No More Learning

at ? ei han don. ? at is to seye defaute of peyne.
whiche defaute of peyne ? ou hast graunted is yuel.

[Sidenote: _B. _ I cannot deny it. ]

? For ? e desert of felonye I ne may nat denye it q{uo}d I.

[Sidenote: _P. _ Much more unhappy are the wicked when they enjoy
an unmerited impunity than when they suffer a lawful
chastisement. ]

? Moche more ? an q{uo}d she ben shrewes vnsely 3612
whan ? ei ben wrongfully delyuered fro peyne. ? an
whan ? ei be? punissed by ry? tful vengeaunce.

[Sidenote: It is just to punish evil-doers, and unjust that they
should escape punishment. ]

but ? is is
open ? i{n}g {and} clere ? at it is ry? t ? at shrewes ben
punissed. {and} it is wickednesse {and} wrong ? at ? ei 3616
escapin vnpunissed.

[Sidenote: _B. _ Nobody denies that. ]

[Sidenote: [* fol. 28 _b_. ]]

? who my? t[e] denye *? at q{uo}d I.

[Sidenote: _P. _ Everything, too, which is just is good; and, on
the contrary, whatsoever is unjust is evil. ]

but q{uo}d she may any ma{n} denye. ? at al ? at is ry? t nis
good. {and} also ? e contrarie. ? at alle ? at is wrong nis
wicked. [[pg 127]]

[Sidenote: _B. _ These are just inferences from our former
premises. ]

certys q{uo}d I ? ise ? inges ben clere ynou? . {and} 3620
? at we han concludid a litel here byforn{e}.

[Sidenote: But is there any punishment for the soul after death of
the body? ]

but I p{re}ye
? e ? at ? ou telle me yif ? ou accordest to leten no to{ur}ment
to ? e soules aftir ? at ? e body is dedid by ? e de? e.
? is [is] to seyn. vndirstondest ? ou ou? t ? at soules han 3624
any to{ur}ment after ? e de? e of ? e body.

[Sidenote: _P. _ Yes, and great ones too. Some punishments are
rigorous and eternal. ]

? Certis q{uo}d
she ? e {and} ? at ry? t grete. of whiche soules q{uo}d she I
trowe ? at so{m}me ben to{ur}mentid by asprenesse of
peyne.

[Sidenote: Others have a corrective and purifying force, and are
of finite duration. ]

{and} so{m}me soules I trowe be exc{er}cised by a 3628
p{ur}ging mekenesse.

[Sidenote: But this is not to our purpose. ]

but my conseil nys nat to determyne
of ? is peyne. but I haue trauayled and told it
hider to.

[Sidenote: I want you to see that the power of the wicked is in
reality nothing, that the wicked never go unpunished; that their
licence to do evil is not of long duration, and that the wicked
would be more unhappy if it were longer, and infinitely wretched
if it were to continue for ever. ]

? For ? ou sholdest knowe ? at ? e mowynge
[. i. myght] of shrewes whiche mowynge ? e seme? to 3632
ben. vnwor? i nis no mowynge. {and} eke of shrewes of
whiche ? ou pleynedest ? at ? ei ne were nat punissed.
? at ? ou woldest seen ? at ? ei ne weren neuer mo wi?
outen ? e torment of hire wickednesse. {and} of ? e licence 3636
of mowynge to done yuel. ? at ? ou p{re}idest ? at it
my? t[e] sone ben endid. {and} ? at ? ou woldest fayne
lerne. ? at it ne sholde nat longe endure. {and} ? at
shrewes ben more vnsely yif ? ei were of lenger duryng. 3640
{and} most vnsely yif ? ei weren p{er}durable.

[Sidenote: After this I showed that evil men are more unhappy,
having escaped punishment, than if justly chastised. ]

{and} after
? is I haue shewed ? e ? at more vnsely ben shrewes
whan ? ei escapen wi? oute ry? tful peyne. ? an whan ? ei
ben punissed by ry? tful uengeaunce.

