VI. THE LEGEND OF ARIADNE.

Incipit Legenda Adriane de Athenes.

IUGE infernal, Minos, of Crete king,

Now cometh thy lot, now comestow on the ring;
Nat only for thy sake wryte I this storie,

But for to clepe agein unto memorie

Of Theseus the grete untrouthe of love;

For which the goddes of the heven above

1890

Ben wrothe, and wreche han take for thy sinne.
Be reed for shame! now I thy lyf beginne.

Minos, that was the mighty king of Crete,
That hadde an hundred citees stronge and grete,
To scole hath sent his sone Androgeus,
To Athenes; of the whiche hit happed thus,
That he was slayn, lerning philosophye,
Right in that citee, nat but for envye.

The grete Minos, of the whiche I speke,
His sones deth is comen for to wreke;
Alcathoe he bisegeth harde and longe.
But natheles the walles be so stronge,
And Nisus, that was king of that citee,
So chivalrous, that litel dredeth he;
Of Minos or his ost took he no cure,
Til on a day befel an aventure,

1895 (II)

1900

1905

(21)

C. has lost 11. 1836-1907. 1886. F. B. Tn. Grece; rest Crete; see 1. 1894. 1888. F. B. oonly for thy sake; rest for thy sake only. F. Tn. Th. B. writen is; T. A. wryte I. 1890. F. vntrewe; rest vntrouthe (vntrouth). 1891. T. A. the; rest om. (after of). Th. had; B. wanne; F. whan (!); Tn. om. hapned; rest happed.

1895. T. A. 1897. F. happeth; A. 1902. Th. Alcathoe (rightly); A. Alcitoe; Tn. Alcie; T. All the cyte; F. B. And the citee.

That Nisus doghter stood upon the wal,
And of the sege saw the maner al.
So happed hit, that, at a scarmishing,
She caste her herte upon Minos the king,
For his beaute and for his chivalrye,
So sore, that she wende for to dye.
And, shortly of this proces for to pace,
She made Minos winnen thilke place,
So that the citee was al at his wille,
To saven whom him list, or elles spille;
But wikkedly he quitte her kyndenesse,
And let her drenche in sorowe and distresse,
Ner that the goddes hadde of her pite;
But that tale wer to long as now for me.
Athenes wan this king Minos also,

And Alcathoe and other tounes mo;
And this theffect, that Minos hath so driven
Hem of Athenes, that they mote him yiven
Fro yere to yere her owne children dere
For to be slayn, as ye shul after here.

This Minos hath a monstre, a wikked beste,
That was so cruel that, without areste,
Whan that a man was broght in his presence,
He wolde him ete, ther helpeth no defence.
And every thridde yeer, with-outen doute,
They casten lot, and, as hit com aboute

1910

1915

(31)

1920

1925

(41)

1930

On riche, on pore, he moste his sone take,
And of his child he moste present make

1935

1910. F. B. hyt happed; rest happed hit. 1911. C. caughte. 1912. C. T. A. for; rest om. C. om. 1922, 1923. 1923. Th. As Alcathoe; A. As Alcitoe; F. B. And Alcites; T. With all the cyte; see 1. 1902. 1924. C. But (for And). 1925. F. B. Tn. om. that.

righ[t] as ye shal here; A. A. in; rest in-to.

1927. C. T. rycht thus as ye schall here. 1930. C. T. 1932. C. om. yeer. 1933. C. T. A. and; rest 1934. C. or; Th. and; rest on.

VI. THE LEGEND OF ARIADNE.

Unto Minos, to save him or to spille,

Or lete his beste devoure him at his wille.
And this hath Minos don, right in despyt;
To wreke his sone was set al his delyt,
And maken hem of Athenes his thral

Fro yere to yere, whyl that he liven shal;

And hoom he saileth whan this toun is wonne.
This wikked custom is so longe y-ronne

Til that of Athenes king Egeus

Mot sende his owne sone, Theseus,
Sith that the lot is fallen him upon,

To be devoured, for grace is ther non.
And forth is lad this woful yonge knight
Unto the court of king Minos ful right,
And in a prison, fetered, cast is he
Til thilke tyme he sholde y-freten be.

Wel maystow wepe, O woful Theseus,
That art a kinges sone, and dampned thus.
Me thinketh this, that thou wer depe y-holde
To whom that saved thee fro cares colde!
And now, if any woman helpe thee,
Wel oughtestow her servant for to be,
And been her trewe lover yeer by yere!
But now to come ageyn to my matere.

