ENGLISH LITERATURE-PROSE.

SIR JOHN MANDEVILLE.

SIR JOHN MANDEVILLE was born at St. Albans in the year A.D. 1300, was educated for the profession of medicine, and travelled for many years in the East before he issued his Book of Travels in 1356, written first in Latin, and subsequently in French and English.

THE HOLY LAND.

FOR as much as the Land beyond the sea, that is to say, the Holy Land, that men call the land of promission, or behest, passing all other lands, is the most worthy land, most excellent, and lady and sovereign of all other lands; and is blessed and hallowed of the precious body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the which land it liked him to take flesh and blood of the Virgin Mary, to environ that land with his blessed feet, and there he would of his blessedness become man, and work many miracles, and preach, and teach the Gospel faith, and the law of Christian men unto his children; and there it liked him to suffer many reprovings and scorns for us; and he that was King of Heaven, of air, and of earth, and of sea, and of all things that be contained in them, would all only be cleped king of that land, when he said, "Rex sum Judæorum," "I am King of the Jews;" and that land he chose beyond all other lands, as the best and most worthy land, and the most virtuous of all the world; for it is the heart and midst of all the world, witnessing the philosopher that sayeth thus, "Virtus rerum in

medio consistit;" and in that land he would lead his life, and suffer passion and death of Jews for us, for to buy and to deliver us from pains of hell, and from death without end; the which was ordained for us, for the sin of our former father Adam, and for our own sins also; for as for himself he had no evil deserved, for he thought no evil, nor did evil; and He that was king of glory and of joy, might best in that place suffer death; because he chose in that land, rather than in any other, there to suffer his passion and his death; for he that will publish anything to make it publicly known, he will make it to be cried and pronounced in the middle place of a town, so that the thing that is proclaimed and pronounced may evenly stretch to all parts; right so, he that was former of all the world, would suffer for us in Jerusalem, that is, the midst of the world; to that end and intent that his passion and death, that was published there, might be known evenly to all the parts of the world.

See, now, how dear he bought man that he made after his own image; and how dear he has bought us for the great love that he had to us, and we never deserved it of him. For more precious cattle no greater ransom might he put for us than his blessed body, his precious blood, and his holy life that he thralled for us; and all this he offered for us, that did never sin. A dear God! what love had he to us his subjects, when he that never trespassed, would for trespassers suffer death!

Right well ought us for to love and worship, to serve and dread such a Lord; and to worship and praise such an holy land that brought forth such fruit, through the which every man is saved, but it be his own default. Well may that land be called delectable and a fructuous land, that was bled and moistened with the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ; the which is the same land that our Lord bequeathed to us in heritage. And in that land he would die, as seized, for to leave it to us his children. Wherefore, every good Christian man, that is of power, and hath whereof, should pain him with all his strength for to conquer our right heritage, and chase

For we be cleped Christian And if we be right children

out all the misbelieving men. men after Christ our Father. of Christ, we ought for to challenge the heritage that our Father left us, and do it out of heathen men's hands.

But now, pride, covetousness, and envy, hath so inflamed the hearts of lords of the world, that they are more busy for to disinherit their neighbours more than for to challenge or to conquer their right heritage beforesaid. And the common people, that would put their bodies and their cattle for to conquer our heritage, they may not do it without the lords. For an assembly of people without a chieftain or a chief lord, is as a flock of sheep without a shepherd, the which departeth and disparpleth, and wits never whither to go. But, would God that the temporal lords, and all worldly lords were at good accord, and with the common people would take this holy voyage over the sea. Then, I trow well, that within a little time, our right heritage beforesaid should be reconciled and put in the hands of the right heirs of Jesus Christ.

PARADISE.

OF Paradise I cannot speak properly, for I was not there. It is far beyond, and that forthinketh (repenteth) me; and, also, I was not worthy. But, as I have heard say of wise men beyond, I shall tell you with good will.

Earthly Paradise, as wise men say, is the highest place of earth, that is, in all the world; and it is so high that it toucheth nigh to the circle of the moon, as the moon maketh her turn. For it is so high that the flood of Noah might not come to it, that would have covered all the earth of the world about, above and beneath, save Paradise only. And this Paradise is enclosed all about with a wall; and men wist not whereof it is. For the walls are covered all over with moss, as it seemeth; and it seemeth not that the wall is stone of Nature. And the wall stretcheth from the south to the north, and it hath not but one entry, that is closed with burning fire, so that no man that is mortal, may dare enter. And in

the most high place of Paradise, even in the middle place, is a well, that casteth out four floods which run by diverse lands; of which, the first is cleped Phison or Ganges, which is all one, and it runs through India or Emlak; in the which river are many precious stones and much lignum, aloes, and much gravel of gold; and the other river is cleped Nilus or Gyson, that goeth by Ethiopia and after by Egypt. And that other is cleped Tigris, that runneth by Assyria and by Armenia the great. And that other is cleped Euphrates, that runneth also by Media and by Armenia and by Persia.

And some men call it
India, called Gangeres,

And that water is in troubled; in some places The second river is cleped

And men there beyond say, that all the sweet waters of the world above and beneath, take their beginning of the well of Paradise, and out of that well all waters come and go. The first river is cleped Phison, that is to say, in their language, assemblage, for many other rivers meet it there and go into that river. Ganges, for a king that was in and that it ran through his land. some places clear, and in some hot, and in some places cool. Nilus or Gyson, for it is always troubled; and Gyson, in the language of Ethiopia, is to say trouble, and in the language of Egypt also. The third river, that is cleped Tigris, is as much for to say as fast running; for it runs more fast than any of the others. Also, there is a beast that is cleped Tigris, that is fast running. The fourth river is called Euphrates, that is to say, well bearing; for there grow many goods upon that river, as corn fruits and other goods in plenty.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER, commonly called the "Father of English poetry," was born in London, A.D. 1328, and died in Westminster, A.D. 1400. The extract quoted is from his principal work, the Canterbury Tales, two of which are in prose. His other works are-the Flower and the Leaf, House of Fame, Troilus and Cresside, in verse, and the Testament of Love, in prose.

ENVY.

AFTER Pride will I speak of the foul sin of Envy, which is, after the word of the Philosopher, sorrow of other men's prosperity, and after the words of Saint Augustine, it is sorrow of other men's weal, and joy of other men's harm. This foul sin is plainly against the Holy Ghost. Albeit that every sin is against the Holy Ghost, yet, forasmuch as bounty appertaineth properly to the Holy Ghost, and envy cometh of malice; therefore, it is properly against the bounty of the Holy Ghost.

Now hath malice two kinds; that is to say, hardness of heart in wickedness, or else the flesh of man is so blind, that he considereth not he is in sin, or recketh not that he is in sin, which is the hardness of the devil. The other species of envy is that, when a man warreth truth, when he wots that it is truth, and when he warreth the grace of God that God has given to his neighbour, and all this by envy.

Certes then is envy the worst sin that is; for truly, all other sins be sometime only against a special virtue, but envy is against all manner virtues, and all goodness; for it is sorry for all bounty (prosperity) of his neighbour, and in this manner is it diverse from all other sins; for well nigh unknown is there any sin that it hath not some delight in itself save only envy, that ever hath in himself anguish and sorrow. The kinds of envy are these.

There is first, sorrow of other men's goodness and of their prosperity, and prosperity ought to be a kindly matter of joy; then is envy a sin against kind. The second species