His
enemies were the rich and great, his friends were the poor and
oppressed.
"For I never yet hurt any man
That honest is and true;
But those that give their minds to live
Upon other men's due.
I never hurt the husbandmen
That used to till the ground;
Nor spill their blood that range the wood
To follow hawk or hound.
My chiefest spite to clergy is
Who in those days bear a great sway;
With friars and monks with their fine sprunks
I make my chiefest prey."
The last time we heard of monks and priests they were the friends
of the people, doing their best to teach them and make them
happy. Now we find that they are looked upon as enemies. And
the monasteries, which at the beginning had been like lamps of
light set in a dark country, had themselves become centers of
darkness and idleness.
But although Robin fought against the clergy, the friars and
monks who did wrong, he did not fight against religion.
"A good manner then had Robin;
In land where that he were,
Every day ere he would dine,
Three masses would he hear.
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