The.v. chapyter

The author proueth that ye spyrytu[…]ll iudges dyd ye man meruylouse fau[…]ur / & alm[…]st more than laufull / in that they admytted hym to such[…] an abiuracyō as they dyd / and that they dyd not rather leue hym to the secular handys.

WHy q he what dyuyll rygoure could they more haue shewed for the fyrst tyme / than make hy[…] ad[…]re and bere a faggot? Yes q[…] I som mā h[…]d l[…]uer bere twayn […] in hys […]/than haue one […]ere hym […] on a fyre a[…] hys feete. In […]th qu[…]d he they coud not haue done […] to hym at the fyrst tyme. No q I no[…] yf he wyllyngly retourned to ye chyrch knoulegynge hys faute / & redy to abiure all heresyes / and penetently submytted hymselfe to penaunce. And ellys yf he proue hym selfe obstynate and impenytent / the chyrch neyther is bounden nor oughte to receyue hym / but vtterly may forsake hym and leue hym to the secular[…] handys. But now was he so obstynate that he wolde not abiure of lōg tyme. And dyuerse dayes were hys iudgꝭ fayne of theyr fauour to geue hym / wyth sufferaunce som his beste frendys & whom he most trusted / to resorte vnto hym. And yet scantely could all thys make hym submytte hī selfe to make hys abiuracyon. And fynally were they fayne for sauynge of hys lyfe / to dyuyse a forme of abiuracyon / wherof I neuer saw y• lyke / nor in so playne a case neuer wold we[…]e I y• iudg / suffer ye lyke here after. what man was that quod he? Mary qu[…]d I hys abiuracyon was suche that he therī abiured & forsware all her[…]sy[…]s / knowlegyng hym selfe lawfully conuycte. But where as they be wont to cōfesse in theyr owne abiuracyon that they haue holden such heresyes and be gyltye therof / that wolde he do in no wyse / but as clerely as hys f[…]wte was proued / and by as many / yet wolde he not to dye therfore confesse hym selfe fawtye / but alway stode styll vppō yt in vertue of hys othe that all they belyed hym. It myght happen quod he that he had forgoten yt he so had pched. That were quod I grete wounder. For I am sure whan he had […]er[…]ed so in so many placys / he had not done yt of a sodayne aduenture / but of a delyberat purpose / whych excepte he fell madde / yt were no well pos[…]yble f[…]r hym in so grete a mater to forgete. And bysydꝭ thys yt was also deposed / th[…] ī a place where he pched/he was after the sermon resoned wythall forth[…]. And by an honest ley mā had yt layed vnto hys charge / yt he had parelousely preched / shewyng hym wherin. Wher vnto he made answere not that he had not sayed so / nor that he had not ment so / or that they had mysse taken and wrong vnderstanden hys wordis / but that he wold preche there agayne son[…] after / and proue hys prechynge trewe by the olde doctours of the chyrch. And thys happed hym not longe byfore yt he was accused. Was yt not possyble by your fayth that he coulde haue forgote thys? It was quod he possyble ynough that all to gether was false / & that they lyed all. For so myght they do by possybylyte beyng but men / and though they had ben mo thē they were. And then he peraduenture knowynge that they so dyd / why sholde he falslye confes[…] a fawte in hym selfe for the falsehed of other folke? That is q I trew yf he so knew yt. But how could yt be so / agaynst so many ꝓuys sworen and dep[…]syng the mater vppon theyr othꝭ / beyng though they were but mē / yet men of wytte and honestye[…] some well lerned also / and men that bare hym no dyspleasur for eny other mater than hys euyll prechyng / men almoste all such as wold h[…]ue none other mater to hym / folke that neuer had other mater wyth hym / and many of them of lytell acqua[…]ntaunce or […] the one wyth the other / so t[…] the[…]e was n[…] fere of conspyryng to gyder ī one […] […]et quod he were yt possyble yt they myght ly[…] all. And what quod I yt he had b[…] ̄ accused[…] other placꝭ byfore[…] […] both there had gone of l[…]te[…] horse or two / and that he wold so clerely proue yt that yt coulde not be the contrary. yf Sy[…]en sayd and layd hys wager the cōtrary / and than they bothe shold chese vs for iudges / and we comynge all foure in to the way / Wylken wold shew vs on the grounde parte in ye clay and part peraduenture in the snow the prent of horse fete and of mennys fete also by a longe way ten myle togyder and ye wyll / tyll they come at a water wher as went a way by shyp no mā can tell who nor whyther yt forceth not for our wyse case / but now yf Wylken wolde say that he had wonne hys wager / for lo here ye se the prent of ye horse fete all thys waye shone and all wyth the very naylys in them / so that yt maye be none other wyse but horse h[…]the gone here / yf Symken after all thys wold say the wager were hys for yt ys not proued that ony horse hadde goone there / for yt myght be that they were geldyngꝭ or ma[…]ꝭ / here were we