Group

§ 13.

Monk-Nun's Priest Link

...

§ 14. Nun's Priest's Tale (of the Cock and Fox)

H. § 1.

[For B § 15, The Nun's Priest's End-

Link, see Appendix, p. 694, below.]

Manciple's Head-Link

§ 2. Manciple's Tale (of the Crow)

Six-Text Harl.

pages pages

281 558

283 560

I. § 1.

Blank-Parson Link

...

(Contents of the Parson's Tale

...

§ 2. Parson's Tale (a prose Treatise on Peni-

tence)

Appendix

Pt. I. Contrition, p. 3-81;

593-

599

...

1. The Genuine Nun's-Priest's End-Link

589,590

592 593)

593 599

693

694

2. The Hymn of Chaucer's Oxford Clerk

Nicholas, Angelus ad Virginem (See A

3216, p. 92): Facsimile, and prints of the

English and Latin Versions

3. Woodcuts of the 23 Tellers of the Canter-
bury Tales from the Ellesmere MS

4. Woodcuts of 6 Tellers of Tales and 6 Alle-

gorical Figures from the Cambr. Univ.

Libr. MS Gg. 4. 27

695

4

And bathud euery veyne in swich licour
Of which vertue engendred is pe flour
whan 3ephirus eek' with his swete breeth
Enspirud hath in euery holte and heeth

The tendre croppes and þe 3onge sonne
hath in the Ram his halfe cours I-ronne
And smale fowles maken melodie
That' slepen al pe night wip open yhe
So prikep hem nature in here corages
Thanne longen folk' to gon on pilgrimages

8

12

And palmers for to seeken straunge strondes

To ferne halwes kouthe in sondry londes

And specially from euery schires ende

yfel

Of Engelond to Canturbury þey wende

The holy blisful martir for to seeke

That hem hap holpen whan þat þey were seeke þat' in

þat sesoun on a day

16

In Southwerk' at þe Tabbard as I lay Redy to wenden on my pilgrimage

20

To Canturbury with ful deuout/ corage

At night was come in to pat hostelrie
Wel nyne and twenty in a companye
Of sondry folk' by auenture I-falle

In felaschipe and pilgryms were pei alle
That toward Canturbury wolden ryde

CANT. TALES.-HARL,

B

24

The Chambres and pe stables weren wyde
And wel we weren esud atte beste

And schortly whan þe sonne was to reste
So hadde I spoken with hem euerychon
That I was of here felawschipe anon
And made forward erly to a Ryse

To take oure weye

ther as I

30w deuyse

But natheles whiles I haue tyme and space

Or þat I ferpere in pis tale pace
Me pinkep it acordant' to resoun
To telle 30w alle pe condicioun
Of eche of hem so as it semed me

And which pey weren and of what degre
And eek in what array þat þey were Inne
And at a knight' than wol I first' bygynne

A

Knight þer was and þat a worpy man

That from pe tyme þat he ferst bigan
To ryden out' he louede Chyualrye
Trouthe and honour fredom and curtesie
Ful worthi was he in his lordes werre
And perto hadde he riden noman ferre
As wel in Cristendom as hethenesse
And euere honoured for his worþinesse
At Alisandre he was whan it was wonne
Ful ofte tyme he hadde pe bord bygonne /

Abouen alle naciouns in pruce

In lettowe hadde Reyced and in Ruce

No cristen man so ofte of his degre

In Gernade atte siege hadde he be
At Algesir and riden in Belmarie
At lieys was he and at' Satalie
At many a noble ariue hadde he be

whan þey were wonne and in þe greete see
At' mortal batailles hadde he ben fiftene
And foughten for oure feith at Tramassene
In lystes pries and ay slayn his foo

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60

64

This ilke worpi knigħt hadde ben also
Somtyme with pe lord of Palatye

Ageyn anoper hethene in Turkye

And eueremore he hadde a souereyn prys

And pough he was worby he was wys

And of his port as meke as a mayde

he neuer zit no vilonye ne sayde

In al his lyf vnto no maner wight

he was a verray perfizt gentil knight

But for to telle 30u of his array

his hors was good but he ne was nouzt gay

Of fustyan he wered a Gepoun

Al by smoterud with his haburgeoun)

For he was late comen from his viage

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72

76

[leaf 2]

And wente for to doon his pilgrimage

W

ith him per was his sone a 3ong squyer
A louyer and a lusty bacheler

80

With lokkes crulle as þey were layde in presse
Of twenty zeer he was of age I gesse

Of his stature he was of euene lengthe
And wondurly delyuer and gret' of strengthe
And he hadde ben som tyme in Chiuachie
In Flaundres in Artoys and in Picardie
And born him wel as in so litel space
In hope to stonden in his lady grace/
Embrowdid was he as it were a mede /
Al ful of fresshe floures white and reede
Syngynge he was or flowtynge al þe day
he was as fressh as is the moneth of may

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92

Schort' was his goune with sleeues long and wyde
wel cowde he sitte on hors and wel cowde he ryde
he cowde songes wel make and endite
Iustne and eek daunce and wel purtray and write

96

So hote he louede pat by nightertale he sleep nomore þan dop a nightyngale

Curteys he was lowly and seruysable

And carf byforn his fadur at' pe table /

A

zeman

had he/ and seruantes nomoo At þat tyme for him lust ryde soo

And he was clad in coote and hood of

grene

A shef of pocok' arwes bright and kene
vnder his belte he bar ful priftily

wel cowde he dresse his takel 30manly
His arwes drowpud nou3t wip fetheres lowe
And in his hond he bar a mighty bowe
A not heed hadde he wip a broun visage
Of woode craft' cowde he wel al þe vsage
vpon his arme he bar a gay bracer
And by his side a swerd and a bokeler
And on pat oper side a gay daggere
harneysed wel and scharp as poynt' of spere
A cristofre on his brest' of siluer schene
An horn he bar pe bawdrik' was of grene
A forster was he sothely as I gesse

her was also a Nonne a prioresse

The

[leaf 2, back]

wee was coy

That' of hire smylyng' was ful symple and

hire grettest' ooth nas but by seynt' loy

And sche was clept/ madame Englentyne

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120

Ful wel sche sang pe seruise deuyne

Entuned in hire nose ful semyly

And frensch sche spak' ful faire and fetysly
Aftur þe scole of Stratford atte Bowe
For frensch of Parys was to hire vnknowe
At' mete wel I-taught was sche with alle

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