No More Learning

And in a privee corner, in disporte, 260
Fond I Venus and hir porter Richesse,
That was ful noble and hauteyn of hir porte;
Derk was that place, but afterward lightnesse
I saw a lyte, unnethe hit might be lesse,
And on a bed of golde she lay to reste, 265
Til that the hote sonne gan to weste.

Hir gilte heres with a golden threde
Y-bounden were, untressed as she lay,
And naked fro the breste unto the hede
Men might hir see; and, sothly for to say, 270
The remenant wel kevered to my pay
Right with a subtil kerchef of Valence,
Ther was no thikker cloth of no defence.

The place yaf a thousand savours swote,
And Bachus, god of wyn, sat hir besyde, 275
And Ceres next, that doth of hunger bote;
And, as I seide, amiddes lay Cipryde,
To whom on knees two yonge folkes cryde
To ben hir help; but thus I leet hir lye,
And ferther in the temple I gan espye 280

That, in dispyte of Diane the chaste,
Ful many a bowe y-broke heng on the wal
Of maydens, suche as gunne hir tymes waste
In hir servyse; and peynted over al
Of many a story, of which I touche shal 285
A fewe, as of Calixte and Athalaunte,
And many a mayde, of which the name I wante;

Semyramus, Candace, and Ercules,
Biblis, Dido, Tisbe and Piramus,
Tristram, Isoude, Paris, and Achilles, 290
Eleyne, Cleopatre, and Troilus,
Silla, and eek the moder of Romulus--
Alle these were peynted on that other syde,
And al hir love, and in what plyte they dyde.

Whan I was come ayen into the place 295
That I of spak, that was so swote and grene,
Forth welk I tho, my-selven to solace.
Tho was I war wher that ther sat a quene
That, as of light the somer-sonne shene
Passeth the sterre, right so over mesure 300
She fairer was than any creature.

And in a launde, upon an hille of floures,
Was set this noble goddesse Nature;
Of braunches were hir halles and hir boures,
Y-wrought after hir craft and hir mesure; 305
Ne ther nas foul that cometh of engendrure,
That they ne were prest in hir presence,
To take hir doom and yeve hir audience.

For this was on seynt Valentynes day,
Whan every foul cometh ther to chese his make, 310
Of every kinde, that men thenke may;
And that so huge a noyse gan they make,
That erthe and see, and tree, and every lake
So ful was, that unnethe was ther space
For me to stonde, so ful was al the place. 315

And right as Aleyn, in the Pleynt of Kinde,
Devyseth Nature of aray and face,
In swich aray men mighten hir ther finde.
This noble emperesse, ful of grace,
Bad every foul to take his owne place, 320
As they were wont alwey fro yeer to yere,
Seynt Valentynes day, to stonden there.

That is to sey, the foules of ravyne
Were hyest set; and than the foules smale,
That eten as hem nature wolde enclyne, 325
As worm, or thing of whiche I telle no tale;
But water-foul sat lowest in the dale;
And foul that liveth by seed sat on the grene,
And that so fele, that wonder was to sene.

Ther mighte men the royal egle finde, 330
That with his sharpe look perceth the sonne;
And other egles of a lower kinde,
Of which that clerkes wel devysen conne.
Ther was the tyraunt with his fethres donne
And greye, I mene the goshauk, that doth pyne 335
To briddes for his outrageous ravyne.

The gentil faucon, that with his feet distreyneth
The kinges hond; the hardy sperhauk eke,
The quayles foo; the merlion that peyneth
Him-self ful ofte, the larke for to seke; 340
Ther was the douve, with hir eyen meke;
The Ialous swan, ayens his deth that singeth;
The oule eek, that of dethe the bode bringeth;

The crane the geaunt, with his trompes soune;
The theef, the chogh; and eek the Iangling pye; 345
The scorning Iay; the eles foo, the heroune;
The false lapwing, ful of trecherye;
The stare, that the counseyl can bewrye;
The tame ruddok; and the coward kyte;
The cok, that orloge is of thorpes lyte; 350

