HE viijth chapter is about the Grantners. These are the beggars who say in the farm-houses (HANSEN-BOSS):—“Oh, dear friend, look at me, I am afflicted with the falling sickness of St. Valentine, or St. Kurinus, or St. Vitus, or St. Antonius, and have offered myself to the Holy Saint (ut supra) with vj pounds of wax, with an altar cloth, with a silver salver (et cetera), and must bring these together from pious people’s offerings and help; therefore I beg you to contribute a heller, a spindleful of flax, a ribbon, or some linen yarn for the altar, that God and the Holy Saint may protect you from misery and disease and the falling sickness.” Nota: A false (LOE) trick.
Item, some fall down before the churches, or in other places with a piece of soap in their mouths, whereby the foam rises as big as a fist, and they prick their nostrils with a straw, causing them to bleed, as though they had the falling-sickness. Nota: this is utter knavery. These are villanous vagrants that infest all countries. Item, there are many who speak (BARLEN) thus:—“Listen to me, dear friends, I am a butcher’s son, a tradesman. And it happened some time since that a vagrant came to my father’s house and begged for St. Valentine’s sake; and my father gave me a penny to give to him. I said, ‘father, it is knavery.’ My father told me to give it to him, but I gave it him not. And since that hour I have been afflicted with the falling-sickness, and I have made a vow to St. Valentine of iij pounds of wax and a High Mass, and I beg and pray pious folks to help me, because I have made this vow; otherwise I should have substance enough for myself. Therefore I ask of you an offering and help that the dear holy St. Valentine may guard and protect you evermore.” Nota: what he says is all lies. Item, he has been more than xx years collecting for his iij pounds of wax and the mass, and has been gambling (VERJONEN), bibbling (VERSCHÖCHERN), and rioting (VERBOLEN) with it. And there are many that use other and more subtle words than those given in this book. Item, some have a written testimony (BSAFFOT) that it is all true.
Conclusio: If any of the Grantners cometh before thine house, and simply beggeth for God’s sake, and speaketh not many, nor flowery words, to them thou shalt give, for there are many men who have been afflicted with the sickness by the Saints; but as to those Grantners who use many words, speak of great wonders, tell you that they have made vows, and can altogether skilfully use their tongues—these are signs that they have followed this business for a long time, and, I doubt not, they are false and not to be trusted. As to him who believes them, they take a nut off his tree. Take care of such, and give them nothing.
Of the Dutzers.
HE ixth chapter is about the Dutzers. These are beggars who have been ill for a long time, as they say, and have promised a difficult pilgrimage to this or that Saint (ut supra in precedenti capitulo) for three whole and entire alms every day, that they, thereby, must go each day from door to door until they find three pious men who will give them three entire alms. Thus speaketh a pious man unto them: “What is an entire alms?” Whereat the Dutzer replieth: “A ‘plaphart’ (blaffard), whereof I must have three every day, and take no less, for without that the pilgrimage is no good.” Some go for iij pennies, some for one penny, et in toto nihil. And the alms they “must have from a good and correct man.” Such is the vanity of women, rather than be called impious they give a double “blaffard,” and send the Dutzer one to another, who uses many other [Pg 25] words which I cannot make bold to repeat. Item, they would take a hundred “blaffards” and more a day if they were given them, and what they say is all lies (GEVOPT). Item, this also is DUTZING, viz. when a beggar comes to thine house and speaks: “Good woman, might I ask you for a spoonful of butter; I have many young children, and I want the wherewith to cook soup for them?” Item, for an egg (BETZAM): “I have a child bedridden now these seven days.” Item, for a mouthful of wine, “for I have a sick wife,” et sic de aliis. This is called DUTZING.
Conclusio: Give nought whatsoever to those Dutzers who say that they have taken a vow not to gather more per diem than iij or iiij entire alms, ut supra. They are half good (HUNT), and half bad (LÖTSCH); but the greater part bad.