And gave him thankes many a oon,
And kneled doun with hondis joynt,
And made it in my port ful †quoynt;
The joye wente to myn herte rote.
Whan I had kissed his mouth so swote,
I had sich mirthe and sich lyking, 2041
It cured me of languisshing.

He askid of me than hostages :-
'I have,' he seide,+tan fele homages

Of oon and other, where I have been 2045
+Disceyved ofte, withouten wene.
These felouns, fulle of falsitee,
Have many sythes bigyled me,

2050

And through falshede hir lust acheved,
Wherof I repente and am agreved.
And I hem gete in my daungere,
Hir falshed shulle they bye ful dere.
But for I love thee, I seye thee pleyn,
I wol of thee be more certeyn ;
For thee so sore I wol now binde,
That thou away ne shalt not winde
For to denyen the covenaunt,
Or doon that is not avenaunt.
That thou were fals it were greet reuthe,
Sith thou semest so ful of treuthe.' 2060
'Sire, if thee list to undirstande,

I merveile thee asking this demande.
For-why or wherfore shulde ye
Ostages or borwis aske of me,

2055

2065

2070

Myn herte is yours, and myn right nought,

As it bihoveth, in dede and thought, Redy in alle to worche your wille,

Whether so [it] turne to good or ille. So sore it lustith you to plese,

No man therof may you +disseise.

2075

Ye have theron set sich justise,
That it is werreyd in many wise.
And if ye doute it nolde obeye,
Ye may therof do make a keye,
And holde it with you for ostage.'
'Now certis, this is noon outrage,'
Quoth Love, and fully I accord;
For of the body he is ful lord
That hath the herte in his tresor;
Outrage it were to asken more.'

Than of his aumener he drough A litel keye, fetys y-nough,

Which was of gold polisshed clere,

2080

2085

And seide to me, 'With this keye here
Thyn herte to me now wol I shette; 2091
For al my jowellis loke and knette

I binde under this litel keye,
That no wight may carye aweye;
This keye is ful of gret poeste.'
With which anoon he touchid me
Undir the syde ful softely,
That he myn herte sodeynly
Without [al] anoy had spered,

2095

That yit right nought it hath me dered. Whan he had doon his wil al-out,

2101

2110

2115

I seye nought for recreaundyse,
For I nought doute of your servyse.
But the servaunt traveileth in vayne,
That for to serven doth his payne
Unto that lord, which in no wyse
Can him no thank for his servyse.'
Love seide, 'Dismaye thee nought,
Sin thou for sucour hast me sought,
In thank thy servise wol I take,
And high of +gree I wol thee make,
If wikkidnesse ne hindre thee;
But, as I hope, it shal nought be.
To worship no wight by aventure
May come, but-if he peyne endure.
Abyde and suffre thy distresse;
That hurtith now, it shal be lesse ;
I wot my-silf what may thee save,
What medicyne thou woldist have.
And if thy trouthe to me thou kepe, 2125
I shal unto thyn helping eke,

2120

To cure thy woundes and make hem clene,

Wher-so they be olde or grene;
Thou shalt be holpen, at wordis fewe.
For certeynly thou shalt wel shewe 2130
Wher that thou servest with good wille,
For to complisshen and fulfille
My comaundementis, day and night,
Whiche I to lovers yeve of right.'

'Ah, sire, for goddis love,' said I, 2135 Er ye passe hens, ententifly

Your comaundementis to me ye say,
And I shal kepe hem, if I may;
For hem to kepen is al my thought.
And if so be I wot them nought,
Than may I [sinne] unwitingly.
Wherfore I pray you enterely,
With al myn herte, me to lere,
That I trespasse in no manere.'
The god of love than chargid me
Anoon, as ye shal here and see,
Word by word, by right empryse,
So as the Romance shal devyse.
The maister lesith his tyme to lere,
Whan the disciple wol not here.

2140

2145

2150

It is but veyn on him to swinke, That on his lerning wol not thinke. Who-so lust love, let him entende,

For now the Romance †ginneth amende. Now is good to here, in fay,

2155

If any be that can it say,

Thou mayst ensample take of Keyc, That was somtyme, for misseying,

And poynte it as the resoun is

Hated bothe of olde and ying;

Set; for other-gate, y-wis,

It shal nought wel in alle thing

As fer as Gaweyn, the worthy, Was preysed for his curtesy,

For a reder that poyntith ille

Of word dispitous and cruel.