The sparow, Venus sone; the nightingale,
That clepeth forth the fresshe leves newe;
The swalow, mordrer of the flyes smale
That maken hony of floures fresshe of hewe;
The wedded turtel, with hir herte trewe; 355
The pecok, with his aungels fethres brighte;
The fesaunt, scorner of the cok by nighte;

The waker goos; the cukkow ever unkinde;
The popiniay, ful of delicasye;
The drake, stroyer of his owne kinde; 360
The stork, the wreker of avouterye;
The hote cormeraunt of glotonye;
The raven wys, the crow with vois of care;
The throstel olde; the frosty feldefare.

What shulde I seyn? of foules every kinde 365
That in this worlde han fethres and stature,
Men mighten in that place assembled finde
Before the noble goddesse Nature.
And everich of hem did his besy cure
Benignely to chese or for to take, 370
By hir acord, his formel or his make.

But to the poynt--Nature held on hir honde
A formel egle, of shap the gentileste
That ever she among hir werkes fonde,
The most benigne and the goodlieste; 375
In hir was every vertu at his reste,
So ferforth, that Nature hir-self had blisse
To loke on hir, and ofte hir bek to kisse.

Nature, the vicaire of thalmyghty lorde,
That hoot, cold, hevy, light, [and] moist and dreye 380
Hath knit by even noumbre of acorde,
In esy vois began to speke and seye,
Foules, tak hede of my sentence, I preye,
And, for your ese, in furthering of your nede,
As faste as I may speke, I wol me spede. 385

Ye know wel how, seynt Valentynes day,
By my statut and through my governaunce,
Ye come for to chese--and flee your way--
Your makes, as I prik yow with plesaunce.
But natheles, my rightful ordenaunce 390
May I not lete, for al this world to winne,
That he that most is worthy shal beginne.

The tercel egle, as that ye knowen wel,
The foul royal above yow in degree,
The wyse and worthy, secree, trewe as stel, 395
The which I formed have, as ye may see,
In every part as hit best lyketh me,
Hit nedeth noght his shap yow to devyse,
He shal first chese and speken in his gyse.

And after him, by order shul ye chese, 400
After your kinde, everich as yow lyketh,
And, as your hap is, shul ye winne or lese;
But which of yow that love most entryketh,
God sende him hir that sorest for him syketh. '
And therwith-al the tercel gan she calle, 405
And seyde, 'my sone, the choys is to thee falle.

But natheles, in this condicioun
Mot be the choys of everich that is here,
That she agree to his eleccioun,
Who-so he be that shulde been hir fere; 410
This is our usage alwey, fro yeer to yere;
And who so may at this time have his grace,
In blisful tyme he com in-to this place. '

With hed enclyned and with ful humble chere
This royal tercel spak and taried nought; 415
Unto my sovereyn lady, and noght my fere,
I chese, and chese with wille and herte and thought,
The formel on your hond so wel y-wrought,
Whos I am al and ever wol hir serve,
Do what hir list, to do me live or sterve. 420

Beseching hir of mercy and of grace,
As she that is my lady sovereyne;
Or let me dye present in this place.
For certes, long may I not live in peyne;
For in myn herte is corven every veyne; 425
Having reward only to my trouthe,
My dere herte, have on my wo som routhe.

And if that I to hir be founde untrewe,
Disobeysaunt, or wilful negligent,
Avauntour, or in proces love a newe, 430
I pray to you this be my Iugement,
That with these foules I be al to-rent,
That ilke day that ever she me finde
To hir untrewe, or in my gilte unkinde.

