And he, which all him hadde ad

ressed

To lust, toke thanné what him liste
And goth his wey, that none it wiste,
Into his owné chambre ayein
And clepéd up his chamberlein
To horsé lept and forth he rode.
And she, which in her bed abode,
Whan that she wist he was agone,
She clepéd after light anone
And up aros long er the day
And cast awey her fressh array,
As she which hath the worldforsake,
And toke upon the clothés blacke.
And ever upon continuíng,
Right as men se a wellé spring,
With eyen full of wofull teres
Her hair hangénd about her eres
She wepte, and no man wisté why.
But yet among full pitouslý
Shepraiéd that they nolden drecche1
Her husébondé for to fecche
Forthwith her fader eke also.
Thus be they comen bothé two,
And Brutus cam with Collatine,
Which to Lucrecé was cousíne,
And in they wenten allé thre
To chambre, where they mighté se
The wofullest upon this molde,
Which wepte as she to water sholde.
The chambre dore anone was stoke,2
Er they have ought unto her spoke.
They sigh her clothés all disguised,
And how she hath her self despised
Her haire hangénd unkemt about.
But nethéles she gan to lout
And knele unto her husébonde.
And he, which fain wold understonde
The causé why she faréd so,
With softé wordes axéd tho:
'What may you be,3 my godéswete?'
And she, which thought her self

And the lest worth of women alle,
Her woful cheré let down falle
For shame and couthe unnethés 1
loke,

And they therof good hedé toke
And praiden her in allé way,
That she ne sparé for to say
Unto her frendés what her eileth,
Why she so sore her self bewaileth,
And what the sothé woldé mene.
And she, which hath her sorwegrene,
Her wo to tellé thanne assaieth,
But tendre shame her word delaieth,
That sondry timés as she mente
To speke upon the point she stente.
And they her beden ever in one
To tellé forth, and there upon,
Whan that she sigh she musté nede,
Her tale betwené shame and drede
She toldé, nought withouté peine.
And he, which wolde her wo re-
streigne,

Her husébond, a sory man,
Comfórteth her all that he can
And swore, and eke her fader both,
That they with hiré be nought wroth
Of that is do ayein her wille,
And praiéden her to be stille,
For they to her have all foryive.
But she, which thoughté nought to
live,

Of hem woll no foryivénesse
And said, of thilké wickednesse,
Which was to hiré body wrought,
All were it so she might it nought,
Never afterward the world ne shall
Reproven her, and forthwithall,
Er any man therof be ware,
A naked swerd, the which she bare
Within her mantel prively,
Betwene her hondés sodeinly
She toke, and through her hert it
throng,

And fell to ground, and ever among,

1 Unnethés, hardly (not easily).

Whan that she fell, so as she might,
Her clothes with her hond she right,
That no man downward fro the knee
Shuld any thinge of her then se.
Thus lay this wife honestélý,
All though she diedé wofully.
Tho was no sorwe for to seke,
Her husbonde and her fader eke
A swoune upon the body felle.
There may no mannés tungé telle,
In which anguishé that they were.
But Brutus, which was with hem
there,

Toward him self his herté kept
And to Lucrece anone he lept,
The bloody swerde and pulleth out
And swore the goddés al about
That he therof shall do vengeaunce.
And she tho made a countenaúnce
Her dedly eye and atté laste
In thonking as it were up cast,
And so behelde him in the wise
While she to loké may suffise.
And Brutus with a manly herte
Her husébonde hath made up sterte
Forth with her fader eke also
In allé haste and said hem tho,
That they anone withouté lette
A beré for the body fette.
Lucrece and therupon bledénd
He laide and so forth out criénd
He goth unto the market place
Of Rome. And in a litel space
Through cry the cité was assembled,
And every mannés herté trembled
Whan they the soth herde of the cas.
And thereupon the counseil was
Take of the great and of the smale.
And Brutus tolde hem all the tale.
And thus cam into remembraúnce
Of sinné the continuaúnce
Which Arrons haddé do to-fore,
And eke long time er he was bore
Of that his fader haddé do,
The wrong came into place tho,

So that the comun clamour tolde
The newé shame of sinnés olde.
And all the town began to cry:
Awey, awey the tiranny
Of lechery and covetise!'
And atté last in such a wise
The fader in the samé while
Forth with the soné they exile
And taken better governaunce.

