¶ And as for the keyes of the posternes fyue
Whiche were to Morpleus rewarded for his laboure
¶ Sygnyfye not elles but whyle man is on lyue
¶ His fyue inwarde wyttes shall be euery hour
¶ In his slepe occupyed in hele & in langour
¶ With fantasyes tryfels Illusyons & dremes
¶ Whiche Poetes call Morpleus stremes
¶ And as for Residiuacyon is nomore to say
¶ But after Confessyon tornyng ayene to synne
¶ Whiche to euery man retornyth sauns delay
¶ To vycyous lyuyng agayn hym to wynne
¶ Whyle ony man lyueth wyll it neuer blynne
¶ That cursed conclusyon for to bryng aboute
¶ But Reason with Sadnes kepe it styll oute
¶ Here hast thou properly the verrey sentence
¶ Perde now declared of this vysyon
¶ The pycture also yeueth clere intellygence
¶ Therof beholden with good dyscresyon
¶ Loke well aboute and take consyderasyon
¶ As I haue declared whether hit soo be
¶ A syr quoth Morpleus what tolde I the
¶ Hast thou properly the verey sentence
¶ Loke on yon wall yonder before
¶ And all that tyme stood I in a wyre
¶ Whiche way first myn hert wolde yeue more
¶ To loke in a stody stood I therfore
¶ Neuerthelesse at last as Morpleus me badde
¶ I loked forwarde with contenaunce sadde
¶ Where I beheld in portrayture
¶ The maner of the felde euen as it was
Shewed me before & euery creature
¶ On bothe sydes beyng drawyng in small space
¶ Soo caryously in soo lytyll a compace
¶ In all this worlde was neuer thyng wrought
¶ Hit were Impossyble in erthe to be thought
¶ And when I had long beholde that pycture
¶ What quod Morpleus how longe shalte thou loke
¶ Daryng as a dastard on yon portrayture:
¶ Come of for shame thy wytte stante a croke
¶ I heryng that myn herte to me toke
¶ Towarde the fourthe wall tornyng my vysage
¶ Where I sawe Poetes & Phylosophers sage
¶ Many one moo that at the banket
¶ Serued the goddes as I sayde before
¶ Som were made standyng & som in chayris set
¶ Som lokyng on bokys as they had stodyed sore
¶ Som drawyng almenakis & in her hondis bore
¶ Astyrlabes takyng the altytude of the sonne
¶ Among whome Dyogenes sate in a tonne
¶ And as I was lokyng on that fourthe wall
¶ Of Dyogenes beholdyng the ymage
¶ Sodeynly Doctryne began me to call
¶ And bad me tourne towarde hyr my vysage
¶ And soo then I dyde with humble corage
¶ Whan thynkest thou she sayd hast thou not thentent
¶ Yet of these foure walles what they represent
¶ The pycture on the fyrst that standeth at my bake
¶ Sheweth the the present tyme of pylgremage
¶ Of whiche before I vnto the spake
¶ Whiche is the tyme of daungerous passage
¶ The seconde dyscrettly agayne my vysage
¶ The tyme expresseth of Deuyacyon
¶ Whyle paynyme lawe had the domynacyon
¶ The thryd wall standyng on my lyfe honde
¶ The tyme representeth of Reuocacyon
¶ And the fourthe standyng on my ryght honde
¶ Determyneth the tyme of Reconsylyacyon
¶ This is the effecte of thy vysyon
¶ Wherfore the nedeth no more theron to muse
¶ Hit were but veyne thy wyttes to dysuse