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Gif me my love, thou blisful lady deere.”
Whan thorisoun was doon of Palamon,
His sacrifice he dede, and that anoon
Ful pitously, with alle circumstances,
Al telle I nat es now his observances.
But at the last the statu of Venus schook,
And made a signe, wherby that he took
That his prayer accepted was that day.
For though the signe schewed a delay,
Yet wist he wel that graunted was his boone;
And with glad herte he went him hom ful soone.
The thrid hour inequal that Palamon
Bigan to Venus temple for to goon,
Up roos the sonne, and up roos Emelye,
And to the temple of Dian gan sche hye.
Hir maydens, that sche with hir thider ladde,
Ful redily with hem the fyr they hadde,
Thencens, the clothes, and the remenant al
That to the sacrifice longen schal;
The hornes ful of meth, as is the gyse;
2240 Ther lakketh nought to do here sacrifise.
Smokyng the temple, ful of clothes faire,
This Emelye with herte debonaire
Hir body wessch with watir of a welle;
But how sche dide I ne dar nat telle,
But it be eny thing in general;

Unto the lystes, ther hir temple was,
And doun he kneleth, and, with humble cheer
And herte sore, he seide as ye schal heer.
"Fairest of faire, o lady myn Venus,
Doughter of Jove, and spouse to Vulcanus,
Thou glader of the mount of Citheroun,
For thilke love thou haddest to Adeoun
Have pité on my bitter teeres smerte,
And tak myn humble prayer to thin herte.
Allas! I ne have no langage for to telle
Theffectes ne the tormentz of myn helle;
Myn herte may myn harmes nat bewreye;
I am so confus, that I may not seye.
But mercy, lady bright, that knowest wel
My thought, and felest what harm that I fel,
Consider al this, and rew upon my sore,
As wisly as I schal for evermore
Enforce my might thi trewe servant to be,
And holde werre alday with chastité;
That make I myn avow, so ye me helpe.
I kepe nat of armes for to yelpe,
Ne nat I aske to morn to have victorie,
Ne renoun in this caas, ne veyne glorie
Of pris of armes, blowyng up and doun,
But I wolde have ful possessioun
Of Emelye, and dye in thi servise;
Fynd thou the maner how, and in what wyse.
I recche nat, but it may better be,
To have victorie of him, or he of me,
So that I have my lady in myn armes.

2251

For though so be that Mars be god of armes,
And ye be Venus, the goddes of love,
Youre vertu is so gret in heven above,
Thy temple wol I worschipe evermo,
And on thin auter, wher I ryde or go,
I wol do sacrifice, and fyres beete.
And if ye wol nat so, my lady sweete,
Than I the, to morwe with a spere
pray
That Arcita me thurgh the herte bere.
Thanne rekke I nat, whan I have lost my lyf,
Though that Arcite have hir to his wyf.
This is theffect and ende of my prayere;

2260

Kalendrier de Bergiers, edit. 1500, sign. K. ii. b. Qui veult savoir comme bergiers scevent quel planete regne chascune heure du jour et de la nuit, doit savoir la planete du jour qui veult s'enquerir; et la premiere heure temporelle du soleil levant ce jour est pour celluy planete, la seconde heure est pour la planete ensuivant, et la tierce pour l'autre, &c. in the following order, viz. Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, Luna. To apply this doctrine to the present case. The first hour of the Sunday, reckoning from sun-rise, belonged to the Sun, the planet of the day; the second to Venus, the third to Mercury, &c.; and continuing this method of allotment, we shall find that the twenty-second hour also belonged to the Sun, and the twenty-third to Venus; so that the hour of Venus really was, as Chaucer says, two hours before sun-rise of the following day. Accordingly we are told

in ver. 2273, that the third hour after Palamon set out for the temple of Venus, the Sun rose, and Emelie began to go to the temple of Diane. It is not said that this was the hour of Diane, or the Moon, but it really was; for, as we have just seen, the twenty-third hour of Sunday belonging to Venus, the twenty-fourth must be given to Mercury, and the first hour of Monday falls in course to the Moon, the presiding planet of that day. After this Arcite is described as walking to the temple of Mars, ver. 2369, in the nexte houre of Mars, that is, the fourth hour of the day. It is necessary to take these words together, for the nexte houre, singly, would signify the second hour of the day; but that, according to the rule of rotation mentioned above, belonged to Saturn, as the third did to Jupiter. The fourth was the nexte houre of Mars, that occurred after the hour last named."-Tyrwhitt. 2223. Fairest of faire. The Ms. Harl. reads fairest, O fairest.

