To rocke with her childe aflepe, And thus her owne childe to kepe She hath under the goddes cure. And fo fell upon aventure, Whan thilke yere hath made his ende, Hifpanie fuperioris Her ship, so as it moste wende,
Conftancie poft bi
ennium in partes
tabatur, a quorum By ftrength of wind which god hath yive
confervans gratio- Eftward was into Spaine drive
Right faft under a caftell walle,
Where that an hethen admiralle
Was lorde, and he a steward had
One Thelous, whiche al was bad,
A fals knight and a renegate.
He goth to loke, in what eftate
The fhip was comen, and there he fonde
Forth with a childe upon her honde
This lady, where she was alone.
He toke good hede of the perfone
And figh fhe was a worthy wight
And thought he wolde upon the night
Demene her at his owne wille,
And let her be therinne ftille,
That no man figh she nought that day.
At goddes wille and thus she lay
Unknowe, what her shall betide.
And fell fo that by nightes tide
This knight withoute felafhip
Hath take a boot and cam to ship
And thought of her his luft to take
And swore, if she him daunger make,
That certainly fhe fhulde deie.
She figh there was none other weie
And faide he fhulde her well conforte,
That he first loke out at porte,
That no man were nigh the stede,
Which mighte knowe, what they dede.
And than he may do what he wolde.
He was right glad, that she so tolde,
And to the port anone he ferde.
She praieth god, and he her herde.
And fodeinlich he was out throwe
And dreint, and tho began to blowe
Winde mevable fro the londe,
And thus the mighty goddes honde
Her hath conveied and defended.
And whan thre yere ben full defpended,
Her fhip was drive upon a daie,
Where that a great navie laie
Of shippes, all the worlde at ones.
And as god wolde for the nones,
Her ship goth in amonge hem alle
And stint nought, er it befalle
And hath that veffel under gete,
Which maister was of all the flete.
But there it resteth and abode.
This
grete fhip on anker rode,
The lord come forth, and whan he figh
That other ligge on bord fo nigh
He wondreth, what it might be,
And bad men to go in and fe.
Qualiter navicula Conftancie quodam die per altum mare vagans inter copiofam navium multitudinem dilapfa eft, quarum Arcennius Romanorum conful, dux et capitaneus ipfam ignotam fufcipiens ufque ad Romam fecum perduxit, ubi equalem uxori fue Elene permanfuram reverenter afsociavit nec non et eiufdem filium Mauricium in omni habundancia quafi proprium edu
This lady tho was crope a fide
As fhe, that wolde her felven hide,
For fhe ne wiste, what they were.
They fought about and fond her there
And broughten up her childe and her.
And therupon this lord to spire
Began, fro whenne that the came
And what she was.
A woman wofully beftad.
I had a lorde, and thus he bad,
That I forth with my litel fone
Upon the wawes shulde wone.
But why the cause was I not,
But he whiche alle thinges wot
Yet hath, I thonk him, of his might
My childe and me fo kepte upright,
That we be faufe bothe two.
This lorde her axeth evermo
How the beleveth, and fhe faith:
I leve and truft in Criftes feith,
Which died upon the rode tre.
What is thy name, tho quod he?
My name is Cufte, fhe him faide.
But furthermore for nought he praide
Of her eftate to knowe pleine
She wolde him nothing elles faine
But of her name, which she feigned,
All other thinges she reftreigned,
That o word more she ne tolde.
This lord than axeth if she wolde
With him abide in compaignie
And faide, he came from Barbarie
To Rome ward and home he went.
Tho fhe fuppofeth what it ment
And faith, she wolde with him wende
And dwelle unto her lives ende,
If it fo be to his plefaunce.
And thus upon her acqueintaunce
He tolde her pleinly as it stood,
Of Rome how that the gentil blood
In Barbarie was betraied
And therupon he hath affaied
By werre and taken fuch vengeaunce,
That none of thilke alliance,
By whom the trefon was compaffed,
Is from the fwerd alive paffed.
But of Conftance how it was
That couthe he knowe by no cas
Where she becam, so as he said
Her ere unto his word fhe laid,
But furthermore made fhe no chere.
And netheles in this matere
It happed that ilke time fo
This lord, with whom the fhulde go,
Of Rome was the fenatour
And of her fader themperour
His brother doughter hath to wive,
Which hath her fader eke on live,
And was Saluftes cleped tho,
His wife Heleine hight also,
Qualiter rex Allee
inita pace
To whom Conftance was coufine.
Thus to the fike a medicine
Hath god ordeigned of his grace,
That forthwith in the fame place
This fenatour his trouthe plight
For ever, while he live might
To kepe her in worship and in wele,
Be fo that god woll yive her hele,
This lady, which fortune him sende.
And thus by ship forth failende
Her and her childe to Rome be brought,
And to his wife tho he befought
To take her into compaignie.
And fhe, which couth of curtefie
All that a good wife fhulde conne,
Was inly glad, that she hath wonne
The felaship of fo good one.
This emperours doughter Cufte
Forth with the doughter of Salufte
Was kept, but no man redely
Knew what she was, and nought forthy
They thoughten well she hadde be
In her estate of high degre,
And every life her loveth wele.
Now herken thilke unstable whele,
rediens et non in- Whiche ever torneth, went aboute.
caufam exilii dili- The king Allee, while he was oute, gencius perfcru- As thou to-fore haft herd this cas,
fuam Domildam Deceived through his moder was.
fciviffet, ipfam in But whan that he come home ayein,
igne proiciens con-
buri fecit.
He axeth of his chamberlain
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