"104 PAPERS, ETC. 



strike alarm into unruly sons, nor the wandering flock can 

 hear the voice of the absent shepherd. Especially, since in 

 a wise prelate there is no word nor doctrine more potent 

 than a vigorous example of good work, advising and 

 teacking the practicable ; while at the same time, by 

 well working, it manifestly practises the advisable that 

 is taught. The secret, then, of this our present preface 

 — if perchance those reports are true which we have heard 

 of you — to remove doubt in part we truly refer to your 

 negligence. For there are certain of your confraternity of 

 whom, while you live in unknown places, apart from your 

 monastery, you take no oversight. These, after your man- 

 ner, not content with the honourable bounds of the cloister, 

 but rather following your footsteps, as a flock led away by 

 the example of a wandering shepherd, not fearing too fre- 

 quently to wander from the safe cloister to the unsafe 

 world, without license, yourself being absent, like mice 

 that play while the mouser is away, the reins of res- 

 traint loosened, disport themselves in the highways, and 

 mixing themselves up publicly with worldly confusions — 

 yea, and what is worse, we grieve to add, too frequently 

 entering houses of indifferent report, yea secret and sus- 

 pected places, in Opposition to what becomes their position, 

 and the observance aecording to their rule of our holy 

 religion — spend as laics among laymen, as it is asserted, 

 a life of marvellous dissoluteness. Not to speak of their 

 spreading an evil report of themselves and their religion it 

 seif — nay, more truly of your own character, not undeser- 

 vedly, as we grieve to report — whilst, through the lack of 

 a more sound discipline, the entire populace in severe terms 

 lays the whole blame of all the evil deeds of your unre- 

 strained flock, aeprived of the safe keeping of the shepherd, 

 to your negligence ; indulging truly in sinister surmises re- 



