat. casvs. Caste, sb. contrivance, device ; cow- science caste = conscience's device, 3. 19. From the verb to cast. Casten, pt. pi. contrived, planned, pr. 117. Icel. Itasta, Dan. kaste, to cast. Catel, sb. F. wealth, goods, pro- perty, pr. 204, 3. 68, 271, &c. 0. F. calel, chaptal, Low Lat. catallum, from Lat. capttale, which is our modern E. capital. Thus chattels and capital were originally identical. Caurimaury, sb. the name of some coarse rough material, 5. 79. In the Ploughman's Crede, the plough man is miserably clad ' His cote was of a cloute ' that cary was y-called.' In Skelton's Elynour Rummyng, some slatterns are thus spoken of 'Some loke strawry, Some cawry mawry'; 1. 149; 1. e. some look as if covered with straws, some appear in coarse gowns. Halliwell also refers to Collier's Memoirs of Alleyn, p. 21. The word is very uncommon. Certis, adv. F. certainly, assuredly, 2. 151, 7.180. O.F. certes, from adj. cert, Lat. cerltts. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 169 Cesse, pr. n. Cis, i. e. Cicely, Ce- cilia 5- 3 '5- Cesse, v. F. to cease, 6. 181 ; Ces- sen, 7. 117; imp. pi. Cesseth, cease ye, leave off, 4. i. Chaffare, sb. chaffer, merchandise, pr. 31, 2. 59, &c. Put for chap- fare ; so that the first syllable is the same as in chapman, Cheap- side, from A.S. cedp, barter. Cf. G.kaufen, Du.koopen, Icel.kaupa, to buy ; but the original sense was to barter, i. e. to chop. Chaffare, v. to bargain, trade, 6. 241. See above. Chalangynge, sb. accusation, 5. 88. Chalengen, pi. pr. F. to challenge, claim, make a claim for, pr. 93 ; pp. Chalanged, charged with of- fences, accused, 5. 174. From forensic Lat. calvmniare, to bring an action, accuse. Chapitele, sb. F. chapter, i.e. an assembly of the governing body belonging to a cathedral, 3. 318 ; Chapitere, 5. 161. F. ckapitre, Lat. capitulum, from caput. Chapitelhous, sb. chapterhouse, 5. 174. Chapeleynes, sb. pi. F. chaplains, i. 1 88 ; Chapelleynes, 6. 12. Chapman, sb. S. merchant, trader, pr. 64 ; pi. Chapmen, tradesmen, hucksters, 5. 34, 233, 331. See Chaffare. Charnel, sb. F. charnel-house, 6. 60. F. charnier, from Lat. caro. Chaste, v. F. to chastise, chasten, 6. 53. 3 2 4 ! Chasten, 5. 34. F. chatter, O.F. chastier, Lat. casfi- gare, from COS/MS. Chastelet, sb. F. little castle, 2. 84. O.F. chas'elet, dimin. of chasteau or chastel (now chateau'), from Lat. castellum, dimin. of castrum. Chastyng, sb. chastisement, 4. 117. Chateryng, sb. chattering, idle talking, 2. 84. Chaude, adj. F. hot ; plus ckaud, more hot, hotter, 6. 313. Cheker, sb. exchequer, pr. 93, 4. 28. ' To check an account, in the sense of ascertaining its correct- ness, is an expression derived from the practice of the King's Court of Exchequer, where accounts were taken by means of counters upon a checked cloth.' Wedgwood. Chele, sb. S. coldness, chilliness, I. 23. A.S. cele, cold (sb.) Chepe, sb. Cheap, i. e. Cheapside or West Cheap, London, 5. 322. Chepynge, & S. market, 4. 56, 6. 301. See Chaffare. Cherissyng, sb. cherishing, over great indulgence, 4. 1 1/. F. cherir, from Lat. carus. Cherles, sb. pi. churls, boors, pea- sants, 6. 50. A. S. ceorl, a man, a churl; Du.karel, a fellow. Cheruelles, sb. pi. S. chervils, 6. 296. A. S. cerfille, a contraction of Lat. cfuzrophyllum. Chesibles, sb. pi. F. chasubles, 6. 12. O.F. chaisuble, casule. Chest, sb. S. dissension, strife, con- tention, enmity, 2. 84. A.S. cedst, strife. Chetes, sb. pi. F. escheats, property reverting to the king, 4. 175. O.F. escheoir, mod. F. echoir, to fall to ; from Lat. cadere, to fall. The mod. E. cheat is cor- rupted from escheat. Cheuen, pr. pi. F. succeed, thrive, lit. achieve, pr. 31. F. chevir, to compass, manage, from chef, Lat. capttt. Cheuesances, sb. pi. F. agree- ments about the loan of money, negociations, 5. 249. F. chevir. See Cheuen, and the note. Chibolles, sb. pi. F. cibols, 6. 396. A cibol is a sort of small onion ; F. ciboule, Lat. capvlla, from cape, an onion. Childryn, gen. pi. children's 4. 170 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. 117; childryn cherissyng = pam- pering of children. Chillyng, sb. S. chilling, 6. 313; for chilling = against chilling, i.e. to prevent chilling. Chiries, sb. pi. cherries, 6. 296. Lat. cerasus. Chirityme, sb. cherry-time, time of gathering cherries, 5. 161. Chiueled, pt. pi. trembled, 5. 193. MS. Bodley 814 has cheuerid ; and certainly to chinel is only another form of M. E. chirter or chever, our modern shiver. 'Chyue- ryng as one dothe for colde;' Palsgrave. Another spelling is chymer. ' Chymerynge, or chy- uerynge, or dydcrynge. Frigutus.' Prompt. Parv. Clame)>, pr. pi. F. proclaim, pub- lish, cry aloud, I. 93. Lat. cla- mare. Clarice, pr. name, Clarissa, 5. 159, 3I9- Clerematyn, sb. a kind of fine white bread, 6. 306. O.F. cler, clear, Lat. darns ; the latter part of the word points to F. matin, morning, when perhaps it was most used ; cf. O. F. matinel, breakfast. Clergealy, adv. in a clerkly man- ner, pr. 124. Clergye, sb. F. the clergy, a body of clerks, men of letters, pr. 116, 3. 164; gen. s. Clergise, 3. 15. It has reference rather to scho- larly attainments than to holy orders. Clerke, sb. F. a man of learning, student of letters, 3. 3, 7. 73 ; pi. Clerkes, Clerkis, pr. 114, 7. 153 ; gen. pi. Clerken, 4. 119. O.F. clerc, Gk. K\rjpiK6s, from K\fjpos. Cleue, v. S. to cleave, divide,7. 155. Cliket, sb. a latchkey, 5. 613. In Shropshire, to clicket is to fasten as with a link over a staple, and Hartshorne well points out that it properly means a latch, although Chaucer and Langlaud use it to mean a latchkey ; see Merchant's Tale, C. T. 9990. The ety- mology is given in the New E. Dictionary. It is from O. F. cliket, F. cliquet, a latch ; of Germanic origin. Named from the clicking sound. Cf. O. Swed. klinka, a door-bolt. Cliketed, pp. fastened with a latch, or catch, 5. 623. W. cliciedu, to fasten with a latch, from the click- ing sound. Cf. Du. klikklakken, to clash. Cloches, sb. pi. clutches, pr. 154. Allied to claw. . Cloke, sb. a cloak, 6. 272. Clokke, v. F. to limp along lamely, to hobble, to lag, to be left in the lurch, 3. 34. F. docker, to limp (see Brachet), Picard cloqner. Cloutes, sb. pi. S. clouts, patched clothes, 2. 220. A.S. due, a clout. Clowe, v. S. to claw, clutch, pr. 154. A.S. clawian. Cnowe, v. S. to know, 6. 222. Cobelere, sb. cobbler, 5. 327. O.F. cobler, coubler, to join, bind to- gether ; from Lat. copulare, to join together. Coffes, sb. pi. cuffs, 6. 62. Cofre, sb. F. coffer, chest, 5. 27. O.F. cofre, from Gk. ic6i. A.S. cocer, a sheath, Du. koker, a sheath, case, quiver. Coket, sb. a kind of fine white bread, 6. 306. The finest kind was simnel bread, paindemaigne, or sacramental bread ; the next, wastel bread ; ' nearly resembling this in price and quality, though at times somewhat cheaper, was light bread or pnffe, also known as French bread or cocket ... it PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 171 seems far from improbable that it was so called from the word cocket, as meaning a seal, it being a strict regulation . . . that each loaf (at all events each loaf below a certain quality) should bear the impress of its baker's seal.' Chambers. (See note.) The word cocket, a seal, occurs in Liber Albus, p. 40. Cokkeslane, i.e. Cock Lane.Smith- field, 5. 319. Colers, sb. pi. F. collars, pr. 162. Lat. colhtm, the neck. Coloppes, sb. pi. collops, 6. 287. Suio-Goth. kollops. Ihre says 4 Kollops, edulii genus, confectum ex carnis segmentis, tudite lignea probe contusis et maceratis.' But collops are fried ham and eggs. Comen, t. S. to come, 7. 188 ; pt. s. Come, pr. 112, 5. 532, &c. ; pt. pi. Comen, 2. 150; pp. Comen, 4. 189; pt. s. subj. Come, should come, 6. 116. Comeres, sb. pi. S. chance-comers, strangers, 2. 230. Cf. A.S. cuma, a comer, guest, stranger. Comissarie, fb. F. 2. 179, 3. 142. ' Commissary, an officer of the bishop, who exercises spiritual jurisdiction in places of the dio- cese so far distant from the epi- scopal see, that the chancellor cannot call the people to the bishop's principal consistory court, without putting them to incon- venience.' Imp. Diet. Comseth, pr. s. F. commences, be- gins, i. 161, &c. ; pt. s. Comsed, 3. 103, &c. Corrupted from F. commencer. Comune, sb. F. the commonalty, 3- 77 J pi- Com u nes, the com- mons, pr. 113. In 5. 47, Mr. Wright suggests the meaning com- mons, i. e. allowances of provision ; which suits the context. Comune, adj. F. common, general, P . 148. Conforte, v. F. to comfort, i. 201, 2. 150, &c. ; imp. s. Conforte, 6. 223. O.F. conforter, to invigo- rate, from fortis. Perhaps it seems better explained by comfort than by strengthen. Congey, v. to bid farewell to, dis- miss, 3. 173 ; imp. s. Congeye me, say farewell to me, 4. 4. O.F. congier, It. congedare, to dismiss. Conne, pr. pi. they can, 6. 151. See Can. Conneth, pr. pi. they know ho^,- to > pr. 33, 6, 124. See Can. Conscience, gen. conscience's, 3. 19. Conseille, sb. F. council, pr. 148, 3. 114; counsel, pr. 202. Conseille, I p. s. pr. F. I counsel, pr. 187, 7. 195 ; 2 p. s. pt. Con- seilcdest, 3. 205. Consistorie, sb. F. consistory, i.e. the ecclesiastical court of an arch- bishop, bishop, or commissary, pr. 99. 2- 177. 3- 141. 3i8. See Comissarie. Construe, v. F. to translate, ex- plain, pr. 144, 5. 426, &c. Contenaun.ce, sb. F. outward show, display, pr. 24 ; favour (as op- posed to right), 5. 183. Contrarieth, pr. s. F. acts or speaks contrary to, 5. 55. Contreued, pi. s. F. contrived, de- vised, pr. 118. F. trotiver. Conynges, sb. conies, rabbits, pr. 193. W. cwnyng ; cf. also Du. konijn, G. kaninchen. But the word is really from the O.F. connil, It. coniglio, Lat. cunicnlus. Cope, v. F. to provide a cope for, 5. 296; pr. s. Copeth, 3. 142; pt.pl. Coped, 2. 230; pp. Coped, 3. 35. In the two last passages it refers to the dress of a friar in particular. E. cope, cape. Copes, Copis, sb. pi. F. copes (with reference to hermits), pr. 56, 6. 191 ; (with reference tofrian) 172 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. pr. 61. Not short, like our modern cape, but a large cloak reaching down to the feet. F. chappe, It. cappa. Cf. coping- stone, cope or vault of heaven. Du. kap, coping, cap. Allied to E. cape, cap. Coppis, sb.pl. L. cups, 3. 22. A. S. coppa, Low Lat. cuppa. Corps, sb. F. body, I. 137. Lat. corpus. Corseiut, sb. F. a saint, lit. a holy body, but applied here to a living saint, 5. 539. Cf. Chaucer's Dream, 1. 942 ; Morte Arthure, ed. Brock, 1164. Coste, sb. F. cost, expense, expen- diture, 3. 68. O.F. couster, Lat. constare. Costed, pt. s. F. cost, pr. 203 ; pp. Costed, pr. 204. Costes, &b. pi. F. coasts, regions, 2. 85. Lat. costa. Coteth, pr. s. F. provides with a coat, 3. 142. O.F. cole, a tunic. Coude, pt. pi. S. could, pr. 129. See Couthe. Coudestow, 2 p.s.pt. ( = coudest j?ou) couldst thou, 5. 540. Coueitise, sb. F. covetousness, ava- rice, pr. 6 1, 3. 68, &c. Provencal cobeitos, Lat. ctipidus, covetous. The O.F. sometimes wrongly in- serts an n, as in convoitise, covet- ousness. Couent, sb. F. convent, 5. 155; gen. Couentes, convent's, 5. 137. O. F. covent (as in Covent Garden), Lat. convening. Count5, sb. F. county, i. 85. F. comte, from Lat. comes, a count, lit. a companion. Coupe, sb. F. fault, sin, 5. 305. Lat. culpa, whence F. coupable, E. culpable. Coupes, sb. pi. goblets, bowls (dis- tinguished from cups), 3. 22. See the note. Coupleth, pr. s. F. couples, links- fastens, 3. 164 ; pt. pi. Coupled hem, joined themselves, 4. 149 ; pp. Coupled, fastened, held in with a leash ; coupled and vn- cotipled, whether held in or free, pr. 206. From Lat. copula. Courbed, i.p.s.pt.F. I bent, bowed, knelt, I. 79, 2. I. Lat. curvare. Courte, sb. F. courtyard, 5. 594. Lat. coJtors, O.F. cor/, It. carte. Courtpies, ib.pl. pea-jackets, short coats, 6. 191. Du. tort, short, and pije, coat of a coarse woollen stuff; also the material itself; whence />ra-jacket. Cf. Mceso-Goth. ga~ paidon, to clothe, paida, a coat. Couth, I p. s. pr. I make known, I proclaim, 5.181. A.S. cyftan, to make known. Couthe, pt. s. knew, pr. 182, 5. 520; could, I. 115; 2 p. pi. Couthe, ye could, pr. 200, 3. 340. A.S. cunnan, to know, whence ie can, I know, can, ic ciifie, I knew, M.E. I coude, now misspelt could. Cf. Mceso-Goth. kunnan, to know, Ik Jean, I can, ik kuntha, I could. Cracche, Cracchy, v. to scratch, pr. 154, 186. Cf. Du. Jeras&en, to scratch. Craft, Crafte, sb. craft, contrivance, I. 137, 2. 4, 3. 19; handicraft, trade, 5. 554; pi. Craftes, em- ployments, trades, pr. 221, 7. 31. A.S. craft, skill, faculty, G. kraft, strength. Crafty, adj. S. skilful, cunning, well- executed, pr. 162: alkynnef crafty men, skilled men (craftsmen) of every kind, 3. 224, 6. 70. Credo, sb. the creed, 6. 91 ; from the first word in Latin credo. Cristene, adj. F.Christian, 3. 287 ; pi. Cristene, I. 190, 7. 195. Croft, Crofte, sb. croft, small en- dosed field, 5. 581, 6. 33. A. S. croft. Grope, 2 p. s. pt. S. didst creep, 3. 190; ip.pl. subj. we crept, pr. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 173 1 86. A.S. creopan, pt. t. ic eredp, J)w crupe, i p. pi. crupon. Crosse, sb. F. cross, 5. 472. See the note. Crouny-ng, sb. the tonsure, lit. crowning, pr. 88. Lat. corona. Cruche, sb. F. cross, mark of a cross, 5. 529. Lat. ace. crucem, whence O.F. crois, cruix, and E. Crvtched Friars. Cruddes, sb. pi. curds, 6. 284. W. crwd, a round lump. Culled, i p. pi. subj. killed, pr.'tSs. Allied to A.S. cwelan, to die. Culorum, sb. ending, conclusion, 3. 278. Evidently a corruption of sceculortim, the last word of the Gloria Patri. It only occurs, I believe, in ' Piers Plowman ' and in the ' Deposition of Rich. II.* It has, besides, a stronger force than conclusion merely, as it signi- fies the conclusion which gives the key-note to the whole. In the Saruni Psalter, the first word or words of the Anthem (with music) and the music of the seculorum Amen are given. The latter is denoted only by its vowels ; so that under the final musical phrase we find e. v. o. v. a. e. Culter, sb. Lat. coulter, 6. 106. Lat. culler, from colere. Cupmel, sb. S. 5. 225. In cup- mel = in portions such as a cup will hold, in cupfuls. A.S. mcelvm, in parts, dat. pi. of meel, a fixed time, a fixed portion. So Jlocmeel, by flocks, gobetmele, by pieces at a time, &c. in Wycliffe's Bible. See Parcelmele. Cf. E. piecemeal. Curatoures, sb. pi. F. guardians, men who are entrusted with their wards' money, 1.193. ' Curatier, Curatour: curateur, tuteur, cour- tier." Roquefort. Cure, sb. F. a cure of souls, pr. 88. Lat. cur a. Curteise, adj. F. courteous, 4. 16. Curteisye, sb. F. courtesy, kindnes, i. 20, 5. 437. Curteisliche, adj. courteously, 3. 103, 4. 44, &c. Cutpurs, sb. a cutpurse, thief, 5. 639- D. DafTe, $6. a stupid, a dolt, I. 138. Really allied to deft; cf. A. S. ge- dcefte, mild, gentle, meek ; hence innocent, silly. Dampne, imp. s. F. condemn, damn, 5. 478 ; pp. Dampned, 2. 102. Lat. damnare, dampnare. Dar, i p. s. pr. I dare, pr. 309, 6. 270 ; i p. s. pt. Durst, 3. 201 ; pt. s. Dorst, pr. 178. A.S. ic dear, I dare, ic dorste, I durst ; Mceso-Goth. ik dors, I dare, it daursla, I durst, inf. daursan. Daunten, v. to daunt, tame, subdue, 3. 286. F. dompter; cf. Lat domare. Dawe, contr. form of Davy or David, 5. 320,6. 331. Debate, sb. F. strife, discussion, 5. 98, 337. F. debattre, to contend, from the same root as beat. Decretals, sb. pi. 5. 428. A col- lection of popes' edicts and decrees of councils, forming a part of the canon law. Five books of them were collected by Gregory IX, in 1227; a sixth by Boniface VIII, in 1297. Ded, sb. S. death, 3. 