§ 21. It is needless to discuss the possibility that Chaucer wrote this Tale, as it is absent from all the MSS.; and it does not appear that the ascription of it to him was taken seriously. It is obvious, from the introductory Prologue (p. 147), that the author never intended his work to be taken for Chaucer's; he purposely chooses a different metre from any that occurs in the Canterbury Tales, and he introduces his Ploughman as coming under the Host's notice quite suddenly, so that the Host is constrained to ask him--'what man art thou?' The whole manner of the Tale is conspicuously and intentionally different from that of Chaucer; and almost the only expression which at all resembles Chaucer occurs in ll. 51, 52:-- 'I pray you that no man me reproche Whyl that I am my tale telling.' Chaucer himself, before reciting his Tale of Melibeus, said much the same thing:-- 'And let me tellen al my tale, I preye.' I do not know why Mr. Wright, when reprinting this piece, omitted the Prologue. It is a pity that half of the sixth stanza is missing. § 22. At l. 1065 we meet with a most important statement:-- 'Of freres I have told before In a making of a Crede.' It is generally agreed that the author here claims to have previously written the well-known piece entitled Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, which I edited for the Early English Text Society in 1867. I then took occasion to compare the language of these two pieces (which I shall shortly call the Crede and the Tale), and I found ample confirmation, from internal evidence, that the claim is certainly true. There are many similarities of expression, some of which I here lay before the reader. FROM THE CREDE. FROM THE TALE. Curteis Crist (1, 140). curteys Christ (482). cutted cote (434). cutted clothes (929). y can noh[gh]t my Crede (8). Suche that conne nat hir Crede (413). At marketts and myracles, we Market-beters, and medling make medleth us nevere (107). (871). For we buldeth a burw[gh], a brod And builde als brode as a citè and a large (118). (743). portreid and peint (121). I-paynted and portred (135). peynt and portred (192). y sey coveitise catel to fongen To catche catell as covytous (385; (146). cf. 856). Of double worstede y-dy[gh]t (228). With double worsted well y-dight (1002). Than ther lefte in Lucifer, er he As lowe as Lucifer such shall fall were lowe fallen (374). (124). opon the plow hongen (421). honged at the plow (1042). povere in gost God him-self The pore in spirit gan Christ blisseth (521). blesse (915).