And yet it were a game to here it al;

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To him that meneth wel it were no charge:
But it is good a man be at his large.
Hir brighte her was kempt, untressed al;
A corone of a grene ok cerial
Upon hir heed was set ful fair and meete.
Tuo fyres on the auter gan sche beete,
And did hir thinges, as men may biholde
In Stace of Thebes and the bokes olde.
Whan kynled was the fyre, with pitous cheere
Unto Dyan sche spak, as ye may heere.

"O chaste goddes of the woodes greene,

To whom bothe heven and erthe and see is seene,
Queen of the regne of Pluto derk and lowe, 2301
Goddes of maydenes, that myn hert has knowe
Ful many a yeer, ye woot what I desire,
As keep me fro the vengans of thilk yre,
That Atheon aboughte trewely:
Chaste goddesse, wel wost thou that I
Desire to ben a mayden al my lyf,
Ne never wol I be no love ne wyf.
I am, thou wost, yit of thi company,
A mayden, and love huntyng and venery, 2310
And for to walken in the woodes wylde,
And nought to ben a wyf, and be with chylde.
Nought wol I knowe the company of man.
Now helpe me, lady, sythnes ye may and kan,
For the thre formes that thou hast in the.
And Palamon, that hath such love to me,

2273. The thrid hour inequal. "In the astrological
system, the day, from sun-rise to sun-set, and the night,
from sun-set to sun-rise, being each divided into XII.
hours, it is plain that the hours of the day and night
were never equal, except just at the equinoxes. The
hours attributed to the planets were of this unequal sort.
See Kalendrier de Berg. loc. cit. and our author's treatise
on the Astrolabe."-Tyrwhitt.
2291. brighte her. So in the Teseide, Emily is de-
scribed as-
Dicho che i suo crin parevan d'oro,
Non con trezza restretti, ma soluti
E petinati.

2292. a corone. Corona di querzia cereale.-Teseide. 2296. In Stace of Thebes. In the Thebaid of Statius. 2315. thre formes. The Ms. Harl., probably by a mistake of the scribe, omits the word thre.

D

VOL. II.

149

L

And eek Arcite, that loveth me so sore,
This grace I praye the withouten more,
As sende love and pees betwix hem two;
And fro me torne awey here hertes so,
That al here hoote love, and here desire,
Al here besy torment, and al here fyre
Be queynt, or turned in another place.
And if so be thou wol do me no grace,
Or if my destyné be schapid so,

That I schal needes have on of hem two,
So send me him that most desireth me.
Biholde, goddes of clene chastité,

Then pray I the to rewe on my pyne,
For thilke peyne, and that hoote fuyre,
In which whilom thou brendest for desyre,
2320 Whan that thou usedest the gret bewté
Of faire freissche Venus, that is so free,
And haddest hir in armes at thy wille;
And though the ones on a tyme mysfille, 2390
When Vulcanus had caught the in his laas,
And fand the liggyng by his wyf, allaas!
For thilke sorwe that was in thin herte,
Have reuthe as wel upon my peynes smerte.
I am yong and unkonnyng, as thou wost,
And, as I trowe, with love offendid most,
That ever was eny lyves creature;

For sche, that doth me al this wo endure,
Ne rekketh never whether I synke or flete.
And wel I woot, or sche me mercy heete, 2400
I moot with strengthe wyn hir in the place;
And wel I wot, withouten help or grace
Of the, ne may my strengthe nought avayle.
Then help me, lord, to morn in my batayle,
For thilke fyr that whilom brende the,
As wel as this fire now brenneth me;
2340 And do to morn that I have the victorie.
Myn be the travail, al thin be the glorie.
Thy soverein tempul wol I most honouren
Of any place, and alway most labouren
In thy plesaunce and in thy craftes strong.
And in thy tempul I wol my baner hong,
And alle the armes of my companye,
And ever more, unto that day I dye,
Eterne fyr I wol bifore the fynde.
And eek to this avow I wol me bynde:
My berd, myn heer that hangeth longe adoun,
That never yit ne felt offensioun

