Of Northfolk was this reve, of which I telle, Bisyde a toun men clepen Baldeswelle. Tukked he was, as is a frere, aboute, And ever he rood the hindreste of our route.

619

For in his purs he sholde y-punisshed be. Purs is the erchedeknes helle,' seyde he. (660)

But wel I woot he lyed right in dede; Of cursing oghte ech gilty man him drede 660

644

But who-so coude in other thing him
grope,
Thanne hadde he spent al his philosophye;
AyQuestio quid iuris' wolde he crye.
He was a gentil harlot and a kinde; (649)
A bettre felawe sholde men noght finde.
He wolde suffre, for a quart of wyn,
A good felawe to have his concubyn 650
A twelf-month, and excuse him atte fulle:
Ful prively a finch eek coude he pulle.
And if he fond o-wher a good felawe,
He wolde techen him to have non awe,
In swich cas, of the erchedeknes curs, 655
But-if a mannes soule were in his purs;

For curs wol slee, right as assoilling saveth

And also war him of a significavit.

In daunger hadde he at his owne gyse

The yonge girles of the diocyse,

And knew hir counseil, and was al hir reed. 665 A gerland hadde he set up-on his heed, As greet as it were for an ale-stake; A bokeler hadde he maad him of a cake. With him ther rood a gentil PARDONER Of Rouncival, his freend and his compeer, That streight was comen fro the court of Rome. Pardoner. Ful loude he song, Com hider, love, to me.' (670) 672

But smothe it heng, as dooth a strike of flex ;

By ounces henge his lokkes that he hadde, And ther-with he his shuldres overspradde; (680) But thinne it lay, by colpons oon and oon;

But hood, for jolitee, ne wered he noon, For it was trussed up in his walet. 681 Him thoughte, he rood al of the newe jet; Dischevele, save his cappe, he rood al bare.

Swiche glaringe eyen hadde he as an hare.

A vernicle hadde he sowed on his cappe. His walet lay biforn him in his lappe, 686 Bret-ful of pardoun come from Rome al (689)

hoot.

A voys he hadde as smal as hath a goot.
No berd hadde he, ne never sholde have,
As smothe it was as it were late y-shave;
I trowe he were a gelding or a mare. 691
But of his craft, fro Berwik into Ware,
Ne was ther swich another pardoner.
For in his male he hadde a pilwe-beer,

Which that, he seyde, was our lady veyl:

695 He seyde, he hadde a gobet of the seyl That seynt Peter hadde, whan that he wente (699) Up-on the see, til Jesu Crist him hente. He hadde a croys of latoun, ful of stones, And in a glas he hadde pigges bones. 700 But with thise relikes, whan that he fond

A povre person dwelling up-on lond,
Up-on a day he gat him more moneye
Than that the person gat in monthes
tweye.

apes.

And thus, with feyned flaterye and japes, He made the person and the peple his 706 But trewely to tellen, atte laste, (709) He was in chirche a noble ecclesiaste. Wel coude he rede a lessoun or a storie, But alderbest he song an offertorie; 710 For wel he wiste, whan that song was songe,

He moste preche, and wel affyle his tonge,

To winne silver, as he ful wel coude; Therefore he song so meriely and loude. Now have I told you shortly, in a clause, Th'estat, th'array, the nombre, and eek the

A semely man our hoste was with-alle
For to han been a marshal in an halle;
A large man he was with eyen stepe,
A fairer burgeys is ther noon in Chepe:
Bold of his speche, and wys, and wel
y-taught,

755

And of manhod him lakkede right naught.
Eek therto he was right a mery man,
And after soper pleyen he bigan, (760)
And spak of mirthe amonges othere
thinges,

Whan that we hadde maad our rekeninges; 760

And seyde thus: 'Now, lordinges, trewely, Ye been to me right welcome hertely: For by my trouthe, if that I shal nat lye,

I ne saugh this yeer so mery a companye At ones in this herberwe as is now. 765 Fayn wolde I doon yow mirthe, wiste I how.

And of a mirthe I am right now bithoght, To doon yow ese, and it shal coste noght. (770)

Ye goon to Caunterbury; God yow spede,

The blisful martir quyte yow your mede.

