He stoppeth with his tail so sore, That he the wordés lasse or more Of his enchauntément ne hereth. And in this wise him selfe he

skiereth,1

So that he hath the wordés weived 2 And thus his ere is nought deceived. "An other thing who that re

cordeth

Lyke unto this ensample accordeth,
Whiche in the tale of Troye I finde.
Sirenés of a wonder kinde

Ben monstres, as the bokés tellen,
And in the Greté See3 they dwellen,
Of body bothe and of viságe
Like unto women of yonge age
Up fro the navel on high they be,
And down benethe, as men may se,
They bere of fisshes the figúre.
And over this, of such natúre
They ben, that with so swete a
steven 4

Like to the melodie of heven
In womannishé vois they singe,
With notes of so great likínge,
Of suche mesúre, of suche musíke,
Wherof the shippes they beswike
That passen by the costés there.
For whan the shipmen lay an ere
Unto the vois, in here avis
They wene it be a paradis,
Whiche after is to hem an helle.
For reson may nought with hem
dwelle

Whan they the greté lustés here, They conné nought here shippes stere;

So besilich upon the note They herken and in such wise assote,8

1 Skiereth, secureth. 2 Weived, set aside. 3 The Grete See, was the name of the Mediterranean.

That they here righté cours and weie

Foryete, and to their ere obeie,
And sailen till it so befalle
That they into the perill falle
Where as the shippés ben to-drawe
And they ben with the monstres
slawe.

But fro this peril nethéles
With his wisdóm king Ulixés
Escapeth and it over passeth,
For he to-fore the hond1 compásseth
That no man of his compaignie
Hath power unto that folie
His eré for no lust to caste.
For he hem stopped allé faste,
That non of hem may here hem
sing.

So whan they comen forth sailíng,
There was such governaunce on

But if thou couthest sette in reule
Tho two, the thre were eth1 to reule.
Forthy as of thy wittés five
I wol as nowe no moré shrive,
But only of these ilké two.
Tel me, therfore, if it be so,-
Hast thou thine eyé nought mis-
throwe?"

"My fader yea, I am beknowe, I have hem cast upon Meduse, Therof I may me nought excuse. Min hert is growén into stone, So that my lady there upon Hath suche a printe of Lové grave, That I can nought my selfé save.' 'What saist thou sone, as of thin ere?"

"My fader, I am gilty of there,
For whanne I my lady here,
My wit with that hath lost his stere.
I do nought as Ulixes dede,
But falle anon upon the stede 2
Where as I se my lady stonde.
And there I do you understonde 3
I am to-pulled in my thought,
So that of reson leveth nought
Wherof that I me may defende."

"My godé sone, God the amende.
For as me thenketh by thy speche
Thy wittés ben right far to seche.
As of thin ere and of thin eye
I wol no moré specifie,
But I woll axen over this
Of other thing how that it is.

[Of the Seven Deadly Sins: and

PRIDE, the First of them.] My sone, as I thee shall enforme, There ben yet of another forme

1 Eth, easy. 'The two' are sight and hearing, which have been discussed; if you could rule those two of the Five Senses, it would be easy to rule the other three. Therefore of the rest of the five, &c.

2 Stede, place.

3 Make you to understand.

4 Leveth, remaineth.

But this I wolde you beseche,
That ye me by somweié teche
What is to ben an ypocrite.
And than if I be for to wite 2
I wol beknowen 3 as it is."

"My sone, an ypocrite is this,-
A man which feigneth conscience
As though it were al innocence
Without, and is nought so withinne;
And doth so, for he wolde winne
Of his desire the vein estate :
And whan he cometh anone thereat,
He sheweth thanné what he was;
The corne is tornéd into gras,
That was a rose is than a thorne,
And he that was a lamb beforne
Is than a wolfe; and thus malíce
Under the colour of justíce
Is had, and, as the people telleth,
These Ordres witen where he
dwelleth

As he that of her 5 counseil is ;
And thilké world, which they er this
Forsoken, he draweth in ayeine;
He clotheth richesse, as men saine,
Under the simplest of pouérte
And doth to seme of great deserte

Thing whiche is litel worth withinne,
He saith, in open, fy! to sinne,
And in secré there is no vice
Of which that he nis a noríce.1
And ever his chere is sobre and
softe,

And where he goth he blesseth ofte. Wherof the blindé world he drecheth,2

But yet all only he ne strecheth
His reule upon religion.

