Disciplina Clericalis/Tale 16
XVI.[1] Master Tailor and his Apprentice Nedwy
"It is saide[2] that suche a kyng had suche a Tailour the whiche dyvers tymes shoope to hym dyvers clothis apt vnto his body. And he had disciples and lerners of sowyng whiche everiche of hem craftily sowed.[3] Among the whiche [was] oo disciple named Nedwy whiche in the craft of [sowyng] was the best and past any of his felawes. But a grete feste day comyng the kyng cald vnto hym his tailour and his drapers and comaunded hem to array for the tyme comyng for hym and for his seruauntis precious clothis. That as soone and without any impedyment it were don, oon of his chambrelayns, a geldyng of whom was thoffice and the warde of sowers to kepe, addid and saide as that noon of hem observe ne kepe no croked nor long nailes, and praied that he shuld mynistre vnto hem sufficient necessaries. But in a day the mynistres of the kyng hote brede and hony with other disshes to the tailour and his felawship yaven to ete, and whiche that ther wern comaunded to ete. To whom so etyng saide the geldyng: 'Maister, whi ete yee, and Nedwy beyng absent neither yee abide hym nat?' Quod the Maister: 'Forwhi he etith no hony though he were here.' And so they eten. Than cam Nedwy and saide: 'Whi ete yee and I absent nor therof kepe my part?' Than the geldyng saide: 'Thy Maister saide that thow etist no hony thowgh thow haddest bien here.' And he was stil and thought how that he myght recompense and quite his Maister. And this don Nedwy in his Maister absence secretly saide to the geldyng: 'Sir, my Maister is frentik and while he suffrith that he leesith his wit and vndiscretly betith and hurtith theym that bien aboute hym.' To whom the geldyng: 'If I knewe the tyme whan this to hym fallith, nat vnwarly don, I shuld bynde hym and with whippes correcte hym.' Than Nedwy saide: 'Whan thow seest hym bihold and looke hider and thider and betyng the grounde with his handis and risyng from his seete and castyng awey the stoole that he sat on with his hand, than thow maist knowe that he is out of his wit; and but if thow and thyne[4] provide with a staf he wil hurte or breke yowr (f. 129b) hedis.' To this the Geldyng: 'Blessid be thow; forwhi from hensfurth I shal purvey for me and myn.' Suche thynges saide, Nedwy the next suyng [day] secretly hid his Maister sheeris; and he[5] nat fyndyng hem bigan to smyte the grounde with his handis and to biholde here and there, arisyng from his seete and the stoole that he sat vpon to overterve. The geldyng seeyng this anon cald felawship and saide: 'Bynde yee the tailour that he ne bete ne smyte nonother and grevously bete ye hym.' But the tailour cried so and saide: 'What have I forfeted, or what or wherfor bete yee me thus?' But thei the more sharply betyn hym and wern stil forsoth. Whan they wern wery of betyng and scourgyng hym, thei leften and loosed hym only with the lif. The whiche respityng but a long while bitwene, asked of the geldyng what he had forfeted. To this the geldyng saide: 'Thi disciple Nedwy told me that whan thow art out of thi wit and woode that neither but in bondis and betynges thow be corrected, thow canst nat ceese; and therf or I bond the and bete the.' The tailour heryng this cald Nedwy his disciple and saide: 'Friend, whan knewistow me out of wit?' To this[6] the disciple: 'Whan knewistow me nat to ete hony?' The geldyng and other heryng this lawghed and demed ever either worthi his penaunce that he had taken." To this the fader saide: "Meritorily this fil, forwhi if he had kept that Moyses comaunded as to love his brother as hymsilf, this had nat[7] happed or come vnto hym."[8]
The link contains the following: The wise man reproved his son saying: "Be careful to make no charges against thy companion either seriously or in sport, lest it befall thee as it befell the two jesters before the king." To this the son: "Tell me about that father, I pray thee." The father: "All right. A certain jester once came to the king, whom the king made to sit at meat with another jester. But the latter began to be envious of the new comer after his arrival because the king had favored him more than himself and all those about the court. And in order that this state of things might not last long he planned to put him in disgrace so that he would have to run away. Therefore while the others were eating the first jester put the bones together and placed them before his companion; and when the meal was finished he showed the king the pile of bones, arranged for the disgrace of his companion, saying sharply: 'My companion has eaten the covering of all those bones.' And the king looked at him with an angry scowl. But the accused said to the king: 'Master I did it because my nature, as is human, required me to eat the flesh and throw away the bones; and my companion did what his nature, apparently that of a dog, demanded, in eating both flesh and bones'."
