As brood as is / a Bokeler / or a TargeA foot mantel / aboute hir hypes largeAnd on hir feet a peyre of spores sharpeIn felaweshipe / wel koude she laughe. and carpeOf remedies of loue / she knew ꝑpar chaunceFor she koude of that art the olde daunce¶ A good man / was ther / of ReligiounAnd was a poure ꝑparson / of a tounParson of a town.But riche he was / of holy thoght and werkHe was also / a lerned man a ClerkThat Cristes gospel / trewely wolde pʳrecheHis parisshens / deuoutly wolde he techeBenygne he was / and wonder diligentAnd in aduersitee / ful pacientAnd swich he was proeued / ofte sythesFul looth weere hym / to cursen for his tythesBut rather wolde he yeuen / out of douteVn to his poure parisshens abouteOf his offrynge / and eek of his substaunceHe koude in litel thyng haue suffisaunceWyd was his parisshe / and houses fer a sonderBut he ne lafte noght for reyn ne thonderIn siknesse / nor in meschief to visiteThe ferreste in his parisshe / muche and lyteVp on his feet and in his hond a stafThis noble ensample / to his sheep he yafThat first he wroghte / and afterward he taughteOut of the gospel / he tho wordes caughteAnd this figure / he added eek ther toThat if gold ruste / what sholde Iren doFor if a preest be foul / in whom we trusteNo wonder is / a lewed man to rusteAnd shame it is / if a preest take keepeA shiten shepherde / and a clene sheepeWel oghte a preest ensample for to yiueBy his clennesse / how þᵗat his sheep sholde lyueHe sette noght. his benefice to hyreAnd leet his sheep / encombred in the MyreAnd ran to Londūn / vn to Seint PoulesTo seeken hym / a Chauntrye for soules