Yif him to drinke, whan he goth to reste,
And he shal slepe as longe as ever thee leste,
The narcotiks and opies been so stronge:
And go thy wey, lest that him thinke longe.'

Out comth the bryd, and with ful sober chere,
As is of maidens ofte the manere,

To chambre is broght with revel and with songe,
And shortly, lest this tale be to longe,
This Lino and she ben sone broght to bedde;
And every wight out at the dore him spedde.
The night is wasted, and he fel a-slepe;
Ful tenderly beginneth she to wepe.
She rist her up, and dredfully she quaketh,
As doth the braunche that Zephirus shaketh,

2670 (110)

2675

2680

(120)

And husht were alle in Argon that citee.
As cold as any frost now wexeth she;
For pite by the herte her streyneth so,

And dreed of death doth her so moche wo,
That thryes doun she fil in swiche a were.

2685

She rist her up, and stakereth heer and there,
And on her handes faste loketh she.
'Allas! and shul my hanges blody be?
I am a maid, and, as by my nature,
And by my semblant and by my vesture,
Myn handes been nat shapen for a knyf,
As for to reve no man fro his lyf.
What devil have I with the knyf to do?
And shal I have my throte corve a-two?

Than shal I blede, allas! and me beshende;

And nedes cost this thing mot have an ende;
Or he or I mot nedes lese our lyf.
Now certes,' quod she, 'sin I am his wyf,

2668. A. to; rest om. opies; C. opijs; Th. apies; B. ins. to before longe.

2690 (130)

2695

2670. F. B. Martotikes (for narcotikes). T. A. F. Tn. B. Epies (for opies). 2674. F. Tn. Th. B. om. is.

C. a (for to).

T. sone byn; rest om. sone.
Th. hushte; C. A. hust; Tn. houste.

2671. F. Tn. Th. 2676. F. B. beth. 2682. F. hushst (for husht); 2684. F. Tn. B. streyneth hir; Th. 2686. F. Th. B.

strayned her; C. T. hire streynyth; A. hir stryngith.

swich (suche) a were; Tn. suche awere; C. this awer; A. this awere; T. that

were.

2689. F. Tn. Th. B. om. and.

2697. F. B. (only) Or for And.

2696. F. Tn. Th. B. om. me.

And hath my feith, yit is it bet for me
For to be deed in wyfly honestee
Than be a traitour living in my shame.
Be as be may, for ernest or for game,
He shal awake, and ryse and go his way
Out at this goter, or that hit be day!'-
And weep ful tenderly upon his face,
And in her armes gan him to embrace,
And him she roggeth and awaketh softe;
And at the window leep he fro the lofte
Whan she hath warned him, and doon him bote.
This Lino swifte was, and light of fote,
And from his wyf he ran a ful good pas.
This sely woman is so wayk, allas!

And helples so, that, or that she fer wente,
Her cruel fader dide her for to hente.
Allas! Lino! why art thou so unkinde?
Why ne haddest thou remembred in thy minde
To taken her, and lad her forth with thee?
For, whan she saw that goon awey was he,
And that she mighte nat so faste go,
Ne folwen him, she sette her doun right tho,
Til she was caught and fetered in prisoun.
This tale is seid for this conclusioun

[Unfinished.]

2700

(140)

2705

2710

(150)

2715

2720

(160)

2709. C. T. A. at a (for at the).

rest from her ran.

2712. So T. A.; C. from his wif ran;

2714. C. A. or that; rest om. that. C. forth (for fer).

2717. C. T. haddist; rest hast.

2718. C. T. To; rest And.

2721.

Addit. (12524), sette hyr; C. set hire; T. A. sat hyr; rest sate (om. her).

2722. F. Tn. Th. And til (for Til); B. And then.

A TREATISE ON THE

ASTROLABE.

L

PROLOGUS.

ITELL Lowis my sone, I have perceived wel by certeyne evidences thyn abilite to lerne sciencez touchinge noumbres and proporciouns; and as wel considere I thy bisy preyere in special to lerne the Tretis of the Astrolabie. Than, for as mechel as a philosofre seith, 'he wrappeth him in his frend, that con- 5 descendeth to the rightful preyers of his frend,' ther-for have I geven thee a suffisaunt Astrolabie as for oure orizonte, compowned after the latitude of Oxenford; up-on which, by mediacion of this litel tretis, I purpose to teche thee a certein nombre of conclusions apertening to the same instrument. I seye a certein of conclusiouns, 10 for three causes. The furste cause is this: truste wel that alle the conclusiouns that han ben founde, or elles possibly mighten be founde in so noble an instrument as an Astrolabie, ben un-knowe perfitly to any mortal man in this regioun, as I suppose. A-nother cause is this; that sothly, in any tretis of the Astrolabie that I have 15 seyn, there ben some conclusions that wole nat in alle thinges performen hir bihestes; and some of hem ben to harde to thy tendre age of ten yeer to conseyve. This tretis, divided in fyve

