Et hic incipit visio eiusdem de dowel C
Alle a somur seson / for to seke dowel
And fraynede ful ofte / of folke þat y mette
Yf eny wiht wiste / where dowel was at ynne
Was neuere wihte in þis world / þat me wisse couthe
Where this longed lasse ne more
Til hit biful in fryday / two freres y mette
Y haylsede hem hendly / as y hadde ylered
And preyde hem pur charite / ar they passede forthere
Yf they knewe eny contre / oþer costes aboute
Wher þat dowel dwelleth dere frendes telleth me · C
For ȝe ar men of this molde / þat moste wyde walken
And knowen contrees and Courtes / and many kynne plases
Bothe princes paleis / and pore menne cotes
And dowel and doeuele / where þei dwellen bothe
And euere hath as y hope / and euere wol here-aftur
Contra quod y as a Clerk / and comsed to despute
And saide sothly sepcies in die ca{p}dit iustes / iust[u]s
Fallyng fro ioye ihesu woet þe sothe
Seuene sithe sayth þe boek synegeth day by day
the rihtfulluste reng / þat regneth in erthe
And ho-so synegeth y sayde / certes he doth nat wel
For ho-so synegeth sicurly doth euele
And dowel and doeuele / may nat dwelle to-gyderes
Ergo he is nat al-wey athom / at hom amonges ȝow freres
He is other-while elles-wher / to wisse the peple
¶ Y shal sey þe my sone / sayde þe frere thenne
How seuene sithes þe sad man / synegeth on þe day
Lat bryng aman / a man in a boet / amydde abrood / a brood water
The wynde and þe water / and wagyng of the bote
Maketh þe man many tyme / to stomble yf he stande
For stonde he neuere so stifliche / thorw steryng of þe bote
And ȝut is he saef and sound / and so hit fareth by þe rihtfole
Thow he falle he falleth nat / but ho-so ful in a boet
That ay is saef and sound / þat sitte with-ynne þe borde
¶ So hit fareth quod þe frere / by þe ryhtful mannes fallynge
Thow he thorw fondynges falle / he falleth nat out of charite
So dedly synne doth he nat / for dowel hym helpeth
The water is likned to þe word / þat wanyeth and waxeth
The godes of this grounde / ar like þe grete wawes
That as wyndes and wederes / waleweth aboute
The boet is liknet to oure body / þat bretil is of kynde
That thorw the fend and oure flesch / and this freel worlde
Synegeth seue sithe þe saddest man on erthe
And lyfliost of lyf / þat lyueth vnder sonne
Ac fre wil and fre wit / foleweth man euere
To repenten and to arise / and rowe out of synne
To contricion to confessioun / til he come til his ende
For rather haue we no reste / til we restitue
Oure lyf to oure lord god / for oure lycames gultes
¶ Y haue no kynde knowlechyng / to conseyue al this speche
Ac yf y may lyue and loke / y shal go lerne bettere
Y bykenne the Crist quod he / þat on þe cross deyede C
And y sayde þe same / saue ȝow fro meschaunce
And gyue me grace on þis grounde / with good ende to deye
¶ I · wente forth wyde-whare / walkynge myn one
By a wilde wildernesse / and by a wode-syde
Blisse of þe briddes / a-byde {..}me made
And vnder lynde vpon a launde / lened y a stounde
To lythen here layes / and here louely notes
Murthe of here mouthes / made me ther to slepe
And merueilousliche me mette / amyddes al þat blisse
A muche man as me thoghte / ylike to my-sulue
Cam and calde me / be my kynde name
¶ What art thow quod y · þat thow my name knowest
That þou wille quod he / and no wyht bettere
Woet y quod y who art thow / thouhte sayde he thenne
Y haue sued the this seuen ȝer / saw thow me no rather
Art thow thouht quod y tho / thow couthest me wisse
Where þat dowel dwelleth / And do me to knowe
dowel and dobet quod he / and dobest the thridde
Aren thre fayre vertues / and ben nat fer to fynde
Ho is trewe of his tonge / and of his two handes
And thorw lele labour lyueth / and loueth his emcristene
And ther-to trewe of his tayl / and of his two handes
And is nat dronklewe / ne dedeynous / dowel hem foleweth
dobet doth al this / Ac ȝut he doth more
He is logh as a lomb / and loueliche of speche
