In-to a place/ther that I say

Trewly the fayrest / companye

Off Ladyes / that euere mañ with ye
Had seen to-gedres in oo place
Shal I clepe hyt / happe other grace
That broght me there / nay but Fortune
That ys to lyen / ful comvne

The fals trayteresse / peruers

God wolde I koude / clepe hir wers
For now she worcheth / me ful woo
And I wol tel sone / why soo

[leaf 140, back]

812

[nota in margin]

816

So gladly I trow / myn hert seyeñ
That purely tho / myñ ovne thoght'
Seyde hit were beter / serve hir for noght

Thañ with a-nother / to be wel
And hyt was sothe/ for eueredel

I wil a-noon / ryght' telle the why

I sawgħ hyr daunce / so comelely
Carole and synge / so swetly

Lawghe and pley / so womanly

840

844

[leaf 141]

848

And loke / so debonairly

Hyr lokynge was not / foly sprad
Ne wildely/thogh that she pleyde
But euer me thoght' / hir eyeñ seyde
Be god my wrathe/ ys al for-yive
Therwith hir lyste / so wel to lyve
That dulnesse was / of hir a-drad
She nas to sobre / ne to glad
In alle thynges / more mesure
Had neuer I trow / creature

But many oon/ with hire loke she hert
And that sate hyr / ful lytel at hert
For she knowe no-thynge / of her thoght'
1 but whither she knew / or knew it nowght
Algate she ne rought / of hem a stree
To gete hyr love / noo nerre was he

876

880

[leaf 141, back]

884

[This line is in Stowe's hand. Bodl. 638 has a blank too.]

888

That woned at home / that he in ynde
The formest was / alway behynde
But good folke ouer al other

She loved as mañ / may do hys brother

Of whiche loue / she was wounder large
In skilful placis / that bere charge
But which a visage / had she ther-too
Allas myn hert/ys wonder woo

892

896

Was white1 rody fressh / and lyvely hewed blanche in margin,

in Stowe's hand]

And euery day / hir beaute newed

And negħ hir face / was alder best

For certys nature / had swich lest
To make that faire / that trewly she
Was hir chefe patrone / of beaute

908

Wyth-outen hole / or canel booй

Hyt was white 1 smothe/ streght and pure flatte blanche in

As be semynge/ had she noon

margin, by Stowe]

944

Hyr throte / as I haue now memoyre

Semed a rounde toure / of yvoyre

of goode gretenesse / and noght' to grete

And goode faire White2 / she hete [2 blanche in margin, by Stowe]

That was my lady Name / ryghte

She was bothe/ faire and brygħte
She had not / hir name wronge
Ryght faire shuldres / and body longe
She had / and armes / euery lyth
Fattyssh flesshy / not grete therwith
Ryght white handes / and nayles rede
Rounde brestes / and of good brede
Hyr hippes were / a streight flat bakke
I knewe on hir / noon other lakke.
That al hir lymmes / nere pure sywynge
In as fferre / as I had knowynge

952

956

[leaf 142, back] 960