Thou shalt answere of two, and nat of oon!
Wher is thy gretter part away y-goon?
Allas! wher shal I, wrecched wight, become?
For, thogh so be that ship or boot heer come,
Hoom to my contre dar I nat for drede;
I can my-selven in this cas nat rede!'

What shal I telle more her compleining?
Hit is so long, hit were an hevy thing.
In her epistle Naso telleth al;

But shortly to the ende I telle shal.

The goddes have her holpen, for pitee;
And in the signe of Taurus men may see
The stones of her coroun shyne clere.—

I wol no more speke of this matere;

But thus this false lover can begyle

His trewe love. The devil quyte him his whyle!

Explicit Legenda Adriane de Athenes.

2215

(331)

2220

2225

(341)

2213. C. thyn; T. A. thy; rest the. C. I-gon; A. y-gone; rest goon (gone). 2214. C. wreche.

her come; C. that boot here ne come none here come (wrongly); see note. selfe (read my selven); rest my self. telle I.

2215. So T.; A. that any bote (wrongly); Tn. F. B. that bote 2217. C. myn selue; F. my 2221. C. T. A. I telle; rest

2226. C. T. Th. this 2227. C. Tn. T. Th. His; Perhaps him quyte would give a

2226, 2227. A. omits these lines. false louer; F. Tn. B. these false lovers. F. Hyr; B. Her; but all have him.

smoother line.

VII. THE LEGEND OF PHILOMELA.

Incipit Legenda Philomene.

Deus dator formarum.

THOU yiver of the formes, that hast wroght
The faire world, and bare hit in thy thoght
Eternally, or thou thy werk began,

Why madest thou, unto the slaundre of man,
Or-al be that hit was not thy doing,

As for that fyn to make swiche a thing--
Why suffrest thou that Tereus was bore,
That is in love so fals and so forswore,
That, fro this world up to the firste hevene,
Corrumpeth, whan that folk his name nevene?
And, as to me, so grisly was his dede,
That, whan that I his foule story rede,
Myn eyen wexen foule and sore also;
Yit last the venim of so longe ago,
That hit enfecteth him that wol beholde
The story of Tereus, of which I tolde.

2230

2235

(10)

2240

Of Trace was he lord, and kin to Marte,

The cruel god that stant with blody darte;

2245

TITLE. From F. After which, F. has Deus dator formatorum; B.

T. that sorrowfull story.

2239. C. A. his; F. Tn. B. this. 2241. F. B. laste (error for last); Tn.

2242. C. T. A. it; rest 2243. B. Th. Tereus ;

A. laft (!); C. lestyth; T. Th. lasteth. om. C. wele; T. wyll; rest wolde; read wol. A. Tireus; C. Therius; T. Thereus; F. Teseus; Tn. Theseus (!). [Of which I tolde = whom I mentioned (1. 2234).]

See next line.

And wedded had he, with a blisful chere,
King Pandiones faire doghter dere,
That highte Progne, flour of her contree,
Thogh Iuno list nat at the feste be,
Ne Ymeneus, that god of wedding is;
But at the feste redy been, y-wis,

The furies three, with alle hir mortel brond.
The owle al night aboute the balkes wond,
That prophet is of wo and of mischaunce.
This revel, ful of songe and ful of daunce,
Lasteth a fourtenight, or litel lasse.
But, shortly of this story for to passe,
For I am wery of him for to telle,
Five yeer his wyf and he togeder dwelle,
Til on a day she gan so sore longe

To seen her suster, that she saw nat longe,
That for desyr she niste what to seye.
But to her husband gan she for to preye,
For goddes love, that she moste ones goon
Her suster for to seen, and come anoon,
Or elles, but she moste to her wende,
She preyde him, that he wolde after her sende;
And this was, day by day, al her prayere
With al humblesse of wyfhood, word, and chere.
This Tereus let make his shippes yare,
And into Grece him-self is forth y-fare
Unto his fader in lawe, and gan him preye
To vouche-sauf that, for a month or tweye,
That Philomene, his wyves suster, mighte
On Progne his wyf but ones have a sighte

(20)

2250

2255

(30)

2260

2265

(40)

2270

2275

2246. C. T. A. a; rest om.

2249. C. T. A. lyst; Th. lyste; F.

Tn. B. baste (!). 2252, 2253. C. Tn. A. brond, wond; rest bronde, wonde. 2256. A. Lestith; rest Laste (Last).