[Sidenote: Wherefore when they are supposed to get off scot-free
they suffer most grievously. ]

and of ? is sentence 3644
folwe? it ? at ? an be{n} shrewes constreyned atte laste wi?
most greuous tourment. whan men wene ? at ? ei ne ben
nat ypunissed.

[Sidenote: _B. _ Your reasoning appears convincing and conclusive.
But your arguments are opposed to current opinions, and would
hardly command assent, or even a hearing. ]

whan I considre ? i resou{n}s q{uo}d I. I.
ne trowe nat ? at men seyn any ? ing more verrely. {and} 3648
yif I to{ur}ne a? eyn to ? e studies of men. who is [he] to
who{m} it sholde seme ? at [he] ne sholde nat only leue{n}
? ise ? inges. but eke gladly herkene he{m}.

[Sidenote: _P. _ It is so. For those accustomed to the darkness of
error cannot fix their eyes on the light of perspicuous truth,
like birds of night which are blinded by the full light of day. ]

Certys q{uo}d
she so it is. but men may nat. for ? ei han hire eyen so [[pg 128]]
wont to derkenesse of er? ely ? inges. ? at ? ei may nat 3653
liften hem vp to ? e ly? t of clere so? efastnes. ? But
? ei ben lyke to briddes of whiche ? e ny? t ly? tne? hyre
lookyng. {and} ? e day blynde? hem.
[Sidenote: They consider only the gratification of their lusts,
they think there is happiness in the liberty of doing evil and in
exemption from punishment. ]

for whan men loken 3656
nat ? e ordre of ? inges but hire lustes {and} talent? . ? ei
wene ? at o? ir ? e leue or ? e mowynge to done wickednesse
or ellys ? e escapi{n}g wi? oute peyne be weleful.

[Linenotes:
3575 _who so sei? _--ho seyth
_whiche_--which
3578 _byen_--a-byen
3579 _chastied[e]_--chastysede
3580 _my? t[e]_--myhte
3581 _? enk[e]_--thinke
3584 _? euen_--MS. ? euene, C. yeuen
_fleyen_--flen
3585 _? itte_--yif
[_in_]--from C.
3588 _none_--non
3589 _ou? er_--oother
_ha? _--MS. ha? e
_ben_--be
_told_--MS. tolde, C. told
3591 _good[e]_--goode
3592 [_thanne----she_]--from C.
3594 _blisful_--weleful
_ha? _--MS. ha? e
3594-97 _goode_--good
3598 _alle_--al
_whiche_--which
3600 _knyt_--knytte
3601 _re[le]ued_--releued
3602 _goode_--good
3605 _seyne_--seyn
3606 _whiche_--which
3607 _outen_--owte
3609 _don_--MS. done
_seye_--seyn
3610 _whiche_--which
3611 _desert_--deserte
3614 _be? _--MS. be? e, C. ben
3615 _clere_--cler
3617 _my? t[e]_--myhte
3618 _is ry? t nis_--MS. nis ry? t is
3619 _alle_--al
_nis wicked_--is wykke
3621 _here_--her
3623 _dedid_--endyd
_de? e_--deth
3624 [_is_]--from C.
_ou? t_--awht
3625 _de? e_--deth
3626 _grete_--gret
3628 _be_--ben
3629 _determyne_--determenye
3630 _peyne_--peynes
_told_--MS. tolde
3632 [_. i. myght_]--from C.
3632-34 _whiche_--which
3633 _eke_--ek
3635 _seen_--seyn
3637 _done_--don
3638 _my? t[e]_--myhte
_fayne lerne_--fayn lernen
3639 _endure_--dur{e}
3645 _atte_--at the
_laste_--MS. ? ast, C. laste
3647 _resouns_--resoun
3649-50 [_he_]--from C.
3651 _eke_--ek
3653 _derkenesse_--derknesse
3654 _clere so? efastnes_--cleer sothfastnesse
3655 _whiche_--which
3658 _o? ir_--eyther
_done_--don
3659 _escaping_--schapynge]

