Originals and Analogues of Some of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (2024)

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Originals and Analoguesof some ofChaucer's Canterbury Tales.

Originals and Analoguesof some ofChaucer's Canterbury Tales.EDITED BYF. J. FURNIVALL, EDMUND BROCK,ANDW. A. CLOUSTON."The larger works of fiction resemble those productions of a country which areconsumed within itself; while Tales, like the more delicate and precious articles oftraffic, which are exported from their native soil, have gladdened and delightedevery land. "-DUNLOP'S History ofFiction.PUBLISHT FOR THE CHAUCER SOCIETYBY N. TRÜBNER & CO. , 57 & 59, LUDGATE HILL,LONDON.391785 - B.¥,10,15,20,22MOTHEBIBLISecond Series, Nos. 7, 10, 15 , 20, 22.RICHARD CLAY & SONS, LIMITED, LONDON & BUNGAY.5*FOREWORDS.THE purpose of this volume was to get together all the knownsources of Chaucer's Tales, so that the student of the Poet might seewhat in them was borrowd, and what original. The Analogs wereadded in order to show how the stories that Chaucer used were modified by other minds in other lands. But few of these would havebeen given, had not Mr. W. A. Clouston, the well-known authorityon the subject, most kindly volunteerd his help. He has treated, asfully as he can, the Franklin's Tale, the Merchant's Tale, the Manof Law's Tule, the Pardoner's Tale, the Manciple's Tale, the WifeofBath's Tale, and the Clerk's Tale. Alike illustration of the otherTales-almost all of which admit it-would have sweld this volumeto such unwieldy size, that Mr. Clouston advised its closing now,leaving him at liberty to take up the subject again when he can findtime for it, either thro' a publisher or for the Society.Mr. Clouston has also been good enough to revise Mr. W. M.Wood's Index to this volume, and to draw up the Contents, addinga List of the Tales illustrated by analogs, variants, &c. This wasnecessary, because the latter were printed as they came to hand. Inever thought of waiting to get everything available for any Talebefore anything about it was put forth. I still hope to arrange withMr. Hy. Ward and some second Editor for the issue of the originalof the Knight's Tale.The Original of Troilus and Cressida has been edited for us byour kind helper, Mr. W. M. Rossetti. If Analogs or Originals canbe found for any of Chaucer's Minor Poems, they will appear in aseparate volume.The thanks of all our Members are specially due to Mr. Cloustonfor the very interesting set of Eastern Analogs which he has contributed to this volume. I am responsible for pages 55-288 below.Westfield Terrace, Bakewell, Derbyshire,12 August, 1888.F. J. FURNIVALL.

7*CONTENTS.PAGEPREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE ... ...1. NICHOLAS TRIVET'S FRENCH LIFE OF CONSTANCE. Edited byEdmund Brock. For the Man of Law's Tale ...2. THE TALE OF THE WIFE OF MERELAUS THE EMPEROR. FromShirley's MS. of the Early- English version of the ' GestaRomanorum ,' Harl. 7333. For the Man of Law's Tale ...3. KING OFFA'S INTERCEPTED LETTERS AND BANISHT QUEEN.From Matthew Paris's ' Life of Offa the First. ' For theMan of Law's Tale ... ...155... ... ... ... 714. TWO FRENCH FABLIAUX, like the Reeve's Tale5. TWO LATIN STORIES, like the Friar's Tale...6. ALPHONSUS OF LINCOLN. For the Prioress's Tale7. How REYNARD CAUGHT CHANTICLEER.... 85... 103... ... 107From the French ofMarie de France and the ' Roman du Renart.' For theNun's Priest's Tale ... ... ... 1118. Two ITALIAN STORIES AND A LATIN ONE: Christ and his Disciples; the Hermit, Death, and the Robbers; the Treasure in the Tiber. For the Pardoner's Tale ... ... ... 129... ... ... 1359. THE TALE OF THE PRIEST'S BLADDER: being ' Li dis de leVescie a Prestre, ' by Jakes de Basiw. For the Summoner's Tale10. PETRARCH'S LATIN TALE OF GRISELDIS, WITH BOCCACCIO'SSTORY from which it was re- told. For the Clerk's Tale... ... ... ... ...... 14911. FIVE VERSIONS OF A PEAR-TREE STORY. For the Merchant'sTale ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 17712. THE LEGEND OF ST. CECILIA, in four versions. For the SecondNun's Tale ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 18913. THE STORY OF CONSTANCE. For the Man of Law's Tale ... 22114. THE BOY KILLD BY A JEW FOR SINGING ' GAUDE MARIA! 'Analogue of the Prioress's Tale ... ... 2518*CONTENTS.15. THE PARIS BEGGAR-BOY MURDERD BY A JEW FOR SINGING' ALMA REDEMPTORIS MATER! ' Analogue of the Prioress'sTale; with a POEM by LYDGATE ...PAGR... 27716. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: Indian Original and Asiaticand European Versions of the Franklin's Tale. By W. A. Clouston ... ... 28917. THE ENCHANTED TREE . Asiatic Versions and Analogues of theMerchant's Tale. By W. A. Clouston ... ... ...18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE: Asiatic and EuropeanVersions of the Man of Law's Tale. By W. A. Clouston... ... ... ......19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE: Buddhist Originaland Asiatic and European Versions of the Pardoner's Tale.By W. A. Clouston20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD: Latin Source, other European Versions,and Asiatic Analogues of the Manciple's Tale. By W. A.Clouston ... ...341365415... ... ... ... 43721. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY: Variants and Analogues ofthe Wife ofBath's Tale. By W. A. Clouston22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA: English Abstract of an Early FrenchVersion of the Clerk's Tale. By W. A. CloustonADDITIONAL NOTES. By W. A. Clouston481525... ... 541APPENDIX: A Complaint against Fortune. From Shirley'sVellum MS. Harl. 7333 ... ...GENERAL INDEX. By W. Morris Wood ... ...TALES ILLUSTRATED BY ORIGINALS, VARIANTS,AND ANALOGUES.MAN OF LAW's TALE, pp. iii, 1 , 55, 71 , 221 , 365.REEVE'S TALE, p. 85.FRIAR'S TALE, p. 103.PRIORESS'S TALE, pp. 107, 251 , 277.NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE, p. 111 .PARDONER'S TALE, pp. 129, 415, 544.SUMMONER'S TALE, p. 135.CLERK'S TALE, pp. 149 , 525 , 549.MERCHANT'S TALE, pp. 177, 341 , 544.SECOND NUN'S TALE, p. 189.FRANKLIN'S TALE, p. 289.MANCIPLE'S TALE, pp. 437 , 545.WIFE OF BATH'S TALE, pp. 481 , 546.it551Chaucer Society.NOTE FOR THE ORIGINALS AND ANALOGSOF THE CANTERBURY TALES.'THE story of Chaucer's Reeve's Tale is to be foundin a tract entitled: ' De generibus ebriosorum et ebrietatevitanda,' etc., anonymous, published in 1516, probablyat Erfurt. The second Conclusio contains a section:'alia historia de duobus studentibus,' which agrees withthe Reeve's Tale, except that the two clerks form aplot to make drunk the miller's wife and daughterdeliberately. The tract is reprinted in F. Zarncke: diedeutschen Universitäten im Mittelalter, 1857, ' where Icame across it by accident. -J. V. SCHOLDerer."391.785-13Scr.NOriginals and Analoguesof some ofChaucer's Canterbury Tales.PUBLISHED FOR THE CHAUCER SOCIETYBY N. TRÜBNER & CO. , 60, PATERNOSTER ROW,LONDON.2ABLICK.KSecond Series ,7.JOHN CHILDS AND SON, PRINTERS.iii ¡PREFACEΤΟTRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.4NICHOLAS TRIVET (Trevet, or Treveth) was an English DominicanFriar. We learn from a passage in his Annales Regum Angliæ¹that he was the son of Thomas Treveth, one of the itinerant justiciaries of the Crown. He is said to have been educated in his earlyyears in London and afterwards to have studied at Oxford. Hehimself informs us in the prologue to the Annales before-mentioned, 2that he spent some time in study at Paris. Leland, ³ Bale, andothers, tell us that he died in his seventieth year in 1328; 5 but theyare clearly wrong as to the date, for he could not have written hisChronicles till after the death of Pope John XXII, which occurredin 1334. A short account of Trivet in Latin with a list of worksascribed to him is to be found in Quetif and Echard's ScriptoresOrdinis Prædicatorum, tom. i. pp. 561-565; also a notice inEnglish of his life and some of his works in the preface to T. Hog'sedition of Trivet's Annales.¹ Eodem anno [ i. e. 1272] mense Augusti cives Norwicenses, prioratum monachorum invadentes, combusserunt ecclesiam cathedralem. Super qua reindignatus admodum rex Henricus, ad vindictam malefactorum misit illucjustitiarium militem quendam, Thomam Treveth dictum, qui et justitiariusitineris fuerat de corona, cujus filius erat qui chronicam istam scripsit.Triveti Annales Regum Angliæ, ed. T. Hog, p. 279.2 Itaque, cum aliquando in studio moraremur Parisiensi, gesta Francorum Normannorumque cum aliis studiose perlegimus, et quicquid nationem tange,bat Anglicanam fideliter excerpsimus. Ibid. p. 2.3 Ed. Hall, 1709, page 328.5Misprinted 1228 in T. Hog's preface.Ed. Basileæ, 1557-1559, p . 400.iv PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.·The following is a list of such of Trivet's works as I have beenable to find intelligible references for:-I. Annales ab origine mundi ad Christum.¹ Royal MS. 13 Bxvi., MS. Phillipps. 1846, MS. Bibl. du Roi 4929.II. Annales Sex Regum Angliæ, qui a comitibus Andegavensibusoriginem traxerunt. Arundel MSS. 46 and 220, Harleian MSS. 29and 4322, Corpus Christi Coll. Camb. MS. 152, Merton Coll. OxfordMS. 256, Queen's Coll. Oxford MS. 304.III. A Commentary on Augustine De Civitate Dei. Harl. MS.4093, Balliol Coll. MS. 78 A, Merton Coll. MS. 31, Royal MS.14 C xiii. , Laud MS. 128.IV. A Commentary on Seneca's Tragedies. Bodleian MS. 292,Burney MS. 250.V. A Commentary on Boethius De Consolatione Philosophic.Additional MSS. (Brit. Mus. ) 19,585 and 27,875, Burney MS. 131 ,Camb. Univ. MS. Dd. I. 10, 11 , &c.VI. A Commentary on the Flores Hugonis de S. Victore.Royal MS. 8 D ix. , MS. E Museo 139.VII. A Commentary on Valerii epistola ad Rufinum de uxorenon ducenda. Lincoln Coll. Oxford MS. 81.VIII. De officio missæ. Harl. MSS. 3138 and 3768, MertonColl. MS. 188, Lambeth MS. 150.IX. Expositio in Leviticum. Merton Coll. MS. 188.X. Compotus Hebræorum. Merton Coll. MS. 188.XI. Tabula Nicolai Trivet super allegorias libri Ovidii de transformatis, secundum ordinem alphabeti. Merton Coll. MSS. 85and 299.XII. Moralizatio fabularum Ovidii, sive commentarius superOvidii metamorphoses. Merton Coll . MSS. 85 and 299, St Johnthe Baptist Coll. MS. 137.XIII. Questio determinata per Mag. Nicolaum dictum Trivet deordine predicatorum, quod omnia sunt admittenda quæ tradit ecclesiacirca passionem Christi. Corpus Christi Coll. Camb. MS. 298.( Royal MS. 6 B xi. )This is quite a distinct work from the Chronicles in French, though T.Hog supposes them to be one and the same. See his preface, p. xii -xiii,PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.XIV. Fr. Nicolai Trivet Opus in tres priores Libros Sententiarum. Lambeth MS. 347. (? Caius Coll. Camb. MS. 319. )XV. Nic. Triveth Expositio literalis super Psalterium. Bodl.MS. 738. Strasbourg, Bibliothèque Publique. (See Haenel's CatalogiLibrorum Manuscriptorum, col. 446. )XVI. Nic. Triveth, Angli, ord. Præd. quodlibeta. (See Haenel,col. 594.)XVII. Notes on Seneca Declamationes. (See Haenel, col. 177.)XVIII. Chronicles in French. Arundel MS. 56, MagdalenColl. Oxford MS. 45, and a MS. in the Royal Library at Stockholm.It is from this last work that the tale of Constance is extracted.In the Arundel MS. the heading runs thus:-Ci comence les Cronicles qe Frere Nichol Tryuet escript a dameMarie, la fille moun seignour le Roi Edward, le fitz Henri.After this follows a short preface, in which the author explainsthe scope of his work as follows:Pvr ceo qe nous sumez auisez de ceux qe sount persons enestudie, qil sount ennoyez de la prolixete destoires & qe plusours enount defaute de liures, il nous plust recoiller la counte de ceaux qedescenderount del primere piere adam, droitement entendues, taunqea la nesaunce nostre seignour iesu crist, si qe par la descripciounqest myse soient les qeors plus attraez a regarder a la-bregement fete,qe len puisse la chose de plus leger entendre, & retenir de plus viuememorie; mes nous nescounteroms pas la verite de lestorie. Mes lamonstroms ordeinement solonc la descence de Adam par patriarches,Iuges, Rois, prophetes, & prestres, & des autres de lour temps iesqesa nostre saueour, Et puis apres de les gestes des apostoles , emperours,& Rois taunt a lapostoile Iohan le xxij.The story of Constance begins on leaf 45, back. Trivet representsit as the account of the Saxon chronicles. We need not inform thereader that the work known as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle containsnothing of the kind.GOWER, the contemporary of Chaucer, has versified the story ofConstance in the second book of his Confessio Amantis (vol. i.pages 179-213, of Dr Pauli's edition). Beyond condensing thetale somewhat, he has altered it but little. The incidents followeach other in the same order as in Trivet. The following are thechief alterations:-vi PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.1. Gower makes no mention of the great learning of Constance(compare pp. 4-5, 12-13) .2. Nor of the 700 Saracens (cp. pp. 8-9) .3. The murderer of Hermingild, after being smitten by the hand,confesses his crime and dies (cp. pp. 24-25).4. Constance is not taken to the Admiral, but Thelous sees herby the shore (cp. pp. 32-33, 34-35) .5. Thelous is thrown from the ship miraculously, in answer toConstance's prayer (cp. pp. 36-37).6. Constance's ship floats into the Roman fleet till it reaches thesenator's vessel, and then stops (cp. pp. 40-41) .7. Domild is not beheaded, but burnt to death (cp. pp. 38-39).8. Constance goes forward to meet her father without the king(cp. pp. 50-51).The only important addition made by Gower is the followingpassage:-And panne hire handes to be heueneSche Strawhte, and wip a milde steuene,Knelende vpon hire bare kne,Sche seide, " O hihe mageste,Which sest pe point of euery trowpe,Tak of pi wofull womman rowpeAnd of pis child þat I schal kepe."And with þat word sche gan to wepe,Sounende as ded; and per sche lay.Bot he which alle pinges mayConfortep hire, and ate lasteSche lokep, and hire yhen casteVpon hire child, and seide pis:"Of me no maner charge it is,What sorwe I soffre, bot of peeMe penkp it is a gret pite;ffor if I sterue pou schalt deie,So mot I nedes be þat weie,ffor Moderhed and for tendresse,Wip al myn hole besinesse,Ordeigne me for pilke office,As sche which schal be pi Norrice."Thus was sche strengped for to stonde;And po sche tok hire child in honde,And 3af it sowke; and euere ainongSche wepte, and operwhile songPREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE. viiTo rocke wip hire child a slepe;And thus hire oghne child to kepeSche hap, vnder pe goddes cure.Harleian MS. 3869, leaf 67, back, 68.CHAUCER tells the same story as Trivet, but tells it in his ownlanguage, and in a much shorter compass. He omits little or nothingof importance, and alters only the details. As the reader can easilycompare any passage of Trivet's version with the corresponding passage in the Man of Law's Tale by means of the numbers in themargin, we need only mention a few of the more striking differences.Trivet ascribes great learning to Constance and a knowledge ofmany languages; Chaucer passes this by, and where Trivet makesher speak Saxon so as to be mistaken for a Saxon princess, Chaucersays (11. 516-520):-In hir langage / mercy she bisoghteThe lyf / out of hire body for to twynneHire to deliuere / of wo / that she was InneA maner latyn corrupt / was hir specheBut algates / ther by was she vnderstondeTrivet makes the drowning of Thelous a premeditated act on thepart of Constance; Chaucer treats it as an accident:But blisful Marie / heelp hire right anonffor with hir struglyng wel and myghtilyThe theef fil ouer bord / al sodeynlyAnd in the see / he dreynte for vengeanceAnd thus hath Crist vnwemmed kept Custance11. 920-924.In Trivet Constance sends Maurice to invite the Emperor; butChaucer says:Som men wold seyn / how pat the child MauriceDooth this Message / vn to this EmperourBut as I gesse / Alla was nat so nyceTo bym that was / of so souereyn honourAs he that is of cristen folk the flourSente any child /but it is bet to deemeHe wente hym self / and so it may wel seeme.11. 1086-1092.viii PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Chaucer's additions are many; of the 1029 lines of which thetale consists, about 350 are Chaucer's additions. The passages arethese:I. Two stanzas on the great book of heaven, ll . 190—203:Parauenture / in thilke large book /That no wight kan wel rede it atte fulle¹II. A bit of chaff about husbands all being good; then Constance's farewell words to her parents, 11. 270—287:And to be bounden /vnder subieccionAnd to been / vnder mannes gouernanceIII. Three astrological stanzas, 11. 295-315:O firste moeuyng / crueel firmamentAllas /we been / to lewed or to sloweIV. The Sultaness's speech to the Saracen conspirators, ll.330-343:Lordes / she seyde / ye knowen euerichon And I shal make vs sauf for eueremoore·V. Another speech of the Sultaness, ll . 351-357:We shul first feyne vs / cristendom to takeThogh she a font ful water / with hire ledeTyrwhitt says, " This passage is imitated from the Megacosmus of BER- NARDUS SYLVESTRIS, an eminent philosopher and poet about the middle of the xiith century. Fabric. Bibl. Med. Etat. in v. Bernardus Carnotensis et Sylvestris. I will transcribe here the original lines from MS. Bod. 1265.Præjacet in stellis series, quam longior ætasExplicet et spatiis temporis ordo suis,Sceptra Phoronei, fratrum discordia Thebis,Flamma Phaethontis, Deucalionis aquæIn stellis Codri paupertas, copia Croesi,Incestus Paridis, Hippolytique pudor.In stellis Priami species, audacia Turni,Sensus Ulyxeus, Herculeusque vigor.In stellis pugil est Pollux et navita Typhis Et Cicero rhetor et geometra Thales.In stellis lepidum dictat Maro, Milo figurat,Fulgurat in Latia nobilitate Nero.Astra notat Persis, Ægyptus parturit artes,Græcia docta legit, prælia Roma gerit.The four lines in Italics are quoted in the Margin of MS. C. 1 ," (the good paperMS. Dd. 4. 24, Univ. Libr. Cambr. ); and others: see the Six-Text.

PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE. ixVI. Chaucer apostrophizes the Sultaness, and then Satan, 11.358-371:O Sowdanesse / roote of Iniquitee •Makestow of wommen / whan thou wolt bigileVII. Some lines setting forth the splendour of Constance's reception in the Saracen city, 11. 400--410:Noght trowe I / the triumphe of IuliusAnd thus / in murthe and ioye I lete hem dwelleVIII. A stanza on the shortness of worldly joy, 11. 421-427:O sodeyn wo / that euere art successourThe vnwar wo / or harm þat comth bihyndeIX. A prayer of Constance, ll. 449-462:She blesseth hire / and with ful pitous voysMe helpe / and yif me myght / my lyf tamendenX. Five stanzas on God's power to deliver from various dangers,11. 470-504:Men myghten asken /why she was nat slaynGod sente his foyson /at hir grete neede•XI. Four stanzas describing Constance's defenceless condition,11. 631-658:Allas Custance / thou hast no championffer been thy freendes / at thy grete nedeXII. Some lines on the wedding, 11. 701-714:Me list nat of the chaf / or of the streeAs for the tyme / it may no bet bitide•• .XIII. Chaucer apostrophizes the drunken messenger and thetreacherous Domgild, 11. 771-784:O Messager /fulfild of dronkenesseThogh thou heere walke / thy spirit is in helleXIV. The constable's lament on receiving the counterfeit letter,11. 811-819:Lord Crist quod he / how may this world endureOn shames deeth / ther is noon oother weyeX PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.XV. Constance's prayer before going to ship, her attentions toher child, prayer to Mary, words of pity for her innocent babe, andher leave-taking, 11. 825-868:and knelynge on the StrondeShe blissed hire / and in to ship she wenteXVI. On the end of the ' lust of luxurie ' , and whence Constance ·got her strength against the renegade, 11. 925-945:O foule lust of luxurie / lo thyn ende .So sente he myght and vigour to CustanceXVII. Alla's thoughts after seeing Maurice, Il. 1037—1043:Parfay thoghte he /fantome is in myn heedTo my contree / fro thennes that she wente• •XVIII. The pain and joy of Alla's meeting with his long- lostwife, 11. 1052-1078:And weep that it was routhe for to see: • • •Hath seyn or / shal / whil þat the world may dureXIX. On the unlastingness of all human joy, ll. 1132—1141:But litel while it lasteth / I yow heeteLasteth the blisse of Alla with CustanceThe tale of Emare in the Cotton MS. Caligula A ii. printed byRitson in his Romances, seems, in all but its bad beginning, to bemerely an altered version of the Constance story. We give anoutline only.A rich and mighty emperor, named Artyus, has by his wifeErayne an only child, Emare. The empress dies before her daughtercan walk or talk; and the child is entrusted to a nurse named Abro.Sir Tergaunte, the king of Sicily, presents the Emperor with awondrous cloth of gold, set with all manner of precious stones. Itwas made by the ' Ameraile dowзter of hepennes, ' and formerlybelonged to the Sowdan, from whom Tergaunt's father won it. TheEmperor sends messengers to fetch Emare and her nurse, and has agarment made for her of the wonderful cloth. When he sees hisdaughter thus attired, he becomes enamoured of her, and wishes tomake an incestuous marriage with her. He actually gets a bullfrom the pope for that purpose. But Emare refuses. WhereuponPREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE. xithe wrathful Emperor swears that she shall die. She is put intoa boat without food or drink ' in the robe of noble blee ' . Thewind drives the boat from the land. When her father has lostsight of her, he repents and sends ships after her, but in vain.The boat is driven ' into a lond that hy3th Galys y vnpurstond ' .Emare is found by the king's steward, Sir Kador, who makes afeast, whereat the king sees Emare and falls in love with her. Theking marries her sorely against his mother's will. Soon after he goesto help the king of France against the Saracens, leaving his queen,now with child by him, in charge of his steward and a bishop. Indue time she bears a son, who is named Segramour. The stewardsends news of the queen's safe delivery to the king. But the messenger, on his way, goes to the king's mother, who makes him drunk,steals and burns the steward's letter, and writes a counterfeit one,saying that the queen is a devil, and her child a monster. On reading the false letter, the king's grief is great, but he orders the queento be safely kept. The messenger returns, again calling on theking's mother, who again makes him drunk and counterfeits theking's letter, giving order that the queen shall be sent out to sea.This is done. She is drifted to Rome, where a merchant namedIurdan finds her boat, and takes her home with him. She abidesthere. The king of Wales returns from the wars. The treacheryof the king's mother is discovered, and she is banished. After someyears the king goes to Rome to get absolution from the pope. Hetakes his lodging at the house of the burgess, where Emare dwells.Emare's son serves the king, who asks his name, and finds it thesame as his son's. The old Emperor, thinking of his former sin andof his lost daughter, goes to the pope. The king and Segramour goto meet the Emperor and tell him about his daughter. A joyfulmeeting takes place.The Stockholm MS. marked III was many years ago found byProfessor G. Stephens to contain the story of Constance. See hiscatalogue entitled " Förteckning öfver de förnämsta brittiska ochfransyska handskrifterna, uti kongl. bibliotheket i Stockholm ( 1847) ,p. 20. This MS. was kindly sent over by the authorities of theRoyal Library at Stockholm, and deposited at the British Museum།xii PREFACE TO TRIVET'S LIFE OF CONSTANCE.for the use of the Chaucer Society. Whilst it lay there Mr Wardof the MS. Department identified it with Trivet's Chronicle in theArundel MS. 56, which Mr Thomas Wright had pointed out, in hisedition of the Canterbury Tales, as containing the story of Constance.As the Arundel MS. was older and better, it was chosen for the textof the present edition, the Stockholm MS. being used to supplyomitted words or letters, and in some cases to correct false readings.Since the text has been in type, I find that there are several otherMSS. of the work in this country, namely, Magdalen Coll. Oxford45, Trin. Coll. Camb. Gale O. 4. 32, Bodl. Lib. Rawl. B. 178,Douce, 119. (See Sir T. Hardy's Descriptive Catalogue of Materialsrelating to the early History of Great Britain, iii . 349.¹)In printing the text I have most carefully followed the MSS.The contractions are represented as usual by Italics.2 In collatingthe Stockholm MS. I have for the most part disregarded mere differ- 11 ences of spelling.I have to thank M. Paul Meyer for some corrections which hekindly made in my translation.Cambridge, Jan. 1872.E. BROCK.' I am sorry to find that Sir T. Hardy copies T. Hog's mistake of confounding the French Chronicle with the Latin work, Annales Mundi.2 The word ' xpien ' I have printed as ' christien ' throughout, notwithstand- ing that the scribe, when writing in full, spells it ' cristien '. See p. 9, line 3from below.OBSERVE. All words marked in the text are wanting in the Stockholm MS.Where the Stockholm MS. has additional words, they are either put intothe text in crotchets [ ] , or else into the footnotes with a dagger † before them,This dagger has been substituted for the sign + (plus), which was found inconvenient for the printer.1.The Life of Constance(the source of Chaucer's " Man of Law's Tale " )fromthe Anglo-Norman Chronicle of Nicholas Trivet(AFTER A.D. 1334).COPIED FROM THE ARUNDEL MS. 56, COLLATED WITH A MS. IN THEROYAL LIBRARY AT STOCKHOLM, AND EDITED WITHA TRANSLATIONBYEDMUND BROCK.CH. ORIG.12Man of Law'sTale, lineThe Life of Constance.Translation.In the time of this Emperor Tiberius Constantinus,as some chronicles tell, there was a right valiant knightof the country of Cappadocia, called Maurice. ThisMaurice was chosen by the foresaid Tiberius to beemperor with himself; and (the emperor) gave him towife his daughter Constance, and made her his heir.But, as the ancient chronicles of the Saxons say, thisMaurice was not more than seventeen years old whenhe was appointed by Tiberius to the empire; a verygracious youth, and wondrously strong for his age, andwise and sharp of wit. According to the history of theSaxons aforesaid, he was the son of Constance, thedaughter of Tiberius, by a king of the Saxons, Alle,beforenamed, who was the second king of Northumberland; and he was called (Maurice) of Cappadocia, because he was nourished twelve years in the court of theSenator Tarquinius of Rome, who was from Cappadocia.Then it gives us to understand that this Tiberius Constantinus, whilst he ruled the court and provinces ofthe empire under the Emperor Justin, as is aforesaid at the beginning of the forty-sixth history, begaton his wife Italia a daughter Constance. And becausehe had no other child, therefore with great diligence3The Life of Constance.[Arundel MS. 56, leaf 45, back. ]6Tiberius Con- stantinus chosea knight named Maurice to be Moris.emperor,and gave him his daughter Constanceto wife.sesTy-[* leaf 46]But according to the chronicles ofthe Saxons,que this Maurice was¶ En le temps cist Thiberie Constantin, emperour ,com dient lez vns cronikes, estoit vn tresuailaunt cheualer del pais de Capadoce, apele Moriz. Cist Morisfu eslu par le auant-dit Thiberie destre Emperour oului; et lui dona femme Constaunce sa fille, & la clamason heire. Mes come dient¹ lez Aunciene cronikes desessounz, cist Moris nestoit mes de dissept2 auntz,quant il fu ordeine par Thiberie al empire, trop graciousIuuencel, & merueilousem*nt vigerous de son Age, &de sen sages & agu. Cist, solom lestoire desouns auantdites, estoit le fitz constaunce, la filleberie, de vn rei de sessouns, Alle, auantnome,estoit le secund Roi de Northumbre; & fu ditCapadoce, quar dozze anz estoit norri en la Court lesenatour Tarquinnus de Rome questoit de Capadoce.Dount 10 fait assauoir que cist Tyberie Constantin,taunt com il gouerna la Court & lez prouinces delEmpire soutz lemperour Iustin, com auant est dit alcomencement del¹¹ quarantime sisme 12 estoire, engendrade sa femme ytalie vne fille Constaunce. Et pur ceo Tiberius, havingque nul autre enfaunt auoit, pur ceo a13 grant diligence caused his731 diount.sage.2 xviij. 5 lestoires dez.6 auauntditz. 7 dez.4 solonc: so elsewhere. 8 Northumberland.de the son of Constance.no other child,⁹ Tarquinius.10 donc 11 de.12 so elsewhere.xlvij.13 od.THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man ofLan's he caused her to be taught the Christian faith and in- Tale, line structed by learned masters in the seven sciences, whichare logic, physics, morals, astronomy, geometry, music,perspective, which are called secular sciences; and hehad her instructed in various tongues. Then, when she134 had entered the thirteenth year of her age, there came tothe court of her father Tiberius heathen merchants outof the great Saracenland, bearing divers and rich merchandise; and Constance went down to them to lookat their riches, and asked them about their land andtheir belief. And when she understood that they wereheathens, she preached to them the Christian faith.And after they had assented to the faith, she causedthem to be baptized, and perfectly taught the faith of173 Jesus Christ. Then they returned to their country.And when they acknowledged the faith before theirSaracen neighbours and kinsfolk, they were accused tothe high Sultan concerning their faith. And after theywere brought before him, they were rebuked by the wisem*n for their religion, that they should believe in acrucified and mortal man. But after they had sufficiently defended the religion of Jesus Christ againstthe heathen, who no longer knew how to gainsay it,183 they began to praise the maid Constance, who hadconverted and fully instructed them, for very high andnoble wit and wisdom, and great marvellous beauty,and gentleness, and nobleness of blood; through whichwords the Sultan, greatly overcome with love for themaiden, he being a young man, sent those sameChristians again whom she converted to the faith,and with them a heathen Admiral, with great pompand wealth and presents to Tiberius and his daughter,asking the maiden in marriage, with great promiseCONVERSION OF THE SARACEN MERCHANTS. པ་4instructed in the Christian faith and in the seven sciences.Heathen mer- chants came toRome, and were converted through hearing Constance.They returned to their owncountry;brought before and beingla fist enseignier la foi christien, & endoctriner par 1 daughter to bemestres sachaunz en lez2 sept sciences, que sount logiciene, Naturel, Morale, astronomie, geometrie, Musique,perspectiue, que sount philosophies seculeres apeletz;& la fist endoctriner en diuerses langages. Puis, quantele estoit entree le trezime aan de son age, vindrent ala court son piere Tiberie, Marchauntz paens hors dela graunde sarazine, portaunts³ diuers & riches Marchandies; a queus descendi Constaunce pur Auiserlour richesses, si lour demaunda de lour terre & delour6 creaunce. Et quant ele entendi qil estoientpaens, lour prescha la foi christiene. Et puis qil auoient Conuersioassentu a la fey, les fit baptizer & en-seiner parfitement paganorumen la fei iesu crist. Puis retournerent a lour terre.¶ Et quant reconustrent la foi deuaunt lour veisines eparens sarazines, estoient accuses al haut soudan delour foi Et apres qil⁹ estoient amenes deuant lui,furent repris par10 les sages de lour ley, qil¹¹ deueyentcrere en vn homme crucifie & mortel. Mes puis qilaueyent suffisauntment defendu 12 la loy13 iesu crist encountre les paens, qe ne sauoient plus countre-dire,¹4comenserunt 15 de preiser la pucele constaunce, qui les they defendedauoit conuertu 16 [& pleinerement enseigne, ] 17 de trophaut & noble seen & sapience, & de graunte merueilouse beaute & gentirise & noblesce de saunc; parqueles paroles lui 18 soudan, trop suppris del amour¹º dela pucele, com il estoit homme de Ioeuene age, maundade nouel mesmes ceux christiens, qil 20 conuerti 21 a lafoy, e ouesqes eus vn admiral 22 paen oue grant aparail& richesses & presentz a Tyberie & 23 sa file, en demaundaunt la pucele en mariage, oue grant promesce¹ + lez.2 le.4as quex.6 la.83 + multz.5 lez.7 assenti.† christiene.9 ils.11 qils: so elsewhere,12 defendi.13foy.† come. 14comencerent.1510 de.16 conucrtiz.14the sultan,their faith andspoke in praise of Constance.The sultan falls in love with her,and sends mes- sengers with rich gifts to ask her in marriage.17 From S.18 le so elsewhere.19 damour.20 ja.21 conuertez.22admirable.23 ta.6 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man ofLaw's of peace and alliance between the countries of the Tale, line Christians and the Saracens. And after that Tiberius234 had consulted, concerning this request, Pope John(who was spoken of before in the forty-sixth history, )and the other great ones of Holy Church, and theRomans of the Senate, he answered the Admiral andmessengers, that if the Sultan would consent to denyhis idols and his false beliefs, and receive baptismand the religion of Jesus Christ-on this conditionTiberius would consent to the alliance, but in no otherway. And hereupon he sent his letters to the Sultan,and greatly honoured the messengers.And these men,on their return, praised above all things to the Sultan,the maiden, and the splendour of the court, and thegentle lordship of Tiberius. And the Admiral, beforethe Sultan and all his council, vowed himself to theChristian faith, if the Sultan should consent. Then aftera few days, the Sultan sent this same Admiral, and worshipful messengers of the greatest men of his land, andunder their conduct, twelve Saracen children, sons ofthe great Saracens, as hostages to Tiberius, in form of a244 security for his daughter; and moreover he sent hisfull consent to the arrangement of the Christians, andalso sent his letters sealed , (assuring) good and entirepeace between all Christians and all Saracens, and freepassage to go freely and trade, and to visit the holyplaces of the Sepulchre, and Mount Calvary, and Bethlehem, and Nazareth, and the valley of Jehoshaphat,and all other holy places within the bounds of hisdominion. And he relinquished the city of Jerusalemto the dominion of the Christians, for them to inhabit,and (gave) liberty to the Christian bishops and theirclergy to preach, and to teach the peoples of his landthe right faith, and to baptize, and to build churches,CONDITIONS OF THE MARRIAGE. 7consents to the The emperoralliance on consultan shall become a Christian.dition that thede pees & daliance entre ¹ les parties de christiens &sarazins. Et puis que tiberie auoit counseile sur cestdemaunde² le pape Iohan, (de qui est auauntdit en lequarantisme sisme³ estoire, ) & les autres grantz deseint esglise, & les Romeyns del Senat, respoundi aladmiral & as messagiers, Qe si luy soudan se voleitassentir de reneer ses maumetz & sa mescreauncez,4 &resceiuere bapteme & la loi5 iesu crist—a cest couenaunt Tyberius sassentireit a la-liaunce, mes ne pasen autere fourme. Et sur ceo maunda ses 8 lettres a luisoudan & grantment honura les messagiers. Et cistz,⁹a lour retourner, sur tote riens preiserent la pucele aluy soudan, & la nobleie de 10 la court, & la gentilseignurie Tyberie. Et lui admiral, deuaunt [le Sodan& deuaunt] tot soun conseil, se vowa a la foi christien,si le soudan sassentiseit.11 Puis apres poy de12 iours, le Obligaciosoudan maunda mesmes cesti¹³ admiral & solempnesmessagiers dez14 plus grantz de sa terre, &, en lourconduit, duzze enfauntz sarazins, fitz as grantz sarazins,enº hostages 15 a Tyberie, en fourme de seurte pur safille, & a ceo maunda son assent, haut & baas, de The sultan delordinaunce des christienes, & a ceo enuoia ses lettresasseles, [de bone] e entere pees entre tous christienes &touz sarazins, & 16 fraunche passage de aler fraunchement eº Marcaunder, & pur¹7 visiter lez seintz luz del 18sepulcre, & del mount de Caluarie, & de Betheleem, &de Nazarethe, & del 19 val de Iosaphat, & tous autres[lieux] seyns deins les Marches de son power. Et laCite de ierusalem abaundona a la seignurie des christienes pur enhabiter, & Fraunchises20 as Euesqes christienes & a lour clergie de prechier, e enseigner les gentzde sa21 terre 22 la droit foy, & de baptizer, & desglisezMS. countre, S. entre. 8 comaunda lez.2 demanda.mescreance.45foy.Soldani.clares there shall be peace between all Christians and all Saracens,and free passage to the holyplaces.Jerusalem is ceded to the Christians.16 christiens en.17 puis.18 lieux seintz de.19 de.3xlvij.9 ils.11 sassenti.10 &.12dez.6 En.13 cest. 14 de lez.21 la.7 Tyberie assentireit. 15 hostageres.20 fraunchise.22 † de.8 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's and to destroy the idol-temples. And moreover heTale, line sent his letters to the apostle [ = pope] and to theclergy, and to Tiberius and to the maid Constance, andto all the Senate, with rich gifts and treasures, by greatpersons. And through their conferences upon thismessage they all agreed, and in time sent the maiden268 from her father's house, and from her acquaintance,among strange barbarians, amid great grief, and tears,and cry, and noise, and complaint of all the city of253 Rome. On this voyage were sent a cardinal bishop, anda cardinal priest, with a great number of clergy, and asenator of Rome, with noble chivalry and great andrich array, and with a great number of Christians whowent thither, some on pilgrimage, others to take possession of Jerusalem.323 It came to pass that the Sultan's mother, who wasstill living (alas! but for the will of God), seeing thather religion was already on the point of being destroyedby Christians who were in the Saracens' country,plotted evil and treason. Then, after she had secret.alliance by covenant with seven hundred Saracens whogave themselves up to live or die in the quarrel, she375 went to her son, when she heard of the coming of themaiden and the Christians very near to land, within afew days' journey, and began greatly to thank and praiseGod that she had resolved to embrace the Christianreligion, and swore to him that for a long time she hadbeen secretly in the same mind; then, at last, she379 begged her son, the Sultan, that he would grant her thefirst feast before the wedding; and he, thanking her,complied. Then were the maiden and the Christians396 received by the Sultan and his mother with greathonour, and with great splendour. And the first414 day of their coming, the feast was provided in theTREACHERY OF THE SULTANESS.1The maid is sentfather's houseaway from heramong strange barbarians.fere, & les temples de2 Maumetz destrure. Et a ceoenuoya ses lettres a la-postoile, & a la clergie, & a Tyberie, & a la pucele constaunce, & a tout le senat oueriches dounes & tresours par [grantz] persones. Etpur lour comunes sur³ cest maundement, tous se acorderent, & en temps maunderent la pucele hors de lameson son piere, & hors de sa conisaunce, entre estrangesbarbaryns, a grant doel, &° lermes, & crie, & noise,& pleynt, de tote la citee de Rome. En cele¹veiage estoit enueye vn Euesqe Cardinal & vn prestreCardinal oue grant nombre de Clergie, & vne senatourde Rome oue5 noble chiualrie & grant & riche apparail, *& oue grant noumbre de christiens qe i [* leaf 46, back]alerent, les vns pur pelerinage, les autres pur la seysinede ierusalem.mother, seeingabout to bedestroyed, lays700 Saracens.a plot and hiresAvynt que la mere le soudan, que vnkore The sultan'sviuoit, (allas! si ne fut la volunte dieu, ) veaunte que her religionsa ley estoit ia en poynt destre destrute par christiensqi furent en saraisines, sen-pensa de mal & de tresoun.Dount puis qele auoit priue alliaunce de couenauntouesqe sept [ C dez] sarazines, qe sabaundonerent deviuere &⁹ morier en la querele, Mist a son fitz, quantele oy la venue de la pucele & de10 christienes bien Tresoun.pres de la terre, a poy¹¹ dez¹2 iourneis, &13 comenscamoult mercier & loer dieu, qel14 auoit le purpos 15 de laley christien, & lui iura que par grant16 temps auoit eleeste en mesme la volunte priuement; dount finaument 17pria son fitz, le soudan, qe 18 lui grauntast la prime festauant les esposailes, & il19 en merciaunt ly octrey.Puis fu la pucele & les cristiens resceu del souldan &de sa mere, a grant honour & a grant nobleie. Et leprimer iour de lour20 venu fu la feste puruew en leI de faire esglises.2 des.3 & par lour conues.Sour.She feigns to become a Christian; and arranges to holda feast before the marriage.4† temps &.115† graunt &. 6 † oue.14 apres.qil.12 tij. 13 †cle.7 dez.8† de.10 des.18 qi.grauntz.16 suruenauntz.15 la purpose.17 finalment.19luy.20 sa.10 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE,Man of Law's palace of the Sultaness; and the banquet was so arranged Tale, line that all the males, Christian and Saracens, should eat inthe hall ofthe Sultan, and that in the Sultaness's hall andfeast should be women alone, except the seven hundredhired Saracens who were appointed to serve at bothfeasts. And these seven hundred hirelings, when thefeast was most joyful, came armed, with another great429 multitude of their retainers, upon the feasters. Andaccording to the order of the Sultaness, they killed allthe Christians, male and female, except only themaiden; and they slew the Sultan and the Admiral,435 and the other converts to the faith. And through allthe court, whatever common people of the Christiansthey found, they put to death. But three Christianyoung men escaped, when first they heard the affray,and came to Rome, and related to the Emperor themischance and the treason, and the death of hisdaughter Constance, as they supposed. At this newsthe Emperor and all the clergy and the Senate werealarmed, and great grief was manifested throughoutRome.438 In this manner Constance remained alone, bewildered, entirely in the hands of her enemies. Then,after that she, for no fair promise of wealth or honour,nor for any threat of punishment or death, would denyher faith, the member of the devil, the Sultaness,planned for her a new torment; which, though it cameto her of cruel will, nevertheless the providence of Goddid not fail therein, which in tribulation never failsthose who have hope in Him. Then she (the Sultaness)caused a ship to be stored with victuals, bread whichis called biscuit, peas, beans, sugar, honey, and wine, to.sustain the life of the maiden for three years. And in this442 shipshe caused to be placed all the riches and the treasurewhich the Emperor Tiberius had sent with the maidMURDER OF THE CHRISTIANS. 11autremanpaleis le souldane; e estoit la mangerie ordeigne issintque les hales li soudan mangasent tous madles, christiens & sarazins, & qe en les hales & en la feste lesoudane2 fusent soules femmes, sauntz les sept centzsarazins lowes, qe furent ordeignes pur seruice del vnefeste & del autre. E ces sept centz lowis, quant lafeste fust plus lee, vyndrent Armes, oue vnegraunde multitude de lour reteinaunce, sur lezgeauntez.3 E solom lordinaunce de la soudane, tuerenttous les christiens, madles & femeles, fors soule lapucele; & occirent le soudan, et ladmiral, & lez autresconuertiez a la foi. Et par tote la court, quant qil¹trouerent del comun peouple de christiens, mistrenta la mort. Mes treis valletz7 christienes eschaperent,quant primerement oierent lefray,8 & vindrent a Rome,& Counterent al emperour la mescheaunce & le traisoun,& la mort sa file constaunce, come il entendirent. TAceste nouele estoit lemperour, & tote la clergie, & leSenat affraiez; & grant doel fu demene par mi⁹ rome.TA ceste manere demorra Constaunce soule, degarre, toute 10 en les meyns sez enemis; puis apres queele ne voleit pur nule bele promesse de Richesse nehonour, ne pull nule manace de peyne ne de mort,reneier sa fey, le membre au diable, la soudane, senpensa de lui¹2 nouel turment; que, tut li vienesit ¹³ decruele volunte, nepurquant la purueaunce dieu ni¹4faili poynt, qi en tribulacioun ia ne faut a ceaus qiount en lui esperaunce. 16 Dount ele fist estorierneef de vitaile, de payn quest apele bisquit, & de peis,& de feues, de sucre, & de Meel, & de vyn,sustenaunce de la vie de la pucele pur treis aunz.en cele neef fit mettre [tout] la richesse & le tresourque lempire 17 Tiberie auoit maunde oue la pucele Con2MS. medles, S. madles.† sa miere.MS. mangeauncez.4 ils.5 dc. 6 dez.97 veils.par demy.8laffray.11par10 tout .degarre.12 se pensa dune.15deInthe midstthe 700 armedof the feastmen fall uponthe guests,Christians exceptand slay all theConstance.Constance re- mained alonein the hands of her foes.As no promises and no threatscould make her deny her faith,vne the sultaness caused a shippurEto be stored with three years'provisions, and Constance to be put therein,13 luy vensist.14 ne.15 failli point as ceux.16 sperance.17 lempere.12 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.440Man ofLaw's Constance, his daughter; and in this ship the Tale, line Sultaness caused the maiden to be put, without sailor oar, or any kind of human aid. And thus shecaused her to be conveyed by other ships to the highsea, where no land was visible to them, and so themariners left her all alone, and committed her to thefour winds. But God was her mariner; for duringthree whole years she was on the great ocean; in allthe time she never saw or met with man or ship; butGod only had comforted and counselled her by Hisspeech.Then, in the eighth month of the fourth year, God,who steered the ship of the holy man Noah in the505 great flood, sent a favourable wind, and drove the shipto England, under a castle in the kingdom of Northumberland, near Humber; and the ship went ashore on theeve of the Nativity of Jesus Christ. And when themariners, who were near the shore in their ships, sawthis marvel, that is to wit, a maiden of fair and gentleform, but discoloured, in strange attire, and furnishedwith great treasure, they went to the warden of thecastle, who at that time was a Saxon named Elda,-forthe Britons had already lost the dominion over theisland, as before was related in the end of the forty-fifth512 history, and told him the wonder. And Elda wentdown to the maid in her ship, and asked her of her con519 dition. And she answered him in Saxon, which wasthe language of Elda, as one who was learned in diverslanguages, as is aforesaid; and told him that, as to herbelief, she was of the Christian faith; as to her lineage,that she was extracted from rich and noble people; andthat through her lineage she was given in marriage to agreat prince; but because she displeased the great onesCONSTANCE SENT ADRIFT ON THE SEA. 13ou and taken out tola the high seas andfour winds.staunce, sa fille; e en cele neef fist la soudane mectrela pucele saunz sigle, & sauntz neuiroun, & sauntzchescune maner de° eide de homme. Et issint la fistmener par autres neefs tanke a la haut mere, &nule terre lour apparut; & issint les mariners there left to thelesserent soule, & la comaunder[ent] a quatre ventz.2 constanciaMes dieu estoit soun Mariner, quar par treis auntz ducitur inentiers' fu ele mesme en la graunde occean; en tut letemps, vnqes homme neº neef ne vist [ ne] nen-countra;Mes dieux soul lauoit counforte & counseile de sa parlaunce.exilium.Miraculum.steered thesent a favourablethe ship ashorein¶ Puis le oytime moys del quart aan, dieu que But God whogouerna la neef le° seint° homme Noe en le graunde ship of Noah,diluuie,³ maunda vn vent couenable & enchasa la neef wind which droveEn Engleterre, de-south4 vn chastel en le Reaume de Northumberland,Northombre, pres humbe; & a-riua la neef la veile de by a castle.la Natiuite iesu crist. Et quant les Mariners, queestoient pres de la riuail en lour neefs,5 virent cestemerueile, ceo est assauoir, vne pucele de bele & gentiafeiture, 7 mes descoloure, en estraunge atir, & estoffede graunt tresour, alerent al gardeyn del chastel, queadounque estoit vn sessoun, qi auoit a noun Elda ¹º.quar lez bretouns auoient ia perdu la seignurie delisle, comme Auant est countee en la fin del quarantismequint estoire & lui counterent la merueile. Et Eldadescendi a la pucele en sa neef, & lui¹¹ demaunda deson estre. E ele lui respoundi en sessoneys, que fu lalangage Elda, come celui¹2 que estoit apris en diuerseslangagez, come auant est dit. Et lui disoit qe quant asa creaunce, ele estoit de cristiene foy; Quant a13linage, qele estoit de 14 riches & noblez gentz estret; Eqe par son linage estoit ele done en mariage a vnegraunt prince; Mes pur ceo qe ele desplut as grantes' nauiroun. 2 nefz.MS. diliuie, S. deluuie.4 de-souz,5 nef.Elda, the wardencame down toof the castle,Constance,and asked herwhich she several questions,answered wisely.10 Olda: so throughout.11 le.6 Cest.7 & de gentil feture.⁹ stoffe del.9 soun. 13 al.12 cele.14 dez.14 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.524Man ofLaw's of the land, therefore was she in such wise banished.Tale, line And among her sayings she would reveal nothing concerning Tiberius the emperor, her father, nor concerningthe Sultan; for the adventure of the murder of theSultan and the Christians was now known through alllands. And when Elda had heard her speak his language so correctly, and found with her so great treasure, he hoped she was the daughter of some king ofSaxons beyond the sea, as of Germany, or Saxony, orSweden, or Denmark. And with great joy, he receivedher into the castle, courteously and honourably; andthe treasure which he had found with her he shut intoa chest under a double lock, one key of which hedelivered to the maid, the other he kept for himself;and he bade his company to receive the maiden honourably in their chamber. Then, after a little time, whenshe was well strengthened with good meats, and comforted with baths and other conveniences, she regainedher beauty and her fair colour. And albeit she waswondrous fair in body, nevertheless she excelled in thebeauty of virtues, as she whom God had predestined tograce, and virtue, and temptation, and joy. Then,when Hermingild the wife of Elda perceived her noble535 and virtuous life, she was so much smitten with lovefor her, that nothing could happen to her, that shewould not do according to her will.Then, when she had affirmed this saying to herseveral times, one day, as Hermingild again repeatedthe saying to her, the holy maiden answered her: " Andsince there is nothing," said she, " that you will not doat my wish, then you yourself shall be such as I am."And Hermingild answered her: "To that, " said she," I can never attain; for you are quite peerlessHER RECEPTION IN ENGLAND. 157de la terre, pur ceo fu ele en tiel manere exilee. E¹entre sez ditz riens ne voleit reconustre de Tiberie,

