"Now ladie" (quod I)" that tree to sette faine would I learne."-"So thou shalte" (quod she) ere thou departe hence. The firste thynge thou must set thy werke on ground siker and good, accordaunte to thy springes. For if thou desire grapes thou goest not to the hasell, ne for to fetchen roses, thou sekest not on okes: and if thou shalt haue honie soukels, thou leauest the fruict of the soure docke. Wherfore if thou desire this blisse in parfite ioye, thou must set thy purpose ther vertue foloweth, and not to loke after the bodily goodes, as I saied whan thou were writyng in thy seconde booke. And for thou hast set thy self in so noble a place, and vtterly lowed in thine herte, the misgoyng of thy firste purpose, this setteles is the easier to spring, and the more lighter thy soule in grace to bee lissed. And truely thy desire, that is to saie, thy will, algates mote been sted fast in this matter, without any chaunging, for if it be sted faste, no man maie it voide"-" Yes parde" (quod I) " my will maie been tourned by frendes, and disease of manace, and threatning in lesing of my life, and of my limmes, and in many other wise, that now cometh not to minde. And also it mote ofte been out of thought, for no remembraunce maie hold one thyng continuelly in herte, bee it neuer so lustie desired."- "Nowe see" (quod she) "thou thy will shall followe, thy frewill to bee grounded, continuelly to abide: it is thy frewill that thou louest and haste loued, and yet shalt louen this Margarite perle, and in thy wil thou thinkeste to holde it. Than is thy will knitte in loue, not to chaunge for no newe luste beside: this will teacheth thyne herte, from all maner variyng. But than althoughe thou be threatened in death, or els in otherwise, yet is it in thin arbitrement to chose, thy loue to voide, or els to holde: and thilke arbitremente is in a maner a iudgemente, bitwene desire and thy herte. And if thou deme to loue, thy good wil faileth, than art thou worthy no blisse, that good will shuld deserue: and if thou chosc continuaunce in thy good seruice, than thy will abideth, nedes blisse folowyng of thy good will, muste come by strengthe of thilke iudgement: for thy firste will that naught thine herte to abide: and halt it from theschange, with thy reason is accorded. Truly this maner of will thus shall abide, impossible it were, to turne if thy herte be true, and if cuery man be diligently, the meanynges of his will consider, he shall well vnderstande, that good will knit with reason, but in a false herte neuer is voided: for power and might of keping this good wil, is through libertie of arbitrement in herte, but good wil to kepe maie not faile. Eke than if it faile, it sheweth it self, that good will in keping is not there. And thus false will that putteth out the good, anone constraineth the herte, to accorde in louyng of thy good will, and this accordaunce bitwene false wille and thyne herte, in falsitie been likened togither. Yet a little woll I saie thee, in good wille, thy good willes to raise and strength. Take hede to me" (quod she) "howe thy willes thou shalte vnderstande. Right as ye han in your bodie diuers members, and fiue sondrie wittes, eueriche aparte to his owne doyng, whiche thynges as instrumentes ye vsen, as your handes apart to handle, feete to goe, tongue to speake, iye to see: right so the soule, hath in hym certaine sterynges and strengthes, whiche he vseth as instrumentes, to his certain doynges. Reason

