But when the poor folk had all that under their hands, it
was to them as though the kingdom of heaven had come down to earth.
In the cool of the evening home rode the King and his lords. The King
was distraught and silent; but at last the captain, who rode beside
him, said to him: "Preach me now thine after-sermon, O King!"
"I think thou knowest it already," said the King, "else hadst thou not
spoken in such wise to the carle; but tell me what is thy craft and
the craft of all these, whereby ye live, as the potter by making pots,
and so forth?"
Said the captain: "As the potter lives by making pots, so we live by
robbing the poor."
Again said the King: "And my trade?"
Said he, "Thy trade is to be a king of such thieves, yet no worser
than the rest."
The King laughed.
"Bear that in mind," said he, "and then shall I tell thee my thought
while yonder carle spake. 'Carle,' I thought, 'were I thou or such as
thou, then would I take in my hand a sword or a spear, or were it only
a hedge-stake, and bid others do the like, and forth would we go; and
since we would be so many, and with nought to lose save a miserable
life, we would do battle and prevail, and make an end of the craft of
kings and of lords and of usurers, and there should be but one craft
in the world, to wit, to work merrily for ourselves and to live
merrily thereby.
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