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Maid Marian.

"And with reason," said the friar; "for thereby is the truth maintained. The abbot of Doubleflask swore there was no money in his valise, and Little John forthwith emptied it of four hundred pounds. Thus was the abbot's perjury but of one minute's duration: for though his speech was false in the utterance, yet was it no sooner uttered than it became true, and we should have been participes eriminis to have suffered the holy abbot to depart in falsehood: whereas he came to us a false priest, and we sent him away a true man. Marry, we turned his cloak to further account: and thereby hangs a tale that may be either said or sung: for in truth I am minstrel here as well as chaplain: I pray for good success to our just and necessary warfare, and sing thanksgiving odes when our foresters bring in booty:

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