'And she shal come to yow again anoon.
Myself with her wol bothe come and goon,
And as myn hertes lyf I wol her kepe.'

This olde Pandion, this king, gan wepe
For tendernesse of herte, for to leve
His doghter goon, and for to yive her leve;
Of al this world he lovede no-thing so;
But at the laste leve hath she to go.

(50)

2280

For Philomene, with salte teres eke,
Gan of her fader grace to beseke

2285

To seen her suster, that her longeth so;
And him enbraceth with her armes two.
And therwith-al so yong and fair was she
That, whan that Terëus saw her beaute,
And of array that ther was noon her liche,
And yit of bounte was she to so riche,
He caste his fyry herte upon her so
That he wol have her, how so that hit go,
And with his wyles kneled and so preyde,
Til at the laste Pandion thus seyde:-

'Now, sone,' quod he, 'that art to me so dere,

I thee betake my yonge doghter here,
That bereth the key of al my hertes lyf.
And grete wel my doghter and thy wyf,
And yive her leve somtyme for to pleye,
That she may seen me ones er I deye.'
And sothly, he hath mad him riche feste,
And to his folk, the moste and eek the leste,

(60)

2290

2295

(70)

2300

2277. All but C. T. badly insert I after her.

2285. F. B. Tn. for; rest of. loueth so; A. sche loued so.

2282. T. C. loueth.

2286. So F. Tn. Th. B.; C. T. she 2287-92. T. omits.

2291. B. bounte;

F. bounde (error for bounte); rest beaute (but see 1. 2289). Th. to (rightly); A. twys (!); rest two or twoo (!)

2294. C. wilis he so

fayre hire preyede. 2297. C. T. A. here; rest repeat dere. 2301. C. Tn. T. er; rest or.

That with him com; and yaf him yiftes grete,
And him conveyeth through the maister-strete
Of Athenes, and to the see him broghte,
And turneth hoom; no malice he ne thoghte.
The ores pulleth forth the vessel faste,

And into Trace arriveth at the laste,
And up into a forest he her ledde,
And to a cave privily him spedde;
And, in this derke cave, yif her leste,

Or leste noght, he bad her for to reste;
Of whiche her herte agroos, and seyde thus,
'Wher is my suster, brother Tereus?'
And therwith-al she wepte tenderly,
And quook for fere, pale and pitously,
Right as the lamb that of the wolf is biten;
Or as the colver, that of the egle is smiten,
And is out of his clawes forth escaped,
Yet hit is afered and awhaped

2305

(80)

2310

2315

(90)

2320

Lest hit be hent eft-sones, so sat she.

But utterly hit may non other be.

She cryeth 'suster!' with ful loude stevene,

And 'fader dere!' and 'help me, god in hevene!'

Al helpeth nat; and yet this false theef

(101)

2330

Hath doon this lady yet a more mischeef,

For fere lest she sholde his shame crye,

And doon him openly a vilanye,

And with his swerd her tong of kerveth he,

And in a castel made her for to be

2335

2311. F. T. in-to; rest to. 2314. Tn. a-groos; A. agros; Th. agrose;

F. agrosse; T. agrysyd; C. aros (!).

2316. C. Tn. Th. B. wepte;

wepe; T. wepyd. 2319. F. Tn. Or of; B. Or; rest Or as.

Tn. B. om. his.

2320. F.

2328. F. B. longe; rest loude. 2329. C. A. and; rest om. 2332. F. B. Tn. ferde; A. fered; rest fere. A. C. kerveth; T. kutteth; rest kerf (kerfe).

2334.