out and his wife, and his sons with their wives, and all the beasts, the same day a year after they entered in, every one after his gender.  Noah then edified an altar to our Lord and took of all the beasts that were clean and offered sacrifice unto our Lord; and our Lord smelled the sweetness of the sacrifice and said to Noah:  From henceforth I shall not curse the earth for man, for he is prone and ready to fall from the beginning of his youth.  I shall no more destroy man by such vengeance.  And then our Lord blessed them and said:  Grow ye and multiply the earth and be ye lords of all the beasts of the earth, of the fowls of the air, and of the fishes.  I have given all things to you, but eat no flesh with the blood.  I command you to slay no man, nor to shed no man’s blood.  I have made man after mine image.  Whosomever sheddeth his brother’s blood, his blood shall be shed.  Go ye forth and grow and multiply and fill the earth.  This said our Lord to Noah and his sons:  Lo!  I have made a covenant with you and with them that shall come after you, that I shall no more bring such a flood to slay all people, and in token thereof I have set my rainbow in the clouds of heaven, for who that trespasseth I shall do justice otherwise on him.  Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years.  From the time of Adam until after Noah’s flood, the time and season was alway green and tempered; and all that time men ate no flesh, for the herbs and fruits were then of great strength and effect, they were pure and nourishing.  But after the flood the earth was weaker and brought not forth so good fruit, wherefore flesh was ordained to be eaten.  And then Noah began to labor for his livelihood with his sons, and began to till the earth, to destroy briars and thorns and to plant vines.  And so on a time Noah had drunk so much of the wine that he was drunk, and lay and slept.  Ham, his middlest son, laughed and scorned his father, and called his brethren to see, which rebuked Ham of his folly and sin.  And Noah awoke, and when he understood how Ham his son had scorned him, he cursed him and also his son Canaan, and blessed Shem and Japhet.  All the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years and then he died.  And after his death his sons dealed all the world between them, Shem had all Asia, Ham Africa, and Japhet all Europe.  Thus was it departed.  Asia is the best part and is as much as the other two, and that is in the east.  Africa is the south part, and therein is Carthage and many rich countries, therein be blue and black men.  Ham had that to his part Africa.  The third part is Europe which is in the north and west, therein is Greece, Rome, and Germany.  In Europe reigneth now most the christian law and faith, wherein is many a rich realm.  And so was the world departed to the three sons of Noah.

THE RAINBOW

Triumphal arch, that fill’st the sky
  When storms prepare to part,
I ask not proud Philosophy
  To teach me what thou art.