Pearl Read Online Free Page B
Book: Pearl Read Online Free
Author: Simon Armitage
to hire his workers
 at that time of the year when the date dictates
 to labour at the vines until daylightâs limit.
Â
43
ââAll labourers know that date is a limit.
  So the vineyard owner rose very early
  to take on hands to tend his estate,
  and found a gang of able fellows,
  men who would work in the fields for a wage
  of a penny a day. With the pay agreed,
  they toiled at the trying and tiring tasks,
  trimming and tying, cultivating the crop.
  At nine the master went back to the market
  where men hung about, kicking their heels.
 âWhy wait here idle and aimless,â he asked,
 âwhen the light of day is not limitless?â
Â
44
âââWe came before sunrise, at nightâs limit,â
   said the unemployed in unison.
  âand weâve waited here since the dawn of day,
  willing to work, but no one wants us.â
  âGo to my land, begin your labours,â
  said the master of the vineyard, making this vow:
  âWhat wage you are due at the dayâs end
   I promise to pay you â that is my pact.â
  So they went to the vineyard and got to work,
  and the lord of the manor went on in this manner,
  bringing hired hands to the vines every hour
   till the long day narrowed and neared its limit.
Â
45
ââAs day neared its limit, at evensong,
  one hour before the sun goes down,
  men were still milling about in the market,
  and the vintner addressed them in a serious voice:
 âWhy loiter and idle all day long?â
  They replied no employer had appointed them.
 âGo to my land young labourers
  and work at the vines as well as you can.â
  And soon the world was shrouded in shadow,
  the sun was lost and it was late.
  As he summoned the workers to receive their wage
  the day had lengthened and outlived its limit.
X
46
‘“T he lord acknowledged the limit of day,
and called to his purser: ‘Pay these men,
hand out whatever earnings I owe,
and further, so no man finds fault with me,
arrange that they stand in a single row
and pay every person the same: a penny.
Start with the last at the end of the line
and finish with the first who stands at the front.’
But those at the front took offence at that thought,
arguing that they had laboured the longest.
‘These others have only worked for an hour.
More effort should merit greater reward.
Â
47
âââIt seems to us we deserve more,
   having suffered the heat of the sun all day,
   than those who toiled for two hours or less,
   yet you offer us earnings of equal amount.â
   The master said to one of the men:
  âFriend, our deal is not in doubt,
   take what I owe you and get off home.
   I hired you for a penny, that was our pact,
   but now you argue at our agreement.
   A penny was the price according to our contract.
   It is wrong to raise the terms by wrangling,
   so what do you mean by asking for more?
Â
48
âââMoreover, can it be a misdemeanour
   to do whatever I wish with my wealth?
   Do you mean to take advantage of me
   because Iâm a just and generous man?â
   So I practise by the same principle,â says Christ:
 âThe last shall be first to be given their lot,
   and the first and fastest shall be left till last,
   for many are called but few are chosen.â
   Thus the poor shall always have their
 at that time of the year when the date dictates
 to labour at the vines until daylightâs limit.
Â
43
ââAll labourers know that date is a limit.
  So the vineyard owner rose very early
  to take on hands to tend his estate,
  and found a gang of able fellows,
  men who would work in the fields for a wage
  of a penny a day. With the pay agreed,
  they toiled at the trying and tiring tasks,
  trimming and tying, cultivating the crop.
  At nine the master went back to the market
  where men hung about, kicking their heels.
 âWhy wait here idle and aimless,â he asked,
 âwhen the light of day is not limitless?â
Â
44
âââWe came before sunrise, at nightâs limit,â
   said the unemployed in unison.
  âand weâve waited here since the dawn of day,
  willing to work, but no one wants us.â
  âGo to my land, begin your labours,â
  said the master of the vineyard, making this vow:
  âWhat wage you are due at the dayâs end
   I promise to pay you â that is my pact.â
  So they went to the vineyard and got to work,
  and the lord of the manor went on in this manner,
  bringing hired hands to the vines every hour
   till the long day narrowed and neared its limit.
Â
45
ââAs day neared its limit, at evensong,
  one hour before the sun goes down,
  men were still milling about in the market,
  and the vintner addressed them in a serious voice:
 âWhy loiter and idle all day long?â
  They replied no employer had appointed them.
 âGo to my land young labourers
  and work at the vines as well as you can.â
  And soon the world was shrouded in shadow,
  the sun was lost and it was late.
  As he summoned the workers to receive their wage
  the day had lengthened and outlived its limit.
X
46
‘“T he lord acknowledged the limit of day,
and called to his purser: ‘Pay these men,
hand out whatever earnings I owe,
and further, so no man finds fault with me,
arrange that they stand in a single row
and pay every person the same: a penny.
Start with the last at the end of the line
and finish with the first who stands at the front.’
But those at the front took offence at that thought,
arguing that they had laboured the longest.
‘These others have only worked for an hour.
More effort should merit greater reward.
Â
47
âââIt seems to us we deserve more,
   having suffered the heat of the sun all day,
   than those who toiled for two hours or less,
   yet you offer us earnings of equal amount.â
   The master said to one of the men:
  âFriend, our deal is not in doubt,
   take what I owe you and get off home.
   I hired you for a penny, that was our pact,
   but now you argue at our agreement.
   A penny was the price according to our contract.
   It is wrong to raise the terms by wrangling,
   so what do you mean by asking for more?
Â
48
âââMoreover, can it be a misdemeanour
   to do whatever I wish with my wealth?
   Do you mean to take advantage of me
   because Iâm a just and generous man?â
   So I practise by the same principle,â says Christ:
 âThe last shall be first to be given their lot,
   and the first and fastest shall be left till last,
   for many are called but few are chosen.â
   Thus the poor shall always have their
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