265. Mceso- Goth. dauthus, A.S. dedb, Sw. dod, Du. dood, G. tod. Ded-day, sb. S. death-day, 7. 50, i>5- Dede, did. See Do. Dede, adj. pi. the dead, 7. 187. Defaute, sb. F. default ; in defaute, in fault, 2. 139, 5. 145; for defaute, for want, for lack, for need, 5. 6, 6. 209, 7. i6a. Defendeth, pr. s. F. forbids, 3. 64. Defien, v. to be digested, 5. 389; Defye, 5. 121 ; to digest, pr. 229. 174 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. O.F. deffier, to distrust, Lat. fides. Hence M.E. defy, to reject, re- nounce ; alsoto withstand, digest ; see the last passage cited. Dele, v. to distribute, divide, share, 6. 99 ; to share money or other things with others, to give away, I. 197 ; 2 p. pi. pr. Delen, 3. 71 ; v. to have dealings, 6. 77 ; ip.pl. pr. Delen, 7. 90. A.S. daelan, to divide, from de, 2 p. s. subj. diet thyself, 6. 270. Gk. Siaira, mode of life. Dignelich, adv. worthily, honour- ably, 7. 171. Lat. dignus. Diken, v. to make ditches or dykes, 6. 143 ; i p. s.pr. Dyke, 5. 552 ; pt. pi. Dykeden, 6. 193. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 175 Dikeres, sb. pi. ditchers, 6. 109. See Dykere. Dismas, 5. 473. See note. Discreue. See Descryue. Disgised, pp. tricked out, pr. 24. See note. O. F. desguiser, to change one's clothes ; Spaa, guisar, to dress meat, from a Teutonic source ; O. H. G. ivisa, wise, G. weise, A. S. wise, Du. wijs, E. wise, guise. Disoures, fb. pi. story-tellers, ro- mance-reciters, 6. 56. O.F. diseor, a taleteller ; cf. F. dire, Lat. dicere. Dissheres, sb. a female maker, or retailer, of metal dishes, 5. 323. ' John le Disshere ' is mentioned (A.D. 1304) in Memorials of London, ed. Riley, p. 54. Dijte, v. S. dight, prepare, make ready, 6. 293. A.S. dihlan, to arrange, from Lat. dictare. Do, v. to do, to cause, 2 p. s. pr. Doste, 6. 83; ap.pl.pr. Done, * 535 P r - pl- Don . 6. 66; pp. Do, ended, 5. 418. When fol- lowed by another verb, the latter is always in the iufin. mood, and. if transitive, apparently receive* a passive signification. Thus, do maken, I cause to be made, 3. 60; do peynten, cause to be painted, 3. 62 ; don saue, cause to be saved, 7. 177- Yet it must be remembered that the second verb is not really passive, but we have lost the idiom which enables a German to say batten lassen, to cause to be built, and the like. Hence we rightly translate don hytn lese by cause him to lose, 5. 95, &c. ; do men deye, cause men to die, 6. 276; I do it on, I refer it to, I make it depend on, I. 86, 3. 187. To done (gerund), to transact business, 4. 27 ; to work, 6. 1 1 2 ; to be done, 6. 206. Doth hym to go, prepares himself to go off, 2. 211. Do me, make my way, 5. 459. Doth, imp. pi. do ye, 5. 44. Dede, pt. s. did, 3. 140. Dedest, didst, 7. 190. Dede, Deden, pt. pi. 7. 122, 5. 547. Did, caused, 5. 245. Doel, sb. mourning, lamentation, 5. 386. O.F. doel, duil, F. devil, Lat. dolium in the comp. cordo- lium. Cf. Lat. dolor. Doke, sb. duck, 5. 75. Cf. Du. duiker, a diver. Dole, sb. sorrow, grief, 6. 122. See Doel. Doluen, pt. pi. delved, dug, 6. 193 ; pp. Doluen, buried, 6. 182. See Deluen. Dome, sb. doom, sentence, 2. 205 : judgment, 3. 316, &c. A.S. ddm, judgment, Gk. Oefut. Domesday, sb. doom's-day, judg- ment-day, 5. 20, 478. Donet, 5. 209. See note. Dongeon, Dongeoun, sb. donjon, pr. 15, I. 59. The 'donjon' or keep-tower is the principal tower in a castle; in it prisoners often were confined, whence our dun geon. From Low Lat. domnio. a strong tower, which from Lat. dominio, rather than from the Celtic (Gaelic and Irish) dun, a fortified place. O.F. donjon, dungon, doignon, a keep-tower. Dore-tre, sb. S. side post of a door, or wooden bar of a door, i. 185. Dorst. See Dar. Doted, adj. or pp. simple, foolish, I. 138. Cf. F. radoter, to dote, Dn. dut, sleep, dotage. Douere, pr. name, Dover, 4. 131. Doute, sb. fear, pr. 152. O.F. dute, doute, fear ; from Lat. dubitare. Doujter, sb. S. daughter, i. 30 ; pi. Doujtres, 6. 99. Draddest, 2 p. s. pt. S. didst dread, didst fear, 3. 192. Dremeles, sb. a dream, 7. 154. The usual form is dreme (cf. 7. 176 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. 152), but the form dremeles is imitated from meteles or metels; that it is in the singular number is clear from the passage ' A merueillouse meteles' in Pass. xi. 5, Text B. of the poem. A.S. dreman, which usually meant to rejoice, to make a loud sound like a musical instrument. Cf. Du. droom, a dream. Drewery, sb. a favourite, darling, object of affection, i. 87. O. F. druerie, affection, love, from dmt, a lover, which from O.H.G. triuten, to love, cf. G. traitt, dear. See Romaunt of the Rose, 1. 5067. Drowe, I p. s. pt. drew (myself), went (amongst), 5. 209 ; pt. s. Drowgh, drew near, 5. 356. A.S. dragon, to drag, draw, pt. t. ic drag, ic dr&h. Dryest, art dry, art thirsty, I. 25. Dryuen forth., i. e. pass, spend, pr. 220. Dureth, pr. s. F. endures, lasts, i. 78, 6. 58. Lat. durare. Cf. S. Matt. xiii. 21. Durst. See Dar. Dyke, Dykeden. See Diken. Dykere, s6. S. a ditcher, 5. 320; Dyker, 6. 331 ; pi. Dykers, pr. 223. A.S. die, a dyke, either a mound or a ditch. Dyngen, v. to strike violently, as with a flail, 6. 143; to keep pounding away at, 3. 310. Sw. danga, Dan. dr.s. instruct s.teaches, 3. 240. O.F. enformer, to in- struct (Roquefort). Engreyned, pp. dyed in grain, i. e. of a/as/ colour, 2. 15. Enioyned, pt. s. F. enjoined, ap- pointed, imposed, 5. 607 ; En- ioigned, pp. joined, 2. 65. Lat. ininngere. Ennuyed, pp. F. annoyed, 5. 94. F. ennui, Span, enojo, from Lat. in odio (Brachet). PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 177 Ensample, sb. F. example, 5. 17 ; pi. Ensamples, Ensaumples, 1 . 1 70, 4. 136. Lat. exemplum. Enuenymes, sb. pi. F. poisons, 2. 14. Lat. uenenum. Eny, adj. any, 2. 203. Enykynnes, of any kind, 2. 200. Er, conj. ere, 5. 352. See Ar. Erchdekenes, sb. pi. archdeacons, 2- 173- Erde, sb. habitation, native place, home, 6. 202. A.S. card, native soil. Ere, adv. S. formerly, I. 129. Erie, v. to plough, 6. 67, 7. 6 ; ^/>. Eried, 6. 5. Mceso-Goth. arjan, A.S. tfra, Icel. erja ; cf. Lat. arare. See ear in the Bible, Deut. xxi. 4; i Sam. viii. 12; Is. xzx. 24. Erldome, sb. earldom, 2. 83. A.S. eorl, Da.ii.jarl, an earl. Ermonye, sb. F. Armenia, 5. 533. Erye, Eryen, 6. 4, 7. 5. See Erie. Eschaunges, sb. pi. F. exchanges, 5- 249- . Eschue, imp. s. avoid, shun, 6. 55. F. esquiver, M.H.G. schiuhen, G. scheuen, to be shy of, evade. Ese, sb. F. ease, I. 19, 6. 152. Eten, pr. pi. they eat, 6. 147 ; pt. s. Etc, 7. 121 ; pp. Eten, 5. 381, 6.266; see also Eet. A.S. elan, pt. t. ic /. Fals, false men, 3. 138. r 7 8 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Falshed, Palshede, sb. falsehood, pr. 71, i. 64; 5. 295. Famed, pp. F. defamed, slandered, 3. 185. Cf. Lat./awia, often used to mean scandal. Fange, v. to take, receive, 5. 566. A.S.fdn, pt. t. icfeng, pp.fangen, fongen, G.fahen, Du. vangen, to take, catch. Cf. E.fang. Fantasies, sb. pi. F. fancies, tricks, silly inventions, pr. 36. Gk. av- raffia, display, from da), I shine. M.E. fantasy, now corrupted into fancy. Fare, v. to go, depart, 7. 98 ; pr. pi. Fareth, go, travel, fare, 2. 183; pp. Faren, gone, 5.5. A.S. faran, to go, G. fakren, Du. varen, to travel. Faucones, sb. pi. F. falcons, 6. 32. Fauel, sb. the impersonation of Flattery, Cajolery, or Deceit, 2. 6. O.Y.favele, Lat. fabella, idle dis- course, from Lat. fabula. Quite distinct fromfavel orfauvel, which means of a yellow colour (G. /a/6), and was sometimes used as a name for a horse, as in the Romance of Richard Cceur de Lion. Fauntes, sb. pi. F. children, lit. infants, of which it is a shortened form, 7. 94 ; Fauntis, 6. 285. Fayne,arf/. fain, glad, 4. 12,6. 273. A.S. feegen, glad, Mceso-Goth. faginon, to rejoice. Fayteden, pt. pi. F. begged in a dissembling or lying manner, pr. 42. See Faitoures. Faytoure, sb. 6. 74. See Fai- toures. Fecche, Fecchen, v. to fetch, take, 2. 180, 5. 29 ; pr. pi. Fec- cheth, steal, 4. 51. A.S.feccan, fetian, G. fassen, Du. vatten, to fetch, seize. Fefife, v. to fee, retain by means of fees, 2. 146 ; pr. s. Feffeth, infeoffs, endows with property, 2. 78. O.F. fiefer, from the sb.fief, which is from a Teutonic source. Moejo- Goth. faihu, A. S. feok, Sw. ffi, Iccl.fe, G. viek, Du./ooi, cattle, property, fee. Cf. Lat. pecus. Feffement, sb. F.enfeoffment, deed of gift or endowment, i. 72. Feire, adv. 5. 59. See Faire. Fel, sb. skin, I. 15. A.S. and G. fell, Du. vd. Felawes, sb. pi. S. associates, com- panions, 2. 209, 7. 12. Icel.felagi, froni/e, cattle, property, and lag, law, society ; so also Suio-Goth. ftelage, from fee (Sw./S) and laga ; it thus implies one who possesses property in partnership with others. See Feffe. Felawship, sb. S. fellowship, so- ciety, companionship, I. 113, 3. 118 ; crew, 2. 207. Felde, sb. S. field, i. a, 6. 142. A.S.feld. Fele, adj. pi. many, numerous, 3. 338. A.S./e/a, G. viel, Du. ve'el. Feledest, 2 p. s. pt. S. didst feel, 5. 497- Felice, pr. name, F. Felicia, 5. 29. Felle, adj. pi. fell, cruel, severe, 5. 170. A.S./*//. Felle, (rathtr read Fel), S. pt. s. happened, 7. 157; pt. pi. Fellen, fell, I. 119. Felled, pt. s. S. felled, i.e. caused to fall, 3. 126. Fende, sb. a fiend, I. 40 ; gen. sing. Fendes, 2. 40. The Mceso-Goth. fijan, to hate, has a pres. part. Jijands used as a sb. and meaning an enemy : so A.S. fedn, to hate, feond, a fiend. Fenel-seed, sb. fennel-seed, 5.313. ' The fruit or, in common language, the seeds, are carminative, and fre- quently employed in medicine.' Imp. Diet. They were used to put into drinks, as a spice. Some MSS. hzvefenkel, which is nearer to the Lat. faenicultim. Ferde, 2 p. pi. pi. subj, ye would PIERS THE PLOWMAN. '79 have fared, ye would fare, 3. 340. See Fare. Fere, sb. comrade, companion, 4. 26; pi. Feres, 2. 6, 5. 170. A.S./era, gefera, one who fares with one, a travelling companion. Fere, v. S. to frighten, terrify, 7. 34. So used by Shakespeare. Ferly, sb. a wonder, marvel, pr. 6 ; ^/. Feriis, pr. 65. A.S. faerlic, sudden, from fcer, fear, sudden danger ; Du. vaarlijk, quickly ; G. gefdhrlich, dangerous. Fernyere, adv. in former years, formerly, 5. 440. A. S. fyrn, old, former; O.H.G./rw, old. Ferthynge. sb. S. a farthing, 4. 54, 5. 566. Lit. a fourth-ing, fourth part; hence it was used for a quarter of a noble or other gold coin, but commonly for a quarter of a penny, as here. Ferthyngworth, sb. farthing's worth, small quantity, 5. 313. Fest, pp. S. fastened, joined, 2. 1 23. [The readings vary ; the A-text MSS. )MiVcfeffed,feftnyd,fastnid ; the B-text MSS. have// and/as/ ; the best form would befestned."] Fet, pr. s. S. feeds (a contr. form of fedeth}, pr. 194. Fetislich., adv. featly, handsomely, 2. II, 165. Lat. factitius, arti- ficial, O. F. faictis, well made, handsome, E.feat. Fette, pt. s. fetched, produced, 2. 162, 5. 450 ; pt. pi. Fetten, 2. 229, 6. 294. A.S. fetian, pt. t. icfette. Fettren, v. S. to fetter, 2. 207; imp.pl. Fettereth, 2. 200. A.S. fetor, a fetter. Fewe, adj. pi. S. few, 6. 284. Feyned hem, pt. s. F. feigned themselves, pretended to be, 6. 123 ; pr. pi. Feynen hem, feign for themselves, invent, imagine for themselves, pr. 36. Feyntise, sb. F. a faintness, weak- ness, 5. 5. The O. F. faintise properly means falseness, and secondarily cowardice, sluggish- ness. Lat. fingere. See Wedg- wood. Feyres, sb. pi. F. fairs, markets, 4. 56. See Faire. Fieble, adj. F. feeble, weak, 5. 177, 412; Feble, pr. 180. Fierthe, adj. S. fourth, 7. 52. Fikel, adj. treacherous (rather than changeable), 2. 129; Fykel, 3. 121. File, sb. F. girl, wench, 5. 160. ^ Filtz, sb. F. son, 7. 162. Lat. filius. Flap ten, pt. pi. flapped, flogged, slapped, worked at threshing, 6. 187. Du. flap, a flap, blow, stroke. Flatte,^/.s. slapped, dashed, 5. 451. Cf. O.F. flat, flac, a slap, flatir, Jlaccer, to dash. Flaundres, Flanders, 5. 321. Flayles, .'&. pi. 6. 1 87. O.F. flael, from Lat. flagellum. Fleij, pt. s. fled, 2. 210. A.S. fleon, pt. t. Ic flenh. Flex, sb. flax, 6. 13. A. S. flex, fleax, Du. vlas. Floreines, .<&. pi. florins, 2. 143, 3. 156, 4. 156, 5. 590. So named from the town of Florence. Flowen, pt. pi. S.fled, flew, 2. 233, 6. 1 86. See Fleij. Folde, sb. S. fold, earth, world, 7. 53- Foles, sb. pi. F. fools, pr. 26. F. /OK, O.F./o/, W.ffol, foolish. Folus, sb.pl. S. foals, 2. 162. AS. fola, a colt. Folwar, sb. S. follower, s. 549. Folwen, v. S. to follow, 6. 2. Fonde, imp. s. endeavour, 6. 222. A.S. fandian, to try to find, seek. Fonde, I p. s. pt. S. I found, pr. 1 7, 58- Foon, sb.pl. foes, 5. 96. A.S. fdh, pi. /a; but A.S. gefdh has the pi. N 2 i8o GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. gefdhen. The Chaucer MSS. have forte, foon, and/oos. For, conj. S. because, for the reason that, a. 166, 3. 271, 7. 20; />re/>. against, as a preventive against, I. 24, 3. 190, 6. 9. For-, in composition, has the senses (l)./br-, G. vor-, Du. voor-, A.S. /or-, (2) for-, (in forbid, &c.) A.S. for-, G. and Du. ver-. The first implies precedence, the second abstraction, or completeness ; in Mceso-Goth. there is some con- fusion, four- being used for both, but fra- only in the latter sense ; cf. E.from. Fore and From are the nearest intelligible English equivalents. The 'fore' words in Piers Plowman are Forfadres, For goer. For sieves, Forstallelh, Forward, and Forwit. The rest are ' from ' words. Forbare, pt. s. suffered to live, spared, 3. 272. A..S.forberan, to forbear, allow. Forbede,/r. s. subj. forbid, 3. n I, 119 ; pp. Forbode, lit. forbidden, but forbade lawes is incorrectly used to mean laws that forbid it; 3.151. A.S.forbeddan, to forbid, restrain, Mceso-Goth. faurbiudan, G. verbieten, Du. verbieden. Forebode, sb. a forbidding, used in the phrase goddesforbode or lordes forbade = it is God's (or the Lord's) prohibition, 4. 194, 7. 176. A.S.forbod, a forbidding. Fordon, v. to ' do for,' undo, de- stroy, 5. 20. A.S. fordon, G. verthun, Du. verdoen. Forfadres, sb. pi. S. forefathers, 5. 501. Forfeture, sb. F. forfeiture, 4. 131. From Fr. forfaire, to do amiss, Low Lztinforisfacere. Forgoer, sb. S. foregoer, guide, a. 187 ; pi. Forgoeres, well explained by Mr. Wright ' people whose business it was to go before the great lords in their progresses, and buy up provisions for them ' avant-couriers, 2. 60. Forpyned, pp. pined or wasted to death, miserable, wretched, 6. 157. Forsake, i p. s. pr. I deny, 5. 431. A.S.forsacan. Forsleues, sb. pi. short sleeves covering the fore-arm, 5. 81. Forsleuthed,/>/>. wasted idly, spoilt for want of use, 5. 445. Forstalleth, pr. s. forestalls, 4. 56. To forestall is to buy or bargain for corn or other provisions, before they arrive at the stall or market, with intent to sell them at higher prices. Forth, sb. course, 3. 156; cf. the phrase course of justice. Cf. W. ffordd, a way, passage, Sw. ffird, G. fahrt, a way, journey, Du. vaard, a canal. From the same root us fare. Forth, sb. a ford, 5. 576. A.S. ford, G.furt, a ford. Forjn, conj. on that account, there- fore, pr. 111,3. 69, &c. ; Forthy, 6. 96 : -thy is the ablative or in- strumental case of the def. article ; cf. Mceso-Goth. the. Forwandred, pp. wearied out with wandering, pr. 7. Cf. G.wandern. Forward, sb. S. agreement, com- pact, 6. 36; Forwarde, 4. 12. A.S. foreweard, from fore and weard, ward, guard. Forweny, v. spoil, 5. 35. A.S. wenian, to wean. See note. Forwes, s&. pi. furrows, 6. 106. A.S.furh, Du. voor. Forwit, sb. S. forewit, foreknow- ledge, forethought, 5. 166. Forjelde, pr. s. subj. repay, requite, 6. 279. A.S. geldan, gyldan, to pay. Forjete, pp. forgotten, 5. 