• lemperour, son piere, ne del² soudan; quar laauenture

del mourdre del¹ soudan & de les christiens estoit iaconue par totes terres. Et puis que Elda lauoit 6 oy sirenablement parlier sa langage, & troua oue lui sigrant tresour, esperoit qele estoit file dascun Roi de8sessoneys outre⁹ meer, com de Allmeyne, ou de sessoyne, ou de Swete,10 ou de Denemarche. E a grauntioie, curteisem*nt & honurablement, la resceut en lellchastel, e le tresour qil auoit ou lui troue, ferma eyns 12vne huche soutz 13 double serure, de quele il baila lapucele le° vne clef, 14 et deuers soi retient 15 lautre.comaunda sa compaignie quele resceut la pucele 16 honurablement en sa chaumbre. Puis apres vn poi detemps, qele estoit bien auigorie de 17 bones viaundes, &counforte de 18 bayns & dautre19 esem*ntz, ele reprist sabeaute & sa bele colour. Et tut fut ele bele a20 merueile de corps, nepurqant ele passa en beaute dezvertues, come cele que dieu auoit predestine a grace,&21 vertue, &22 temptacioun, &23 ioie. Dount quanthermyngild, la femme Elda, aperceut sa24 noble vie &vertuouse, taunt fu de sa amour supprise, qe riens nelui poeit25 Auenir qe ele ne freit a sa volunte.Et[* leaf 47]Then he received her into thecastle.Hermingild, theseeing theConstance,wife of Elda,virtuous life ofbecomes greatly attached to her.¶ Lors, quant plusours foitz lui auoit ceste parole Notabile.afferme, vn iour com hermyngilde lui rehersa autrefoit 20la parole, la seint pucele lui respondi: " Et puis queriens nest,"27 dit ele, " que vous ne freez a ma volunte,dount vous serretz mesmes tiel 28 com ieo suy." Ethermyngilde lui respoundi: "A ceo, " dit ele, " Ia nepurray 29 ieo atendre, quar vous etez entere 30 sauntz peer♦ de le.12 deinz.vn clefz.16 damiseil.1 mes.2 de le.3 de la.14sdez.7lange.18 dez.Ⓡ des.10Suece.9† le. 20 &.11 22 soun.6 auoit.13 deinz.23 a.25 15 retynt. poit.17 dez.19 autres.24 10.26 autrefoitz.27 est.21 ta.29 • purra.en temptacions.28 cello.30 estez en terre.16 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's invirtue." And Constance answered her, "You maycomeTale, line to that, ifyou will believe in that God who is lord of all533 virtue." For Hermingild and Elda, and the other Saxonswho then had the lordship over the land, were still heathens. And Hermingild listened humblyand devoutly tothe doctrine of the faith, bythe mouth of Constance, whotaught her the power of God in making all the world,and his vengeance which he took for sin by the greatflood, and afterwards by plunging the great cities intohell for sin, both men and beasts, and whatever wastherein. Then she shewed her the great love of Godin his birth, and his kindness and virtue in his deathand passion, and the virtue of the Godhead of JesusChrist in his resurrection and ascension, and all thenature of one only God and three persons in Trinity,and in the coming of the Holy Spirit. And when shehad taught her for several days concerning the faith andthe sacraments and the commandments, then she taughther to love and desire the joy of heaven, and to fear thepains of hell. Then Hermingild, after this instruction,538 devoutly begged to be baptized according to the formof Holy Church; but because her lord was a heathen,she could not yet carry out her purpose.And it came to pass, as Elda and Hermingild and556 Constance went one day to see the beach, and thefishers fishing in the sea, that they saw coming towardsthem a poor blind Christian Briton. He, being strange tothem all, but taught by the Holy Spirit, began to cry561 out before all, " Hermingild, wife of Elda and disciple of Constance, I pray thee in the name of Jesus,in whom thou believest, to make the sign of therood on my blind eyes! " At this word, Hermingild,CONVERSION OF HERMINGILD. 17listens to the teaching of Constance,en vertue. "1 Et custaunce 2 lui respount³, “ A ceopoiez vous venir, si creer voudrez en celui dieu questseignur de tote vertue. " 4 [qar] Hermygyld, e Elda, & lez°autres sessouns, qe auoient dounque la seignurie de laterre, estoient vnqore paens. et hermygild humblement Hermingild& deuoutement escota la doctrine de la fey par labouche Constaunce, que lui aprist la puissaunce dieuen la fesaunce de tut le mounde, & sa vengeaunce quilprist [de pecche] par la grant deluuie5, & apres par lesgrantz cites qil enfoundrie en enfern6 pur pecche, &7homes, & bestes, & quant que leins estoit. Puis luimoustra le grant Amour dieu en sa nesaunce, & saboneirte⁹ & vertue en sa mort e en sa passioun, & lavertue de la deite iesu crist en sa resurrexioun e en saascensioun, & tote la nature dun10 soul dieu & troispersones en trinite, ° &° en la venu del¹¹ seint espirit.Et quant par plusours iours lauoit de la foi apris, 12 &les sacrementz, & de les 13 comaundementz, [Puis] luiaprist amour14 & desir a la ioie de ciel, & les peynesdenfern douter. 15 Dount hermygilde, apres16 ceste aprise, and desires to bedeuotement17 pria destre baptize solom la fourme deseint esglise; Mes pur ceo que soun baroun estoit paen,ele ne poiet 18 vnqore purceure19 son purpose.come a Christian.Briton metConstance;¶ Et avient qe auxint com elda & hermygilde &constaunce alerent vn iour de veer la marine20 & les One day a blindpessoners, peschauntz en la meer, & voient encoun- Hermingild andtraunt vne pouere christiene Britoun enveugles. Cistquestoit de tous 21 estraunge, Mes apris del 22 seint espirit,comensca de crier deuant touz, Hermyngilde, lafemme Elda & la desciple counstaunce, te pri ennoun iesu23, en qui tu crois, que tu me facis le signe dela crois sur mes eus enweugleis. " A ceste parole, her1 2vertues. Constance.8 &.10 3 respondist .4 touz vertues.5 MS. deliuie, S. deluuie.6 enfer.7 oue.CH. ORIG.en vn.""⁹ debonerte.le16 aprist.poiast. 18 11 de.12 apris de la foy.13.x.14 lamour.15 deeschuer.2and besought Hermingild tomake the signhis eyes.of the cross on• 17 19 † &.pursuer.20 iour deuers Marinie.21 tout.23 † crist.22 de.18 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man ofLan's greatly affrighted, was dismayed; but Constance, under- Tale, line standing the power of God to be in the blind man's566 word, strengthened Hermingild, and said to her, " Hidenot, lady, the virtue which God has given thee! " AndHermingild, before Elda and his household which followed him, in good and firm faith made the holy crosson the eyes of the blind man, and said to him in herSaxon tongue, " Blind man, in the name of Jesus,slain on rood, have thy sight! " And he was immediately enlightened, and saw well and clearly. When568 Elda had seen this, he wondered greatly where his wifehad learnt so fair an art. And after he had asked her,she replied, that if he would listen to her advice heshould do such a marvel, and yet greater. Then Hermingild and Constance ceased not to preach to Eldaand all his household the faith of Jesus Christ. Andthis poor Briton they received and maintained for the574 love of Jesus Christ. Then Elda right joyfully receivedthe doctrine of the faith; and by common consent theysent the said Briton privily into Wales, whither mostof the Britons had fled (as is aforesaid in the end of theforty-fifth history), to fetch thence a British bishop whomight baptize Elda and his wife, and their household.And in the mean time Elda caused their idols whichthey had worshipped, to be broken, and commandedthem to be cast into jakes.Thenthis poor Briton, returning fromWales, broughtwithhim Lucius, one ofthebishops ofWales, from Bangor.This Lucius, after he had tested and proved that Eldaand his wife and household were instructed according tothe right form of the religion and faith, praised God devoutly, and baptized them to the number of four scoreand eleven. Then Elda, by great deliberation and secretA BLIND MAN RECEIVES HIS SIGHT. 192migild trop affraie estoit abaie; Mes constaunce, entendaunt la vertue dieu [estre] ¹ en la parole lenueugle,conforta hermigilde & lui dist, " Ne mucez pas, dame,la vertue qe dieu te ad done. " E hermygilde, deuauntElda e sa mene qe lui suy, de bone fey & ferme, fist surles eus de lui enueugles la seinte crois, & lui dist ensa langage sessone, "Bisene man, in iesus name inrode Islawe, haue thi sight." Et meyntinaunt fuallumine, e regardoit bien & clerment. Qant Elda7auoit ceo veu, moult senmerueila 10 oue sa femme auoitaprise sill bele mestrie. Et apres qil auoit demaunde,ele lui respoundi que, sil escotat son counseil, tiel 12merueil freit & plus graunde. Puis hermigild & constaunce ne cesserent [ de precher] a Elda & A tote samene la fey Iesu crist. E13 cil pouere britoun receurent& sustindrent pur lamour iesu crist.13 Lors Elda tropioiusem*nt receut 14 la doctrine de la fey; & par comunassent maunderent priuement le dit Britoun en15 Gales,ou estoient le plus de16 Britouns fuitz,17 com auant estdit en la fyn del quarauntisme quinte estoire, puramener de illoqes vn Euesqe Britoun qi poiet 18 Elda &sa femme & lour19 mene baptizer. E° en le mene20temps, Elda fit debrusier lour Mahounet21, qil auoient22aoure, & les comaunda getter en longgaynes.24&Hermingild wasbut being greatly abashed;Constance,encouraged byshe made the holy cross on the eyes of the blind;and he immedi- ately receivedMiraculum.his sight.Elda embracesfaith; and thesent to Wales tothe Christianpoor Briton isfetch a bishop.[* leaf 47, back]He returns withBishop Lucius ofBangor,who baptizes¶ Puis cist pouere britoun, returnaunt 23 de Ga*les, 2amena ouesqe lui Lucius, vn dez Euesqes de Gales, deBangor. Cist lucius, apres ceo qil auoit assaieesproue que Elda oue sa femme & sa menee estoientsolom droit fourme de la ley° & fey enfourmes, loa number of fourdieux deuoutement, & les baptiza al noumbre de quatrevinz & vnze.1 estre estre.2 de le veugle.▲ veuglez.6 jesu.8† cil.10Puis Elda, par grant auisem*nt & priue5 bisine.11 celle.† meistre &.15Elda and his household tothescore and eleven,a. 16 lez plusours dez.17 Puis.312 toy.13 S. omits from E cil tocrist.19 sa.7 † the.9 illumine.se merueila.14 resceut trop ioyouse- ment.18 puist.20 mesme.21 Mahouns.22 auoit.23 retournoit.24 † &.20 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man ofLaw's counsel with himself, as he who through great confidTale, lino ence for honesty and good sense had the supreme chargeof the kingdom after the king, went to his lord theking of Northumberland, Alle beforenamed, and inprivate council told him of the maid Constance. Andwhen the king had heard all his sayings in secret .council between them two, he was greatly desirous ofseeing and speaking with the maiden. And with thisdesire, he promised Elda that he would come privily tovisit her.582 At this same time, a Saxon knight of Elda's household, already baptized among the others, and to whomElda had committed the keeping of the castle until hisreturn fromthe king, was, by secret temptation, smittenwith love for the maid Constance. And, because inthe absence (of Elda) all the keeping was left to him,by evil instruction and temptation of the devil, he589 went to solicit the maid Constance to consent to carnalsin. And after she had reproved him once and again,the third time she reviled him with great indignation ,saying that he was like a hound, who after the holysacrament of his baptism would return to his dung.Then he, fearing that he would be accused for his fault591 to his lord Elda at his return, forecast him of evil.For in the dawn after the night in which Elda was toenter the castle on his return from the king, when Her596 mingild and Constance were soundly asleep after longwatchings and prayers, this man, who was whollytaken in the devil's hand, cut the throat of Hermingild, his lady, beside Constance who was sleepingsoundly in the same bed. And when he had accom- 601 plished the crime, he hid the bloody knife behind themaid Constance's pillow. Thereupon after a littleHERMINGILD MURDERED. 21couns[e]il de lui mesmes, ala a son seignur, le Roi deNorthumbre, ¹ alle,2 auaunt nome, & en priue counseillui counta de la pucele constaunce, come celui que par³grant affiaunce de leaute & seen auoit sa¹ souereynegarde de reaume apres lui Rois. Et quant lui Roiauoit tous sez dis priue en counseil entre eus doisescote, mout fu desirous de la pucele veer & parler.Et a cest desir promist a Elda qil7 priuement la vendreits visiter.Elda goes to his lord King Alle and tells him ofConstance;whereupon the king is verydesirous of seeing her,During Elda's absence, aSaxon knight,whom he hadleft in chargetempts Constanceto sin,ofthe castle,Being repulsed for the thirdtime, and fearing he shall beaccused, he seeksfor revenge.¶ En cel mesme temps, vn chiualier sessoun de lameyne Elda, entre les autres ia baptize, a quy Eldaauoit baile la garde del chastel tanque a sa venue delRoys, estoit par priue temptacioun suppris en lamurla pucele Constaunce. Et [pur ceo qen labsence toutla garde estoit a luy demure, ] par maueise aprise &temptacioun del diable, ala surquere la pucele constaunce de assent de pesche charnel. , Et puis quele 10auoit [luy] repris vne foitz & autre, La tierce foitz ouegrant qorell lui reuili en disaunt12 qil estoit com cheen,que, apres si ¹³ seinte sacrament de son baptisme, voleitretourner a son merde.14 Puis cist,15 dotaunt qilfust 16 accuse de sa mesprise a son seignur, Elda, a sonretourner, de mal se purueint.17 Qar en la-iournauntede la nuyt a quele Elda deuoit entrer le chastel en leturnaunt18 del Roy, Puis que hermyngilde & constaunceestoient forment 19 endormies apres longe veiletz 20 eorisouns, cist, que tut estoit pris en la mayn al21 diable, the knife behindtrencha la goule hermigilde, sa dame, a coste 22 constaunce,que23 fu forment24 endormie en mesme le lyt. Et quantil auoit parfait la25 felonie, musca le cotel senglaunt enlorier constaunce,26 laº pucele . ¶ A ceo apres 27 poy de1 Northumberlonde.2 S. puts alle after seig3nur.12 reculi & disoit.14 merdayle.16 serroit.4 la.5del.17 purueit.7 18 qi pur.• ditz priuez.luy viendroit.10 qil.11 quere.qi.en.soun retourner.19 fortement.1315 cil.sa.20 longs veilles. 21 del.At daybreak when the two ladies are fastHermingild's fee,he cuts throat and hides tresounConstance'spillow,22 MS. E ceste, S. a coste,23 &. 24 fortement.25 sa.20 MS. en constaunt lorier, S. aderer loriler Constance.27 Apres ceo.22 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.603Man ofLaw's while, Elda entered the castle, and came in haste to his Tale, line consort's chamber to tell the news of the king's coming.Constance, who was wakened with the noise, thinkingthe lady slept, moved her hand to awake her; and whenshe felt that her body was all wet with blood, in greatalarm she cried out, " My lady is dead! " At whichword, Elda and those who were present, greatly amazedat the word, as those who knewnaught of the crime,605 shouting, "Light! light! " found the throat of Hermingild hideously cut, and her body all covered withblood. And when all exclaimed at the cruelty, asking620 Constance the truth, this traitor, who had done thecrime, heaped the death hugely on the maid; and fora pretence that he took the death of the lady more toheart than others, he leapt about in all directions likea mad man, until he had found the knife where hehimself had hid it; and showing before all the instrument of the crime, with a great cry he accused the659 maiden of treachery. But Elda, who could not thinkthis cruelty of the maid, kindly defended her. Andthis bad man in haste took into his hands the book ofBishop Lucius beforenamed, which was a book of theGospels that the holywomen, Hermingild and Constance,had beside them every night by devotion; and on this667 book he swore, crying out, that, so help him God andthe Gospel, and his baptism which he had alreadylately received, Constance was the criminal, the murderess of the lady. Scarcely had he ended the word,when a closed hand, like a man's fist, appeared be669 fore Elda and all who were present, and smote sucha blow on the nape of the felon's neck, that both hiseyes flew out of his head, and his teeth out of hismouth; and the felon fell smitten down to the earth.CONSTANCE ACCUSED OF THE MURDER. 23Elda returns,and comes to his wife's chamber.temps, entra Elda le chastel, ¹ & en haste vint a la Shortly afterchaumbre sa compaigne pur contier nouele de la venuele Roy.2 Constaunce, que oue la noyse estoit aueile,quidaunt la dame dormaunte, lui moueyt la mayn purla-veiler. Et quant ele senti que le corps lui estoittut moyl de saunc, A grant affrai dit en criaunt, " Madame est mort! " A quele parole, Elda & qui estoientenpresent, trop abais de la parole, come ceus que riensnentendirent de la felonie, accriauns, " lumer! lumer"! " trouerent la goule hermigild hidousem*nt Hermingild istrenche, & le corps tut envolupe en saunc. Et quant throat cut;tous acrierent la crueute, en demaundaunt de constaunce and the traitorla verite, cist tretur, que auoit fait la felonie, hugementsurmist la mort sur la pucele, & par countenaunce quela mort lui estoit plus pres a quoer qe as autres, saili atoute pars come home arage, tanqe il eust troue le cotella ou il lauoit mesmes6 musce; & deuant touz moustraunt? le instrument de la felonie, a huge crie apela lapucele de tresoun. Mes Elda, qi ne poeit³ cele crueutepenser de la pucele, bonement la defendi. E cil maueys3found with herlays the crimeupon Constance.Elda defends her;but the wretchswears upon the gospels that she en haste prist entre mayns le liuere leseuesqe, Lucius, is the murderess.auant nome, questoit liure des Ewangeiles, qe10 lesseintes femmes, hermyngilde & constaunce, chescunenuyt par deuocioun auoient encostell eles; & sur celliure iura, en criaunt, si dieu lui eydeit 12 & le Ewangelie& son baptesme, que ia° nouelement auoit resceu, qeCustaunce fu la felonesse, mordrere La dame.13 a peine mirabilis auoit fini¹4 la parole, qe vne mayn close, com poyn vindicta.dehomme, apparut deuant Elda Et quant questoient enpresence, & ferri tiel coup en le haterel le feloun, queambedeus lez eus lui enuolerent de la teste, & lez dentzhors de la bouche; & le feloun chai abatu a la terre.1 † mitant. 2 + &.3 tretes.lamour de la dame.5 de touz.il mesmes auoit.7 demonstraunt.8poit.⁹ del Euesque.10 quel.11 encostes.12 aidast.A closed handappears, and smites him sucha blow on the nape ofhis neckthat his eyes fly out.13 fist la felonie purmourdrer la dame.14 parfini.24 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.673Man ofLaw's And thereupon a voice said in the hearing of all,Tale, line "Against the daughter of Mother Church thou wertlaying a scandal: this hast thou done, and I have heldmy peace." And because the coming of the king wasnear, therefore Elda would not give judgment on thetreason until his coming, and put the felon into prison.687 Then within a few days judgment was given by theking that he should die. Then the king-for thegreat love which he had to the maid, and for themiracles shown by God-the king Alle caused himself• to be baptized by Bishop Lucius aforenamed; and691 wedded the maid, who conceived by the king a malechild.Then after half a year, news came to the king thatthe people of Albania, who are the Scots, had passed718 their bounds, and warred on the king's lands. Thenby common counsel the king gathered his host to rebuthis foes. And before his departure towards Scotland,he committed Queen Constance his wife to the keeping716 of Elda, the constable of the castle, and Lucius, bishopof Bangor, and charged them that when she was delivered of her child they should hastily let him knowthe news. And above all things he charged them thatthe queen should be quite at her ease. At that timeKing Alle's mother was still living, a fair lady andproud of heart, who right mortally hated Constance the694 queen. For she had great disdain that King Alle had,for the love of a strange woman whose lineage was unknown to him, forsaken his former religion which allhis ancestors had loyally and entirely kept. Moreovergreat envy had wounded her heart, that Constance, by.all people, rich and poor, was, without comparison ofher or any other lady in the land, more highly praisedfor goodness and holiness and marvellous beauty. AndKING ALLE MARRIES CONSTANCE. 25Et a ceo dist vne voiz en le oyaunce¹ de touz: “ Aduersus filiam matris ecclesie ponebas scandalum; hecfecisti &2 tacui." Et pur ceo que la venue [le Roy fupres, pur ceo ne voloit Olda jugement doner sur letresoun ieskes a sa venue]; Et mist le feloun en prisoun.Puis deyns poy de³ iours, par le Roi fu le° iuggementdone de sa mort. Puis le Roi-pur le° grant Amourqil auoyt a la pucele, & pur les miracles par dieuxmoustrez-le Roi Alle soy fist baptizer del Euesqelucius, auant nome; Et esposa la pucele, qe conceut delRoi [vn] enfaunt madle.549¶ Puis a vn demy aan passe, vint nouele al Royque lez gentz de Albanie, qe sountz les escotz,8 furentpasses lour boundes & guerrirent les terres le Roy.Dount par comun counseil, le Roi assembla son ost derebouter ses enemis. Et auant son departir vers escoce,baila la Reine Constaunce, sa femme, en la garde Elda,le Conestable du10 chastel, & a lucius, leuesqe¹¹ deBangor; si lour chargea que quant ele fu deliueres denfaunt, qui lui feisoient 12 hastiue* ment sauoir la nouele.Et sur tote riens 13 lour charga que la reine fut a totessez eises.14 vnqore a cel temps estoit la mere lui RoisAlle en vie, [bele] dame & fere de corage, & que tropmorteument hey 15 constaunce, la reine. Qar grantdedeyne16 auoit que le Rois alle auoit pur lamour vnefemme estrange, & qi lynage lui nestoit pas conu, saprimer ley guerpi, quele touz ses auncestres auoient[loialment] e enterement17 gardez. Dautre part grauntºenuye lui auoit le quer naufre, que constaunce estoit detoutez 18 gentz, riches & poueres, saunz comparison de luiou de nule [autre] de la terre, plus grantement preisede bounte & de seintite & de merueilouse beaute. Et' loye.• dez.5 masle.7 sount.⁹ Scoce.2† non. 11 Euesque.se. 12 feissent.6 vient.8 escotez,10 del.13 touz rienz.14 touz choses eisez.15 mortelement hay.16 enuie.After a few days the king comesand passes sen- tence of death on the felon.ConuersioThe king is Alle Regisbaptized and marries Constance. News comes tothe king that the Scots have warredupon his lands.He gathers his host and departs.[* leaf 48]At that time the king's mother,who mortally hated Constance,was still living.17 loialment & entierment auoient.18 dez touz.26 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's it seemed to her that her praise and glory were already Tale, line brought to naught for the great esteem of Constance.And her wrath increased greatly at the songs which themaidens of the land made and sung of her. Themother's name was Domild. Then when God and722 nature would, Constance was delivered of a male child,a beautiful child and great, well begotten, well born;and at his baptism he was named Maurice. ThenElda and Lucius hastily sent the king gracious news ofthe queen who was well and hearty, and of her child ofwhich she was delivered. At that time Domild, theking's mother, was at Knaresborough, between Englandand Scotland, as in an intermediate place. It came to729 pass that the messenger sent by Elda and Lucius wentthrough Knaresborough in order to carry and tell theking's mother good news, as he reasonably supposed.And when she heard the news, she feigned very greatjoy in the sight of the people, and gave the messengerright great and rich gifts, to show her joy. But shethought more than she said; for that night she made743 the messenger so drunk with an evil drink which laidhold of his brain, and bound his senses so strongly,that he lay as if insensible, and as a dead man.Then, bythe assent and advice of her clerk, she openedthe messenger's box, and opened the letters sent to the746 king by Earl Elda and Bishop Lucius, and counterfeited them under the same seals, and wrote, in thenames of the said lords, other letters bearing such import that the Queen Constance, delivered into theirkeeping, after the king's departure was changed in754 manner and condition, as into another creature; forshe was an evil spirit in form of woman; and thewonders which she wrought, and which seemed to beDOMILD COUNTERFEITS THE LETTERS. 274lui fu auis qe sa¹ loaunge & sa glorie fu ia anentize2pur le grant pris de constaunce. Et mout lui° encrutsa ire [de] les chaunsounez que les pucels de la terrefesoient & chauntoyent de lui. la Miere auoit a noundomulde. Puis quant dieux & nature voleient, constaunce fu deliuerez de vn enfaunt Madle, ³ bel enfaunt&° graunt, ben engendre, bien nee; & al baptisme funome Moris. Puis Elda & lucius hastiuement maunderent noueles graciousez5 al Roy de la Reigne, que fusein & heite , & de son enfaunt dount ele estoit deliueres. A cel temps estoit Domulde, la mere le Roy,a knaresbourgħ entre Engleterre & Escoce, auxi comeen lieu mene. A-vint8 que le Messager, maunde parElda & lucius, ala par knaresburgh pur⁹ porter &nuncier a la mere le Roi bone nouele, com il quidoitConstance is delivered of fine man child.He is namedMaurice.Elda and Lucius send the kingword;but their mes- senger goes by way of Knares- borough that he may tell the news to the oldShe feigns greatmessenger anpar resoun. Et ele oye 10 la nouele, feynt¹¹ trop grant queen.ioie engard de 12 gentz, E al messager dona trop grauntz joy, gives thedounz & richez en moustraunce de ioie. Mes plus evil drink,pensa que ne dit; Qar cele nuyt enyueri taunt le messa- Tresoungier de vn maliciouse beyuere,18 que lui purprist lacerueile & si fort le 14 lia les sens, qil iueut 15 com16 saunzsens, & come homme mort. Puis, par lassent & lecounseil de soun clerk, ouery la boiste le messagier &ouery les lettres, maundez al Roy par le Counte Eldae leuesqe Lucius, & les fausa de-soutz mesmes les 17seales , E escript 18 en lez nouns 19 les ditz seignurs altreslettres, tiele sentence portaunce: 20 que la Reigne constaunce, baille en21 lour garde, puis le departier le Roifu en manere & en condicioun chaunge, come en vnauter creature; qar ele fu malueise espirit en fourme defemme, dount les merueiles que ele fist, que semblent 22and causes thecounterfeited.letters to beConstance is declared to be anevil spirit in1 soun.2 aneintee.