The philosopher said: "Honor thyself as the lesser person and give him of thy substance, just as thou wishest that the greater honor thee and give thee of his substance." Another: "It is indeed base for a rich man to be avaricious, but it is beautiful for man of moderate means to be liberal."[9]
The disciple saide to the Maister: "Write thow to me the diffinicioun of the largesse, the Auarous, and the Prodogus; that is to say, the large or free man, the Covetous man, and the wastour."[10] [The fader]: "Whiche yevith to whom it is to yeve and withholdith and reteyneth to whom it is to withold, is[11] large; and [whiche] forbedith to whom it is forboden and to whom it is nat forboden [is] covetous.[12] And who that yevith to whom it is nat to yeve is a wastour."[13]
"Do not engage in a business that is failing, and do not delay to become associated with a growing business." Another: "A little happiness is of more worth than a house full of gold and silver." Another: "Strive for the useful with great care, not with great haste." Another: "Do not look upon one richer than thyself lest thou sin against him, but upon one who is poorer than thyself and then thank God." Another: "Do not deny God because of poverty, and do not be proud because of riches," Another: "He who desires much is always consumed with hunger for more." Another: "If you only wish to have as much in this world as will suffice for nature, it is not fitting that you acquire much; and if you wish to satisfy an avaricious mind, then, though you acquired everything on the face of the earth, the lust for gain will still burn within you." Another: "His wealth will last long who spends it sparingly." Another: "The source of peace is not to desire what belongs to another, and the fruit of it is to have rest." Another: "Whoever wishes to abandon life, let him see that he retain nothing that belongs to it, since only so much is worth while, unless he will extinguish the fire with dross." Another: "Whoever acquires wealth, works hard and languishes with watchfulness that he may not lose it; then he is wretched when he loses what he had acquired." The disciple to the master: "Do you praise the gaining of money?" The master: "Indeed! gain it; but spend it justly and for good purposes, and do not conceal it in your treasury."
And another philosopher saith: "Ne desire thow non other mans thyng and sorow thow nat of thynges lost, for of sorowe nothyng shalbe recoverable." Wherof he saith:
- ↑ No. XX in the original. See I, 28, l. 13.
- ↑ Lat. Narravit mihi magister mens.
- ↑ The English omits here quod magister incisor regis artificiose scindebat.
- ↑ Lat. nisi tibi et tuis provideris; 'with a staf' not in Lat.
- ↑ English omits At incisor quaerens forfices, I, 29, l. 2.
- ↑ 'This', repeated in Ms.
- ↑ 'hadde nat' repeated in Ms.
- ↑ The rest of the link and the immediately following tale of the original version (The Two Jesters—De doubus ioculatoribus) are omitted in the English translation.
- ↑ At this point in the connecting link between tales XXI and XXII of the Latin (cf. I, p. 30) the Middle English takes up the thread of the story again.
- ↑ Lat. (I, 30, l. 1) Discipulus ait: Diffinitionem largi et avari et prodigi mihi subscribe. Pater, et cet.
- ↑ Ms. 'and'.
- ↑ Ms. 'and covetous to whom it is nat forboden'; Lat. Et qui prohibet quibus prohibendum est et quibus non est prohibendum, avarus est.
- ↑ The English omits the rest of the link, excepting the speech of the last one of the several philosophers who engage in the discussion.