[Headnote:
VIRTUE ITS OWN REWARD. ]

[Sidenote: Do you attend to the eternal law written in your own
heart. Conform your mind to what is good, and you will stand in no
need of a judge to confer a reward upon you--for you have it
already in the enjoyment of the best of things (_i. e. _ virtue). ]

but co{n}sider{e} ? e iugement of ? e p{er}durable lawe. for if 3660
? ou conferme ? i corage to ? e beste ? inges. ? ou ne hast
no nede to no iuge to ? iue{n} ? e p{r}is or meede. for ? ou
hast ioigned ? i self to ? e most excellent ? ing.

[Sidenote: If you indulge in vice, you need no other
chastisement--you have degraded yourself into a lower order of
beings. ]

and yif
? ou haue enclined ? i studies to ? e wicked ? inges. ne 3664
seek no foreyn wrekere out of ? i self. for ? ou ? i self
hast ? rest ? e in to wicked ? inges. ry? t as ? ou my? test
loken by dyuerse tymes ? e foule er? e {and} ? e heuene.
{and} ? at alle o? er ? inges stynten fro wi? oute. so ? at 3668
? ou [ner{e} neyther in heuene ne in erthe] ne say[e] no
? ing more. ? an sholde it semen to ? e as by only resou{n}
of lokynge. ? at ? ou were in ? e sterres. {and} now in ? e
er? e.

[Sidenote: The multitude doth not consider this. ]

but ? e poeple ne loke? nat on ? ise ? inges.

[Sidenote: What then? Shall we take them as our models who
resemble beasts? ]

what 3672
? an shal we ? an app{ro}chen vs to hem ? at I haue
shewed ? at ? ei ben lyke to ? e bestes. (q. d. no{n})

[Linenotes:
3662 _to_ (1)--of
3665 _foreyn_--foreyne
3666 _? rest_--thryst
_wicked_--wikke
3669 [_nere----erthe_]--from C.
_heuene_--C. heuenene
_say[e]_--C. saye
3672 _on_--in
3674 _lyke_--lyk
_q. d. _--MS. q{uo}d]

[Headnote:
THE WICKED NEED PITY. ]

[Sidenote: If a man who had lost his sight, having even forgotten
his blindness, should declare that his faculties were all perfect,
shall we weakly believe that those who retain their sight are
blind? ]

? And what wilt ? ou seyne of ? is ? yif ? at a man
hadde al forlorn hys sy? t. {and} had[de] for? eten ? at he 3676
euer saw {and} wende ? {a}t no ? ing ne fayled[e] hym of
p{er}fecc{i}ou{n} of ma{n}kynde. now we ? at my? ten sen ? e
same ? ing wolde we nat wene ? at he were bly{n}de (q. d.
sic).

[Sidenote: The vulgar will not assent to what I am going to say,
though supported by conclusive arguments--to wit, that persons are
more unhappy that do wrong than those who suffer wrong. ]

ne also ne accorde? nat ? e poeple to ? at I shal 3680
seyne. ? e whiche ? ing is susteyned by a stronge foundement
of resou{n}s. ? at is to seyn ? at more vnsely ben ? ei
? at don wrong to o? er folk. ? en ? ei ? at ? e wrong [[pg 129]]
suffren.

[Sidenote: _B. _ I would willingly hear your reasons. ]

[Sidenote: [* fol. 29. ]]

? I wolde heren ? ilke *same resou{n}s q{uo}d I 3684

[Sidenote: _P. _ Do you deny that every wicked man deserves
punishment? ]

? Deniest ? ou q{uo}d she ? at alle shrewes ne ben wor? i
to han to{ur}ment.

[Sidenote: _B. _ No, I do not. ]

nay q{uo}d I.

[Sidenote: _P. _ I am satisfied that impious men are in many ways
miserable.