2351

The bitter teeres that on my cheekes falle.
Syn thou art mayde, and keper of us alle, 2330
My maydenhode thou kepe and wel conserve,
And whil I lyve a mayde I wil the serve."
The fyres bren upon the auter cleer,
Whil Emelye was in hire preyer;
But sodeinly sche saugh a sighte queynt,
For right anon on of the fyres queynt,
And quyked agayn, and after that anon
That other fyr was queynt, and al agon;
And as it queynt, it made a whistelyng,
As doth a wete brond in his brennyng.
And at the brondes end out ran anoon
As it were bloody dropes many oon;
For which so sore agast was Emelye,
That sche was wel neih mad, and gan to crie,
For sche ne wiste what it signifyed;
But oonely for feere thus sche cryed,
And wepte, that it was pité to heere.
And therwithal Dyane gan appeere,
With bow in hond, right as a hunteresse,
And seyd; "A! doughter, stynt thyn hevynesse.
Among the goddes hye it is affermed,
And by eterne word write and confermed,
Thou schalt be wedded unto oon of tho,
That have for the so moche care and wo;
But unto which of hem may I nat telle.
Farwel, for I may her no lenger dwelle.
The fyres which that on myn auter bren
Schuln the declare, or that thou go hen,
Thyn adventure of love, and in this caas.'
And with that word, the arwes in the caas
Of the goddesse clatren faste and rynge,
And forth sche went, and made a vanysschynge,
For which this Emelye astoneyd was,
And seide," What amounteth this, allas!
I put me under thy proteccioun,
Dyane, and in thi disposicioun."
And hoom sche goth anon the nexte way.
This is theffect, ther nys no mor to say.
The nexte hour of Mars folwynge this,
Arcite to the temple walkyd is,
To fyry Mars to doon his sacrifise,
With al the rightes of his payen wise.
With pitous herte and heih devocioun,
Right thus to Mars he sayd his orisoun:
"O stronge god, that in the reynes cold
Of Trace honoured and lord art y-hold,
And hast in every regne and every land
Of armes al the bridel in thy hand,
And hem fortunest as the lust devyse,
Accept of me my pitous sacrifise.
If so be that my youthe may deserve,
And that my might be worthi for to serve
Thy godhed, that I may ben on of thine,
2375. The greater part of this prayer is taken almost
literally from the Teseide.

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Of rasour ne of schere, I wol thee give,
And be thy trewe servaunt whiles I lyve. 2420
Lord, have rowthe uppon my sorwes sore,
Gif me the victorie, I aske no more."

2430

The preyer stynt of Arcita the strange,
The rynges on the tempul dore that hange,
And eek the dores, clatereden ful fast,
Of which Arcita somwhat was agast.
The fyres brenden on the auter bright,
That it gan al the tempul for to light;
A swote smel anon the ground upgaf,
And Arcita anon his hand up haf,
And more encens into the fyr yet cast,
With othir rightes, and than atte last
The statu of Mars bigan his hauberk ryng.
And with that soun he herd a murmuryng
Ful lowe and dym, and sayde this, "Victorie."
For which he gaf to Mars honour and glorie.
And thus with joye, and hope wel to fare,
Arcite anoon unto his inne is fare,
As fayn as foul is of the brighte sonne.
And right anon such stryf is bygonne
For that grauntyng, in the heven above,
Bitwix Venus the goddes of love,
And Martz the sterne god armypotent,
That Jupiter was busy it to stent;
Til that the pale Saturnes the colde,
That knew so many of aventures olde,
2380 Fond in his olde experiens an art,

2370

That he ful sone hath plesyd every part.
As soth is sayd, eelde hath gret avantage,
In eelde is bothe wisdom and usage;
Men may the eelde at-ren, but nat at-rede.
Saturne anon, to stynte stryf and drede,

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Al be it that it be agayns his kynde,
Of al this stryf he can a remedy fynde.

