Thys honourable queene doth him chere,
And lyketh wel hys porte and hys manere.
But I am agroted here beforne,

To write of hem that in love ben forsworne,
And eke to haste me in my legende,

Which to performe, God me grace sende!
Therfore I passe shortly in thys wyse.
Ye have wel herde of Theseus the gyse,
In the betraysyng of faire Adriane,
That of hire pitee kepte hym fro hys bane;
At shorte wordes, ryghte so Demophoon,
The same way, the same path hath goon,
That did his fals fader Theseus.

2455

2460

For unto Phillis hath he sworne thus,

To wedden hire, and hire his trouthe plyghte,

2465

And piked of hire al the good he myghte,

Whanne he was hole and sounde, and had hys reste,

And doth with Phillis what so that him leste,

As wel kouthe I, yf that me leste soo,

Tellen al hys doynge, to and fro.

He sayede to hys countree moste hym sayle,
For ther he wolde hire weddyng apparaylle
As fille to hire honour and hys also,

And openly he toke his leve tho,

2453. agroted, cloyed, surfeited.

2470

2458. gyse, same as A. S. wise, Ger. weise; manner, fashion. "Ther nys no newe gyse, that it nas old." C. T. 2127; "as was tho the gyse." C. T. 995; "as the gyse was in his contré.” C. T. 2139. In the text the word is used somewhat peculiarly, for con

duct in a particular case.

2459. betraysyng, betrayal.

2460. bane, destruction.

2466. piked, stole.

2469. y that me leste soo, if I so pleased.

2471. moste, used here impersonally; it was necessary for him

to sail.

2472. apparaylle, prepare.

2473. fille, past tense of falle, fell, became.

And to hire swore he wolde not sojourne,
But in a moneth ageyn he wolde retourne.
And in that londe let make hys ordynaunce,
As verray lorde, and toke the obeisaunce,
Wel and humbly, and his shippes dyghte,
And home he gooth the next wey he myghte.
For unto Phillis yet come he noghte,

And that hath she so harde and sore yboghte,
Allas, as the story doth us recorde,

She was hire owne dethe with a corde,

2475

2480

2490

Whanne that she segh that Demophoon her trayed. 2485
But firste wrote she to hym, and faste hym prayed
He wolde come and delyver hire of peyne,
As I reherse shal oo worde or tweyne.
Me lyste nat vouche sauf on hym to swynke,
Dispenden on hym a penne ful of ynke,
For fals in love was he ryghte as hys syre;
The Devel set hire soules both on a fire!
But of the letter of Phillis wol I wryte,
A worde or tweyne althogh hit be but lyte.
"Thyn hostesse,' quod she, 'O Demophoon,
Thy Phillis, which that is so woo begon,
Of Rhodopey, upon yow mote compleyne,
Over the terme sette betwix us tweyne,
That ye ne holden forwarde, as ye seyde.

2495

2477. let make hys ordynaunce, cause his arrangements to be

made.

2479. dyghte, dressed, trimmed for sailing.

2480. next, nearest.

2482. yboghte, past part. of bie, borne, suffered.

2485. segh, past tense of se, saw; see note on saugh, v. 16;— trayed, betrayed.

2489. swynke, to labour. See note on swynke, v. 2039. 2494. lyte, little.

2499. forwarde, a promise, an engagement.

"obedient

2497. mote, must.

To kepe his forward by his fre assent."-C. T. 854.
"To breke forward is not myn entent."-C. T. 4460.
"Tell us a tale, as was thy forward yore."-C. T. 14388.

Your anker, which ye in oure haven leyde,
Hyghte us that ye wolde comen out of doute,
Or that the moone ones went aboute;

2500

But tymes foure, the moone hath hid hire face
Syn thilke day ye went fro this place;
And foure tymes lyghte the worlde ageyne.

2505

But for al that, yet I shal soothly seyne,

Yet hath the streme of Scython nat broght

From Athenes the shippe; yet come hit noght.

And yf that ye the terme rekne wolde,

As I or other trewe loveres sholde,

2510

I pleyne not, God wot! beforne my day.'
But al hire letter writen I ne may

By ordre, for hit were to me a charge;

Hire letter was ryghte longe, and therto large.
But here and there, in-ryme I have hyt layde
There as me thoght that she hath wel sayde.