2210

For now the lover [is] joyous,

2250

And he that loveth trewely
Shulde him contene jolily,
Withouten pryde in sondry wyse,
And him disgysen in queyntyse.
For queynt array, withouten drede,
Is no-thing proud, who takith hede;
For fresh array, as men may see,
Withouten pryde may ofte be.
'Mayntene thy-silf aftir thy rent, 2255
Of robe and eek of garnement;
For many sythe fair clothing

A man amendith in mich thing.
And loke alwey that they be shape,
What garnement that thou shalt make,
Of him that can [hem] beste do,

2261

With al that perteyneth therto.
Poyntis and sleves be wel sittand,
Right and streight †upon the hand.
Of shoon and botes, newe and faire, 2265
Loke at the leest thou have a paire;
And that they sitte so fetisly,

That these rude may uttirly

2301

Now can he pleyne, now can he grone,
Now can he singen, now maken mone.
To-day he pleyneth for hevinesse,
To-morowe he pleyeth for jolynesse.
The lyf of love is ful contrarie,
Which stoundemele can ofte varie.
But if thou canst [som] mirthis make, 2305
That men in gree wole gladly take,
Do it goodly, I comaunde thee;

For men sholde, wher-so-ever they be,
Do thing that hem [best] sitting is,

For therof cometh good loos and pris. 2310

Wher-of that thou be vertuous,

In his yiftes more large and free
Than cherles that been not of loving,
For who ther-of can any thing,

He shal be leef ay for to yeve,

In +Loves lore who so wolde leve;

For he that, through a sodeyn sight, Or for a kissing, anon-right

For men that yift [wol] holde more dere That yeven is with gladsome chere. That yift nought to preisen is

2335

That man yeveth, maugre his.

2385

Whan thou hast yeven thyn herte, as I

Have seid thee here [al] openly,

Than aventures shulle thee falle,

Which harde and hevy been withalle. 2390

For ofte whan thou bithenkist thee

Of thy loving, wher-so thou be,
Fro folk thou must depart in hy,
That noon perceyve thy malady,

But hyde thyn harm thou must alone,2395
And go forth sole, and make thy mone.
Thou shalt no whyl be in oo stat,
But whylom cold and whylom hat;
Now reed as rose, now yelowe and fade.
Such sorowe, I trowe, thou never hade;
Cotidien, ne [yit] quarteyne,

It is nat so ful of peyne.

2401

2356

Thou set thy thought in thy loving,

That many tymes thou shalt be
Stille as an image of tree,
Dom as a stoon, without stering
Of foot or hond, without speking;
Than, sone after al thy peyne,
To memorie shalt thou come ageyn,
A[s] man abasshed wondre sore,
And after sighen more and more.
For wit thou wel, withouten wene,
In swich astat ful oft have been
That have the yvel of love assayd,
Wher-through thou art so dismayd.
'After, a thought shal take thee so,
That thy love is to fer thee fro: 2420
Thou shalt say, "God, what
may
this be,
That I ne may my lady see?
Myne herte aloon is to her go,
And I abyde al sole in wo,

2410

2415

2375

And with myne eyen see right nought. Alas, myn eyen †sende I ne may,

My careful herte to convay!

Myn hertes gyde but they be,

I praise no-thing what ever they see. 2430
Shul they abyde thanne? nay;
But goon +visyte without delay
That myn herte desyreth so,

Thenke al-day on hir fairhede,

For certeynly, but-if they go,

A fool my-self I may wel holde,

2435

Whan I ne see what myn herte wolde.
Wherfore I wol gon her to seen,
Or esed shal I never been,

But I have som tokening."

Then gost thou forth without dwelling;
But ofte thou faylest of thy desyre, 2441
Er thou mayst come hir any nere,
And wastest in vayn thy passage.
Than fallest thou in a newe rage;
For wante of sight thou ginnest morne,
And homward pensif dost retorne.
In greet mischeef than shalt thou be,
For than agayn shal come to thee
Sighes and pleyntes, with newe wo,
That no icching prikketh so.
Who wot it nought, he may go lere
Of hem that byen love so dere.

2446

2450

2455

'No-thing thyn herte appesen may, That oft thou wolt goon and assay, If thou mayst seen, by aventure, Thy lyves joy, thyn hertis cure; So that, by grace if thou might Atteyne of hir to have a sight, Than shalt thou doon non other dede But with that sight thyn eyen fede. 2460 That faire fresh whan thou mayst see, Thyn herte shal so ravisshed be, That never thou woldest, thy thankis, lete, Ne remove, for to see that swete.

The more thou seest in sothfastnesse, 2465 The more thou †coveytest of that swetnesse;

The more thyn herte brenneth in fyr,
The more thyn herte is in desyr.
For who considreth every del,

2490

To shewe hir ought of thyn entent.
Thyn herte ful sore thou wolt dispyse,
And eek repreve of cowardyse,
That thou, so dulle in every thing,
Were dom for drede, without speking,
Thou shalt eek thenke thou didest foly,
That thou wert hir so faste by,
And durst not auntre thee to say
Som-thing, er thou cam away;
For thou haddist no more wonne,
To speke of hir whan thou bigonne :
But +yif she wolde, for thy sake,
In armes goodly thee have take,
It shulde have be more worth to thee
Than of tresour greet plentee.

2495

2500

2475

The peyne of love, unto a fere;
For ever [the] more thou neighest nere
+Thought, or who-so that it be,
For verray sothe I telle it thee,
The hatter ever shal thou brenne,
As experience shal thee kenne,
Wher-so [thou] comest in any cost,
Who is next fyr, he brenneth most.
And yit forsothe, for al thyn hete,
Though thou for love swelte and swete,
Ne for no-thing thou felen may,
Thou shalt not willen to passe away.
And though thou go, yet must thee nede

2481