And sin that noon loveth hir so wel as I, 435
Al be she never of love me behette,
Than oghte she be myn thourgh hir mercy,
For other bond can I noon on hir knette.
For never, for no wo, ne shal I lette
To serven hir, how fer so that she wende; 440
Sey what yow list, my tale is at an ende. '

Right as the fresshe, rede rose newe
Ayen the somer-sonne coloured is,
Right so for shame al wexen gan the hewe
Of this formel, whan she herde al this; 445
She neyther answerde 'wel,' ne seyde amis,
So sore abasshed was she, til that Nature
Seyde, 'doghter, drede yow noght, I yow assure. '

Another tercel egle spak anoon
Of lower kinde, and seyde, 'that shal not be; 450
I love hir bet than ye do, by seynt Iohn,
Or atte leste I love hir as wel as ye;
And lenger have served hir, in my degree,
And if she shulde have loved for long loving,
To me allone had been the guerdoning. 455

I dar eek seye, if she me finde fals,
Unkinde, Iangler, or rebel any wyse,
Or Ialous, do me hongen by the hals!
And but I bere me in hir servyse
As wel as that my wit can me suffyse, 460
Fro poynt to poynt, hir honour for to save,
Tak she my lyf, and al the good I have. '

The thridde tercel egle answerde tho,
Now, sirs, ye seen the litel leyser here;
For every foul cryeth out to been a-go 465
Forth with his make, or with his lady dere;
And eek Nature hir-self ne wol nought here,
For tarying here, noght half that I wolde seye;
And but I speke, I mot for sorwe deye.

Of long servyse avaunte I me no-thing, 470
But as possible is me to dye to-day
For wo, as he that hath ben languisshing
Thise twenty winter, and wel happen may
A man may serven bet and more to pay
In half a yere, al-though hit were no more, 475
Than som man doth that hath served ful yore.

I ne say not this by me, for I ne can
Do no servyse that may my lady plese;
But I dar seyn, I am hir trewest man
As to my dome, and feynest wolde hir ese; 480
At shorte wordes, til that deth me sese,
I wol ben hires, whether I wake or winke,
And trewe in al that herte may bethinke. '

Of al my lyf, sin that day I was born,
So gentil plee in love or other thing 485
Ne herde never no man me beforn,
Who-[so] that hadde leyser and cunning
For to reherse hir chere and hir speking;
And from the morwe gan this speche laste
Til dounward drow the sonne wonder faste. 490

The noyse of foules for to ben delivered
So loude rong, 'have doon and let us wende! '
That wel wende I the wode had al to-shivered.
Come of! ' they cryde, 'allas! ye wil us shende!
Whan shal your cursed pleding have an ende? 495
How shulde a Iuge eyther party leve,
For yee or nay, with-outen any preve? '

The goos, the cokkow, and the doke also
So cryden 'kek, kek! ' 'kukkow! ' 'quek, quek! ' hye,
That thorgh myn eres the noyse wente tho. 500
The goos seyde, 'al this nis not worth a flye!
But I can shape hereof a remedye,
And I wol sey my verdit faire and swythe
For water-foul, who-so be wrooth or blythe. '

'And I for worm-foul,' seyde the fool cukkow, 505
For I wol, of myn owne auctorite,
For comune spede, take the charge now,
For to delivere us is gret charite. '
Ye may abyde a whyle yet, parde! '
Seide the turtel, 'if hit be your wille 510
A wight may speke, him were as good be stille.

I am a seed-foul, oon the unworthieste,
That wot I wel, and litel of kunninge;
But bet is that a wightes tonge reste
Than entremeten him of such doinge 515
Of which he neyther rede can nor singe.
And who-so doth, ful foule himself acloyeth,
For office uncommitted ofte anoyeth. '

Nature, which that alway had an ere
To murmour of the lewednes behinde, 520
With facound voys seide, 'hold your tonges there!
And I shal sone, I hope, a counseyl finde
You to delivere, and fro this noyse unbinde;
I Iuge, of every folk men shal oon calle
To seyn the verdit for you foules alle. ' 525

Assented were to this conclusioun
The briddes alle; and foules of ravyne
Han chosen first, by pleyn eleccioun,
The tercelet of the faucon, to diffyne
Al hir sentence, and as him list, termyne; 530
And to Nature him gonnen to presente,
And she accepteth him with glad entente.