And helpeth alle men / of þat he may spare
The bagges and þe bigerdeles / he hath to-broken hem alle
Þat þe Erl Auerous / held and his ayres
And of mammonaes mone / y-maked hym many frendes
And is ronne in-to religioun / and hath rendred þe bible
And precheth to þe peple seynt paules wordes
¶ Libenter suffertis incipientes & cetera
Ȝe wordliche wyse / vnwyse þat ȝe soffre P
Lene hem and loue hem / this latyn is to mene
dobest bere sholde þe bisshopes corose / c[r]ose
And halie with þe hoked ende / alle men to gode
And with the pyk pulte a-doun / preu{e}aricatores legis
Lordes þat lyuen as hem lust / and no lawe acounten
For here mok and here mebles / suche men thenketh
Sholde no bisshop be / here biddynges to withsite
Ac dobest sholde drede hem nat / but do as god hihte
¶ Nolite timere eos qui possunt occidere corpus & cetera
Thus dowel and dobet / demede a dobest
And crounede oen to be kyng / to kull with-oute synne
That wolde nat do as dobest / deuinede T and tauhte
Thus dowel and dobet / and dobest the thridde
Crounede oen to be a kyng / to kepen vs alle
And to reule alle reumes / by here thre wittes
bute oþere-wise ne elles nat / but as they thre assentede
Y thonkede thoght tho / þat he me so tauhte
Ac ȝut sauereth nat me thy sawes / so me Crist spede
Amore / A more kyndore knowynge / coueyte y to here
Of dowel and dobet / and ho doth best of alle
Bote yf wit wol the wisse / quod thouhte where tho thre dwelleth
Elles knowe y noen þat can / in none kynne-ryche
Thouht and y thus / thre dayes we ȝeden
disputyng vppon dowel / day aftur other
And ar we y-war were / with wit gan we mete
He was long and lene / y-lyk to noon other
Was no pruyde on his parail / ne pouerte noythere
Sad of his semblant / and with a softe speche
Y durste meue no matere / to maken hym to iangle
Bote as y bad thouht tho / to be mene betwene
And potte forth som purpos / to prouen his wittes
What was dowel fro dobet / and dobest fro hem bothe
¶ Thenne thouht in þat tyme / sayde this wordes
Whare dowel and dobet / And dobest ben in londe
Here is oen wolde y-wyte / yf wit couthe teche
And what lyues they lyue / and what lawe þei vsen
And what þey drede and doute / dere sire telleth
Sire dowel dwelleth quod wit / nat a day hennes
In a C{...}astel þat kynde made / of foure kyne thynges
Of erthe and ayer is hit maed / ymedled to-gyderes
With wynd and with water / wittyly enioyned
Alemman / A lemman þat he louyeth / ylyke to hym-sulue
Anima she hatte /to here hath enuye
A proued prikeare of fraunce / princeps huius mundi
And wole wynne here awaye / with wyles and LX he myhte
And kynde knoweth this wel / and kepeth here þe betere
And hath do here with sire dowel / duk of this marches
dobet is here damysele sire doweles douhtur
dobest is aboue bothe / a bishopis pere
And by his leryng is lad / þat ilke lady Anima
Ac þe constable of þat Castel / þat kepeth hem alle
Is a wise knyhte with-alle / sire inwit he hatte
And hath fyue fayre sones / by his furste wyue
Sire se wel and sey wel / sire here wel þe ende
Sire worch wel with thyn hand / a wyht man of strenghe
And sire goed fayth go wel / grete lordes alle
Thise fyue ben sette / for to saue Anima
Til kynde come o{þ}r sende / and kepe here hym-sulue
What kynne thyng is kynde quod y / canst thow me telle
Kynde is creatour quod wit / of two kyne thynges
Fader and formour of al þat / forth groweth
The which is god grettest / bygynnynge hadde he neuere
Lord of lyf and of lyht / of lisse and of payne
Angeles and alle thyng /aren at his wille
Man is hym most lyk / of membres and of face
And semblable in soule to god / but if synne hit make
And as thow seest the sonne / sumtyme for cloudes
May nat shyne ne shewe / on schalkes on erthe
So let lecherye and other luther synnes
That god sheweth T nat suche synnefole men / and soffreth hem mysfare
And somme hangeth hem-sulue / and oþerwhile a-drencheth
God wol nat of hem wyte / bute lat hem y-worthe
