Then a rat of renown, very ready of tongue. Said, for a sovereign help to themselves, ” Some cits have I seen, in the city of London, 160 Wear chains on their necks of the choicest gold. Or collars of crafty work ;

Then a rat of renown, very ready of tongue. Said, for a sovereign help to themselves, " Some cits have I seen, in the city of London, 160 Wear chains on their necks of the choicest gold. Or collars of crafty work ;
uncoupled they go Both in warren and waste, as their will inclines, And elsewhere at odd times, as I hear tell. If they bore each a bell, by its ringing, me thinketh, 165 One might wit where they were, and away soon run ! Right so," quoth the rat, " doth reason suggest To buy a bell of brass or of bright silver. AH the rout of great rats to his reasons assented, 175 But when bought was the bell, and well bound on the collar, Not a rat in the rout, for the realm of all France, Durst bind the said bell about the cat's neck, Nor hang it beside him, all England to win ! They owned they were cowards, and their counsel weak ; 1 80 So their labour was lost, and all their long study. To be bound on a collar, for our common profit, On the cat's neck to hang ; then each hearer can tell 170 If he rambles or rests him, or runs out to play !
When mild is his mood, we can move as we list And appear in his presence, when playful and pleased. Or, when angry, beware ; and away will we run ! " In Piers Plowman, the scene known as the "rats and the cat" presents a group of rats holding a council to find a way to escape the cat's domination. A prominent, quick-tongued rat rises and offers an example drawn from what the translator renders as "the city of London," referring to wealthy citizens who wear gold chains and finely crafted collars and seem to move about freely. Borrowing this image, the rat argues that if the cat were made to wear a bell, the ringing would reveal his movements and allow the rats to flee in time. All the rats agree with the reasoning and even decide to purchase a brass or silver bell. Yet when the moment comes to attach the bell to the cat's neck, not a single rat dares to do it, even if promised the whole of France or all of England as a reward. Confronted with their own fear, the
rats admit that their counsel is weak and that their long deliberations are useless. Although the proposal is logically sound, no one is willing to face the danger required to enact it. The episode thus shows how political reform collapses when no one will take responsibility for difficult action. As an allegory, this scene functions as a sharp satire of the weakness and timidity of contemporary urban government, especially the civic politics of London and its citizen-elite, who discuss reforms but shrink from challenging real power.