The blood out cryeth on your cursed dede.

"O martir, souded to virginitee, Now maystou singen, folwing ever in oon The whyte lamb celestial,' quod she, 'Of which the grete evangelist, seint John, In Pathmos wroot, which seith that they

that goon Biforn this lamb, and singe a song al newe, That never, fleshly, wommen they ne knewe.'

This povre widwe awaiteth al that night After hir litel child, but he cam noght; 100 For which, as sone as it was dayes light, With face pale of drede and bisy thoght,

With modres pitee in hir brest enclosed, She gooth, as she were half out of hir minde,

109

To every place wher she hath supposed
By lyklihede hir litel child to finde;
And ever on Cristes moder meke and kinde
She cryde, and atte laste thus she wroghte,
Among the cursed Jewes she him soghte.

She frayneth and she preyeth pitously
To every Jew that dwelte in thilke place,
To telle hir, if bir child wente oght for-by.
They seyde, 'nay'; but Jesu, of his grace,
Yaf in hir thought, inwith a litel space,
That in that place after hir sone she cryde,
Wher he was casten in a pit bisyde.

That he last seyn was in the Jewerye.

5 inquires.

7 on his back.

• Scarcely.

11 countenance.

6 carved, cut. 8 praiseth.

10 die.

12 horses.

13 i.e. to the place of execution.

And toke awey this martir fro his bere,
And in a tombe of marbul-stones clere
Enclosen they his litel body swete;
Ther he is now, God leve us for to mete.

O yonge Hugh of Lincoln, slayn also
With cursed Jewes, as it is notable,
For it is but a litel whyle ago;
Preye eek for us, we sinful folk unstable, 200
That, of his mercy, God so merciable
On us his grete mercy multiplye,
For reverence of his moder Marye. Amen.
Here is ended the Prioresses Tale.

upon

16

He worth 15 his stede gray,
And in his honde a launcegay,1
A long swerd by his syde.

He priketh thurgh a fair forest,
Ther-inne is many a wilde best,
Ye, bothe bukke and hare;
And, as he priketh north and est,
I telle it yow, him hadde almest
Bitid a sory care.

Ther springen herbes grete and smale,
The lycorys and cetewale,17

And many a clowe-gilofre; 18
And notemuge to putte in ale,
Whether it be moyste 19 or stale,
Or for to leye in cofre.

The briddes singe, it is no nay,20
The sparhauk and the papejay,

That joye it was to here;
The thrustelcok made eek his lay,
The wodedowve upon the spray

She sang ful loude and clere.

Sir Thopas fil in love-longinge
Al whan he herde the thrustel singe,
And priked 21 as he were wood.22
His faire stede in his prikinge

40

So swatte 28 that men mighte him wringe; His sydes were al blood.

50

60

70

The child seyde, Al-so mote I thee,3 Tomorwe wol I mete thee

Whan I have myn armoure;
And yet I hope, par ma fay,
That thou shalt with this launcegay
Abyen it ful soure; *

Thy mawe
Shal I percen, if I may,
Er it be fully pryme of day,

For heer thou shalt be slawe.'

Sir Thopas drow abak ful faste;
This geaunt at him stones caste

Out of a fel staf-slinge;
But faire escapeth child Thopas,
And al it was thurgh Goddes gras,
And thurgh his fair beringe.

Yet listeth, lordes, to my tale
Merier than the nightingale,

5

For now I wol yow roune How sir Thopas with sydes smale," Priking over hil and dale,

Is come agayn to toune.

His merie men comanded he

To make him bothe game and glee, For nedes moste he fighte

1 retreat. 2 a stringed instrument. sourly, i.e. dearly, pay for it. 5 tell.

100

110

120

130

3 prosper.

6 slim waist.

popes

They fette him first the swete wyn, And mede eek in a maselyn,9

And royal spicerye

Of gingebreed that was ful fyn,
And lycorys, and eek comyn,10
With sugre that is so trye.11

He dide next his whyte lere 12
Of clooth of lake 18 fyn and clere
A breech and eek a sherte;
And next his sherte an aketoun,14
And over that an habergeoun 15

For 16 percinge of his herte;

And over that a fyn hauberk,17
Was al y-wroght of Jewes werk,

Ful strong it was of plate;
And over that his cote-armour
As whyt as is a lily-flour,

In which he wol debate.18

140

150

160

170

mazer, or maple-bowl. 12 flesh. 13 linen.

15 coat-of-mail.

17 Hauberk is usually coat-of-mail, but here it is, apparently, plate-armour. Thopas was well protected i

18 fight.

19 shin-pieces.

Now hold your mouth, par charitee,

Bothe knight and lady free,

And herkneth to my spelle;

Of bataille and of chivalry,
And of ladyes love-drury 1
Anon I wol yow telle.

Men speke of romances of prys,
Of Horn child and of Ypotys,
Of Bevis and sir Gy,
Of sir Libeux and Pleyn-damour;
But sir Thopas, he bereth the flour
Of royal chivalry.

His gode stede al he bistrood,
And forth upon his wey he glood 2
As sparkle out of the bronde;
Up-on his crest he bar a tour,
And ther-in stiked a lily-flour.

God shilde his cors fro shonde ! 8

And for he was a knight auntrous,1 He nolde slepen in non hous,

But liggen in his hode;
His brighte helm was his wonger,5
And by him baiteth his dextrer®
Of herbes fyne and gode.

Him-self drank water of the wel,
As did the knight sir Percivel,
So worthy under wede,
Til on a day-

180

190

200

Three large sowes hadde she, and namo, 10 Three kyn, and eek a sheep that highte Malle.

Ful sooty was hir bour, and eek hir halle,
In which she eet ful many a sclendre meel.
Of poynaunt sauce hir neded never a deel.
No deyntee morsel passed thurgh hir
throte;

Hir dyete was accordant to hir cote.
Repleccioun ne made hir never syk;
Attempree 11 dyete was al her phisyk,
And exercyse, and hertes suffisaunce.
The goute lette hir no-thing 12 for to daunce,
N'apoplexye shente 18 nat hir heed;
No wyn ne drank she, neither whyt ne reed;
Hir bord was served most with whyt and
blak,

21

Milk and broun breed, in which she fond no lak,

Seynd 14 bacoun, and somtyme an ey or tweye,

For she was as it were a maner deye.1 15

A yerd she hadde, enclosed al aboute With stikkes, and a drye dich with-oute, In which she hadde a cok, hight Chauntecleer.

30 16

In al the land of crowing nas his peer;
His vois was merier than the mery orgon
On messe-dayes that in the chirche gon;
Wel sikerer 17 was his crowing in his logge,
Than is a clokke, or an abbey orlogge.
By nature knew he ech ascencioun
Of equinoxial in thilke toun;

For whan degrees fiftene were ascended, Thanne crew he that it mighte nat ben amended.