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.