Chapter X

Fully have I now declared thyn estate to be good, so thou
folow therafter, and that the +objeccion first +by thee
aleged, in worthinesse of thy Margaryte, shal not thee lette, as
it shal forther thee, and encrese thee. It is now to declare, the
last objeccion in nothing may greve.' 5

'Yes, certes,' quod I, 'bothe greve and lette muste it nedes;
the contrarye may not ben proved; and see now why. Whyle
I was glorious in worldly welfulnesse, and had suche goodes in
welth as maken men riche, tho was I drawe in-to companyes
that loos, prise, and name yeven. Tho louteden blasours; tho 10
curreyden glosours; tho welcomeden flatterers; tho worshipped
thilke that now deynen nat to loke. Every wight, in such erthly
wele habundant, is holde noble, precious, benigne, and wyse to
do what he shal, in any degree that men him sette; al-be-it that
the sothe be in the contrarye of al tho thinges. But he that can 15
never so wel him behave, and hath vertue habundaunt in manyfolde
maners, and be nat welthed with suche erthly goodes, is holde
for a foole, and sayd, his wit is but sotted. Lo! how fals for
aver is holde trewe! Lo! how trewe is cleped fals for wanting
of goodes! Also, lady, dignitees of office maken men mikel 20
comended, as thus: "he is so good, were he out, his pere shulde
men not fynde." Trewly, I trowe of some suche that are so
praysed, were they out ones, another shulde make him so be
knowe, he shulde of no wyse no more ben loked after: but only
fooles, wel I wot, desyren suche newe thinges. Wherfore I wonder 25
that thilke governour, out of whom alone the causes proceden
that governen al thinges, whiche that hath ordeyned this world
in workes of the kyndely bodyes so be governed, not with
unstedfast or happyous thing, but with rules of reson, whiche
shewen the course of certayne thinges: why suffreth he suche 30
slydinge chaunges, that misturnen suche noble thinges as ben we
men, that arn a fayr parcel of the erthe, and holden the upperest
degree, under god, of benigne thinges, as ye sayden right now
your-selfe; shulde never man have ben set in so worthy a place
but-if his degrè were ordayned noble. Alas! thou that knittest 35
the purveyaunce of al thinges, why lokest thou not to amenden
these defautes? I see shrewes that han wicked maners sitten in
chayres of domes, lambes to punisshen, there wolves shulden ben
punisshed. Lo! vertue, shynende naturelly, for povertee lurketh,
and is hid under cloude; but the moone false, forsworn (as 40
I knowe my-selfe) for aver and yeftes, hath usurped to shyne by
day-light, with peynture of other mens praysinges; and trewly,
thilke forged light fouly shulde fade, were the trouth away of
colours feyned. Thus is night turned in-to day, and day in-to
night; winter in-to sommer, and sommer in-to winter; not in 45
dede, but in misclepinge of foliche people.'

'Now,' quod she, 'what wenest thou of these thinges? How
felest thou in thyn hert, by what governaunce that this cometh
aboute?'

'Certes,' quod I, 'that wot I never; but-if it be that Fortune 50
hath graunt from above, to lede the ende of man as her lyketh.'

'Ah! now I see,' quod she, 'th'entent of thy mening! Lo,
bycause thy worldly goodes ben fulliche dispent, thou beraft out
of dignitè of office, in whiche thou madest the +gaderinge of thilke
goodes, and yet diddest in that office by counsaile of wyse [before 55
that] any thing were ended; and true were unto hem whos profit
thou shuldest loke; and seest now many that in thilke hervest
made of thee mokel, and now, for glosing of other, deyneth thee
nought to forther, but enhaunsen false shrewes by witnessinge of
trouthe! These thinges greveth thyn herte, to sene thy-selfe thus 60
abated; and than, frayltè of mankynde ne setteth but litel by the
lesers of suche richesse, have he never so moche vertue; and so
thou wenest of thy jewel to renne in dispyt, and not ben accepted
in-to grace. Al this shal thee nothing hinder. Now (quod she)
first thou wost wel, thou lostest nothing that ever mightest thou 65
chalenge for thyn owne. Whan nature brought thee forth, come
thou not naked out of thy +moders wombe? Thou haddest no
richesse; and whan thou shalt entre in-to the ende of every
flesshly body, what shalt thou have with thee than? So, every
richesse thou hast in tyme of thy livinge, nis but lent; thou 70
might therin chalenge no propertee. And see now; every thing
that is a mannes own, he may do therwith what him lyketh, to
yeve or to kepe; bul richesse thou playnest from thee lost; if thy
might had strecched so ferforth, fayn thou woldest have hem kept,
multiplyed with mo other; and so, ayenst thy wil, ben they departed 75
from thee; wherfore they were never thyn. And if thou laudest
and joyest any wight, for he is stuffed with suche maner richesse,
thou art in that beleve begyled; for thou wenest thilke joye to be
selinesse or els ese; and he that hath lost suche happes to ben
unsely.' 80

'Ye, forsoth,' quod I.

