Of gresè, whan she dronken hadde hire draught. Ful semèly after her mete she raught.5 And sikerly she was of grete disport, And ful plesant, and amiable of port, And peined hire to contrefeten 7 chere Of court, and ben estatelich of manère, And to ben holden digne of reverence.
But for to speken of hire conscience, She was so charitable and so pitoùs, She wolde wepe if that she saw a mous Caughte in a trappe, if it were ded or bledde. Of smalè houndès hadde she, that she fedde With rosted flesh, and milk, and wastel brede. But sore wept she if on of hem were dede, Or if men smote it with a yerdè9 smert,10 And all was conscience and tendre herte.
Ful semely hire wimple ypinched was ; Hire nose tretìs; 11 hire eyen grey as glas; Hire mouth ful smale, and therto soft and red; But sikerly she hadde a fayre forehèd. It was almost a spannè brode I trowe; For hardily she was not undergrowe.12
Ful fetise 18 was hire cloke, as I was ware, Of smale coràll aboute hire arm she bare A pair of bedès, gauded all with grene; And theron heng a broche of gold ful shene, On whiche was first ywriten a crouned A, And after, Amor vincit omnia.
And eke with worthy wimmen of the toun: For he had power of confession,
As saide himselfè, more than a curat, For of his ordre he was licenciat. Ful swetely herde he confession, And plesant was his absolution.
He was an esy man to give penànce, Ther as he wiste to han 2 a good pitànce: For unto a poure3 ordre for to give Is signè that a man is well yshrive.* For if he gave, he dorstè make avant, He wistè that a man was repentànt. For many a man so hard is of his herte, He may not wepe although him sorè smerte. Therfore in stede of weping and praières, Men mote give silver to the pourè freres. His tippet was ay farsed ful of knives, And pinnès, for to given fayrè wives. And certainly he hadde a mery note. Wel coude he singe and plaien on a rote.7 Of yeddinges he bare utterly the pris. His nekke was whitè as the flour de lis. Therto he strong was as a champioun, And knew wel the tavèrnes in every toun, And every hosteler and gay tapstère, Better than a lazar or a beggère, For unto swiche a worthy man as he Accordeth nought, as by his facultè, To haven with sike lazars acquaintance. It is not honest, it may not avànce, As for to delen with no swiche pouràille,10 But all with riche, and sellers of vitaille.
And over all, ther as profit shuld arise, Curteis he was, and lowly of servise. Ther n' as no man no wher so vertuous. He was the beste beggèr in all his hous: And gave a certain fermè 11 for the grant, Non of his bretheren came in his haunt. For though a widewe haddè but a shoo, (So plesant was his in principio) Yet wold he have a ferthing or he went. His pourchas 12 was wel better than his rent.
And rage he coude as it hadde ben a whelp, In lovèdayes,13 ther coude he mochel help. For ther was he nat like a cloisterere, With thredbare cope, as is a poure scolere, But he was like a maister or a pope. Of double worsted was his semicope,14 That round was as a belle out of the presse. Somwhat he lisped for his wantonnesse, To make his English swete upon his tonge; And in his harping, whan that he hadde songe, His eyen twinkeled in his hed aright,
As don the sterrès in a frosty night.
This worthy limitour was cleped Hubèrd.
13 Days appointed for the amicable settlement of differences.
THE DOCTOR OF PHYSICK.
With us ther was a Doctour of Phisike, In all this world ne was ther non him like To speke of phisike, and of surgerie : For he was grounded in astronomie, He kept his patient a ful gret del In hourès by his magike naturel. Wel coude he fortunen1 the ascendent 2 Of his images for his patient.
He knew the cause of every maladie, Were it of cold, or hote, or moist, or drie, And wher engendred, and of what humoùr, He was a veray parfite practisour.
The cause yknowe, and of his harm the rote, Anon he gave to the sikè man his bote.1 Ful redy hadde he his apothecaries To send him draggès, and his lettuaries, For eche of hem made other for to winne; Hir frendship n'as not newè to beginne. Wel knew he the old Esculapius, And Dioscorides, and eke Rufùs; Old Hippocras, Hali, and Gallien, Serapion, Rasis, and Avicen;
Averrois, Damascene, and Constantin ; Bernard, and Gatisden, and Gilbertin. Of his diete mesúrable was he,
For it was of no superfluitee,
The Miller was a stout carl for the nones, Ful bigge he was of braun, and eke of bones; That proved wel, for over all ther he came, At wrastling he wold bere away the ramı.1 He was short shuldered brode, a thikkè gnarre,2 Ther n'as no dore, that he n'olde heve of barre, Or breke it at a renning3 with his hede. His berd as any sowe or fox was rede,
And therto brode, as though it were a spade. Upon the cop right of his nose he hade A wert, and theron stode a tufte of heres, Rede as the bristles of a sowès eres. His nose-thirlès 5 blackè were and wide. A swerd and bokeler bare he by his side. His mouth as widè was as a forneis. He was a jangler, and a goliardeis,7 And that was most of sinne, and harlotries. Wel coude he stelen corne, and tollen thries. And yet he had a thomb of gold parde.9 A white cote and a blew hode wered he. A baggèpipe wel coude he blowe and soune, And therwithall he brought us out of toune.