The tercelet seide than in this manere:
Ful hard were hit to preve hit by resoun
Who loveth best this gentil formel here; 535
For everich hath swich replicacioun,
That noon by skilles may be broght a-doun;
I can not seen that arguments avayle;
Than semeth hit ther moste be batayle. '

'Al redy! ' quod these egles tercels tho. 540
Nay, sirs! ' quod he, 'if that I dorste it seye,
Ye doon me wrong, my tale is not y-do!
For sirs, ne taketh noght a-gref, I preye,
It may noght gon, as ye wolde, in this weye;
Oure is the voys that han the charge in honde, 545
And to the Iuges dome ye moten stonde;

And therfor pees! I seye, as to my wit,
Me wolde thinke how that the worthieste
Of knighthode, and lengest hath used hit,
Moste of estat, of blode the gentileste, 550
Were sittingest for hir, if that hir leste;
And of these three she wot hir-self, I trowe,
Which that he be, for hit is light to knowe. '

The water-foules han her hedes leyd
Togeder, and of short avysement, 555
Whan everich had his large golee seyd,
They seyden sothly, al by oon assent,
How that 'the goos, with hir facounde gent,
That so desyreth to pronounce our nede,
Shal telle our tale,' and preyde 'god hir spede. ' 560

And for these water-foules tho began
The goos to speke, and in hir cakelinge
She seyde, 'pees! now tak kepe every man,
And herkeneth which a reson I shal bringe;
My wit is sharp, I love no taryinge; 565
I seye, I rede him, though he were my brother,
But she wol love him, lat him love another! '

Lo here! a parfit reson of a goos! '
Quod the sperhauk; 'never mot she thee!
Lo, swich hit is to have a tonge loos! 570
Now parde, fool, yet were hit bet for thee
Have holde thy pees, than shewed thy nycete!
Hit lyth not in his wit nor in his wille,
But sooth is seyd, "a fool can noght be stille. "'

The laughter aroos of gentil foules alle, 575
And right anoon the seed-foul chosen hadde
The turtel trewe, and gunne hir to hem calle,
And preyden hir to seye the sothe sadde
Of this matere, and asked what she radde;
And she answerde, that pleynly hir entente 580
She wolde shewe, and sothly what she mente.

Nay, god forbede a lover shulde chaunge! '
The turtel seyde, and wex for shame al reed;
Thogh that his lady ever-more be straunge,
Yet let him serve hir ever, til he be deed; 585
For sothe, I preyse noght the gooses reed;
For thogh she deyed, I wolde non other make,
I wol ben hires, til that the deth me take. '

Wel bourded! ' quod the doke, 'by my hat!
That men shulde alwey loven, causeles, 590
Who can a reson finde or wit in that?
Daunceth he mury that is mirtheles?
Who shulde recche of that is reccheles?
Ye, quek! ' yit quod the doke, ful wel and faire,
'There been mo sterres, god wot, than a paire! ' 595

Now fy, cherl! ' quod the gentil tercelet,
Out of the dunghil com that word ful right,
Thou canst noght see which thing is wel be-set:
Thou farest by love as oules doon by light,
The day hem blent, ful wel they see by night; 600
Thy kind is of so lowe a wrechednesse,
That what love is, thou canst nat see ne gesse. '

Tho gan the cukkow putte him forth in prees
For foul that eteth worm, and seide blyve,
'So I,' quod he, 'may have my make in pees, 605
I recche not how longe that ye stryve;
Lat ech of hem be soleyn al hir lyve,
This is my reed, sin they may not acorde;
This shorte lesson nedeth noght recorde. '

'Ye! have the glotoun fild ynogh his paunche, 610
Than are we wel! ' seyde the merlioun;
Thou mordrer of the heysugge on the braunche
That broghte thee forth, thou [rewthelees] glotoun!
Live thou soleyn, wormes corrupcioun!
For no fors is of lakke of thy nature; 615
Go, lewed be thou, whyl the world may dure! '

Now pees,' quod Nature, 'I comaunde here;
For I have herd al your opinioun,
And in effect yet be we never the nere;
But fynally, this is my conclusioun, 620
That she hir-self shal han the eleccioun
Of whom hir list, who-so be wrooth or blythe,
Him that she cheest, he shal hir have as swythe.

