hee. Arise therefore, and crop thy hair. Doff these thy fine
garments, and don an hair-shirt, and at daybreak present thyself before
the king. And when he asketh thee, 'What meaneth this apparel?' answer
him, 'It hath to do with thy communing with me yesterday, O king.
Behold, I am ready to follow thee along the road that thou art eager to
travel; for though luxury be desirable and passing sweet, God forbid
that I embrace it after thou art gone! Though the path of virtue,
which thou art about to tread, be difficult and rough, yet in thy
company I shall find it easy and pleasant, for as I have shared with
thee this thy prosperity so now will I share thy distresses, that in
the future, as in the past, I may be thy fellow.'" Our nobleman,
approving of the sick man's saying, did as he said. When the king saw
and heard him, he was delighted, and beyond measure gratified by his
devotion towards him. He saw that the accusations against his senator
were false, and promoted him to more honour and to a greater enjoyment
of his confidence. But against the monks he again raged above measure,
declaring that this was of their teaching, that men should abstain from
the pleasures of life, and rock themselves in visionary hopes.

Another day, when he was gone a-hunting, he espied two monks crossing
the desert. These he ordered to be apprehended and brought to his
chariot. Looking angrily upon them, and breathing fire, as they say,
"Ye vagabonds and deceivers," he cried, "have ye not heard the plain
proclamation of the heralds, that if any of your execrable religion
were found, after three days, in any city or country within my realm,
he should be burned with fire?" The monks answered, "Lo! obedient to
thine order, we be coming out of thy cities and coasts. But as the
journey before us is long, to get us away to our brethren, being in
want of victuals, we were making provision for the way, that we perish
not with hunger." Said the king, "He that dreadeth menace of death
busieth not himself with the purveyante of victuals." "Well spoken, O
king," cried the monks. "They that dread death have concern how to
escape it. And who are these but such as cling to things temporary and
are enamoured of them, who, having no good hopes yonder, find it hard
to be wrenched from this present world, and therefore dread death? But
we, who have long since hated the world and the things of the world,
and are walking along the narrow and strait r