PART I.

A sternë stryf is stered newe In many stedes in a stounde, Of sondry sedes that ben sewe; 55 It semeth that som ben unsounde. For some be gretë growen +on grounde, Some ben souple, simple and small; Whether of hem is falser founde, The falser, foul mote him befall! 60

That oon syde is, that I of tell, Popes, cardinals, and prelates, Parsons, monkes, and freres fell, Priours, abbottes of grete estates; Of heven and hell they kepe the yates, 65 And Peters successours they ben all; This is demed by oldë dates; But falshed, foul mote it befall!

The other syde ben poore and pale, And people put [al] out of prees; 70 And semë caytifs sore a-cale, And ever in oon without encrees, +I-cleped lollers and londlees; Who toteth on hem, they been untall. They ben arayed all for the pees; 75 But falshed, foul mote it befall!

Many a countrey have I sought, To know the falser of these two; But ever my travail was for nought, All so fer as I have go. 80 But as I wandred in a wro, In a wode besyde a wall, Two foules saw I sitte tho; The falser, foul mote him befall!

That oon did plede on the Popes syde, 85 A Griffon of a grim stature. A Pellicane withouten pryde To these lollers layde his lure; He mused his matter in mesure, To counsayl Christ ever gan he call. 90 The Griffon shewed as sharp as fyre, But falshed, foul mote it befall!

The Pellican began to preche Both of mercy and of mekeness; And sayd, that "Christ so gan us teche, 95 And meke and merciable gan bless. The Evangely bereth witness A lamb, he lykneth Christ over-all, In tokening that he mekest was, Sith pryde was out of heven fall. 100

And so shulde every Christned be; Preestes, Peters successours, Beth lowlich and of low degree, And usen none erthly honours, Neyther crown, ne curious cove[r]tours, 105 Ne +pelure, ne other proudë pall; Ne nought to cofren up greet tresours; For falshed, foul mote it befall!

Preest[e]s shuld for no cattel plede, But chasten hem in charitè; 110 Ne to no batail shuld men lede For inhaunsing of hir own degree; Nat wilnë sittings in hy see, Ne soverayntè in hous ne hall; All worldly worship defye and flee; 115 For who willeth highnes, foul shal fall!

Alas! who may such sayntes call That wilneth welde erthly honour? As lowe as Lucifer such shal fall, In baleful blacknesse y-builde hir bour; 120 That eggeth the people to errour, And maketh hem to hem [be] thrall; To Christ I hold suche oon traytour, As lowe as Lucifer such shal fall.

That willeth to be kinges peres, 125 And hygher than the emperour; Some that were but pore freres Now wollen waxe a warryour. God is nat hir governour, That holdeth no man his +peragall; 130 Whyl covetyse is hir counsaylour, All such falshed mot nedë fall.

That hye on horse willeth ryde In glitterand golde of grete aray, I-paynted and portred all in pryde; 135 No commun knight may go so gay. Chaunge of clothing every day, With golden girdles grete and small; As boystous as is bere at bay; All such falshed mot nedë fall. 140

With prydë +punysheth the pore, And somë they sustayn with sale; Of holy churche maketh an hore, And filleth hir wombe with wyne and ale; With money filleth many a male, 145 And chaffren churches when they fall, And telleth the people a lewed tale; Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall!

With chaunge of many maner metes, With song and solace sitting long, 150 And filleth hir wombë, and fast fretes, And from the metë to the gong; And after mete with harp and song, And ech man mot hem lordes call; And hotë spyces ever among; 155 Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall!

And myters mo than oon or two, I-perled as the quenes heed; A staf of golde, and +perrey, lo! As hevy as it were mad of leed; 160 With cloth of gold both newe and reed, With glitterand +gown as grene as gall, By dome will dampnë men to deed; All suche faytours, foul hem fall!

And Christes people proudly curse 165 With brode bokes, and braying bell; To putte pennyes in hir purse They woll sell both heven and hell; And in hir sentence, and thou wilt dwell, They willen gesse in hir gay hall; 170 And though the soth thou of hem tell, In greet cursinge shalt thou fall.

That is blessed, that they blesse, And cursed, that they cursë woll; And thus the people they oppresse, 175 And have their lordshippes at full; And many be marchauntes of woll, And to purse penyes woll come thrall; The porë people they all to-pull, Such falsë faytours, foul hem fall! 180

Lordes motë to hem loute, Obeysaunt to hir brode blessing; They ryden with hir royall route On a courser, as it were a king; With saddle of golde glitt[e]ring 185 With curious harneys quayntly crallit, Styroppes gaye of gold-mastling; All suche falshed, foul befall it!

Christes ministers +cleped they been, And rulen all in robberye; 190 But Antichrist they serven clene, Attyred all in tyrannye; Witnesse of Johns prophecye, That Antichrist is hir admirall, Tiffelers attyred in trecherye; 195 All suche faytours, foul hem fall!