2 A hard knot in a tree. 3 A running.
7 Buffoon. 89 He was as honest as other millers, though he had,
according to the proverb, like every miller, a thumb of gold.
14. John Barbour, d. A.D. 1396 (see Manual, p. 51).
APOSTROPHE TO FREEDOM.
[Old Orthography.]
A! fredome is a nobill thing! Fredome mayse man to haiff liking! Fredome all solace to man giffis : He levys at ese that frely levys!
[Modern Orthography.] Ah! Freedom is a noble thing! Freedom makes men to have liking!! Freedom all solace to man gives : He lives at ease that freely lives!
A noble hart may haiff nane ese, Na ellys nocht that may him plese, Gyff fredome failythe: for fre liking Is yearnyt our all othir thing. Na he, that ay hase levyt fre, May nocht knaw weill the propyrte, The angyr, na the wretchyt dome, That is cowplyt to foule thyrldome. Bot gyff he had assayit it, Then all perquer he suld it wyt; And suld think fredome mar to pryse Than all the gold in warld that is.
A noble heart may have none ease, Na elsé nought that may him please, If freedom faileth: for free liking Is yearned2 oure 3 all other thing. Na he, that aye has lived free, May not know well the property,4 The anger, na the wretched doom, That it coupléd to foul thyrldom.5 But if he had assayéd it,
Then all perquer 6 he should it wit ;7 And should think freedom more to prize Than all the gold in world that is. 5 Thraldom.
4 Peculiar state or condition. 6 Exactly. 7 Know.
15. Chaucer (Prose). Tale of Melibous, from the Parson's Tale.
Whan dame Prudence, ful debonairly and with gret pacience, had herd all that hire husbonde liked for to say, than axed she of him licence for to speke, and sayde in this wise. My lord, (quod she) as to your first reson, it may lightly ben answerd: for I say that it is no folie to chaunge conseil whan the thing is chaunged, or elles whan the thing semeth otherwise than it semed afore. And moreover I say, though that ye have sworne and behight1 to performe your emprise, and nevertheles ye weive to performe thilke same emprise by just cause, men shuld not say therfore ye were a lyer, ne forsworn for the book sayth, that the wise man maketh no lesing, whan he turneth his corage3 for the better. And al be it that your emprise be established and ordeined by gret multitude of folk, yet thar1 you not
accomplish thilke ordinance but you liketh for the trouthe of thinges, and the profit, ben rather founden in fewe folk that ben wise and ful of reson, than by gret multitude of folk, ther 6 every man cryeth and clattereth what him liketh: sothly swiches multitude is not honest. As to the second reson, wheras ye say, that alle women ben wicke: save your grace, certes ye despise alle women in this wise, and he that all despiseth, as saith the book, all displeseth. And Senek saith, that who so wol have sapience, shal no man dispreise, but he shal gladly teche the science that he can, without presumption or pride and swiche thinges as he nought can, he shal not ben ashamed to lere hem, and to enquere of lesse folk than himself.
16. Sir John de Mandeville,
And therfore I schalle telle zou, what the Soudan tolde me upon a day, in his Chambre. He leet voyden out of his Chambre alle maner of men, Lordes and othere for he wolde speke with me in Conseille. And there he askede me, how the Cristene men governed hem in oure Contree. And I seyde him, Righte wel: thonked be God. And he seyde me, Treulyche, nay: for zee Cristene men ne recthen righte noghte how untrewly to serve God. Ze scholde zeven en
1300-1371 (Manual, p. 51).
sample to the lewed peple, for to do wel; and zee zeven hem ensample to don evylle. For the Comownes, upon festyfulle dayes, whan thei scholden gon to Chirche to serve God, than gon thei to Tavernes, and ben there in glotony, alle the day and alle nyghte, and eten and drynken, as Bestes that have no resoun, and wite not whan thei have y now. And also the Cristene men enforcen hem, in alle maneres that thei mowen, for to fighte, and for to desceyven that on that
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