the holy man had answered him, he said: 'None in this world is so great a sinner, but if he convert him our Lord would pardon him; but who that slayeth himself by hard penance shall never find mercy.' And anon this holy man knew by the revelation the fallacy and deceit of the fiend, how he would have withdrawn him for to do well. And when the devil saw that he might not prevail against him, he tempted him by grevious temptation of the flesh, and when this holy servant of God felt that, he despoiled him of his clothes and beat himself right hard with a hard cord, saying: 'Thus, brother ass, it behoveth thee to remain and to be beaten'; and when the temptation departed not, he went out and plunged himself in the snow all naked. And anon the devil departed from him all confused, and S. Francis returned again into his cell glorifying God.
And as he dwelled on a time with Leo the cardinal of S. Cross, in a night the devils came to him and beat him right grievously. Then he called his fellow and said to him: 'These be devils, jailers of our Lord, whom he sendeth to punish the excesses, but I can remember me of none offences that I have done, but by the mercy of God I have washed them away by satisfaction. But peradventure he hath sent me them because he will not suffer me to fall, because I dwell in the courts of great lords, which thing peradventure engendereth not good suspection to my right poor brethern, which suppose I abound in delices.' And early in the morning he arose and departed thence.
There was a friar which was fellow of S. Francis was on a time ravished, and saw in spirit the glorious