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My deere doughter Venus," quod Satourne,
"My cours, that hath so wyde for to tourne,
Hath more power than woot eny man.
Myn is the drenchyng in the see so wan;
Myn is the prisoun in the derke cote;
Myn is the stranglyng and hangyng by the throte;
The murmur, and the cherles rebellyng;
The groyning, and the pryvé enpoysonyng.
I do vengance and pleyn correctioun,
Whiles I dwelle in the signe of the lyoun.
Myn is the ruen of the hihe halles,
The fallyng of the toures and the walles
Upon the mynour or the carpenter.
I slowh Sampsoun in schakyng the piler.
And myne ben the maladies colde,
The derke tresoun, and the castes olde;
Myn lokyng is the fadir of pestilens.
Now wepe nomore, I schal do my diligence,
That Palamon, that is myn owen knight,
Schal have his lady, as thou him bilight.
Thow Martz schal kepe his knight, yet nevertheles
Bitwixe you ther moot som tyme be pees;
Al be ye nought of oo complexioun,
That ilke day causeth such divisioun.

I am thi ayel, redy at thy wille;

2470

Pypes, trompes, nakers, and clariounes,
That in the batail blewe bloody sownes;
The paleys ful of pepul up and doun,
Heer thre, ther ten, haldyng her questioun,
Dyvynyng of this Thebans knightes two.
Som seyden thus, som seyd it schal be so;
Som heelde with him with the blake berd,
Som with the ballyd, som with thikke hered; 2520
Som sayd he loked grym as he wold fight;
He hath a sparth of twenti pound of wight.
Thus was the halle ful of devynyng,
Lang after that the sonne gan to spring.
The gret Theseus that of his sleep is awaked
With menstralcy and noyse that was maked,
Held yit the chambre of his paleys riche,
Til that the Thebanes knyghtes bothe i-liche
Honoured weren, and into paleys fet.
Duk Theseus was at a wyndow set.
Arayed right as he were god in trone.
The pepul preseth thider-ward ful sone
Him for to seen, and doon him reverence,
And eek herken his hest and his sentence.
An herowd on a skaffold made a hoo,
Til al the noyse of the pepul was i-doo;
And whan he sawh the pepul of noyse al stille,
Thus schewed he the mighty dukes wille.
"The lord hath of his heih discrecioun

Wepe thou nomore, I wol thi lust fulfille." 2480 Considered, that it were destruccioun

Now wol I stynt of the goddes above,

Of Mars, and of Venus goddes of love,
And telle you, as pleinly as I can,
The grete effecte for that I bigan.

2490

Gret was the fest in Athenus that day,
And eek that lusty sesoun of that May
Made every wight to ben in such plesaunce,
That al the Monday jousten they and daunce,
And spende it in Venus heigh servise.
But by the cause that they schuln arise
Erly a-morwe for to see that fight,
Unto their rest wente they at nyght.
And on the morwe whan the day gan spryng,
Of hors and hernoys noyse and clateryng
Ther was in the oostes al aboute;
And to the paleys rood ther many a route
Of lordes, upon steede and palfreys.
Ther mayst thou see devysyng of herneys
So uncowth and so riche wrought and wel
Of goldsmithry, of browdyng, and of steel; 2500
The scheldes bright, testers, and trappures;
Gold-beten helmes, hauberks, and cote armures;
Lordes in paramentes on her coursers,
Knightes of retenu, and eek squyers;
Rayhyng the speres, and helmes bokelyng,
Girdyng of scheeldes, with layneres lasyng;
Ther as need is, they were nothing ydel;
Ther fomen steedes, on the golden bridel
Gnawyng, and faste armurers also
With fyle and hamer prikyng to and fro;
Yemen on foote, and knaves many oon
With schorte staves, as thikke as they may goon;

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To gentil blood, to fighten in this wise
Of mortal batail now in this emprise;
Wherfore to schapen that they schuld not dye,
He wol his firste purpos modifye.

