[15] either.
[16] moving.
+ _Of the woman that sayd her woer came too late._ ix.
+ Another woman there was that knelyd at the mas of requiem, whyle the
corse of her husbande lay on the bere in the chyrche. To whome a yonge
man cam and spake wyth her in her ere, as thoughe it had ben for som
mater concernyng the funerallys; howe be it he spake of no suche matter,
but onely wowyd her that he myght be her husbande to whom she answered
and sayde thus: syr, by my trouthe I am sory that ye come so late, for I
am sped all redy. For I was made sure yesterday to another man.
By thys tale ye maye perceyue that women ofte tymes be wyse and lothe to
lose any tyme.
+ _Of the mylner with the golden thombe._[17] x.
+ A marchaunt that thought to deride a mylner seyd vnto the mylner
syttynge amonge company: sir, I haue harde say that euery trew mylner
that tollyth trewlye hathe a gylden thombe. The myllner answeryd and
sayde it was true. Than quod the marchant: I pray the let me se thy
thombe; and when the mylner shewyd hys thombe the marchant sayd: I can
not perceyue that thy thombe is gylt; but it is as all other mens
thombes be. To whome the mylner answered and sayde: syr, treuthe it is
that my thombe is gylt; but ye haue no power to se it: for there is a
properte euer incydent _vnto it_, that he that is a cockolde shall neuer
haue power to se it.[18]
+ _Of the horseman of Irelande that prayde Oconer for to hange up the
frere._ xi.
+ One whiche was called Oconer, an Yrysshe lorde, toke an horsman
prisoner that was one of hys great enmys whiche for any request or
entrety that the horsman made gaue iugement that he sholde incontynent
be hanged, and made a frere to shryue hym and bad hym make hem redy to
dye. Thys frere that shroue him examyned hym of dyuers synnes, and asked
him amonge other whiche were the gretteste synnes that euer he dyd. This
horsman answered and sayd: one of the greatest actys that euer I dyd
whiche I now most repent is that, whan I toke Oconer the last weke in a
chyrche, and there I myght haue brennyd[19] hym chyrche and all, and
because I had conscience and pyte of brennyng of the chyrche, I taryed
the tyme so long, that Oconer escaped; and that same deferrynge of
brennynge of the chyrche and so longe taryeng of that tyme is one of the
worst actes that euer I dyd wherof I moste[20] repent. This frere
perceuynge hym in that mynde sayde: peace in the name of God, and change
thy mynde and dye in charite, or els thou shalt neuer come in heuen.
Nay, quod the horsman, I wyll neuer chaunge that mynde what so euer
shall come to my soule. Thys frere perceyuynge hym thus styl contynew
his minde, cam to Oconer and sayde: syr, in the name of God, haue some
pyte vppon this mannys sowle, and let hym not dye now, tyl he be in a
beter mynde. For yf he dye now, he is so ferre out of cheryte, that
vtterly his soule shall be dampned, and [he] shewyd hym what minde he
was in and all the hole mater as is before shewyd. Thys horsman, herynge
the frere thus intrete for hym, sayd to Oconer thus: Oconer, thou seest
well by thys mannys reporte that, yf I dye now, I am out of charyte and
not redy to go to heuen; and so it is that I am now out of charyte in
dede; but thou seest well that this frere is a good man and he is now
well dysposed and in charyte and he is redy to go to heuen, and so am
not I. Therfore I pray the hang vp this frere, whyle that he is redy to
go to heuen and let me tary tyl another tyme, that I may be in charyte
and redy and mete to go to heuen. Thys Oconer, herying thys mad answere
of hym, sparyd the man and forgaue hym hys lyfe at that season.
By thys ye may se, that he that is in danger of hys enmye that hath no
pite, he can do no beter but shew to hym the vttermost of his malycyous
mynde whych that he beryth to ward hym.