1

"Consummatum est!" quoth Christ, and comsed1 for to swow, 2

Piteously and pale, as a prisoner that dieth;

The Lord of life and of light tho3 laid his eyen together;
The day for dread withdrew, and dark became the sun;
The vail wagged and cleft, and all the world quaved ;1
Dead men for that din came out of deep graves
And told why that tempest so large time dured.
"For a bitter battle," the dead body said,

"Life and Death in this darkness the one fordoth 5 the other;
Shall no wight wit witterly who shall have the maistery
Ere Sunday about sun-rising :" and sank with that till earth.
Passus XVIII.

GIFTS OF GRACE.

"Forthy," quoth Grace, "ere I go, I will give you treasure, And weapons to fight with when Anti-christ you assaileth ;" And gave each man a grace to gye3 with himselven, That idleness encumber him not, envy ne pride.

Some he gave wit9 with wordes to shewe,

Wit to win their liflode 10 with, as the world asketh,
As preachers and priestes and prentices of lawe,
They leally11 to live by labour of tongue,

And by wit to wissen12 other as Grace them would teach;
And some he kenned13 crafte and cunning of sight
With selling and buying their by-life to winne;
And some he leared to labour14 a leal15 life and a true;
And some he taught to tille, to dike, and to thatche,
To win with their liflode by lore of his teaching;
And some to divine and divide, numbers16 to kenne,
And some to compass craftily and colours to make;
And some to see and to say18 what should befalle
Both of weal and of wo, tell it or19 it fell,

As astronomians through astronomy, and philosophers wise;
And some to ride, and to recover20 that unrightfully was wonne;
He wissed21 them win it again through wightness of handes,
And fetchen it fro false men with foluyles22 laws;
And some he leared to live in longing to been hence,23

In poverty and in penance to pray for all Cristene :

And all he leared to be leal,1 and eache craft love other,
And forbade them all debate, that none were among them.
Though some be cleaner than some, ye see well," quoth

66

Grace,

"That he that useth the fairest craft to the foulest I could have put him.

Thinketh all," quoth Grace, "that grace cometh of my gift;
Look that none lacke2 other, but loveth all as brethren;
And who that most maistries can,3 be mildest of bearing;
And crowneth Conscience king, and maketh Craft your
steward;

And, after Craftes counsel, clotheth you and feed.

Passus XIX.

THE MARCH OF DEATH.

Elde the hoar, he was in the vauntward,

And bare the banner before Death: by right he it claimed. Kind came after with many keen sores,

As pocks and pestilences, and much people shent ;7

So Kind through corruptions killed full many.

Death came driving after, and all to dust pashed,—
Kinges and knightes, kaisers and popes;

Leared ne lewed9 he let no man stonde,
That he hit even, that ever stirred after.
Many a lovely lady and lemans1o of knightes

Swouned and swelted for sorrow of Death's dints.
Conscience of his courtesy to Kind he besought
To cease and suffer, and see where they wolde
Leave pride privily and be parfet Christen.
And Kind ceased then, to see the people amend.

Fortune gan flatteren then those few that were alive,
And behight11 them long life; and Lechery12 he sent
Amongst all manner men, wedded and unwedded,
And gathered a great host all against Conscience.
This Lechery led on with a laughing cheere13
And with privy speech and painted wordes,
And armed him in idleness and in high bearing.

He bare a bow in his hand, and many bloody arrows

Weren feathered with fair behest11 and many a false truth..

And Eld anon after me, and over mine head gede,15

And made me bald before, and bare on the crowne;
So hard he gede over mine head it will be seen ever.

"Sir evil-ytaught Eld," quoth I, "unhend,1 go with thee! Sith when was the way over men's heades?

Hadst thou been hend,” quoth I, “thou wouldst have asked leave!"

"Yea! leave lordane,” quoth he, and laid on me with age, And hit me under the ear unneth2 may I hear;

He buffeted me about the mouth, and beat out my teeth,
And gyvèd me in gouts, I may not go at large.
And of the woe that I was in my wife had ruth,
And wished full bitterly that I were in heaven.

And as I sate in this sorrow I saw how Kind passed;
And Death drew nigh me: for dread gan I quake,
And cried to Kind out of care me to bring.

"Lo! Elde the hoar hath me be-seye;
Awreak1 me, if your will be, for I would be hence."