The tour, ther as this Theseus is throwe
Doun in the botom derke and wonder lowe,
Was Ioyning to the walle of a foreyne; &
And hit was longing to the doghtren tweyne

1936. T. Vn-to; rest To. C. Theseus (for Minos). T. A. Th. right; rest om. 1940. F. B. To; rest And. T. A. that; rest om. 1944. C. T. that; rest om. C. T. Th. Mote; rest Moste (Must). 1949. C. T. A. court; rest contree. 1951. A. thilke; C. the ilke; rest the. F. B. depe were; Tn. depe; Th. arte depe. theym; rest whom.

C. T. A. in; rest to.

1945

(61)

1950

1955

(71)

1960

1938. C. 1941. C. 1945. Tn. Mot; 1948. C. gon (for lad). C. T. A. right; rest of might. 1954. C. T. A. were depe; 1955. C. hym;`T. 1960. C. A. as; T. that; rest om.

1962.

Of king Minos, that in hir chambres grete
Dwelten above, toward the maister-strete,
In mochel mirthe, in Ioye and in solas.
Not I nat how, hit happed ther, per cas,
As Theseus compleyned him by nighte,
The kinges doghter, Adrian that highte,
And eek her suster Phedra, herden al
His compleynt, as they stoden on the wal
And lokeden upon the brighte mone;
Hem leste nat to go to bedde sone.
And of his wo they had compassioun ;
A kinges sone to ben in swich prisoun
And be devoured, thoughte hem gret pitee.
Than Adrian spak to her suster free,
And seyde, Phedra, leve suster dere,
This woful lordes sone may ye nat here,
How pitously compleyneth he his kin,

And eek his pore estat that he is in,
And gilteles? now certes, hit is routhe!
And if ye wol assenten, by my trouthe,
He shal be holpen, how so that we do!'
Phedra answerde, 'ywis, me is as wo
For him as ever I was for any man;
And, to his help, the beste reed I can
Is, that we doon the gayler prively

To come, and speke with us hastily,
And doon this woful man with him to come.
For if he may this monstre overcome,

1964. A. king; rest om. A. toward; rest om. towne; rest Of Athenes (!); B. Wot. A. But I not how.

om.

C. Of Thesius that, &c.

1965 (81)

1970

1975

(91)

1980

1985 (101)

1990

1965. C. T.

1966. T. In mochell myrthe; Th. Of the see note. 1967. C. Tn. Th. Not; F. A. A. happinit; rest happed. T. there; rest 1969. F. Tn. B. that Adriane (badly); Th. that Ariadne. 1971. C. T. A. compleynynge. 1972. C. T. lokedyn; rest loked. 1973. F. B. (only) om. Ist to. C. A. sone; rest so sone. 1980. F. Tn. B. om. he. 1982. C. now certeyn; T. A. now certes; rest certes 1987. F. A. B. insert that before I. 1991. F. B. the; rest this.

now.

Than were he quit; ther is noon other bote.
Lat us wel taste him at his herte-rote,
That, if so be that he a wepen have,
Wher that he dar, his lyf to kepe and save,
Fighten with this fend, and him defende.
For, in the prison, ther he shal descende,
Ye wite wel, that the beste is in a place

That nis nat derk, and hath roum eek and space
To welde an ax or swerd or staf or knyf,
So that, me thinketh, he sholde save his lyf;
If that he be a man, he shal do so.
And we shul make him balles eek also

Of wexe and towe, that, whan he gapeth faste,
Into the bestes throte he shal hem caste
To slake his hunger and encombre his teeth;
And right anon, whan that Theseus seeth
The beste achoked, he shal on him lepe
To sleen him, or they comen more to-hepe.
This wepen shal the gayler, or that tyde,
Ful privily within the prison hyde;
And, for the hous is crinkled to and fro,
And hath so queinte weyes for to go—
For hit is shapen as the mase is wroght-
Therto have I a remedie in my thoght,

1995

(III)

2000

2005

(121)

2010

2015

That, by a clewe of twyne, as he hath goon,
The same wey he may returne anoon,

(131)

1997. F. Tn. B. 1998. F. Tn. B. omit this line.

So

1995. So C.; F. B. that hys lyf he dar kepe or; Tn. Th. that he his lif dar kepe or; T. that he dar his lyfe kepe and. Th. ther as; C. T. A. om. as. C. Th. A. Wel wote 3e, &c. T. The best, ye wot well that he ys, &c. 1999. Addit. (12524) rome eke and space; C. bothe roum and space; rest roume (roum) and eke space. 2003. F. Tn. B. om. him. 2007. C. what (error for whan) that; Th. T. whan that; F. Tn. A. B. whan. 2008. T. A. C. achoked; Th. acheked (!); F. Tn. asleked; B. aslakyd. 2009. F. (only) the (for they). F. to helpe (!); rest to hepe. Tn. crenkled; Th. crencled; B. cruklyd.

2016. F. B. clywe.

2012.

2015. T. (only) om. a.