770

And wel I woot, as ye goon by the weye, Ye shapen yow to talen and to pleye;

For trewely, confort ne mirthe is noon
To ryde by the weye doumb as a stcon;
And therfore wol I maken yow disport,
As I seyde erst, and doon yow som con-
fort.
776
And if yow lyketh alle, by oon assent,
Now for to stonden at my jugement, (780)
And for to werken as I shal yow seye,
To-morwe, whan ye ryden by the weye,
Now, by my fader soule, that is deed, 781
But ye be merye, I wol yeve yow myn
heed.

Hold up your hond, withouten more speche.'

Our counseil was nat longe for to seche;

Us thoughte it was noght worth to make it wys,

785

And graunted him withouten more

We been acorded to his jugement.
And ther-up-on the wyn was fet anon;
We dronken, and to reste wente echon,
With-outen any lenger taryinge.
A-morwe, whan that day bigan to springe,
Up roos our host, and was our aller
cok,

821

825

And gadrede us togidre, alle in a flok, And forth we riden, a litel more than pas, Un-to the watering of seint Thomas. And there our host bigan his hors areste, And seyde; Lordinges, herkneth, if yow leste. (830)

Ye woot your forward, and I it yow recorde.

If even-song and morwe-song acorde, 830 Lat see now who shal telle the firsto tale.

As ever mote I drinke wyn or ale,
Who-so be rebel to my jugement
Shal paye for al that by the weye is
spent.

Now draweth cut, er that we ferrer twinne; 835

He which that hath the shortest shal biginne.

Sire knight,' quod he, my maister and

801

my lord, (83) Now draweth cut, for that is myn acord. Cometh neer,' quod he, 'my lady prior

esse;

And ye, sir clerk, lat be your shamfastnesse, 840 Ne studieth noght; ley hond to, every man.'

Anon to drawen every wight bigan, And shortly for to tellen, as it was, Were it by aventure, or sort, or cas,

And ther I lefte, I wol ageyn biginne.
This duk, of whom I make mencioun,
When he was come almost unto the
toun,

In al his wele and in his moste pryde, 895
He was war, as he caste his eye asyde,
Wher that ther kneled in the hye weye
A companye of ladies, tweye and tweye,
Ech after other, clad in clothes blake; (41)
But swich a cry and swich a wo they
make,
900

That in this world nis creature livinge,
That herde swich another weymentinge;
And of this cry they nolde never stenten,
Til they the reynes of his brydel henten.
'What folk ben ye, that at myn hoom-
cominge

6

905

Perturben so my feste with cryinge?' Quod Theseus, have ye so greet envye Of myn honour, that thus compleyne and crye? (50)

Or who hath yow misboden, or offended? And telleth me if it may been amended; And why that ye ben clothed thus in blak?' 911

The eldest lady of hem alle spak, When she hadde swowned with a deedly chere,

That it was routhe for to seen and here, And seyde: Lord, to whom Fortune hath yiven

915

Victorie, and as a conquerour to liven, Noght greveth us your glorie and your honour;

(60)

920

But we biseken mercy and socour.
Have mercy on our wo and our distresse.
Som drope of pitee, thurgh thy gentil-
esse,
Up-on us wrecched wommen lat thou falle.
For certes, lord, ther nis noon of us alle,
That she nath been a duchesse or a quene;
Now be we caitifs, as it is wel sene :
Thanked be Fortune, and hir false wheel,
That noon estat assureth to be weel. 926
And certes, lord, t'abyden your presence,
Here in the temple of the goddesse
Clemence

(70)

That whylom weren of so greet estat.
And in his armes he hem alle up hente,
And hem conforteth in ful good entente;
And swoor his ooth, as he was trewe
knight,
(101)
He wolde doon so ferforthly his might 960
Up-on the tyraunt Creon hem to wreke,
That al the peple of Grece sholde speke
How Creon was of Theseus y-served,
As he that hadde his deeth ful wel de-
served.
964

And right anoon, with-outen more abood,
His baner he desplayeth, and forth rood
To Thebes-ward, and al his host bisyde;
No neer Athenës wolde he go ne ryde,
Ne take his ese fully half a day, (111)
But onward on his wey that night he lay;