fallen in a grete questyon of the law / whyther ye gray mare maye be ye better horse or not / or whither he haue a wyse face or not that loketh as lyke a foole as an ewe loketh lyke a shepe. And in thys question yf the partyes demurred in our iudgement / we myght aske aduyse ferther of lernyd men and iudgis We myght quod he be suyt to be sure of the mater / make yt a cheker chamber case. Or sauynge the premunyre / we myght haue yt tryed in the rote at Rome. Uery well q I so that I see wel by your wytte and myn togyder / one shy[…]e or other we shold fynde for a finall ende therin / yf the doute were in that poynte. But nowe yf Symken styc[…]ed not therto / but wold saye thus lo here ye see the men haue g[…]e […] way / and how can y[…] th[…]n be […]e that eny horse wente here. For I […] […]ayth he that these men whyche went here had horse sh[…]e in theyr […] made fast vpō longe s[…]elys / and […] as they went prykked thē downe hath in the grounde[…] Cut quod he this […] a wy[…]e inuencyon. Ueryly q I to […] yt wold not seme very gay. But nowe yf Symkyn were contencyous & wold say the wager were hys except yt be so proued that yt can be none other wyse but that horse haue of late gone there & then wyll say to vs lo syrs as ye se it yt may be other wyse. For mē myght make wyth theyr hādys all the prentꝭ of horse shone in the grounde. And thā yf we wolde say that was neuer so / he wolde aske vs how can we be sure therof / whyle we can not say naye but yt myght be so / and thā wold […]yll prece vppon vs wyth thys questyon maye yt not be so. It may q he by possybylite be so. Than quod I whan we graūt hym onys that yt may be so / than wyll he by and by put case that yt were so. And then yf we graunt hym hys case onys for the possybylyte / than wyll he shortely conclude that the tother parte ys not so surely proued / as yt must be yf Wylken sholde wynne the wager. What sholde we saye to hym now / to whom shold we gyue the wager? In fayth quod he I wote nere what to say to hym. And the mater is so mad that as for the wager what I wolde gyue Wylkyn I wote nere / but as for Symkyn except he better impugned ye profe / yf the wager were but a butter flye / I wolde neuer awarde hym one wynge. Surely quod I and you shall rule ye m[…]er for me. For yf ye gyue n[…]ught / he getteth as lytell of me. But nowe what yf he waxe angry yt his proper inuencyon were no more set by / nor hys wyt no more regarded / and wold ther vppō help forth his parte with his othe and swere vppō a bo[…]e that hymselfe saw when the mē made those pryntys in ye grounde wyth horse sh[…]ne h[…]lden in theyr handys / what wolde ye then say? Mary quod he than wold I say & swere to yt besyde ye losse of his wager he had like a false folysh knaue lost his honeste & his soule to. In good fayth quod I & for aught I se yet I durst be bold to swere wt you. And thā lettyng wylken alone wt Symken dysputyng theyr sophem them self / let vs retorne […] agayne to oure owne mater. In which whyle there were so many so clere & open prouys agaīst ye mā of whom we speke al this whyle / though it were possyble yt all they myght be false / yet coulde there none indyfferent iudge so thynke / except it were so proued / & yt by other meanes thā ye only othe of ye ꝑtie yt is accused / swerīg alone agaynst thē all. Yet q he for all yt yf he know indede yt he dyd it not / he doth but wel to abyde by ye trouthe. Uery soth ye say quod I. Nor Symken neyther yf he saw the men prent the horse shone in ye hyghe waye though yt semed vs neuer so vnlykely / yet hadde he done well ynough to saye yt & swere yt to & styfly to stycke therby[…] And yet ye remember parde that yf he so wolde haue sworne ye & I both durst ryght now ryght boldely haue bileued yt he lyed. And might we not wel byleue the same in our case to? Yes quod he yt wyll I well. And therfore the iudgys dyd hym but ryght to reken hym as conuycted / and therfore to compell hym to […]. But yet they shewed hym therin no suche fauour as ye speke of / in yt they admitted hym to hys abiuracyō wtout cōfessynge of ye faute. For yf they had forced hym therto / they had in my mynd done hym playn & open wrong / bycause yt might be yt he sayd and sware true. And then sholde they haue forced hym agaynste his cōscyēce / to say of hym self vntrue. And that shold they do not onely clene agaynst ryght / but also wythout necessytye / cōsyderynge yt they myght as in conclusyō they dyd / abiure hym other wyse. And therfore they toke the best way bothe for hym & for them self also But synnꝭ they dyd therin none other wyse thē as they were of duty boūdē / yt well appereth he had therin no such fauour as ye wolde make yt seme that they shewed hym. wel q I syth your self agreeth yt he had no wronge / albe yt no fauour hadde bē shewed hym / yet were your erand