No man therfore, up peyne of los of lyf,
No maner schot, ne pollax, ne schort knyf
Into the lystes sende, or thider bryng;

2550

Ne schorte swerd for to stoke the point bytyng
No man ne draw, ne bere by his side.
Ne noman schal unto his felawe ryde
But oon cours, with a scharpe spere;
Feyne if him lust on foote, himself to were.
And he that is at meschief, schal be take,
And nat slayn, but be brought to the stake,
That schal be ordeyned on eyther syde;
But thider he schal by force, and ther abyde.
And if so falle, a cheventen be take
On eyther side, or elles sle his make,
No lenger schal the turneynge laste.
God spede you; goth forth and ley on faste.
With long swerd and with mace fight your fille.
Goth now your way; this is the lordes wille."

2559

The voice of the pcepul touchith heven,
So lowde cried thei with mery steven:
"God save such a lord that is so good,
He wilneth no destruccioun of blood!"
Up goth the trompes and the melodye,
And to the lystes ryde the companye
By ordynaunce, thurgh the cité large,
Hangyng with cloth of gold, and not with sarge.
Ful lik a lord this nobul duk can ryde,

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These tuo Thebans on eyther side;
And after rood the queen, and Emelye,
And after hem another companye
Of one and other, after here degré.
And thus they passeden thurgh that cité,
And to the lystes come thei by tyme;
It nas not of the day yet fully pryme.
Whan sette was Theseus riche and hye,
Ypolita the queen and Emelye,
And other ladyes in here degrees aboute,
Unto the settes passeth al the route.
And west-ward, thorugh the gates of Mart,
Arcite, and eek the hundred of his part,
With baners red ys entred right anoon;
And in that selve moment Palamon
Is, under Venus, est-ward in that place,
With baner whyt, and hardy cheer of face.
In al the world, to seeke up and doun,

So even withoute variacioun

Ther nere suche companyes tweye.

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2640

2572 Ne in Belmary ther is no fel lyoun,
That hunted is, or is for hunger wood,
Ne of his prey desireth so the blood,
As Palamon to sle his foo Arcite.
The jelous strokes on here helmes byte;
Out renneth blood on bothe here sides reede.
Som tyme an ende ther is on every dede;
For er the sonne unto the reste went,
The strange kyng Emetreus gan hent
This Palamon, as he faught with Arcite,
And his swerd in his fleissch he did byte;
And by the force of twenti he is take
Unyolden, and i-drawe unto the stake.
And in the rescous of this Palamon
The stronge kyng Ligurgius is born adoun;
And kyng Emetreus for al his strengthe
Is born out of his sadel his swerdes lengthe,
So hit him Palamon er he were take; 2649
But al for nought, he was brought to the stake.
His hardy herte might him helpe nought;
He most abyde whan that he was caught,

2590

For ther nas noon so wys that cowthe seye,
That any had of other avauntage
Of worthines, ne staat, ne of visage,
So evene were they chosen for to gesse.
And in two renges faire they hem dresse.
And whan here names i-rad were everychon,
That in here nombre gile were ther noon,
Tho were the gates schitt, and cried lowde:
"Doth now your devoir, yonge knightes proude!"
The heraldz laften here prikyng up and doun;
Now ryngede the tromp and clarioun;
Ther is nomore to say, but est and west
In goth the speres into the rest;
Ther seen men who can juste, and who can ryde;
In goth the scharpe spere into the side.
Ther schyveren schaftes upon schuldres thyk;
He feeleth thurgh the herte-spon the prik.
Up sprengen speres on twenty foot on hight;