As þe sauter sayth / by synnefole shrewes
¶ Et dimisi eos secundum desideria eorum
Such lyther lyuyng men in lome been ryche
Of gold and of oþer goed / at goddes grace hem fayleth
For they louyeth and by-lyueth / al here lyf-tyme
On catel more then on kynde / that alle kyne thynges wrouhte
The which is loue and lyf / þat last with-outen ende
Inwit and alle wittes / closed ben þer-ynne
By loue and by leute / þerby lyueth anima
And lyf lyueth by inwit / and leryng of kynde
Inwit is in the heued / and anima in herte
¶ C And moche wo worth hym / þat inwit myspeneth
For þat is goddes oune goed / his grace and his tresour
That many a lede leseth / thorw lykerous drynke
As lote dede and Noe / and herodes þe daffe
Ȝaf his douhter for adaunsynge / a daunsynge / in a disch þe heued
Of þat blessed baptist / bifore alle his gestes
Euery man þat hath inwit / and his hele bothe
Hath tresor ynow of treuthe / to fynden hym-sulue
Ac fauntokynes and foles / þe which þat fauten inwit
Frendes shal fynde hem / and fram folye kepe
Ne spille speche ne tyme / ne myspende noyther
Meble ne vnmeble / mete noþer drynke
Ac thenne dede we alle wel / and wel bet ȝut to louye
Oure enemyes enterely / and helpe hem at here nede
And ȝut were best to ben aboute / and brynge hit to hepe
That alle landes loueden / and in on lawe bileuede
Bishope sholde ben here aboute / and bryng this to hepe
For to lese þerfore her lond / and her lyf aftur
The catel that Crist hadde thre clothes hit were
And seth al his lyf / for lawe sholde loue wexe
Prelates and prestes / and princes of holychurche / holy churche
Sholde nat doute no deth / ne no dere ȝeres
To wende as wyde / as þe worlde were
To tulie þe erthe with tonge / and teche men to louye
For ho-so loueth leueth hym wel / god wol nat laton hym sterue
In meschief for defaute of mete / ne for myssyng of clothes
¶ Inquirentes autem dominum non minuentur omni bono
Ho-so lyueth in lawe / and in loue doth wel
As this wedded men / þat this world susteyneth
For of here kynde þey come bothe confessours and martres
prophetus and patriarkes / popes and maydenes
For god saith hym-sulue / shal neuere goed appel
Thorw no sotil sciense / {a} on sour stok growe
And is no more to mene / but men þat ben bygeten
Out of matrimonye nat moyloure / mowen nat haue þe grace
That lele legityme · by þe lawe may claymen
And þat my sawe is soth / þe sauter bereth witnesse
¶ Concepit in dolore & peperit iniquitatem
Caym þe corsede creature / conseyued was in synne
Aftur þat Adam and Eue / hadden y-syneged
With-outen repentaunce of here rechelesnesse arybaud / a rybaud þei engendrede
On a leye land aȝeynes his lordes wille
So was Caym conseyued / and so ben corsed wreches
Þat lycame haen aȝen þe lawe / þat oure lord ordeynede
Alle þat come of Caym · Caytyue were euere
And for þe synne of Caymes seed / sayede god to Noe
¶ Penitet me fecisse hominem
And bad go shapen aship / a ship / of shides and bordes
thy-sulue and thy sones thre / / C and sethen ȝoure wyues
Boske ȝow to þat boet / and abideth þerynne
Til fourty be fulfild / and floed haue y-wasche
Clene a-wey þe corsed bloed / þat of Caym spronge
Bestes þat now beth shal banne þe tyme
That euere þat corsed Caym / cam on þis erthe
Alle sholle deye for his dedes / by dales and by hulles
Excepte onliche of vch akynde / a kynde apayre / a payre
That in thi chingled ship / shal be with þe y-saued
Here aboute þe barn / the belsires gultes
And al for here forfadres / ferden þe worse
The gospel is here-agayn / as gomes may rede
Filius non portabit iniquitatem patris & cetera
Holy writ witnesseth / þat for no wikkede dede
That þe sire by hym-sulue doth þe sone sholde be þe worse
Ac westmustre law y wo{.d}et wel / worcheth þe contraye / contra[r]ye
For thogh þe fader be afrankeleyn / a frankeleyn / and for afelon / a felon be hanged
The eritage þat þe eyer sholde haue / is at þe kynges wille