For sith hit may not here discussed be
Who loveth hir best, as seide the tercelet, 625
Than wol I doon hir this favour, that she
Shal have right him on whom hir herte is set,
And he hir that his herte hath on hir knet.
This Iuge I, Nature, for I may not lye;
To noon estat I have non other ye. 630

But as for counseyl for to chese a make,
If hit were reson, certes, than wolde I
Counseyle yow the royal tercel take,
As seide the tercelet ful skilfully,
As for the gentilest and most worthy, 635
Which I have wroght so wel to my plesaunce;
That to yow oghte been a suffisaunce. '

With dredful vois the formel hir answerde,
My rightful lady, goddesse of Nature,
Soth is that I am ever under your yerde, 640
Lyk as is everiche other creature,
And moot be youres whyl my lyf may dure;
And therfor graunteth me my firste bone,
And myn entente I wol yow sey right sone. '

'I graunte it you,' quod she; and right anoon 645
This formel egle spak in this degree,
Almighty quene, unto this yeer be doon
I aske respit for to avysen me.
And after that to have my choys al free;
This al and som, that I wolde speke and seye; 650
Ye gete no more, al-though ye do me deye.

I wol noght serven Venus ne Cupyde
For sothe as yet, by no manere wey. '
Now sin it may non other wyse betyde,'
Quod tho Nature, 'here is no more to sey; 655
Than wolde I that these foules were a-wey
Ech with his make, for tarying lenger here'--
And seyde hem thus, as ye shul after here.

To you speke I, ye tercelets,' quod Nature,
'Beth of good herte and serveth, alle three; 660
A yeer is not so longe to endure,
And ech of yow peyne him, in his degree,
For to do wel; for, god wot, quit is she
Fro yow this yeer; what after so befalle,
This entremes is dressed for you alle. ' 665

And whan this werk al broght was to an ende,
To every foule Nature yaf his make
By even acorde, and on hir wey they wende.
A! lord! the blisse and Ioye that they make!
For ech of hem gan other in winges take, 670
And with hir nekkes ech gan other winde,
Thanking alwey the noble goddesse of kinde.

But first were chosen foules for to singe,
As yeer by yere was alwey hir usaunce
To singe a roundel at hir departinge, 675
To do Nature honour and plesaunce.
The note, I trowe, maked was in Fraunce;
The wordes wer swich as ye may heer finde,
The nexte vers, as I now have in minde.

_Qui bien aime a tard oublie. _

'Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe, 680
That hast this wintres weders over-shake,
And driven awey the longe nightes blake!

Seynt Valentyn, that art ful hy on-lofte;--
Thus singen smale foules for thy sake--
_Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe,_ 685
_That hast this wintres weders over-shake. _

Wel han they cause for to gladen ofte,
Sith ech of hem recovered hath his make;
Ful blisful may they singen whan they wake;
_Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe,_ 690
_That hast this wintres weders over-shake,_
_And driven awey the longe nightes blake_. '

And with the showting, whan hir song was do,
That foules maden at hir flight a-way,
I wook, and other bokes took me to 695
To rede upon, and yet I rede alway;
I hope, y-wis, to rede so som day
That I shal mete som thing for to fare
The bet; and thus to rede I nil not spare. 699

EXPLICIT TRACTATUS DE CONGREGACIONE VOLUCRUM
DIE SANCTI VALENTINI.

