| | If ony person wolde vpon hym pleyne | |
| | There mighte asterte no pecunial peyne | |
| 15 | For smale tithis and smale offerynge | |
| | He made the pepyl ful pitously to synge | |
| | For or the bisshop caught hym with his hook | |
| | They were in the archedekenys book | |
| | And than hadde he thourgh his Iurisdiction | |
| 20 | Poure of hem to do ful correction | |
| | He hadde a sompnour redy to his hond | |
| | A slygher boy was non in engelond | |
| | For sotilly he hadde his especial | |
| | That taughte hym where he mighte auayl | |
| 25 | He knew of lechours one or two | |
| | To teche hym to foure and twenty mo | |
| | For though þe sompnour were as wood as an hare | |
| | To telle his harlotrye I wol not spare | |
| | For we be out of his correction | |
| 30 | They haue of vs no Iurisdiction | |
| | Ne neuer shal terme of al her lyuys | |
| | Petir so be women of the styuys | |
| | Quod the sompnour put out of my cure | |
| | Pees with myschaunce or with mys auenture | |
| 35 | Sayde our ost and leet hym telle his tale | |
| | Now tel forth though the sompnour gale | |
| | Ne sparith not myn owen maister dere | |
| | This fals theef the sompnour qd the frere | |
| | Hadde alwey redy bawdis to his honde | |
| 40 | As ony hawk is to the lure in engelonde | |
| | That tolde hym al the secre that they coude | |