But next to that condicion,

In suche as clepe hem holy cherche,
It sheweth eke howe he can werche
Amonge tho widé furréd hodes
To geten hem the worldés goodes.
And they have self ben thilké same
That setten most the world in blame,
But yet in contraire of here lore
There is nothing they loven more ;
So that, feignend of light, they werke
The dedés whiche are inward derke,
And thus this double Ypocrisie
With his devoute apparancie,
A viser set upon his face
Wherof toward this worldés grace
He seméth to be right wel thewed,
And yet his herte is all beshrewed
But nethéles he stant beleved

And hath his purpos ofte acheved
Of worship and of worldés welthe,
And taketh it as who saith by stelthe
Through coverture of his fallas.3
And right so in semblable cas
This Vice hath eke his officers
Among these other seculers
Of greté men,-for of the smale
As for to accompt he set no tale,1
But they that passen the comúne
With suche him liketh to comune;

1 Norice, nurse.

2 Drecheth, troubleth.

5

3 Coverture of his failas, concealment of his deceit.

4 Set no tale, makes no account.

5 Him liketh, it pleases him.

And where he saith he wol socoure
The people, there he wol devoure.
For now-a-day is many one
Which speketh of Peter and of John
And thenketh Judas in his herte;
There shall no worldés good asterte1
His honde, and yet he yeveth al-

messe

And fasteth ofte and hereth messe
With mea culpa, whiche he saith ;
Upon his brest ful ofte he leith
His hond and cast upwárd his
eye,

As though he Cristés facé seie,
So that it semeth atté sight
As he alone al other might
Rescue with his holy bede."
But yet his herte in other stede
Among his bedés most devoute
Goth in the worldés cause aboute,
How that he might his warison 3
Encrese, and in comparison
There ben lovers of suche a sorte,
That feignen hem an humble porte,
And al is but Ypocrisie,
Which with deceipte and flaterie
Hath many a worthy wife beguiled.
For whan he hath his tunge affiled
With softé speche and with lesínge
Than with his fals pitóus lokinge
He woldé make a woman wene
To gon upon the fairé grene,
Whan that she falleth in the mire.
For if he may have his desire,
How so falle of the remenaunt,
He halt no worde of covenaunt,
But er the time that he spede
There is no sleighte at thilké nede,
Which any lovés faitour may,
That he ne put it in assay
As him belongeth for to done.
The colour of the reiny mone

1 Asterte, escape from. 2 Bede, prayer.
3 Warison, advantage.
A Halt, holds.

Faitour, dissembler.

With medicine upon his face
He set, and than he axeth grace,
As he which hath sikenessé feigned;
Whan his viságe is so disteigned,
With eye up cast on her he siketh
And many a continaunce he piketh1
To bringen her into beleve

Of thing which that he wold acheve,
Wherof he bereth the pale hewe,
And for he woldé semé trewe
He maketh him sike, whan he is
heil.

Set upon

But whan he bereth lowest sail,
Than is he swiftest to beguile
The woman which that ilké while
him feith or credénce.
"My sone, if thou thy consciénce
Entaméd2 hast in such a wise,
In shrifté thou the might avise
And telle it me, if it be so."

"Min holy fader, certés no.
As for to feigné such sikenésse
It nedeth nought, for this witnesse
I take of God, that my coráge 3
Hath ben more sike than my visage.
And eke this may I well avowe,
So lowé couthe I never bowe
To feigne humilité withoute
That me ne listé better loute
With all the thoughtés of min herte.
For that thing shall me never
asterte,

I speke as to my lady dere,
To make her any feignéd chere;
God wot well there I lié nought,
My chere hath been such as my
thought.

