Lenvoy to King Richard.

O prince, desyre to be honourable,
Cherish thy folk and hate extorcioun !
Suffre no thing, that may be reprevable
To thyn estat, don in thy regioun.
Shew forth thy swerd of castigacioun,

Dred God, do law, love trouthe and worthinesse,
And wed thy folk agein to stedfastnesse.

25

28

25. Ct. thine estaat 27. Ct. Drede; truthe.

XV. AGAINST WOMEN UNCONSTANT.

Balade.

MADAME, for your newe-fangelnesse,
Many a servaunt have ye put out of grace,
I take my leve of your unstedfastnesse,
For wel I wot, whyl ye have lyves space,
Ye can not love ful half yeer in a place;
To newe thing your lust is euer kene;

In stede of blew, thus may ye were al grene.

Right as a mirour nothing may enpresse,

But, lightly as it cometh, so mot it pace,

5

So fareth your love, your werkes bereth witnesse. 10
Ther is no feith that may your herte enbrace;

But, as a wedercok, that turneth his face
With every wind, ye fare, and that is sene;
In stede of blew, thus may ye were al grene.

Ye might be shryned, for your brotelnesse,
Bet than Dalyda, Creseide or Candace;

For ever in chaunging stant your sikernesse,

15

TITLE. None in Ct.; Balade in F.; ed. 1561 has-A balade which Chaucer made agaynst woman unconstaunt.

The text is from Ct. (Cotton, Cleopatra D. 7); that in ed. 1561 is much the same, except in spelling. Another copy in F.

2. Ct. Manie; F. Many. Ct. F. of youre; omit youre. while. F. have lyves; Ct. to lyve not. 6. F. thing; Ct. thinges. omits so; F. has ay so.

4. Ct. wote haue. 5. Ct. kunnought; F. kan Ct. inserts so before kene; ed. (1561) 7. Ct. sted; F. stede. Ct. Blue; F. blew. 8. Ct. Mirrour; ed. mirour. Ct. ed. ins. that bef. nothing; F. om. 11. Ct. F. hert; ed. herte. 14. Ct. om. al; F. retains it. Ct. om. your; F. ed. retain it. 16. Ct. Bettir; F. ed. Better; read Bet. F. Dalyda; Ct. Dalide. Ct. Cresside; F. Creseyde. Changeng; F. chaungyng. Ct. F. ed. stondeth; read stant.

15.

17. Ct.

That tache may no wight fro your herte arace ;
If ye lese oon, ye can wel tweyn purchace;
Al light for somer, ye wite wel what I mene,
In stede of blew, thus may ye were al grene.

Explicit.

18. F. tache; Ct. tacche; ed. tatche.

F. herte; Ct. ed. hert.

20

19.

Ct. lese; F. ed. lose. Ct. kunne; F. kan; ed. can. Ct. ed. tweine;

F. tweyn.
21. Ct. om. al; F. ed. retain it.

20. Ct. All; ed. Al.

Ct. F. wote; ed. wot; read wite.

Ct, adds Explicit.

XVI. LENVOY DE CHAUCER A SCOGAN.

TO-BROKEN been the statuts hye in hevene
That creat were eternally to dure,
Sith that I see the brighte goddes sevene
Mow wepe and wayle, and passioun endure,
As may in erthe a mortal creature.
Allas, fro whennes may this thing procede?
Of whiche errour I deye almost for drede.

By worde eterne whylom was hit shape
That fro the fifte cercle, in no manere,
Ne mighte a drope of teres doun escape.
But now so wepeth Venus in hir spere,

That with hir teres she wol drenche us here.

Allas, Scogan! this is for thyn offence!

Thou causest this deluge of pestilence.

Hast thou not seyd, in blaspheme of this goddes, 15
Through pryde, or through thy grete rakelnesse,
Swich thing as in the lawe of love forbode is?
That, for thy lady saw nat thy distresse,

Therfor thou yave hir up at Michelmesse!

TITLE: so in F. and P.; Gg. has-Litera directa de Scogon per G. C. The MSS. are: Gg. (Camb. Univ. Library, Gg. 4. 27); F. (Fairfax 16); P. (Pepys 2006). I follow F. mainly.

10. F.

1. F. statutez. 2. F. weren eternaly. 3. F. bryght goddis. F. Mowe. 5. F. mortale. 6. F. thys thinge. 8. F. whilome. F. yshape; Gg. it schape; P. it shape. 9. F. fyfte sercle; maner. myght; teeres; eschape. II. F. wepith. 12. F. teeres. 14. F. cawsest; diluge. 15. Gg. Hast þu; F. Hauesthow. F. this goddis; Gg. the goddis; P. the goddes. 16. F. Thurgh; thrugh. F. they (wrongly); Gg. þyn; P. thi. F. rekelnesse; P. reklesnesse; Gg. rechelesnesse; see note. 17. F. forbede; Gg. forboden. 18. Gg. saw; F. sawgh. 19. F. Therfore thow. Gg. Mychel-, F. Mighel-.

Allas, Scogan! of olde folk ne yonge

Was nevere erst Scogan blamed for his tonge!

Thou drowe in scorn Cupyde eek to record
Of thilke rebel word that thou hast spoken,
For which he wol no lenger be thy lord.
And, Scogan, thogh his bowe be nat broken,
He wol nat with his arwes been y-wroken
On thee, ne me, ne noon of our figure,
We shul of him have neyther hurt ne cure.
Now certes, frend, I drede of thyn unhappe,
Lest for thy gilt the wreche of Love procede
On alle hem that ben hore and rounde of shape,
That ben so lykly folk in love to spede.
Than shul we for our labour han no mede;
But wel I wot, thou wilt answere and seye:
'Lo! olde Grisel list to ryme and pleye!'

Nay, Scogan, sey not so, for I mexcuse,
God help me so! in no rym, doutelees,
Ne thinke I never of sleep to wak my muse,
That rusteth in my shethe stille in pees.
Why I was yong, I putte hir forth in prees,
But al shal passe that men prose or ryme;
Take every man his turn, as for his tyme.

Envoy.

Scogan, that knelest at the stremes heed
Of grace, of alle honour and worthinesse,

22. F. scorne; eke; recorde.

20. F. folke. thow. 24. F. lorde. wrongly); Gg. P. his.

20

25

30

35

40

32.

23. F. worde; 25. F. thow (for thogh). F. thy (for his, 27. F. the. Gg. oure; P. owre; F. youre. 28. F. hurte. Gg. P. ne; F. nor. 29. F. dreed. 30. F. gilte. 31. Gg. P. hore; F. hoor. F. shappe; P. shape; Gg. schap. F. folke. 33. P. shull; F. Gg. shal. Gg. P. han; F. haue. F. noo. 34. F. thow. F. wolt; Gg. wilt. 35. Gg. P. Lo olde; F. Loo tholde. F. lyste. 36. F. say; Gg. P. sey. F. soo. 37. P. help; Gg. F. helpe. F. soo. F. ryme dowteles. 38. F. thynke; slepe; 40. F. While; yonge. Gg. putte; F. put. P. her; F. hyt; 41. F. alle. 42. F. hys turne. 43. F. hede; Gg. hed.

wake.

Gg. it.