Who sayth, that some of hem may sinne, He shal be +demed to be deed; Some of hem woll gladly winne All ayenst that which god forbed; 200 "All-holyest" they clepen hir heed, That of hir rulë is regall; Alas! that ever they eten breed; For all such falshed woll foul fall.

Hir heed loveth all honour, 205 And to be worshipped in worde and dede; Kinges mot to hem knele and coure; To the apostles, that Christ forbede; To popes hestes such taketh more hede Than to kepe Christes commaundëment; 210 Of gold and silver mot ben hir wede, They holdeth him hole omnipotent.

He ordayneth by his ordinaunce To parish-preestes a powére; To another a greter avaunce, 215 A greter poynt to his mystere; But for he is hyghest in erth here, To him reserveth he many a poynt; But to Christ, that hath no pere, Reserveth he neither opin ne joynt. 220

So semeth he above[n] all, And Christ aboven him nothing; Whan he sitteth in his stall, Dampneth and saveth as him think. Such pryde tofore god doth stink; 225 An angell bad John to him nat knele, But only to god do his bowing; Such willers of worship must evil fele.

They ne clepen Christ but _sanctus deus_, And clepen her heed _Sanctissimus_; 230 They that such a sect[ë] sewis, I trowe, they taken hem amisse. In erth[ë] here they have hir blisse, Hir hye master is Belial; +Christ his people from hem wisse! 235 For all such falsë will foul fall!

They mowë both[ë] binde and lose, And all is for hir holy lyf; To save or dampne they mowë chose, Betwene hem now [ther] is gret stryf. 240 Many a man is killed with knyf, To wete which of hem have lordship shall; For such, Christ suffred woundes fyve; For all such falshed will foul fall.

Christ sayd: _Qui gladio percutit_ 245 With swerdë shall [he surely] dye; He bad his preestes pees and grith, And bad hem not drede for to dye; And bad them be both simple and slye, And carkë not for no cattall, 250 And +truste on god that sitteth on hye; For all [such] falsë shull foul fall.

These wollen makë men to swere Ayenst Christes commaundëment; And Christes membres all to-tere 255 On rode as he wer newe y-rent. Suche lawes they make by commun assent, Ech on it choweth as a ball; Thus the pore be fully shent, But ever falshed foule it +fall! 260

They usen [never] no symonye, But sellen churches and prioryes; Ne [yet] they usen no envye, But cursen all hem contraryes; And hyreth men by dayes and yeres 265 With strength to holde hem in hir stall; And culleth all hir adversaryes; Therefor, falshed! foul thou fall!

With purse they purchase personage, With purse they paynen hem to plede; 270 And men of warrë they woll wage, To bringe hir enemyes to the dede. And lordes lyves they woll lede, And moche take, and give but small; But he it so get, from it shall shede, 275 And make such falsë right foul fal!

They halowe nothing but for hyre, Churchë, font, ne vestëment; And make[n] orders in every shyre, But preestes paye for the parchement; 280 Of ryatours they taken rent, Therwith they smere the shepes skall; For many churches ben oft suspent; All such falshed, yet foul it fall!

Some liveth nat in lecherye, 285 But haunten wenches, widdowes, and wyves, And punisheth the pore for putrye; Them-selfe it useth all their lyves. And but a man to them [him] shryves, To heven comë never he shall; 290 He shal be cursed as be captyves, To hell they sayn that he shall fall.

There was more mercy in Maximien, And in Nero, that never was good, Than [there] is now in some of +hem 295 Whan he hath on his furred hood. They folowe Christ that shedde his blood To heven, as bucket in-to the wall; Suche wreches ben worse than wood; And all such faytours, foule hem fall! 300

They give hir almesse to the riche, To maynteynours, and to men of lawe; For to lordes they woll be liche, An harlottes sone nat worth an hawe! Sothfastnessë suche han slawe, 305 They kembe hir crokets with cristall; And drede of god they have down drawe; All suche faytours, foul hem fall!

They maken parsons for the penny, And canons of hir cardinals; 310 Unnethes amongest hem all any That he ne hath glosed the gospell fals! For Christ made never no cathedrals, Ne with him was no cardinall Wyth a reed hatte as usen mynstrals; 315 But falshed, foul mote it befall!

+Hir tything, and hir offring both, They cle[y]meth it by possessio[u]n; Thérof nill they none forgo, But robben men as [by] raunsoun. 320 The tything of _Turpe lucrum_ With these maisters is meynall; Tything of bribry and larson Will makë falshed full foul fall!

They taken to fermë hir sompnours 325 To harme the people what they may; To pardoners and false faytours Sell hir seles, I dar well say; And all to holden greet array, To multiply hem more metall, 330 They drede full litell domes day Whan all such [falsë] shall foul fall.