_The authorities are_: F. (Fairfax 16); Gg. (Gg. 4. 27, Cambridge Univ.
Library); Trin. (Trinity Coll. Camb. R. 3. 19); Cx. (Caxton's edition);
Harl. (Harleian 7333); O. (St. John's Coll. Oxford); Ff. (Ff. I. 6,
Cambridge Univ. Library); _occasionally_ Tn. (Tanner 346); D. (Digby 181);
_and others_. _I follow_ F. _mainly, corrected by_ Gg. _(and others); and
note all variations from_ F. _of any consequence. _

TITLE; Gg. _has_--Here begynyth the parlement of Foulys; D. The _par_lement
of Fowlis. 2. _So_ F. Harl. Tn. ; _some transpose_ hard _and_ sharp. 3. Gg.
_and others_ dredful; F. slyder. Gg. O. slit; Cx. flit (_for_ slit); Ff.
slydeth (_om. _ so); F. slyd; Trin. fleeth. 5. Gg. (_and others_) with his
wondyrful; F. soo with a dredeful. 7. F. Tn. wake or wynke; _rest_ flete or
synke; _see_ 482. 9. Gg. Trin. Harl. that; _which the rest omit_. 10. Gg.
Trin. Cx. Harl. Ff. ful ofte in bokis; F. in bookes ofte to. 11. F. _ins. _
of _after_ and; Gg. _om. _ 13. F. Dar I; Gg. _and others_ I dar. 14. F.
suche; Gg. swich. 17. F. Tn. D.
why; _rest_ wherfore (wherfor).

21. Gg. faste; F. fast. Harl. radde; F. rad; Gg. redde. 22. F. seyth; Gg.
sey. 24. F. feythe; Gg. fey. 26. Gg. O. as of this; Trin. Cx. Harl. Ff. of
this; F. of my firste. 28. Gg. Ff. me thou[gh]te; Trin. Cx. Harl. me
thought hit; F. thought me. 30. Gg. Cx. thus; F. Trin. Harl. there. Gg.
_and rest_ as I schal; F. I shal yow. 31. F. _inserts_ the _after_ dreme
of; _the rest omit_. Trin. Harl. O. Scipio_u_n; F. Cipio_u_n; Gg. sothion
(! ). 32. F. hyt had vij; Gg. _and the rest_ seuene It hadde. 33. Ff.
therInn_e_; F. _and the rest_ theryn (_wrongly_). 34. Gg. it; O. of; _the
rest omit_. 35. Gg. seyn; F. tel; _the rest_ sey (say). 37. F. In-to;
_rest_ In. F. Aufryke; Gg. Affrik. 39. _For_ hit _all wrongly have_ he; see
ll. 36, 43. 40. Harl. betwix; F. betwixt. 41. Gg. Affrican; F. Aufrikan.
42. F. on; _rest_ in. 43. F. tolde he hym; Gg. Trin. Cx. Harl. tellith it;
O. Ff. tellithe he. 44. Gg. Affrycan; F. Aufrikan. F. y-shewed; _rest_
schewid, shewyd, &c.

46. Gg. other; Th. eyther; _rest_ or. 49. Gg. There as Ioye is that last
with outy_n_; F. There Ioy is that lasteth with-out. 50. F. _inserts_ the
_after_ if; _rest omit_. 52. Gg. Affrican; F. Aufrikan. 53. Gg. Ff. that;
Trin. Cx. Harl. how; F. _om. _ 54. Cx. Nis; Gg. Nys; F. Trin. Harl. Ff.
Meneth. 55. Gg. _and rest_ after; F. whan. Gg. Ff. gon; Harl. O. gone. 56.
Cx. galaxye; F. Ff. galoxye; O. galoxie. i. watlynstrete; Harl. galorye;
Trin. galry (! ); Gg. galylye (! ). 58. Gg. _and rest_ the; Harl. tho; F.
_om. _ 62. T. Cx. Harl. O. That welles of musyk be (ben). 64. Gg. Ff. Tha_n_
bad he hy_m_ syn erthe was so lyte; F. Than bad he hym see the erthe that
is so lite (_wrongly_). 65. Cx. Trin. Harl. O. ful of torment and; F. was
somedel fulle; Gg. was su_m_del disseyuable and ful (! ). 69. Gg. _and rest_
schulde (schuld, shuld); F. shal. 70. F. was; _rest_ is.

71. F. O. he; _rest_ him. Gg. _and rest_ to; F. _om. _ 72. Gg. Trin. Harl.