† bien. 4+ &.5 nouelle graciouse.6 dez Roys.7 MS. la, S. lieu.16 8 auient. † home. 917 &. 10 & come ele oy. ceux .11 fesoit.12 19 en agarde dez.13 boire.18 MS. escritz, S. escript.21 † de.a.2220 portantz.qi sembloient.14luy.15 ieut.28THELIFEOF CONSTANCE.751Man of Law's miracles, were the deeds of the evil spirit in her body.Tule, line "Whereto witnesseth the child born of her, which resembles not a human form, but a cursed form, hideous anddoleful. And therefore, sir king, that shame might notcome to your person and to your royal honour, for a show,we caused another child to be baptized, and named himMaurice; and the other demoniac form we have shut upprivily in an iron cage, until it please your lordship tosend word back what is to be done, to your honour, withConstance and her hideous offspring. These marvels wehave written to your lordship with sorrow and tears,according as we were charged by your lordly commandment to send you all the truth concerning your wifeand her delivery; and the thing is unknown to thebearer of these (letters), who supposes he knows otherthan he does know." Then, in the morning, the messenger arose, quite sick and ill-at-ease through the badness of the drink which had envenomed his brain; and,after false embraces and false promises of Domild, hewent his way, being charged to return, on his departurefrom the king, by the same road. And when he was cometo the king, he related to him, by word of mouth, trueand joyful news. But the letters brought back hispain, and made him to be disbelieved, for the king,757 when he had looked at the letters, hastily overtaken.with great sorrow and deep thought, forbade the messenger, with great threats of punishment, to speak anything of his wife or the child. And immediately he759 wrote back to Elda and Lucius, replying to the letterswhich he supposed he had received by their sending andcommandment, that although the news was to him marvellous, and, saving the grace ofsuch honest men writing,764 almost incredible, he commanded that, without all contra-THE KING ANSWERS THE LETTERS. 29and her child a miracles, furent faitz del mauueys espirit¹ en son corps. human form,"A qei testmoyne lenfaunt de lui nee, que ne recemble hideous monster.pas a fourme de homme, mes a vne maladite 2 fourme,hidouse & dolorouse. Et pur ceo, sir Roi, que a tapersone ne vensist3 a hountage & a ton real honour,feymus en moustraunce vn autre enfaunt baptize,5 &le nomamez Moriz; & lautre fourme demoniac auomuspriuement ferme en vne cage de feer, taunque il plese ata seignurie remaunder que nous estoit feres a tounhonour, de constaunce e de sa hidouse engendrure.Cestes merueyles escriuomus⁹ a ta seignurie ou dolour& lermes, solonc que nous sumus10 chargiez par tonseignuriel comaundement all toy tote° la verite maundierde ta femme & de sa deliueraunce; & al portour de¹2cestes la chose est desconue, que autre quide¹3 sauoir qilne seet." Puis a matyn se leua le messagier, tut malade& deheite pur la malice del boire, que lui auoit la ceruelenuenime, & apres faucez enbracementz & faucez promesses de Domylde, sen ala son chemyn, charge deretournier, a son departier del Roi, par mesme lechymyn. Et quant il estoit al Roi venuz, de bouchelui counta veritable nouele & ioyouse. Mes lez lettreslui firent14 retourner a dolour, & lui fist nouncreable;qar lui Rois quant [il] Auoit les lettres regarde, hastiuement suppris de grant dolour & parfond pensee,defendi 15 al Messagier16, a17 grantz manacez18 de peyne,que riens de sa femme ne del enfaunt parlat. Et meyntenaunt rescrit a Elda & lucius, en responaunt a les The king replies to the letters,lettres qil entendi auer receu de lour maundement &comaundement, 19 que tout le 20 fusent les noueles merueylouses &, sauue la grace de si lele gentz escriuant, aOnthe morrowrises and goesthe messengerhis way, being charged to returnbyroadthe. samepoy noun creables, comaunda qe sauntz nule countre- and commandsI fesaunces dez malueisespiritz.2 maudit.4 feimes.6 luy nomez.3 venisist.5 baptiser.15 descendi.16 MS. adds: al Messager.oue. 18 minasses.7 auoms.8 vous estez a faire.⁹ escriuoms. 10 fumes.1712 du.13 † de.20 lez." de.14 la lettreluy fist.19 commandoit.30 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Tale line785Man of Law's diction, they should have his wife safely kept, andadvise him of her,¹ until his return. Then, with theseletters, the foolish messenger returned at an evil hour,by the way of Domild, and when he was come therehe complained bitterly of the king's behaviour and788 manner. But the traitress comforted him greatly withher false show; and that night she made him drunk,as before. And after she had opened and looked atthe king's letters, she perceived that this order was byno means favourable to her. Then, under the same seal793 of the king, she wrote to Elda and Lucius, in the king'sname, with such import, as if to make answer to the firstletters sent by them: that since one may, in a strangecountry, often hear more news than at home in theneighbourhood, therefore by reason that he had heard.news of Constance, his wife, that if she abode in theland it would come to war and destruction of all theland by foreign nations, therefore he commanded Elda,795 on pain of forfeiting his life and his lands and whatever he had, and of disinheritance of all his lineage,that within four days after reading the letters, he should799 cause a ship to be prepared and victualled for five yearswith food and drink for Constance, and have put inthe ship the same treasure which was found in herformer ship, and that she, with her child Maurice,should be exiled in the same manner in this ship without sail, or oar, or any other device, as she entered theland. And the same thing he commanded Lucius,bishop of Bangor, on pain of perpetual imprisonment.809 Then when the said lords had received these lettersthey showed great grief and sorrow. And because theblessed lady perceived their manner quite changed and1 Keep him acquainted with her state.DOMILD'S FURTHER TREACHERY. 316his wife to be safely kept till he comes back.The messengerDomild, and isreturns toagain made drunk.The traitress opens and readsthe letters;and writes in the king's name,[ * leaf 48, back]dit feisent sa femme sauuement garder, & le moustrerde luy, tank a son retourner. ¶ Puis oue cestes lettresretourna le fol messagier a male houre par Domylde, &quant estoit la venuz, durement se pleynout¹ de la chierle Roi & de son2 semblaunt. Mes la treteresce moutle³ conforta de son fauz semblaunt; e cele nuyt lenyueri come autre foitz.5 Et puis qe ele auoit les lettresle Roi ouert & regarde, aperceut qe cel maundementne lui fut de riens fauorable: dount de-soutz mesme leseal au rei,7 Escript a Elda & lucius * en la persone[le Roy], en tiele sentence, com par respouns fere a lesprimers lettres par eus maundez: Qe¹º pur ceo que enestraunge pays put 11 homme souent noueles oyer 12 plusqe a meson en veisenage, pur cec 13 par la resoun qilauoit nouel oy de Constaunce, sa femme, qe si ele en laterre demorat, ceo auendreit 14 aº guere° &15 destrucciounde toute la terre par estraunge naciouns, Et° pur ceocomaunda 16 a Elda en forfeiture de vie & de sez terres commanding Elda, on pain & quant qil auoit, & deshe[r]itement17 de tout son linage,qe deynz quatre iours apres lez lettres luez, feit 18 apparailer vne neef & vitaile pur cync aunz de manger&19 boire pur constaunce, e en la neef mettre mesme letresour que fu en sa primer neef troue, & que en mesmela manier en cele neef, sauntz sigle & sauntz nauiroun 20ou saunz nul autre engyn, fut oue son enfaunt21 Morisde la terre exile, come ele en la terre entra. & mesmela chose comaunda a lucius, euesqe de Bangor, surpeyne de perpetuel enprisonement. Puis quant lez Elda and Luciusditz seignurs auoient cestes 22 lettres resceu, grant duel 23& grant dolour demeneient.24 Et pur ceo que labeneite dame aperceut lour semblaunt trop chaunge & perceives it,of death ,to prepare aship and store it withprovisions for five years, and to banish Con- stance and her son therein.are full of Borrow.Constance19 † de.20 MS. enuiroun, S. naui1 2plenoit. † lorud.3 se. 4 dessouz.1210Et.oyernouelles.11 poit. 18 fist.5† auoit fait.13 † que.15 en.6 comaundement.7 del Roy.celle.9pur.14 deuindroit.16 maunda.17 desheritesem*nt.roun.21 fiz.23dolour.22 lez.24 doul en auoient.32 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's sad, and because no message had come to her from the Tale, line king, she suspected the death of her lord; and withgreat prayer she besought them that no truth should behid from her. Then the messenger told her that theking made him so hard an encounter, that he wouldhear no word concerning the lady or the child. Thenthe lords showed her the king's letters with great sorrow and tears. But Constance, full of God, and readyfor all his will and ordinances, said to them, " Nevermay the day come that the land should be destroyedfor me, and that ye, my dear friends, should have deathor trouble for me! But since my banishment pleases826 God and my lord the king, I must take it in good will,in hope that God will bring a hard beginning to a goodend, and that He will be able to save me on the sea,who, by sea and land, is almighty."823 Then, on the fourth day, she was exiled withMaurice, her sweet son, who learnt seamanship young.820 And so much sorrow and crying and weeping was inthe city and town, of rich and poor, old and young,when they heard the sorrowful tidings, that no heartcan think it; for all people lamented her. And, albeithe had no fault, all men cursed King Alle. And afterher ship was already brought by other ships upon thehigh sea, where neither England nor any other landappeared to them, the mariners with great grief com874 mended her to God, praying that she might againreturn to the land with joy.Then God guided her ship unto the sea of Spain to904 wards the eastern country, under a castle ofan Admiral ofthe heathen. This Admiral had for his seneschal a renegade from the Christian faith, named Thelous. This man,whenhe sawthe ladybrought from her ship, with her son,CONSTANCE AND HER SON EXILED.333mournes, & que a lui nul maundement nestoit del Roisvenuz, soucha la mort son seignur; & a grant prierelour requist que nule verite Luy fut celee . Lors luidist lui messagier qe lui Rois lui2 fist si dure encountrer³qil ne voleit de la dame ne del enfaunt nul parole oyer.Puis les seignurs ly ount les lettres le Rois moustre ougrant dolour & lermes. Mes constaunce, pleyn deu5 &prest a totes sez voluntes & a sez ordinauncez, lour dist,"Ia ne veigne ceo iour qe pur moy la terre fut destrut, & que pur moy° mes cheres amyz eusez mort ou³moleste. Mes puis que a dieu plest, & a° mon seignur,le Rois, mon exil, a bon gree le doys prendre en esperaunce qe dure comencement amenera dieu a bon fyn, 10et qil me purra en laº mere sauuer, qi en mere & enterre est de toute puissance."and begs tobe told the wholetruth.Constanciahic exulitur.¶ Lors le quart iour fu ele exile oue Moriz, son notabile.douz ' fitz, qi Ioeuenes aprist marinage. Et taunt de dolour &12 crie &13 plour fu en la cite &14 ville, de ¹5 richez& pouers, veuz 16 & Iouenes, quant oyrent de la dolourouse nouele, qe nule quore ne le pout 17 comprendre;qar touz gentz la weymentent. "18 & tut ne vst il19 coupe,al20 Roi Alle, touz21 maudisoient. Et puis que sa neefpar autre nauie estoit ia amene en le haut Miere, ou iaEngleterre ne autre terre lour apparust, les mariners agrantz dolours 22 la comaunderent a dieu, en priaunt qevnqore peut ele a 23 ioie a la terre retourner.The ship is takenConstance comout to sea andmended to God.Her ship comesthe castle of to land undera heathen¶ Lors dieu gya sa neef tanque en la Mere despayn,envers la terre del orient, de-souz vn chastel dun Admiral de24 paens. Cist admiral auoit le soen 25 seneschal admiral.vn renee de la foy christiene, Thelous nome. Cist,quant vit la dame de sa neef amene,26 oue son fitz,' estoit.210 se.43 encontre. † que.5 de dieux .6 le. 7 fuist la terre.sount (?) mys en.• † par.CH. ORIG.а boun fyn ameneradieux.11 enfaunt & tresdouce.18 waymenterent.19 † la. 20 le.21 † luy.22 graunt dolour.12 † de.13 † de. 14 † en.15 dez.16 veilles. 17 poit.2325 oue.Soun.24 dez.26 Mene.34 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man ofLaw's before the Admiral, had great pity for her; and, through Tale, line him, she was very graciously received. And after shewas well refreshed with meat, and drink, in the eveningshe would not lodge anywhere but in her ship; for theywere heathens, and she had her hope rather to float onthe waste sea under the steering of God, than to lodgeamong the enemies of God. Then God, who never failshis friends in tribulation, gave her grace before theAdmiral; for he commanded the aforesaid Thelous,his seneschal, to take care of her, so that no evil orannoyance should come to the lady through any one.And Thelous, right glad and joyous of the charge,914 at dead of night went down alone, bearing greattreasure of gold and silver and precious stones. Andwhen he had acknowledged his fault to the lady,in that he who had been a Christian was a renegadetraitor towards God for fear of death and lust of earthlyhonour, he prayed her that he might put himself withher into the hand of God to return somewhere to hisfaith, by the grace of God, among Christians. Then,by the help of his friends, being put-off from land, theycame to the high sea. And the enemy, who everywhere strives to work ill, moved the renegade knightwith grievous temptation to entice the lady to consentof sin. But God, to whom she had given her heart byfaith (or from childhood), would not suffer her to assent917 to such evil. Then, when this Thelous would forceher by heavy threats, she restrained his folly by reason;for the child Maurice, as it was already full two yearssince he was exiled from England, might have understanding and remembrance of a thing done in his presence. This then was her pretext to defend herself fromsin. And she begged Thelous to look on all sideswhetherhe might see no land, and when they might reachHER ADVENTURE WITH THELOUS. 35 235deuaunt ladmiral, grant pite en auoit & par lui futmout graciousem*nt resceu. Et apres que ele estoit bienrefete de manger & de boire, asseir¹ ne voleit paralliours mes en sa neef herbergier; qar il estoient paiens,& ele meuz² auoit sa esperaunces en la gast mere soutzle gouernement dieu floter, que entre les enemys dieuherberger. ¶lors dieu, qi a ses amys ia ne faut entribulacioun, lui dona grace deuaunt Ladmiral; qar ilcomaunda a lui auant dist Thelous, son seneschal, qeen eut cure, que mal ne moleste par nuly avensist a ladame. Et Thelous, de la garde trop lee & ioious, en lanuyt parfounde descendi soul, portaunt grant tresourdor & dargent &4 peres preciousez. Et quant auoitreconu a la dame son errour, que cil que auoitcristien fu tretur5 renees enuers dien pur pour de mort&ilesteThe admiral gives his sene- schal Thelous charge to take care of her.his sin in re- Thelous confessesnouncing his faith, and begs to go with Con- stance to someChristian land.Being temptedhe tries to enticeby the devil,her to sin;pur coueitise de terren honour, lui pria qil se peut oului mettre en la meyn dieu pur retourner ascun lieu asa foy par la grace dieu entre christienes. Puis, pareide de sez priuez aloynez de la terre, vindrent a hautmere. E lenemy, qi par tut sen-force de male fere,moueit le chiualier renee a greuouse temptacioun deticer 10 la dame a consent de pesche. Mes dieu, a qi eleauoit done son quore daffiaunce, 11 ne la voleit suffrierassentir a tiel mal. Dount, quant cist Theolous pardures manacez la voleit afforcier, ele refreynt sa foliepar resoun; 12 Qar lenfaunt Moris, que ia estoit de doisaunz entiers puis qil estoit exiles Dengleterre, poietauoir entendement & memorie 13 de chose faite en sapresence-Adonqe dount14 ceste fut sa colour pur soidefendre de pesche-e pria aº thelous qil auisat de tote Constance thenparz, si puet 15 nule terre veer, Et quant a la terre puis- out for land;Iasoir.2 MS. mout, S. meuz.3 sperance.5 tretres.6 mestre..' † des.7† lez.8 en le.⁹ tout enforce.10 tempter.11 denfaunce.12 & ele luy respount parresouns sages & bels si dit.but she excuses herself on the child's account.begs him to look13 memoire.14 presence puit auenir15 que sauisa par touz graunt peril.pars sil peust.36 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's the land, in a suitable place, she would perform his desire.Tale, line And he, upon this promise, very anxious, standing onthe forepart of the ship, looked on all sides whether hecould not see land. And while he was most anxious,922 Constance, to save her chastity, came privily behindhis back, and thrust him into the sea.Within this time, King Alle, already possessed ofthe victory in Scotland over his enemies the Picts,876 hastened with great desire and grief into England; forit was told him by the goers to and fro that hisblessed wife, Constance, was already banished from hisland, by his commandment, with her son Maurice.And as the king went his way through cities and towns,by day, in England, there came against him men andwomen, children and old men, and reviled him withcrying and reproaches, throwing upon him and hismen mud and filth and great stones; and women andnaked children, in mockery, showed him their hindquarters; and so severe was the persecution, that itbehoved him and his host thenceforward to take theirjourneys by night. Then, when he was come to theaforesaid castle, in great fear of his life, he caused Elda878 and Lucius to be called, asking in great wrath wherehis wife Constance was, whom they called an evilspirit in form of woman, and what had become of thedemoniac monster, his child. And they, abashed atthe word, said they knew naught of such thing, butthat his wife was good and holy, and his offspring fairand graceful. And he, like a madman, asked themwhat reason moved them to send him such treasonableletters, as he could openly show them. Then, the882 letters of both sides being seen, the king knew nothing of the letters which he saw sealed with his ownseal; no more did they of the other side. Then theyRETURN OF KING ALLE. 37is most intent,sent atendre, en lieu couenable, parfroit son talent. Etcil, sur ceste promesse mout corious, esteaunt en le uant¹-partie de la neef, de toute2 pars auisa si nule terre puits and when heveer. Et taunt com fu plus * curious, constaunce, pursa chastite sauuer, priuement luy vient rere au dos, ele him and pusheslui tresbucha en la mer.Deyns cest temps, le Rois alle, ia esploite de laº victorie en Escoce de lez picteis, 5 sez enemis, a grant desire dolour se hasta en Engleterre; quar counte ly estoitpar entre alauntz que sa beneyte femme, constaunce, iaestoit par son comaundement de sa terre oue son fitzMoris exilez. Et com ly Rois erra soun chemyn parcitez & viles, de iour, en Engleterre, luy vindrent encontrarius⁹ hommes e femmes, enfauntz e veilars, e le 10reuilerent de crie e le-dengge, ¹¹ gettauntz sur lui & les 12seuns tay & ordure & grosse peres, e femmes & enfauntz deuestuz par despit luy moustrent 13 lour derere;et taunt dure fu la persecucioun, que lui couenoit &14son ost desoremes de nuyt prendre lour iourneis.Puis, quant il estoit 15 al auant dit chastel venuz a grantpoure de sa vie, fist apeller Elda & lucius, a grantfelonie demandaunt ou fu sa femme, Constaunce, qilapellerent maueys espirit en fourme de femme, e ou futdeuenuz le demoniac monstre, son enfaunt. Et cil,abays de la parole, se diseient riens sauoir de tiel 16 chose,Mes que sa femme estoit bone &seynt, & sa engendrure 17bele & graciouse.. ¶ Et cil, com homme arage, lourdemaunda qele resoun lour moueit 18 si tresonels lettresa lui maunder, com apertement lour° poeit 19 moustrer.Puis, veuz lez lettres dun part & dautre, ia le Roy leslettres riens ne conysoit qil20 vist de son seal assellez,Ne ceaus del autre 21 part auxint. Dount dautre221 la haut.2 touz.3 sil peust nulle terre.4 a dos & le.3puteus.7 † lez.⁹ encountrantz. 10luy."¹ de lendenge.12 MS. dles, S. & les.6luy.13 moustrerent.8⁹ † douce.14 oue,part16 celle.17[* leaf 49]comes behindhim overboard.King Alle on his return fromScotland ismaltreated by the people of England.Arrived at the castle, he summons Elda and Lucius;and asks what made them write such treasonable letters.soun enfaunt nee.18 meuoit. 19 purroit.20 quex il. 15 auoit.21 ceux dautre.22 lautre.38 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Lan's could not suspect treachery in any quarter but that Tale, line of the messenger. And he at last said that he felt886 guilty of no treason, nevertheless he freely acknowledged to them his drunkenness at the court of Domild,the king's mother; and if there were treason, there wasthe source. And the king, now quite inflamed withwrath, began to travel by night, until he came to wherehis mother was. And when he had gone in to hismother, who was asleep, he cried out at her with ahideous voice, " traitress! " and commanded her hastilyto showthe letters which she had treacherously counterfeited. And she, suddenly overtaken with fear, andseeing the king like a man out of his wits, holding thenaked sword over her, and well knowing she wasguilty of so great a treachery, without more delay, begging for mercy, acknowledged all her crime. And theking, with great fierceness, told her that he would haveno mercy upon her but as her treason required. " Foryou had no pity on me, nor on mywife, nor on my child,neither will I ever have pity on you." And with that894 he cut off her head and (hewed) her body all to pieces,as she lay naked in her bed. Then Alle solemnlymade his vow before Lucius, the bishop of Bangor,that never more would he marry wife, until the mercyof God should send him news of Constance.Then this Constance, the third year after she haddrowned Thelous in the sea, which was the fifth yearof this exile, as she was floating on the sea, beheld afara wood as it were appear to her. And as her right goodand courteous guide, God, steered and guided her shipnearer and nearer, at last she perceived that it was themasts of a great navy, which lay in the haven of a969 city by the sea. And when the mariners sawa ship somarvellously floating on the sea, they supposed thatRETRIBUTION FALLS ON DOMILD. 39ne sauoient soucher la tresoun mes ver le Messager.is examined,and acknowledgesat Domild's his drunkennesscourt.The king goes to his mother andcommands her toEt cist finaument dit qe de nul tresoun se senti coup- The messengerable, Nepurquant bien lour reconust de sa yueresce enla court dommylde, la mere le Roi; & si tresoun fust,la fu la source.¹ Et le Roi, ia tut enflaume de ire,comensca de nuyz errer, taunque il vynt2 ou sa mereestoit. T Et quant il estoit entre sur sa mere ia endormis, oue hidouse voiz la escria, " tretresce! " Et luicomaunda hastiuement moustrer les lettres qe³ eleº auoittreitrousem*nt fause. Et ele, sudeinement suprise depour, & veaunte le Roi, com homme hors de senz, tenaunt5 lespeie nue outre lui, & bien sachaunt sei coupable de si grant tresoun, sauntz plus de relees, en°priaunt mercy, reconisoit toute sa felonie. Et le Roi,a grant ferte, ly dist que nuls mercy° nen auereyt⁹mes com sa tresoun demaunda. "Qar de moy, ne dema femme, ne de mon enfaunt vous nen auiez pite, 10 neieo de vous ia pite naueray.'" 11 Et a ceo ly coupa lateste e le corps tut apecees,12 com ele iut nue en sounlit. ¶ Lors alle solempnement fit son vou13 deuauntlucius, leuesque 14 de° Bangor, ° qe iammes femme neesposereit, taunqe la misericorde dieu ly enueiat noueles15de constaunce.16show the letters.She, being oversudden fear,begs for mercy,and confessestaken withher crime.But the kingmercy on her,will have noand hews her to pieces as she lies in her bed.of her exile, ¶ Puis ceste Constaunce, le tiers aan apres qe ele 17 In the fifth yearauoit neey theolous en la mere, qe fu le quinte an decest exil, come ele fu flotaunt sur la mere, regardoit deloins 18 luy apparer com vn boys. E com son trebon &courteis giour, dieux, gouerna° & gya sa neef plus pres& plus, a la fyn aperceut que ceo estoient mastes devne19 graunde nauie, qe reposa en le port de vn cite surla mere. Et quant les mariners virent vne neef sime[r]uelousem*nt sure la mere flotaunt, sucherent que1 sourcee.2 vient.15 nouelle.Constance meets with a greatfleet riding in ahaven.16 la tierce an.0aueroit.3 10 quex. ne auditez pitie.11 12 auera. a peces. 18 loigne.6 od.13 awove.• tiele.• tresserousem*nt.5 teignaunt.7 ferite.14 Euesque.17 qil.19 MS. mastode vne, S. mastes dune.40 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's it had been a ship quitted bythe mariners through storm.Tale, line But when they were come nigh, they found a woman,and a child of five years, richly furnished with treasure,but full poor of victuals. And after the mariners hadspoken with the lady, they brought her and her childinto the city, to a palace, where a senator of Rome, notunknown to the maiden, was harboured. This manwas called Arsemius of Cappadocia, a very wise andworthy knight, and greatly excelling in letters, and ofthe Emperor Tiberius Constantinus, the father of Constance, much loved and familiar. He, when he saw971 Constance, by no means knew her, which the lady tookin great joy. And she knew him well enough; foroften enough had she seen him in the house of theemperor, her father. This Arsemius was leader of allthat navy. And after he had asked the lady severalquestions as to her condition and fortune, and she had972 wisely answered him, without revealing anything concerning her lineage or the emperor, (that) since herfortune was not all gracious as regarded the world,though it pleased her as regarded God, and since shewas married to a rich lord, who had begotten the child,(but) to whom she, by her fortune, was not pleasingin all points, therefore she suffered such penance.And after he had asked her name, she had answeredhim that she was named Couste; for thus the Saxonscalled her. Then the lady asked him what was themeaning of that great fleet which he led. And heanswered her that it was the Emperor Tiberius's fleet,sent by him to the Holy Land, against the Saracens,who had treacherously murdered his daughter Constance, and a great number of the Christians, and theSultan and his allies, who were friends to the Christians; and he told fer that, on all sides, God hadgiven them happy achievement over their enemies;for the Sultaness was burnt, and of the Saracens,CONSTANCE BROUGHT TO ARSEMIUS. 414bring the ladyto a palace,where she finds ashe knows,senator whomnot recognize her.ceo vst este vne neef par tempest veude de sez mariners.Mes quant estoient venuz ades, trouerent vne femme &vn enfaunt de cink aaunz, richement estoffe de tresor,Mes trop [poures] de vitaile . Et apres que les Mariners The marinersauoient la dame aresones, amenerent lui & son enfaunt and her childen la Cite a vn paleys, ou vn senatour de Rome, ne pasde la pucele desconu, estoit recette. Cist estoit apeleArcemius¹ de Capadoce, tresage chyualer e pruz, &mout excellent en lettrure, Et del Emperour Tiberieconstantin, le pere Constaunce, mout ame е secre.Cist, quant vist constaunce, de riens la conisoit, qe la though he doesdame prist a grant ioie. Et cele assetz lui conisoit 2;qar assetz lauoit veu en la meson lemperour, son pere.Cist Arcemius 3 estoit dustre de toute cele nauie. Epuis qil auoit demaunde la dame plusours demaundesde son estre e de sa fortune, e ele luy auoit sagementrespondu, sauntz riens decouerir de son lynage ou delEmperour, Et pur ceo qe sa fortune ne luy estoit solomle secle totes graciouse, tut ly plust ele° solom dieu,Et pur ceo qele estoit marie a vn riche seignur, qi auoitengendre lenfaunt, a qi par sa fortune ele nestoit pasplesaunte en touz poyns, & pur ceo suffri ele tiel penaunce. Et puis qil auoit son noun demaunde, ele luiauoit respondu qele estoit Couste nome; quar issintla-pellerent lez sessoneys.7 Puis lui demaunda la damequey amounta cele graunde nauie qil amena. E illyrespoundi que ceo estoit8 * la nauie lemperour Tiberie,enveie par lui en la terre seynte, encountre les sarazins,que auoient tretrousem*nt moudre sa fille, constaunce,& grant noumbre dez christiens, E le soudan & sezalliez que estoient amys a10 christiens; e luy disoit quede toute parz dieu lour auoit done eurous esploit delour enemys; quar la soudane fu arse, ¶Et de ¹¹ sarazins,1 Arcenius.2 S. omits from qe toconisoit.

• Arcenius.

