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For Avarice to clothe hir wel
Ne hasteth hir, never a del;
For certeynly it were hir loth
To weren ofte that ilke cloth;
And if it were forwered, she 235
Wolde have ful greet necessitee
Of clothing, er she boughte hir newe,
Al were it bad of wolle and hewe.
This Avarice held in hir hande
A purs, that heng [doun] by a bande; 240
And that she hidde and bond so stronge,
Men must abyde wonder longe
Out of that purs er ther come ought,
For that ne cometh not in hir thought;
It was not, certein, hir entente 245
That fro that purs a peny wente.
And by that image, nygh y-nough, ENVYE.
Was peynt ENVYE, that never lough,
Nor never wel in herte ferde
But-if she outher saugh or herde 250

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Mes moult vies et de povre afaire,
D'agniaus noirs velus et pesans.
Bien avoit la robe vingt ans;
Mes Avarice du vestir
Se sot moult a tart aatir: 220
Car sachies que moult li pesast
Se cele robe point usast;
Car s'el fust usee et mauvese,
Avarice eust grant mesese
De noeve robe et grant disete,
Avant qu'ele eust autre fete.
Avarice en sa main tenoit
Une borse qu'el reponnoit,
Et la nooit si durement,
Que demorast moult longuement 230
Aincois qu'el en peust riens traire,
Mes el n'avoit de ce que faire.
El n'aloit pas a ce beant
Que de la borse ostat neant.
Apres refu portrete ENVIE, ENVIE.
Qui ne rist oncques en sa vie,
N'oncques de riens ne s'esjoi,
S'ele ne vit, ou s'el n'oi

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Som greet mischaunce, or greet disese.
No-thing may so moch hir plese
As mischef and misaventure;
Or whan she seeth discomfiture
Upon any worthy man falle, 255
Than lyketh hir [ful] wel withalle.
She is ful glad in hir corage,
If she see any greet linage
Be brought to nought in shamful wyse.
And if a man in honour ryse, 260
Or by his witte, or by prowesse,
Of that hath she gret hevinesse;
For, trusteth wel, she goth nigh wood
Whan any chaunce happeth good.
Envye is of swich crueltee, 265
That feith ne trouthe holdeth she
To freend ne felawe, bad or good.
Ne she hath kin noon of hir blood,
That she nis ful hir enemy;
She nolde, I dar seyn hardely, 270
Hir owne fader ferde wel.
And sore abyeth she everydel
Hir malice, and hir maltalent:

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Aucun grant domage retrere.
Nule riens ne li puet tant plere 240
Cum mefet et mesaventure;
Quant el voit grant desconfiture
Sor aucun prodomme cheoir,
Ice li plest moult a veoir.
Ele est trop lie en son corage
Quant el voit aucun grant lignage
Decheoir et aler a honte;
Et quant aucuns a honor monte
Par son sens ou par sa proece,
C'est la chose qui plus la blece. 250
Car sachies que moult la convient
Estre iree quant biens avient.
Envie est de tel cruaute,
Qu'ele ne porte leaute
A compaignon, ne a compaigne;
N'ele n'a parent, tant li tiengne,
A cui el ne soit anemie:
Car certes el ne vorroit mie
Que biens venist, neis a son pere.
Mes bien sachies qu'ele compere 260
Sa malice trop ledement:

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For she is in so greet turment
And hath such [wo], whan folk doth good, 275
That nigh she melteth for pure wood;
Hir herte kerveth and to-breketh
That god the peple wel awreketh.
Envye, y-wis, shal never lette
Som blame upon the folk to sette. 280
I trowe that if Envye, y-wis,
Knewe the beste man that is
On this syde or biyond the see,
Yit somwhat lakken him wolde she.
And if he were so hende and wys, 285
That she ne mighte al abate his prys,
Yit wolde she blame his worthinesse,
Or by hir wordes make it lesse.
I saugh Envye, in that peynting,
Hadde a wonderful loking; 290
For she ne loked but awry,
Or overthwart, al baggingly.
And she hadde [eek] a foul usage;
She mighte loke in no visage
Of man or womman forth-right pleyn, 295
But shette oon ye for disdeyn;

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Car ele est en si grant torment,
Et a tel duel quant gens bien font,
Par ung petit qu'ele ne font.
Ses felons cuers l'art et detrenche,
Qui de li Diex et la gent venche.
Envie ne fine nule hore
D'aucun blasme as gens metre sore;
Je cuit que s'ele cognoissoit
Tot le plus prodome qui soit 270
Ne deca mer, ne dela mer,
Si le vorroit-ele blasmer;
Et s'il iere si bien apris
Qu'el ne peust de tot son pris
Rien abatre ne deprisier,
Si vorroit-ele apetisier
Sa proece au mains, et s'onor
Par parole faire menor.
Lors vi qu'Envie en la painture
Avoit trop lede esgardeure; 280
Ele ne regardast noient
Fors de travers en borgnoiant;
Ele avoit ung mauves usage,
Qu'ele ne pooit ou visage
Regarder reins de plain en plaing,
Ains clooit ung oel par desdaing,

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So for envye brenned she
Whan she mighte any man [y]-see,
That fair, or worthy were, or wys,
Or elles stood in folkes prys. 300
SOROWE was peynted next Envye SOROWE.
Upon that walle of masonrye.
But wel was seen in hir colour
That she hadde lived in langour;
Hir semed have the Iaunyce.