"But yet an other remembraúnce That rightwisnesse and lechery Accorden nought in compaigny With him that hath the lawe on honde,

That may a man well understonde. As by a talé thou shalt wite

Of olde ensample as it is write.

66

"At Romé whan that Appius, Whose other name was Claudius, Was governour of the citee, There fell a wonder thing to se Touchend a gentil maide, as thus, Whom Livius Virginius Begeten had upon his wife. Men saiden, that so faire a life As she was nought in all the town. This famé, which goth up and

down,

To Claudius came in his ere,
Wherofhis thought anone was there,
But she stood upon mariage.
A worthy knight of great lignage,
Iliciús which thanné hight,
Accorded in her faders sight
Was that he shulde his doughter
wedde.

But er the cause were fully spedde,
Her fader, which in Romanie
The leding of the chivalrie
In governaunce hath undertake,
Upon a werré which was take,
Goth out with all the strength he
hadde

Of men of armés which he ladde.
So was the mariágé left

And stood upon accord till eft.

"The King, which herdé telle of

this,

How that this maide ordeined is
To mariágé, thought another,
And haddé thilké time a brother,
Which Marchus Claudius was hote,
And was a man of such riote
Right as the King him selvé was;
They two to-gider upon this cas
In counseil founden out the wey,
That Marchus Claudius shall sey
How she by wey of covenaunt
To his servíce apurtenaunt
Was hole, and to none other man.
And there upon he saith he can
In every point witnéssé take,
So that she shall it nought forsake.1
Whan that they hadden shapé so
After the lawé which was tho,
While that her fader was absent,
She was somonéd and assént 2
To come in presence of the King,
And stood in answere of this thing.
Her frendés wisten allé wele
That it was falshede every dele,
And comen to the Kinge and saiden
Upon the comun lawe and praiden
So as this noble worthy knight,
Her fader, for the comun right
In thilké time, as was befalle,
Lay for the profit of hem alle
Upon the wildé feldés armed,
That he ne shuldé nought ben

For Livius had all conceived
The purpos of the King to-fore,
So that to Rome ayein therfore
In allé hast he came ridénd
And left upon the feld liggend
His host till that he came ayein.
And thus this worthy capitain
Appereth redy at his day,
Where all that ever reson may
By lawe in audience he doth,
So that his doughter upon soth
Of that Marchús her had accused
He hath to-fore the Court excused.
"The King, which sigh his pur-
pos faile,

And that no sleighté might availe,
Incombred of his lustés blinde
The lawé torneth out of kinde,
And halfe in wrath as though it were
In presence of hem allé there
Deceived of concupiscénce
Yaf for his brother the sentence
And bad him that he shuldé sese
This maide and make him well at

ese.

But all within his own entent
He wist how that the causé went,
Of that his brother hath the wite
He was him selven for to wite.1
But thus this maiden haddé wronge
Which was upon the King alonge,
But ayein him was none apele,
And that the fader wisté wele.
Wherof upon the tiranníe,
That for the lust of lecherie
His doughter shuldé be deceived,
And that Ilicius was weived
Untruly fro the mariage,
Right as a leon in his rage,
Which of no dredé set accompt
And not what pité shulde amount,
A naked swerde he pulled out,
The which amongés all the rout

1 Of that for which his brother had the blame he was himself to be held guilty.

side,

And all aloudé thus he cride:

'Lo, take her there thou wrongfull

king,

For me is lever upon this thing
To be the fader of a maide,
Though she be dede, than if men
saide

That in her life she weré shamed
And I therof were evil named.'
Tho bad the king men shulde areste
His body, but of thilké heste
Like to the chacéd wildé bore
The houndés whan he feleth sore
To-throweth and goth forth his wey,
In such a wise for to sey
This worthy knight with swerd in
honde

His weiémade, and they him wonde,1
That none of hem his strokés kepte,
And thus upon his hors he lepte
And with his swerd droppénd of
blood,

The which within his doughter stood,
He cam thereas the power was
Of Rome and tolde hem all the cas
And said hem, that they mighten lere
Upon the wronge of this matere,
That better it weré to redresse
At home the great unrightwisnesse,
Than for to werre in straungé place
And lese at home her owné grace.
For thus stant every mannés life
In jeopartïé for his wife

And for his doughter if they be
Passénd an other of beauté.
Of this merveilé which they sigh
So apparaúnt to-fore her eye,
Of that the king him hath misbore,
Her othés they have allé swore
That they woll stondé by the right.
And thus of one accorde upright
To Rome at onés home ayein
1 Wonde, fear.

