Of the lawful and unlawful usury ammo[n]gest Christians, addedOf the lawful and vnlawful vsurie amo[n]gest Christians, added

IT is (saith he) common in every mans mouth: He that is willing hath no wrong, I send for no man. I force no man to take money of me. They cone of their own accord, they take my money, & do not ask it of any other condition, but only of usury? What do I in this case offend? ⟨image 18⟩Let them leave me my money to my self, if the damage of usury be so grievous unto them. I answer, these are the sayings not of a christian man, but of a very heathen, yea of him that hath no mind of man.

IT is (saith he) common in euery mans mouth: He yt is willing hath no wrong, I send for no man. I force no mā to take money of me. Thei cōe of their own accord, thei take my money, & do not aske it of any other cōdiciō, but only of vsury? What do I in thys case offende? ⟨image 18⟩Let them leaue me my money to my selfe, if the dāmage of vsurye be so greuous vnto thē. I answer, these are ye sayinges not of a christian man, but of a very heathen, yea of him that hath no mynde of man.

Need is a sharp shaft. These wretches forced by need come unto thee, of whose wretchedness thou cruelly & filthily takest thy vantage. The usurer replieth again: But when as they received money of me upon condition of usury, they were glad and did give thanks. What injure can this be, which causeth gladness and thanks giving: I answer, that these wretches rejoice & give thanks, not because they do feel a benefit, but because they suppose that by this damage of usury, they may ease the grievous necessity, which doeth oppress them presently. ⟨image 19⟩Surely they desire rather simply to borrow money, than to take it upon usury. But for because so great inhumanity prevaileth, that they can no where find such liberality as lendeth freely, they are glad to take money upon usury: but this kind of gladness at the last turneth into greatest heaviness. And when they flee from charybdis, they fall into scylla, from the rock into the gulf. Chrysostom doeth well compare this gladness of taking usury money, unto the biting of a serpent called aspis: for even as he, which is bitten of the Aspis, doeth gladly fall asleep, & by the sweetness of deadly slumber dieth, because in sleeping the poison passeth to every member: so he that taketh money of the usurer is presently glad, as though he had a benefit, howbeit usury, having speedy passage to all that he hath, turneth all into debt. And Cato