4⚫ respondi.5trop.• respondist.7 Sessouns.8 qestoit.He informs her that the fleet wassent by the emperor against leaf 49, back]the Saracens who had murdered his daughter.9 la fille lemperour.10 as, ii dez.42 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE,Man ofLaw's more than eleven thousand were slain, but never aTals, line Christian in his host was lost or wounded; and that allthe bodies of the Christians, who were murdered by theSaracens, he and his host had found, except only thebody of Constance, who, according to the Saracens' saying, was drowned in the sea. Then the maiden besoughthim that she might pass, under his conduct, to Rome.And Arsemius, with great joy, granted (it) her, and tookinto his keeping her, and her son, and all her treasure.974 And after he was come to Rome, he commended Cousteto his Roman wife, Helen, the daughter of Sallustius,the brother of the Emperor Tiberius, and the uncle ofConstance. This Helen, the cousin of Constance,loved her cousin, and Maurice her kinsman, so tenderlythat she had no other joy so great in her life. Andmaybe her joy would have been increased, if Constancehad told her all the truth. Then Constance, with her979 son Maurice, abode twelve whole years in the companyof Arsemius and Helen, a lady of all holiness andtruth. And Arsemius and Helen, who had no offspring, claimed Maurice, in love and nurture, as their988 son and heir. At this same time, Alle, king of England, by the advice of Lucius, bishop of Bangor, andElda his seneschal and constable, went with (his) mento make his pilgrimage to Rome and have absolutionfrom the pope for the slaughter of his mother. At thesame time, he committed the keeping of his kingdomto Edwin his son, who was the third king after him.And when Alle was seven days' journey from Rome, hesent Elda forward to make honourable provision. Andwhen Elda was come to Rome, and had inquired wherethe king of England and his people might honourably lodge, he was answered that Arsemius, the senatorof the city, was nobly endowed with several castlesALLE GOES ON A PILGRIMAGE TO ROME. 43He and his host had found thebodies of all the murdered Christians except Constance.Arsemius takes her to Rome andrecommends her to his wife Helen,cousin.Constance and her son remainestoient plus de vnze Mil tuez, Mes vnkes vn christiennestoit¹ perdu ne naufre en son ost; Et que touz lescorps dez christiens Auoient, il et2 son ost trouet, quepar sarazins estoient mourdrez, fors soulement le corpsconstaunce, que solom le dist de 3 sarazins estoit nee enla mere. Puis lui pria la pucele que ele puit en sonconduyt passer tankque a Rome. Et arsemius aªgrant ioie lui granta; E la prist en sa garde, e son fitz,e tout son tresour. E puis qil estoit5 a Rome venuz,recomaunda Custe a sa femme Romeyne, heleyne, lafille salustius, le frere lemperour Tiberie e le vncle Con- Constance'sstaunce. Cest heleyne, la nece Constaunce, taunt tendrement ama sa nece & moris son cosyn que autre sigrant ioie en sa vie nauoit. E pust estre que sa ioie lyeust escrue, si constaunce lui [eust] tote verite countee.Puis Constaunce, oue son fitz Moris, demora en la companie Arsemye & heleyne douze auntz entiers, damede toute seyntete & verite. Et Arsemius e heleyne,que nul engendure nauoient, Moris en 10 amour e noriture, come lour fitz luy clamerent & lour eyr. . En celmesme temps, Alle, le Roi dengleterre, par le conceillucius, euesque de Bangor, e Elda, son Seneschalle° &Conestable, ala oue gentz pur fereº son pelrinage a Rome& dauer absolucion del pape de la occisioun sa mere.En mesme le temps, baila la garde de son reaume aEdwyn, son fitz, que estoit le tierz Roy apres lui . Etquant Alle estoit a° sept Iourneis de Rome, MaundaElda deuaunt, pur honurable purueaunce fere.11 Etquant Elda estoit a Rome venuz, & auoit conquis 12 ou honourablele Roi dengléterre e 13 sez gentz puss*nt honurableinent the king,herberger, Luy fu Respondu 14 qe Arsemius, 15 le senatourde la Cite, 16 estoit noblement dowe de 17 plusours chas1 ne fuist.2 MS. en, S. &.lez ditz dez.4 Arsenius od.qils estoient.7 bountee.• Arsenius.6Arseni[us].9 engendrure auoient.10 † lour.twelve years with Arsemius.Then King Alle makes a pilgrimage to Rome to get absolution from the Pope.Elda is sent forward to findquarters for" tencontre luy.12 enquis.13 ou[e].15 Arcenius.16 de Rome.14 responde.17dez.44 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's and fair palaces. Then, at that news, Elda went to Arse- Tale, line mius to beg it; and he kindly caused him to be shownhis castles and manors, which were already emptied,without any delay. And after Elda had chosen honourably for the king, Arsemius returned thence to hispalace. And when he had entered his wife's chamber,where Constance was, he asked them if they wished tohear news, and told them that Alle, the king of England,would come to the city within ten days, and would belodged in his castles; and for that cause he (the king)had sent a great count and castellan, his marshall .And when Constance heard the tidings, for secret andhidden joy she fell down in a swoon. And after herspirits had returned to her, on their asking what ailedher, she excused herself by the weakness of her brain,which came to her at sea. Then, before the said tendays, when King Alle was coming near the city of998 Rome, Arsemius the senator, who was to receive himwithin his castles, went to meet him honourably withall the. knighthood of Rome and the rich Romancitizens, and received him courteously. And as thesenator's wife Helen, and Constance, stood upon atower fitted with steps, that they might see the kingof England, and look at the knights (or cavalcade), aknight who had seen the king upon the road before hiscoming to the city, and who was appointed to show theladies the king's person, showed them the person ashe rode under the tower, and said, " Ladies, that isKing Alle." And the king, hearing his name mentioned, looked upwards. And when Constance sawhis face, she fell down in a swoon near Helen, whosupposed it to be naught but weakness. At thistime of the king's coming to Rome, Maurice beganCONSTANCE HEARS OF HER LORD'S COMING. 45castle ofteaus e bieus paleys. ¶ Puis a ceste nouele, Elda alaa arsemius¹ de ceo prier; & il bonement ly fist moustrer2 sez chasteus & maners questoient ia veudez, saunznul demoraunce.3 Et puis que Elda auoit pur le Roi and choses thehonurablement choisi, Arsemius4 sen est retourne a son Arsemius.paleys. Et puis que il estoit en la chambre sa femmeentre, ou estoit Constaunce, lour demaunda si elesvoleynt noueles5 oyer; Et lour counta que alle, Roysdengleterre, deynz lez dis iourz vendreit en vile, & serreit herberge en sez7 chasteus; & a ceo auoit maundevn grant counte & chasteleyn, son Mareschalle. Etquant Constaunce oy la nouele, des priuee e celee ioie, Constance onchey en paimesoun.9 Et puis que sez espiritz luy°estoient reuenuz, a lour demaunde 10 que ele deuoit,se acundut par feblesse de saº seruele¹¹ que luy auenten la mere. Puis eynz 12 lez dist° dis iours, quant leRois Alle fust en° uenaunt pres a13 la Cite de Rome,Arsemius14 le senatour, qy15 ly° deuoit receyuere deinssez chasteus, ly ala encountraunt honurablement outote la cheualrie de Rome & oue les riches citeseinzRomeyns, e ly receust curtesem*nt. Et come la femmele senatour, heleyne, e Custaunce, esteirent 16 sur vnbretage¹7 ordine de gre, qe eles 18 puissent vere le Roisdengleterre, & auiser la chiualrie, 19 vn chiualier queauoit veu le Rois auaunt20 sa venu a la Cite par chemyn,e qestoit assigne pur les dames moustrer la persoun leRoy, lour moustra la 21 persoun, com il chiuacha de-soutzle Bretage, 22 Et dit, " veez si, dames, luy Rois Alle."Et lui Rois, oyaunt son noun nomer, reguarda versmount. Et quant Constaunce vist son visage, cheyenpres23 helyne paume, qi ne quidoit autre mes feblesse.A ceo24 temps de la venuz25 le Roi a Rome, comensca1 Arcenius.2 moustre.3 demurant.4 Arsenius. 5 nouelle.6 † la.ceux.78 del.hearing the news swoons for secret joy.Arsemius and the chivalry of Rome go out to meet the king.Constance seestower, andher lord from afalls down in aswoon.9 paumisoun. 17 bretarche.10 demaunda.11 ceruele. 12 deinz.14 Arsenius.19 chiuachie.20 deuaunt.22 bretarche.1513 de.qil.24 16 esturent. ceste.18lez.21 sa.23 + de.25 venue.46 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.1013Man of Law's his eighteenth year. He was secretly instructed by his Tale, line mother Constance, that when he should go to the feastwith his lord the senator, he should leave all other thingsand put himself before the king of England, when heshould be seated at meat, in order to serve him, and thathe should stir nowhere out of the king's sight, and thathe should strive well and courteously to serve him; forhe greatly resembled his mother. Then, when the king1016 beheld the child standing before him, he was greatlystruck by the resemblance, and asked him whose sonhe was; and he answered him that he was the son ofArsemius the senator, who sat on his right. And uponthe king's asking, the senator told him that he held him(Maurice) as his son, because he had made him his heir.1020 And he knew his mother well, but not his father; forhis mother would never acknowledge that to him, inthe time of twelve years. And the youth knew himnot; for the mother and he were sent into exile whenhe was but ten weeks old. Thereupon the king askedthe youth his name, and he answered that his namewas Maurice. Then the king became very thoughtful,1030 both on account of the name and the resemblance inthe face, and for the sayings of the senator. And heasked the senator, if he pleased, to show him the lady,the youth's mother. And he answered him that shewas in his house. Upon this the king, greatly com1036 forted, caused the meal to be hastened. And when hewas come down to the senator's palace, his wifeappeared, who was coming towards him with thesenator's wife. And the king, after he had greeted the1051 lady of the palace, for certain knowledge, went toembrace and kiss his wife. And such open demonstration of love made he, that the senator, and the lady, andall that were there, were not a little astonished. And atthat the king cries out aloud, " I have found mywife!"KING ALLE FINDS HIS WIFE AND SON. 47structed by his mother to serve King Alle at the feast, and not to stir from him.The king islad's resemblance struck with themoris son diseotisme aan. Cist estoit apris priuement Maurice is inde sa mere Constance, qe, quant il irreit a la feste ouson seignur le senatour, que, totes autres choses lessetz,se meit¹ de-uaunt le Roi dengleterre, quant il fust assisa manger, pur lui seruier; Et que de nule part seremuat hors del regard al Roi, e qe il se afforsat bien &curteisem*nt lui° seruir; quar il° durement resembla samere. ¶ Puis, quant li Rois lenfaunt regarda,² esteauntdeuaunt lui, trop fu suppris de la resemblaunce, ³ & lydemaunda qi¹ fitz estoit; & ly respoundi qil estoitfitz aº Arsemie,7 le senatour, qi ly sites a destre. E asa demaunde, ly senatour lui dist qe son fitz lui tient 10il, pur ceo qil lauoit¹¹ fait son heir. E sa mere sauoitil bien, mes noun pas son pere; quar vnkes sa mere ceone lui voleit reconustre, en le temps de dozze aunz. Ele Iuuencel ne sauoit; qar la 12 mere e luy estoient mysen exil, quant nestoit forqe de dis symaynes. *¶ A ceole Roi demaunda del Iuuencel13 son noun; Et il reto his wife, and asks him whose son he is.[* leaf 50]He finds that his name is Maurice,and asks whether he may see the spondi que son noun fu Moris. Dount le Roi deuent engrant pense, e del noun, & de la resemblance de youth's mother.visage, E pur le 14 ditz le senatour; Et demanda delSenatour, si ly plust fere moustraunce de la dame, lamere le 15 Iuuencel. E il16 lui respoundi que ele estoiten sa mesoun. Sur ceo le Roi, trop counforte, fisthastier le manger.17 E quant il estoit descendu al paleysle Senatour, parust sa femme, qe lui venoit encontreoue la femme le Senatour. E lui Rois, apres qil auoitla dame del paleis salue, par certeyn conisaunce ala safemme enbracer & beisire. Et taunt apert moustrancedamour18 lui fesoit, que le senatour & la dame, & quanqei19 esteient, ne esteient pas poi merueles. Et le Roi aceo, tut en haut escrie, " Ieo ay troue ma femme! "I mist.2 regarda lenfauunt.3 semblance.When Constanceembraces her appears, the kingand cries out,"I have found my wife! "13 del Iuuencel demanda.del.4 quel.6 † le.8 seoit.9 demanda.10 le tynt.7 Arsenie.14lez.16 ele.17 11 auoit.12 sa. MS. repeats: e lui de- maunda qi fitz estoit.maungerie.18 de lamour.1519 ia.48 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's Then Elda and Lucius greeted the lady, and with Tale, line great joy, thanked God, who never fails those whoput their trust in Him. On the morrow, the kingwent to take his absolution for the death of his mother.And after he had told the Pope Pelagius, beforenamed,all the adventures, the pope returned thanks to God.Then, after the king had dwelt forty days at Rome,1079 one night Constance besought him to request the emperor, who dwelt twelve leagues from Rome, that hewould do him the honour to be pleased to eat with himat Rome. And as the request pleased the king, Constance1086 charged her son Maurice with the message; and toldhim, if the emperor would not grant him his petition,that then he should beseech him for the love he borethe soul of his daughter Constance; for then she wellknewthat the emperor would not deny him his request,as he did no one who, for his daughter's soul, prayedhim for anything. And then, when Maurice was comebefore the emperor, with the honourable company, andhad done his message on behalf of the king his father,the emperor, greatly smitten with love for the youth,1096 said to his knights, weeping, " God! how marvellouslythat youth resembles my daughter Constance! " Andthen he gave Maurice great gifts, but would not granthim his petition; because, for the grief which he hadtaken for his daughter whom he thought dead, hewould never after eat at a joyful feast nor hear minstrelsy. Then Maurice prayed him according to the1091 form aforesaid; and the emperor granted him. It cameto pass on the eve of St John the Baptist, her birthday,when the feast was to be made on the following day,Constance said to the king, that for his courtesy heshould ride honourably to meet the emperor, to receiveTHE EMPEROR BIDDEN TO A FEAST. 49Constance be- Forty days aftersought the king to invite theemperor to afeast.charged withpuis Elda & lucius ount salue la dame, & a grantioie ount dieu mercye, que iames ne faut a¹ ceus quely2 ount affiaunce.3 Lendemayn le Rois ala prendreson absolucioun del mort sa mere. Et puis qil auoitcounte al pape pelagie, auant nome, tote les auentures,Le pape rendi grace a dieu. Puis apres quaraunte ioursque lui Rois auoit demore A Rome, vne noet ly priaCustaunce qil demaundast al Emperere, que demorrade Rome a dozze lieus, qil vousist' lui fere lonur³ qelui plust oue lui manger a Rome. E puis que la priereplust au Roi, Constaunce charga son fitz Morice del Maurice ismessager9; Et lui dist, Si Lemperour ne lui granttast the message.poynt sa priere, que dount ly request 10 pur lamour qilauoit al alme sa fille Constaunce; qar dount¹¹ sauoit elebien qe lemperour ne lui deneiroit 12 pas son 13 demaunde,com a nuly ne 14 fist qe pur lalme 15 sa° fille riens luipriast. Et puis, quant morice estoit deuaunt Lemperour venuz, oue la compaignie honurable, & auoit sonmessage fest de part le Roi son pere, Lemperour, tropsuppris de lamur del¹7 Iuuencel, dist a sez chiualers enploraunt18, " Dieu! com cel19 Iuuencel meruelousem*ntresemble ma fille Constaunce! " Et puis qil auoit 20 aMorice done grauntz douns, mes ne lui voleit otreyersa priere, puro ceo° que° pur le doel qe il auoit pris pursa fille, quil quida morte, 21 vnqes apres ne voleit a festede ioie manger no Mynistraucie oyer. Dount lui pria entreated to domorice solom la fourme auaunt dist; e lemperour22 luigranta. A-vynt23 la veil seynt Iohan le Baptistre, lafeste de sa natiuite, quant la fest 24 se deuoit fere le iourensuaunt, Constaunce dist al Rey,25 que a sa curtesie 26cheuachast honurablement encountre lemperour, pur16lui20 il dona.The emperor will not consent atfirst, but beingso for hisdaughter's sake,he yields.21 qi quida ele estre mort qi.12as. qen luy.103 11 esperance.adoncques luy requist,doncque.4 5graces. nuyt . 12 denyeroit.13 sa.7 vensist.89message.17luy.19 cist..256 maundast.15 14 le.sa. 16 honour.18 emplorant.22 sa alme. † tost.24 le Maungerie.23 Auient.26 † & luy pria. † qil.CH. ORIG.50 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.Man of Law's him in the city; and so it was done. And when theTale, line noble chivalry of Rome, with the citizens, came honourably in the company of the king, Constance begged herlord to alight from his horse to meet the emperor, whomshe already saw coming near. And Constance, beforeall the company, took her lord the king with her righthand, and Maurice her son with the left, and came and1105 greeted her father in these words: " My lord and fairfather Tiberius, I, Constance, your daughter, thankGod, who has granted me life even unto this day, thatI see you in health." And after the emperor had heardand seen his daughter, he had his heart seized withnever so sudden joy, that well nigh he had fallen fromhis horse; but King Alle and his son Maurice supported1114 him. Then with good right they made great joy.And Constance told her father all her adventures, andhow she had dwelt already twelve years in the houseof the Senator Arsemius and Helen, who then for thefirst time recognized her cousin, her uncle's daughter.Then, after other forty days were passed, when KingAlle returned thence into his own country, the EmperorTiberius, by the consent of Pope Pelagius and all thesenate of Rome, on account of his old age, took1121 Maurice as his companion in the Empire, and appointedhim his heir. And he was named Maurice of Cappadocia, because of Arsemius who was from Cappadocia,as is said before, at the beginning of this story. ThisMaurice was called by the Romans in Latin, " Mauritius Christianissimus imperator," that is to say," Maurice the Christian emperor. " Then Alle the king1142 of England, the ninth month after he had come toEngland, rendered his soul holily to God. And nighhalf a year after, Constance, who was in great honourCONSTANCE REVEALS HERSELF TO HER FATHER. 5146company go outemperor.dresses her father,who is so over- joyed that he well nigh falls from his horse.her father all herreceyuer en la Cite; & en-si fu fest. Et quant la noble The king and hischiualrie de Rome ou lez citezeynz vindrent en la com- to meet thepaignie le Rois honurablement, Constaunce pria sonseignur descendre de son destrer e° encountre Lemperour,² que ele ia vit³ venier depres. E Constance,de-vaunt tote la compaignie, prist son seignur le Roi,en la meyn destre & morice son fitz en la synistre, &vyent son pier saluer en cest paroles: ¶ " Mon seignur Constance ad-& beau pere Tiberye, ieo, Constaunce, vostre fille, mercydieux, qe vnqore a ceo7 iour mad graunte la vie, queieo vous veye en saunte. " E puis que lemperour outs safille oy e vieu, com⁹ ia de si sudeyne ieoye auoit lequore suspris, que apoi estoit de son destrer trebuche;Mes le Rois Alle10 e son fitz Moris le susporterent.11Dount a boun dreit, grant ioie demenerent. E Cus- Constance tellstaunce counta a soun pere12 totes sez auentures, e coment adventures.ele auoit ia dozze aunz demore en la mesoun al senatourArsemie 13 & heleyne, que ore primerement reconuseytsa nece, la fille son vncle. ¶ Puz apres autre° qaranteiours passetz, quant le Roi Alle sen returna en sonpais,14 lemperere 15 Tiberie, par assent le 16 pape pelagiede tout le senat de Rome, pur sa veillesse, 17 prist moricecompeignon de18 Empire, e lui clama son eyr. E estoitMoris de Capadoce nome pur Arsemie 19 questoit deCapadoce, com auant est dist al comencement de cestestoire. Cist moris fu20 apelle de 21 Romeyns en latin,"Mauricius christianissimus imperator." 22 Ceo est 23 adire, "Morice, Le christien emperor. " ¶ Puis Alle, le rei Alle dies .dengleterre, Le neofime moys apres qil estoit venuz enEngleterre, rendy lalme a dieu seintment.24 E apoyeForty days after,King Alle returns to England.Tiberius, on account of hisgreat Mauriceageco- , makesemperor.apres25 vn demi aan, Constaunce, que en grant honour ConstanceIt le Roy.2 † &. 3 veut ia.4 den preees a pee.5 sa.7 cest.6 senestre.8 yst.9 bien conu. 10 Allee.11 luy supponerent.12 † lemperour.13 Arsenie le senatour.14 vers Engleterre.15 lemperour.16 lassent del.17 S. puts pur sa veilesse after Tyberie.18 del.19 Puis Arsenye.22 Emperator.20 estoit.23 cest.2425 pres.21 dez.† & deuoutement.52 THE LIFE OF CONSTANCE.•Man ofLaw's and love with all the land, returned to Rome byreason ofTale, line the news which she heard of her father's sickness. The 1148thirteenth day after her coming, Tiberius died holily inthe arms of his daughter, and rendered his soul to God.And she, a year after, departed to God, in the year ofthe incarnation five hundred eighty and four, on StClement's day; and was buried at Rome, near herfather, in the church of St Peter. And Elda, who hadbrought Constance back to Rome, whilst returning toEngland, died devoutly at Tours, and was buried byLucius, bishop of Bangor aforesaid, in the church of StMartin. Then Lucius returned to his church of Bangor. The body of King Alle, king of England, wasburied in the church of St Amphibius at Winchester,where he died.DEATH OF CONSTANCE. 53& amur estoit a tote la terre, returna a Rome pur la returns to Rome.nouele que ele¹ oy de la maladie son piere;2 le tressime iour apres³ sa venu, morust Tiberie seintement Tiberius dies.4 deyns les bras sa fille, & rendi lalme a dieu. E eleapres vn5 aan trepassa a dieu, Laan del incarnacion Constance dies.cync Cent octaunte quarte, le iour seynt clement.¶ E fu enterre a Rome predes son pere, en leglise deseint pere. Et Elda, que auoit Constaunce remene a Elda dies.Rome, en retournaunt vers⁹ Engletere, morust deuoutement a tours, E par Lucius, Euesqe de Bangor, auantdit, fu enterre en lesglise 10 seyn Martyn. ¶ PuisLucius retourna a sa Esglise [de Bangor. le corps le RoyAllee, Roy dengleterre, fuist enterre en laglise seintAmphibe a] Wyncestre, ou il morust.1 quel.2† &.s de.64† Constance.75 dune.trepassoit.† ele.9 enuers.10 † de. 8pres.

