THE MAN OF LAW SPEAKS.

169

"Hoost," quod he," depardieux1 ich assente.
To breke forward is nat myn entente;
Biheste is dette, and I wole holde fayn
Al my biheste, I kan no bettre sayn,

For swich lawe as man 2 geveth another wight
He sholde hym-selven ušen it by right;
Thus wole oure text, but nathelees certeyn,
I kan right now no thrifty tale seyn,

8

But Chaucer, thogh he kan but lewedly,
On metres and on rymyng craftily, 4470
Hath seyd hem in swich Englissh as he kan
Of olde tyme, as knoweth many a man ;
And if he have noght seyd hem, leve brother,
In o book he hath seyd hem in another;
For he hath toold of loveris up and doun
Mo than Ovide made of mencioun

In hise Epistles, that been ful olde.

What sholde I telle hem, syn they ben tolde? "In youthe he made 5 of Ceys and Alci

one,

And sitthe hath he spoken of everichone 4480
Thise noble wyves and thise loveris eke.
Who so that wole his large volume seke,
Cleped the Seintes Legende of Cupide,"
Ther may he seen the large woundes wyde
Of Lucresse and of Babilan Tesbee;
The swerd of Dido for the false Enee;
'The tree of Phillis for hire Demophon ;

"that."

1 By the gods. 2 Elles. MS. reads " a man." Elles. MS reads 4 Knows. 5 Wrote poetry. 6 In the Boke of the Duch The Legende of Goode Women.

sse.

The pleinte of Dianire1 and of Hermyon;
Of Adriane and of Isiphilee;

8

8

4

4490

The bareyne yle2 stondynge in the see;
The dreynte Leandre for his fayre 3 Erro;
The teeris of Eleyne ; and eek 3 the wo
Of Brixseyde, and of 3 the Ladomya ;
The crueltee of the queene Medea,
Thy litel children hangynge by the hals
For thy Jason that was in love so fals!
O Ypermystra, Penolopee, Alceste,
Youre wifhede he comendeth with the beste!
"But certeinly no word ne writeth he
Of thilke wikke ensample of Canacee,
That loved hir owene brother synfully;
(Of swiche cursed stories I sey fy!) (4500 T.)
Or ellis of Tyro Appollonius,

How that the cursed kyng Antiochus
Birafte his doghter of hir maydenhede,

That is so horrible a tale for to rede,
Whan he hir threw up-on the pavement;
And therfore he, of ful avysement,

Nolde nevere write in none of his sermons

5

Of swiche unkynde abhomynacions,

Ne I wol noon reherce, if that I may.

4500

4510

"But of my tale how shall I doon this day? Me were looth be likned, doutelees,

1 Elles. MS. reads "Diane." Deianira mourned, in her epistle to Hercules, that she (by sending him the poisoned garment given her by the Centaur) appeared to be the cause of the hero's death. Se Ovid's Epistles of the Her vines, ep. ix., and Metamorphoses, book ix Cf. 1. 10,767. 2 Naxos 3 Not in Elles. MS. 4 Neck. 6 Un

atural.

THE MAN OF LAW'S PROLOGUE. 171 To Muses that men clepe Pierides,1 Methamorphosios woot what I mene, But nathelees, I recche noght a bene Though I come after hym, with halvebake;" I speke in prose, and lat him rymes make." And with that word, he with a sobre cheere Bigan his tale, as ye shal after heere.

4520

The Prologe of the Manne of Lawes Tale.

O hateful harm! condicion of poverte! With thurst, with coold, with hunger so confoundid! 8 (4520 T.) To asken help thee shameth in thyn herte ; If thou noon aske so soore artow ywoundid, That verray nede unwrappeth al thy wounde hid!

4

Maugree thyn heed thou most for indigence
Or stele, or begge, or borwe thy despence!
Thow blamest Crist, and seist ful bitterly,
He mysdeparteth, richesse temporal;
Thy neighebore thou wytest 5 synfully,
And seist thou hast to lite and he hath al.
"Parfay," seistow, "somtyme he rekene shal
Whan that his tayl shal brennen in the gleede,"
For he noght helpeth. needfulle in hir neede."

4530

1 The daughters of Pierus are symbols of tiresome chatterers. They dared to contend with the real Muses, and, being defeated, were changed into magpies, as says Ovid, Metamorphoses, book v., Table 2. 2 Crudities. The word is from the Lansdowne MS. Others e "hawebake," which has no meaning that car be determined Perplexed. Despite. 5 Blamest. Little. Coals.

Herkne,1 what is the sentence of the wise. "Bet is tc dyen than have indigence;" Thy-selve neighebor wol thee despise, If thou be povre, farwel thy reverence! Yet of the wise man take this sentence: "Alle dayes of povre men been wikke;" 4540 Be war therfore, er thou come to that prikke! If thou be povre thy brother hateth thee, And alle thy freendes fleen from thee, allas! O riche marchauntz, ful of wele been yee, O noble, o prudent folk, as in this cas! Youre bagges been nat fild with ambes as,2

8

But with sys cynk, that renneth for youre chaunce;

At Cristemasse myrie may ye daunce!

Ye seken lond and see for yowre wynnynges;

As wise folk ye knowen all thestaat

Of regnes ;* ye been fadres of tidynges

And tales, bothe of pees and of debaat.

4550

I were right now of tales desolaat, (4551 T.) Nere that a marchant- goon is many a

Me taughte a tale, which that ye shal heere."

1 Elles. MS. has "herke." 2 Both aces. Cf. All's Well that Ends Well, act ii., sc. 3, l. 84. 8 A six-and-five throw. Cf. 1. 8273. Kingdoms. 5 Were it not. The following story is composed of incidents that frequently occur in ancient authors. Chaucer follows Nicholas Trivet, whose version has been published by the Chaucer Society (1872), with a translation by Edmund Brock. In the Gesta Romanorum it is called The Tale of the Wife of Merelaus the Em

Beror

That wyde-where senten hir spicerye,
Clothes of gold, and satyns riche of hewe.
Hir chaffare was so thrifty and so newe 4560
That every wight hath deyntee to chaffare
With hem, and eek to sellen hem hire ware.
Now fil it that the maistres of that sort
Han shapen hem to Rome for to wende,
Were it for chapmanhode, or for disport,
Noon oother message wolde they thiac

sende,

6

But comen hem-self to Rome, this is the ende, And in swich place as thoughte hem avantage For hire entente, they take hir herbergage."

4571

Sojourned han thise marchantz in that toun A certein tyme, as fil to hire plesance; And so bifel that thexcellent renoun Of the Emperoures doghter, dame Custance, Reported was, with every circumstance, Un-to thise Surryen marchantz in swich wyse Fro day to day, as I shal yow devyse.

6 Mes

Syria. Merchants. Staid. Widely 5 Pleasure. Bonger. 7 Lodging The emperor is said to have been Tiberius Constantine (578-582).