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He wolde done his facrilegge,
That many a man fhulde it abegge.
Whan he to ship ayein was come,
To him he hath his counfeil nome
And all devised the matere

In fuch a wife, as thou fhalt here.
Withinne night all prively

His men he warneth by and by,
That they be redy armed fone

For certain thing, whiche is to done.
And they anone ben redy alle
And echone other gan to calle
And went hem out upon the ftronde
And toke a purpos there on londe
Of what thing that they wolden do,
Toward the temple and forth they go.
So fell it of devocion

Heleine in contemplacion

With many an other worthy wight
Was in the temple and woke all night
To bid and pray unto thymage
Of Venus, as was than ufage,
So that Paris right as him list
Into the temple er they it wist
Came with his men all fodeinly.
And all at ones set askry

In hem, which in the temple were,
For tho was mochel people there,
But of defence was no bote,

So fuffren they, that suffre mote.

Paris unto the quene wente

And her in both his armes hente
With him and with his felafhip,
And forth they bere her into fhip.
Up goth the faile, and forth they went,
And fuche a wind fortune hem fent,
Till they the haven of Troie caught,
Where out of ship anone they ftraught
And gone hem forth toward the town,
The which came with proceflion
Ayein Paris to fene his

pray.

And every man began to fay
To Paris and his felafhip

All that they couthen of worship,
Was none fo litel man in Troy,
That he ne made merthe and joy
Of that Paris had wonne Heleine.
But all that merthe is forwe and peine
To Helenus and to Caffandre.

For they it tolden shame and sclaundre
And lofs of all the comun grace,
That Paris out of haly place

By stelth hath take a mannes wife,
Wherof he shall lefe his life
And many a worthy man therto
And all the citee be fordo,

Which never shall be made ayein.
And fo it fell, right as they sain,
The facrilegge, which he wrought,
Was cause, why the Gregois fought

Confeffor.

Unto the town and it belay

And wolden never part away,

Till what by fleight, and what by strength
They had it wonne in brede and length
And brent and flain that was withinne.
Now fe, my fone, which a finne
Is facrilegge in haly stede.

Beware therfore and bid thy bede
And do nothing in haly chirche,
But that thou might by refon wirche.
And eke take hede of Achilles,

Whan he unto his love chees
Polixena, that was also

In haly temple of Apollo,

Which was the cause why he deide

And all his luft was laid aside.
And Troilus upon Crefeide

Alfo his firfte love laide

In haly place, and how it ferde

As who faith all the world it herde.
Forfake he was for Diomede,

Such was of love his lafte mede.

Forthy my fone, I wolde rede
By this enfample as thou might rede
Seche elles where thou wilt thy grace
And ware the well in haly place,
What thou to love do or speke
In aunter if it fo be wreke,
As thou haft herd me tell to-fore,
And take good hede also therfore.

Upon the forme of avarice

More than of any other vice

I have devided in parties

The braunches, which of compaignies
Through out the world in generall
Be now the leders over all

Of covetife and of perjurie,
Of fals brocage and of ufurie,
Of scarseneffe and of unkindeship,
Which never drough to felafhip,
Of robberie and of prive stelth,
Which done is for the worldes welth,
Of ravine and of facrilegge,

Which maketh the confcience agregge,
richeffe atteigne,

All though it may

It floureth but it shall not greine
Unto the fruit of rightwisnesse.
But who that wolde do largeffe
Upon the reule, as it is yive,
So might a man in trouthe live
Toward his god and eke also

Toward the world, for bothe two

Largeffe awaiteth as belongeth

To neither part, that he ne wrongeth,

He kepeth him self, he kepeth his frendes, So ftant he fauf to both his endes,

That he excedeth no mesure,

So well he can him self mesure,
Wherof, my fone, thou fhalt wite,
So as the philofophre hath write.

13.

Nota hic de vir

Prodigus et parcus duo funt extremaque, largus
Eft horum medius plebis in ore bonus.

Betwene the two extremites

tute largitatis, que Of vice ftont the

ad oppofitum ava

propertes

ricie inter duo ex- of vertue, and to prove it so

trema videlicet per

cimoniam et pro- Take avarice and take alfo
digalitatem fpecia-
liter confiftit.

The vice of prodegalite,

Betwene hem liberalite,
Which is the vertue of largeffe,
Stant and governeth his nobleffe.
For tho two vices in difcorde
Stond ever, as I find of recorde,
So that betwene her two debate
Largeffe reuleth his eftate,
For in fuch wife as avarice,

As I to-fore have told the vice,

Through ftreit holding and through scarf-
Stant contraire to largeffe,

Right so stant prodegalite

Revers, but nought in such degre.

[neffe

For so as avarice spareth

And for to kepe his trefor careth,

That other all his own and more

Ayein the wife mannes lore

Yiveth and defpendeth here and there,
So that him reccheth never where,

While he may borwe, he woll defpende
Till ate laft he faith: I wende.
But that is spoken all to late,
For than is pouerte at the gate

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