404. A.S. forgitan, pt. t. ic forgeat, pp. forgelen. Foule, adv. S. foully, 3. 185. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 181 Foules, pi. birds, 5. 355, 6. 32, 7. 128. A.S.fugel, a bird, fowl. Fouleth, />r. s. S. fouls, runs foul of, 3- 153- Fourlonge, sb. S. furlong, furrow, 5- 5- 424- Pourmed, pt. s. F. formed, i. 14. Fou;ten, pt. pi. S. fought, pr. 42. Framed, i p. s. pt. asked, i. 58. A. S. fregnan, G. fragen, Du. vragen, to ask ; cf. Lat. precari. Fram, prep. S. from, 6. 162. Frayned, pt. s. asked, 5. 532. Sec Framed. Freke, sb. a man, 4. 12, 156; pi. Frekis, 5. 1 70. A.S. freca, one who is bold, a hero ; cf. G.freck. Frele, adj. F. frail, 3. 121. Frelete, sb. F. frailty, 3. 55. Frere, sb. F. friar, 3. 55 ; gen. sing. Freres, 5. 81 ; pi. Freres, 2. 182 ; Freris, pr. 58. Lat./ra/er. Frete, v. to eat, 2. 95. A.S.fretan, to fret, devour (Mceso-Goth. /ra- itan, to eat up, from itan, to eat). Cf. G.fressen. Fretted, pp. adorned, a. n. A.S. fretwian, to adorn, frattu, an orna- ment. Frithed, pp. surrounded by a forest, hemmed in with trees, 5. 590. Vf.ffridd, a forest (of E. origin). Fro, prep. S. from, 3. 109, 6. 90. A.S. frd.fram. Frutes, sb. pi. F. fruits, 6. 326. Ful, adv. S. full, very, pr. 20, 6. 45. Fulle, sb. S. fill, 6. 266. Furst, adj. S. first, 3. 243. Fynden, v. S. to find, 7. 30 : pr. s. Fynt (contr. homfyndeth),4. 131, 7. 128 ; pp. Founden, 3. 338. G. Gabbe, v. to lie, 3. 179. A.S. gabban, to delude. Icel. gabba, O.F. gaber. It. gabbare, to cheat. Gable, sb. gable-end of a church, 3. 49. Sw.gafuel, G.glebel, Du. gevel; cf. Mceso-Goth. gibla, a pinnacle. Gadelynges, sb. pi. associates, fel- lows, 4. 51. A.S. geedeling, a companion. In Moeso-Goth. ga- diliggs means a sister's son, a nephew (Col. iv. 10). G&f,pt. s. gave, 3. 21. See Gyue. Galice, Gallicia, 5. 528; Galis, 4. 127. Galle, sb. gall, bile, 5. 119. A.S. gealla ; cf. Gk. x^- Galoun, sb. F. a gallon, 5. 224; (used without of following), 5. 343. Gamen, sb. sing, game, play, pr. 153. A. S. gamen, a game. Gan, pt. s. lit. began ; but commonly used as an auxiliary = did, pr. 143, I. 1 1 2, &c. A.S. ginnan, to begin. Gange, v. to go, travel, 3. 167. A.S.gangan, Mceso-Goth. gaggait (pronounced gangan), to go. Garlekehithe,Garlickhithe,5.324. Garlike, sb. S. garlic, 5. 312. A.S. gar-ledc, from gar, a. spear, and ledc, a leek. Garte, pt. s. caused, made, I. 121 ; Gerte, 6. 303; pp. Gert. 5. 130. Icel. gjora, Sw. gora, Sc. gar. Gascoigne, Gascony, pr. 228. Gate, ->6. way, road, I. 203; 3. 155 ; heije gate = high road, 4. 42. Sw. gata, street, G. gasse. Gateward, s6. S. gatekeeper, porter, 5. 604. Gees. See Gose. Gernere, sb. F. granary, garner, 7. 129. F. grenier, from Lat. granum, a grain. Gert. See Garte. Gerthes, sb.pl. girths; witty wordes gerthes = the girths of wise speech, 4. 20. G. gurt. Gete, v. S. to get, 4. 141 ; I p. s.pt. Gat. 4. 79. Geuen. See Gyue. GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Gilte, sb. guilt, offence, 4. 101. A.S. gylt. Girt, i p. s. pi. cast, threw, 5. 379 ; Probably part of vb. gvrde, to strike (q. v.), which is related to A.S. gyrd, G. gerte, a rod, switch. Glade, v. S. to gladden, 6. 121. Glasen, v. S. to glaze, 3. 61 ; Glase, 3. 49. A.S. gl(Es, glass. Glede, sb. a burning coal, a glow- ing ember, a spark. 2. 12, 5. 291. A.S. gled, a hot coal. Glewmannes, gen. sing, gleeman's, 5. 353. A.S. gled, gliw, glee, music. Glose, sb. F. a gloss, comment, 5. 282. Y.glose; cf. A.S. glesan, to gloss, explain ; from Lat.glossa, Gk. y\uiffffa, f\woar]ita. ; cf. glos- fary. Closed, pi. pi. commented on, ex- plained, made glosses on, pr. 60. Cf. Glose. Glotoun, sb. glutton, 6. 303 ; Glotown, 5. 310, pi. Glotones, pr. 76. F. glonfon, Low Lat. glotonns, Lat. gluto, from gliitus, the throat. Go slope = go and sleep, 6. 303 ; Go swynke = goand work, 6. 219. Slepe and swynke are verbs in the infin. mood. Gode, sb. S. property, wealth, 2. 131, 3. 1 68 ; to gode = to good objects, to good conduct, 3. 222, 5. 643; Goed, wealth, i. 180; pi. Godis, goods, wealth, 4. 163. Godelich, adv. in a good manner, kindly, liberally, i. 180. A.S. g6dlic, kind. Goliardeys, si. F. a buffoon, pr. 139. See the note. Gome, sb. a man, 5. 541, pi. Gomes, 2. 73, 6. 219. A.S. gtima, Mceso- Goth. gurnet ; cf. G. braiitigam, Du. britidegom, E. bridegroom. Gome and groom are unrelated forms. Cf. Lat. homo. Gommes, sb. pi. F. gums (used generally for spices), 2. 226. Gk. Gon, v. S. to go, 2. 154 ; pr.pl. pr. 43, 7. 94 ; Gone, I and 3 p. pi. pr- 7- 197. 3- 2 44- Gonne, 2 p. pt. s. begannest, didst begin, 5. 488. A.S. ginnan, pt. t. ic gan, 1 p. ]>u gunne. Good, 6. 231. See Gode. Gose, sb. gen. sing, goose's, 4. 36 ; pi. Gees, 6. 283. A.S. gos, gen. gose, pi. ge"s. Gossib, sb. gossip, friend, 5. 310. A.S. godsib, one related in God, a sponsor in baptism. Goste, sb. S. the spirit, soul, i. 36. Goth, pr. s. goes, 5. 314. Gowe, i.e. Go we, let us go, pr. 226. Graciouse, adj. F. pleasing, accept- able, 6. 229. Graffe, v. F. to graft, 5. 137. F. greffer, from Lat. graphittm. Graith, adj. direct, straight, I. 203 ; graith gale, direct road. Icel. greidr, ready ; cf. G. gcrade, direct. Graue, v. S. to engrave, write, viz. on a brass beneath the window, 3. 49; pp. Graue, engraved, 4. 130. Cf. Gk. ypcupetv. Grauynge.si. S. engraving, writing, 3-64. Greden, v. to cry, cry aloud, 2.73; to greden after = to cry out for, send for, 3. 71. A.S. grcedan, to call. Grete, v. to weep, 5. 386. A. S. grcetan, Sc. greit. Greue, v. F. to grieve, vex, pr. 153, 6. 316 ; pr. s. Greueth hym, vexes himself, becomes angry, 6. 317; pt. s. Greued hym, grew angry, pr. 139. Gripeth, pr. s. clutches, grips, 3. 248 ; pp. Griped, clutched, 3. 181. A.S. gripan, to gripe, grip, grasp, G. greifen, Du. grijpen. Gris, sb. pi. little pigs, pr. 226. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. Icel. griss, grislingr, Sw. gris, a pig. Cf. E. griskin. Grote, sb. a groat, 5. 31 ; pi. Grotes, 3. 137. Du. groot, large. Gruccheth, pr. s. grudges, mur- murs, 6. 317 ; I p- pl. pr. svbj. Grucche, pr. 153 ; pr. pl. svbj. 6. 219. O. F. grocer, grochler, grottsser, to grumble. Cf. Gk, Grys, 4. 51, 6. 283. See Gris. Gult, $6. S. guilt, 5. 455, 481. See Gilte. Gurdeth of. imp. pl. strike off, a. 201. Cf. A. S. gyrd, a rod. Gyaunt, sb. F. giant, 6. 234. Gybbe, short for Gilbert, 5. 93. Gyed, pt. s. F. guided, 2. 187. Gyf, P r - . svbj. give, 2. 120. Gyle, sb. guile, 2. 187, 5. 207. (Used as a proper name.) Gyloure, sb. beguiler, deceiver, 2. 120. Gynnynge, sb. S. beginning, 2. 30. Gyue, pr.s. svbj. give, 7. 197 ; Gyf, 2. 1 20 ; pr.pl. Geuen, pr. 76, 5. 326 ; Geueth of, give heed to, re- gard, 4. 36 ; pp. Gyue, 2. 148. A.S. gifan, G. geben, Du. geven. See 3iue. Gyuere, sb. S. giver, donor, 7. 70. H. Hadde, pt. *. had ; used nearly in the sense of experienced, 3. 284. Hagge, sb. a hag, 5. 191. A.S. hffgesse, hcegtetse, a witch, fury. Hailse, I p. s. fr. I salute, greet, 5. TOI ; pt. pl. Hailsed, made obeisance to, 7. 160. Sw. helsa, to salute, hail ; cf. Sw. heha, health. Not to be confused with A.S. heahian, to embrace, from heals, the neck. Hakeneyman, $6. one who lets out horses for hire, 5. 318. F. hagtienee, Sp. hacanea, a hackney; cf. Du. hakbenei, an ambling horse. Half, sb. S. side (lit. half), * 5, 3- 73. 180. Haliday, s&. S. holiday, 5. 588 ; pl. Halidayes, 7. 20. Halidom, sb. 5. 376. Cognate with Icel. helgir domar, sacred relics, relics of saints. The primary meaning of dumr is doom. Halpe. See Holpyn. Hals, sb. S. the neck, pr. 170, 2. 195, 6. 63. G. and Du. hols. Halt, pr. s. holds (contr. from holdeth), 3. 241. Halue, adj. S. half, 5. 31, 6. 108. Han, have. See Haue. Handidandi, tb. forfeit, 4. 75. Handydandy is a children's game, played with the hands, one of which conceals a marble. If another child guesses which hand contains the marble, he wins it ; if he fails, he pays forfeit. See Halliwell's Diet., and cf. King Lear, Act iv. Sc. 6. Hanged, pp. hung, pr. 176, 3. 180. Hansel, sb. a bribe, 5. 326. It properly means an earnest. A.S. handsylen, a giving into the hands; see my Etym. Diet. To han*el=* for a bribe or treat. Happe, v. to happen, 3. 284, 6. 47. O.F. hopper, to snatch ; cf. Icel. happ, W. hap, luck ; Icel. heppinn, fortunate, happy. Happes, sb. pl. successes, 5. 97. Icel. happ, \V. hap, fortune. Happily, adv. perhaps, 5. 624 ; Happiliche, 5. 626. Hardiliehe, adv. boldly, 6. 30, Harlotes, sb. pl. buffoons, tellers of ribald stories (by no means used in the modern sense), 4. 118, 6. 54. W. herlod, a stripling, lad. Harlotrie, sb. tale-telling, jesting talk, buffoonery, 5. 413; Har- lotrye, 4. 115. Hasto-w, hast thou, 3. 105. Hat. pr. s. is named, is called, 5. 582,629; Hatte, 5. 604, 6. 45; 1 84 GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Pi. Hatte, 5. 586. A.S. hdtan, O. Fris. heta, G. heissen, to call, name ; also, to have for a name, be called. Properly, however, it was a passive form of the verb, as shewn by Mceso-Goth. haitiih, he calls, haitada, he is called ; as in Thomas, saei haitada Didimus, Thomas, who is called Didymus, John xi. 1 6. Hatie, 2 p. s. subj. thou hate, 6. 52- Hatte, sb. S. a hat, 5. 536 ; Hatt, 5- 527- Haukes, gen. sing, hawk's, 5. 438 ; pi. Haukes, 4. 125. Haukynge, sb. hawking, 3. 311. Haue, v. S. to have ; pr. s. subj. Haue, 7. 68 ; I p. pr. pi. Han, 3. 4 8 5 2 P- 3- 72, 6. 260; i p. 7. II; pr. pi. Haueth, 7. 65 ; pt. s. Hadde (experienced), 3. 284 ; Haued, 3. 39 ; pt. pi. Haued, 2. 166, 219; imp.pl. Haueth, i. 173- Hauer, adj. (or part of compound sb.} oaten, made of oats, 6. 284. G. hafer, Du. haver; whence Du. haverzak, a bag of oats, haver- sack. He, pron. used indefinitely, in the sense one of yon, 6. 138, 7. 93. He, pron. fern, she, i. 140. A.S. heo, hid. Not uncommon. See Heo. Hedes, pi. S. heads, 6. 328. Hegges, sb. pi. S. hedges, 6. 31. Heighe, adj. S. high, 6. 4, 114; Heij, I. 162 ; adv'. Heighe, 5. 588 ; Hei3e,4. 162 ; Heighlich (at a high price), 6. 314 ; Hei3, loudly, 3. 73. Heije gate, high road, 4.42. Hele, sb. S. health, 5. 168 ; sotile hele, soul's health, 5. 270. Hele, sb. 7. 194. See note. Hele, v. S. to conceal, 5. 168. A.S. helan, Du. helen, G. hullen, Lat. celare. Cf. E. hell, hole. Helpith., imp. pi. help ye, 6. 21. Hem, dot. pi. to them, 3. 345, 6. 16; ace. pi. 7. 27, &c. A.S. him, heom. Hem-seluen, themselves, pr. 59, 3- 215- Hende, adj. courteous, 5. 261. Dan. and Sw. handig, dexterous, E. handy. Hendeliche, adv. courteously, 3. 29, 5. loi. Hennes, adv. hence, 3. 108, 244, &c. Hente, v. S. to catch, seize, take possession of, 5. 68 ; pi. s. Hente, 5. 5; Kent, 6. 176; pt.pl. Hen- ten, 6. 190. A. S. hentan, to clutch in the hand, grasp, hunt after. Heo, pron. fern, she, I. 73, 3. 29, 5. 632. See He. Hep, sb. a heap, a large number, 5. 233 ; Keep, pr. 53. A.S. heap, G. haufe, Du. hoop. Her, their. See Here. Herberwed, pp. S. harboured, lodged, 5. 233. A.S. here, an army, and beorgan, to hide. Herde, pt. s. S. heard, 2. 205. Here, pr. S. their, pr. 28, 7. 105 ; Her, 7. 105. In the same line also here = here, adv. Heremites, sb. pi. Gk. hermits, pr. 28, 6. 190 ; Heremytes, 6. 147. Hernes, sb. pi. corners, nooks, hiding-places, 2. 233. A.S. hirne ; cf. E. horn, Gaelic cearn, a corner. E. corner is from Lat. cornu. Herre, adj. S. higher, 2. 28. Hertis, sb. pi. S. hearts, 6. 217. Heruest, sb. S. harvest, a crop, 6. 292. Heste, sb. behest, commandment, 3. U2 ; pi. Hestes, 7. 183. A.S. h&s, a command. See Hote. Heuede,s&.S.head, 1. 162 ; Heued, 5. 637. A.S. hed/od, Goth. haubith. The Goth, diphthong shews that the L. caput is unrelated. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. i8 5 Heuene, gen. sing, of heaven, pr. 1 06. Heueneriche, sb. the kingdom of heaven, pr. 27. A.S. heofon-rice. Hewe, sb. a servant, 5. 559 ; pi. Hewen, 4. 55. A.S. hiwan, sb. pi. domestics. Heyre, sb. S. hair (i.e. a hair-shirt), 5- 66. Hiderward,a/>. Holpe, 4. 169. See Hulpen. Hondes, sb. pi. S. hands, 5. 294. Hondreth, sb.S.z hundred, pr. 210. Honged hym, pt. s. S. hung him- self, I. 68; pi. Hongen, hung, crucified, I. 172. A.S. hon, to hang, crucify. Hoper, sb. a seed-basket, 6. 63. In the Oriel MS. it is glossed by seed-hep. It may be quite un- connected with the hopper of a mill, and may be named from the hoops it is made of; cf. A.S. hop, a hoop, a twig. Hore, adj. hoary, 6. 85, 7. 99. A.S. hdr, hoar, grey-haired. Ho-so, whoso, pr. 144. Hostellere, s&.an innkeeper, keeper of a hostelryor hotel, 5.339. From 1. 329 it appears that the same man kept horses for hire. From Lat. hospitale, a hostel, hcspes, a guest. It is now ostler, with a lower meaning. Hote, I p. s. pr. I command, bid, 2. 199, 6. 261 ; pr. s. Hoteth, 3. 262, 5. 555 ; pt. s. Hi'ste, 5. 206 ; Hight, pr. 102 ; pp. Hote, 6. 78. A.S. hdtan, to bid. Hoten, pp. named, 2. 21. See Hat. Houeth, pr. s. hovers; ouer houeth = hovers over, floats over (said of rain-clouds) 3. 207 ; pt. s. Houed, hovered about, rocked about (im- plying slight undulating movement whilst keeping in one place) pr. 210. W. hofio, hofian, to hang, hover. Cf. our phrase to hang about. (W. hqfo is of E. origin). Houped, pt. s. whooped, shouted after, called loudly, 6. 174. O.F. 1 86 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. houper, 'to hoop unto, or call a-farofl''; Cotgrave. Hence Mod. . whoop, to call out. Houres, sb. pi. ' hours,' or services for particular times of the day, I. 181. There were seven, viz. matins, prime, tierce, sext, nones, vespers, and compline. Housbonderye, sb. husbandry, economy, frugality, i. 57. Icel. bua, to till, bu, a farm, btndi, a farmer. A husband means a master of a house, male house- keeper. See Bondman. Houues, sb. pi. coifs, pr. 210. A.S. hvfe, a mitre, tiara, &c. How, inter j. ho 1 6. 118. Howue, sb. S. a coif, 3. 293. See Houues. Hucche, sb. a hutch, an iron-bound clothes-box once common in bed rooms, 4. 116. O.F. huche. Hulles, sb. pi. S. hills, pr. 5, 214, 7. 141. Hulpen, pt. pi. S. helped, 6. 118; pp. Hulpe, 5. 633, 7. 72. See Holpyn. Hundreth, a hundred, 5. 527. Huyre, sb. hire, 6. 141 ; Huire, 5. 557. A.S. hyre, G. hener, Du.Awwr. Huyred, pp. hired, 6. 314. Hyed, i p.pt. s. I hied, hastened, 5. 384. See Hiedest. Hym-self, used for modern itself, I. 151 ; Hymselue, 5. 221. A.S. him, ace. and dat. (neuter) of hit. Hyne, sb. S. hind, servant, pr. 39, 6. 133 ; for an Jtyne = a.s a thing of small value, 4. 118. Hyjte, i. 17, 6. 236. See Hijte. I, J. J is written like I in the MSS.; hence fakke is for Jaltke (Jack), &c. langelers, sb. pi. tattlers, chatter- boxes, babblers, pr. 35. ' Jange- lyng is whan a man spekith to inoche bifor folk, and clappith as a mille, and taketh no keep [heed] to what he saith ;* Chaucer, Pers. Tale, De Superbia. O. Fr. jan- gleur, a tattler, liar, from jangler, to lie, jest ; but the root is doubt- less Teutonic ; cf. Du. janken, to howl. The O. FT. jongleur (from the root of jangle) has been hope- lessly confused vriihjougleur (Lat. jocttlator) owing to both being names given to buffoons. See logeloure. langle, v. to chatter, prate, talk fast, pr. 130, 2. 94, 6. 316; pr. s. langleth, 4. 155. langlyng, sb. prattle, talk, 4. 180. lape, vb. to jape, jest, 2. 94 ; pt. s. laped, befooled, deceived, i. 67. F. japper, to yelp, chatter. Cf. E. gab, gabble, jabber. lapers, sb. pi. jesters, fools, pr. 35. Ich, pron. 1, 5. 262. See Ik. lille, sb. a gill, now used to mean a quarter of a pint, 5. 346. ' Gylle, lytylle pot. Gilla, vel gillus, vel gillungulus.' Prompt. Parv. O.F. gelle (Roquefort). Ik, pron. I, 5. 228. A.S. ic. like, adj. S. same, i. 83, 6. 164. Ilyke, adj. like, I. 50. A.S.gelic. I-made, i p. s. pt. made, 5. 