For in good feith, this leveth wele,
My wil was better a thousand dele
Than any cheré that I couthe."

4

Done other wise in other place,
I put me therof in your grace.
For this excusen I ne shall,
That I have ellés over all
To Love and to his compaignie
Be plein without ypocrisie.

But there is one, the whiche I serve,
All though I may no thank deserve,
To whom yet never unto this day
I saide onlich or 'ye' or 'nay,'
But if it so were in my thought
As touchend other say I nought
That I nam somdele for to wite1
Of that ye clepe an ypocrite."

"My sone, it sit wel every wight To kepe his worde in trouth upright Towardés Love in allé wise.

For who that wold him wel avise
What hath befalle in this matére,
Heshuldé nought with feignéd chere
Deceivé Love in no degre.
To Love is every herté fre,
But in deceipt if that thou feignest
And therupon thy luste atteignest,
That thou hast wonné with thy wile,
Though it thee liké for a while,
Thou shalt it afterward repente.
And for to prové min entente
I finde ensample in a cronique
Of hem that Lové so beswike.2

If fell by oldé daiés thus,
Whil themperour Tiberius
The monarchie of Romé ladde,
There was a worthy Romain hadde
A wife, and she Pauliné hight,
Which was to every mannés sight
Of al the cité the fairést

And as men saiden eke the best.
It is and hath ben ever yit
That so strong is no mannés wit,
Which through beauté ne may be

drawe

To love, and stonde under the lawe

1 That I am not some part to blame.

2 Beswike, deceive.

Of thilké boré1 freilé kinde,
Which maketh the hertés eyen
blinde,

Where no resón may be communed.
And in this wisé stode fortúned
Of whiche I wol this talé mene,
This wife, whiche in her lustés grene
Was faire and fressh and tender of
age.

She may nought letté the corage
Of him that wol on her assote."
There was a Duke, and he was
hote 3

Mundus, which had in his baillie 4
To ledé the chevalérie

Of Rome, and was a worthy knight.
But yet he was nought of such might
The strength of love to withstonde,
That he ne was so brought to honde,
That malgré where he wol or no
This yongé wife he loveth so,
That he hath put all his assay
To winné thing which he ne may
Get of her graunt in no manere,
By yefte of gold, ne by praiere.
And whan he sigh, that by no
mede7

Toward her love he mighté spede, By sleighté feignend than he wrought:

And therupon he him bethought,
How that there was in the cité
A temple of suche auctorité,
To which with great devocion
The noble women of the towne
Most comunlich a pelerinage
Gone for to prayé thilke ymáge,
Which the goddesse of childing is
And clepéd was by name Ysis.
And in her temple thanné were
To reule and to minístre there

After the lawé which was tho,
Above all other prestés two.
This Duke, which thought his lové
get,

Upon a day hem two to mete
Hath bede, and they come at his
heste,

Where that they had a riché feste.
And after mete in privé place
This lord, which wold his thank
purcháce,

To eche of hem yaf thanne a yift
And spaké so by waie of shrift,
He drough hem into his covíne 1
To helpe and shape, how he Pauline
After his lust deceivé might.

And they her2 trouthés bothé plight, That they by night her shulden winne

Into the temple, and he therinne
Shall have of her all his entent.
And thus accorded forth they went.
Now list, through which Ypocrisie
Ordeignéd was the trecherie,
Wherof this lady was deceived.
These prestés hadden wel con-
ceived,

That she was of great holinesse.
And with a counterfeit simplesse,
Which hid was in a fals coráge,
Feignend an hevenly messáge
They cam and saide unto her thus:
Pauliné, the god Anubus
Hath sent us bothé prestés here
And saith, he wol to the appere
By nightés time him selfe alone,
For love he hath to thy persone.
And therupon he hath us bede,
That we in Ysis temple a stede
Honestly for thee purveie,
Where thou by night as we thee
saie

Of him shalt take a visión.