645

This formel egle spak in this degree, 'Almighty quene, unto this yeer be doon I aske respit for to avysen me.

And after that to have my choys al free;

This al and som, that I wolde speke and seye; 650 Ye gete no more, al-though ye do me deye.

I wol noght serven Venus ne Cupyde
For sothe as yet, by no manere wey.'
Now sin it may non other wyse betyde,'
Quod tho Nature, here is no more to
sey;

655

Than wolde I that these foules were a-wey Ech with his make, for tarying lenger here'

And seyde hem thus, as ye shul after here.

Fro yow this yeer; what after so befalle, This entremes is dressed for you alle.' 665 And whan this werk al broght was to an

ende,

To every foule Nature yaf his make By even acorde, and on hir wey they wende.

A lord the blisse and joye that they make! 669

For ech of hem gan other in winges take,
And with hir nekkes ech gan other winde,
Thanking alwey the noble goddesse of
kinde.

But first were chosen foules for to singe,
As yeer by yere was alwey hir usaunce
To singe a roundel at hir departinge, 675
To do Nature honour and plesaunce.
The note, I trowe, maked was in Fraunce;
The wordes were swich as ye may heer
finde,

The nexte vers, as I now have in minde.
Qui bien aime a tard oublie.
'Now welcom somer, with thy sonne
softe,

680

That hast this wintres weders over-shake, And driven awey the longe nightes blake! Seynt Valentyn, that art ful hy onlofte ;

Thus singen smale foules for thy sakeNow welcom somer, with thy sonne softe, 685 That hast this wintres weders over-shake. Wel han they cause for to gladen ofte, Sith ech of hem recovered hath his make; Ful blisful may they singen whan they wake;

Now welcom somer, with thy sonne softe, 690 That hast this wintres weders over-shake, And driven awey the longe nightes blake.' And with the showting, whan hir song was do,

695

That foules maden at hir flight a-way,
I wook, and other bokes took me to
To rede upon, and yet I rede alway;
I hope, y-wis, to rede so som day
That I shal mete som thing for to fare 608
The bet; and thus to rede I nil not spare.

The Wyse, y-knit un-to Good Aventure, That, for I love hir, †sleeth me giltelees. Hir love I best, and shal, why I may dure,

Bet than my-self an hundred thousand deel,

35 Than al this worldes richesse or creature.

Now hath nat Love me bestowed weel

To love, ther I never shal have part? Allas! right thus is turned me the wheel, Thus am I slayn with loves fyry dart. 40 I can but love hir best, my swete fo; Love hath me taught no more of his art But serve alwey, and stinte for no wo.

IV. (In ten-line stanzas.) [With]-in my trewe careful herte ther is So moche wo, and [eek] so litel blis, 45 That wo is me that ever I was bore ; For al that thing which I desyre I mis, And al that ever I wolde nat, I-wis,

That finde I redy to me evermore ; And of al this I not to whom me pleyne. 50 For she that mighte me out of this bringe

Ne reccheth nat whether I wepe or singe;

So litel rewthe hath she upon my peyne.

Allas! whan sleping-time is, than I wake, Whan I shulde daunce, for fere than I quake; 55

[+Yow rekketh never wher I flete or sinke ;]

This hevy lyf I lede for your sake,

Thogh ye ther-of in no wyse hede take,

[For on my wo yow deyneth not to thinke.]

59

My hertes lady, and hool my lyves quene!
For trewly dorste I seye, as that I fele,
Me semeth that your swete herte of stele
Is whetted now ageynes me to kene.

My dere herte, and best beloved fo,
Why lyketh yow to do me al this wo, 65
What have I doon that greveth yow, or
sayd,

But for I serve and love yow and no mo?
And whylst I live, I wol do ever so;

And therfor, swete, ne beth nat evil apayd.

For so good and so fair as [that] ye be, 70 Hit were [a] right gret wonder but ye hadde

Of alle servants, bothe goode and badde; And leest worthy of alle hem, I am he.

But never-the-les, my righte lady swete, Thogh that I be unconning and unmete 75 To serve as I best coude ay your hynesse,

Yit is ther fayner noon, that wolde I hete, Than I, to do tyow ese, or elles bete

What-so wiste were to tyow distresse. And hadde I might as good as I have wille, Than shulde ye fele wher it wer so or 81

noon;

That ye ne shul me from your service dryve

That I nil ay, with alle my wittes fyve, Serve yow trewly, what wo so that I fele. For I am set on yow in swich manere 100 That, thogh ye never wil upon me rewe, I moste yow love, and ever been as trewe

As any can or may on-lyve [here].
+The more that I love yow, goodly free,
The lasse finde I that ye loven me;
Allas! whan shal that harde wit a-
mende?

Wher is now al your wommanly pitee,
Your gentilesse and your debonairtee,

105

Wil ye no thing ther-of upon me

Beforn this duk, in signe of hy victorie, The trompes come, and in his baner large The image of Mars; and, in token of glorie, 31

Men mighten seen of tresor many a charge,

Many a bright helm, and many a spere and targe,

Many a fresh knight, and many a blisful route,

On hors, on fote, in al the felde aboute. 35
Ipolita his wyf, the hardy quene
Of Cithia, that he conquered hadde,
With Emelye, hir yonge suster shene,
Faire in a char of golde he with him ladde,
That al the ground aboute hir char she
spradde

40

71

So what for love of him, and what for awe,
The noble folk wer to the toune y-drawe.
Among al these, Anelida the quene
Of Ermony was in that toun dwellinge,
That fairer was then is the sonne shene;
Through-out the world so gan hir name
springe,

That hir to seen had every wight lykinge;
For, as of trouthe, is ther noon hir liche, 76
Of al the women in this worlde riche.

Yong was this quene, of twenty yeer of elde,

Of midel stature, and of swich fairnesse, That nature had a joye hir to behelde; 80 And for to speken of hir stedfastnesse, She passed hath Penelope and Lucresse, And shortly, if she shal be comprehended, In hir ne mighte no-thing been amended. This Theban knight [Arcite] eek, sooth to seyn,

85

Was yong, and ther-with-al a lusty knight, But he was double in love and no-thing pleyn,

And subtil in that crafte over any wight, And with his cunning wan this lady bright;

For so ferforth he gan hir trouthe assure, That she him +trust over any creature. 91 What shuld I seyn ? she loved Arcite so, That, whan that he was absent any throwe, Anon hir thoghte hir herte brast a-two; For in hir sight to hir he bar him lowe, 95 So that she wende have al his herte

y-knowe;

But he was fals; it nas but feyned chere, As nedeth not to men such craft to lere.