162. A.S. gemacian, to make. [The prefix is the A.S. ge-, often found before past participles, less often before preterites and infinitives.] Infamis, old Lat. pi. for infantes, but probably employed instead of it by mere mistake, 5. 168. Ingonge, sb. S. ingoing, ingress, 5. 638. Cf. Sc. gang. lime, adv. within, 6. 305. A.S. innan, adv. Innocentz, sb. pi. innocent people, prob. children, 7. 41. Inpugnen, v. F. to impugn, pr. 109; pt. s. Impugned, 7. 147. logeloure, sb. F. a buffoon, juggler, 6. 72. Lat. joculator, O. Fr. jougleur, often written jongleur, PIERS THE PLOWMAN. i8 7 and confused with O. Fr.jatigletir, a tattler. See langelers. loutes, sb. pi. pottage, 5. 158. ' lowtys, potage. Brassica, juta.' Prompt. Parv. See Way's note. Low Lat. juta, jutta ; see Du- cange. It ben, i.e. it is, or, they are, 6. 56. lugge, v. F. to judge, pr. 130, 2. 94; pt.s. lugged, 7. 161. lugges, sb. pi. F. judges, 7. 184. Justice, sb. F. a justice, magistrate, 3.319, 7.44. luwen, gen. pi. of the Jews, I. 67. K. Kairen, v. S. to go up and down, wander (lit. to turn), pr. 29 ; pr. s. Kaireth, goes, travels, 4. 23 ; Kaires hym, turns, betakes him- self, 5. 305 ; cf. Kairen hem, to carry themselves, 2. 161. In all these passages some MSS. read karien, and there seems to be some confusion of A.S. cerran, O. Fris. kera, G. Itehren, Du. keeren, to turn, with F. charier, E. carry. Kayed, pp. fastened with a key, 5- 623. Kenne. v. to make known, i. 92 ; to explain, 5. 426, 7. 107 ; to teach, I. 8 1 ; pr. s. Kenneth, teaches, 6. 22, 7. 73; pt. s. Kenned, guided, 4. 43 ; taught, 7- T 33 > P 1 ' pl' Kenned, guided, 5. 546 ; imp. s. Kenne, teach, 2. 4, 6. 24 ; imp. pi. Kenneth, teach, 6. 14. Icel. kenna, to teach, to know ; the Moeso-Goth. has kannjan, to make known, kunnan, to know. Kepe, i p. s. pr. I care, care for, desire, 3. 278, 4. 193. Kerneled, pp. F. furnished with battlements, embattled 5. 597. F. crenelt, from crenean, a battle- ment ; Lat. crena, a notch. Kerue, v. S. to carve, cut, 6. 106. Ketten, pt. pi. S. cut, 6. 191. Keure, v . F. to cover, 3. 60. Kidde, pt. s. exhibited towards, shewed, 5. 440. A.S. cyttan, to make known, tell, pt. t. ic cySde. Kingene, gen. pi. of kings, 1. 105. Kirke, sb. church, 5. i, 6. 93. Kirtel, sb. a kind of under-jacket, worn beneath the jacket or konrleby, 5. 80. A full Icirtle was a jacket and petticoat, a half-Jiirtle was either one or the other ; and the word kirtle alone meant any of the three, according to the context. A.S. eyrtel, Sw. kjorlel. Kitoun, sb. a kitten, pr. 190, 202. Kitthe, sb. region, country, 3. 303. A.S. cyft, a region. Knappes, sb. pi. knops, knobs, 6. 272. A.S. cncep, a knop, button. Knaue, */>. S. a boy, lad, servant, 4. 16, 5. 116; pi. Knaues, pr. 44, 225. Knowe, pp. S. known, 5. 648. Knowes, sb. pi. S. knees, 5. 359. Knowing, s6. S. knowledge, i. 136. Knowleched, pt. s. acknowledged, confessed, 5. 481. In Swedish, some abstract nouns end in -lek, and lek means sport ; in Icel. the termination is -leikr, also meaning tport ; in A.S. it is -Idc, which means (i) a gift, (2) sport. Hence we must connect -leche with Mceso- Goth. laikan, to sport, play, and consider it distinct from the end- ings -ly and -like. Kokeney, sb. small egg, inferior egg, or (simply) egg, 6. 287. The meaning and etymology of this difficult word have been fully investigated ; and the results are given in the New E. Dictionary, s. v. Cockney, which is the same word. The literal sense is 'egg of cocks'; where coken is the M. E. gen. pi. of cok, a cock, i88 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. just as Inwen is the gen. pi. of Jew; see luwen above; and ey is the common M. E. word for 'egg'; from A. S. ag, an egg. There was an old popular belief that some small and inferior eggs were laid by cocks ; even in Mod. G. we have, in dialect speech, the word hahneneier, lit. cocks' eggs. ' The constituents of a collop were precisely bacon and an egg.' Kokewolde, sb. a cuckold, 4. 164, 5- '59- Koleplantes, sb. pi. coleworts, cau- liflowers, cabbages, &c., 6. 288. A.S. cawl, Lat. cattlis, G. kohl. Konne, pr. pi. S. can, know how to, 6. 70; 2 p. pi. subj. Kunne, know, 6. 255 ; pr. pi. Kunneth, know, 7. 41. Konning, adj. S. cunning, clever, 3- 34- Kourteby, sb. 5. 80. See Court- pies. Kullen, v. S. to kill, i. 66 ; pt. s. i p. Kulled, 3. 186. See Culled. Kulter, sb. coulter, 3. 306. The A.S. culler, E. coulter are simply borrowed from the Latin. Kynde, adj. S. natural, innate ; ieynde witte = natural intelligence, pr. 118; common sense, I. 55. Kynde, sb. S. kind, pr. 186 ; nature, natural disposition, 2. 27. Kyndely, adv. intimately, I. 81, 161, 5. 545; kindly, 3. 15. Kyne, sb. pi. kine, cows, 6. 142. Kyngriche, sb. S. kingdom, pr. 1 25. Cf. G. konigreich. Kynne, s,b. S. kin, kindred, 2. 130. Kynnes, gen. sing, in phr. any itynnes, of any kind, 5. 273. See Alkin. Kyrke, sb. S. church, 5. 269. L. Laccke, v. to catch, 5. 355 ; to get, acquire, 6. 230 ; 2 p. s. subj. Lacche, catch, 2. 202 ; pt. s. Laujte, pr. 1 50 ; pt. pi. Laujte leue, took leave, 3. 25. A. S. laccan, gel&ccan, to seize ; cf. E. latch. Lacchyng, sb. S. clutching, receiv- ing, i. 101. Ladde, led. See Lede. Lafte, left. See Leue (3"). Lafte, I. p. s. pt. remained, stayed behind (some MSS. have lefte), 3. 196. See Wright's P. Plow- man, p. 440, 1. 14426, but espe- cially William of Paierne, ed. Skeat, 11. 1588, 1858. Laike, v. to play, sport, pr. 172. Icel. leika, Sw. leka, Goth, laikan, to sport. Lakke, v. to blame, find fault with, 5. 133; pr.pl. 2 p. Lakke)>, 3. 54; imp. s. Lakke, 2. 47, 6. 227. A.S. leahan, O. Fris. laltia, Du. laken, to blame. Lamrnasse, Lammas, 6. 291. Lappe. sb. a portion, 2. 35 ; pi. Lappes, laps, 6. 295. A.S. lappa, a flap or loose border of a gar- ment, also the lap ; G. lappen, a flap, rag, lobe ; cf. E. lappet, lobe, flap, flabby, lip. See Leef. Largenesse, sb. bounty, largesse, 5- 632. Lasse, adj. and adv. S. less, 2. 45, 3. 2OI, &C. Lat, Late, let. See Lete. Late, adv. late, 3. 73; comp. Latter, later, less readily, i. 197. Laughen, v. S. to laugh, rejoice, 4. 106. Laujte, caught, took. See Lacche. Lawje of, v. to laugh at, 4. 18 ; pres.part. Lawghyng, 4. 153. See Laughen. Leche, sb. a leech or physician, i. 202; pi. Leches, 6. 275. A.S. Ikce, Mceso-Goth. lekeis. Lechecraft, sb. medicinal art, 6. 256. Lede, sb. lead, 5. 600. A.S. lead, Du. load. PIE&S THE PLOWMAN. 189 Lede, sb. man, I. 139, 5. 522 ; pi. Ledes, 3. 96. A. S. leoda, G. leute, Dn. lieden, people, folks. Perhaps cf. alto Low Lat. litus, ledus, a sort of peasant-farmer. Lede, v. S. to lead, guide, govern, 4. 148 ; to draw (a cart), 2. 179 ; pt. s. I p. Ladde, led, took, carried, i. 251 ; 2 p. Laddest, didst lead, 7. 189 ; pt. s. Ladde, led (captive), 5. 498 ; imp.pl. Ledeth, conduct, 2. 134. Leder, sb. S. leader, governor, i. 157; Ledere, i. 159. Lsdyng, sb. S. leading, guidance, 2.42. Leef, sb. a bit, piece, small portion, 6. 256, 7. 1 10 ; cf. 5. 203 ; Lef, a leaf (of a book), 3. 337 ; gen. case, Leues, 3. 336. The idea of a small flat, flapping substance is expressed by lap, lappet, leaf; if the substance is rounded, by lobe, lip. See Lappe, and note that another reading for lappe (i. 35) is lippe. From signifying leaf it also means a part of a leaf, as in 5. 203, &c. See Lyppe. Legge, v. S. to lay, 2. 34, 6. 270. Legistres, sb. pi. legists, advocates, men skilled in the law, 7. 14, 59. O.F. legistre. Lelli, Lelly, adv. F. loyally, faith- fully, verily, I. 78, 3. 30 ; Lelliche, i. 179. Lemman, sb. sweetheart, mistress, lover (used of both sexes), 2.21; pi. Lemmannes, 3. 150. Contr. from leof man or lefman; A.S. ledf, dear. Lene, v. to lend, give, 5. 244, 6. 1 7 ; i p. s. pr. 5. 250 ; 2 p. pi. pr. sttbj. 1. 179. A.S. Ionian. Lenge, v. to dwell, linger, tarry, I. 207. A.S. lengian, to prolong; from long, long. Longer, adv. S. longer, i . 207 ; adj. com/.. 3. 336, 5. 210. Lent, ft. .. gave, 5. 303; Lente- stow, 2 p. didst thou lend, 5. 253. See Lene. Lenten, sb. the season of Lent, pr. 91. A.S. lencten, the spring of the year. Leode, sb. S. man, 3. 32 ; pi. Leodes, 4. 148. See Lede. Lepe, pt. s. leapt, 2. 68, 5. 502. A.S. kledpan, pt. t. ic hleop. Lere, sb. face, countenance, I. 3. A.S. hleor, the face, a cheek. Lere, v. to teach, 1. 144 ; I p. s.pr. 3. 69 ; pr. s. Lereth, 3. 125 ; 2 p. pr. pi. Leren, 5. 45 ; pt. s. Lered, i. 149; imp.pl. Lereth, i. 134; pp. as adj. Lered, instructed, learned, 4. n. A.S. Iceran, G. lehren, Du. leeren. Lerned, (i) I p. s. pt. I learnt, 5. 203; 2 p. Lernedest, 1. 139; (2) 2 p. s. pr. Lernest, teachest, 4. 1 1 ; pt. s. Lerned, taught, 5. 302, 7. 131. The latter meaning is more common in Langland. A.S. leorn- tan. Lese, v. to lose, 2. 35, 3. 135, &c. ; Lesen, v. to lose, 5. 625 ; pt. s. Lese, 7. 158; better spelt Les, 5. 499. A.S. leosan, Mceso-Goth. fraliusan, G. verlieren, Du. tw- liezen. Lese, v. to glean, 6. 68. Still in common use in Shropshire. Leste, adj. least, 3. 204. Lesyng, j&. leasing, lying, telling of idle tales, 4. 18 ; pi. Lesynges, 2. 1 24. A. S. ledsung, lying, from leas, false, loose, vain. Lesynge, sb. S. losing, loss, 5. 112. Lete, (i) v. to let, permit, allow; Lat worpe, to let be, let alone, pr. 187 ; pr. s. Leteth, 3. 136 ; pt. s. Lete, i. 165; pr. s. subj. Lete, pr. 155 ; imp. s. Lat, 2. 47 ; Late, 4. 86, 6. 227 ; imp. pi. Late, 5. 53 ; (2) to leave, forego, 4. 191, 5. 26, 6. 273; Leten, leave off, cease, 5- 4 6 5; (3) to Cause 5 P l - t 1 ' 190 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Leten, 2. 158; imp. s. Lat, 3. 112; Lcte, 4. 20 ; (4) to hold, consider, esteem ; Late wel by, to think well of, set store by, 5.625; pt. s. Lete, 4. 161, 6. 170; pt. pi. Leten, pr. 181, 4. 160. A. S. l/>. asarf/.Iettered.learned, 1. 134, 7. 131. Lettynge, sb. S. hindrance, 6. 7- Leue, pr. s. subj. permit, grant, pr. 126, 5. 263 ; I p. s. pr. Leue, I allow, 3. 333. A.S. lyfan, G. erlauben. Leue, v. to believe, 5. 45 ; 1 p. s. pr. Leue, 6. 92 ; pr. s. Leueth, 2. 101 ; pt.pl. Leueden, I. 117; imp. s. Leue, 5. 302 ; imp. pi. Leueth, 3. 174. Moeso-Goth. laubjan, G. glauben (for ge-lau- ben) ; radically the same as the preceding. Leue, v. to leave, to let alone, I. 101, 7. 149 ; imp. s. Leue, 5. 292; imp. pi. Leue)), 3. 69; pt.pl. Lafte, left, 4. 153. A.S. laefan, to leave ; cf. G. b-leiben, to remain. Leue, sb. S. leave, permission, pr. 85, 3- 15- Leue, adj. (voc. case) lief, dear, 5. 563 ; pi. 4. 39. The nom. case is lef; cf. A.S. Ie6f. Leue, adv. dearly, pr. 163, 3. 18; compar. Leuer, i. 141 ; Leuere, 5. 413; superl. Leuest, 5. 572. Leute, s6. F. loyalty, pr. 126; Lewte, pr. 122, 2. 21. Lewdnesse, sb. S. ignorance, 3. 32. Lewed, Lewde, adj. S. lay, un- learned, 7. 136; useless, I. 187; Lewede, 4. II. E. lewd, but not used in the modern sense. Lewte. See Leute. Leyde, />/. s. S. laid, 5. 359, 6. 124; pp. Leyde, 3. 201. Leyes,s&./>/. leas, fallow lands, 7. 5- A.S. ledg. Libbe, v. to live, 3. 226; pr.pl. Libben, 5. 149 ; Libbeth, 2. 186; fires, part. Libbyng, pr. 222; Lybbyng, 7. 62. A.S. lybban. Liche, adj. S. like, 5. 353, 489. Lief, adv. dearly ; }>e lief like\> = it dearly pleases thee, i. e. you like best, 4. 148. Cf. Leue, adv. Liflode, sb. means of life, food, livelihood, diet, pr. 30, I. 37. A. S. lif-ldd; from Lad, a way, modern E. lode. The modern livelihood has gradually replaced the old word liflode. Sec Prompt. Parv. Lige, adj. F. liege, 4. 184. Ligge, I p. s. pres. I lie (iaceo), 5. 417; pr.s. Liggeth, 3. 175; pr. pi. Liggen, pr.9i ; Liggeth, 6. 15 ; pr. s. subj. Ligge, 5. 439 ; pr. pi. subj. Ligge, 2. 135 ; pres. part. Liggyng, 2. 51. A.S. licgan, Du. liggen. Likam, sb. body, i. 37; Lykam, pr. 30. A.S. lic-kama, from lie, the body, and hama, covering or skin. Cf. E. lich-gate and G. leichnam. Likerous, adj. lickerish, delicate, dainty, pr. 30, 6. 268. G. lecker, Du. letter, dainty; cf. A.S. lic- cera, a glutton. Liketh, pr. s. impers. it pleases, I. 43, 2- 231. 5- II2 > &c -.' P l - * Lyked, pr. 60, 149. Moeso-Goth leikan, to please. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. Limitoures, sb. pi. friars licensed to ask alms within a limited dis- trict, 5. 138. List, pr. s. impers. it pleases, pr. 172, 3- 157; pt. s. Liste, 1. 148 ; pt. s. subj. Liste, it would please, 5. 400. A.S. lystan, to please; cf. E. list, lust. Listres, sb. pi. lectors, 5. 138. See the note. Lith,/>r. s. lies (iacet), i. 124. Lith., pr. s. lies (mentitur), 3. 155. Iiither, adj. defective, vicious, 5. 387 ; Luther, ill-tempered, 5. 1 1 8. A.S. lySre, bad ; Sw. lyle, a defect, fault. Lixte, 2 p. s. pr. liest, tellest lies, 5- 163. Liste, adv. S. lightly, 4. 161 ; comp. Lijtloker, 5. 578. Lobyes, sb. pi. loobies, lubbers, P^ 55- Loke, v. (i) to look, see, find out, pr. 172, 2. 155 ; to look up, look about, 4. 60 ; 2 p. s. pr. Lokestow, lookest thou, 7. 136; imp. s. Loke, 3. 269 ; pi. s. Loked, 6. 321 ; Lokyd hym, appeared (?), 5. 189; (2) Loken, v. to look after, guard, 7. 165 ; Loke, v. to enforce, 6. 319 ; pr. s. subj. Loke, protect, i. 207 ; (3) Loke, v. to look upon, allow, 2. 135. A.S. locian. Lokke, sb. S. lock (of a door), I. 200 ; cf. 5. 604. Lolled, //. s. lolled about, 5. 192. Lombe, sb. S. a lamb, 5. 560. Londe, b. S. land, 3. 135. Longe, adj. S. tall, pr. 55. Longeth, pr. pi. belong, 2. 45, 5. 628. Cf. G. gelangen. Lope, pt. pi. leapt, ran, 4. 153; Lopen, I. 1 1 6, 5. 163 ; pp. Lopen, 5. 198. See Lepe. Lorel, sb. good-for-nothing fellow, 7. 136. Also spelt losfl. Lorkynge, pres. part, lurking, 2. 216. Loseles, sb. pi. good-for-nothing fellows, 6. 1 24. See Lorel. Losengerye, sb. flattery, lying, 6. 145. O. F. losanger, to flatter, lie. Lotebies, sb. pi. concubines, 3. 150. Probably from the root of E. lot. Lothelich, adj. S. loathsome, I. 116. Lotheth, pr. s. impsrs. it irks, causes (us) to loathe, pr. 155. Louedayes, sb. pi. love-days, days for the settlement of differences by arbitration, 3. 157, 5. 427. Loues, sb. pi. S. loaves, 6. 285. Loupe, pt. s. leapt away, escaped, 4. 1 06. See Lope. Loure, v. to look frowningly, 5. 132 ; pres. part. Lourynge, 5. 83. Du. loeren ; cf. Sc. glowre. Louryng, sb. frowning, scowling, 5- 344- Louted, pt. s. bowed, made obei- sance, 3. 115. A.S. hliitan. Louye, v. to love, 5. 49, 6. ail; pres. s. subj. Louye, pr. 1 26. A.S. lufian. Lowed, pt. s. stooped, pr. 1 29. Lowen, pp. lied, told lies, 5. 95. A.S. leogan, to lie, pp. logert. Luft, sb. a light, worthless fellow, 4, 62. Spelt lift in Oriel MS. Cf. A.S. lyft, Du. lucht, air; Du. luchtig, airy, light, merry, care- less ; also Old Du. lucht, O. E. lufte, lifle, left (in sense left hand). Lumbardes, *b. pi. Lombards, 5. 243. Luther. See Lither. Lybbyng, 7. 62. See Libbe. Lyf, sb. (i) life, I. 202; (2) a living person, man, 3. 292. Very rare in the latter sense, except in Langland, who has it frequently, in the Vila de Dowel, &c. The Icel. lif has the same double usage. Lyflode, sb. 5. 88, 6. 17. See Liflode. 192 GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Lykam. See Likara. Lyked. See Liketh. Lyme, sb. S. limb, 5. 99 ; pi. Lymes, 6. 126. Lyude, sb. S. linden-tree, I. 154. Lynnen, sb. linen, pr. 219, i. 18. Lyppe, sb. a. portion, part, 5. 250. See Lappe. Lyser, sb. list, selvage, 5. 210. F. lisiere. M. Maceres, sb. pi. mace-bearers, officers of the courts of justice, 3- ?6. Made. See Make. Maire, sb. F. a mayor, 3. 87; //. Maires, 3. 94. Maistre, sfe. F. master, 3. 217 ; pi. Maistres, 7- 184. Maistrie, sb. F. mastery, dominion, sway, 6. 329; Maistrye, 3. 228, 4- J 35 > pl- Maistries, 4. 25. Make, sb. S. mate, 3. 118. A.S. mnca, a mate. Make, v. S. (l) to compose poetry, write, 7. 