That afrounted me foule , and faitour me called

Canst thou not excuse the as dyd the kyng and other

That thou toke to thy bileue to clothes & to sustinance

As by teachinge and by tellinge of spiritus temperancie ,

And thou nome namore then nede the taught

And nede hath no law ne neuer shall fall in dette

For thre thinges he taketh his lyfe for to saue ,

That is meat when men him warne & he no money welde

Ne wight þat wil be his borow , & hath no wed to ligge

And he caught in that case & came therto by sleyghtes

He sinneth not sothely , that so wynneth hys fode

And though he can so to a cloth & can no beter cheuisance

Nede anone right , winneth him vnder mayne-prise ,

And if him lyst for to laye , the lawe of kynd wold ,

That he dronke at eche diche er he for thurst dyed ,

So nede at great nede may nimen as for hys owne ,

Without councel of conscience or Cardinall vertues ,

So that he sewe and saue , spiritus temperancie

For is no vertue by fer , to spiritus temperancie ,

Neyther spiritus iusticie , ne spiritus fortitudinis ,

For spiritus fortitudinis forfeteth full oft

He shall do more then measure many a tyme and ofte ,

And beate men ouer bytter and some of them to litel ,

And greueth men greater than good fayth it wolde ,

And Spiritus iusticie shall iudge will he nyll he ,

After the kinges counsell , and the commen lyke

And spiritus prudencie , in many pointes shall fayle

Of that he weneth wold faile , if his witte ne were

Wening is no wisdome ne wise ymaginacyon ,

Homo proponit , deus disponit , & gouerneth al good vertues

And nede is next him for anon he meketh him ,

And as low as a lambe , for lacking of þat him nedeth ,

Wise men forsoke weale , for they wold be nedye

And weneden in wildernes and wold not be rich

And God all his great ioye gostly he left ,

And came and toke mankind and became nedy

So nedy he was as sayth the boke in many sondrye places ,

That he sayd in his sorow on the selfe roode

Both foxe and foule may flee and to hole crepe

And the fyshe hath fyn to flete with torest / to rest ,

There nede hath innomed me þat I must nedes abide ,

And suffre sorowes ful soure , that shall to ioy turne ,

Therfore be nought abashed to byde and to be nedy ,

Ne neuer none so nedy ne poore died ,

Whan nede had vndone me thus anon I fell a-slepe ,

And met full maruelously þat in a mans forme

Antichrist came than and all the croppe of trueth

Turned vpsidoune , and ouer-tilt the rote ,

And false spring and spred and sped mens nedes

In eche a contrey ther he came he cut away trueth ,

And garte gile growe there as he of God were ,

Frires folowed that fende , for he gaue hem copes

And religious reuerenced him and rang their belles ,

And all the couent furth came to welcome that tirant ,

And all his as well as him , saue onely fooles

Whiche foles were well leuer to dye than to lyue

Lenger syth Leauty was so rebuked

And a false fende Antechriste , ouer all folke raygned

And þat were mild men & holy men , þou no mischiefe drede

Defieden all falsenes , and folke that it vsed

And what king þat hem conforted , knowing hem any while

They cursed & her counsel , were it clarkes or lewde

Antichrist had thus some hundredes at his banner

And pride it bare boldly about where he yede

Wyth a Lord that liueth after the likynge of his body

That came agayne Conscience , þat keper was & gydour

Ouer kinde christen , and cardinall vertues

I counsell quod Conscience , come with me foles

Into vnitie , holy church , and holde we vs there

And cry we to kinde , that he come and defende vs

Foles from these fendes lims , for Piers loue þe plowman

And cry we to all the commune , þat they come to vnitie

And there abide and biker , against Belials children .