552.The Tale ofThe life of Menelaus theEmperon(FROM SHIRLEY'S MS. OF THE EARLY- ENGLISH VERSION OF THEGESTA ROMANORUM, Harl. 7333)CONTAINING ANALOGUES OFThe Treason that the false Knight wrought Constance(Group B, 1. 619, 1. 591-617) ,AND OFThe renegade Steward's attempt on her chastity(Group B, 1. 914-24 ) .56Mr Thomas Wright's note on Chaucer's Constance, in his edition ofthe Canterbury Tales, is as follows:"The Man of Lawes Tale . . was probably taken direct from aFrench Romance. All the incidents in it are of frequent occurrence in medieval stories. The whole story is found in Gower; and a similarstory forms the plot of Emare (printed in Ritson's Metrical Romances)[thus far Tyrwhitt]. The treachery of King Alla's mother enters into the French romance of King Offa, preserved in a Latin form by Mat- thew Paris. It is also found in the Italian collection, said to havebeen composed in 1378, under the title of Il Pecorone di ser Giovanni Fiorentino (an imitation of the Decameron) giorno X, No. 1. Thetreason of the knight who murders Hermengilde is an incident in the French Roman de la Violette; and in the English metrical romance ofLe bone Florence of Rome (printed in Ritson's collection); and is foundin the English Gesta Romanorum, c. 69 ( ed. Madden) , joined in the latter place with Constance's adventure with the steward. It is also found inVincent of Beauvais, and other writers. Gower's version appears to be taken from the French chronicle of Nicolas Trivet, MS. Arundel, No. 56,fol. 45 v°."Following this information, I add to Trivet's Constance, the GestaTale of " Merelaus the Emperor " from Shirley's Harleian MS. 7333,which Sir F. Madden suggests was written by a scribe Impingham, asthat name is signed at the end of one of the poems (Gesta Rom. , ed.Madden, Roxburghe Club, 1838, p. xiii, note at foot).This Tale was versified by Occleve, who called Merelaus, ' Gerelaus ';and Warton quotes Occleve's lines describing how the ' feendly manstabs the Earl's child, and then puts the bloody knife into the sleepingEmpress's hand,For men shoulde have noon othir deemyng,But she had gilty ben of this murdring.(Warton, i. 296, ed. 1871. )The author of the Gesta Romanorum was, says Warton ( i. 297) ,' Petrus Berchorius, or Pierre Bercheur, a native of Poitou, who diedprior of the Benedictine convent of Saint Eloi at Paris in the year 1362.'Following Merclaus in the present volume, is Matthew Paris's storyabout the intercepted letters from his life of Offa the First, in Wats'sedition. Miss L. Toulmin Smith has read both our prints with theiroriginals.F. J. FURNIVALL.57Merelaus the Emperour.[ Harl. MS. 7333, leaf 201 , col. 2. ]Merelaus regnyd a wise Emperour; and he hada good Princess of Hungary.weddide¹ to wife pe kyngys dowter of Hungery, pe Merelaus wedswhiche was a faire woman, and fulle of werkis ofmercy. So in a certeyne tyme, pe Emperour as he layin his bed, purposid to visite pe holy lond; and perfore On going to thein þe morowe he callid to him þe Empresse, and hisbrothir, and penne he saide, " Dame, it may not beHoly Land,laynd, or helid, or kepte fro pe, that I wolle to pe holyRegent in hislond; þat is my ful purpose; and perfore I ordene andsette þe in my stede, for to rule and gouerne pe Empire, he makes herin worship to me, and profite to my peple." Thenne stead.saide she, " Sithen it may be noon othir way, be it donas pou wolt haue it, and I shal be turtille in yourabsence pat hadde lost hire make; for I trowe þat yewolle turne home azen in goode helthe. " The Emperourconfortid hire with faire and swete wordes, and kistehire, and tooke his leve, and passid his wey. Whennehe was gon, his brothir wex prout, and depresside When he hasriche and poore, and 3it stirid the Emperesse to synne;but she, as a goode woman shulde do, seide þat shewolde not by no way assent to synne, as longe as hireThe scribe's curls and crosses- though often probably,if not certainly, mere flourishes-to final d, f, g, h, ll , n, p, r,are represented by an italic c.gone, his Brother,the Steward,tries to seduce the Empress.1158 THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.husbonde livid. But he wolde not leeve so, but euermore stirid hire perto, whenne pat he my3te fynde hireby hire oone. At þe laste, whenne pe Emperesse saweþat he wolde not be corectid, ne amendid of his foly,she callid to hire iij . or iiij . worthi lordis of pe Empire,The Empress bids and saide to hem, " Seris, ye wete wele, pat my lord her Lords castthe Steward[¹ MS it]into prison.They do so.Just before the Emperor comes back,the Stewardprays the Empress for mercy,and promises to amend.She frees him,maad me pe principalle of his Empire, and pat hisbrothir shulde be stiward vndir me, And þat he shuldenot do withoute me; And he depressithe, as ye see wel,poore and simple peple, spoilithe riche and grete, andmoore harme wolde do if¹ þat he myste; for pe whicheI charge you, þat ye strongly bynde him, and caste himin prisone." Thenne saide pei, " Certenly, he hathe domckille Iville sithe he went, And perfore with gladhertis we shulle fulfille your wille." Anoone þei laidehondis vpon him, and bond him in pe prisone, withbondis of yre; and perfore he was many day. So atpe laste word come, pat pe Emperour was in comyngehome; and thenne thought he to him selfe, " If mylorde come home, and fynde me here, he wolle sperethe cause of myne enprisonement, And thenne shewolle telle him pe cause, howe pat I temptid here tosynne, And thenne shalle I neuer haue grace of him,and happely lese my life. " And thenne anoon he senta message to be Empresse, payinge hire pat she woldefowche safe to come to pe prisone, and speke with hima word. Whenne pe Empresse hurde pe message, shecom doun and askid of him what he wolde. Thennesaid he, " Gentille lady, haue mercy on me, for if mylord fynde me here, I am but ded. " " If y knewe,"quop she, "pat pou wolde leeve thy foly, and pat Imy3t fynde pe a goode honest man, 3it pou shuldisthaue grace." And he saide " 3is; " and perto he madesurte of feithe. Thenne she brouzt him out of theprisone, and gert bathe him, and clyppe him, andshave him; and thenne she araide him in preciousMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 59and takes him with her to meetthe Emperor.But on the road,again tries tothe Stewardseduce theEmpress,and threatens to hang her up to a tree by her hair if she won'tclothinge, and saide to him, " Brothir, nowe take pipalfray, and come with me, and ride with me azenst ourlord. " The Empresse rood to meete with him, with pisstiward, and many othir lordis and mynystris, in agrete multitude. And as thei were ridinge per ran anhynde in the wey, with a swifte pase; And penne alleþat sawe hire svyde aftir with houndis, as hard as theimy3te, So that noon was lefte with pe lady, but only pestiward. And when he sawe pat, he said, " Dame,heere biside is a prive forest, and it is longe sithe Ilovid you; go we nowe pidir, and lat me play withthe." Thenne saide she, " Sey, foole, howe menystpou? dude I not 3istirday deliuer þe out of prisone, forpou sholdist leeve thi foly, and nowe pou turnyst þer tosoone azen? I telle pe nowe as I dude afore, pat pershalle noon do it with me but myne husbonde, patmay chalange it by lawe." Thenne saide he, " Forsothe and but pou assent to me, I shalle hong pe by þeheire vp on a tre here in pe forest, wher neuer noon yield to him .shalle mete with the, And so pou shalt haue a fowleende." Thenne saide she, " And po3 pou smyte pe hedfro my body, and vse in me alle maner of tormentis, She refuses.pou shalt neuer compelle me to synne. " Thenne henakid hire evene to be smok, and honge hire by peheeris vp on an Oke; And he bond hire horse by petre. And whenne he hadde done pus, he rood to hisfelowis azen, and saide, pat a gret multitude of peplehad stolyne and Ravisshid þe lady from hym; And þer-.fore was maade gret sorowe ouer alle pe Empire.Aftir, within thre days, ther huntyd an Erle in theforest; And as pe houndis ronne after pe wolfis, theilefte hire rennynge, and tooke hireWhenne pe Erle sawe pat, he mersmot pe horse with pe sporis, andpursuyd, tille he com to be tre where pe lady henge.And whenne pe Erle sawe hire honge ther by pe heeris,felte a sauour, andcours vnto pe tre.veilide hiely, andHe strips her,and hangs herup on an onk.Three days after,an Earl outhunting finds her,60 THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.and says he'll free her if she will teach his little girl.She agrees,is taken to his castle,and lies in thetakes pity on her, he hadde gret compassione of hire, by cause pat shewas so faire; And saide to hire, " Sey, woman), whatart pou, and whi hongist pou pus?" And she was onlive, by pe mirakille of god, and saide to him, " I ama woman of straunge contre, and howe I honge here Inot; god wot! " And thenne saide pe Erle, " Whosehorse is pis, pat stondithe by pe tre? " "Sir," quop þelady, "it is myne." The Erle trowid she was somegrete gentille woman), and hadde of hire pe morepite; and saide to hire, " A! deere frend, pou semysta gentille woman) and dame. I haue at home a litillechilde to dowter, and if pou wolt vndirtake to norishehire vp, and teche hire, pou shalt be deliueryd fro pispeyne, and per to haue goode Reward." Thenne saideshe, " Sir, in as moche as I may I wille fulfille yourwille." pe Erle took hire downe, and brouzt hire tohis castelle, and took his douzter in to hire kepinge;and therfore she lay in þe same chambir pat pe contesselay in. And pe contesse hadde a dameselle ligging bytwyne hire and pe Empresse, and euery ny3t was listbrennynge pere in a lampe; and she bare hire so wel,pat she was lovid of alle men. But pis Erle hadde inhis halle a stiward, and he lovid moche pe Emperesse,and ofte tyme spake to hire of synfulle love, And euershe answerid to him ayen, and saide, pat she haddey-made a vowe to god, þat she shuld neuer love noonby suche maner love, but him pat pe lawe of god woldeþat she lovid. Thenne saide pe stiward, with gret indignacione, "pou wolt not graunte me by no way?"Thenne saide she, " No, what wolle ye more perof! Ihe'll be revenged Wolle kepe pe vowe pat I haue maade to god." Thestiward zede away, and poste, " I wolle be vengid of pe,if I may." It happid in a certeyne ny3te, pat pe doreCountess's room, of pe Erlis chambir was I-lefte opyne; & pe stiwardperceyvid it, and went in, And fonde alle on slepe.And whenne he fond alle on slepe, he lokid aboute byCountess's room.The Earl's Steward tempts the Empress to sin,and when she refuses, swearson her.One night he gets into theMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 61sees her child in the Empress'sbed, cuts its throat,and puts the bloody knife inthe Empress's hand.wakes;sees the knife in the Empress's hand,who sees it too,list of pe lampe, and sawe pe bed of pe Emperesse;And whenne he sawe pe Emperesse liggynge with theErlis douzter, he drowe out a knyfe, and cutte thethrote of the childe; And thenne putte priuyliche peknyfe in the hond of pe Emperesse, for intent pat pelord, whenne he wakid, my3t see by the ly3t of belampe pe blody knyfe, And deme in his herte pat shehadde slayne pe childe with hire owne knyfe, And soto give hire Iville dethe. Aftir alle this, þat þe stiwardhadde slayne pe childe, and putte pe knyfe in the hondof pe Emperesse, It happid pe contesse to wake; and as The Countessshe lokid vp, and out of the bed, she perceyvid howeþat þe Empresse hadde in hire hond a blody knyfe.And with that sizt she was ny out of mynde, and saideto hire husbond, with an hye vois, " Ser, ser, awake,and loke to pe bed of pe lady, And see what she holdithe in hire honde! " The Erle wakid, and lokid to be wakes the Earl,bedde; and whenne he sawe pe blody knyfe, he wasnot a litille trowblid in spirite, and cride to hire, andsaide, “ Awake, pou woman), what is pat in thihonde? " Thenne pe Emperesse awoke thorowe cry- and then theinge, and þe knyfe felle out of hire honde; and shelokid aside, and sawe pe childe dede, and felte pe bedfulle of bloode. Thenne she cryde with an hye voys,and saide, "Out allas! my lordis douzter is slayne! "Whenne pe countesse hurde pat hire douzter was dede,she cryde to hire lorde with a soroufulle voys, andsaide, " Go sle pis deville or woman), whedir she be,that pus hathe slayne our douzter." And then pe countesse spake to pe Empresse, and saide, " It is opynlyseeyne, þat þou hast kilde my childe with pi knyfe, andwith pyne owne hondis, And perfore pou shalt haue afowle dethe. " Thenne saide pe Erle to hire, with gretsorowe of herte, " Woman), if drede of God were not,sothely I wold smyte thyne hed fro pe body with myswerde; sithen I savid pe fro dethe, and pou now hastEmpress wakes,sees the child dead, feels the blood, and cries,The child is slain!'The Countess tells the Empressshe has killed the child,and she shall die for it.The Earl re- proaches her for her ingratitude,62 THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.and tells herto be gone.slayne my douзter. Neuerthelese for me shalt pouhaue noone harme; but sone, I charge pe, go out of mycontre, for if euer I fynde pe after pis day in myne[ P countre. But counte, sothely pou shalt neuer ete bred."an Earl ruled a county.]The Empress rides off east- ward,ransoms a man from the gallows,and he follows her to a city,ThusEmpresse was fulle of sorowe, and dude on hire clothis,and took hire palfray, and rood toward pe eest; Andas she so rood by pe way, she sawe a paire of Galowison pe lefte hond, and cacchepollis ledynge a man) forto be ded. The Empresse mevid thorowe pite, smotthe hors with the sporis, and went to the Iebet, andsaide to be cacchepollis, " Deere frendis, I am redy tobey pis man fro dethe, if 3e wolle saue him for mede. "3is," quop pei Sc pe lady accordid with hem, andsavid þe man; and thenne saide pe lady to him, " Deerefrende, be nowe fro hense forward a trewe man), sitheI savid pi life." " 3is, lady," quop he, " and that Ibihote pe." And so he folowid pe lady. And whennepei were come ny a cyte, the lady saide to him, "Goafore in to pe cite, and Ordayne for me an honestwhere they lodge. hostery." And he so dude; and she dwelte in pe cyteby many days, And men of the cite had hye mervaileShe refuses men's of hire fairenesse, and ofte tyme spake to hire, for offers to sin.She sends her manto a ship to buy clothes for her.The Shipmastercomes to her,and agreesto sell her some clothes.""doynge of synne, but pei my3te not spede. Happidsoone aftir, þat per come a shippe, I-chargid with manymaner of marchaundise; and whenne pe lady hurdespeke perof, she sade to hire seruaunt, " Go to peshippe, and loke if pou see ony goode clothis for me.'The seruaunt entrid the shippe, and fonde per manydiuerse precious clothis; And he saide to pe maister ofthe shippe, pat he shulde come, and speke with hislady. The maister grauntide. The seruaunt zedehome agayne, and tolde hire howe pe maister woldecome. So be maister come to hire, and worshipfullysalusyd hire; And pe lady spake to him for clothe forhire werynge, and he grauntid hire. So pe seruauntzede azen with him to be ship; and than pe maisterMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 63bribes theservant to puther in his power.saide to him, " Deere frend, I wolde shewe to the myconsaile, if I may triste þe; and if pou wolle my consail kepe, sothely I shalle wele reward pe for thi mede. "Then saide pat othir, " I wolle swere vpon a booke, patI shalle kepe thi consail, and perto helpe pe, in alle þatI may." Then saide pe maister, " I love hire more pan The Shipmasterþou wolt leve, ther is in hire suche a fairnesse, and Empress'sperfor I wold 3ive alle the goode pat I haue, for to haueof hire my wille; And if I may haue hire by thynehelpe or consail, do aske of me what pou wolt, and Ishalle pay pe." Thenne saide the seruaunt, " Telle mehow pou wolde I dude, pat she weere at me. " Thennesaide he, "pou shalt go to hire, & say to hire, pat Iwolle not late out my clothe by no way to no creature,and so make hire come to me to shippe; But late hirenot come to shippe tille tyme pat ther rise a gretwynde, for thenne I shalle leede hire away with me,and she shalle not scape." "This is a good conseil," The traitorousquop þe traitour; " but give me my mede, And then Ishalle fulfille your wille." When the traitour haddereceivid his meede, he went to his lady, and tolde hire and tells thehowe pe maister wolde not sende his clothe oute of hisshippe, " But he prayd you, þat ye wolle come downeto pe watir, and per ze shulle see and haue clothis atyour owne wille." The lady trowid pe traitour, andwent to be ship; and when she enterid pe ship, pe She goes;traytour seruaunt aboode with oute. And then pemaister, seynge a gret wynde to rise vp, he sette vp the Master setssayle, and faste rowyde; And when pe lady perceyvidpis tresone, she was gretly mevid in mynde, and saide,"What kynnys tresone is pis, þat þou hast y-do tome? " "Nay," quop he, " it is noone othir tresone butþat I shalle comune with pe fleshely, And wedde pe towife." Thenne saide she, " Sir, I haue maade a voweto god, þat I shalle neuer do pat trespace, but withhim þat I am bounden to in lawe. " " Sey not so,"servant takes hismoney,Empressshe must goto the ship to seethe clothes for sale.sail,[ cp . Paris and Helen. ]64. THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.and says he'll throw her intoyields to him.quop he; "pou art nowe in myddes of pe see, and perthe sea unless she for but pou consent to me, I shalle caste pe in myddesof pe watir. " Thenne saide pe lady, " Sithe it shallebe so, ordeyne me a place in pe ship, And I shalle doþy wille or I dye." The maister trowid to hire wordis;And she drowe a curteyne, when she was in, betwynehir and him; And thenne she knelid doun, and madehire prayeris to god in theise wordis, " My Lord god,She asks for a place to prepare herself in.Then she kneels,and prays God to keep her from sin.At once atempest rises,and drowns all on board exceptShipmaster.She escapes to aNunnery,and heals many sick folk.þat hast y-kept me fro my 30wthede, kepe me now inpis hour, þat I be not filid, pat I may 3ive pe my sowlewith a clene hert. " When pis orisone was y-maad, perros vp so gret a tempest in pe see, pat pe shippe brake,the Empress and and alle were A-dreynt, except pe lady And pe maister.The lady drowe to a bord, the whiche bare hire to thelond; and pe maister tooke an othir bord, and so passidto be londe, But neithir of hem knewe of otheris saluacione. The lady went to an Abbaye of nonnys, andther she was worshipfully receivid; and dwelte perlonge, and livide an holy life by longe tyme, in somoche pat god lent hire grace pat she heelid many sykefolke; And perfore alle syke in euery syde pe Abbaydrowe thedir to be heelid, And ioyefully were sped.Nowe pe brothir of hure husbonde pat hongid hire bype heire, was a foul lypre; the kny3t pat slowe pe Erlisdouzter, and putte the blody knyfe in hire hond, wasdef and blynde; the seruaunt þat hadde bytrayd hir,was haltynge; And pe maister of pe ship was halfe outof mynde. When pe Emperour hurde telle, pat suchean hooly and a vertuys woman) was in suche a place,he saide to his brothir, " Deere frende, go we to patabbay, pat pe hooly woman) may heele pe of pi lipre. "Thenne saide he, "3a, lorde, if I shulde." Anoonwithoute tareynge, the Emperour, in his owne persone,tooke his brothir, and went to pe nonnys; And whennonnys hurde telle of the Emperours comynge, Theiwent ayenst him with processioun. The EmperourThe Emperor's Brother is aleper.The Earl's Steward is deaf and blind.Her former Servant is lame.The Shipmaster is half mad.The Emperor brings his Brother to the Empress's Nunnery.The nuns go in procession to meet him.theMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 65enspered of te prioresse, if þat ther were ony suche anhooly woman therynne among hem, And she saide" 3a," And he baade, pat she shulde come forthe; Andthei maade hire come forthe, and speke with pe Emperour.make opyneThanne hehides her face.The Emperor asks her if shecan heal his Brother,She says, notconfess his sins.unless he willThe Brother confesses allThe emperesse hydde hire face with a wympille, The Empressfor she wolde not ben y-knowe; And so she come tohim, and worshipfully she salusid him. And thennepe Emperour saide to hire, "Faire lady, can ye heelemy brothir of lepre? If ye conne, aske of me what yewolle, and ye shulle haue it. " The Empresse lokidabowte hire, and she perceyvid that pe brothir of peEmperour stood per a foul lepre, and wormys sprongout at þe visage on eche syde; And for pe Emperourwas ther with his sike brothir, alle syke peple þat wasther abowte come thedir to be heelid. And thennesaide pe Emperesse to be Emperour, " Ser, if ye gaf mealle your Empire, I may not heele your brothir, but ifhe were confessid Amonge alle pe peple." The Emperour turnyde to his brothir, and baad hymconfessioun, þat he my3t be clanside.maade confessioun of alle his life, Except howe þat hehongid pe Emperesse by pe heyris, that that wold henot towche of. Thenne saide pe Emperesse to peEmperour, " Sir, If I putte medecyne to him, it is butveyne þat I do, for he is not zit fully confessid."Thenne pe Emperour tournyde to his brothir, andesaide, "pou 30man), what soory wrecchidnesse is inpe? Seist pou not wele, þat þou art a lothely lypre?wolt pou not telle alle forthe, þat þou may be maadehoole & clene? Shryve pe anoone, or ellys pou shaltbe putte out of my company for euermore. " "A!lord," quop he, " I may not shryue me, tyl tyme þat Ihaue surte of þi grace and mercy." Then saideEmperour, "What! hast pou trespassid vnto me? ""3is, sir," quop pat othir, "I haue hiely trespassidayenst you, and perfore I aske mercy or I shalle seyCII. ORIG. 5peexcept his sinEmpress.against theshe says he hasfessed.not fully conHe says heEmperor procannot, till themises to forgive him.66 THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.The Emperor promises.Then the Brother 3ive the it."confesses how he tempted the Empress, and hung her up by her hair.what it is." The Emperour thought no thynge of peEmperesse, for he trowid pat she had ben ded manyday afore; And perfore he saide to him, "Telle boodelywhat pou hast trespassid ayenst me, for dowteles I forThenne saide he, howe pat he stirid peEmperesse to synne, and perfore hongid hire by þeheerys. Whenne pe Emperour hurde pat, he was nywood in herte, and saide, " A! false harlot, veniaunceof god is falle vpone pe; and if I hadde knowyne thisbyfore, I shulde haue put pe to be fowlist dethe patony man myzte haue." Thenne saide pe knyzt, þatslowe pe Erlys douzter, " I wote not of what lady 30spekyn, but ther heng a lady by the heyre in suche aforest, and my lord pe Erle took hire downe, andbroughte hire to his castelle, to be his norishe; and Ilay aboute to synne, and for I my3t not haue my willehim, the Steward, of hire, I slowe my lordis dowter, as she lay slepingewith hire in pe bed; And penne I putte pe knyfe in þeNext, the Earl's Steward says that his Lord saved such aLady, andbecause she wouldn't sin withhe killed the Earl's child,and put the knife in her hand.Then the Empress's old Servant says aLady rescued him,and he betrayed herto a Ship- master, whohond of pe Lentil woman), for she shulde bere peblame per of; And perfore pe Erle putte hire out of hisErldom, but I not whedir she becom, after pat tyme. "Thenne saide be thefe, pe traitour, "I knowe not ofwhat lady ye speke, but per was a faire lady pat savidme frome dethe, fro pe iebet, when I sholde haue behongid, and paide for me a grete summe of money;and aftir þat I falsly bitraide hire to a maister of aship, þat he shulde haue hire to his concubyne; andwhenne I hadde vndir a gret trayne broust hire to hisship, he sette vp sayle, and ladde hire away; but whatbifelle aftirward I ne wist, ne whedir she bicome."Lastly, the Ship Thenne saide pe maistir of pe ship, " Sothely and suchea lady received I into my ship, by deceyte of hireseruaunt; And whenne I was with hire in myddys ofpe see, I wolde haue synnyd with hire, and she turnydhire to praiynge; and when she hadde maad hirepraieris, penne per ros a tempest, & brake pe ship, andcarried her off to make her his concubine.master says he did carry off the Lady,meaning to sin with her;but her prayers wrought atempest;wwwwMAN-OF- LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 67but saved on aThentheEmpress heals all thesesinners, and[all] was dreynt, and I socourid me withe a bord, and he was wreckt,so I was brought to londe; But what bicome of þat board.lady, whedir she was dreynt or savide, I not." Thencryde pe Emperesse with an hye vois, and saide, "3eben alle cleene confessid, and perfore I wolle nowmedecynys put to you." And so she heelid hem alle.Thenne pe lady shewide hire face among hem alle.Whenne the Emperour hadde knowliche of hire, he ranfor gladnesse, and halsid hire, and kist hire, and wepteright soore as a childe for gladnesse, and saide, "Noweblessid be God, for I haue founde that I haue hielydesiride! " And withe moche ioy brou3t hire home to takes her home;pe palys, and faire life endid, in pes and in charite.Moralite.shews her face.The Emperor knows her,kisses her,and they live and die in peace.The Spiritual Meaning of this Story.is Christ. To our gostely purpos pis Emperour is our lorde The Emperorihesu crist; the wife is pe sowle of man; The brothir The Empress isof pe Emperour is man), to whom god 3ivithe cure ofhis Empire, scilicet of his body, but principally of besoule. But thenne pe wrecchide fleshe ofte tyme stirithebe soule to synne; But þe soule, pat lovithe god afore allethinge, And euer withstondithe synne, and takithe hispower, scilicet resone and vndirstondinge, and suche afleshe þat wolle not be obedient to pe spirite, he makitheto be prisonid in pe prisone of penaunce, til tyme þathe wolle obey vnto resone. Thenne pe Emperour is tocome home fro pe holy londe, scilicet crist comithe tosynner, scilicet puttithe him in pe mynde of a synner.Thenne pe synner thenkithe on him, and criethe forgrace; And as ofte tyme as he hathe hope þat he hathegrace, he is bolde to synne ayen; But a-yenst suche aman spekithe Scripture, and seiythe pus, Maledictushom*o qui peccat in spe, Cursid be pe man thatsynnithe in hope. And so pe soule ofte tyme enclinetheathe Soul of man;the Emperor's Brother is man,whose flesh stirsthe Soul to sin.The coming from the Holy Land isChrist's coming to a sinner.68 THE EMPRESS, MENELAUS'S WIFE.The going to meettheEmperor is the meeting God at Easter.to it, And latithe it go out of pe prisone, trustynge,and perfore wassh*the of alle pe filthe, and clensithe itwith goode vertuys, and makith it go opyne pe hors ofcharite, & to ryde in goode werkis, pat he meete withgod in pe day of Pask. But ofte tyme pe synnerOn the road the trespassithe by pe way, in pe hooly tyme, And anhynde arisithe vp, scilicet dilectacioun of synne, and allepe wittys rennythe after, thorow werkynge of synfullewerkys; And houndys, scilicet shrewde thowtys, euermore berkith, and entisithe so, pat a man, scilicet pefleshe, and pe soule stondithe and abidithe stille, andsinner sins;the flesh stirs the livithe to-geder withoute ony vertu. Thenne pe fleshe Soul to sin;seithe pat, and what doithe he but stirithe pe soule,whiche is pe spouse of crist, vnto synne. But pe soule,pat is so lovid and weddid to god, wolle not leeve god,ne graunt to synne; And perfore pe wrecchid flesh oftetyme spoilethe a man of his clothinge, scilicet of goodeand the mangets vertuys; and then he hongithe him vpon an oke, scilicetwordly love, by pe heire, scilicet by Ivel, and be wrongecouetise, tille tyme pat ther come an Erle, scilicet ahung on the oak ofworldly love.The Earl hunting prechour or a discrete confessour, in pe forest of pis is the Preacher,who brings the Soul to Holy Church, to teach his daughter,Conscience.The Earl's Steward is the Pride ofLife,which slays the Conscience.wordle, for to hunte thorowe prechynge and goode conseilynge, berkynge and shewinge of holy scripture;and so he bringithe pe lady, scilicet pe soule of man), tohis house, scilicet hooly chirche, to norissh his dowter,scilicet conscience, in werkis of mercy. This Erle hathea lampe, scilicet a confessour or a prechour, And biforethe ye of his herte pe lampe of hooly scripture, yn þewhiche he seithe knowlychinge of pe soule, and vertuysin servinge. The stiward, pat askid hire of synne, ispryde of life, the whiche is stiwarde of pe wordle, by pewhiche many ben deceyvid; but pe soule, pat is sobilovid with god, wolle not assent to pryde; but oftetyme he proferithe to a man) a purs fulle of gold andsiluer, and castithe a- fore his yene, and so he sleithethe dameselle, stilicet hooly conscience; and perfor it isMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, I. 69wretyn pus, Munera excecant oculos iudicum, et peruertunt sapientes, ita quod veritas vel equitas nonpotuit ingredi, set stetit a longe, et iudicium retrorsum conuersum vidit, this is to say, 3iftis blyndithe pe yene ofiugis, And peruertithe or turnithe into werswise men, so pat truthe or equite myght not entery, butstood afarre, and sawe pe dome turnyd bacward. Andsuche ben to be put out of pe lape of holy chirche, as waspe lady from pe Erldome. Nowe she roode alle one, andsaw a man lad to pe iebette. Seris, a man may beladde to dethe by dedly synne; and therfor do as dudeþe lady, when she smot pe hors with the spores, andsavid þe mannys life, So do pou smyte and prikke pifleshe with penaunce, and helpe þi nezebor in his nede,and not only in temporalle goodis, but also in spiritualle goodis and gostely confort; And perfore seiythesalamone, Ve soli! Wo be to him pat is alle one! scilicet lyvynge in synnys, for he hathe noon helpe, wherbyþat he may not ryse ayen. And perfore haste pe, and helppe and pi nezebour out of pe diche; for man þat is not,but if he zive a drynke of water at pe Reuerence ofgod, but þat he shalle be rewardid perfore. But manyben vnkynde, as was pe thefe pat deceivid þe lady, aftirþat she maade him to be savide, as doithe many patSouls pervertedout of Holy by gifts are putChurch.whenthou seest a Soul led todeath by sin,Empress;save it!do like thespur to it andHelp thy neigh- bour out of theditch!But many return evil for good,like the Empress'sis the world,which can bezildithe Iville, for good; as seyithe Isaias, Ve illis, qui servant.dic*nt bonum malum, et malum bonum, Wo be to Woe to them!hem, þat seiythe and callithe good Iville, and Iville good.The maister of þe ship is pe wordle, by the whiche The Shipmastermany ben deceivide in þe see, scilicet yn þe wordle. þeship is brokyne as ofte tyme as a man chesithe wil.fully pouerte, And for cause of god obeyithe to hisprelat; And thenne he hatith pe wordle, and alle hiscouetise, for it is vnpossible bothe to plese god and pewordle. The lady 3cde to be selle; so pe sowle As the Empressturnythe to hooly life fro worldly vanyteys; And so Nunnery,wreckt by vowsofpoverty.went to the70 THE EMPRESS, MERELAUS'S WIFE.Sothe Soul should turn fromand then all its diseases will be cured.alle. the wittis, by which the soule was troubelyd andworldly vanities, slayne, by diuerse infirmiteys, as yene by wrongcouetise, herynge by bacbitinge, as glad for to herebacbiters, and bacbitynge and detraccioun, and so ofothir. And perfore be soule may not Iville be seeynewith crist, hire spouse, tille tyme pat pe yene beopenyd, the eeris ben 3ivyne, and turnyd to helthe,and so of othir wittis. And if þat it come pus abowte,dowteles pe sowle shalle go with crist, hire spouse, tope Palys of Heuene. Ad quod nos ducat! Amen.Not till the Soul is cleansed, can she go with her spouse, Christ,to the Palace of Heaven.713.King Offa's intercepted Lettersand banisht Queen,to compare with King Alla'sin Chaucer's “ Man-of-Law's Tale.”FROMMATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.

