a tyme was that she trowed hir husband drunke;[1] of whiche the
womman [ignorant][2] aros out of hir bedde in the nyght and went
to the doore of the house and opened and went hir out to hir love.
Hir husbond in the scilence and stilnes of the nyght softly arisyng
cam to the doore and founde it open and shit it and made it fast and
went vp to the wyndowe and stoode ther in his shirte[3] til that
he sawe his wif torne ageyn willyng to entre and founde the doore
shit. Wherof hir soule sorowed and so [she] knokked at the
doore. The husbond heryng his wif and seeyng and as he knewe
nat asked what she was; and she askyng foryevenes promyttyng
never to do more so. In this it profited hir nat, but the husbond
in his wrath saide that she shuld nat be suffred ther to entre, but
to his friendes[4] and hirs it shuld be shewed. But she the more
and more cryeng saide that but if he opened the doore she wold
skippe in to the pitte the whiche that was next the house and so
end hir lif; and so of hir deth he shuld yield reason to hir friendis
and neighburghs. He dispisyng his wifes threatis and manacis wold
nat suffre hir to entre. The womman ful of art and guyle toke vp
a grete ston and cast in the diche, to this entent that hir husbond
herying the sowne of the stoon fallyng in to the diche shuld trowe
that she were falle into the diche; and this don she hid hir secretely
bihynde the diche. The simple man and vnwise herying a maner
sowne of fallyng in to the diche without and tarieng went out
of his hous in a grete haasty cours wenyng and trowyng
that his wif had lept in to the diche. But the womman
seyng the dore open, nat foryeteful of hir craft entred the house
and shit the (f. 125b) dore fast and went vp to the wyndow. He
seeyng hymsilf so disceived saide: 'O thow false guyleful and ful
of the devils craft, suffre me to entre and whatsumever thow hast
don to me, wihoutfurth bileeve thow for a soth that I foryeve it.'
To whom with grete blamyng and vttirly with othis sweryng [she]
saide he shuld no entre have ther. And moreover saide: 'O thow
traitor, of thi cursid deedis I shall shewe vnto [thy parents] forwhi
every nyght thow art wont thiefly to go from me and go to thi
strumpettis.' And so she dide. The friendis forsoth heryng this
estemed and trowed it for a sooth and blamed the man. And so
was the womman delyvered with hir fals craft, and al the wite and
Page:Disciplina Clericalis (English translation) from the fifteenth century Worcester Cathedral Manuscript F. 172.djvu/40
34
WESTERN RESERVE STUDIES
