Chapter VII

'Very trouth,' quod she, 'hast thou now conceyved of these
thinges in thyne herte; hastely shalt thou be able very
joye and parfit blisse to receyve; and now, I wot wel, thou
desyrest to knowe the maner of braunches that out of the tree
shulde springe.' 5

'Therof, lady,' quod I, 'hertely I you pray; for than leve
I +wel, that right sone after I shal ataste of the frute that I so
long have desyred.'

'Thou hast herd,' quod she, 'in what wyse this tree toforn this
have I declared, as in grounde and in stocke of wexing. First, 10
the ground shulde be thy free wil, ful in thyne herte; and the
stocke (as I sayde) shulde be continuaunce in good service by
long tyme in traveyle, til it were in greetnesse right wel woxen.
And whan this tree suche greetnesse hath caught as I have
rehersed, the braunches than, that the frute shulde forth-bringe, 15
speche must they be nedes, in voice of prayer in complayning
wyse used.'

'Out! alas!' quod I tho, 'he is soroufully wounded that
hydeth his speche, and spareth his complayntes to make! What
shal I speke the care? But payne, even lyk to helle, sore hath 20
me assayled, and so ferforth in payne me thronge, that I leve my
tree is seer, and never shal it frute forth bringe! Certes, he is
greetly esed, that dare his prevy mone discover to a true felowe,
that conning hath and might, wherthrough his pleint in any thinge
may ben amended. And mokel more is he joyed, that with herte 25
of hardinesse dare complayne to his lady what cares that he
suffreth, by hope of mercy with grace to be avaunced. Truely
I saye for me, sithe I cam this Margarit to serve, durst I never me
discover of no maner disese; and wel the later hath myn herte
hardyed suche thinges to done, for the grete bountees and worthy 30
refresshmentes that she of her grace goodly, without any desert on
my halve, ofte hath me rekened. And nere her goodnesse the
more with grace and with mercy medled, which passen al desertes,
traveyls, and servinges that I in any degre might endite, I wolde
wene I shulde be without recover, in getting of this blisse for 35
ever! Thus have I stilled my disese; thus have I covered my
care; that I brenne in sorouful anoy, as gledes and coles wasten
a fyr under deed asshen. Wel the hoter is the fyr that with
asshen it is overleyn. Right longe this wo have I suffred.'

'Lo,' quod Love, 'how thou farest! Me thinketh, the palasy-yvel 40
hath acomered thy wittes; as faste as thou hyest forward,
anon sodaynly backward thou movest! Shal nat yet al thy
leudnesse out of thy braynes? Dul ben thy skilful understandinges;
thy wil hath thy wit so amaistred. Wost thou nat wel (quod she)
but every tree, in his sesonable tyme of burjoninge, shewe his 45
blomes fro within, in signe of what frute shulde out of him
springe, els the frute for that yere men halt delivered, be the
ground never so good? And though the stocke be mighty at
the ful, and the braunches seer, and no burjons shewe, farwel the
gardiner! He may pype with an yvè-lefe; his frute is fayled. 50
Wherfore thy braunches must burjonen in presence of thy lady, if
thou desyre any frute of thy ladies grace. But beware of thy lyfe,
that thou no wode lay use, as in asking of thinges that strecchen
in-to shame! For than might thou nat spede, by no maner way
that I can espy. Vertue wol nat suffre villany out of him-selfe to 55
springe. Thy wordes may nat be queynt, ne of subtel maner
understandinge. Freel-witted people supposen in suche poesies
to be begyled; in open understandinge must every word be used.
"Voice without clere understanding of sentence," saith Aristotel,
"right nought printeth in herte." Thy wordes than to abyde in 60
herte, and clene in ful sentence of trewe mening, platly must
thou shewe; and ever be obedient, her hestes and her wils to
performe; and be thou set in suche a wit, to wete by a loke
ever-more what she meneth. And he that list nat to speke, but
stilly his disese suffer, what wonder is it, tho[ugh] he come never 65
to his blisse? Who that traveyleth unwist, and coveyteth thing
unknowe, unweting he shal be quyted, and with unknowe thing
rewarded.'