Kynd Conscience tho heard , & came out of the planetis

And sent forth his forriours , feuers and fluxes

Coughes and cardiacles , crampes and toth aches

Reumes and radgondes , and raynous scalles

Byles and botches , and burnynge agues

Freneges and foule euill , foragers of kinde

Hadden pricked and prayed polles of the people

That largely a legion losten their liue sone

There was harowe and helpe here commeth kinde

With death that is dreadefull to vndone vs all

The lorde that liued after lust , tho aloude cried

After confort a knight , to come & beare his banner

A-larme a-larme quod þat Lord , ech life kepe his own

And than met these men , their mynstrels myght pype

And their heraudes of armes , had descriued Lordes

Age the hoore he was in the vawwarde

And bare þe banner before death , bi right he it claimed

Kynde came after wyth many kene sores

As pockes and pestilences , and much people shent

So kinde through corruptions killed full many

Death came driuynge after , and to dust pashed ,

Kynges and Kaysers , knightes and Popes

Learned and lewde , he ne let no man stande

That he hitte euen , he neuer stode after

Many a louely Ladye , and lemmans of knights

Swonden and swelten for sorow of deathes dyntes

Conscience of his curtesye , to kinde he besought

To cease and suffre , and se where they woulde

Leue pryde priuelie , and be perfite christen

And Kinde ceased tho , to se the people amende

Fortune gan flatteren then , tho fewe that were alyue

And hight hem longe life , and lechery she sent

Amonges all maner men , wedded and vnwedded

And gathered a great host , all agayne Conscience

This Lechery layde on with a laughynge chere

And with a priuye speache and paynted wordes

And armed him in idlenes , and in hygh bearyng

He bare a bowe in hys hand , & many bloudy arrowes

Were fethered with faire behest , & many a false trueth

Wyth hys vntidye tales , he tened full often

Conscience and his company , of holy kirke þe techers

Than came Couetise and caste howe he might

Ouercome Conscience , and cardinall vertues

And armed him in auarice , and hongrily lyued

His wepen was all wiles , to wynnen and to hiden

With glosinges & with glabbinges , he giled the people

Symony him sent to assayle conscience

And preched to the people and prelates they maden ,

To hold with antichrist their temperalties to saue

And came to kinges counsell as a kene baron ,

And kneled to conscience in court afore them all ,

Andgarde / And garde good fayth flee and false to abyde ,

And boldly bare downe with many a bright noble ,

Much of the wit and wisedome of westminster hal

He iustled tyll a Iustice , and iusted in his eare

And ouertilt al his truth , will take this apon amendment

And to the arches in hast he yede anone after ,

And turned cyuile into symoni & syth he toke thofficial

For a mantell of miniuer he made lelly matrimonye ,

Departen er death came , and deuourse shaped

Alas quod conscience tho wold Christ of his grace

That couetise were a christen that is so kine a fighter ,

And bold and abiding while his bagge lasteth

And than lough lyfe , and let dagge his clothes

And armed him in hast in harlottes wordes ,

And held holines a Iape , and hendnes a waster ,

And lete leautie a cherle , and lyer a freman

Conscience and councell he counted at foly ,

Thus leled lyfe for a lytle fortune ,

And priked furth with pride , praysed he no vertue ,

He careth not how kinde slouth shall come at last

And kyll all earthely creatures , saue conscience onely

Lyfe lept asede and caught him a lemman ,

Health and I quod he , and heauynes of herte

Shall do the no drede nether death ne Elde ,

And to forget death and gyue nought of synne ,

Thys lyked lyfe and his lemman fortune ,

And gat in their glory a gadling at last ,

One that much wo wrought slouth was his name ,

Slouth wexe wonder yerne , and sone was of age

And wedded one wanhope a wench of the stewes ,

Hyr syre was a sysor that neuer swore trueth

One Tomme twotong , atteint of ech a quest

This Slouth was ware of warre , and a slyng made

And threwe drede of dispayre , adozen / a dozen myles a-boute

For care conscience tho cryed apon age ,

And bad him fend a sight and afere wanhope ,

And age hent good hope , and hastely he shyftes him

And wained awaye wanhop , & with lyfe he fighteth ,

And lyfe fleeth for fere to phisike after helpe ,

And besought him of his succoure & of his salue had ,

And gaue him gold good wonne þat gladded his hart

And they gaue him agayne a glasen howne ,

Lyfe leued that lechecraft let shulde Elde

And driuen away death with dias and dragges ,

And Elde auentred him on lyfe , and at last he hyt

A phisician with a furred hode that he fell in the palsy

And their died that docter er thre dayes after ,

Now I see sayd lyfe that surgery ne phisike

May not a myte auayle , to medle agayne Elde

And in hope of his heale good harte he hente

And rode so to reuell a rych place and a mery

The company of comforth men clipped it some tyme

And Elde anone after , and ouer my head she yedeN

And made me bald before and bare on my crowne ,

So hard he yede ouer my heade þat it will be seue euer

Syr euell taught Elde quod I , vnheende go wyth the ,

Sithe whan was the way ouer mens heades ?

Haddest þou bene hende quod I , þou woldest haue asked leue

Yea leaue lurden quod he , and layde on me with age ,

And hit me vnder the eare , vnneth may ich heare

He buffeted me about the mouth , and bet out my teth

And gyued me in goutes , I may not go at large ,

And of the wo that I was in my wyfe had ruthe ,

And wished full witterly that I were in heauen ,

For the lyme that she loued me for , & leef was to feele

On nightes namely when we naked were ,

I ne might in no maner make it at hyr will ,

So Elde and se sothely had forbeaten it ,

And as I satte in this sorowe I se kinde passed

And death drewe nere me , for drede gan I quacke ,

And cryed to kinde out of care me bringe

Lo Elde the hore hath me byfeye .

