268 LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. MS. Gg. 4. 27, CAMB.

And as she felle adoun / she kaste hir loke

And of hir clothes / yet hede she toke

1856

For in hir fallynge / yet she had care

Lest that hir fete / or suche thynge lay bare
So wel she loved clennesse / and eke trouthe
Of hir had al the tovne / of Rome routhe
And Brutus hath / by hir chaste bloode swore
That Tarquyny shulde / ybanysshed be ther-fore
And al hys kynne / and let the peple calle

1860

1864

And openly the tale / he tolde hem alle

And openly let cary her / on a bere

Thurgh al the tovne / that meñ may see and here

The horryble dede / of hir oppresseon

1868

Ne never was ther kyng / in Rome tovñ

Syn thilke day / and she was holden there
A seynt and euer hir day / y-halwed dere
As in hir' lawe and thus endeth lucresse
The noble wyfe / Tytus beryth wittnesse
I telle hyt for she was / of love so trewe
Ne in hir wille/she chaunged for no newe
And in hir stable hert / sadde and kynde
That in these wymmen / meñ may alday fynde
Ther as they kaste hir hert / there it duelletħ
For wel I wot / that criste him-self telleth

1872

[leaf 108, back]

nota

1876

That in Israel / as wyde as is the londe

1880

That so grete feythe/ in al the londe he ne fonde

As in a woman / this is no lye

And as of women loketh which tirannye

They doon alday / assay hem who so lyste
The trewest ys ful brotil/ for to triste.

1884

LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN.

MS. Gg. 4. 27, CAMB.

269

[VI.]

[THE LEGEND OF ARIADNE.]

Vge infernal/ Mynos of grece kynge

Now cometh thy lotte / now comestow on the rynge
Nat oonly for thy sake / writeñ ys this story 1888
But for to clepe ageyñ vn-to memory

1891

1896

Of Theseus the grete / vntrewe of love For which the goddis / of heveñ above Ben wrothe/ and wreche han take / for thy synne Be rede for shame / now I thy lyfe begynne Mynos that was / the myghty kynge of Crete That whañ añ hundred / Citees stronge and grete To scole hath sent / hys sone Androgius To Athenes / of the which hyt happeth thus That he was slayne / lernynge philosophie Ryght in that Citee / nat but for envye The grete Mynos / of the whiche I speke Hys sones dethe/ys come for to wreke And the Citee besegeth / harde and longe But natheles the walles / be so stronge And Nysus / that was kynge of that Citee So chevalrouse / that lytel dredeth he Of Mynos or hys Oste / toke he no cure Til on a day befel añ aventure1]

1900

1904

That nysus doughtyr stod vp-on the wal

[End of the Fairfax extract.] 1908

[leaf 470]

And of the sege saw the maner al

So happid it that at a scarmuchyng

She caughte hyre herte vp-on Mynos the kyng

270 LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. MS. Gg. 4. 27, CAMB.

But wikkedely he quitte hire kyndenesse

And let hire drenche in sorwe & in distresse

Nere that the goddis hadde of hire pite

But that tale were to longe as now for me

1920

But this theffect that Mynos hath so dreuyn
Hem of Athenys that they mot hym zeuyn

ffrom 3er to zer

1924

hire owene childeryn dere

ffor to be slayn righ as 3e shal here

This Mynos hadde a monstre a wekede best
That was so crewel that with-oute arest

1928

Whan that a man was brou3t in his presence

He wolde hym ete ther helpith no defence
And euery thredde with oute doute

1932

They caste lot & as it fil a-boute

On riche or pore he muste his sone take
And of his child he muste present make
To Theseus to save hym or to spylle
Or lete his beste deuoure hym at his wille
And this hath Mynos don ryght In dispit
To wreke his sone was set al his delyt

1936

To ben deuouryd for grace is there non

And forth is gon this woful 3onge knght [leaf 470, back] 1948

Onto the court of kyng Mynos ful ryght

And in-to a prysoun feterid cast is he

Tyl the ilke tyme he shulde fretyn be
Wel maystow wepe o woful thesyus
That art a kyngis sone & dampned thus

1952

LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. MS. Gg. 4. 27, CAMB. 271

Me thynkith thus that thow were depe I-holde

To hym that savede the from caris colde

And If now ony woman helpe the

1956

Wel aughtist tow hire seruau[n]t for to be

And ben hire trewe louere 3er be 3er

But now to come ageyn to myn matyr
The tour there as this thesyus is throwe
Doun in the boteme dyrk & wondyr lowe

1960

Hem leste nat to gone to bedde sone
And of his wo they haddyn compassioun
A kyngis sone to ben In swich a prysoun
And ben deuoured thoughte hem gret pete
This Adryane spak to hire systeryn fre

1976

And seyde leue systyr Phedra dere

This woful lordys sone may 3e nat here
How pitously compleynyth he his kyn
And ek his pouere astat that he is In

1980

And giltles now certeyn it is routhe

And If ze wele assentyn by myn trouthe
He shal ben holpyn how so euere we do
Phedra answerde I-wis me is as wo
ffor hym as euere I was for man
And to his helpe the beste red I can
Is that we do the gayler priuyly
To come & speke with vs hastily

1984

[leat 471]

1988

272 LEGEND OF GOOD WOMEN. MS. Gg. 4. 27, CAMB.

And don this woful man with hym to come

ffor If he may this monstre ouercome

Thanne were he quyt ther is non othir bote

1992

Lat vs wel taste hym at his herte rote

If so be that he a wepene have
Where that he dar his lyf to kepe & saue
ffyghtyn with the fend & hym defende
ffor In the prysoun ther he shal dessende
3e wete wel that the beste is in a place

1996

That nys nat derk / & hath bothe roum & space

And wilde an ax or swerd or staf or kynf

2000

So that me thynkyth he shulde save his lyf

If that he be a man he shal don so
And we shul make hym ballis ek also
Of wex & tow/ that whan he gapith faste
In to the bestis throte he shal hem caste
To slake his hungir & encombre his teth
And right a-non what that Thesyus seth
The beste Achokid he shal as hym lepe

2004

2008

And slen hym as they comyn more to hepe

This wepne shal the gayler or that tyde

fful priuyly with-inne the prysoun hyde

And for the hous is krynkeled two & fro

2012

And hath so queynte weyis for to go
ffor it is shapyn as the mase is wrought
Therto haue I a remedye In myn thought
That by a ciewe of twyn as he hath gon
The same weye he may returne a-non
ffolwynge alwey the thred as he hath come.
And whan that he this beste hathe ouercome
Thanne may he flen a-wey out of this drede
And ek the gayler may he with hym lede
And hym auaunce at hom In his cuntre
Syn that so gret a lordis sone is he
This is myn red If that he dare it take
What sholde I lengere sarmoun of it make

2016

2020

[leaf 471, back]

2024