'Good lady,' quod I than, 'it hath ofte be sene, that +weders
and stormes so hugely have falle in burjoning-tyme, and by perte 70
duresse han beten of the springes so clene, wherthrough the frute
of thilke yere hath fayled. It is a greet grace, whan burjons han
good +weders, their frutes forth to bringe. Alas! than, after
suche stormes, how hard is it to avoyde, til efte wedring and
yeres han maked her circute cours al about, er any frute be able 75
to be tasted! He is shent for shame, that foule is rebuked of his
speche. He that is in fyre brenning sore smarteth for disese;
him thinketh ful long er the water come, that shulde the fyr
quenche. While men gon after a leche, the body is buryed.
Lo! how semely this frute wexeth! Me thinketh, that of tho 80
frutes may no man ataste, for pure bitternesse in savour. In this
wyse bothe frute and the tree wasten away togider, though mokel
besy occupacion have be spent, to bringe it so ferforth that it
was able to springe. A lyte speche hath maked that al this labour
is in ydel.' 85

'I not,' quod she, 'wherof it serveth, thy question to assoyle.
Me thinketh thee now duller in wittes than whan I with thee first
mette. Although a man be leude, commenly for a fole he is nat
demed but-if he no good wol lerne. Sottes and foles lete lightly
out of mynde the good that men techeth hem. I sayd therfore, 90
thy stocke must be stronge, and in greetnesse wel herted: the
tree is ful feble that at the firste dent falleth. And although frute
fayleth oon yere or two, yet shal suche a seson come oon tyme or
other, that shal bringe out frute that [is parfit]. *Fole, have I not
seyd toforn this, as tyme hurteth, right so ayenward tyme heleth 95
and rewardeth; and a tree oft fayled is holde more in deyntee
whan it frute forth bringeth. A marchaunt that for ones lesinge
in the see no more to aventure thinketh, he shal never with
aventure come to richesse. So ofte must men on the oke smyte,
til the happy dent have entred, whiche with the okes owne swaye 100
maketh it to come al at ones. So ofte falleth the lethy water on
the harde rocke, til it have thorow persed it. The even draught
of the wyr-drawer maketh the wyr to ben even and supple-werchinge;
and if he stinted in his draught, the wyr breketh
a-sonder. Every tree wel springeth, whan it is wel grounded and 105
not often removed.'

'What shal this frute be,' quod I, 'now it ginneth rype?'

'Grace,' quod she, 'in parfit joy to endure; and therwith thou
begon[ne].'

'Grace?' quod I; 'me thinketh, I shulde have a reward for my 110
longe travayle?'

'I shal telle thee,' quod she; 'retribucion of thy good willes
to have of thy Margarite-perle, it bereth not the name of mede,
but only of good grace; and that cometh not of thy desert, but
of thy Margarytes goodnesse and vertue alone.' 115

Quod I, 'shulde al my longe travayle have no reward but thorow
grace? And som-tyme your-selven sayd, rightwisnesse evenliche
rewardeth, to quyte oon benefit for another.'

'That is sothe,' quod Love, 'ever as I sayde, as to him that
doth good, which to done he were neyther holden ne yet 120
constrayned.'

'That is sothe,' quod I.

'Trewly,' quod she, 'al that ever thou doest to thyne Margaryte-perle,
of wil, of love, and of reson thou owest to done it; it is
nothing els but yelding of thy dette in quytinge of thy grace, which 125
she thee lente whan ye first mette.'

'I wene,' quod I, 'right litel grace to me she delivered.
Certes, it was harde grace; it hath nyghe me astrangled.'

