Trouthe is the hyeste thyng that man may kepe,'

1479

But with that word he brast anon to wepe, And seyde, 'I yow forbede, up peyne of deeth,

That never whil thee lasteth lyf ne breeth, To no wight telle thou of this áventure,As I may best I wol my wo endure,— Ne make no contenance of hevynesse That folk of yow may demen harm or gesse.' And forth he cleped a squier and a mayde; 'Gooth forth, anon, with Dorigen,' he sayde,

'And bryngeth hire to swich a place, anon.' They take hir leve and on hir wey they gon, But they ne wistė why she thider wente : He noldė no wight tellen his entente.

Paráventure an heepe of yow, y-wis, Wol holden hym a lewed man in this, That he wol putte his wyf in jupartie. Herkneth the tale, er ye upon hire crie; She may have bettrẻ fortune than yow semeth ;

And, whan that ye han herd the tale, demeth.

1500

This squier, which that highte Aurelius,
On Dorigen that was so amorus,
Of áventure happed hire to meete
Amydde the toun, right in the quykkest
strete,

As she was bown to goon the wey forthright
Toward the gardyn, ther as she had hight ;
And he was to the gardynward also;
For wel he spyed whan she woldė go
Out of hir hous to any maner place;
But thus they mette, of áventure or grace,
And he saleweth hire with glad entente,
And asked of hire whiderward she wente ;
And she answérdė, half as she were mad,
'Unto the gardyn, as myn housbonde bad,
My trouthe for to holde, allas! allas!'

Aurelius gan wondren on this cas,
And in his herte hadde greet compassioun
Of hire and of hire lamentacioun,
And of Arveragus, the worthy knyght,
That bad hire holden al that she had hight,
So looth hym was his wyf sholde breke hir
trouthe;

1481. of, om. E. 1503. bown, ready.

I se namoore but that I am fordo;
Myn heritage moot I nedės selle,
And been a beggere; heere may I nat dwelle
And shamen al my kynrede in this place,
But I of hym may getė bettre grace;
But nathélees I wole of hym assaye
At certeyn dayės, yeer by yeer, to paye,
And thanke hym of his grete curteisye.
My trouthe wol I kepe, I wol nat lye.' 1570

With herté soor he gooth unto his cofre,
And broghte gold unto this philosophre,
The value of fyve hundred pound, I gesse,
And hym bisecheth, of his gentillesse,
To graunte hym dayės of the remenaunt,
And seydė, 'Maister, I dar wel make avaunt
I failled never of my trouthe as yit,
For sikerly my dette shal be quyt
Towardes yow, however that I fare
To goon a-begged in my kirtle bare; 1580
But wolde ye vouchésauf, upon seuretee,
Two yeer, or thre, for to respiten me,
Thanne were I wel, for elles moot I selle
Myn heritage; ther is namoore to telle.'
This philosophre sobrely answerde,
And seyde thus, whan he thise wordės
herde:

'Have I nat holde covenant unto thee?' 'Yes, certės, wel and trewėly,' quod he. 'Hastow nat had thy lady as thee liketh?' 'No, no,'quod he, and sorwefully he siketh. "What was the cause; tel me if thou kan.' Aurelius his tale anon bigan,

And tolde hym al, as ye han herd bifoore; It nedeth nat to yow reherce it moore. He seide, Arveragus, of gentillesse, Hadde levere dye in sorwe and in distresse,

She never erst herd speke of apparence; 'That made me han of hire so greet pitee, And right as frely as he sente hire me, As frely sente I hire to hym ageyn; This is al and som, ther is namoore to seyn.' This philosophre answérde, 'Leevé brother,

Everich of yow dide gentilly til other; Thou art a squier, and he is a knyght, But God forbedė, for his blisful myght, 1610 But if a clerk koude doon a gentil dede, As wel as any of yow, it is no drede.

'Sire, I releesse thee thy thousand pound As thou right now were cropen out of the ground,

Ne never er now ne haddest knowen me;
For, sire, I wol nat taken a peny of thee
For al my craft, ne noght for my travaille.
Thou hast y-payed wel for my vitaille;
It is ynogh, and farewel, have good day!'
And took his hors, and forth he goth his way.

SECOND NUN'S TALE The Prologe of the Seconde Nonnes Tale

THE ministre and the norice unto vice Which that men clepe in Englissh ydel

nesse,

Seconde Nonnes Tale, a translation, at first close, afterwards free, of the life of St. Cecilia in the Legenda Aurea of Jacobus de Voragine. The stanzas on idleness were probably suggested by the Prologue of the French translator, Jehan

That porter at the gate is of delices, To eschue, and by hire contrarie hire oppresse,

That is to seyn, by leveful bisynesse,Wel oghten we to don al oure entente, Lest that the feend thurgh ydelnesse us hente,

de Vignay, but in the Tale Chaucer follows the Latin.

3. porter, as in the Roman de la Rose.

Invocacio ad Mariam

And thow that flour of virginės art alle, Of whom that Bernard list so wel to write; To thee, at my bigynnyng, first I call, 31 Thou confort of us wrecches, do me endite Thy maydens deeth, that wan thurgh hire merite,

The eternel lyf, and of the feend victorie As man may after reden in hire storie.

Thow mayde and mooder, doghter of thy sone,

Thow welle of mercy, synful soulės cure, In whom that God, for bountee, chees to wone,

Thow humble, and heigh over every creature,

39

36-56. These three stanzas are partly a translation of some of the first twenty-one lines of Dante's Paradiso, Cant. 33, or perhaps of some Latin prayer or hymn which Dante may have imitated.

With hire housbonde, as ofte is the manere, And pryvely to hym she seyde anon, 'O sweete and wel-biloved spousė deere, Ther is a conseil, and ye wolde it heere, Which that right fayn I wolde unto yow seye,

So that ye swere ye shul it nat biwreye.'

Valerian gan faste unto hire swere That for no cas, ne thyng that myghte be, He sholdė never mo biwreyen here; 150 And thanne at erst to hym thus seydė she: 'I have an aungel which that loveth me, That with greet love, wher so I wake or sleepe,

Is redy ay my body for to kepe;

Valerian, as deed, fil doun for drede Whan he hym saugh, and he up hente hym tho,

And on his book right thus he gan to rede: 'O Lord, o feith, o God, withouten mo; O Cristendom, and Fader of alle also, Aboven alle, and over alle, everywhere'; Thise wordes al with gold y-writen were.

195. bisy bee, Latin: 'apis argumentosa,' a delightful phrase for Cecilia.

208. O Cristendom, Latin: 'unum baptisma.'