is in the soule, whiche he vseth thinges to knowe and to proue, and will, whiche he vseth to wilne: And yet is neither wille ne reason all the soule, but eueriche of hem is a thing by hymself in the soule. And right as euerich bath thus singuler instrumentes by hem self, thei han as well diuers aptes, and diuers maner vsynges, and thilk aptes mowen in will been cleped affeccions. Affeccion is an instrument of willyng in his apetites. Wherefore mokell folke saine, if a reasonable creatures soule, any thing feruently wilneth, affectuously he wilneth, and thus maie wille by terme of equiuocas, in three waies been vnderstande: one is instrument of willyng, an other is affeccion of this instrument: and the third is vse, that setteth it a werke. Instrumente of willing is the ilke strength of the soul, which thee constraineth to wiln, right as reason is instrument of reasons, which ye vsen whan' ye loken. Affeccion of this instrument is a thing, by whiche ye be drawe desirously any thing, to wilne in coueitous maner, all bee it for the time out of your mind: as if it come in your thought thilk thing to remember, anon ye been willing thilke to doen, or els to haue. And thus is instrument will, and affeccion is will also, to wilne thing as I saied: as for to wilne helth, whan will nothyng theron thinketh for anone as it cometh to memorie, it is in wil, and so is affeccion to wiln slepe, whan it is out of minde, but anon as it is remembred wil wilneth slepe, whan his time cometh of the doing. For affeccion of wil, neuer accordeth to sicknesse, ne alwaie to wake. Right so in a true louers affeccion of willing instrument, is to wilne truthe in his seruice, and this affeccion alway abideth, although he be sleping or thretned, or els not thereon thinkyng, but anone as it cometh to miude, anone he is stedfast in that will to abide. Use of this instrument forsoth is an other thing, by hymself, and that haue ye not but whan ye be doyng, in willed thing by affecte or instrument of will, purposed or desired, and this maner of vsage in my seruice, wisely nedeth to be ruled, from waiters with enuie closed from speakers full of iangeling wordes, from proude folke and hautin, that lambes and innocentes both scornen and dispisen. Thus in doyng, varieth the actes of willing eueriche from other, and yet ben thei cleped wil, and the name of will vtterly owen thei to baue, as instrument of wil is will, whan ye turne into purpose of any thing to doen, be it to sit or to stande, or any soche thing els. This instrument maie been had, although affecte and vsage be left out of doyng, right as ye haue sight and reason, and yet alway vse ye greatest wisedome in hem shall he be, and thei in God. Nowe than whan all false folke be ashamed, which wenen al bestialtie and yerthly thing, be swetter and better to the body, than heauenly is to the soule: this is the grace and the fruict that I long haue desired, it doth me good the sauour to smel. Christe now to thee I crie of mercie and of grace, and graunte of thy goodnes to euery maner reder, full vuderstanding in this lend pamflet to haue, and let no man wene other cause in this werke, than is verily the soth: for enuy is cuer redy all innocentes to shend, wherfore I would that good speach enuie euermore hinder. But no man wene this werke be suffi ciently maked, for Gods werke passeth mans, no mannes wit to parfit werke maie by no waie puruaie thende: how shold I than so leude, aught wene of

perfeccion any ende to get? neuerthelater grace, glorie, and laude, I yelde and put with worshipful reuerenced, to the sothfast God in thre, with vnitie closed, whiche that the heuie langor of my sicknesse, hath tourned into mirth of health to recouer: for right as I was sorowed, through the gloten cloud of manifold sickly sorowe, so mirth ayen coming health hath me gladed and greatly comforted. I beseche and praie therfore, and I crie on Gods greate pitie, and on his mokell mercie, that this present scorges of my flesh, mow make medicine, and leche craft of my inner mans health, so that my passed trespas and tenes through wepyng of myne iyes been washe, and I voided from al maner disease, and no more to wepe hereafter, I now be kept thorow Gods grace: so that Gods hand which thee merciably me hath scorged, hereafter in good plite, from thence merciably me kepe and defende. In this booke be many priuie thinges wimpled and fold, vnneth shull leude men the plites vnwinde, wherefore I praie to the Holy Ghoste, lene of his ointmentes, menncs wittes to clere, and for Gods loue no man wonder, why or how this question cum to my minde, for my great lustie desire was of this ladie to been enformed, my leudnesse to amende. Certes I know not other mens wittes, what I should aske, or in answere, what I should saie, I am so leude my self, that mokell more learnyng, yet me behoueth. I haue made therfore as I could, but not sufficiently as I would, and as matter yaue me sentence, for my dul wit is hindred, by stepmother of foryetyng,