61 ; pp. Made, composed, 5. 403 ; pt. s. Made, wrote, 5. 415 ; (a) to cause, bring about; pr. s. stibj. Make it, cause it (to be otherwise), 4. 72, 5. 420; Maketh it, causes it (to be so), 6. 208 ; pp. Maked, made, 7. 143. Males, sb. pi. bags, wallets, 5. 234. F. malle, E. zai7-bag. Mamely, v. to mumble, prate, 5.21. Cf. Momme. Manaced, pt. s. F. menaced, 6. 1 72. Manere, sb. F. manor, 5. 595 ; pi. Maneres, 5. 246. Maner, Manere, sb. F. manner, sort, 5. 25, 7. 96. The word of is generally suppressed after it. Manered, adj. conditioned, like in character, 2. 27. Manliche, adj. S. manly, humane, charitable, 5. 260. Mansed, pp. cursed, 2. 39, 4. 160. A.S. dmdnsumian, to curse. Very corruptly used ; properly tnditsu- mian is to join ; dmeensitmian, to disjoin, excomrriunicate ; so that mansed is short for amansed or amansumed; the corruption was readily brought about by confusion with A.S. man, wicked. Marchen, pr. pi. F. march, go, pr. 63. Mase, sb. a confused throng, i. 6 ; ]>e mase, a state of confusion, pr. 196, 3. 159. Cf. E. maze. Masse-pans, sb. pi. pence for say- ing masses, 3. 223. See Fens. Maugre, F. in spite of, 2. 204, 6. 69 ; sb. ill will, 6. 242. F. mal gre; from Lat. male gratum. Maunged, pp. F. eaten, 6. 260. Mawe, sb. maw, stomach, 5. 124. A.S. maga, G. magen. Mayntenaunce, sb. F. support, protection, 5. 253. Mayntene, v. F. to abet, 3. 90, 184, 6. 37. Mede, sb. S. (in a good sense) re- ward, pay, 3. 217, &c. ; (in a bad sense) bribery, 2. 131, &c. See 3- 230. Medeth, pr. pi. pays, 3. 215. Meke, v. S. to humble, 5. 70. Melke, sb. milk, 5. 444, 6. 185. A.S. meolc, Du. melk. Mellere, sb. S. miller, 2. III. Melleth, pr. s. speaks, 3. 104 ; pt. s. Mellud, 3. 36. A.S. mcelatt, maftelian, Icel. mala, to speak. Mene, sb. F. go-between, mediator, i. 158, 7. i<)6;pl. Menes, 3. 76. F. may en, Lat. medius. Mene, adj. mean, common, 3. 596 ; pi. pr. 18, 2. ;meneale, common ale, 6. 185. A.S. mane, mean, false, man, bad ; Mceso-Goth. gamains, unclean. Mene, I p. s. pr. 1 speak, tell, 5. 283; gerund, To mene, to signify, I. 11, 60. A.S. mcenan, to have in mind, tell. E. mean, mind; cf. Lat. metis. See Mengen. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 193 Mened hire, pr. s. bemoaned her- self, complained, 3. 169 ; Mened hem, complained, 6. 2. A. S. m&nan, to moan, lament. Mengen, v. to keep in mind, re- member, 6. 97. See Mene, v. Mengen here, v. to remember her- self, reflect, 4. 94. A. S. myngian. Mennes, gen. pi. men's, pr. 198, 5. 112. Menske, v. to make a man of, to honour, 3. 183. Icel. mensJea, humanity, virtue, honour. Sc. mense, good manners ; G. and Du. mensch, a man. Merciable, adj.f. merciful, 5. 511. Merciment, sb. F. amercement, fine, I. 1 60. Mercy, sb. F. (your) pardon, I. II, 43. 2. 2. Mercyed, pi. s. F. thanked, 3. 20. Merke, adj. S. dark, murky, i. i. Meschaunce, s6. F. mischance, ill luck, 3. 166, 5. 92. Meseles, sb. pi. lepers, 7. 102. O. F. mesel, a leper, from Lat. misel- lus, dimin. of miser; distinct from G. masern, the measles. Mesondieux, pi. sb. hospitals, 7. 26. O. F. maison dieu (for maison de dieu). Messageres, pi. sb. F. messengers, 2. 27. From Lat. mitto. Messe, sb. F. the mass, pr. 97 ; pi. Messes, 3. 251. Messie, the Messiah, 3. 301. Mesurable, adj. F. moderate, fair, i. 19, 3. 254. Mete, v. to mete, measure, pr. 2 14 ; 2 p. pr. pi. i. 175. A.S. metan. Metelees, adj. meatless, 7. 141. Meteles, sb. (commonly in sing. signification), a dream, 2. 52, 7. 143. See Meten and Dremeles. Meten, v. to dream, pr. n ; pt. s. Mette, 7. 159. A.S. m.'. s. subj. 194 GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Mostc, might, 4. 112. A.S. ie mot (pres. t.), ic m6ste (pt. t.), I must. Mote, sb. F. a moat, 5. 595. O.F. mote. Mote, v. to cite to a law-court, summon, plead, j. 174. A.S. mdtan, to cite ; cf. E. a moot point. Motoun, sb. F. a ' mutton,' gold coin, 3. 24. See note. Motyng, sb. S. pleading, 7. 58. See Mote. Mouthen, v. to utter, talk about, 4. 115 ; pt. s. Mouthed, 6. 240. Mowe, Mowen, i p. pi. pr. (we) may, pr. 172, 5. 509 ; 2 p. Mowe, 6. 40; 3/1. Mowe, 3. 217; 2/>. s. />/. Myjte, 3. 28, 6. 225 ; Myjtow (mightest thou), i. 170. Moylere, sb. a woman, a lady, 2. 1 1 8, 131. O.F. moilier, Lat. Muryer, adv. merrier, pleasanter, i. 107. Myd, prep, with, 4. 77, 5. 75. A.S. mid, G. mil, Du. med. Myddes, adj. as sb. midst, 2. 184. A.S. middes, gen. case of midde, adj. mid. Mykel, o$. great, 5. 477 ; much, pr. 201. A.S. mycel. Mys, sb. pi. S. mice, pr. 147. Mysbede, imp. s. injure, misgovern, 6. 46. A. S. misbeddan, to bid amiss. Mysohief, sb. F. ill success, mishap, ruin, pr. 67, 4. 72. Mysdo, V. S. (neut.) to do amiss, transgress, 3. 122 ; />/. s. (art.) Mysdid, injured, 4. 99 ; pp. Mysdo, 4.90. Myseise, sb. ill ease, discomfort, i. 24. Myseyse, pi. adj. ill at ease, wretched, "j. 26. Myshappe, v. to meet with mis- fortune, 3. 327. Myssayde, pp. evil spoken of, slandered, 5. 69. Mysshape, pp. as adj. mis-shapen, 7-95- Myster, sb. F. employment, occu- pation, 7. 7. O. F. mestier, Lat. ministerium, F. metier. Myste, Myjtow. See Mowe. Myjtful, adj. powerful, i. 174. N. Na, S. no, 1. 181 ; na mo, no more, 3- i. Nale ; in phr. atte nale = atten ale (at J?en ale), at the ale, 6. 117. Nam (for ne am), am not, 5. 420. Nam, 6. 241. See Mnam. Namelich, adv. S. especially, 7. 41, 1 84. Cf. G. namentlich. Namore (na more), no more, 3. 108. See Na. Naujt, adv. not, pr. 80; Noujt, pr. 79. Naujte, sb. naught, nothing, 5. 489. A.S. na wiht, no whit. Naujty, adj. S. having nothing, very poor, 6. 226. Ne, conj. nor, pr. 1 29, &c. A. S. ne. Nedeler, sb. needle-seller, 5. 318. Nedes, adv. necessarily, 5. 257 ; Nede, 3. 225. A.S. neddes, nedde, gen. of nedd, need. Nedle, sb. S. a needle, I. 155. Cf. Du. naad, a seam, Lat. nere, to spin. Neighed, pt. s. S. nighed, drew near, 6. 301. Nei3e, adv. S. nigh, nearly, 3. 144. Nel (for ne wil), will not, I p. s. pr. pr. 38 ; Nelle, pr. 109, 4. 191 ; t p. Neltow, thou wilt not, 6. 158. A.S. nyllan (Lat. nolle), pt. t. I p. ic nelle, 2 p. ]>u nelt. Nempne, v. to name, i. 21 ; pt. s. Nempned, 5. 328; pp. Nempned, 2. 178, 7. 153. A.S. nemnan. Nere (for ne were), were not, pr. 199, 3- 134. Cf. Nam. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. Newe, adv. S. anew, 5. 483. Neyje, prep, nigh, 5. 94. Noble, sb. F. a gold coin, worth 6s. Sd., 3. 45, 5. 250. Neither, conj. S. nor, i. 130. See Noyther. Neither, adj. S. neither, 4. 32 ; of her neither = of neither of them. Nolde (for ne wolde), would not, i p.s.pt. 5. 566; pt. s. 6. 238. See Nel. Nones, sb. pi. ' nones,' the dinner- hour, 5. 378, 6. 147. The 'nones,' originally at about 3 p.m., were advanced to about 2 p.m., and afterwards to noon. Haydn (Diet. of Dates) says 2 p.m. ; and see note to 6. 147. Nonnes, sb. pi. F. nuns, 7. 29. Nought, uot, pr. 29. Noumpere, sb. umpire, 5. 337. N(o)wmpere, or ownpere. Ar- biter, sequester.' Prompt. Parv. O. F. nonper, without equal (Roquefort). See Tyrwhitt's note on nompere in Chaucer. Nouthe, adv. now, 3. 288, 6. 208. A.S. mi bd, just now ; cf. Prov. E. now then, Nou}t, adv. not, 7. 180 ; Noujte, 6. 130. Now, adv. now that, 5. 143. Noyen, v. to annoy, injure, harm, 5- 583; pr.pl. Noyeth, 2. 126; pp. Noyed, 3. 188. O.F. nuire, noire, Lat. nocere. Noyther, conj. neither, 4. 1 30 ; adv. 5- 184. Nym, imp. s. take, 6. 43 ; imp. pi. Nymmeth, 6. 15. A.S. niman,G. nehmen, Du. nemen. Hence E. numb. Nyuelynge, pres. part, sniveling, 5. 135. Cf. neese for sneeze. Nys, (for ne is), is not, 5. 455. See Nam. Nyjt-olde, adj. pi. a night old, not freshly gathered, 6. 310. O. O, adj. one, 2. 30, 3. 237 ; On, 3. 237- Obrode (lit. on broad), abroad, 5. 140. A. S. brad, broad. Of, prep, for, 2. I, 3. 21, 5. 126, 473, 486; by, 7. 153; some of, 6. 98 ; in return for, 6. 129 ; o/ more, besides, 6. 38. Ofsent, pt. s. sent for, 3. 101. Cf. Lajamon, vol. ii. p. 235. On, prep, in, 7. 107 ; on auenlttre, in case, 3. 66. One, adv. only, I. 170. A.S. ana, only. Ones, adv. once, 2. 227, 6. 76 ; Onis, pr. 213 ; at ones, at once, 5. 516. A.S. dues, gen. of an, one. Or, adv. ere, pr. 155, 6. 87. See Ar. Ordeigned, pi. s. F. ordained, 5. 167 ; Ordeygned, pr. 119. Ordre, sb. F. order, rank, I. 104, 6. 168 ; pi. Ordres (foure), pr. 58. Orientales, sb. pi. sapphires, 2. 14. ' The precious stones called by lapidaries Oriental Ruby, Oriental Topaz, Oriental Amethyst, and Oriental Emerald, are red, yellow, violet, and green sapphires, dis- tinguishable from the other gems of the same name which have not the prefix Oriental, by their greatly superior hardness, and greater specific gravity.' English Cycl. s.v. Adamantine Spar. Otes, sb. pi. oats, 4. 38. A.S. dta, an oat. Other, conj. S. or, 3. 304, &c. Other-whiles, adv. sometimes, 5. 557; Otherwhile, pr. 164. Ouerlede, v. S. to domineer over, 3- 3H- Ouerlepe, v. S. to outrun, catch, seize, pr. 199; pt. s. Ouerlepe, pr. 150. Cf. Lat. insultare, from falere. 2 196 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Ouermaistrieth,/>r. s. overmasters, 4- 176- Ouersen, v. to oversee, 6. 115; pp. Ouerseye (me), overseen, i.e. forgot myself, 5. 378. Halliwell quotes from Cotgrave ' almost drunke, somewhat overseene.' Oures, s6. pi, F. ' hours ' of the breviary, pr. 97. Owe, I p. s. pr. I owe (glossed in the MS. by debeo), 5. 476; pt. s. Oujte, ought, 5. 1 20. A.S. dgan, to own, pt. t. ic dhte ; Mceso- Goth. aigan, to have, own. E. owe, own, are two forms of the same infin., and ought, owed, of the same pt. t. P. Paknedle, st. a strong needle, such as is used for sewing up packages, $. 212. Paleys, sb. F. palace, 2. 23. Palfrey, sb. a palfrey, horse, 2. 189. Low Lat. paraveredus, from vere- dus, a posthorse ; which has also given rise to G.pferd. See Diez and Ducange. Palmere, sb. F. a palmer, 5. 542 ; pi. Palmers, pr. 46, 6. 66. Panel, sb. F. 3. 315. ' Thepannel of a jury is the slip of parchment on which the names of the jurors are written.' (Wedgwood.) Panne, sb. S. the brain-pan, skull, 4.78. Parcsl-mele, adv. by parcels at a time, retail, 3. 81. The M.E. ending -mele, by parts, is the A.S. ending -mdelum, which is the dat. pi. of m&l, a part. Cf. M. E.flok- mele, by flocks, poundmele, by pounds. See Poundmel. Pardonere, sb. F. a seller of par- dons, 2. 108 ; pi. Pardoneres, 2. 219. Pare, v. F. to pare, cut down, 5. 343. F. parer, to trim. Parfourned, i p. s. pt. F. per- formed, 5. 405, 607. Paroschienes,st>./>/.F. parishioners, pr. 89; Parochienes, 5. 426. Partie, sb. F. part, i. 7. Passynge, i.e. over, above, 5. 422. Patentes, sb. pi. F. letters of privi- lege (so called because open to the inspection of all men), 7. 194. Paye, sb. pleasure ; to paye = to his pleasure, so as to please him, 5. 556. (A common phrase.) F. paye, from Lat. pacare, to satisfy, It. pagare. Paye, v. F.to please, satisfy, 6. 311. See above. Payn, sb. F. bread, 7. 121 ; Payne, 6. 152. Paynym, sb. a pagan, Saracen, 5. 523. Low Lat. paganhmus, whence O.F. paiennisme, the land of pagans. Lat. pagus, a village, Peces, sb. pi. F. cups (lit. pieces). 3. 89. ' Pece, cuppe. Crater.' (Prompt. Parv.) Pedlere, sb. a pedlar, 5. 258. Also spelt peddare, peddere, one who goes about with a fed, i.e. a basket. See Fed in Halliwell, and ' Pedde, idem quod parmere,' in Prompt. Parv. Pees, sb. F. peace, i. 150, 3. 220. Pees, sb. a pea (sing.} 6. 171 : pi. Pesen, 6. 198; Peses, 6. 189. A.S. pis;, F. pots, W. pys, Lat. pisum. The A.S. sing, is pise, the pi. pisan; the modern form is corrupt. Peired, pp. F. impaired, injured, 3. 127. See Apeyre. Pelet, sb. a pellet, a stone ball, 5. 78. Pellets, used for the old war-missiles, were large balls of stone, of course frequently of a pale-white colour. See Prompt. Parv., and Ch. Ho. Fame, Hi. 553. Pelure, sb. fur, 2. 9, 3. 294. O.F. pelnre, fur ; Lat. pellis. Penaunt, s6. F. penitent, 4. 133. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 197 Pens, sb.pl, pence, 2. 222, 3. 161. Peny, sb. a. penny, i. 47, 6. 282 ; pi. Penyes, pr. 212 ; Pens, 2. 222. Peny-ale, sb. ale sold at a penny a gallon, small beer, 5. 220. Stow's Chron. p. 218. Percil, s6. parsley, 6. 288. F. persil, Gk. iitTpoot\ivov. Pere, sb. F. a peer, equal, 3. 204 ; pi. Peres, 7. 16. Lat. par. Peren, v. to appear, pr. 1 73. O.F. parer, Lat. parere. Perkyn, sb. Peterkin, little or dear Piers, 6. 25. Peronelle, a name, 5. 26 ; gen. Pernelles, 4. 16. Lat. Petronilla. St. Petronilla's day was May 31. Persones, sb. pi. parsons, 3. 149, 5.142. Mid. Lat. persona ecclesice, the person of the church in a parish ; an etymology of which there is no doubt, though often needlessly denied. Pertly, adv. openly, evidently, 5. 23; Pertliche, 5. 15. See Apertly. Pesecodd.es, sb. pi. peashells, with the peas in them (peas were often boiled in the shells), 6. 294. See Pees. A.S. codd, a bag. Pese-lof, sb. loaf made from peas, 6. 181. Pesen, Peses. See Pees. Peter, inter j. by Saint Peter, 5. 5.44, 7.112, 130. Petit, adj. F. small, 7. 57. Peynen hem, v. give themselves trouble, take pains, 7. 42. Peynten, v. F. to paint, 3. 62. Peys, sb. weight, 5. 243. O. F. pels, F. poids, Lat. pensum. Picche, v. to pierce, peck, pick, divide with a sharp point, 6. 105. A.S. and F. pic, a point ; E. peak, pike, pick-axe, peck. Pies, 7. 194. See the note. Piked, pt. pi. picked with a sharp instrument, hoed (as we should now say), 6. 113. See Picche. Piloure, sb. F. pillager, robber, 3. 194. O.F. piller, to rob, to peel. Piones, sb.pl. F. seeds of the peony, 5. 312. Gk. irauuvia. Piries, sb.pl. F. pear-trees, 5. 16. Lat. pyrus. (Chaucer.) Pitaunce, sb. F. pittance, 5. 270. Platte hire,^/. s. threw herself flat, 5. 63. F. plat, Sw. and G. plait, flat. Plede, v. F. to plead, 7. 42 ; pt. pi. Plededen, pr. 212; Pleteden, 7-39- Pleyne hem, v. F. to complain, 3. 167; pt. s. Pleyned hym, 6. 161 ; pt. pi. Pleyned hem, pr. 83. Pleyne, adj. F. full, 7. 103. Pleyntes, sb. pi. F. complaints, pleas, 2. 177. Plijted, pr. pi.; plijted hem = joined (pledged) themselves, pr. 46. Plomtrees, sb. pi. S. plum-trees. 5-16. Plowfote, plough-foot, sb. 6. 105. The plough-foot is part of a plough, formed like a staff, propping up the beam so as to regulate the depth of the furrows. In a modern plough, small wheels are used instead. See the note. Podyng-ale, sb. a kind of ale, 5. 220. See the note. Poeple, sb. pi. E. people, i. 5, 2. 214. Poised, pt. s. weighed, 5. 217. See Peys. Poke, sb. a bag, 7. 191. A.S.pocca, a pouch. Poletes, sb.pl. pullets, 6. 282. F. povlet, from Lat pullus. Polsche, v. F. to polish, 5. 482. Ponfolde, sb. a pinfold, 5. 663. A.S. pjtnd, a pound, a fold. Poraille, sb. the poor people, pr. 82. O. F. pouraille (Roquefort). Pore, adj. poor, pr. 84, 3. 81. Poret, sb. a kind of leek, 6. 300 ; pi. Porettes., 6. 288. O.F. poret, F. porreau. GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Portatyf, adj. portable, hence quick, light, I. 155. Possed, />/. s. pushed, pr. 151. F. pousser, Lat. pulsare. Possession eres, sb.pl. 5. 144. See the note. Posteles, sb. pi. apostles, 6. 151. [Other passages shew that postles = apostles ; but the reason for its use here is not clear.] Potagere, sb. F. a maker of pot- tage, 5- 157- Pouere, adj. F. poor, i. 173. Poundmel, adv. by pounds at a time, 2.222. Cf. Parcelmele. Pouste, sb. power, 5. 36. O.F. poeste, Lat. potestas. Preise, v. F. to appraise, value, 5. 331 ;/>/.s.Preysed, praised, 6. no; pt. pi. Preyseden, 7. 38. Prentis, sb. an apprentice, 5. 202 ; pi. Prentis, 3. 224, 5. 317. F. apprentis, a learner, from Lat. prehetidere. Prentishode, sb. apprenticeship, 5- 256. Prest, sb. a priest, 7. I ' 2. Prest, adj. ready, 6. 199. O.F. prest, F. pret. Prestest, adj. readiest, 5. 