Owned a house which emptye long yftood,
Full deeply fited in a derkning wood;
Murmring a fhallow brook runneth along,
Mong the round stones it maken doleful song.
Now there fpreaden a rumour that everich night
The rooms yhaunted been by many a fprite ;.
The miller avoucheth, and all thereabout,
That they full oft' hearen the hellish rout;
Some faine they hear the jingling of chains,
And fome hath yheard the pfautries ftraines;
At midnight fome the heedlefs horse ymeet,
And fome efpien a corse in a white sheet,
And oother things, faye, elfin, and elfe,
And fhapes that fear createn to itselfe.
Now it fo hapt, there was not ferre away,
Of grey Freers a fair and rich Abbaye,
Where liven a Freer ycleped Pere Thomas,
Who daren alone in derke through church-yerds pafs.
This Freer would lye in thilke house all night,
In hope he might efpyen a dreadful sprite.
He taketh candle, beades, and holy watere,
And legends eke of Saintes, and bookes of prayere.
He entereth the room, and looketh round about,
And hafpen the door, to hafpen the goblin out.
The candle hath he put clofe by the bed,
And in low tone his ave marye faid.
With water now befprinkled hath the floore,
And maken crofs on key-hole of the doore.
Ne was there not a moufe-hole in thilke place,
But he ycroffed hath by God his grace :
He croffed hath this, and eke he croffed that,
With benedicite and God knows what.
Now he goeth to bed and lieth adown,
When the clock had just stricken the twelfth foun.
Bethinketh him now what the cause had ybeen,
Why many fprites by mortals have been seen.
Hem remembreth how Dan Plutarch hath yfed
That Cæfar's fprite came to Brute his bed;
Of chains that frighten erft Artemidore,
The tales of Pline, Valere, and many more.
Hem thinketh that fome murdere here been done,
And he mought fee fome bloodye ghost anone,
Or that fome orphlines writings here be ftor'd,
Or pot of gold laine deep beneath a board :
Or thinketh hem, if he might fee no sprite,
The Abbaye mought buy this houfe cheap outright.
As hem thus thinketh, anone afleep he lies,
Up ftarten Sathanas with faucer eyes.
He turned the Freer upon his face downright,
Difplaying his nether cheeks full broad and white.
Then quoth Dan Sathanas as he thwacked him fore,
Thou didst forget to guard thy postern-door.
There is an hole which hath not croffed been :
Farewel, from whence I came, I creepen in.
Now plain it is ytellen in my verle,
If Devils in hell bear Freers in their erfe,
On earth the Devil in Freers doth ydwell;
Were there no Freers, the Devil mought keep in Hell.
Owned a house which emptye long yftood,
Full deeply fited in a derkning wood;
Murmring a fhallow brook runneth along,
Mong the round ftones it maken doleful fong.
Now there fpreaden a rumour that everich night
The rooms yhaunted been by many a fprite;
The miller avoucheth, and all thereabout,
That they full oft' hearen the hellish rout;
Some faine they hear the jingling of chains,
And fome hath yheard the pfautries ftraines;
At midnight fome the heedlefs horfe ymeet,
And fome efpien a corfe in a white sheet,
And oother things, faye, elfin, and elfe,
And fhapes that fear createn to itselfe.
Now it fo hapt, there was not ferre away,
Of
grey Freers a fair and rich Abbaye,
Where liven a Freer ycleped Pere Thomas,
Who daren alone in derke through church-yerds pafs.
This Freer would lyc in thilke houfe all night,
In hope he might efpyen a dreadful sprite.
He taketh candle, beades, and holy watere,
And legends eke of Saintes, and bookes of prayere.
He entereth the room, and looketh round about,
And hafpen the door, to hafpen the goblin out.
The candle hath he put clofe by the bed,
And in low tone his ave marye faid.
With water now befprinkled hath the floore,
And maken crofs on kev-hole of the doore.
Ne was there not a moufe-hole in thilke place,
But he ycroffed hath by God his
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