Awreke me if your wilbe / wil be for I wold be hence ,

If thou wold be wroken , wend into vnitie

And hold the there euer tyll I send for the ,

And loke thou konne some craft ere thou come thence

Counsell me Kynd quod I , what craft is best to learne ,

Learne to loue quod kinde and leaue all other ,

Howe shall I come to cattel so , to cloth me & to fede ?

And thou loue lelly quod he , lacke shall the neuer ,

Meat ne worldly wede , whyle thy lyfe lasteth ,

And there by counsell of kinde , I comsed to runne / r[om]e

Through contricion & confession till I came to vnitie ,

And there was conscience constable , christen to saue ,

And besieged Sothelie with senen / se[u]en great Gyantes

That with antichrist holden harde agayn conscience ,

Sloth was his slyng and hard assawte made ,

Proude priests come with him mo then a thowsand ,

In paltoks and piked shoes and pisfers long kniues ,

Comen agayne conscience with couetyse they helden ,

By Mary quod a mansed priest of the march of Ireland ,

I count no more conscience , by so I catche siluer

Than I do to drinke a draught of good ale ,

And so sayd sixty of the same contrey

And shotten againe with shote many a shefe of othes

And brode hoked arowes , Gods hert and his nailes ,

And had almost vnitye and holynes adowne

Conscience cryed helpe clergy or els I fall ,

Through imperfite priests & prelates of holy church

Fryers harde him crye and came him to helpe ,

And for thei coud not wel her craft , conscience hem forsoke

Nede neighed tho nere , and conscience he tolde

That they came for couetyse to haue cure of soule ,

And for thei are pore perauenter for patrimony hem failith

They flatter to fare well folke that bene ryche ,

And syth they chosen chele and cheitif pouertie

Let them chewe as they chosen , & charge them with no cure ,

For Lomer he lyeth that lyuelode might begge ,

Than he þat laboureth for liuelod & leneth it beggers ,

And sith fryers forsoke , the filicitie of the earth

Let them be as beggers or lyue by Angels foode ,

Conscience of this councell tho comsed to laugh ,

And curtesly comforted him and called in al fryers ,

And sayd syrs sothely welcome be you all

To vnitie and holy church , one thing I you praye

Hold you in vnitie and haue no enuye ,

To lerned men ne to lewde , but lyue after your rule ,

And I will be your borow ye shall haue bred & cloth

And other necessaryes ynowe ye shall nothing fayle ,

With that ye leaue lodgike and learne to loue ,

For loue lost the lordshyp , both land and schole

Fryer Fraunces and dominike for loue to be holy ,

And if ye couet cure , kynd wyll you teache .

That in measure God made all maner thinges

And set hem at a certen and a seker nombre ,

And nempned names newe and nommbred the sterres .

Qui numerat multitudinem stellarum & omnibus &cetera .

Kynges and knightes that kepen and defenden ,

Haue officers vnder hem , and eche of hem certen

And if they wage men to war they write hem in nombre

Or they wil no treasure hem pay , trauaile they neuer so sore

For all other in battel , bene holden brybors

Pylors and pikeharneis , in eche a place accursed ,

Monks and monyales and all men of relygion ,

Their order & their rule wold to haue a certen nombre

Of lerned and of lewde , the lawe will and asketh ,

A certen for a certen , saue onely of Fryers .