558. Prestly, adv. quickly, 6. 95. Preue, v. F. to prove, 5. 43 ; pt. s. Preued, 7. 186 ; pp. Preued, 4. 122. Pris, sb. F. price, value, 2. 13. Prisounes, sb. pi. F. prisoners, 7- 30 ; Prisoneres, 3. 136. O.F. prison, a prisoner. Prouendreth, pr, s. provides for, provides with prebends, 3. 149. ' Provendre. B&idfice ecclesiast- ique.' (Roquefort.) Prouinciales, adj. pi. provincial, 7. 191. Prouisoures, sb. pi. provisors, per- sons nominated by the Pope to livings not vacant, 2. 170, 3. 146. Pruyde, sb. S. pride, pr. 23. Pryue, adj. familiar, 2. 23 ; pi. intimate, 2. 63 ; Pryues, pi. adj. as sb. secret friends, 2. 177- Pukketh, pr. s. pokes, pushes, 5. 620; pt. s. Pukked, incited, 5. 643. Du. polteu, to poke. Pult, />/. s. put, 1. 125. Pultfor put is not uncommon. Purfil, sb. the embroidered or furred trimming of a dress, 4. 1 16 ; Pur- fyle, 5. 26. F. ponrfiler, to work on an edge, embroider with thread ; h.Jilo, a line, edge. Hence our profile. Purfiled, pp. trimmed (with fur), 2.9. Purs, sb. a purse, bag, 5. 192, 311. F. bourse, Gk. fi'vpaa. Purtenaunces, sb. pi. F. appur- tenances, 2. 103. Purtraye, v. to portray, draw, 3. 62. F. pourtraire, from Lat. trahere. Puttes, s&. pi. lit. pits ; hence, dun- geons, 5. 412. Du. put, Lat. puleus. Pyke, sb. a staff with a spike, 5. 482. See Picche. Pykoys, sb. a pickaxe, 3. 307. O.F. piquo'ts, from pic, a pike. Pyk-staf, sb. a staff with a spike, 6. 105. See Pyke. Pyne, sb. pain, 2. 103. A. S. fin pain. Pynned, i p. s.pt. fastened, 5. 213. A. S. pyndan, to shut in, pen in. Pynynge-stoles, sb. pi. stools of punishment, 3. 78. See Pyne. Q. Quarteroun, sb. a quarter, 5. 217. See Halliwell. Quatj, (for Quath), pt. s. quoth, said, 6. 3; Quod, 3. in, &c. A. S. cvjeftan, to speak ; pr. t. ic cwefte, pt. t. ic cw&ft. B. Radde. See Rede. Ragman, sb. a papal bull, with many PIERS THE PLOWMAN. I 99 seals of bishops attached, pr. 75. A ragman or ragman-roll means A document with a long list of names, or with numerous seals. See Halliwell, for along note upon it; and Dyce's Skelton, ii. 335. Hence E. rigmarole, which see in Wedgwood. Rakyer, sb. a raker, a scavenger, 5. 322. A. S. ration, to rake. See Liber Albus, p. 34. Rape )>e, imp. s. make haste, 4. 7, 5. 399 ; 2 p. pl.pr. subj. Rape Jow, 6. 1 2O. Icel. hrapa, to rush. Rappe, v. to strike, beat (down), i. 95. Sw. rappa, to beat. Rathe, adv. S. early, soon, 3. 73 ; comp. Rather, 4. 5, 5. 263 ; sup. Rathest, soonest, 5. 342. A. S. hraSe, soon. Ratonere, sb. a rat-catcher, 5. 322. Ratoun, sb. a small rat, pr. 167 ; Raton, pr. 158; pi. Ratones, pr. 146. F. raton. The F. -on is often a diminutive ending, though the It. -one is commonly augmentative. Cf. Span, raton, ratona. Raujte, pt. s. raught, reached, got, l>r. 57 : extended himself, in pass. sense, was extended, 4. 185. A. S. rcecan, to reach, extend, pt. t. ic rcehte. Cf. Sc. rax. Rayes, sb. pi. striped cloths, also called cloths of r aye, 5. 211. F. rate, a stripe, streak, Lat. radius. Recche, v. S. to reck, care, 4. 65 ; pr. s. Reccheth, 6. 123. Reconforted, pp. F. comforted again. 5. 287. Recorded, pt. pi. gave opinion, 4. 157- Recrayed, pp. recreant, craven, 3. 257. O.F. recroire, to give up one's faith, to be beaten, whence O. F. recreti, O. It. ricreduto, pp. beaten, O. F. recreant, O. It. ricre- dente, pr. p. a recreant. See Re- creant in Wedgwood. Recrayed occurs in Skelton, i. 189. Rede, v. (i) to advise, 4. 9, 29; i p. s. pr. Rede, I. 173, 7. 181 ; imp. s. 4. 1 13 ; pt. s. Radde, 5. 46, 125; Redde, instructed, bade, 5. 485 : (2) to read, 7. 106; 2 p. s.pt. Reddestow, readest thou, 3. 257 ; pt. s. Redde, 3. 334. A.S. reedan, to counsel, read ; G. reden. Cf. A. S. rad, advice, G. rath. Redyngkyng, sb. one of a class of feudal retainers, who held their land by serving their lord on horseback, 5. 323. They were also called Rodknightes. A. S. ridend, one who rides, a chevalier, rdd-cniht, a riding youth, soldier. Regne, v. F. to reign, 3. 283. Regratere, sb. one who sells by retail, 5. 226 ; pi. Regrateres, 3. 90. F. regrattier, It. rigattiere, a huckster ; cf. Span, regatear, to wriggle ; also to haggle, sell by retail. Regraterye, sb. F. selling by retail, 3-83. Regystreres, sb. F.registrars,2.1 73. Reherce, v. to repeat, declare, 7. lQo;imp.s. 5.i82;/tf.s.Reherced. repeated, pr. 184, 5. 61. O.F. rehercer, to repeat (Roquefort). Rekne, v. to reckon up, i. 22 ; 2 p. s. pr. subj. 5. 277. A. S. reccan, to order, direct. Releue, v. F. to relieve, 7. 32. Religioun, sb. F. religious orders, 5.46,6.153,7.32. Renable, adj. loquacious, pr. 158. Some MSS. have resonable, which also has the same meaning ; from F. raison, M. E. reson, which often means talk. But the Norfolk word is runnable, evidently (falsely) con- nected with the verb to run. Renke, sb. a man, pr. 192, 5. 399 ; pi. Renkes, 7. 181. A. S. rinc, a warrior. Renne, v. to run, pr. 166, 3. 213 : pr. pi. Rennen, 2. 182. A. S. ren- nan, G. rennen. 20O GLOSS A RIAL INDEX. Renne-aboute, sb. Run-about, 6. 150. Rental, sb. 6. 92. Properly, a sche- dule or roll containing an account of the rents of an estate. A re- missioun on that rental = a release from rent as recorded in the rental. Rcnten, v. to provide with rents, endow, 7. 32. Cf. F. rendre, Lat. reddere. Repentedestow, 2 p. s. pt. repent- edst thou, 5. 232. Repentestow J>e, 2 p. s.pr. repent- est thou, 5. 449. Rerages, sb. pi. arrears of debt, 5. 246. Also spelt arerages. Rest, pr. s. (contr. from restetK), pr. 171. Restitue, v . F. to make restitution, restore, 5. 281. Retenauns, sb. sing, retinue, 2.53. Also spelt retenaitnce. Reue, sb. a reeve, steward, bailiff", 2. no; gen. Reues, 5. 427. A. S. gerefa. Reulen, pr. pi. F. rule, 7. 10. Lat. regula, a rule. Reumes, sb.pl. realms, 7. 10. O.F. reaume, F. royanme, formed as if from a Lat. regalimen. Reuthe, sb. ruth, pity, i. 173, 4. 108, 5. 434. A.S. hrer'iw, sorrow, hreowan, to grieve; Icel. hrygft, ruth, sorrow. Rewarde, v. to recompense (whe- ther good or evil), 3. 316. O. F. rewarder, from the Teutonic root of ward or guard. Rewe, imp. s. have pity, 5. 475. See Reuthe. Rewlyng, sb. ruling, pr. 127. Re wine, sb. realm, pr. 177. See Reumes. Reyne, sb. rain, 3. 207. ' Reyne. Pluvia.' (Prompt. Parv.) A. S., G. and Du. regen, Mceso-Goth. rign. Ribaues, sb. pi. rows forming a band, either of gold lace or of precious stones, 2. 16. Cf. Du. rijgen, to lace, rijgliif, stays, rijgsnoer, lace ; from Du. rij, G. reih, a row, and band. (So Wedgwood ; but very doubtful.) Ribaudes, sb. pi. F. profligate men, sinners, 5. 512. See Ribald in Wedgwood, and note to the line. Ribaudye, sb. F. ribaldry, sin, pr. 44- Ribibour. sb. a player on the ribibe or rebeck, a kind of fiddle ; from the Arab, rabdb; 5. 322. It is said to have had three strings, to have been played with a bow, and to have been introduced into Spain by the Moors. Ricchesse, sb. sing. F. riches, wealth, 2. 17, 3. 90; pi. Ricches- ses, 3. 23. Ritt, pr. s. (contr. from rideth), rides, 4. 13; is moving about, running about, pr. 171 ; in 4. 24, we must also read rit, not ritte ; see Critical Note. Ri$tful, adj. S. just, pr. 127, I. 54 ; pi. righteous, 4. 157, 3. 241. Ri3tfullich, adv. justly, 4. 172. Robyn hood, 5. 402. Rode, sb. the rood, crucifix, 2. 3, 4. 134, &c. A. S. rod, a crucifix. Rolle, pr. s. snbj. to enrol, register, 5- 2 78. Romares, sb.pl. pilgrims to Rome, 4. 1 20. O. Fr. romier, It. romeo, a pilgrim to Rome. Rome-renneres, sb. pi. runners to Rome, 4. 128. See last word. Roos, I p. s. pt. S. rose, 5. 234. Ropere, .&. a rope-maker, 5. 323. Roste, sb. roast meat, pr. 229. Rotes, sb. pi. S. roots, 6. 105. Rotland, i.e. Rutland, 2. no. Rouned, pt.pl. whispered, 5. 333; pr. s. Rowneth, 4. 13 ; pres.part. Rownynge, 4. 24. A.S. runian, from run, a rune, a mystery. Route, sb. a troop, company, pr. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 2O1 146, 4. 168. O. F. route, G. rotte, a troop; cf. Prover^al rota, tu- mult. Rusty, adj. filthy, foul, 6. 75. Rybaudoure, sb. a teller of loose tales, 6. 75. See Ribaudes. Rychen, pr. pi. grow rich, 3. 83. Ryflynge, ib. plunder, 5. 238. Cf. E. rifle, raffle, Du. rijf, G. raffel, a rake, G. raffen, to seize, sweep off, O. F. rffler, to snatch. Rymes, sb. pi. rimes, 5. 402. F. rime, It. rima, A. S. rim, E. rime (now misspelt rhyme, through con- fusion with rhythm). Ryne, i.e. the Rhine, pr. 229. 8. Sadder, adv. more soundly (with reference to sleep), 5. 4. Cf. W. sad, firm ; from A. S. seed. Sadnesse, s&.firm faith, confidence, 7. 150. See above. Safferes, ib. pi. sapphires, 2. 13. Safte, sb. F. safety, 7. 36. Salamon, i. e. Solomon, 3. 330 ; gen. Salamones, 7. 137. The Lat. form is Salomo. Salmes, gen. sing, psalm's, 3. 247. Sapience, the apocryphal book of Wisdom, 3. 330. Saracenes, sb.pl. Arabians, 3. 325. Derived from Arab, sharleeyn, i. e. Eastern people.' The name Sara- ceni occurs in Plinv (vi. 7). Eng. Cycl. Sarmoun, sb. F. sermon, 3. 93. Sauacioun, sb. F. salvation, 5. 1 26. Sauf, adj. F. safe, 7. 51. Sauoure, sidelight, pleasure,-. 1 48. O. F. savour, savor, Lat. sapor. Mr. Wright explains it by ' know- ledge,' as if from F. savoir, but this is not borne out by other passages in Mid. E., whereas the meaning given is so. See 6. 264 to sauonre with thi lippes, to please thy lips with (by its nice taste). Sauter, sb. psalter, a. 37, 7. 40; gen. Sauter, 5. 282. Saujtne, v. become reconciled, 4.2. Cf. A.S. saktlian, to reconcile, from saht. peace. The ending -ne (Mceso-Goth. -nan) gives it a passive signification. Sawes, sb. pi. sayings, 7. 137. A. S. sagu, a tale. Say, pt. s. i p. I saw, 5. 10; spelt saw in preceding line. See Seigh. Schendeth, pr. pi. harm, injure, disgrace, 6. 175 ; Schenden, 2.125. A. S. scendan, to disgrace. Schete, sb. a loose bit of cloth, such as a skirt of a garment or a sheet, 5.108. Mceso-Goth. skauts, the hem of a garment, A.S. scedt, the skirt of a garment, a sheet. Schrape, pr. t. subj. S. scrape, 5. 124. Schrewe, sb. a shrew, a cursed or depraved one, a sinner, pr. 196, 4. no. Cf. M. E. schrewe, to be- shrew, to curse. Schyreue, sb. a sheriff, i. 163. A.S. scir-gerefa, a shire- reeve, sheriff. Seche, v. S. to seek, 7. 163 ; pt. pi. Soujte, 7. 1 66. See Seketh. Secte, sb. a suit, applied both to a suit of clothes and to a sect or following of people (like our suite), 5. 498. See the note. Seel, sb. F. a seal, pr. 78, 3. 145; pi. Seles, pr. 69. Seem, sb. S. a horse-load, 4. 38. ' A sack of eight bushels is now called a seam, which was a horse- load ; hence, generally, a load, a burden.' (Bosworth's A. S. Diet.) Cf. G. saum, a burden, F. sommier, a sampler or pack-horse. Segge, sb. a man, 3. 63, 5. 127. A. S. secg, a man, Ice I. seggr, a man. Segge, v. to say, 5. 617. A.S. secg an. Sei, v. to say, 2. 67; t p. s. pr. 2O2 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Seist, 6. 232; pt.pl. Seiden, a. IS*- Seigh, pt. s.ip.l saw, pr. 50, 6. 2 37>' Seighe, 7. 140; Sei}, pr. 230; pt. s. Seis, 2. 188; Seighe, 5- 55 J *'/? Seen, 4. 86. Seketh, zm/>. />/. seek ye, 5. 58. See Seche. Selde, adv. seldom, pr. 20, 5. 127 ; Seiden, 7. 137. A. S. seld,seldan. Seleth, pr. pi. seal, 3. 147. Selke, sb. silk, pr. 210. Lat. seri- cum, Gk. ffTjpiic6v, belonging to the Seres (Chinese). Selles, sb. pi. F. cells, pr. 28. Selue, pron. himself, I. 202. Cf. G. selbst. Seme, sb. 3. 40. See Seem. Sendal, sb. a kind of thin rich silk, 6. II. F. sendal, It. cendalo, Low Lat. cendalvm. Seriaunt, sb. F. Serjeant, 3. 293 ; pi. Seriauntz, pr. 2 II. Lat. ser- iiiens (ad legetn). Serke, s6. a sark, shirt, shift, 5. 66. A. S. serce, syrce, Dan. scerk. Sestow, seest thou, I. 5. Seten, pt. pi. S. sat, 6. 117, 195. Seth, i p. pi. pr. (we) see, 3. 216. Sette, I p. s. pr. I set, place, reckon, 7. 194; pt. s. Sette, 6.171; infin. Sette, to plant, 7.6; pp. Sette, placed, 6. 48. A. S. settan. Seweth, pr. pi. follow, pursue, pr. 45 ; Suweth, 5. 60. O. F. svire, sevre, Lat. sequi. Cf. E. sue. Sey, i p. s. pr. I say, 6. 286. See Segge, v. Seygh, i p. s. pt. I, saw, 5. 542. See Seigh. Seyn, v. to say, pr. 189; 2p.pl. pr. Seyne, 6. 131. Seynedhym,/>/. s. blessed himself, 5. 456. O. F. seigner, signer, to make the sign of the cross, Lat. signare, from dgnum. Shallow, i. e. shall thou, 5. 579. Shamedest, 2 p. s. pt. didst bring shame upon, 3. 189. Shapeth, pr. s. causes, disposes, 7. 67; determines, 1. 159; I p. s. pt. Shope me, arrayed myself, pr. 2 ; pt. pi. Shope, disposed, ordered; pr. 122; Shopen hem, arrayed themselves as, made themselves, pr. 57. A. S. scapan, to shape, form. Shedyng, sb. dispersion, scattering ; forshedyng = to prevent scattering, 6. 9. A. S. sceddan, to disperse. Shenfullich, adv. shamefully, 3. 275. The full form is shendfullich, as written in other MSS. A. S. scendan, to reproach. Shendeth, pr. s. corrupts, brings reproach on, ruins, 3. 154; pp. Shent, ruined, 3. 134, 4. 174. See last word. Shepe, sb. a shepherd, pr. 2. See the note. Shette, pt. s. shut, 5.611. A.S. scyttan, to shoot a bolt, to lock. Shireues, sb. pi. 2. 58. See Schyreue. Shodde, pp. shod, 2. 163. Sholdest, Sholde. See Shul. Shonye, v. to shun, avoid, pr. 174; I p. s. pr. I get out of the way, 5. 169. A. S. scunian, to shun. Shope, Shopen. See Shapeth. Shrewe, sb. the cursed one, Satan, I. 127; a sinner, 5. 471. See Schrewe. Shrewednesse, sb. sin, 3. 44. Shroudes, sb. pi. garments, rough outer clothes, pr. 2. A.S. scruJ, a garment, shroud. Shryue, v. to shrive, confess, pr. 64; Shryuen, pr. 89 ; pt. s. Shroue, 3. 44 ; pp. Shryuen, 5. 309. A. S. scrifan, Sw. skrifta. Shull, Shulle, Shullen, i, 2, and 3 p. pi. pr. shall, 3. 34, 5. 578, 7. 162; 2 p. s. pt. sjibj. Shulde, shouldest, oughtest, 6. 49 ; pt. pi. Shulden, should, ought to be, 7. 13. A. S. ic fceal, pi. we sculon, pt. t. ic sceolde. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 203 Sibbe, adj. akin, related to, 5. 634. A. S. sib, peace, relationship ; Moeso-Goth. sibja, relationship ; G. sippe, kindred. Siker, adj. certain, sure, I. 130, 3. 50. A. S. sicor, from Lat. se- ctirus, variant of securus. Sikerere, adv. more securely, 5. 509. Sikerly, adv. with certainty, surely, 5- 547- Sikul, sb. a sickle, 3. 306. A. S. sicel, sicol. Silke, sb. silk, 6. II. See Selke. Sire, sb. F. father, pr. 189. O. F. sire, seigneur, from Lat. senior. Sisoure, sb. a person deputed to hold assize?, 2. 164; pi. Sisoures, 2. 62, 3. 133. Low Lat. assisarii, from ad and sedere, to sit. Sith, Sitthe, Sithen, adv. and conj. since, pr. 64, 4. 14, 7. 94. A. S. si&Sa, sffiftan, afterwards, after that, since ; SI'S, adv. late ; ${5, sb. a turn, a time. Cf. G. seit, since. See Sithes. Sithe, sb. a scythe, 3. 306. A. S. si'Se. Sithenes, adv. afterwards, 7. 25 ; Sitthenes, 6. 65. See Sith. Sithes, sb. pi. times, 5. 431 ; Sythes, 5. 441. A. S. sr'tJ, a turn, time, journey, Moeso-Goth. sintk, a time, a journey. Sitten, v. to cost (lit. to sit), 3. 48. Cf. our phrase, to stand one in a large sum. Sklayre, sb. a veil, 6. 7. Cf. G. schleier, Du. sluijer, Sw. s/q/'a. Sleen, v. to slay, 3. 285 ; imp. s. Slee, 3. 264. A. S. dean, slogan, G. schlagen, to strike. Slepe, i p. s. pt. I slept, 5. 382 ; 2 p. s. pr. Slepestow, I. 5 ; pp. Sleped, 5. 4. A. S. sl&pan, pt. t. ic slep. Sleuth, sb. S. sloth, 2. 98 ; Sleuthe, pr. 45. Slombred, I p. s. pt. S. I slum- bered, pr. 10. Slyken, pr. pi. render sleek, 2. 98. Halldursson gives Icel. slikja, to polish ; cf. Icel. sleikja, to lick, E. slick, sleek. Smerte, pr. pi. svbj. smart, suffer, 3. 167. Cf. G. schmerz. Smythye, v. to forge, 3. 305 ; pr. s. Smytheth, 3. 322. A.S. smtfSian, to forge. Soffire, imp. s. suffer, permit, 3. 