Suche harlottes shull men disclaunder For they shullen make hir gree, And ben as proude as Alexaunder, 335 And sayn to the pore, "wo be ye!" By yere ech preest shall paye his fee To encrese his lemmans call; Suche herdes shull well yvell thee, And all such falsë shull foul fall! 340

And if a man be falsly famed, And woldë make purgacioun, Than woll the officers be agramed, And assigne him fro town to town; So nede he must[e] paye raunsoun 345 Though he be clene as is cristall, And than have an absolutioun; But all such falsë shull foul fall!

Though he be gilty of the dede, And that he [yet] may money pay, 350 All the whyle his purse woll blede He may use it fro day to day! These bishoppes officers goon full gay, And this game they usen over-all; The pore to pill is all +hir pray; 355 All such falsë shull foul fall!

Alas! god ordayned never such lawe, Ne no such craft of covetyse; He forbad it, by his sawe, Such governours mowen of god agryse; 360 For all his rules +ben rightwyse. These newe poyntes ben pure papall, And goddes lawë they dispyse; And all such faytours shul foul fall!

They sayn that Peter had the key 365 Of hevin and hell, to have and hold; I trowe Peter took no money For no sinnes that he sold! Such successours ben to bold, In winning all their wit they wrall; 370 Hir conscience is waxen cold; And all such faytours, foule hem fall!

Peter was never so great a fole To leve his key with such a lorell, Or to take such cursed such a tole 375 He was advysed nothing well. I trowe, they have the key of hell; +Hir maister is of that place marshall; For there they dressen hem to dwell, And with fals Lucifer there to fall. 380

They ben as proude as Lucifer, As angry, and as envious; From good fayth they ben full fer, In covetyse they ben curious; To catche catell as covytous 385 As hound, that for hunger woll yall; Ungoodly, and ungracious; And nedely, such falshed shal foul fall!

The pope, and he were Peters heyr, Me think, he erreth in this cas, 390 Whan choyse of bishoppes is in dispeyr, To chosen hem in dyvers place; A lord shall write to him for grace, For his clerke +pray anon he shall; So shall he spede[n] his purchas; 395 And all such falsë, foule hem fall!

Though he +conne no more good, A lordes prayer shal be sped; Though he be wild of will or wood, Nat understanding what men han red, 400 A boster, and (that god forbede!) As good a bishop +as my hors Ball, Suche a pope is foule be-sted, And at [the] lastë woll foul fall!

He maketh bishops for erthly thank, 405 And nothing for Christes sake; Such that ben ful fatte and rank, To soulë hele non hede they take. Al is well don what ever they make, For they shal answere at +ones for all; 410 For worldes thank, such worch and wake, And all such falsë shall foul fall!

Suche that +connë nat hir Crede With prayer shull be mad prelates; Nother +conne the gospell rede, 415 Such shull now welde hye estates. The hye goodes frendship hem makes, They toteth on hir somme totall; Such bere the keyes of hell-yates, And all such falsë shall foul fall. 420

They forsake, for Christes love, Traveyl, hunger, thurst, and cold; For they ben ordred ever all above Out of youthe til they ben old. By the dore they go nat in-to the fold, 425 To helpe +hir sheep they nought travall; Hyred men all suche I holde, And all such falsë, foule hem fall!

For Christ hir king they woll forsake, And knowe him nought for his povert; 430 For Christes lovë they woll wake, And drink pyment [and] ale apart. Of god they seme nothing a-ferd; As lusty liveth, as Lamuall, And dryve hir sheep into desert; 435 All such faytours shull foul fall!

Christ hath twelve apostels here; Now say they, ther may be but oon, That may nat erre in no manere; Who leveth nat this, ben lost echoon! 440 Peter erred, so dide nat John; Why is he cleped the principall? Christ cleped him Peter, but himself the stoon; All falsë faytours, foule hem fall!

Why cursen they the croysery, 445 Christes Christen crëatures? For bytwene hem is now envy To be enhaunsed in honours. And Christen livers, with hir labours, For they leve on no man mortall, 450 +Ben do to dethe with dishonours; And all such falsë, foule hem fall!

What knoweth a tillour at the plow The popes name, and what he hat? His crede suffyseth him y-now, 455 And knoweth a cardinall by his hat. Rough is the pore, unrightly lat, That knoweth Christ his god royall; Such maters be nat worth a gnat; But such false faytours, foule hem fall! 460

A king shall knele and kisse his sho; Christ suffred a sinfull kisse his feet. Me thinketh, he holdeth him hye y-now, So Lucifer did, that hye +seet. Such oon, me thinketh, him-self foryet, 465 Either to the trouth he was nat call; Christ, that suffred woundes wet, Shall makë such falshed foul fall!

They layeth out hir largë nettes For to take silver and gold, 470 Fillen coffers, and sackes fettes, There-as they soules cacche shold. Hir servaunts be to +hem unhold, But they can doublin +hir rentall To bigge hem castels, and bigge hem hold; 475 And all such falsë, foule hem fall!

HERE ENDETH THE FIRST PART OF THIS TALE, AND HERAFTER FOLOWETH THE SECONDE PART.