Disciplina Clericalis/Tale 19
XIX.[1] The Thief and the Moonbeam
"It is saide that suche a thief went to the house of suche a Richeman of entent to Robbe and stele; and ascended vp to the Roof and cam to the wyndowe or lover bi whiche the smoke went out and herkened if any withyn were awake. That whiche the lord of the house aperceived [and] saide softly vnto his wif: 'Aske and crie thow with an high voice whens it cam to me, the grete plente of money that I have. That as to cry and reherse laboure thow moche.' Than she with a grete voice saide: 'Sir, wherof hastow somoche money and thow wer never no Marchaunt?' [And he]: 'That god hath gyven kepe thow and do therof thi wil and aske nat wherof somoche money comyth.' And she, as she was enjoyned, more and more cried, reherced, and stired. Than he therof as coarted to the praiers of his wif saide: 'See that thow ne discovre oure counsail to any man; I was a thief.' Than saide she: 'It seemyth wonder to me how somoche money thow myghtest purchace and gete with theft and never I herd clayme ne chalange therof.[2] Than saide he: 'Suche a Maister of myn taught me a charme that I shuld sey[3] whan I shuld ascende to the Roof of the house. And comyng to the wyndow I toke the beame of the Moone with myn hand and vii tymes saide my charme, that is to say, Saule. And so I descendid and cam doun without perel, and what precious thyng I fond in the house I tooke it; and that don eftsones I cam to the beame of the Moone and the same charme vii tymes saide, with al that taken in the house I ascended and bare awey and brought to my howse. With suche engyne and wit I possede the money that I now have.' Than the wif saide: 'Thow didest weele of tho[4] thynges that thow hast saide and told to me; forwhi whan I have a sone I shal teche hym this charme that he shal nat neede to be poore.' And than the lord of the house saide: 'Suffre me now to sleepe for I am hevy of sleepe and wold rest.' And as somoche the more he mygt disceive the thief he snorted and Rented as he had bigonne to sleepe. And the thief[5] parceiving thoo wordis was glad and vii tymes saide the same charme and with his hand tooke the beame of the (f. 131b) Moone, straught out his handis and his feete from the wyndow, and fil in to the house, makyng a grete sowne and noise and with his bak and his arm broken lay wailyng. And the lord of the house as nat knowing [it] saide: 'Who art thow whiche fallist so?' To that the thief: 'I [am] an vnhappy[6] thief whiche trustid to thi fals and guylful wordis'."
To this the sone: "Fader, blissed be thow for thow hast taught me to beware of fals and gyleful counsail."[7]
(f. 135b) The philosopher: 'Biware the counsail of therfbrede til it be sowre dowgh.' Another: 'Ne bilieve the counsail that thow denyest of the moever of anothers goode dede, forwhi who that denyeth a goode deede bifore the eyen of hem all that hym biholdith hymsilf accusith.' Another: 'If thow be in any goodenes ne synne thow nat: kepe the,[8] for oftentyme the grettest goodenes is mynushid and made lasse or lost bi the lest'." The disciple asked his Maister: "Whether the philosopher forbedith a goode deede of his creator and maker or of his creature?"[9] To this the Maister: "I sey to the that he whiche denyeth a goode deede he denyeth god; and he whiche obeieth nat vnto his kyng and Ruler is disobedient vnto god." The disciple saide: "Shewe the reason how that may be." The Maister saide: "No goode deede procedit from creature to creature but it procede of god; and he the whiche denyeth a goode deede denyeth his benefactours and so he denyeth god, also the kyng whiche is Ruler and the veray trewe yerde of god is in erth."[10] Another philosopher saith: 'Kepe the from the kyng whiche is fiers as a lioun and light to wrath as a chield.' Another: (f. 136) 'Whiche saith evil of his king bifore the time of his deth'.[11] Another saith: 'God suffrith lengger a synful kyng to Reigne in his persone if he be goode and meke to his people than he doeth a iust kyng in his persone if he be evil and cruel to his people.'[12]
Aristotil in his Epistel chasticed Alexander the kyng so saieng; 'Bettir it is with a fewe pesibly to Rule than to hold to grete chivalry'.[13] Also: 'Hold Rightwise justice bitwene men and they shuln love the; and array the nat[14] to yielde to any the borowed chaunge of goode or evil, forwhi a friend shal abide the long'."[15]
- ↑ No. XXIV in the original, I, 33, l. 8.
- ↑ Lat. Calumpniam inde.
- ↑ Ms. releas 'whan that I shuld sey.'
- ↑ Ms. 'that of tho.'
- ↑ Ms. 'thyng.'
- ↑ Ms. more like 'vphappy.'
- ↑ Part of the connecting link between this and the following exemplum, as the tales are arranged in the Latin (see I, 34), was taken out of its proper setting by the English translator, or by some copyist of the Middle English version, and shifted to the end of tale No. XXVII (No. XXXIV of the original and the real conclusion of the Disciplina), there serving as part of the connecting link between XXVII and XXVIII. In this reprint it is inserted where it naturally comes in the Latin.
- ↑ Lat. ne pecces serva.
- ↑ Lat. (I, 34, l. 8) Prohibuit philosophus benefactum denegare; sed non divisit benefactum creatoris et creaturae?
- ↑ The Latin differs from the English in this sentence, Item: Rex qui rector verax est, virga Dei in terra est; et ille qui obedit virgae, obedit rectori; et ille qui non obedit virgae, non obedit Deo, I, 34, ll. 14-15.
- ↑ According to the Latin (I, 34, l. 18) this is: 'Who speaks evil of the king shall die before his time.'
- ↑ Then we go back to f. 132b of the Worc. Ms., near the top of the page.
- ↑ Lat. (I, 34, l. 22) magnam militiam tenere.
- ↑ Lat. nec properes.
- ↑ Lat (I, 34, ll. 23-24) quia diutius expectabit te amicus et diutius timebit te inimicus.