Out
goon the swerdes as the silver bright. 2610
The helmes there to-hewen and to-schrede;
Out brast the blood, with stoute stremes reede.
With mighty maces the bones thay to-breste.
He thurgh the thikkest of the throng gan threste.
Ther stomblen steedes strong, and doun can falle.
He rolleth under foot as doth a balle.
He feyneth on his foot with a tronchoun,
And him hurteleth with his hors adoun.
He thurgh the body hurt is, and siththen take
Maugré his heed, and brought unto the stake, 2620
As forward was, right ther he most abyde.
Another lad is on that other syde.
And som tyme doth Theseus hem to rest,
Hem to refreissche, and drinke if hem lest.
Ful ofte a-day have this Thebans twoo
Togider y-met, and wrought his felaw woo;
Unhorsed hath ech other of hem tweye.
Ther nas no tygyr in the vale of Galgopleye,
Whan that hir whelp is stole, whan it is lite,
So cruel on the hunt, as is Arcite
For jelous hert upon this Palamon:
2574. And after hem. The Ms. Harl. reads these two

lines thus,

2630

And after hem of ladyes another companye, And after hem of comunes after here degré. Of ladyes in the first line seems redundant, and the second line appears to have been blundered by a careless or ignorant scribe.

2617. on his foot. Conf. 1. 2552.

2628. Galgopleye. Tyrwhitt reads Galaphey, and conjectures that Chaucer meant Galapha in Mauritania Tingitana. Belmarie has been noticed before, 1. 57.

2660

By force, and eek by composicioun.
Who sorweth now but woful Palamoun,
That moot nomore gon agayn to fight?
And whan that Theseus had seen that sight,
He cryed, "Hoo! nomore, for it is doon!
Ne noon schal lenger unto his felaw goon.
I wol be trewe juge, and nought partye.
Arcyte of Thebes schal have Emelye,
That hath by his fortune hire i-wonne."
Anoon ther is noyse bygonne
For joye of this, so lowde and hey withalle,
It semed that the listes wolde falle.
What can now fayre Venus doon above?
What seith sche now? what doth this queen of
But wepeth so, for wantyng of hir wille, [love?
Til that hire teeres in the lystes fille;
Sche seyde: "I am aschamed douteles."
Satournus seyde: "Doughter, hold thy pees. 2670
Mars hath his wille, his knight hath his boone,
And by myn heed thou schalt be esed soone."
The trompes with the lowde mynstralcy,
The herawdes, that ful lowde yolle and cry,
Been in here joye for daun Arcyte.
But herkneth me, and stynteth but a lite,
Which a miracle bifel anoon.

2680

This Arcyte fersly hath don his helm adoun,
And on his courser for to schewe his face
He priked endlange in the large place,
Lokyng upward upon this Emelye;
And sche agayn him cast a frendly yghe,
(For wommen, as for to speke in comune,
Thay folwe alle the favour of fortune)
And was alle his in cheer, and in his hert.
Out of the ground a fyr infernal stert,
From Pluto send, at the request of Saturne,
For which his hors for feere gan to turne,
And leep asyde, and foundred as he leep;
And or that Arcyte may take keep,
He pight him on the pomel of his heed,
That in that place he lay as he were deed,
His brest to-broken with his sadil bowe.
As blak he lay as eny col or crowe,
So was the blood y-ronne in his face.
Anon he was y-born out of the place
With herte sore, to Theseus paleys.
Tho was he corven out of his harneys,
And in a bed y-brought ful fair and blyve,
For yit he was in memory and on lyve,

2690

2700

Ne what jewels men in the fyr tho cast,
Whan that the fyr was gret and brente fast;
Ne how sum caste her scheeld, and summe her
spert,

And of here vestimentz, which that they were, 2950
And cuppes ful of wyn, and mylk, and blood,
Unto the fyr, that brent as it were wood;
Ne how the Grekes with an huge route
Thre tymes ryden al the fyr aboute
Upon the lefte hond, with an heih schoutyng,
And thries with here speres clateryng;
And thries how the ladyes gan to crye;
Ne how that lad was home-ward Emelye;
Ne how Arcyte is brent to aschen colde;
Ne how the liche-wake was y-holde
Al thilke night, ne how the Grekes pleye
The wake-pleyes, kepe I nat to seye;
Who wrastleth best naked, with oyle enoynt,
Ne who that bar him best in no disjoynt.
I wol not telle eek how they ben goon
Hom til Athenes whan the pley is doon.
But schortly to the poynt now wol I wende,
And maken of my longe tale an ende.

