And wiste noght how forto ryse; Wherof in many a sondri wyse He caste his wittes hier and ther, He loketh nyh, he loketh fer, Til on a time that he com Into the temple, and hiede he nom[609] 7140* Wher that the god Apollo stod. He sih the richesse and the good, And thoghte he wolde be som weie The tresor pyke and stele aweie; And therupon so slyhly wroghte, That his pourpos aboute he broghte, And wente awey unaparceived. Thus hath the man his god deceived,[610] His ryng, his mantell and his beerd, As he which nothing was a feerd,[611] 7150* Al prively with him he bar: And whan the wardeins weren war Of that here god despuiled was, Hem thoghte it was a wonder cas, How that a man for eny wele Durste in so holy place stele,[612] And namely so gret a thing.[613] This tale cam unto the king, [Sidenote: =P. ii. 368=] And was thurgh spoken overal: Bot forto knowe in special 7160* What maner man hath do the dede, Thei soghten help upon the nede And maden calculacioun, Wherof be demonstracioun The man was founde with the good. In juggement and whan he stood, The king hath axed of him thus: ‘Sey, thou unsely Lucius, Whi hast thou do this sacrilegge?’ ‘Mi lord, if I the cause allegge,’ 7170* Quod he ayein, ‘me thenketh this, That I have do nothing amis. Thre pointz ther ben whiche I have do, Wherof the ferste point stant so, That I the ryng have take aweie. As unto that this wole I seie:[614] Whan I the god behield aboute, I sih how he his hond strawhte oute And profred me the ryng to yive; And I, which wolde gladly live 7180* Out of poverte of his largesse,[615] It underfing, so that I gesse, As therof I am noght to wyte.[616] And overmore I wol me quite, Of gold that I the mantell tok: Gold in his kinde, as seith the bok, Is hevy bothe and cold also; And for that it was hevy so, [Sidenote: =P. ii. 369=] Me thoghte it was no garnement Unto the god convenient, 7190* To clothen him the somer tide; I thoghte upon that other side How gold is cold, and such a cloth Be resoun oghte to be loth In wynter time for the chele. And thus thenkende thoghtes fele, As I myn yhe aboute caste, His large beerd thanne ate laste I syh, and thoghte anon therfore How that his fader him before, 7200* Which stod upon the same place, Was beerdles with a yongly face: And in such wise as ye have herd I tok awey the Sones berd,[617] For that his fader hadde non, To make hem liche, and hier upon I axe forto ben excused.’ Lo thus, wher Sacrilegge is used, A man can feigne his conscience;