Ac þe gospel is a glose ther / and huydeth þe grayth treuthe
For god seid ensaumple / of suche manere issue
That kynde folweth kynde / and contrarieth neuere
Bonus / Bon[a] Arbor bonum fructum facit
Ac why þe world was a-dreynt / holy writ telleth
Was for mariages makynge / þat men made þat tyme C
Aftur þat Caym þat corsed / hadde ykuld abel
And god sente to seth / so sone he was of age
That for no kyne catel / ne no kyne byheste
Soffre his seed seden {hit} with Caymes seed his brother
And seth for he soffred hit / god sayde me forthynketh
Þat y man made / or matrimonye soffrede
For goode sholde wedde goode / thouh they no goode ne hadde
For y am via & veritas / and may a-vauncen alle
Ac fewe folke now folweth this / for thei ȝeue her childurne
For coueytise of catel / and connynge chapmen
Of kyn ne of kynrede / counteth men bote litel
And thogh he be louelich to loken on / and lossum abedde
A mayde and wel y-maried / and of gode men y-spronge
bote he haue oþer goed / haue wol here no ryche
Ac lat hem be vnlouely / and vnlofsum abedde
A bastard a bond oen abegeneldes / a begeneldes douhter
That no cortesye ne can / bute late here be knowe
For riche or y-rented wel / thouh he be reueled for elde
Ther ne is squier ne knyhte / in contreye a-boute
That he ne wol bowe to þat bonde / to beden here an hosebonde
And wedden here for here welthe / and weschen on þe morwe
That his wyf were wexe / or a walet ful of nobles
In ielosye ioyles / and iangelynge abedde
Many a payre sethe this pestelenses / han plyhte treuthe to louye
Ac they lyen leix LX / here neyther lyketh other
The fruyt þat they brynge forth / aren many foule wordes
Haen þei no childerne bute cheste / and shoppes hem bitwene
Thogh they hem to donemowe / bote þe deuel hem helpe
To folwe for þe flicche / feccheth they hit neuere
Bote they bothe be for-swore / þat bacon þei tyne
For-thy y conseyle alle cristene / coueyte neuere be wedded
For no coueytise of catel / in none kyne wyse
bote maydones and maydones marie ȝow to-gyderes
And wedewe and wedewares / weddeth ȝow ayþer oþer
And loke þat loue be more þe cause / then lond oþer nobles
And euery maner seculer man / þat may nat contynue
Wisely go wedde / and war þe fro þat synne
That lecherye is a lykyng thynge / a lymȝerd of helle
And whil þou art ȝong an ȝep / and thy wepene kene
A-wrek the þerwith on wyfyng / for godes werk y holde hit
¶ dum sis vir fortis / ne des tua robora scortis
Scribitur in portis / meretrix est ianua mortis
And ȝe þat han wyues ben war / and worcheth nat out of tyme
As Adam dede and Eue / as y whil er ȝow tolde
For sholde no bed-bourde be / bote yf they bothe were
Clene of lyf and in loue of soule / and in lele wedlok
For þat dede derne do no man sholde
Bote wyues and wedded men / as holy writ techeth
That oþer-gatus ben gete · for gadelynges ben holden
And fals folk and fondlynges · faytors and lyares
Vngracious to gete goed / or gete loue of peple
A-wayten and wasten / alle þat they cacche mowe
Aȝen dowel they do yuele / and þe deuel serue
And after her deth-day / dwellen schollen in helle
Bote god ȝeue hem grace / here doynge here to amende
And thus is dowel my frende / to do as lawe techeth
To louye and to loue the / and no lyf to greue
Ac to louye and to loue P / leef me þat is dobet
Ac to ȝeue and to ȝeme / bothe ȝonge and olde
Helen and helpen is dobest of alle
The more he is worthy · and worth of wyse and of goed ypresed
passus
de
passus
de
passus
notate hic aliqui
de
passus
de
passus
// Hyer will
soȝte dowel
& mette wyt
· ij · freris
soȝte dowel
& mette wyt
· ij · freris
corrigitur C
1us
// lo what a frere sayde
of do-wel
of do-wel
// nota how þe ryȝt-wise
falleþ vij syþis in
þe day & ȝit standith
stifly
falleþ vij syþis in
þe day & ȝit standith
stifly
dowel
// hyere departid will
& þe freres
& þe freres
// hyer wille wyt Þoȝt LX
· 1us ·
dowel
// Hyere spekyþ wit
· 1us ·
dowel
· 1us ·
do-wel
versus C
1us