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By proces and by lengthe of certeyn yeres
Al styntyd is the mornyng and the teeres
Of alle Grekys, by oon general assent.
Than semed me ther was a parlement
At Athenes, on a certeyn poynt and cas;
Among the whiche poyntes spoken was
To han with certeyn contrees alliaunce,
And have fully of Thebans obeissance.
For which this noble Theseus anon

Let senden after gentil Palamon,

Unwist of him what was the cause and why;

But in his blake clothes sorwfully

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He cam at his comaundement on hye.

Tho sente Theseus for Emelye.

Over the which day they may nat pace,
Al mowe they yit wel here dayes abregge;
Ther needeth non auctorité tallegge;
For it is preved by experience,
But that me lust declare my sentence.
Than may men wel by this ordre discerne,
That thilke moevere stabul is and eterne.
Wel may men knowe, but it be a fool,
That every partye dyryveth from his hool.
For nature hath nat take his bygynnyng
Of no partye ne cantel of a thing,
But of a thing that parfyt is and stable,
Descendyng so, til it be corumpable.
And therfore of his wyse purveaunce
He hath so wel biset his ordenaunce,
That spices of thinges and progressiouns
Schullen endure by successiouns,
And nat eterne be withoute lye:
This maistow understand and se at ye.

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"Lo the ook, that hath so long norisschyng
Fro tyme that it gynneth first to spring,
And hath so long a lyf, as we may see,
Yet atte laste wasted is the tree.

"Considereth eek, how that the harde stoon
Under oure foot, on which we trede and goon,
Yit wasteth it, as it lith by the weye.
The brode ryver som tyme wexeth dreye.
The grete townes see we wane and wende.
Than may I see that al thing hath an ende.
"Of man and womman se we wel also,
That wendeth in oon of this termes two,
That is to seyn, in youthe or elles in age,
He moot ben deed, the kyng as schal a page;
Sum in his bed, som in the deepe see,
Som in the large feeld, as men may se.
Ther helpeth naught, al goth thilke weye.
Thanne may I see wel that al thing schal deye.

Whan they were sette, and hussht was al the place, What maketh this but Jubiter the kyng?

And Theseus abyden hadde a space

Or eny word cam fro his wyse brest,

His eyen set he ther as was his lest,

And with a sad visage he syked stille,
And after that right thus he seide his wille.
"The firste moevere of the cause above,

Whan he first made the fayre cheyne of love, 2990
Gret was theffect, and heigh was his entente;
Wel wist he why, and what therof he mente;
For with that faire cheyne of love he bond
The fyr, the watir, the eyr, and eek the lond
In certeyn boundes, that they may not flee;
That same prynce and moevere eek," quod he,
"Hath stabled, in this wrecched world adoun,
Certeyn dayes and duracioun

To alle that er engendrid in this place,

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The which is prynce and cause of alle thing,
Convertyng al unto his propre wille,
From which he is dereyned, soth to telle.
And here agayn no creature on lyve
Of no degré avayleth for to stryve.

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Than is it wisdom, as thenketh me,
To maken vertu of necessité,
And take it wel, that we may nat eschewe,
And namely that that to us alle is dewe.
And who so gruccheth aught, he doth folye,
And rebel is to him that al may gye.
And certeynly a man hath most honour
To deyen in his excellence and flour,
Whan he is siker of his goode name.
Than hath he doon his freend, ne him, no schame.
And glader ought his freend ben of his deth,
Thanne whan his name appelled is for age;
Whan with honour is yolden up the breth,
For al forgeten is his vasselage.
Thanne is it best, as for a worthi fame,
To dye whan a man is best of name.
The contrary of al this is wilfulnesse.
Why grucchen we? why have we hevynesse, 3060
That good Arcyte, of chyvalry the flour,
Departed is, with worschip and honour
Out of this foule prisoun of this lyf?

3019. Lo the ock. From the Teseide,

Li querci, che anno si lungo nutrimento
E tanta vita quanto noi vedemo,
Anno pur alcun tempo finimento.
Le dure pietre ancor, etc.

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