2515

She seyde,The saylles cometh nat ageyn,
Ne to the worde there nys no fey certeyn,
But I wote why ye come not,' quod she;
'For I was of my love to yow so fre.
And of the goddys that ye han forswore,
That hire vengeaunce fal on yow therfore,
Ye be nat suffisaunt to bere the peyne.
To moche trusted I, wel may I seyne,

2520

Upon youre lynage and youre faire tonge,

2525

And on youre teres falsly oute wronge.

How couthe ye wepe so be crafte?' quod she;

'May ther suche teres feynede be?

2501. hyghte, promised.

2502. or, ere.

2504. syn thilke, since that same.

2507. Yet hath the streme of Scython, etc.: "Nec vehit Actæas Sithonis unda rates."-Heroides, ii. 6.

2511. I pleyne not, God wot, beforne my day: "Non venit ante

suam nostra querela diem."-Heroides, ii. 8.

2518. fey, faith.

2519. wote, know.

Now certes yf ye wolde have in memorye,

Hyt oughte be to yow but lyttel glorye,

2530

To have a sely mayde thus betrayed!

To God,' quod she, 'prey I, and ofte have prayed,

That hyt be nowe the gretest prise of alle,

And moste honour that ever yow shal befalle.

2535

And whanne thyn olde auncetres peynted be,
In which men may hire worthinesse se,
Thanne prey I God, thow peynted be also,
That folke may reden, forth by as they go :-
'Lo this is he, that with his flaterye

Betrayed hath, and doon hire vilanye,

2540

That was his trewe love in thoghte and dede.' 'But sothely of oo poynt yet may they rede,

That ye ben lyke youre fader, as in this;

For he begiled Adriane, ywis,

With suche an arte, and suche sobteltee,
As thou thy selven haste begiled me.

2545

As in that poynt, althogh hit be nat feire,

Thou folwest hym certeyn, and art his eyre.
But syn thus synfully ye me begile,

My body mote ye seen, within a while

2550

Ryghte in the havene of Athenes fletynge,

Withouten sepulture and buryinge,

Though ye ben harder than is any stoon.'

And whanne this letter was forthe sent anoon,

And knyw how brotel and how fals he was,

2555

2531. sely, simple, unsuspecting.

2533. prise, praise; the meaning is, that she prays to God, and has oft prayed, that it (namely, the fact of having betrayed a silly maid), be the greatest praise and honour that shall ever befall him. 2544. ywis, indeed.

2547. as in, as respects;-feire, fair, of good report.

2548. eyre, heir.

2550. mote, may.

2551. fletynge, floating.

2555. knyw, knew ;-brotel, brittle.

She for dispeyre fordidde hire selfe, allas!
Suche sorowe hath she for he beset hire so !
Bewar ye wymmen of youre sotile fo!
Syns yet this day men may ensample se,
And as in love trusteth no man but me.

EXPLICIT LEGENDA PHILLIS.

INCIPIT LEGENDA YPERMYSTRE.

N Grece whilom weren brethren twoo

IN

Of which that oon was called Danoo,

That many a sone hath of hys body wonne,
As suche fals loveres ofte konne.

2560

Amonge hys sones alle there was oon,

2565

That aldermoste he loved of everychoon.

And whanne this childe was borne, this Danoo

2570

Shope hym a name, and called hym Lyno.
That other brother called was Egiste,
That was in love as fals as ever hym lyste.
And many a doughtre gate he in hys lyf;
Of which he gate upon his ryghte wif
A doughter dere, and did hire for to calle,

2556. fordidde, did away with, destroyed. 2557. for he beset, because he served.

2560. as in, in respect to.

Incipit legenda Ypermystre: Here beginneth the legend of Hypermnestra. This legend is taken from Ovid's Heroides, xiv.

2566. aldermoste, most of all; see note on v. 298; everychoon, compounded of every ech oon, every each one.

2568. shope, past tense of schape or shape, shaped, fashioned, formed.

2571. gate, past tense of gete, begot.

2573. did hire for to calle, caused her to be, or had her, called.