'That it was good grace, I wot wel thou wilt it graunte, er
thou departe hence. If any man yeve to another wight, to whom 130
that he ought not, and whiche that of him-selfe nothing may
have, a garnement or a cote, though he were the cote or els
thilke clothing, it is not to putte to him that was naked the cause
of his clothinge, but only to him that was yever of the garnement.
Wherfore I saye, thou that were naked of love, and of thy-selfe 135
non have mightest, it is not to putte to thyne owne persone,
sithen thy love cam thorow thy Margaryte-perle. _Ergo_, she was
yever of the love, although thou it use; and there lente she thee
grace, thy service to beginne. She is worthy the thank of this
grace, for she was the yever. Al the thoughtes, besy doinges, 140
and plesaunce in thy might and in thy wordes that thou canst
devyse, ben but right litel in quytinge of thy dette; had she not
ben, suche thing hadde not ben studyed. So al these maters
kyndly drawen hom-ward to this Margaryte-perle, for from thence
were they borowed; al is hoolly her to wyte, the love that thou 145
havest; and thus quytest thou thy dette, in that thou stedfastly
servest. And kepe wel that love, I thee rede, that of her thou
hast borowed, and use it in her service thy dette to quyte; and
than art thou able right sone to have grace; wherfore after mede
in none halve mayst thou loke. Thus thy ginning and ending is 150
but grace aloon; and in thy good deserving thy dette thou
aquytest; without grace is nothing worth, what-so-ever thou
werche. Thanke thy Margaryte of her grete grace that +hiderto
thee hath gyded, and praye her of continuaunce forth in thy
werkes herafter; and that, for no mishappe, thy grace overthwartly 155
tourne. Grace, glorie, and joye is coming thorow good
folkes desertes; and by getting of grace, therin shullen ende.
And what is more glorie or more joye than wysdom and love
in parfit charitè, whiche god hath graunted to al tho that wel
+conne deserve?' And with that this lady al at ones sterte in-to 160
my herte: 'here wol I onbyde,' quod she, 'for ever, and never
wol I gon hence; and I wol kepe thee from medlinge while me
liste here onbyde; thyne entermeting maners in-to stedfastnesse
shullen be chaunged.'

CH. VII. 1. nowe. 2. hert. 3. parfyte. nowe. 5. spring.

7. wol; _read_ wel. soone. atast. 9. herde. tre. 11. grounde. frewyl. hert. 13. greatnesse. 14. gretnesse. 20. lyke. hel. 22. tre. bring. 23. greatly eased. 28. came. 29. disease. 30. great bounties. 36. disease. 37. bren. 38. fyre (_twice_). 40. howe. 41. forwarde. 42. backwarde.

47. spring. halte. 48. grounde. 53. wodelay. stretchen. 56. spring. 58. worde. 60-1. hert (_twice_). 64. meaneth. 65. disease. 69. wethers; _read_ weders. 70. fal. 71. beaten. 72. great. 73. wethers; _read_ weders. forthe. 74. howe harde. 77. disease. 78. fyre. 79. gone. 80. howe.

81. maye. sauoure. 83. occupation. spente. ferforthe. 84. spring. 87. the nowe. 89. fooles lette. 90. teacheth. 91. greatnesse. 93. one (_twice_). season. 94. _I supply_ is parfit. * _A break here in_ Th. 95. healeth. 96. deyntie. 97. forthe. 102. thorowe. 103-4. wyre (_thrice_). 104. breaketh. 105. tre. 107. nowe. 108. parfyte. 109. begon; _read_ begonne. 110. rewarde. 112. tel the. 113. beareth. 114. onely. deserte. 116. rewarde. thorowe.

118. one benefyte. 120. dothe. 124. _catchword_ it is; _misprinted_ yet is _on the next page_. 126. the lent. 127. lytle. 129. graunt. 131. nothynge maye. 132. weare. 133. put; _read_ putte. 134. onely. 136. put. 137. came thorowe. 138. althoughe. lent. the. 139. thanke. 141. canste. 144. homewarde. 145. holy. 147. the. 149. arte. 151. alone. 152. worthe.

153. great. hytherto; _read_ hiderto. 154. the. forthe. 156. thorowe. 158. wysdome. 159. parfyte. 160. canne; _read_ conne. 161. hert.