'Wel,' quod she, 'than wol I prove that unsely in that wise is
to preise; and so the tother is, the contrary, to be lacked.'

'How so?' quod I.

'For Unsely,' quod she, 'begyleth nat, but sheweth th'entent 85
of her working. _Et e contra_: Selinesse begyleth. For in prosperitè
she maketh a jape in blyndnesse; that is, she wyndeth him to
make sorowe whan she withdraweth. Wolt thou nat (quod she)
preise him better that sheweth to thee his herte, tho[ugh] it be
with bytande wordes and dispitous, than him that gloseth and 90
thinketh in +his absence to do thee many harmes?'

'Certes,' quod I, 'the oon is to commende; and the other to
lacke and dispice.'

'A! ha!' quod she, 'right so Ese, while +she lasteth, gloseth
and flatereth; and lightly voydeth whan she most plesauntly 95
sheweth; and ever, in hir absence, she is aboute to do thee tene
and sorowe in herte. But Unsely, al-be-it with bytande chere,
sheweth what she is, and so doth not that other; wherfore
Unsely doth not begyle. Selinesse disceyveth; Unsely put away
doute. That oon maketh men blynde; that other openeth their 100
eyen in shewinge of wrecchidnesse. The oon is ful of drede to
lese that is not his owne; that other is sobre, and maketh men
discharged of mokel hevinesse in burthen. The oon draweth
a man from very good; the other haleth him to vertue by the
hookes of thoughtes. And wenist thou nat that thy disese hath 105
don thee mokel more to winne than ever yet thou lostest, and
more than ever the contrary made thee winne? Is nat a greet
good, to thy thinking, for to knowe the hertes of thy sothfast
frendes? Pardè, they ben proved to the ful, and the trewe have
discevered fro the false. Trewly, at the goinge of the ilke brotel 110
joye, ther yede no more away than the ilke that was nat thyn
proper. He was never from that lightly departed; thyn owne
good therfore leveth it stille with thee. Now good (quod she);
for how moche woldest thou somtyme have bought this verry
knowing of thy frendes from the flatteringe flyes that thee glosed, 115
whan thou thought thy-selfe sely? But thou that playnest of losse
in richesse, hast founden the most dere-worthy thing; that thou
clepest unsely hath made thee moche thing to winnen. And
also, for conclusioun of al, he is frende that now leveth nat his
herte from thyne helpes. And if that Margarite denyeth now nat 120
to suffre her vertues shyne to thee-wardes with spredinge bemes,
as far or farther than if thou were sely in worldly joye, trewly,
I saye nat els but she is somdel to blame.'

'Ah! pees,' quod I, 'and speke no more of this; myn herte
breketh, now thou touchest any suche wordes!' 125

'A! wel!' quod she, 'thanne let us singen; thou herest no
more of these thinges at this tyme.'

THUS ENDETH THE FIRSTE BOOK OF THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE;
AND HERAFTER FOLOWETH THE SECONDE.

CH. X. 1. nowe. 2. abiection; _read_ objeccion. be; _read_ by. the. 3. the. 4. the. encrease the. nowe. 5. obiection. 6. let. 7. maye. se nowe. 12. nowe. 14. set. 15. can ne never; _omit_ ne. 18. wytte. false. 19. auer (_sic_); _for_ aueir (_avoir_). howe. cleaped. false. 24. onely. 25. wotte. new. 26. whome. 27. worlde.

29. reason. 32. arne a fayre parsel. 33. nowe. 37. se. 39. pouertie. 40. hydde. forsworne. 44. daye (_twice_). 46. miscleapynge. 50. wotte. 52. nowe I se. thentent. meanyng. 53. berafte. 54. gatherynge. 55. _I supply_ before that. 56. whose profyte. 57. nowe. 58. the (_twice_). nowe. 63. dispyte. 64. the. Nowe. 65. woste.

66. the forthe. 67. mothers; _read_ moders. 69. the. 70. haste. lente. 71. propertie. se nowe. 72. owne. 73. the. 74. stretched. fayne. 76. the. 78. arte. 79. ease. loste. 84. Howe. 85. thentent. 88. Wolte. 89. the. 91. their; _read_ his. the. 92. one. 94. ease. he; _read_ she. 99. dothe. awaye. 100-1. one (_twice_). 101. wretchydnesse.

103. one. 105. disease. 106. done the. 107. the. great. 109. Pardy. 111. awaye. 111-2. thyne. 113. leaueth. the. Nowe. 114. howe. 115. the. 117. thynge. 118. cleapest. the. thynge. 119. nowe leaueth. 120. hert. nowe. 121. the. spreadynge beames. 122. farre. 123. somdele. 124. peace. myne. 125. breaketh nowe. 126. lette.

BOOK II.