Little Lewis my son, I perceive that thou wouldst learn the Conclusions of the Astrolabe; wherefore I have given thee an instrument constructed for the latitude of Oxford, and purpose to teach thee some of these conclusions. I say some, for three reasons; (1) because some of them are unknown in this land; (2) because some are uncertain; or else (3) are too hard. This treatise, divided into five

parties, wole I shewe thee under ful lighte rewles and naked 20 wordes in English; for Latin ne canstow yit but smal, my lyte sone. But natheles, suffyse to thee thise trewe conclusiouns in English, as wel as suffyseth to thise noble clerkes Grekes thise same conclusiouns in Greek, and to Arabiens in Arabik, and to Iewes in Ebrew, and to the Latin folk in Latin; whiche Latin folk han hem 25 furst out of othre diverse langages, and writen in hir owne tonge, that is to sein, in Latin. And god wot, that in alle thise langages, and in many mo, han thise conclusiouns ben suffisantly lerned and taught, and yit by diverse rewles, right as diverse pathes leden diverse folk the righte wey to Rome. Now wol I prey meekly 30 every discret persone that redeth or hereth this litel tretis, to have my rewde endyting for excused, and my superfluite of wordes, for two causes. The firste cause is, for that curious endyting and hard sentence is ful hevy atones for swich a child to lerne. And the seconde cause is this, that sothly me semeth betre to wryten un-to 35 a child twyes a good sentence, than he for-gete it ones. And Lowis, yif so be that I shewe thee in my lighte English as trewe conclusiouns touching this matere, and naught only as trewe but as many and as subtil conclusiouns as ben shewed in Latin in any commune tretis of the Astrolabie, con me the more thank; and 40 preye god save the king, that is lord of this langage, and alle that

him feyth bereth and obeyeth, everech in his degree, the more and the lasse. But considere wel, that I ne usurpe nat to have founde this werk of my labour or of myn engin. I nam but a lewd compilatour of the labour of olde Astrologiens, and have hit translated 45 in myn English only for thy doctrine; and with this swerd shal I sleen envye.

I. The firste partie of this tretis shal reherse the figures and the membres of thyn Astrolabie, bi-cause that thou shalt han the grettre knowing of thyn owne instrument.

parts, I write for thee in English, just as Greeks, Arabians, Jews, and Romans were accustomed to write such things in their own tongue. I pray all to excuse my shortcomings; and thou, Lewis, shouldst thank me if I teach thee as much in English as most common treatises can do in Latin. I have done no more than compile from old writers on the subject, and I have translated it into English solely for thine instruction; and with this sword shall I slay envy.

The first part gives a description of the instrument itself.

II. The second partie shal teche thee werken the verrey 50 practik of the forseide conclusiouns, as ferforth and as narwe as may be shewed in so smal an instrument portatif aboute. For wel wot every astrologien that smalest fraccions ne wol nat ben shewed in so smal an instrument, as in subtil tables calculed for a cause.

55

III. The thridde partie shal contienen diverse tables of longitudes and latitudes of sterres fixe for the Astrolabie, and tables of declinacions of the sonne, and tables of longitudes of citeez and of townes; and as wel for the governance of a clokke as for to finde the altitude meridian; and many another 60 notable conclusioun, after the kalendres of the reverent clerkes, frere I. Somer and frere N. Lenne.

IV. The ferthe partie shal ben a theorik to declare the moevinge of the celestial bodies with the causes. The whiche ferthe partie in special shal shewen a table of the verray 65 moeving of the mone from houre to houre, every day and in every signe, after thyn almenak; upon which table ther folwith a canon, suffisant to teche as wel the maner of the wyrking of that same conclusioun, as to knowe in oure orizonte with which degree of the zodiac that the mone ariseth in any latitude; 70 and the arising of any planete after his latitude fro the ecliptik lyne.

V. The fifte partie shal ben an introductorie after the statutz of oure doctours, in which thou maist lerne a gret part of the general rewles of theorik in astrologie. In which fifte partie 75 shaltow finde tables of equacions of houses aftur the latitude of Oxenford; and tables of dignetes of planetes, and other noteful thinges, yif god wol vouche-sauf and his modur the mayde, mo than I be-hete, &c.

The second teaches the practical working of it.

The third shall contain tables of latitudes and longitudes of fixed stars, declinations of the sun, and the longitudes of certain towns. The fourth shall shew the motions of the heavenly bodies, and especially of the moon.

The fifth shall teach a great part of the general rules of astronomical theory.