"Forsooth, in the belly of every rich man dwelleth a devil of hell,
and when the man would give his goods to the poor, the devil within
him gainsayeth it, and saith, 'Wilt thou then be of the poor, and
suffer cold and hunger and mocking as they suffer, then give thou thy
goods to them, and keep them not.' And when he would be
compassionate, again saith the devil to him, 'If thou heed these
losels and turn on them a face like to their faces, and deem of them
as men, then shall they scorn thee, and evil shall come of it, and
even one day they shall fall on thee to slay thee when they have
learned that thou art but as they be.'
"Ah, woe worth the while! too oft he sayeth sooth, as the wont of the
devil is, that lies may be born of the barren truth; and sooth it is
that the poor deemeth the rich to be other than he, and meet to be his
master, as though, forsooth, the poor were come of Adam, and the rich
of him that made Adam, that is God; and thus the poor man oppresseth
the poor man, because he feareth the oppressor. Nought such are ye,
my brethren; or else why are ye gathered here in harness to bid all
bear witness of you that ye are the sons of one man and one mother,
begotten of the earth?"
As he said the words there came a stir among the weapons of the
throng, and they pressed closer round the cross, yet with held the
shout as yet which seemed gathering in their bosoms.
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