The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 1

Name: The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 1
Author: Langland, William

Langland, William

Christian pilgrims and pilgrimages -- Poetry

Ac thanne swoor Symonye,                              1220
  And Cyvylle bothe,
  That somonours sholde be sadeled
  And serven hem echone,
  And late apparaille thise provisours
  In palfreyes wise,
  Sire Symonye hymself
  Shal sitte upon hir bakkes.

    "Denes and southdenes,
  Drawe yow togideres,
  Erchdekenes and officials,                              1230
  And alle youre registrers,
  Lat sadle hem with silver
  Oure synne to suffre,
  As avoutrye and divorses,
  And derne usurie,
  To bere bisshopes aboute
  A-brood in visitynge.

    "Paulynes pryvees
  For pleintes in consistorie,
  Shul serven myself                                      1240
  That Cyvyle is nempned.

    "And cart-sadle the commissarie,
  Oure cart shal he lede,
  {39}
  And fecchen us vitailles.
  At _Fornicatores_.
  And maketh of Lyere a lang cart
  To leden alle thise othere,
  As freres and faitours,
  That on hire feet rennen."

    And thus Fals and Favel                               1250
  Fareth forth togideres,
  And Mede in the middes,
  And alle thise men after.

    I have no tome to telle
  The tail that hire folwed;
  Ac Gyle was for-goer,
  And gyed hem alle.

    Sothnesse seigh hem wel,
  And seide but litel,
  And priked his palfrey,                                 1260
  And passed hem alle,
  And com to the kynges court,
  And Conscience it tolde;
  And Conscience to the kyng
  Carped it after.

    "Now, by Crist," quod the kyng,
  "And I cacche myghte
  Fals or Favel,
  Or any of hise feeris,
  I wolde be wroken of tho wrecches                       1270
  That wercheth so ille,
  And doon hem hange by the hals,
  And alle that hem maynteneth;
  Shal nevere man of this molde
  Meynprise the leeste,
  But right as the lawe wol loke,
  Lat falle on hem alle."
  {40}

    And comaunded a constable
  That com at the firste,
  To attachen tho tyrauntz,                               1280
  "For any thyng I hote,
  And fettreth faste Falsnesse,
  For any kynnes giftes,
  And girdeth of Gyles heed,
  And lat hym go no ferther;
  And if ye lacche Lyere,
  Lat hym noght ascapen
  Er he be put on the pillory,
  For any preyere, I hote;
  And bryngeth Mede to me                                 1290
  Maugree hem alle."

    Drede at the dore stood,
  And the doom herde,
  And how the kyng comaunded
  Constables and sergeauntz
  Falsnesse and his felawshipe
  To fettren and to bynden.

    Thanne Drede wente wyghtliche,
  And warned the False,
  And bad hym fle for fere,                               1300
  And hise felawes alle.

    Falsnesse for fere thanne
  Fleigh to the ffreres,
  And Gyle dooth hym to go,
  A-gast for to dye;
  Ac marchauntz metten with hym
  And made hym abide,
  And bi-shetten hym in hire shoppes
  To shewen hire ware,
  Apparailed hym as apprentice                            1310
  The peple to serve.
  {41}

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 1

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