cheer as mind, and cried strongly: ’What suffer we? what hear we? Untaught people and foolish ravish and take heaven, and we with our conning and doctrines plunge and sink into hell, and because they go tofore we be ashamed to follow them.' And then he ran into a garden, and, as he saith himself, he cast himself down under a fig-tree and wept right bitterly, and gave out weeping voice because he had tarried so long from day to day, and from time to time. And was greatly tormented, so that he had no manner in himself for sorrow of his long tarrying, like as he writeth in the book of his Confessions and said: 'Alas! Lord, how thou art high in high things and deep in deepness, and departest not ne goest out of the way, and unnethe we come to thee. Ah! Lord,' he said, ’call me, move me, change me, and enlumine me; ravish me and make soft all mine empeshments and lettings! I have loved thee over–late, thou beauty so old and so new, I over–late have loved thee. Thou wert within and I was without, and there I sought thee and in the beauty and fairness that thou hast made I fell all deformed and foul. Thou wert with me, but I was not with thee. Thou hast called and cried and hast broken my deafness. Thou hast enlumined, cleared, and hast put away my blindness. Thou hast replenished me with fragrant odours and I haste me to come to thee. I have tasted thee, and am hungry and desire thee.' And as he wept thus bitterly, he heard a voice saying: 'Take and read.' And anon he opened the book of the apostle, and cast his eyes on the first chapter and read: ’Clothe ye you in our Lord Jesu
