Chaucerian and Other Pieces. Various

      good, and goodnesse is badde; to which folk the prophete biddeth

      wo without ende.

      Also manye tonges of greet false techinges in gylinge maner,

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      principally in my tymes, not only with wordes but also with armes,

      loves servauntes and professe in his religion of trewe rule pursewen,

      to confounden and to distroyen. And for as moche as holy †faders,

      that of our Christen fayth aproved and strengthed to the Jewes, as

      to men resonable and of divinitè lerned, proved thilke fayth with

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      resones, and with auctoritès of the olde testament and of the newe,

      her pertinacie to distroy: but to paynims, that for beestes and

      houndes were holde, to putte hem out of their errour, was †miracle

      of god shewed. These thinges were figured by cominge of th'angel

      to the shepherdes, and by the sterre to paynims kinges; as who

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      sayth: angel resonable to resonable creature, and sterre of miracle

      to people bestial not lerned, wern sent to enforme. But I, lovers

      clerk, in al my conning and with al my mightes, trewly I have no

      suche grace in vertue of miracles, ne for no discomfit falsheedes

      suffyseth not auctoritès alone; sithen that suche [arn] heretikes

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      and maintaynours of falsitès. Wherfore I wot wel, sithen that

      they ben men, and reson is approved in hem, the clowde of errour

      hath her reson beyond probable resons, whiche that cacchende

      wit rightfully may not with-sitte. By my travaylinge studie I have

      ordeyned hem, †whiche that auctoritè, misglosed by mannes

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      reson, to graunt shal ben enduced.

      Now ginneth my penne to quake, to thinken on the sentences

      of the envyous people, whiche alway ben redy, both ryder and

      goer, to scorne and to jape this leude book; and me, for rancour

      and hate in their hertes, they shullen so dispyse, that although

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      my book be leude, yet shal it ben more leude holden, and by

      wicked wordes in many maner apayred. Certes, me thinketh,

      [of] the sowne of their badde speche right now is ful bothe myne

      eeres. O good precious Margaryte, myne herte shulde wepe if

      I wiste ye token hede of suche maner speche; but trewly, I wot

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      wel, in that your wysdom shal not asterte. For of god, maker of

      kynde, witnesse I took, that for none envy ne yvel have I drawe

      this mater togider; but only for goodnesse to maintayn, and

      errours in falsetees to distroy. Wherfore (as I sayd) with reson

      I thinke, thilke forsayd errours to distroye and dequace.

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      These resons and suche other, if they enduce men, in loves

      service, trewe to beleve of parfit blisse, yet to ful faithe in

      credence of deserte fully mowe they nat suffyse; sithen 'faith hath

      no merite of mede, whan mannes reson sheweth experience in

      doing.' For utterly no reson the parfit blisse of love by no waye

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      may make to be comprehended. Lo! what is a parcel of lovers

      joye? Parfit science, in good service, of their desyre to comprehende

      in bodily doinge the lykinge of the soule; not as by

      a glasse to have contemplacion of tyme cominge, but thilke first

      imagined and thought after face to face in beholding. What

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      herte, what reson, what understandinge can make his heven to be

      feled and knowe, without assaye in doinge? Certes, noon. Sithen

      thanne of love cometh suche fruite in blisse, and love in him-selfe

      is the most among other vertues, as clerkes sayn; the seed of

      suche springinge in al places, in al countreys, in al worldes shulde

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      ben sowe.

      But o! welawaye! thilke seed is forsake, and †mowe not ben

      suffred, the lond-tillers to sette a-werke, without medlinge of

      cockle; badde wedes whiche somtyme stonken †han caught the

      name of love among idiotes and badde-meninge people. Never-the-later,

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      yet how-so-it-be that men clepe thilke †thing preciousest

      in kynde, with many eke-names, that other thinges that the soule

      yeven the ilke noble name, it sheweth wel that in a maner men

      have a greet lykinge in worshippinge of thilke name. Wherfore

      this worke have I writte; and to thee, tytled of Loves name,

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      I have it avowed in a maner of sacrifyse; that, where-ever it be

      rad, it mowe in merite, by the excellence of thilke name, the

      more wexe in authoritè and worshippe of takinge in hede; and to

      

      what entent it was ordayned, the inseëres mowen ben moved.

      Every thing to whom is owande occasion don as for his ende,

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      Aristotle supposeth that the actes of every thinge ben in a maner

      his final cause. A final cause is noblerer, or els even as noble,

      as thilke thing that is finally to thilke ende; wherfore accion of

      thinge everlasting is demed to be eternal, and not temporal;

      sithen it is his final cause. Right so the actes of my boke 'Love,'

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      and love is noble; wherfore, though my book be leude, the cause

      with which I am stered, and for whom I ought it doon, noble

      forsothe ben bothe. But bycause that in conninge I am yong,

      and can yet but crepe, this leude A. b. c. have I set in-to lerning;

      for I can not passen the telling of three as yet. And if god

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      wil, in shorte tyme, I shal amende this leudnesse in joininge

      syllables; whiche thing, for dulnesse of witte, I may not in three

      letters declare. For trewly I saye, the goodnesse of my Margaryte-perle

      wolde yeve mater in endyting to many clerkes; certes, her

      mercy is more to me swetter than any livinges;