and with cloude of vnconning, that stoppeth the light of my Margarite perle, wherfore it maie not shine on me as it should. I desire not onely a good reader, but also I coueite and praie a good booke amender, in correccion of wordes, and of sentence: and onely this mede I coueite for my trauaile, that euery inseer and herer of this leude fantasie, deuoute horisons, and praiers, to God the greate iudge yelden, and praien for me, in that wise that in his dome, my sinnes mow been released and foryeuen: he that praieth for other, for hymself trauaileth. Also I praie that euery man parfitelic mowe knowe, through what intencion of herte, this treatise haue I drawe. Now was it the sightfull manna in desert, to children of Israel was spirituell meate: bodily also it was, for mennes bodies it norisheth. And yet neuer the later, Christe it signified. Right so a iewell betokeneth a gemme, and that is a stone vertuous, or els a perle. Margarite a woman betokeneth grace, learnyng, or wisedome of God, or els holie Churche. If bread through vertue is made bolie fleshe, what is that our God saith? It is the spirit that yeueth life, the fleshe of nothyng it profiteth. Fleshe is fleshly vnderstanding: fleshe without grace and loue naughte is worthe. The letter sleeth, the spirite yeueth lifelich vnderstandyng. Charite is loue and loue is charitie, God graunte vs al therein to be frended. And thus the Testament of Loue is ended.

HERE ENDETH THE TESTAMENT OF LOUE.

THE FLOURE OF COURTESIE.

MADE BY JOHN LIDGATE.

In this book is set forth the rare vertues of a certain lady. Made by John Lidgate, as some think, in the behalf of some gentlewoman in the

court.

IN Feuerier, when the frosty Moone

Was horned, full of Phebus fiery light, And that she gan to reyse her streams soone, Saint Valentine, upon the blisful night Of duty, whan glad is every wight, And foules chese, to void hir old sorrow, Eueriche his make vpon the next morrow.

The same time I heard a larke sing
Full lustely, again the morrow gray,
"Awake ye lovers out of your slumbring
This glad morrow, in all the haste ye may,
Some observaunce doth vnto this day,
Your choise ayen of herte to renew
In confirming for ever to be trew.

"And ye that be of chosing at your large
This lusty day, by custom of nature,
Take vpon you the blisful holy charge,
To serve loue, while your life may dure,
With berte, body, and all your busie cure,
For euermore, as Uenus and Cipride
For you disposeth, and the god Cupide.

"For joy owe we plainly to obey
Unto this lords mighty ordinaunce,
And mercilesse rather for to dey,
Than euer in you be founden variaunce,
And thogh your life be medled with greuaunce
And at your herte closet be your wound,
Bethe alway one, there as ye are bound."

That whan I had heard and listed long
With deuout herte the lusty melodie
Of this beavenly comfortable song,
So agreeable, as by ermonie,

I rose anone, and fast gan me hie
Toward a grove, and the way take,
Foules to seen, euerich choose his make.

And yet I was full thrusty in languishing,
Mine ague was so fervent in his hete,
Whan Aurora for drery complaining,
Can distill her chrystal teares wete
Upon the soyle, with silver dew so swete,
For she durst for shame not appeare
Under the light of Phebus beames clere.

And so for anguish of my paines kene,
And for constraint of my sighes sore,
I set me downe under a laurer grene
Full pitously, and alway more and more,
As I beheld into the holts hore,

I gan complain mine inward deadly smert,
That aye so sore crampish at mine herte.

And while that I in my drery paine
Sate, and beheld about on every tree,
The foules sit alway twaine and twaine,

Thau thought I thus, "Alas what may this be,
That euery foule hath his liberte

Freely to chuse after his desire

Eueriche his make, thus fro yere to yere.

"The sely wren, the tytemose also,
The little redbrest have free election
To flyen yferre, and together go
Where as hem list, about enuiron,
As they of kind haue inclination,
And as Nature, empresse and guide
Of euery thing, list to prouide.

"But man alone, alas the hard stound,
Full cruelly, by kinds of ordinaunce
Constrained is, and by statute bound
And debarred from all such pleasaunce.
What meneth this, what is this purveiaunce
Of God above, againe all right of kind,
Without cause so narrow man to bind.”