92. Soft, adj. S. mild, warm, pr. I. Sokene, s&.explaineJ by Mr. Wright as ' a district held by tenure of socage,' 2. 1 10. Bosworth explains the Law-Latin word soca as a ' lordship enfranchised by the king, with the liberty of holding or keeping a court of his socmen or socagers, that is, of his tenants, whose tenure is hence called soca- gium, in Eng. socage.' See A. S. soc in Bosworth. Solfe, v. to sol-fa, i. e. sing by note, to call over the notes by their names, viz. ut, re, mi, sol, fa, &c., 5. 423. Dyce's Skelton, ii. 94. Some dele, partly, 5. 438. See Dele, sb. Somer-game, sb. a summer-game, 5. 413. See the note. Somme, adj. pi. some, pr. 31, 222 ; dat.pl. to some, 3. 284. 1113.13 it means ' some of them ; ' see note. Connected with same, and A. S. sam, together. Sam is the Greek apa, Lat. simtil; the base of G. sammeln, Eng. assemble. Sompne, v. F. to summon, 2. 158, 3. 314. Lat. summcneo. Sompnoure, sb. F. a summoner or somner (an officer who summons delinquents to appear in an eccle- siastical court ; now called an ap- paritor), 4. 167 ; pi. Sompnoures, 3. 133. See Chaucer's Prologue. Sonde, sb. 3. 349. Explained as ' a mission, sending," by Mr. Wright ; but I feel sure that the 204 OLOSSARIAL INDEX. true sense is that which is sent, viz. a present; cf. Dan. sending, a gift, a present, from sende (A.S. sendan) to send. In Mid. Eng. sonde also means a portion of food sent in a dish, a present of viands. Observe the context. Songen, pt. pi. S. sang, 5. 345, 6. 117. Songewarie, sb. the interpretation of dreams, or more properly, ob- servation of dreams, 7. 148, 150. O. F. songe, Lat. somnhtm, and O. F. tuarir, garir, A.S. warian, to guard, ward, keep. Soiane, sb. S. the sun, pr. I, 6. 328. Sonnest, adv. soonest, i. 70, 3. 281. Sori, adj. sorry, miserable, pr. 45. Soth, adj. S. true, 5. 282, 6. 131, 7.67. Sothe, sb. S. truth, sooth, 4. 2, 5. 569; />/. Sothes, 3. 281. A.S. sdS, truth. Sothly, adv. S. truly, 5. 241 ; Sothely, 3. 189; Sothelich, 3. 5. SothnessS, sb. S. truth (used as a proper name), 2. 24, 1 88. Souereygne, adj. F. excellent, pr. 159. O. F. sovrain, from O. F. sovre, Lat. supra, above. Souereynes, sb.pl. superiors, lords, 6. 82. Soule, gen. sing, soul's ; hence soule hele = soul's health, 5. 270. Soupen, v. to sup, 2. 96 ; Soupe, 6. 220. F. souper, G. sanfen, to sup, sip. Cf. Icel. saup, soup. Soure, adv. bitterly, 2. 140. Icel. surr, W. st/r, G. sauer, Dti. z//r. Souteres, sb. pi. cobblers, shoe- makers, 5. 413. A.S. siitere, a shoemaker (Lye), probably borrowed from Lat. sutar. This seems more likely than Mr. Wedgwood's derivation from F. savetier. Souteresse, sb. a female shoe- maker or shoe-seller, 5. 315. Souste, sought. See Seche. Sowe, v. S. to sow (seed), 7, 6 ; pp. So wen, 6. 5. Spede, v. to speed, i. e. succeed, thrive, prosper, 3. 270, 5. 60 1. Sperhauke, sb. a sparrow-hawk, 6. 199. A.S. sperhafoc. Spiceres, sb. pi. sellers of spices, grocers, 2. 225. Spices, sb. pi. spices, 5. 311. F. epice,O.F.espisce, espece, from Lat. species. Spille, v. to destroy, ruin, 3. 308 ; Spilleth,/>r. s. spoils, 5. 41 ; Spille, imp. s. destroy, 3. 270. A.S. spillan, Du. spillen, Sw. spilla, E. spill, to waste. Spiritualte, sb. F. spirituality, spiritual authority or influence, 5- H 8 . H9- Sprynge, sb. a switch, springy rod, 5-4 1 - Spynnesteres, sb. pi. S. women engaged in spinning, 5. 216. Stable, v. to render firm or stable, to cause to rest, I. 120. Stede, sb. stead, place, pr. 96, 6. 63; pi. Stedes, places, 5. 48. A. S. stede. Stekye, v. to stick fast, remain closed, i. 121. A.S. stician, to pierce, also to stick, adhere; G. sleeken, Sc. sfeik. Sterres, sb. pi. S. stars, 7. 160. Stile, sb. a stile, 5. 201. Stokkes, sb. pi. S. the stocks, 4. 108, 5. 585. Stole, sb. S. a stool, 5. 394. Stonden, Stonde, v. to stand, I. 121, 6. 114. Stories, sb. pi. F. histories, 7. 73. Streyte, adv. straitly, strictly, pr. 26. O.F. eslroit, Lat. strictiis. Streyues, sb. pi. estrays, pr. 94. Explained by Mr. Wright 'beasts which have gone astray ' in ac- cordance with the present usual meaning. But the old meaning is different, viz. goods which a PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 205 stranger leaves behind him at death, and which go to the king or lord for default of heirs. See estrahere in Roquefort. O. F. eslrahere, estreyere, &c., from Lat. extra. Stroke, pt. s. moved rapidly, brushed quickly past the rest and advanced, pr. 183. A. S. sir icon, to go, G. sfreichen, Du. strijken, to sweep rapidly over a surface, to graze, stroke. See Stryke. Struyeth, pr. pi. destroy, 6. 29. 0. F. deslrnire; cf. It. struggere, to destroy, waste. Stryke, imp. s. go quickly, pass quickly, 5. 586. See Stroke. Studye, v. F. to study, muse, 7. M3- Stues, &b.pl. F. stews, 6. 72. Stuwardes, sb. pi. stewards, pr. 96, 5. 48. A. S. stiward, Icel. sli- vardr, one whose business it is to look to the daily work of a farm ; cf. Icel. stjd, domestic occupation, especially foddering the cattle ; Icel. stia, a sheep-house, E. sty; cf. Sw. stia, a pen for geese. Thus steward is for sty-ward. See Wedgwood. Stynte, v. to cease, rest, pause, 1. 1 20; imp. pi. Stynte, stop, rest, 5. 585. A. S. stintan, to be blunt, stunt, blunt. Cf. E. stint, stunted. Suddenes, sb. pi. subdeans, 2. 172. F. sou, under, and M.E. dene, a dean, F. doyen, Lat. decanus, from decem. Sueth, pr. s. follows, pursues, per- secutes, tempts, I. 41 ; pp. Sued, followed, driven, 5. 550. F. suivre, Lat. sequi. Suffrance, sb. F. long-suffering of God, 6. 146. SufEre, v. to suffer, permit, allow to exist, 2. 174. Suggestioun, s6. F. reason, occa- sion, 7. 67. Supprioure, sb. subprior, 5. 171. Suren, v. to plight one's troth to, give security to, 5. 547. Surfait, sb. surfeit, excess, 6. 267. F. surfaire, to exceed, to do too much. Sustre, sb. S. sister, 3. 63; pi. Sustren, 5. 627. Sute, sb. F. suit, clothing of human flesh, 5.495, 504. See the note. Suweth, pr. pi. pursue, follow, 5. 60. See Sueth. Swelte, v. to die, 5. 154. A.S. sweltan, Moeso-Goth. swiltan, to die. Swete, v. S. to sweat, 6. 26, 130. Sweuene, sb. a dream, pr. n, 7. 161. A.S. swefen. Sweyued, pt. *. sounded, pr. 10. A. S. swegan, to sound, sweg, a sound, sound of music ; Mceso- Goth. swigljon, to play upon a pipe. Cf. Sc. sough. Swithe, adv. very, exceedingly, 5. 456, 470. A. S. su/fS, strong, great. Swonken. See Swynke. Swowe, v. to swoon, 5. 154. Pro- bably connected with Mceso-Goth. gatwogjan, to sigh, A. S. swogan, to make a sighing noise. See Sweyued. Swynke, v. to toil, 6. 26 ; pt. pi. Swonken, pr. 21. A.S. swincan. Swynke, sb. S. toil, 6. 235. Syb, adj. S. akin, 5. 636. See Sibbe. Sydder, adj. wider; wel sydder = even lower, 5. 193. A.S. sid, ample, broad, wide. Sykenesse, sb. sickness, 6. 259. Syker, adj. safe, secure, 7. 1 80. G. sicker. See Siker. Symonye, sb. simony, pr. 86, 2. 62. Synful, adj. sinful (men), 7. 15. Synnelees, adj. sinless, 6. 232. Sysoure, 4. 167. See Sisoure. Sythes, pr. 230. See Sithes. t, sb. S. sight, pr. 32. 206 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. T. Tabarde, sb. F. a loose over-coat, sometimes sleeveless, sometimes with loose wide sleeves, open at the sides, 5. 196. F. tabarre, Sp. tabardo. Taile, sb. a tally, a stick (one of a pair) on which the amount of money is notched or scored, 4. 58. F. tattler, to cut, faille, a tally. Taille, sb. a tally, 5. 252. See preceding word. Skelton, ii. 176. Taille, sb. S. a tail, end, conclusion, 3. 347 ; tail of followers, train, 2. 185; pi. Tallies, roots of trees, 5. 19. Take, v. S. (i) to take; (2) to give, I. 56 ; Taketh,/>r. s. gives, 4. 58 ; Toke, pt. s. gave, 3. 45. The latter meaning is common, and occurs in Chaucer. Tale, sb. (i) account (holde ]>ei no tale = take no account), 1.9; (2) a tale, esp. a lying tale, 2. 114, 3. 45. The former is the original meaning ; cf. A. S. talu, a number, reckoning, G. zahl, a number. Tauerners, sb. pi. F. keepers of taverns, pr. 227. Tauny, adj. tawny, of a dull yellow colour, 5. 196. F. tanne, tawny, tanned. Roquefort gives the O.F. tone, enfume, de couleur rousse. Taujte, pt. s. S. taught, 3. 282, 6. 211 ; pp. Taujte, 6. 23. Taxoure, sb. an imposer of taxes, 6. 40. Tellen, pr. pi. count over, reckon up, pr. 92 ; Tolde, pt. s. told, 3. 45. See Tale. Teme, (I) sb. a team, 6. 136, 7. 2. A.S. team, a succession of chil- dren, a row, a team. Teme, (2) sb. a theme, statement, 3- 95. 5- 61 ; a subject, 6. 23. Gk. Ok\ta., a proposition or case for discussion. Tempred, pp. accommodated, pi. 51. Lat. temperare. Tene, sb. vexation, anger, 6. 119, 7. 116; trouble, worry, 6. 135. See next word. Tene, I p. s. pr. I vex, worry, in- jure, 5. 432; pt. s. injured, 3. 320; tetted ywi = was vexed, 2. 114. A.S. tynan, to vex, tedn, injurv. Teneful, adj. harmful, 3. 345. panne, adv. then, 6. 34. pat, put for that which, pr. 38, 3. 84, &c. pat bat, that which, 3. 347. pat like, that very, 6. 164. The, I p. s. pr. subj. may I thrive, prosper, 5. 228. A.S. ]>edn, to thrive, G. ge-deihen, Du. gedijen. pels, cow/, though, i . 10 ; beije, 3. 148, &c. pen, than, pr. 147. pennes, adv. thence, I. 73, 2. 229. A.S. ]>anon, perafter, adv. accordingly, 6. 116. per, pere, adv. where, i. 131, 3. 14, &c.; There as, there where, 4- 34- pere-inne, adv. therein, i. 61. peremyde, adv. therewith, 7. 26 ; bermyde, 6. 160 ; beremydde, 6. 69. A.S. mid, with, perfore, adv. for it, on account of it, 4. 54, 5. 236. per-while, adv. whilst that, pr. 1 73, 6. 165 ; pere-whiles, in the mean- time, 6. 8. pider, adv. S. thither, 2. 161. pikke, adv. S. thickly, often, 3. 156. pinge, used as pi. things, 6. 212. pirled, pt. pi. pierced, i. 172. A.S. fyirlian, to pierce, drill ; b/r/, a hole. Cf. E. drill, thrill, pis, pi. these, pr. 62, 2. 170, 5.634; pise, I. 132. po, when, pr. 176, I. 47. A.S. K po, pi. the, those, i. 21, 4. 40, &c. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 207 A.S. bo, pi. of the article, se, seo, ]>3/e = it seemed to them, I. 107. powghi, powj, con/, though, 6. 36, 40. A.S. }>edk. Thresche, i p. s. pr. I thresh, 5. 553. A.S. fyerscan, G. dreschen. Thresshewolde, sb. threshold, 5. 357. As if the piece of wood beaten by the feet, from A.S. ivald, wood, and ]>erscan, to thresh, to beat. Threttene, thirteen, 5. 214. A.S. \>rcotyne. Thretti, thirty, 5. 422. A.S. }irittig. Threwe, pt. s. threw himself, fell, 5- 357- Thridde, third, pr. T 2 1 . A.S. ]>ridda. prungen, pt. pi. thronged, pressed closely together, 5. 517. A.S. \>ringan, to press, G. and Du. dringen. Thynketh, pr. s. impers. seems ; me thynketh = it seems to me, pr. 165, 3. 182, 227; I p. s. pers. Thynke, I intend, 3. 95. Cf. A.S. ]>yncan, G. diinken, and A.S. )>en- can, G. denlten. Tidy, adj. (lit. timely) orderly, careful, 3. 320. Du. tijdig, sea- sonable, G. zeitig, early, ripe. Til, prep, to, 5. 610. Icel. and Dan. til, Sw. till. Tilie, v. to till, cultivate, pr. 1 20 ; Tilye, 6. 238 ; to earn by tilling, procure, 6. 235. A.S. tilian, Du. telen. Tixt, sb. a. text, 3. 121 ; Tixte, 3. 34 3 - To, prep, to ; but often used in very different senses, as in to body = so as to have a body, I. 62; to man = so as to become a man, I. 82; after, 6. 30; upon, 5. 173; to nonne=3.s a nun, who is a nun, 5. 153; for, 7. 135. A.S. t6, to, for, at. To, adv. too, 6. 265. A.S. to. To-, prefix, (i) apart; answering to G. zer-, O. Fris, to-, te-, O. H. Germ, za-, ze-, Moeso-Goth. dis-, Lat. dis-, with the force of in twain, asunder; examples, to-broke, to-lugged, lo-torne, which see: (2) exceedingly, a modification of the former; example, to-bolle : (3) the prep, to- in composition, as in A.S. to-gang, approach. Of this third use there is no example in Piers the Plowman, except to/ore, but it is common in German, as in zvgang, approach. To-bolle, pp. swelled exceedingly, swelled so as to be ready to split, 5. 84. Dan. bulne, Sw. bulna, to swell ; Dan. btillen, swollen, ety- mologically connected with boil, ball, bole, bowl, belly, billow; cf. Lat. bulla, G. bolle. Boiled occurs inExod. ix. 31. See To-, prefix. To-broke, pp. broken apart, broken in pieces, 7. 28. G. zerbrechen, to break in pieces. See To-, prefix. To-fore, prep. S. before, in presence f. 5- 457- A -S. toforan. Toft, pr. 14, 1. 12. Here, a slightly elevated, exposed site ; properly, the Su.-Goth. tomt is a cleared space, area, or site ; cf. Dan. tomt, a site, toft, Dan. toft, an enclosed field near a farmhouse, Icel. topt, a farm, area. See Tome. Togideres, together, i. 195, 2.83. Toke, pt. s. gave, 3. 45 ; take }>' o = if they added to their wealth, 3. 85. See Take. Tokenynge, sb. S. token, 5. 19. GLOSSARIAL INDEX. To-kirke-ward, i.e. towards kirk or church, 5. 305. Tolde, I p. s. pr. I counted out, reckoned, 5. 252. Tolled, pp. 5. 214. Either this means counted, in which case it should be spelt told (which is not in the MSS.), or rather it is an ex- ample of the somewhat rare M.E. verb tolle, tille, tulle, to fondle, coax, also to draw; thus tilled out drew out, were drawn out into by coaxing. That this last is the right explanation is rendered probable by the fact that some MSS. read tilled. Tulle occurs in Chaucer. See Tillen, Tollen, Tullen, in Stratmann's Dictionary. Tolleres, sb. pi. collectors of tolls or dues, pr. 220. To-lugged, of, pp. pulled about in various directions by, 2.216. See To-, prefix. Tome, sb. leisure, a, 185. Icel. torn, leisure, tdmr, vacant, empty, Sw. torn, Sc. toom. See Toft. Toppe, sb. top, properly, a tuft of hair on the top of the head, 3. 139. A.S. top, a tuft at the top of any- thing ; cf. G. zopf, a pigtail. Tome, v. F. to turn, i.e. to deprave, 3. 42 ; to be converted, 3. 324 ; Torned, pt.pl. 5. 19; pp. 3. 337. Totorne, pp. torn apart, 5. 197. See To-, prefix. Toure, sb. F. tower, pr. 14, I. 12. Lat. turris, W. twr ; Devonshire tor, a peaked hill. Trauaille, sb. F. work, toil, 7. 43. Trauaille, v. F. to toil, 6. 141. Treieth, pr. s. betrays, 3. 123. O.F. tralr, Lat. trader e. Tresore, sb. F. treasure, i. 45 ; pi. Tresores, "J. 54. It. tesoro, Gk. Orjaavpos, from ridrjfit. Trewlich., adv. S. truly, 7. 63. Triacle, sb. a remedy, healing medi- cine, I. 146, 5. 50. Lat. fheriacitm, whence O.F. triacle, E. treacle (like tresor, from thesaurus'), Gk. Brjptaicci tpapfiana, antidotes against the bite of poisonous animals, from Orjp. Trielich, adv. choicely, pr. 14. F. trier, to pick, select. Triennales, sb. pi. 7. 170, 179. See Biennales. Triest, adj. choicest, I. 135. F. trier, to select. Trolli-lolli, 6. 118. See the note. Troneth, pr. s. enthrones, places upon thrones, I. 131. Trowe, i p. s, pr. I trow, believe, think to be true, I. 143, 3. 19. A.S. treow, true, treowan, to think to be true. Truss e, v. to pack off, 2. 218. Sc. turss, to take oneself off, F. trotts- ser, to pack, O.F. terser, to pack up, from Lat. lorquere. Tulyen, v. to till, 7. 2. See Tilie. Tutour, sb. warden, keeper, i. 56. Lat. tueor, I keep. Tweye, adv. twice, 4. 22. A.S. twywa. Tweyne, adj. twain, two, 5. 32, a 3 3 1 ?- A.S. twegen, which is the masculine form, as two, is the feminine and neuter ; G. zween. Tymbred, pi. pi. subj. would have built, 3. 85. A.S. timbrian, to build, A. S. timber, wood, Du. timmeren, to build. Tyne, v. to lose, 1.112. Icel. tyna, to lose. Tynkares, gen. sing, tinker's, 5. 554 ; Tynkeres, pi. pr. 220. Cf. W. tincerdd, a tinker, from tincio, to ring, tinkle. Tythe, sb. a tithe, 6. 78, 94. A. S. teuda, the tenth. V. Vche a, each, pr. 207, 5. 116. Vchone, each one, I. 51, 2. 138. Veille, sb. 5. 