āswered as far as toucheth his abiuracyō. & now yf I shold proue you yt his iudgꝭ shewed hym such fauour / I fere me lest I shold therwt sūwhat seme to charge them that they had done though not wrōge / yet very nere wronge / ye fauour apperyng to be shewed / yf not agaīst ye law / yet at the lest way ye lawe for fauour so far streched forth / yt ye lether could scant hold. But yet these they for me. For sythe I haue sayde yt / I wyll tell you why / and so mych the more boldely bytwene vs twayne / for that I perceyue not in you eny such maner of mynde toward theym / that ye wolde blowe abrode eny fawte of vnlawfull fauour founden in theym. Ah well sayde quod he and lawghed. Ye wene I were more redy to reporte theyre rygoure then eny poynt of theyr fauour. well […]ken of you quod I. I se well a man cā not haue a good opyniō of you / but your cōscyēce cōstr[…]th it to ye cōtrary. But now for ye mater / I trowe we be agreed both / yt al were it so yt ye mā had bē fautlesse in dede / yet were ye prouys agaīst hym so many / so good / so cle[…]e & euydēt / & so mych more thā suffycyēt / y• neyther his iudgꝭ nor our self neyther / nor I thīke his own father neyther yf yf he had herd thē / could haue thought hī other thā very gretely gyltie. Surely q he yt is true Now q I yt beyng true yt they coud non other wyse rekē in hym though he styll sware ye cōtrary / must yt not nedꝭ be yt in his denyenge in vertue of his othe / ye thyngꝭ whych thei coud not but bileue true / they must nedꝭ therwt byleue hym all ye whyle to lye & be ꝑiured[…] That foloweth q he Now q I whā one is accused & conuicted of heresy / what thīg wyll ye law yt ye chyrch shal receyue hym to? what thīg q he? mary to mercy. Nay q I mercy is ye thyng as it semeth yt they receyue him by / not ye thīg yt they receyue him to. Thē is yt quod he to penaūce. That semeth well sayd q I. For the chyrch by mercy receyueth hym to penaūce. But now q I doth ye chirch opēly receiue to penaūce any ꝑson appering & prouīg him self styl impenytēt? Nay quod he. Appereth not he styl impenytēt q I yt styl appereth ꝑiured / & styll standing in periury? And where ye fyrst parte of penaunce is cōfessyō & humble knowlegynge of the fau[…]/can the chyrch reken hym penytēt yt styll refuseth to cōfesse his faut / y• lyeth falsly styll / & falsely forswereth hymselfe? The chyrche quod he can not surely know whyther he swere true or false / and therfore they can not surely iudge hym […]orsworen. For yt may be by po[…]bylyte that all the wytnesse lyed. It may be to quod I by possybylyte yf we go this way to worke / yt all ye men lyed yt euer haue sayd they came fro Rome / and that al ye dryefys and bullys were fayned that euer were supposed to be brought fro thense / for aught that he can tell that neuer cam there him self / For som one mā myght lye & some one bull or bryefe myght be fayned / and so som other & one by one / & so forth of all the remanaūt. For lyke possybylyte is therin euery one as is in eny one. And ꝑaduenture as for your own self haue neuer yet talked wyth.xx. yt haue tolde you they haue ben at Rome. No no q he nor I wene wt.x. neyther. And how many bullꝭ q I and bryesys haue ye sene that cam thense. By our lady q he b[…]llys very few / and bryf[…] neuer non / for I neuer aske after thē. Thē q I myght you by your own reason as well dowte whyther there were eny Rome or no / as whyther that mā lyed and were forsworn or no. But in this poynt I wyll not lōg styck wt you. For surely stādyng the mater in such case yt hys iudgis could not otherwyse thynk of hym but yt he was fauty of thyngys whych he styll in vertue of his othe denyed / all were yt so that they myghte thynke therwyth yt by possybylyte they myght be in that mynde deceyued / yet whyle they could not thynke that they could haue none other mynde / but that he (though yt myght by possybylyte be trewe that he sware) yet was forsworne in dede / and in very ded[…] perseuered in periury. Nowe the mater I say stādyng in such case / syth he yt […] so playn apperyng periury / standeth in ye denyal of his faut & fals de[…]er of hym self cannot be re[…]ned of hys fawte penytēt / & vnto penaunce ought none impenytent ꝑson to be admyttyd / I wyll not say yt hys iudgys dyd wronge. But sure[…]y me thynkith I may well say that they shewyd hym grete fauour / in that they receyuyd hym to penaūce wtout ye cōfessyō of hys faut. And I thynk verely it was a fauorable fassyon of abiuracyon / & so strange yt the lyke hath bene very seldō sene yf euer yt were sene before. And yt did they in hope yt god shal send hym more grace in tyme to come / & so I be[…]ech hī to do. For I ꝓmise you for my parte I neuer can cōceyue good hope of his amēdmēt / all ye while yt I se ye pryde abyde styll in hys hart / yt cānot suffer hī for shame to cōfesse hys faut.