In That Abbey Is A Great
Garden And A Fair, Where Be Many Trees Of Diverse Manner Of Fruits.
And In This Garden Is A Little Hill Full Of Delectable Trees.
In
that hill and in that garden be many diverse beasts, as of apes,
marmosets, baboons and many other diverse beasts.
And every day,
when the convent of this abbey hath eaten, the almoner let bear the
relief to the garden, and he smiteth on the garden gate with a
clicket of silver that he holdeth in his hand; and anon all the
beasts of the hill and of diverse places of the garden come out a
3000, or a 4000; and they come in guise of poor men, and men give
them the relief in fair vessels of silver, clean over-gilt. And
when they have eaten, the monk smiteth eftsoons on the garden gate
with the clicket, and then anon all the beasts return again to
their places that they come from. And they say that these beasts
be souls of worthy men that resemble in likeness of those beasts
that be fair, and therefore they give them meat for the love of
God; and the other beasts that be foul, they say be souls of poor
men and of rude commons. And thus they believe, and no man may put
them out of this opinion. These beasts above-said they let take
when they be young, and nourish them so with alms, as many as they
may find.
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