And bere in his devyses, for her sake,
Noot I nat what; and songes wolde he make,
Iusten, and doon of armes many thinges,
Sende her lettres, tokens, broches, ringes-
Now herkneth, how he shal his lady serve!
Ther-as he was in peril for to sterve
For hunger, and for mischeef in the see,
And desolat, and fled from his contree,
And al his folk with tempest al to-driven,
She hath her body and eek her reame yiven
In-to his hond, ther-as she mighte have been
Of other lond than of Cartage a queen,
And lived in Ioye y-nogh; what wolde ye more?
This Eneas, that hath so depe y-swore,
Is wery of his craft with-in a throwe;
The hote ernest is al over-blowe.
And prively he doth his shippes dighte,
And shapeth him to stele a-wey by nighte.
This Dido hath suspecioun of this,
And thoughte wel, that hit was al a-mis;
For in his bedde he lyth a-night and syketh;
She asketh him anoon, what him mislyketh-
"My dere herte, which that I love most?'
'Certes,' quod he, this night my fadres gost
Hath in my sleep so sore me tormented,
And eek Mercurie his message hath presented,
That nedes to the conquest of Itaile
My destinee is sone for to saile
For which, me thinketh, brosten is myn herte ! '
Ther-with his false teres out they sterte;
1273. C. Tn. A. Th. Not; F. B. Wot.
1275. All but C. ins. and 1281. C. F. T. B. reame; Tn. P. ream; Th. realme.
1285. C. A. P. so; rest thus. 1296. C. A. so sore me; rest me so sore. 1298. F. Tn. B. om. to.
And taketh her with-in his armes two.
'Is that in ernest,' quod she; 'wil ye so?
Have ye nat sworn to wyve me to take,
Alas! what womman wil ye of me make?
I am a gentil-woman and a queen,
Ye wil nat fro your wyf thus foule fleen?
That I was born! allas! what shal I do?'
To telle in short, this noble queen Dido,
She seketh halwes, and doth sacrifyse;
She kneleth, cryeth, that routhe is to devyse;
Coniureth him, and profreth him to be
His thral, his servant in the leste gree;
She falleth him to foot, and swowneth there
Dischevele, with her brighte gilte here,
And seith, have mercy! let me with yow ryde!
Thise lordes, which that wonen me besyde
Wil me destroyen only for your sake.
And, so ye wil me now to wyve take,
As ye han sworn, than wol I yive yow leve
To sleen me with your swerd now sone at eve!
For than yit shal I dyen as your wyf.
Mercy, lord! have pite in your thoght!'
But al this thing availeth her right noght;
For on a night, slepinge, he let her lye,
And stal a-wey un-to his companye,
And, as a traitour, forth he gan to saile
Toward the large contre of Itaile.
Thus hath he laft Dido in wo and pyne;
And wedded ther a lady hight Lavyne.
1313. C. gre; rest degree (degre).
1319. C. T. A. so; rest om. F. now me
I yet; Tn. C. T. A. Th. yit shall I.
1326, 1327. The old printed editions omit
C. on to; T. A. vnto; F. Tn. B. vpon.
thus. C. Tn. laft; F. lefte.
1314. C. to-fore (for to foot). rest me now. 1322. F.shal 1324. C. hauyth; rest haue. these two lines. 1327. 1330. C. Thus; rest And
A cloth he lafte, and eek his swerd stonding,
Whan he fro Dido stal in her sleping,
Right at her beddes heed, so gan he hye
Whan that he stal a-wey to his navye;
Which cloth, whan sely Dido gan awake,
She hath hit kist ful ofte for his sake;
And seide, 'O cloth, whyl Iupiter hit leste,
Tak now my soule, unbind me of this unreste !
I have fulfild of fortune al the cours.'
And thus, allas! with-outen his socours,
Twenty tyme y-swowned hath she thanne.
And, whan that she un-to her suster Anne
Compleyned had, of which I may nat wryte---
So greet a routhe I have hit for tendyte-
And bad her norice and her suster goon
To fecchen fyr and other thing anoon,
And seide, that she wolde sacrifye.
And, whan she mighte her tyme wel espye,
Up-on the fyr of sacrifys she sterte,
And with his swerd she rof her to the herte.
But, as myn autour seith, right thus she seyde;
Or she was hurt, before that she deyde,
She wroot a lettre anoon, that thus began:—
'Right so,' quod she, as that the whyte swan
Ayeins his deeth beginneth for to singe,
Right so to yow make I my compleyninge.
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1332. C. lafte; F. lefte. 1333. F. (only) om. her. 1337. F. Tn. B. om. hit. 1338. All but T. A. wrongly insert swete after O. 1339. F. Tn. Th. B. om. now. C. and brynge it of this onreste; Tn. T. Th. P. vnbynde me of this vnreste; F. B. vnbynde me of this reste (!); A. me bynd of myn vnrest; I keep the reading of Tn. T. Th. P. 1354. F. Tn. Th. B. om. a. C. tendite; rest to endite (endyte). 1346. A. P. suster; C. T. A. P. sistir; rest sustren (!). 1347. C. T. A. P. thing; rest thinges. 1352. C. A. right; P. om. ; rest yet (yit). 1353. A. before that; C. F. T. Th. B. byforn or (byforne er); P. and befor or. 1355. C. A. that; T. doth; rest om. 1356. C. Azens; A. Azeynes; Tn. Ayeinste; rest Ayenst. 1357. C. T. A. make I; rest I make.
Nat that I trowe to geten yow again,
For wel I woot that it is al in vain,
Sin that the goddes been contraire to me.
But sin my name is lost through yow,' quod she,
'I may wel lese a word on yow, or letter,
Al-be-it that I shal be never the better;
For thilke wind that blew your ship a-wey,
The same wind hath blowe a-wey your fey.'-
But who wol al this letter have in mynde,
Rede Ovide, and in him he shal hit fynde.
Explicit Legenda Didonis martiris, Cartaginis regine.
1359. C. T. A. P. that; rest om. contrarie; C. T. contrary; rest contrarious (too long). 1363. C. T. A. P. that; rest om. 1366. Tn. P. who; rest who so, or who that.
IV. THE LEGEND OF HYPSIPYLE AND MEDEA.
Incipit Legenda Ysiphile et Medee, Martirum.
PART I. THE LEGEND OF HYPSIPYLE.
THOU rote of false lovers, duk Iasoun!
Thou sly devourer and confusioun
Of gentil-wommen, tender creatures,
Thou madest thy reclaiming and thy lures
To ladies of thy statly apparaunce,
And of thy wordes, farced with plesaunce,
And of thy feyned trouthe and thy manere,
With thyn obeisaunce and thy humble chere,
And with thy counterfeted peyne and wo.
Ther other falsen oon, thou falsest two!
O! ofte swore thou that thou woldest dye
For love, whan thou ne feltest maladye
Save foul delyt, which that thou callest love!
If that I live, thy name shal be shove
In English, that thy sleighte shal be knowe!
Have at thee, Iasoun! now thyn horn is blowe!
But certes, hit is bothe routhe and wo
That love with false loveres werketh so;
For they shul have wel better love and chere
Than he that hath aboght his love ful dere,
1370. A. T. tender; rest repeat gentil. C. has tendere wemen gentil. 1373. A. C. farced; F. Tn. Th. farsed; B. forsed; P. filled; T. versyd. 1375. P. A. thy; rest om. 1377. Here MS. P. ends. 1386. C. T. A. Th. love and; F. Tn. B. and gretter. 1387. C. A. abought; rest bought. C. T. A. his; rest om.
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