This tiranníë cam to mouth,

And every man saith what he couth,

So that the privé trecherý,
Which set was upon lechery,
Cam openly to mannés ere,
And that brought in the comun fere,
That every man the perill dradde
Of him that so hem overladde.
For they, or that 1 it worsé falle,
Through comun counseil of hem alle
They have her wrongful King de-
posed,

And hem in whom it was supposed
The counseil stood of his ledíng,
By lawe unto the dome they bring,
Where they receiven the penaúnce
That longeth to such governaúnce.
And thus thunchasté was chastised;
Wherof they mighten ben avised
That sholden afterward govérne,
And by this evidéncé lerne
How it is good a Kinge eschue
The lust of vice and vertue sue.
To make an ende in this partie,
Which toucheth to the policie
Of chasteté in speciáll,
As for conclusión finall
That every lust is to eschue
By great ensample I may argue,
Howe in Ragés a town of Mede
There was a maide, and as I rede,
Sarra she hight, and Raguël
Her fader was. And so befell
Of body bothe and of visage
Was none so faire of the lignáge
To seche among hem all, as she,
Wherof the riche of the citee
Of lusty folk, that couthen love,
Assoted were upon her love
And axén hiré for to wedde.
One was which atté lasté spedde,
But that was moré for likíng
To have his lust than for wedding,
1 Or that, before.

As he within his herté caste,
Whiche him repenteth atté laste.
For so it fell the firsté night,
That whan he was to beddé dight
As he which no thing God be-
secheth,

But all only his lustés secheth,
Asmod, which was a fend of helle
And serveth as the bokés telle
To tempte a man in such a wise,
Was redy there, and thilke emprise
Whiche he hath set upon delite
He vengeth than in such a plite
That he his neck hath writh atwo.
This yongé wife was sory tho,
Which wisté nothing what it ment.
And nethéless yet thus it went
Nought only for this firsté man,
But after right as he began,
Six other of her husébondes
Asmod hath take into his hondes,
So that they all abeddé deiede,
Whan they her hond toward her
leide,

Nought for the lawe of mariage,
But for that ilké firy rage
In which that they the lawe excede.
For who that woldé taken hede
What after fell in this matere,
There might he well the sothé here
Whan she was wedded to Thobie,
And Raphäel in compaigný
Hath taught him how to be honest.
Asmod wan nought at thilké fest,
And yet Thobý his willé hadde,
For he his lust so godely ladde
That bothé lawe and kinde is
served,

Wherof he hath him self preserved
That he fell nought in the sentence.
Of which an open evidence
By this ensample a man may se,
That whan likíng in the degre
Of mariágé may forswey,
Well ought him than in other wey

Of lust to be the better avised.
For God the lawés hath assised
As well to reson as to kinde,
But he the bestés woldé binde
Only to lawés of natúre,
But to the mannés creätúre
God yaf him reson forth withall
Wherof that he natúré shall
Upon the causes modify,
That he shall do no lechery,
And yet he shall his lustés have,
So ben the lawés bothé save
And every thing put out of sclaunder,
As whilom to king Alisaundre
The wisé philosophre taught,
Whan he his firsté loré caught,
Nought only upon chasteté,
But als upon alle honesté.
Wherof a King him self may taste,
How trewe, how large, how juste,
how chaste

Him ought of reson for to be
Forth with the vertue of pité.
Through which he may great thank
deserve

Toward his God, that he preserve Him and his people in allé welthe Of pees, richesse, honoúr and helthe Here in this worlde and ellés eke.

"My sone, as we to-foré speke In shrifté, so as thou me saidest, And for thin ese, as thou me praidest, Thy lové throwés for to lisse, That I the woldé telle and wisse The forme of Aristotles lore, I have it said, and somdele more Of other ensamples to assaie If I thy peinés mighte alaie Through any thing whiche I can say."

"Do wey, my fader, I you pray; Of that ye have unto me tolde I thonké you a thousand folde; The talés sounen in min ere, But yet min herte is ellés where;