Therfore quod conscience , by Christ kinde witte me telleth

It is wicked to wage you , ye wexe out of nombre ,

Heauen hath euen nombre , & hell is without nombre

Therfore I wolde witterly þat ye were in þe registres ,

And your nombre vnder notaries signe & neither mo ne lesse

Enuy hard this and bad fryers go to schole ,

And lerne logike and lawe , and eke contemplacion ,

And preache men of Plato , and prieue it by Seneca ,

That all thinges vnder heauen ought to be in commune

And yet he lyeth as I leue þat to the lewde so precheth ,

For God made men a lawe , and Moses it taught ,

Non concupisses rem proximi tui ,

And euel is his holde in parishes of Englande ,

For parsons & parishe priestes þat shuld þe peple shriue

Bene Curatuors called to know and to heale ,

To all þat bene their parishens penance to enioigne

And shuld be ashamed in their shrift , & shame makith

And flee to þe Fryers , as false folke to Westminster

That boroweth & beareth thider , & then biddith frends

Yerne of fogifenes / fo[r]gifenes or lenger yeres loone

And while he is in westminster he wilbe before ,

And make him mery with other mens goods

And so it fareth with much folke þat to fryers shriueth

As sisours & executours they will gyue the fryers ,

A percell to pray for them & make them-selfe merye ,

With þe residue & þe remnaunt þat other men be swonken ,

And suffre the dead in det to the day of dome ,

Enuy therfore hated conscience ,

And friers to philosiphy he found hem to schole ,

The while couetise and vnkindnes , conscience assayled

In vnitie holy church , conscience healed him

And made peace porter , to pinne the gates

To all tale tellers and tutelers in ydell ,

Hypocrisy and he an harde assaute they made

Hipocrisy at gate hard gan to feight ,

And wounded well wickedlye many a wyse teacher ,

That with conscience accorded , and Cardynall vertues

Conscience called a leche that could wel shryue ,

Go salue tho þat sick ben , and through sinne wounded ,

Shrift shope sharpe salue and made hem do penance

For their misdedes that they wrought hadden ,

And that piers were payde , Redde quod debes ,

Some lyked not this leche , and letters they sent ,

If any surgeon were in the sege , þat softer could plaster

Syr life to liue in lechery laye there and groned ,

For fastyng of a fryday , he fared as he wold dye

There is a surgeon in this sege that soft can handle

And more of phisyke he can and fayrer he plastereth ,

One frier flatterer is phisician and surgeon ,

Quod contricion to conscience do him come to vnitie

For here is many a man hurt through hypocrisie

We haue no nede quod Conscience , I wot no better lech

Than person or parishe prieste , penitauncer or bishop

Saue Pierce the plowman , þat hath power ouer hem al

And indulgence may do , but if that dette let it

I may wel suffer quod conscience , seinge ye desieren

That Fryer flatterer befet , a phisike you seke

The Fryer hereof harde , and hied full faste

To a lorde for a letter , leaue to haue curen

As a curatour he were , and came with hys letters

Boldely to the byshop , and his briefe had ,

In contryes there he came in , confession to here

And came ther Conscience was , & knocked at þe gate

Peace vnpinned it , was porter of vnitie

And in haste asked what hys wyll were

I fayth quod this Frier , for profit and for health

Carpe I wold with contrition , & therefore I came hither

He is sicke sayde Peace , and so is many an other

Hypocrisie hath hurt him , ful harde is he of couer

I am surgion sayde the segge , and salues can make

Conscience knoweth me wel , and what I can do both

I praye the quod Peace tho , ere thou passe further

What hightest thou I pray the , heale not thy name

Certes sayd thys felowe , syr Penetrans domos .

Go thy gates quod Peace , by god for all thy phisike

But thou kenne some craft , thou commest not herein

I knewe such one once , not eyght winters passed

Came in thus coped , at a court wher I dwelled

And was my lordes leche , and my ladies bothe

And at laste this limitour , tho my lord was out

He salued so our women , tyll some were with childe .

Heende speach heete Peace to open the gates

Let in the frier and his felowe , & make him fair chere

He may se and heare , so it may befall

That lyfe through his lore , shall leaue couetise

And be a-drade of death , and withdrawe him from prid

And accord with conscience , and kisse either other .

Thus through hende speach , entred the fryer

And came to Conscience , and curtesly him grete

Thou art welcome quod Conscience , canst þou heale þe sick ?

Here is contricion quod conscience , my cosin wounded

Confort him quod conscience , & take kepe to his sores

The playsters of þe person , and pouders beaten to sore

He letteth hem ligge ouer long , & loth is to chaung hem

From lenten to lenten , he let his playsters byten .

That is ouerlong quod this Limitor , I leue I shal amend it

And goth & gropeth contricion , & gaue him a plaister

Of a pryuy payment , & I shal pray for you ,

And for all that ye bene holden to , all my lyue longe

And make you my Ladye in masses and in mattens

As Fryers of our fraternitie , for a litle siluer .

Thus he goth & gadereth , & gloseth ther he shriueth

Till contricion had cleaneforgoten / cleane forgoten to crye & to wepe

And wake for his works , as he was wont to do

For confort of hys confessour , Contricion he lost

That is the souereyn[est] salue [, for] all kinnes synnes

Slouthe see that , and [so] dyd [pride]

And commen with a kene [wyll , co]nscience to assayle

Conscience cryed out / [ef]t , and [bade] cleargy helpe him

And also contricion , for to kepe the gate

He lieth & dreameth said Peace , & so doth many other

The fryer with his phisike , this folke hath enchaunted

And plastred hem so easely , they dred no synne

Bi Christ quod Conscience tho , I wol become a pilgrime

And walken as wyde as the world lasteth

To seke Pierce the plowman , that pride may destroy

And that Fryers had a finding , þat for no nede flatteren

And contrepledeth me Conscience , now kind me aueng

And send me hap & heale , til I haue Piers þe plowman

And syth he grad after grace til , I gan awake .