Page:Gesta Romanorum - Swan - Wright - 2.djvu/159

Rh him. Dost thou see how even irrational things have rendered him good for the service he performed? but thou hast returned evil for good. Therefore I deprive thee of thy dignity, which I will bestow upon Guido; and I further adjudge you to be suspended on a cross." This decree infinitely rejoiced the noblemen of the empire: and Guido, full of honours and years, ended his days in peace. (26)

My beloved, the emperor is God; the pauper, man. The forest is the world, which is full of pits. The lion is the son of God, who assumed humanity; the monkey is conscience; and the serpent is a prelate or confessor; the cord is Christ's passion. The loaded asses are the divine precepts.