And thus for thei hemself divide And stonden out of reule unevene, Of Alemaine Princes sevene Thei chose in this condicioun, That upon here eleccioun Thempire of Rome scholde stonde. And thus thei lefte it out of honde For lacke of grace, and it forsoke, That Alemans upon hem toke: 810 And to confermen here astat, Of that thei founden in debat Thei token the possessioun After the composicioun Among hemself, and therupon Thei made an Emperour anon, Whos name as the Cronique telleth Was Othes; and so forth it duelleth, Fro thilke day yit unto this Thempire of Rome hath ben and is 820 To thalemans. And in this wise, As ye tofore have herd divise How Daniel the swevene expondeth Of that ymage, on whom he foundeth The world which after scholde falle, Come is the laste tokne of alle; Upon the feet of Erthe and Stiel So stant this world now everydiel Departed; which began riht tho, Whan Rome was divided so: 830 And that is forto rewe sore, For alway siththe more and more The world empeireth every day. Wherof the sothe schewe may, At Rome ferst if we beginne: The wall and al the Cit withinne Stant in ruine and in decas, The feld is wher the Paleis was, The toun is wast; and overthat, If we beholde thilke astat 840 Which whilom was of the Romeins, Of knyhthode and of Citezeins, To peise now with that beforn, The chaf is take for the corn, As forto speke of Romes myht: Unethes stant ther oght upryht Of worschipe or of worldes good, As it before tyme stod. And why the worschipe is aweie, If that a man the sothe seie, 850 The cause hath ben divisioun, Which moder of confusioun Is wher sche cometh overal, Noght only of the temporal Bot of the spirital also. The dede proeveth it is so, And hath do many day er this, Thurgh venym which that medled is In holy cherche of erthly thing: For Crist himself makth knowleching 860 That noman may togedre serve God and the world, bot if he swerve Froward that on and stonde unstable; And Cristes word may noght be fable. The thing so open is at ije, It nedeth noght to specefie Or speke oght more in this matiere; Bot in this wise a man mai lere Hou that the world is gon aboute, The which welnyh is wered oute, 870 After the forme of that figure Which Daniel in his scripture Expondeth, as tofore is told. Of Bras, of Selver and of Gold The world is passed and agon, And now upon his olde ton It stant of brutel Erthe and Stiel, The whiche acorden nevere a diel; So mot it nedes swerve aside As thing the which men sen divide. 880