"Gif 5 thou wilt been ywroken, wend into Unity,7 And hold thee there ever till I send for thee;

And look thou con some craft ere thou come hence."

"Counsel me, Kind," quoth I, "what craft is best to learn?" "Learn to love," quoth Kind, "and leave off all other." "How shall I come to chattels so, to clothe me and to

feed ?"

"And thou love leally," quoth he, "lack shall thee never Meat ne worldly weed10 while thy life lasteth."

Passus XX.

JOHN GOWER.
(?-1408.)

GOWER, a wealthy "esquire" of Kent, was already known as the author of (1) a French poem, called Speculum Meditantis ("The Meditative Man's Glass"), and (2) a Latin poem called Vox Clamantis, on the subject of Wat Tyler's Insurrection ("The Voice of One Crying"), when at length in his old age he undertook, at the request of the young King Richard II., to write a third poem in his native tongue. This English poem had likewise a Latin title, Confessio Amantis 6 Avenged.

1 Uncivil. 2 Scarce. 3 Beset. 4 Avenge me. 7 Go, dwell with Unity. 8 Come to wealth.

5 If.

9 Faithfully. 10 Clothing.

("The Lover's Confession"), and was written between the years 1386 and 1393, the period of Chaucer's greatest works. It consists of a Prologue and eight Libri or Books, is throughout in the octo-syllabic rhymed couplet, and has for its main subject the Confessions of a love-sick youth to a priest of Venus, whom he calls Genius. Within this framework of a narrative are interwoven a number of stories from the mediæval romances, the Gesta Romanorum, the Classic writers, and the Bible; and one whole Book is devoted to an exposition of Aristotelian philosophy.

Gower and Chaucer were associated in life as friends and fellow-poets; and we are still in the habit of linking their names, as if recognising some essential likeness in their writings. Nor is the custom altogether without reason. Both used the same courtly dialect of English and rhymed metre, and, in some cases, they borrowed their stories from the same source. Both had closely studied the vernacular literatures of France and Italy, and were especially familiar with the writings of Boccaccio. Also, the poetry of Gower and Chaucer was wholly ideal and artistic, their aim being to delight the world rather than to inform or to correct it; and they are, in this respect, to be distinguished both from Langland the Moralist, and from Barbour, whose Bruce may be said to represent the nearest approach in that age to our modern prose form, the historical romance.

The Confessio Amantis was a great favourite in its author's life-time; and, for two centuries after his death, Gower was held in high repute among our poets on account of his excellent English and rare erudition. He has, however, long since fallen out of his first popularity; and the name of “moral Gower," to whom Chaucer entrusted, as to his most able contemporary, the correction of his own verses, is become in these days almost a synonym for dulness. A few passages may be found in the dreary length of the Confession which are worth preserving, if not for their poetic merit, at least for a certain winning grace and innocent sentimentality, which are perhaps Gower's best characteristics.

FROM CONFESSIO AMANTIS.

THE OLD TIME AND THE NEW.

If I shall draw into my mind
The timè passed, then I find
The world stood in all his1 wealth.
Then was the life of man in health;
Then was plenty, then was richesse;
Then was the fortune of prowesse ;
Then was knight-hood in pris2 by name,
Whereof the wide worldès3 fame,
Writ in croniques, is yet withhold.
Justice of lawes then was hold ;5
The privilege of regalie

Was safe; and all the baronie
Worshipped was in his1 estate.
The cities knewen no debate;
The people stood in obeisance
Under the rule of governance;
And Peace, with Rightwisnessè kest,8
With Charity then stood in rest.
Of mannès heartè the couràge
Was shewed then in the visàge;
The word was like to the conceit,
Withoutè semblaunt of deceit.
Then was there unenvièd love;
Then was virtue set above,
And vice was put under foot.

Now stant10 the crop11 under the root;
The world is changed over all,

And thereof most in special

That love is fallen into discord.

Prologue.

THE VAINGLORIOUS LOVER.

Confessor. The proud vice of vainglory
Remembreth nought of purgatory;
His worldès joyes been so great
Him thinketh heaven no begete."

1 Its (old form).
5 Maintained.
9 Thought.

2 Prized.

6 Ruling.

10 Standeth.

3 World-wide.

7 Nobility.

12

4 Retained..

8 Kissed.

11 Head or top of a plant. 12 Advantage.