450. Mr. Wright PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 209 explains it by 'an old woman,' but I think it means a watcher, a waker ; just as we confuse the meanings in English, and say ' a watch ' for a watcher. O.F. veile, Lat. uigilia, a vigil, watch. This is confirmed by the Harleian MS. 875, which reads 'Vigilate ]>e ivakere.' Venesoun, sb. venison, pr. 194. Properly it means that which is taken in hunting ; cf. F. venaison, Lat. uenatio, from uenari, to hunt. Venge, v. F. to avenge, 5. 1 28. Lat. wndicare. Veniaunce, sb. F. vengeance, 3. 258- Vernicle, sb. the vernicle, 5. 530. A vernicle is a copy of the hand- kerchief of St. Veronica, on which the features of Christ were miracu- lously impressed. See the note. Vesture, sb. F. clothing, i. 23. Vigilies, sb. pi. vigils, fasts, 5. 416. Used by Chaucer. Vitaillers, sb. pi. victuallers, 2. 60. Vitailles, sb. pi. victuals, 5. 443. O.F. vitaille, It. vittoaglia, from Lat. uiuere. Vmwhile, adv. for a time, 5. 345. A.S. ymbe, G. um, about, and hwil, a time. Cf. S. umquhile. Vnboxome, adj. S. disobedient, 3. 82. See Buxome. Vncoupled, pp. unfastened, loose, pr. 162, 206. See Coupleth. Vncristne, adj. ^/.unchristian men, heathens, I. 93. Vnderfonge, I p. s. pi. I received, I. 76; Vnderfongen, pr. pi. re- ceive, 3. 214; pp. Vnderfongen, 7. 171. See Fange. Vndernymeth, pr. s. reproves, re- prehends, 5. 115. I cannot find that William uses it anywhere in the sense of ' to undertake, take possession of,' given in Mr.W right's glossary. ' Vnderneme. Reprehen- do, deprehendo, arguo, redargue.' Prompt. Parv. See Nym. Vneth., adv. scarcely, 4. 60. A.S. edft, easy. Vnglosed, pp. without a gloss or comment, 4. 145. See Glosed. Vngraue, pp. not engraved, 4. 1 30. Vnhardy, adj. not hardy, not bold, timid, pr. 1 80. Vnkouth, adj. strange (lit. un- known), 7. 155. A.S. ci'ffi, known. Vnlese, pr. pi. unloose, unclose > pr. 213. A.S. lysan, to loosen, from leas, loose. Vnmoebles, sb. pi. immoveable property, 3. 267. See Moebles. Vnsowen, v. to unsew, 5. 66. Vnthende, adj. small, half-grown, out-of-season, 5. 177. Cf. A.S. \>eonde, increasing, growing, power- ful, from \>edn, to flourish, thrive. Mr. Wright explains it ' unserved, without sauce,' which I think lacks proof. Some MSS. have vnhende. Vntil, prep, to, pr. 227. Vokates, sb. pi. advocates, 2. 60. Vp, prep, upon, I. 12 ; vp gesse = upon a guess, by guess, 5. 421. Vpliolderes, sb.pl. sellers of second- hand clothes and furniture, old- clothes-men, 5. 325. They were also called ttpholdslers, whence our upholsterer, i.e. a furniture- broker. Palsgrave has ' Uphol- star, fripier? which was once the nearest French word in significa- tion. From the vb. to uphold, to keep up. Vppe, adv, aloft, 4. 72 A.S. iippe aloft, on high. Vs selue, ourselves, J. 127. Vsedestow, didst thou use, 5. 240. Vsure, ii. F. usury, 5. 240, 7. 83; Vsurye, a. 175. W. Wafrestre, sb. a female maker or seller of wafers, 5. 641. 210 GLOSSARTAL INDEX. Wage, v. to wager, engage, give surety, 4. 97 ; Waged, pp. 4. 100. Low Lat. nadium, O.F. gage, a pledge, connected with Mceso- Goth. wadi, A.S. wed, a pledge. See Wedde. Waited, i p. s. pt. looked, 7. 139. O.F. gaiter, to watch. Walshe, sb. Welshman, 5. 334. Lit. a foreigner ; A.S. wealh, a foreigner ; wealhas, foreigners, Welshmen. Cf. G. wiilsch, foreign, Italian. Wan, pt. s. went, or perhaps strove, 4. 67. Some MSS. have wente ; cf. the Scotch use of win. Wanhope, sb. S. despair, a. 99, 5. 286. Wan- is an A.S. prefix, ex- pressing lack, want ; from sb. wana, deficiency ; cf. E. wane. Wanye, v. to wane, 7. 55. A.S. wnnian. War, adj. S. aware, 2. 8. Wardemotes, sb. pi. meetings of a ward, pr. 94. Cf. witena gemdt, i.e. meeting of wise men. Ware be, imp. s. guard thyself, 5. 452. A.S. warian, to be cautious. Wareine, sb. a warren, pr. 163. O.F. garene, warene, a place for keeping animals, from O.F. garer, to keep. Cf. warrant, guarantee, garrison. Warner, sb. a warrener, keeper of a warren, 5. 316. See above. Warpe, pt. s. uttered, 5. 87, 369. A.S. weorpan, G. werfen, to cast. Warrok, v. to girt, fasten with girths, 4. 20. Cf. M.E. warlok, a fetter, in Prompt. Parv. Wastel, sb. a cake of bread of fine flour, 5. 293. O.F.gasteau,gastel, F. gateau. Wnstoure, sb. F. a waster, waste- ful person, 6. 154 ; Wastoures, pi. 6. 29. Cf. Lat. iinstare. Watt, Watte, short form of Walter, 5.30,316. Wawe, pr. s. subj. walk, go about, 7. 79. Many MSS. have walke. Cf. A.S. wagian, to wag. Wax, Waxen, v. to grow, increase, 7- 55 3- 3- See Wex. Wayue, v. to lift (up), so as to open, 5. 6 1 1. Apparently to put aside, remove. Dr. Stratmann prints Wayne, and refers it to O. Fr. weiver or guesver, which is our word to waive; yet the Troybook has Wayne six times, meaning to raise, lift, wind up. However, the word should perhaps be printed wayue there also. Wayte, v. F. to watch, look after, serve, 5. 202 ; Wayted,/>/>. 5. 551. See Waited. Webbe, sb. a web, thing woven, 5. HI. See note. Webbe, sb. a female weaver, 5. 215. We find A. S. webbe, a female weaver, as well as webbestre; and webbere for a male weaver. Wedde, sb. S. pledge, gage, wager, 3. 201, 5. 244. See Wage. Wederes, sb. pi. weathers, storms, 6. 326. A.S. weder. Wedes, sb. pi. weeds, i. e. clothes, 6.113. A. S. wckd, apparel. Wehe, sb. a word intended to de- note by its sound the neighing of a horse, 4. 22. W. wihi, with same meaning. Cf. Chaucer, C.T. 4064. Wei, adv. well; used as an adj. 3. 65, 152 : (2) very, 3. 161 ; wel worse = much worse, 5. 114. Welche, sb. 5. 199. It is perhaps hardly possible to settle the mean- ing of this word, respecting which MSS. differ. The Vernon MS. has walk, which is intelligible ; the Trin. MS. (Mr. Wright's) has wel\>e, which Mr. Wright explains by welt, which is not satisfactory. The Rawl. MS. has welsch ; but the best suggestion is in MS. Trin. R. 3 15, which has \>at wahshe scarlet, i. e. Welsh scarlet, or red PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 211 flannel. I think that Welche means flannel. Wende, v. to wend, go, 6. 60 ; Wenden, 2. 160; pr. s. Wendeth, 4. 105 ; pr. pi. Wenden, pr. 162 ; pt. pi. Wenten, 4. 76 ; pp. Went, gone, 6. 207 ; turned, changed, 3. 280; imp. s. Wende, go, 3. 264. A. S. wendan, to go, turn ; pt. t. ic wetide ; E. wend, went ; G. wen- den, to turn. Wende. See Wene. Wene, v. to ween, imagine, think, 3.300; I p.s.pt. Wende, I thought, 5. 238 ; 2 p. s. pt. Wendest, thou didst ween, 3. 191. A.S. wenan (pt. t. ic wende), G. wahnen, to think; from A.S. win, thought, Du. waan. Wepe, v. S. to weep, 5.62; pt. s. Wepe, 5. 470; Wepte, 5. 480; pt. pi. Wepten, 7. 37. Wepne, sb. S. a weapon, 3. 304. Werche, 7. 198. See Worche. Were, v. S. to wear, 3. 293. Were,/>/. s. and pi. svbj. should be, might be, were, 5. 167, 6. 213, &c. A. S. wesan, to be. Wernard, sb F. a deceiver, liar, 3. 179; pi. Wernardes, 2. 128. Roquefort has ' Gtiernart, troni peur;' cf. M.E. werne, to deny. Wesshen, pt. pi. S. washed, 2. 220. Weueres, fb. pi. weavers, pr. 219. Wex, pt. s. waxed, grew, 3. 328, 5. 286. A.S. weaxan, pt. t. ic ineox. C(.G.wachse>i,D\i.wassen. Weye, v. to weigh, 5. 204 ; pt. s. Weyjed, 5. 218; pp. Weyen, I. 1 76. A. S. wegan, to move, weigh ; cf. E. wag, waggle. Weye, sb. a wey, a certain weigh', 5. 93. A wey of butter or cheese varies from 2 to 3 cwt. A wey of Essex cheese was 3 cwt., whilst of Suffolk cheese it was less, viz. 356 Ibs Arnold's Chron. p. 263. Cf. the preceding word. Weyues, sb. pi. waifs, pr. 94. O. F. gayver, guever, gne^ver, to waive, abandon. Whas, whose, 3. 18. Whennes, adv. whence, 5. 532. Where, con;, whether (a common contraction), pr. 171 , 5- 283. Which a, what sort of a, 7. 146; pi. Whiche, what sort of, 4. 35. Whiles, adv. whilst, 6. 320. Gen. case of A.S. hwil, a time. Wiket, !>b. a wicket-gate, a small gate or shutter made within a large door, 5. 611. F. guichet, O. F. guischet, wilfet ; W. gwiced. Wikke, adj. wicked, 5. 229. A. S. wican, to become weak, decay; G. weichen, to yield, welch, soft, weak. Wikked, adj. rotten, bad (because too soft and yielding), 6. I, ']. 27. See Wikke. Wil, pr. s. wishes, 5. 40 Wilne, t/. to desire, 5. 187 ; pr. s. Wilneth, 4. 163 ; pr. pi. Wilne, I. 8. A. S. wilnian. Wiltow, wilt tbou, 5. 310: willow or neltow wilt thou or wilt thou not, 6. 158. Wissen, v. to teach, tell, shew, 5. 540; Wisse, 5. 562; I p. s. pr. Wisse, 1 . 42, 5. 147; pt. s. Wissed, 6. 167. A. S. wissiati, wisian, to guide, shew the way. Wist, knew. See next word. Wite, r. to know, 4. 139, 5. 561 ; Wyte, 3. 74 ; When, to learn, as- certain, 6. 213; 1 p. s. pt. Wist, pr. 12 ; Wyst, 5. 272 ; pt. s. Wist, 7. 71 ; pr. s. subj. Wite, 5. 6of>; imp.pl. Witeth, 2. 74. A.S. witan, to know, ic wdt, I wot, I know, ic wiste, I knew, wilen, known ; Du. weten, G. wissen. See Wote. Witen, v. to preserve, keep, 7. 35; Wite God, may God defend us, 5. 641. From the same root as the last ; so Mceso-Goth. witan (pt. t. ik wissa), to know, and witan (pt t. ik witaida), to keep, both P 2 212 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. from the sense of seeing ; cf. Lat. uidere, Gk. IStiv, tldtvai. With, prep. S. together with ; a/so by, by means of, 3. i. With ]>ae, provided that, 5. 74; withal, moreover, 5. 307. See note to 2.31. With-halt, pr. t. withholdeth, 5. 559- Withewyndes, gen. sing, of Withe- wynde, i. e. the wild convolvulus or bindweed, 5. 525. A. S. w/i$- winde, convolvulus or bindweed. ' Woodbinde, binde-weede, or with- ie-winde, because it windes about other plantes.' Minsheu. Witterly, adv. unmistakeably, with certainty, clearly, 3. 175, 5. 562. Cf. Dan. vitterlig, publicly known, A. S. witodlice, verily. Wijte, sb. S. a wight, person, pr. 207, i. 63; Wy3te, 5. 520. Wi3tliche, adv. nimbly, actively, 2. 208, 6. 21. Sw. vig, agile. "Wo, used as adj. woful, 5. 3. Cf. 3. 152. "Woke, sb. week, 5. 93. A. S. wuce, G. woche. Wol, pr. s. will, 5. 250} Wolde, I p. s. pt. would, 3. 51 ; pt. s. would, has desired, i. 13, 6. 251. Woldeslow, if thou wouldst, 3. 49. A. S. ic will, Lat. uolo ; pt. t. ic wolde ; cf. G. wollte. Wolle, sb. S. wool, 6. 13. "Wollen, adj. woollen, 5. 215 ; used as sb. i. 18. Wollewebsteres, sb. pi. wool- weavers, pr. 219. Wolt, wilt, 2. 44. See Wol. Woltow, wilt thou, 3. 117. Wolues-kynnes, of the kin or nature of wolves, 6. 163. Wombe, sb. S. the belly, 3. 84, 193. Sc. wame. Wonden, pt. pi. S. wound, 2. 220. Wones, sb. pi. habitations, 3. 234. See next word. Wcmye, v. to dwell, 2. 106; pr. s. Wonieth, I. 63; Woneth, 2. 232. A. S. vmnian, G. wohtun, Du. wonen, to dwell. Worehe, v. S. to work, 6. 120; pr. pi. Worcheth, 3. 80 ; Worchen, 7. 91; imp. pi. Worcheth, 2. 133; pt. s. Wrouste, 6. 115; pt. pi. Wroujten, 6. 1 1 1 ; pp. Wroujt, created, 7. 98. Worthe, v. to be, pr. 187 (see the note) ; Worth, pr. s. as future, shall be, I. 186, 2. 43, 3. 33, 5. 160, 6. 165, 7- 51; 2 p. Worth, mayst be, I. 26. See TT worth. Wote, i p. s. pr. I wot, I know, 5. 180, 6. 132 ; pr. s. knows, 2. 77, 5.181,6.132; pr. pi. know, 3. 329; Wot god = God knows, 4. 37; god it wote = God knows it, pr. 43. See Wite. Wowed, pt. s. S. wooed, coaxed, intreated, 4. 74. Wowes, sb. pi. walls, 3. 61. A. S. wdh, a wall. Wratthe, v. S. to enrage, 2. 116 ; 2 p. s. pr. Wratthest be, makest thyself angry, art angry, 3. 182. Wreke, v. S. to wreak, avenge, 5- 85 'b. S. wit, intelligence, pr. 114. PIERS THE PLOWMAN. 213 Wytterly, 5. 273. See Witterly. Wyuen, gen. pi. women's, 5. 29 ; nom. Wyues, women, 5. 570. , 5. 520. See Wijte. T. Y-, prefix, answering to the G. and A. S. ge-, Goth. ga~, which is etymological ly the same with L. cum, com-, con., with. It is usually prefixed to past participles (see below), but also to past tenses (see Trifled, Yspilte), to infini- tives (see Yworth.), and to adjec- tives (see Yliche, Ywar). Ybake, baked, 6. 312 ; Ybaken, 6. 184. Ybette, beaten, 4. 93. Yblamed, blamed, 3. 281. Yblessed, blessed, 7. 13 ; Yblissed, pr. 77. Ybore, born, i. 1 30. Ybounde, Ybounden, bound, pr. 178,5- 5*4- Yboust, bought, pr. 1 76. Ybroken, broken, pr. 71. Ychose, chosen, 5. 331. Yelothed, clothed, i. 3, 3. 8. Yclouted, patched, 6. 61. Ycrammed, crammed, pr. 41. Ycrounede, crowned, 2. 10. Ydel, in phr. an ydel = idly, in vain, 5- 380. Ydronke, drunk, 6. 381. Ye ten (y-eten), eaten, I. 152. Yfolwed, followed, 3. 39. Yfouste, fought, 6. 154. Yglobbed, gulped down, 5. 346. Cf. E.gulp, Du. gulpen, to swallow eagerly, Sw. glupsk, voracious. Ygo, gone, 5. 207. Ygraced, thanked, 6. 126. Lat. gratiae, thanks. Ygraunted, granted, 7. 8. Yhasped, hasped, fastened as with a hasp, i. 195. Yholden, holden, esteemed, I. 84. Yhote, named, I. 63; bidden, 2. 218 See Hat and Hote. Yhowted, hooted at, 2. 218. Ylakked,blamed,2.2i. SeeLakke. Yleye, lain, 5. 82. Yliche, adj. like, alike, 5. 494 (see I. 489); Ylike, I. 91. A.S. gelic. like, Goth, galeiks. Yinade, made, 3. 43, 5. 355. Ymaked, made, 2. 72, 6. 189. Ymaried, married, 2. 39. Ymped, 1 p. s. pt. I grafted, en- grafted, 5. 138. Ympes, sb. pi. shoots grafted in, 5. 137. W. imp, a shoot, scion ; A. S. impart, to engraft, of Gk. origin. Ynowe, adv. S. enough, 2. 162. Ypasaed, past, pr. 189. Yplijte, pledged, plighted, 5. 202 A. S. pliht, a pledge. Yrens, sb. pi. irons, 4. 85 ; Yrnes, 6. 138. Yrifled, I p. s. pt. rifled, robbed, 5. 234. O. F. riffler, to snatch. Cf. Lat. rapere. Ysein, seen, pr. 160 ; Yseijen, .v 4- Yserued, (i) served, suited, 5. 341, 419 ; (2) deserved, 6. 89. ' I haue serued J>e deth ' = I have deserved death ; William of Palerne, 4352. Yshewed, shewn, declared, 3. 134. Yshryue, shriven, 5. 91. Ysoujt, sought, pr. 50. Ysowen, sown, 5. 550. Yspilte, i p. s. pt. wasted, 5. 380 ; pp. 5. 442. See Spilte. Ysue, sb. F. issue, 5. 265. Ytailled, scored on a tally, 5. 429. See Taile. Ytermyned, decided upon, settled upon determinately, i. 97. Spelt determined in a parallel passage in Dep. of Rich. II, p. n, 1. 18 (Camden Soc.); see P. Plowman, C-text, p. 481, 1. 97. Ytried, tried, tested, I. 133; Ytryed, I. 205. See Triest. Yuel, adv. ill, 5. 168. 214 GLOSSARIAL INDEX. Yuel, adj. ill ; a/so hard (both in one line), 5. lai ; difficult, 6. 50. Ywar, adj. wary, cautious, pr. 1 74, I. 42. A.S. gewcer. wary. Ywedded, wedded, 2. 43. Ywonne, won, 5. 93. Yworth, v. to be, 6. 84 ; Yworjie, 6. 328. G. werden, A. S weorft- an, Goth, wairthan. See note to pr. 187. Ywounden, wound, bound round, 5- 5 2 5. Ywroujte, wrought, done, 4. 68. 5af, pt. s. gave, i. 15, 6. aoi. ?arkcth hym, pt. s. prepares him- self, gets himself ready, 7. 80. A. S. gearcian, to make ready ; M. E. yare, ready ; cf. E. gear. 5atis, sb. pi. gates, pr. 104. 3e, yea, 3. in, 5. 354,563.6- 38, 333. See 3ua. }e, pron. pi. nont. ye, pr. 198 ; aec. Jow, you, pr. 199. }cdc, I p. s. pt. went, 7. 143 ; 3 p. 3edest, 5. 504 ; pi. jede, pr. 40. A. S. ic code, used as pt. t. of gdn, to go ; cf. Goth, ik iddja, pt. t. of gaggan, to go ; see note, p. 94. 3elde, v. to yield, render, 7. 188 ; 3elden, 7. 83 ; 3 p. s. pr. 3eldest, payest, 5. 396 ; pr. s. imp. or subj. jelde, repay, 6. 129; pres. part. 3eldyng, paying, 2. 104. A.S. gildan, to pay. 3eode, pt. s. went, i. 73. See3ede. 3erdes, sb.pl. yards, 5. 214; rods, 4. 1 1 7. A.S. gyrd, a staff, rod. 3ere, sb. pi. years, 5. 208, 6. 325 ; 3eres, 7. 18 ; 3eris, pr. 65. 3eres3jrues, sb.pl. year-gifts, annual presents, 3. 99. 3erne, 2 p. s. subj. yearn for, long for, I. 35. A.S. geornian. 3erne, adv. eagerly, 4. 74, 6. 299 A. S. georne. earnestly. 3et, conj. and adv. yet, I. 136; be- sides, 7. 83. A.S. git, get, 3eue, 3 p. s. pr. ye give, 4. 1 70 ; pr. s. imp. 3'f, may he give, 3. 165, 5. 107. See 3iue. 3if, conj. if, pr. 37. A. S. gif. jiftes, sb. pi. gifts, 3. 99 ; 3iftis, 6. 42. A. S. gift. 3iue, v. to give, 7. 71 ; pr.t. 3iueth. 7. 80; pp. 3iue, 5. 390; 3oue, 2. 31. A.S. gif an, pt t. ic g