73King Offa's intercepted Letters and banisht Queen,Part of Matthew Paris'sLife of Offa the First.the counsels ofbegan to rule wisely,¹Acquiescens igitur seniorum consiliis et sapientum So, listening topersuasionibus, cœpit totius Regni habenas irreprehen- his Elders, hesibiliter, imò laudabiliter, habenas moderanter et sapienter gubernare. Sic igitur subactis hostibus Regniuniversis, viguit pax secura et firmata in finibusAnglorum per tempora longa, præcipuè tamen perspatium temporis quinquennale. Erat autem jam being now thirtytriginta quatuor annos ætatis attingens, annis prosperèpubescentibus.four years of age.Hunting one day,a storm came on,and he was separated fromhis company.Et cum Rex more juvenili, venatus gratia pernemora frequenter, cum suis ad hoc convocatis venatoribus et canibus sagacibus, expeditus peragrasset, contigitdie quadam quod aëre turbato, longè à suorum catervasemotus, solus per nemoris opaca penitus ipsorumlocorum necnon et fortunæ ignarus, casu deambulabat.Dum autem sic per ignota diverticula incautiùs ober- As he wanderedraret et per invia, vocem lachrymabilem et miserabiliter paths, he heard aquerulam haud longè à se audivit: Cujus sonitum pitous voice;secutus, inter densos fruitices virginem singularis formæet Regii apparatus, sed decore venustissimam, ex insperato reperit. Rex vero rei eventum admirans, quæ' Matthew Paris (Wats's ed. 1684), Vita Offæ Primi (pp.965-968).by strange byefollowing whichhe found in themaiden of exthicket midst aquisite beautyand royally costumed.74 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.Questioned touching herself,she said:"There was adaughter of acertain Prince ofYork, with whom her father,devil, fell inibi ageret et querelæ causas, eam blandè alloquens,cœpit sciscitari. Quæ ex imo pectoris flebilia trahenssuspiria, Regi respondit. Nequaquam in auctorem sedin seipsam reatum retorquens; " Peccatis meis " inquit"exigentibus infortunii hujus calamitas mihi accidit.Erat autem Reguli cujusdam filia qui Eboracensibusseduced by some præerat. Hujus incomparabilis pulchritudinis singularem eminentiam pater admirans, amatorio dæmoneseductus, cœpit eam incestu libidinoso concupiscere, etad amorem illicitum, sæpe sollicitare ipsam puellamminis, pollicitis, blanditiis, atque muneribus adolescentulæ temptans emollire constantiam. Illa autemoperi nefario nullatenus adquiescens, cum pater tamenminas minis exaggeraret & promissa promissis accumularet, munera muneribus adaugeret; juxta illud Poetilustful love.Ofttimes he tempted her to sin; but she would in no wise acquiesce.Wherefore he bade that she should be con- veyed to aremote waste- land, and there cruelly slain andleft to the beasts.cum,Imperium, promissa, preces, confudit in unum:elegit magis incidere in manus hominum, et etiamferarum qualiumcunque, vel gladii subire sententiam,quam Dei offensam incurrere, pro tam gravi culpamanifestam. Pater itaque ipsam sibi parere constanterrenuentem, evocatis quibusdam malignæ mentis hominibus quos ad hoc elegerat, præcepit eam in desertumsolitudinis remotæ duci, vel potiùs trahi, et crudelissima morte condemnatam, bestiis ibidem derelinqui.Qui cum in locum horroris et vasta solitudinis pervenissent, trahentes eam seductores illi, Deo ut credituring her fairness, inspirante, miserti pulchritudinis illius eam ibidemsine trucidatione et membrorum mutilatione, vivam,sed tamen sine aliquorum victualium alimento (exceptistalibus quæ de radicibus et frondibus vel herbis colligiurgente ultima fame possunt) dimiserunt. "The agents of this doom, pityleft her unslain.'The King took her along with him, till they reached the abode of a certain Solitary;Cum hac Rex aliquandiu habens sermonem, comitemitineris sui illam habuit, donec solitarii cujusdam habitationem reperissent: ubi nocte superveniente quiescentes pernoctaverunt. In crastinum autem solitariusMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, II. 75the morrowKing and his companion as far as his own territory.The maid was now entrusted tothe care of certain courtiers.his nobles,present and thekingdom,ille viarum et semitarum peritus, Regem cum comite who onsua usque ad fines domesticos, et loca Regi non ignota conducted theconduxit. Ad suos itaque Rex rediens, desolatæ illiusquam nuper invenerat curam gerens, familiaribus etdomesticis generis sui sub diligenti custodia commisit.Post hæc aliquot annis elapsis, cum Rex cœlibemagens vitam mente castus et corpore perseveraret, Some years after,Proceres ditionis suæ, non solùm de tunc præsenti sed anxious for thede futuro sibi periculo præcaventes, et nimirum multùm future ofthesolliciti, Dominum suum de uxore ducenda unanimiter entreated himconvenerunt; ne sibi et Regno, successorem et hæredemnon habens, post obitum ipsius imminens periculumgeneraret. Etatis enim juvenilis pubertas, morummaturitas, et urgens Regni necessitas, necnon et honorisdignitas, itidem postularunt. Et cum super hoc negotio sæpius Regem sollicitarent, et alloquerentur, ipsemultoties joculando, et talia verba asserendo interludia But he joked thefuisse vanitatis; Procerum suorum constantiam dissimulando differendoque, delusit. Quod quidamto marry.matter aside.At last, further pressed, he began to consider,had found in the. advertentes, communicato cum aliis consilio, Regemad nubendum incunctabiliter urgere cœperunt. Rexvero, more optimi Principis, cujus primordia jam benesubarraverat, nolens voluntati Magnatum suorum resistere, diu secum de thori socia, libra profundærationis, studiosè cœpit deliberare. Cumque hoc inmente sua sollicitiùs tractaret, venit fortè in mentem and presently bethought himsuam illius juvenculæ memoria, quam dudum inter of the maiden hevenandum invenit vagabundam, solam, feris et præ- woods,donibus miserabiliter expositam; quam ad tutioraducens, familiaribus generis sui commiserat alendamac charius custodiendam. Quæ, ut Rex audivit, moribus laudabiliter redimita, decoris existens expectabilis,omnibus sibi cognitis amabilem exhibuit et laudabilem.Hæc igitur sola, relictis multis, etiam Regalis stem- and her he tookmatis, sibi oblatis, complacuit; illámque solam inmatrimonium sibi adoptavit.ofwhom all that knew her spokewith love and praise;to wife.76 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.In due time she bare to him lovely children,both boys and girls;strengthened,and was glad;and the King held in high honour, both at home and abroad,Cùm autem eam duxisset in uxorem, non interveniente multa mora, elegantissimæ formæ utriusque sexusliberos ex eadem procreavit. Itaque cùm priùs essetRex propria severitate subditis suis formidabilis, Magand the land was nates ejus necnon et populus ejus universus hæredumet successorum apparentia animati, Regni robur etlætitiam geminarunt. Rex quoque ab universis suis,et non solùm propè positis, imò alienigenis et remotis,extitit honori, venerationi, ac dilectioni. Et cùm interse in Britannia, (quæ tunc temporis in plurima Regnamultifariam divisa fuisset) Reguli sibi finitimi hostiliterse impeterent; solus Rex Offa pace Regni sui potitus,feliciter se sibique subditos in pace regebat et libertate.Unde et adjacentium Provinciarum Reges ejus mendicabant auxilium, et, in necessitatis articulo, consilium.Then it cameto pass that the King ofthe Northumbrians,sore harassed by the Scots and certain of his own subjects,prayed Offa to succour him,offering to marryRex itaque Northam-Humbrorum, à barbara Scotorum gente et etiam aliquibus suorum graviter et usquefermè ad internecionem percussus, et propriæ defensionis auxilio destitutus, ad Offam regem potentem .Legatos destinat; et pacificum supplicans, ut præsidiiejus solatio contra hostes suos roboretur, tali mediantehis daughter and conditione, ut Offæ filiam sibi matrimonio copularet, etnon se proprii Regni, sed Offam primarium ac principempræferret, et se cum suis omnibus ipsi subjugaret.Nihil itaque dotis cum Offæ filia rogitavit, hoc sanecontentus præmio, ut à regni sui finibus barbaros istospotenter et frequenter experta fugaret strenuitate.acknowledge him his sovereign.Those terms being sworn on the Gospels,King Off set off to the North country with anumerous host ofhorsem*n;Cum autem Legatorum verba Rex Offa suscepisset,concilio suorum fretus supplicantis voluntati ac precibusadquievit, si tamen Rex ille pactum hujusmodi, tactissacro-sanctis Evangeliis, et obsidum traditione, fidelitertenendum confirmaret. Sic igitur Rex Offa, super hisconditionibus sub certa forma confirmatus, et ad plenumcertificatus, in partes illas cum Equitum numerosamultitudine proficiscitur. Cum autem illuc pervenisset,MAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, II. 77Rexcrushed theinto their land.sent homeregents.headed fellow,chanced to callthe Court of that very prince who had wedded Offa's daughter; and he,having learnttimore ejus consternata pars adversa cessit, fugæ præ- and speedilysidio se salvando. Quam tum Rex Offa audacter enemy,prosequutus, non priùs destitit fugare fugientem, doneceam ex integro contrivisset; sed nec eo contentus, and advancedulteriùs progreditur, barbaros expugnaturus. Intereaad patriam suam nuntium imperitum destinavit adprimates et præcipuos regni sui, quibus totius ditionis Meanwhile, hesuæ regimen commendaverat, et literas regii sigilli sui dispatches to hismunimine consignatas, eidem Nuntio commisit de- The bearer offerendas. Qui autem destinatus fuit, iter arripiens them, adullversùs Offæ regnum, ut casu accidit inter eundum, non his wayathospitandi gratia aulam regiam introivit illius Regis,cujus filiam Offæ sibi matrimonio copulaverat.autem ille, cum de statu et causa itineris sui subdolèrequirendo cognovisset, vultus sui serenitate animiversutiam mentitus, specie tenùs illum amantissimèsuscepit et velamen sceleris sui quærens, à conspectupublico, sub quodam dilectionis prætextu, ad regiithalami secreta penetralia, ipsum nuntium nihil sinistrisuspicantem, introduxit: magnoque studio elaboravit,ut ipsum vino æstuanti madentem, redderet temulentum, well drunk,et ipso Nuntio vel dormiente vel aliquo alio modoignorante, mandata domini sui Regis Offee, tacitus etsubdolus apertis et explicatis literis perscrutabatur,cœpitque perniciosè immutare et pervertere sub Offænomine sigillum adulterans, fallacésque et perniciosasliteras loco inventarum occultavit. Forma autemadulterinarum hæc est quæ subscribitur."Rex Offa, majoribus et præcipuis regni sui, salutiset prosperitatis augmentum; universitati vestræ notumfacio, in itinere, quod arripui, infortunia et adversaplurima tam mihi quam subditis meis accidisse, etmajores exercitus mei, non ignavia propria, vel hostiumoppugnantium virtute, sed potiùs peccatis nostris justoDei judicio interiisse. Ego autem instantis periculicausam pertractans, et conscientiæ meæ intimafrom the messenger all about his mission, received him with a show offriendliness;and withdrawing him to his innermost chamber,there made himand then unfoldedletters he and perused thecarried.In the place ofsubstituted these those he found heothers:' Wehereby make known toour peers that in our expedition we and ours have met with manyreverses, notthrough any cow- ardice of ours noryet by the valour of the foe, but bythe judgment of God on accountperscru- of our sins.78 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.we conjecture that it was ablind and ac- cursed thing to marry that damnable witch without the conTaking thought, tatus, in memetipso nihil aliud conjicio Altissimo displicere, nisi quod perditam et maleficam illam absquemeorum consensu uxorem imperito et infelici duximatrimonio: Ut ergo de malefica memorata voluntativestræ ad plenum, quam temerèoffendi, satisfiat, asporWherefore let her tetur cum liberis ex ea genitis ad loca deserta, hominibusincognita, feris et avibus aut sylvestribus prædonibussent of our Court.and her children be conveyed to some desertplace, and left to frequentata; ubi cum pueris suis puerpera truncatamanus et pedes exemplo pereat inaudito. "perish.'The messenger went on his way.His missive caused much stupor and amazement.Nuntius autem mane facto, vino quo madueratdigesto, compos jam sui effectus, discessit: et postaliquot dies perveniens ad propria, Magnatibus, quiregno Regis Offæ præerant, literas Domini sui sigillosignatas exposuit. In quarum auditu perlecta Mandatiscrie, in stuporem et vehentissimam admirationemuniversi, plùs quam dici possit, rapiuntur. Et superhis aliquot diebus communicato cum Magnatibus conBut the magnates cilio deliberantes, periculosum ducebant mandatis acjussionibus Regis non obtemperare. Misera igiturseducta, deducta est in remotissimum et inhabitabilemlocum horroris et vasta solitudinis; cum quâ etiamliberi ejus miseri et miserabiles, queruli et vagientes,absque misericordia, ut cum ea traherentur occidendi,judicium acceperunt.dared not disobey it.The Queen and her children were sent off into asavage desert,slew and hacked in pieces the children;the inother theyspared, moved by her passing beauty.Nec mora, memorati Apparitores matrem cumpignoribus suis in desertum vastissimum trahebant.The executioners Matri verò propter ejus formam admirabilem parcentes,liberos ejus, nec formæ nec sexui ætati vel conditioniparcentes, detruncarunt membratim, imo potiùs frustatim crudeliter in bestialem feritatem sævientes; completaque tam crudeli sententia, cruenti Apparitoresociùs revertuntur. Nec mora, solitarius quidam vitamin omni sanctitate, vigiliis assiduis, jejuniis crebris, etcontinuis orationibus, ducens heremiticam, circa noctiscrepusculum eò pertransiens, mulieris cujusdam luctusthe woman's wall lachrymabiles et querelas usque ad intima cordis etAhermit, pass- ing across the waste in the twilight, heardMAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, II . 79annotavit.In- piercing cries which the Lordfrom the corpses;made proceedand, reaching the Bcene, foundnothing but maimed bodies.ossium medullas penetrativas, quas Dominus ex mor- and alsotuorum corporibus licèt laceratis elicuit, audivit.fantulorúmque vagitus lugubres nimis cum dolorisululatibus quasi in materno sinu audiendo similiterMisericordia autem sanctus Dei motus,usque ad lachrymarum aduberem effusionem, quò ipsavox ipsum vocabat, Domino ducente pervenit. Et cùmilluc pervenisset, nec aliud quàm corpora humana infrusta detruncata, reperisset; cognovit in Spiritu ipsealicujus innocentis corpus, vel aliquorum innocentiumcorpuscula, extitisse, quæ tam inhumanam sententiamsubierunt. Nec sine Martyrii palma ipsos, quorum hæfuerunt exuviæ, ab hoc sæculo transmigrasse suspicabatur. Auxilium tamen pro Dei amore et charitatisintuitu postulatum non denegans, se pro illorum reparatione prostravit in devotissimam cum lachrymis orationem, maximè propter vocem cœlitus emissam, quamprofectò cognovit Deum per linguas cadaverum protulisse. Piis igitur sanctus commotus visceribus,ignéque succensus charitatis, ex cognitione ejus, quam,ut jam dictum dudum viderat, habuit, factus hilarior,pro ipsis flexis genibus, inundantibus oculis, junctísque with streamingpalmis oravit, dicens: " Domine Jesu Christe, qui saying:Lazarum quatriduanum ac fœtidum resuscitasti, imò qui Christ, whoraisedomnium nostrorum corpora in extremo examine susci- again Lazarus,tabis, vestram oro misericordiam, ut non habens ad mepeccatorem, sed ad horum innocentum pressuras respectum piissimum, corpuscula horum jubeas resuscitari,ad laudem et gloriam tuam in sempiternum, ut omnesqui mortis horum causam et formam audiverint, teglorificent Deum et Dominum mundi Salvatorem. "Then, specially for he knew thatit was God that had put thatvoice into them,eyes he prayed,'O Lord Jesusand shalt at the last assize raise us all, I pray Theebid that these little bodies beraised again, for Thy glory andpraise evermore."faith, as he Sic igitur sanctus iste Domini, de fidei sui virtute Then, full ofin Domino præsumens et confidens, inter orandum, prayed, hemembra præcisa recolligens, et sibi particulas adaptans the mutilatedet conjungens, et in quantum potuit redintegrans, in well as he might,partium quampluri[m] um, sed in integritatem potiùs, set them,gathered togetherlimbs, and, sorecombined and80 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.and signed the Cross over them.The mother's heart revives;the children return to life indelectatus Domino rei consummationem, qui mortificatet vivificat, commendavit. Conjuncta igitur corporasigno Crucis triumphali consignavit. Mira fidei virtuset efficacia; signo Crucis vivificæ et orationis ac fideiservi Dei virtute, non solùm matris orbatæ animusreparatur, sed et filiorum corpuscula in pristinum etall their beauty. integrum naturæ sunt reformata decorem; necnon etanimæ mortuorum ad sua pristina domicilia sunt reAd mansiunculae igitur suæ septa (à quaelongatus fuerat, gratia lignorum ad pulmentaria decoquenda colligendorum) ipse senex; qui priùs detruncati fuerant, Domino jubente integri vivi et alacres suntreversi, Ducem sanctum suum sequentes pedetentim.Ubi more patris, ipsam desolatam cum liberis sibi ipsisrestitutis, alimentis quibus potuit et quæ ad manumhabuit, piè ac misericorditer confovebat.The hermit took them all to his own dwelling,and cherished them with all care;and there they abode.After two months King Offa came back home,flushed with victories,For a long timoversæ.Nesciens ergò quò migraret, Regina cum suisinfantulis intra vastissimam heremum cum memoratosolitario, diu moram ibidem orationibus, vigiliis, ac aliissanctis operibus ejus intenta et jamjam convenienterinformata, et edulio sylvestri sustentata, continuabat.Post duorum vero mensium curricula, Rex Offa victoriosissimus domum lætus remeavit, spolia devictorumsuis Magnatibus Regali munificentia gloriosè distribuendo; veruntamen, ne lachrymæ gaudia Regis eteorum qui cum eo advenerunt miserabiliter interrumnothing, or what perent, consiliarii Regii quæ de Regina et liberis ejusacciderant, diu sub silentio cautè dissimulando, etcausas absentiæ ejus fictas annectendo, concelabant.Tandem cum Rex vehementer admiraretur ubinamRegina delituisset, quae ipsi Regi ab ancipiti bellorevertenti occurrisse gaudenter teneretur, et in osculiset amplexibus cæteris gaudentiùs triumphatorem adventantem suscepisse; sciscitabatur instantiùs et torviùset proterviùs, quid de ipsa fieret vel evenisset. Suspicabatur enim eam morbo detentam, ipsamque cumthe Council saidwas feigned,of the Queen's absence.At length the King, marvelling that his wife came notto welcome him,questioned them more impera- tively;MAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, II . 81liberis suis Regis et aliorum hominum, ut quietevacaret, frequentiam declinâsse. Tandem cum iratusnullatenus se velle ampliùs ignorare, cum juramento,quid de uxore sua et liberis evenisset, vultu torvoasseruisset, unus ex ædituis omnia quæ acciderant, detyrannico ejus mandato, et mandati plenaria executione,seriatim enarravit.and at last one of the servantstold him all .became wailing;sackcloth andIn time, at the instance of thosearound him, he breathed again,and for a changeonce more.went a huntingIn the course of the chase heHis auditis, risus in luctum, gaudium in lamenta, Then his laughterjubilus in singultus, flebiliter convertuntur, totaqueregia ululatibus personuit et mæroribus. Lugensquerex diu tam immane infortunium, induit se sacco and he put oncilicino, aspersum cinere ac multipliciter deformatum. ashes.Tandem monitu suorum, qui dicebant non virorummagnificorum, sed potiùs effœminatorum, dolorem interjecto solatio nolle temperare, esse proprium et consuetudinem; Rex cœpit respirare, et dolori modumimponere. Consilio igitur peritorum, qui noverantregem libenter in tempore prospero in studio venaticoplurimùm delectari, convocantur venatores, ut Rexspatiaturus venando, dolorem suum diminueret etluctum solatio demulceret. Qui inter venandum dumper sylvarum abdita, Deo misericordiarum et totius consolationis ducente, feliciter solus per invia oberravit, ettandem ad Hermitorium memorati Heremite directepervenit, ejusque exiguum domicilium subintrans,humanissime et cum summo gaudio receptus. Et cumhumili residens sedili, membra fatigata quieti daret adhoram, recolens qualiter uxorem suam ibidem quondamdivinitus reperisset, et feliciter educâsset, et educatamduxisset in uxorem, et quam elegantem ex ea prolemprotulisset, eruperunt lachrymæ cum gemitibus, et inquerelas lugubres ora resolvens, hospiti suo sinistrumde uxore sua quæ infausto sidere nuper evenerat, quam all that hadet ipse quondam viderat, enarravit. At senex sereno The old man,vultu, factus ex intrinsecùs concepto gaudio alacrior, ingup in him,consolatus est regem, et in vocem exultationis eminùs consoled him:CH. ORIG. 6came upon that very hermitage named above.There he sat him down and rested,and thinking howHeaven's grace,of old he had, byfound his wife,and married her,and what fairborne him, hechildren she hadburst into tears,and presently told his hosthappened.with joy spring-82 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.'God wounds and cures.Your wife lives,and your children.Mark what He has wrought.'Then he called in the Queen,her children in an inner chamber.They embraced with greaterjoyprorumpens: "Eia Domine mi Rex, eia " ait; " verè Deusmisericordiarum, Dominus, famulos suos quasi paterfilios in omni tribulatione post pressuras consolatur,percutit et medetur, dejicit ut gloriosus elevet prægravatum. Vivit uxor tua, cum liberis tuis in omnisospitate restauratis; non meis meritis, sed potiùs tuis,integritati, sanitati et lætitiæ pleniùs qui trucidabanturrestituuntur. Recognosce quanta fecit tibi Dominus,et in laudes et gratiarum actiones totus exurge. " Tuncprosiliens sanctus præ gaudio, evocavit reginam, quæ inwho was bathing interiori diverticulo, pueros suos balneo mitiùs maternostudio confovebat. Quæ cum ad regem introiisset, vixse gaudio capiens, pedibus mariti sui provoluta, inlachrymis exultationis inundavit. In cujus amplexusdesideratissimos ruens rex, ipsam in majus quàm dicithan can be said. possit gaudium suscepit. Interim senex, pueros elegantissimos et ex ablutione elegantiores vestit, comit,et paterno more et affectu componit, et ad præsentiampatris et matris introducit. Quos pater intra brachiasuscipiens, et ad pectus arctioribus amplexibus applicans, roseis vultibus infantum oscula imprimit multiplicata; quos cum rore lacrymarum, præ nimia mentisexultatione, madefecit. Et cùm diutiùs eorum colloquiis pasceretur, conversus rex ad senem, ait: "O patersancte, pater dulcissime, mentis meæ reparator, et gaudii,cordis mei restaurator, quâ merita vestra, charitatisofficia, pietatisque beneficia, prosequar remuneratione?Accipe ergò, licet multò majora exigant merita tua,he offered him all quicquid ærarium meum valet effundere; me, meos, etmea, tuæ expono voluntati. " At sanctus, " Domine miRex, non decet me peccatorem conversum ad Dominum,ad insanias quas reliqui falsas respicere. Tu veròpotiùs pro animabus patris tui et matris tuæ, quibusquandoque charus fueram ac familiaris, et tua, et uxoristuæ, et liberorum tuorum corporali sanitate, et salutespirituali, regni tui soliditate, et successorum tuorumThe hermit brought in the children.The King tried to thank him;his treasury.The Saint declined such worldly gear for himself;MAN-OF-LAW'S-TALE ANALOGUES, II. 83to found aMonastery, or toruined one,restore someprosperitate, Deo gratus, qui tot in te congessit bene- bat urged himficia, Cœnobium quoddam fundare, vel aliquod dirutumstudeas restaurare: in quo dignè et laudabiliter Deo inperpetuum serviatur; et tui memoria cum precibus adDominum fusis, cum benedictionibus semper recenterrecolatur. " Et conversus ad Reginam, ait; "et tu, filia,quamvis mulier, non tamen muliebriter, ad hoc regemaccendas et admoneas diligenter, filiosque tuos instruifacias, et ut Dominum Deum qui eos vitæ reparavit,studeant gratanter honorare, et eidem fideliter famulando fundandi Coenobii possessiones ampliare, et tuerilibertates. "Domiand exhorted the Queen to inflame her husband to this thanksgivingact,and to instructher children tosupplement with endow-it ments.back to his cell,and presently passed to the recep- Lord.The King forgotSanctus autem ad cellam reversus, post paucum The Saint wenttemporis ad incolatu hujus mundi migravit adnum, mercedem æternam pro labore temporaliturus. Rex autem citò monita ipsius salubria dansoblivioni et incuriæ, ex tunc otio ac paci vacavit:prolemque copiosam utriusque sexus expectabilis pulchritudinis procreavit. Unde sem*n regium à latere etall his wholesome counsel.He enjoyed peace and repose.He begat copious children of bothsexes,and died and was descensu felix suscepit incrementum. Qui completovitæ suæ tempore, post ætatem bonam quievit in pace, laid by hiset regaliter sepultus, appositus est ad patres suos, in fathers.eo multùm redarguendus, quòd Coenobium votivo affecturepromissum, thesauris parcendo non construxit. Postvictorias enim à Domino sibi collatas, amplexibus etignaviæ necnon avaritiæ plùs æquo indulsit. Prosperitas enim sæcularis, animos, licèt viriles, soletfrequenter effœminare. Veruntamen hoc onus humerisfilii sui moriturus apposuit: qui cum devota assecutioneillud sibi suscepit. Sed nec ipse Deo averso pollicita,prout patri suo promiserat complevit; sed filio suohujus voti obligationem in fine vitæ suæ dereliquit.Et sic memorati voti vinculum, sine efficacia complementi de patre in filium descendens, usque ad Tempora ment of that vowPineredi filii Tuinfreth suspendebatur. Quibus pro down to thepœna negligentiæ tale evenit infortunium, ut omnes son of Tuinfretli .on his death-bed,he enjoined upon his son that dutyneglected;he had himselfwho, in spite of his promise,neglected it also ,it to his son;and bequeathedand so the fulfilwas postponedtimes of Pinered,84 MATTHEW PARIS'S LIFE OF OFFA THE FIRST.It was a penalty for this negligence that all the kings whom Offa had subdued,Principes, quos Offa magnificus edomuerat, à subjectioneipsius Offæ, et posteritatis suæ procaciter recesserunt,et ipsum morientem despexerunt, quia, ut prædictumhis sway and that est, ad mortem vergens, deliciis et senii valetudinemarcuit enervatus.brake away fromof his posterity.854.Two French FabliauxlikeChaucer's Reebe's Tale.

A FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 87DE GOMBERT ET DES DEUXCLERS.PAR JEAN DE BOVES.1[Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque nationale de Paris, nos.837 (olim 7218) for the text, et 2168 (olim 7989. 2. )for the readings at foot; collated by Mons. H.Michelant. ]En cest autre fablel paroleDe ii. Clers qui vienent 2 d'escole;Despendu orent leur ³ avoirTwo larky Clerks go to lodge with avillein, Gombert. En folie plus qu' en savoir;4Ostel quistrent chies un vilain;De sa fame, Dame Guilain,7Fu l'uns des Clers, lues que 8 là⁹ vint,One of the Clerks falls in love withSi fols, que 10 amer li convint;Gombert's wife,8Mes ne set coment 11 s'i acointe,Quar la Dame est mingnote 12 et cointe;Les iex ot vairs comme 13 cristal.Toute nuit 14 l'esgarde à estal 15 12and the otherwith his daughter, apretty girl.16Li Clers, si qu'à paine se 16 cille;Et li autres ama sa fille,Qui adès i avoit 17 ses iex.Cil mist encor s'entente 18 miex,Quar sa fille est et cointe 19 et bele,Et je di qu'amor 20 de pucele,Quant fins 21 cuers i est ententiex, 2Est sor toute autre rien gentiex,23¹ (Printed in Méon's edition of Barbazan's Fabliaux et Contes, vol. iii ,p. 239-244, Paris, 1808. )2212 ert mignote2013 s'ot vairs les iex com un14 jour.-Barbazan.(fixement. -Burguy. )que s'en merveille17 si qu'adés i tenoit 18 s'entente encore2vinrent, MS. 2168. 3 s'orent lor 154plus et 5 prisent chies .i .166 et 7 Gilain20 amours10 sa fame a9 Et li uns des clers quant il 11 sot comment 21 li 23 seur toutes amors est gentieus8 (dès que, aussitôt que. -Burguy,Gram. ii. 384.) 19 la fille ert et jouene22 ententieus888A FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.While the wifeComme li ostors ' au terçuel.2.i. petit enfant en berçuel feeds her baby in Paissoit la bone fame en l'aistre.5 a cradle,the First Clerk takes out of the fire-shovel, the6Que qu'ele entendoit à lui paistre,Uns des Clers lez9 li s'acosta,Fors de la paelete 10 osta12 doit ring it hangs by. L'anelet dont 11 ele pendoit,Si le bouta lues en souSi coiement que nul 18 nel' sot.Tel bien com sire 14 Gombers otOrent assez la nuit 15 si oste;Lait boilli, 16 matons et composte,Ce fu assez si come à vile.17 All evening the Second Clerk makes eyes at the wife, Dame Guile. Cele nuit, fu moult Dame Guile 18Regardée de l'un des Clers;Ses iex i avoit si aers 19Que il ne s'en pooit retrere.20Gombert puts the Li preudom 21 qui ne sot l'afere,22 Clerks in a bed near his own;Et 23 n'i entendoit el que 24 bien,Fist lor lit fere 25 pres del sien,Ses coucha, et les 26 a couvers.Lors se couche 27 sire Gombers,Quant fu chaufez 28 au feu d'esteule,2and his daughter Et sa fille jut toute seule.has a bed to herself.When the others sleep, the First Clerk goes to the daughter's bed,Quant la gent se fu 30 endormie,Li Clers ne s'entroublia 31 mie,Molt li bat li cuers et flaele 32;A tout l'anel de la paele,Au lit la pucele s'en 33 vint.Oiez comment il 34 li avint;1 (L. accipiter. Burguy. )2 com est li faucons au terchuel.(Je crois que le sens de ce vers com- plete le vers précédent, c'est à dire:la pucele est à la mère que le tiercelet est au faucon. -P. Paris. )3 berchuel + li prode(foyer, cheminée.-Burguy. )56 Entrues9 les7 au10 le palete8 L'unsIl l'anel a coi. (C'est à dire l'un des deux clers-celui qui amait la fille -detacha l'anneau de fer qui retenoitla pelle à feu.-P. Paris. )12 bouta en son sen14 gires16 Lai bouli13 nus 15 la nuit assez17 ('C'est à dire, ce fut assez pour2428323640294448la campagne, pour une maison devillage' .- P. Paris.)18 Bien fu toute nuit dame Gile.19 (perf. part. of aherdre, aërdre (L. adherere) joindre, s'attacher.-Burguy, Gloss. , & Gram. ii. 121.)21 Li prodom 2022 retrairequi bien cuidoit fere. -Barbazan.23 Nes 24 ke 25 faire 26 ses 28 caufes 2927 Puis se coucha(Esteulestraw.-Cot.; L. stipula.)30 Et quant la gent fu.31 L'uns des Clers ne s'oublia.-Barbazan.32 MS. 837 omits this line 47, & 48.33 de la puchele34 Or oies commentA FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 89Lez li se couche, les dras oevre:"Qui est-ce, Diex, qui me descuevre? " 1Dist-ele, quant ele le sent:"Sire, por Dieu omnipotent,2Que querez-vous ci à ceste 3 eure? "66 66 Suer," dist 4 il, se Diex me sequeure,5N'ai talent qu'ensus de vous 6voise,Mès tesiez, vous ne fetes 8 noise,Que vostre pere ne s'esveille,Quar il cuideroit jà merveille;S'il savoit que o vous gëusse,Il cuideroit que je ëusse 10De vous fetes mes volentez;Mes 12 se mes bons me 13191114encor,consentez, 1Granz biens vous en vendra 15Et si aurez 16 mon anel d'or,Qui miex vaut de quatre besanz; 17Ör sentez come il est pesanz,18Trop m'est larges au doit manel."Et cil 20 li a bouté l'anelOu doit, si qu'il passa 21 la jointe,Et cele s'est pres de 22 lui jointe,Et 23 jure que ja nel' prendroit.Toutes eures, mi tort, mi droit,L'uns vers l'autre tant s'amolie,2Que li Clers li fist la folie.Et quant il plus l'acole 25 et baise,Plus est ses compains à mal aise,Quar resouvenir li fesoit;2624Ce qu'à l'un paradis estoit, 26 Sambloit à l'autre droiz enfers.27Lors se lieve 28 sire Gombers,S'ala à l'uis pissier toz nuz;L'autres 30 Clers est au lit venuz,I descoevre292 ales vous ent3 C'aves vos chi quis a cest 4faitpovir65 sekeure 7 VOStaisies .. faites. (For vous Bar- bazan has si.)9 qu'ave vos jeusse 10 ja ke jeusse 11 vos faites mes volentes 12 Mais13 vos mon bon.-Barbazan,1+ consentes 15 vos en venra 16 g'aures ja 17 besans18 sentes mon com il est pesans52 gets in by her,5660tells her to be quiet, and not wake her father.64 If she'll yield to him, he'll g ve her his big gold ring.6872He puts it on her finger,and then swives 76 her.80The Second Clerk doesn't like lying still.Gombert gets up to make water.84 The Second Clerk19 Il m'est grans (menuel, petit.- P. Paris. Barbazan prints ' m'anel ') .20 Atant 21 El doit si li passe 22 envers 23 Si24 umelie, MS. 837. 25 plus acole 26-26 C'à la dame ne puet venir;Car cil li fait resouvenir,Cui il ot faire ses delis.Ce qu'à l'un semble paradis 27 à l'autre sambloit drois infers28 dont se leva20 si s'en ala pissier tous nus 30 Et li742290 A FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.moves the baby's A l'esponde ¹ par dedevant cradle to his own bed. Prist le berçuel o 2 tout l'enfant,Au lit le porte où a 3 geu.Or est Dant Gombert deceu; 4Quar adès 5 à coustume avoit, 6La nuit quant de pissier venoit,Qu'il tastoit au berçuel premier.8 back, feels for the Si come il estoit coustumier,cradle,Gombert comescan't find it,thinks his ownLors vint 10 tastant sire GombersAu lit, mès n'i ert 11 pas li bers;12 Quant il n'a le berçuel trové, 13 Lors se tient à musart prové;Bien 14 cuide avoir voie marie.15"Li maufez, " dist-il, " me tarie, 16 bed is theClerks', Quar en cest lit gisent mi oste! "and goes where the cradle is.As he can't find19Il vint à l'autre lit encoste,Le bers i trueve 17 et le mailluel,Et li Clers jouste le pailluel 18Se trest, que nel' truist le vilain.20Moult fu sire Gombers en vain 21Quant il n'a sa fame trovée,herself; sohe lies Cuide qu'ele soit relevée,Pissier, et fere ses degras.22 Li vilains senti chaus les dras,hiswife, he thinks she's goneto easedown, and is soon asleep.889296100104108Si se couche entre deux linceus;Li sommaus li fu près des ex,Si s'endormi isnel le pas;The Second Clerk 112 thengoes to Dame Guile, and enjoys himselfso muchEt li Clers ne s'oublia pas,O la Dame s'en vait couchier,Ainz ne li lut 23 son nez mouchier,S'ot esté trois fois assaillie.Or a Gombers bone mesnie,Moult le mainent de male pile."Sire Gombers," dist Dame Guile,116( bois de lit, bord du lit. -Burguy.) to day, marred to morrow.'- Cotgr.)2 si prent le besch aE vous le vilain decheu5 tout 6 tenoit3 ot7Le8 sentoit le berchuel premiers9 com il en iert coustumiers 10 Vint à 11fu12 MS. 2168 puts in here, ' Car li clers l'en avoit osté,' and leaves out 1.96.13 berchuel trouvé 14 Si15 cangie. (Voie marie, mauvaise voie on disoit plus souvent marvoie "16 maufes fait-il me carie17 il sent le berch18 (The Clerk got out of bed, andkept near it. )19 se tint que li vileins nel sente20 1. 104-173. feuillet effacé dansle MS. 2168 et [presque] illisible.— H. Michelant.21 (Il faudrait engrain, afligé.— P. Paris.)22 (Faire ses degras, se décharger et mavroie. -P. Paris. Aujourd'huy le ventre: L. degravare. -Burguy. )marić, demain marri; Prov. Maried 23 (did not let her)A FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 91"Si viex hom comme estes, et frailes,Moult avez anuit esté quailes.¹Ne sai or de qoi vous souvint,Piéça mès qu'il ne vous avint;Ne cuidiez-vous que il m'anuit?Vous avez ausi fet anuitQue s'il n'en fust nus recouvriers,Moult avez esté bons ouvriers,N'avez gueres esté oiseus. "Li Clers qui ne fu pas noiseus,En fist toutes voies ses buens,Et li lesse dire les suens:Ne l'en fu pas à une bille.Cil qui gisoit avoec la fille,Quant ot assez fet son delit,Penssa qu'il rira à son lit:Ainz que li jors fust escleriez,A son lit en est reperiez,Là ou gisoit Gombers ses ostes.Cil le fiert du poing lez les costesGrant cop du poing, a tout le coute;"Chetiz bien as gardé la coute! "Fet-il, "tu ne vaus une tarte;Mes ainz que de ci me departe,Te dirai jà grande 2 merveille.'Atant sire Gombers s'esveille ,Esranment s'est apercëuz 3Qu'il est trahis et decëus 4"that she re120 proaches her old husband for his tricks.124128132 When the First Clerk has had enough ofthe daughter,136 he goes back to his bed, where Gombert is, digs him in the ribs,140144 wakes him,Par les Clers et par lor engiens."Or me di," dist-il 5, " dont tu viens! "" Dont? " dist-il, si nomma 6 tout outre:148"Par le cul dieu, je vieng de foutre,Mès que ce fu la fille l'oste,Pris en ai devant et encoste;152Aforé li ai son tonnel,Et se li ai doné l'aneland tells him that he's swived the Miller's daughter,De la paelete de fer. ""Ha! ce soit de par cels d'enfer,"Fet-il, " à cens et à milliers."A tant l'aert par les illiers,8Si le fiert du poing lez l'oïe.Et cil li rent une joïe,⁹1(chaud, L. callidus. -P. Paris. )2 mainte3 Si s'est tantost apercheux.souspris et decheus.45 fait il 6 nonma7156and given her the iron ring for it.Gombert pitches into the Clerk,the Clerk into him, as hard as 160 each can,(Afforer. To pierce or set abroacha vessell of wine, &c. -Cotgrave.)8(illier côte, flanc; de ilia. -Burguy. ) 9(joee, soufflet. -Burguy. )92 A FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.Dame Guile tells her supposed husband that the Clerks arefighting,and the Second Clerk goes and helps the First toQue tuit li œil¹ li estincelent,Si durement s'entreflaelentEntr'els, qu'en diroie-je el?C'on les peust en un tinel 2Porter tout contreval la vile.(""Sire Gombert 3," dist Dame Guile,Levez tost sus, quar il me sambleQue no Clers sont meslé ensamble,Je ne sai qu'il ont à partir. ""Dame, je's irai departir. "Lors s'en vint li Clers cele part,Trop i dut estre venuz tart,pommel Gombert Que ses compains ert abatuz, 4Puisque cil i fu embatuz.Le pior en ot Dans Gombers,Quar il l'ont ambedui aers:164168172176L'uns le pile, l'autres le fautre.Tant l'ont debouté l'un sor l'autre,till his back's as Qu'il ot, par le mien escientre,soft as his belly. Le dos ausi mol que le ventre.180Then the Clerks Quant ainsi l'orent atorné,bolt.Andui sont en fuie torné,Et l'uis lessent ouvert tout ample.Cis fabliaus monstre par example, 184Que nus hom qui bele fame ait,Por nule proiere ne laitMoral.Let no man with a pretty wife let a Clerk sleep in his house. Clerc gesir dedenz son ostel,Que il li feroit autretel;Qui plus met en aus, plus i pert.Ci faut li fabliaus de Gombert.Explicit de Gombers et des .ii. Clers.I c'andoi li oel2 (Tinel, Tine: A Stand, open Tub,or Soe, most in vse during the time of Vintage, and holding about foure or fiue pailefulls, and commonly borne,by a Stang, between two. - Cotgrave. )1883 (Le Clerc qu'elle prendpour Gombert.-P. Paris. )45fin du MS. 2168.-H. Michelant.(aherdre, aërdre, empoigner.—Burguy.)6(Debouter, to put, thrust, or driue from. -Cotgrave.)A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 93THE MILLER AND THE TWOCLERKS.[ From MS. Berne, No. 354, fol. 164, vº. Read withthe MS. bythe Librarian ofthe Berne Library. Firstprinted by Mr T. Wright in his Anecdota Litteraria,p. 15. ]Dui povre clerc furent jadis,Né d'une vile et d'un pais;Conpeignon et diacre estoientEn un boschage, o il menoient,O il orent esté norri,Tant c'uns chier tans lor i sailli,Con il fait moult tost et sovant;C'est domage à la povre gent.Li clerc virent la mesestance;Si en orent au cuer pesance,Ne il ne sevent conseillier,Car il ne sevent rien gaaignier,N'en lor pais, n'en autre terre;Honte auroient de lor pain querre,Tant por lor hordre, et tant porIl n'avoient point de chatelel.fleaf 164, col. 2, line 2] Two poor Clerks4 lived in a forest;8a dearth came;12 they couldn't earn any- thing, and16 they'd nothing to live on.Don se poissent sostenir,Ne il ne sevent où ganchir.Un diemanche, après mangier,Sont alé devant lo mostier;Iluec se sont entretrové,Puis s'en sont de la vile alé,Por dire un po de lor secroi.Li uns dist à l'autre, " Antan moi!Nos ne nos savons conseiller,Car ne savon rien gaaignier,Et voiz la fain qui nos destraint,C'est une chose qui tot vaint;20[leaf 165, col. 1]24 Oneasksthe other94 A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.what they're to do.The Second says,"Let's borrow asack of wheat from a friend of mine."The First says,"And I'll take my brother's mare, and we'll turn bakers,"Sothey take their wheat to the mill,which stands quite alone.Nus ne se puet de li deffandre,Ne nos n'avon rien nule o prandre:As-tu nule rien porveuPar quoi nos soions maintenu? ”L'autre respont, "Par saint Denise,Je ne te sai faire devise,Mais que j'ai un mien ami,Je lo que nos aillon vers li ,Por prandre un setier de fromant,A la vante que l'an lo vant;Et il m'an querra les deniersMoult longuemant, et volantiers,Jusq'à la feste saint Johan,Por nos giter de cest mal an. "Li autres a lors respondu," Il nos est très bien avenu;Car j'ai un mien frere ensemant,Qui a une grasse jumant;Je la prandrai, pran lo setier,Et si devandron bolangier;L'an doit tote honte endosserPor soi de cest mal an giter. "Ensi lo font, plus n'i atant,Au molin portent lo fromant:Li molins si loin lor estoit,Plus de .ij . liues i avoit;C'estoit lo molin à choisel,Si seoit joste un bocheel2:Il n'ot ilueques environ,Borde, ne vile, ne maison,Fors sol la maison au munier,Qui trop savoit de son mestier.They throw their Li clerc ont tost l'uis desfermé,sack inside the door, and turn their mare into a meadow.One Clerk staysSi ont lo sac dedanz gité:Après ont mis en un praelLa jumant, joste lo choisel.at the Mill, while Li uns remest por tot garder,L'autre ala lo munier haster,the Second goes to fetch the Miller32364044485256[leaf 165, col. 2]60641 Septier de bled. The Septier of corne (viz. Wheat, Rye,or Barlie) containes, in most places, two lines, or twelue Boisseaux [b. 20 pounds, somewhat lesse than our Londonpecke, & a halfe] , or the twelfth part of a Muid: In weight it comes to 220 pounds sayes Nicot; but Vigenere vpon Liuie makes that the weight onely of Rye; and sayes, that the Septier of wheat weighes 240 pounds. -Cotgrave. The English sack of wheat is only 3 bushels, but weighs 280 lbs of corn,meal, or flour; a sack of wool weighs 364 lbs.2 bosche, boschet, bosquetel, petit bois. -Hippeau, Glos.A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 95Que il les venist avancier;Mais il s'an fu alé mucier;Bien ot les clers veu venir,Je cuit à aux voldra partir.68Chiés lo munier en vient corant,La dame a trovée filant: 72"Dame," fait-il, " por saint Martin,O est li sires do molin?Bien fust que il nos avançast.""Sire clers, point ne m'an pesast;En ce bois lo porroiz trover,Se il vos i plaist à aler,Qui est ci joste ce molin. "Et li clers se mest au chemin,Querre lo vait moult vistemant.Ason conpeignon qui l'atantPoise moult qu'il demore tant:En la maison en vient corant:"Dame! " fait- il, " por amor Dé,O est mon conpeignon alé? ""Sire, si aie je hanor,Il en vait querre mon seignor,Qui orandroit issi là hors."Ele ot bien ce mestier a-mort.L'un des clers après l'autre envoie,Et li muniers aquiaut sa voie,Si vien au molin auramant,Lo sac lieve sor la jumant,O sa fame qui li aida,En sa maison tot enporta:Tant a en sa maison ' mucié,Puis est au molin repairié;Et li clerc ont tant cheminéQu'il sont au molin torné:66'Munier," font-il, "Dex soit o vos,Por amor Deu, avanciez nos.""Seignor," fait-il, " et je de quoi? ""De nostre blé qu'est ci , par foi. "Qant durent prandre lo fromant,Ne trovent ne sac ne jumant.L'un d'ax a l'autre regardé:"Q'est-ice somes-nos robé? "Oil, " fait ce l'uns, " ce m'est vis:Pechiez nos a à essil mis. "Chacuns escrie, " Halas! halas!Secorez nos, saint Nicolas! "1 granche, grange, barn, 1. 315.76from the wood.80The First Clerk gets tired of waiting,84[leaf 165, back, col. 1 ]and goes after the 92 Second.The Miller and his wife hide the sack in their 96 house, and he goes to his Mill.The Clerks come,100 and ask him to get-on with their corn."With what? "104 "Our corn here! "But they can't find corn or mare.108 They cry out that they've been robbed.11296 A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.""What's the matter? says the Miller."We've lost our all.Where can we go to find it?"Fait li muniers, " Qu'est-ce c'avez?Por quoi si duremant criez? "Munier, jà avon tot perdu;Malemant nos est avenu,Car n'avon ne jumant ne el.Tot i estoit nostre chatel."66""Seignor," fait-il , " n'en sai noiant."66 Sire," font-il, ne vos apantFors tant que de nos asener116[loaf 165, back, col. 2]120Quel part nos poissiens alerQuerre et tracier nostre domage. ""Seignor," fait-il, " en cest bochage: 124Ne vos sai-je pas conseillier;"Inthe wood Mais en cel bois alez cerchier,nearthe inill."Qui ci est joste cest molin."The Clerks start. Li clerc se mestent au chemin,Maintenant sont el bois entré,Et li muniers s'an est alé.Li uns clers à l'autre parla: The First Clerksays, " it's no use " Certes," font-il, " voir dit i a,seeking;goods come and go like straw.. Let's go and lodge at the Miller's."They go there,128132Fox¹ est qui en vain se travaille;Avoir vient et va conme paille,Alons nos hui mais herbergier. ""Nos en quel leu? " " Chiés lo munier,O nos alon en cel molin,136Dex nos doint l'ostel saint Martin!Errant vindrent chiés lo munier;Lor venir n'avoit-il point chier,140and ask the Miller to take them in.Ho says theyfloor; and theyAinz lor demande an es lo pas:66""Que vos a fait saint Nicolas?""'Munier," font-il, " ne un ne el."" Or gaaigniez autre chatel,Car de cest estes vos trop loin.Ne l'auroiz pas à cest besoing.""Munier," font-il, " ce puet bien estre:Herbergiez nos, por saint Servestre,Ne savon mais hui o aler. "Et li muniers prant à panser,Or seroit-il pires que chiens,S'il ne lor faisoit aucun bienDel lor, car il lo puet bien faire."Seignor," fait-il, "ni fors l'aire 2,must sleep onthe Ice auroiz, se plus n'avez. ""Munier," font-il, "Li vilains n'ot pas grant cointie,agree.1ce est assez."99144[leaf166, col. 1] 148152156Fol, fols, fous, fos, fox, faux, fax, subst. is adj. fou.- Burguy. 2 Aire: f... the floore of a house or barne. -Cotg.A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 97Il n'ot que soi cart de maisnie,Sa file, q'an doit metre avant,Sa fame, et un petit enfant.La fille estoit et bele et cointe,Et li muniers, qu'el ne fust pointe,En une huche¹ la metoit,Chascune nuit, o el gisoit,Et l'anfermoit par desus,.Et li bailloit, par un pertius,La clef, et puis s'aloit cochier.A noz clers devons repairier:La nuit, quant ce vint au soper,Li muniers lor fait aporterPain et lait, et eves, et fromage;C'est la viande del bochage.Aus .ij . clers assez en dona;L'um o la pucele manja,L'autre o la dame et lo munier.En l'artre² ot un petit andier,³O il avoit un anelet,Que l'an oste sovant et met.Cil q'o la pucele manjaDe l'andier l'anelet osta;Bien l'a et repost et mucié.La nuit quant il furent cochié,Li clers de li grant garde prist;Bien vit que li muniers li fist;Con en la huche la bouta,Et par dedesus l'anferma;Con il li a la clef bailliée,Par un pertuis li a lanciée.Qant il furent aseuré ·Il a son conpaignon bouté:"Conpainz," fait- il , " je voil aler A la fille au munier parler,Qui est en la huche enfermée.""Viax-tu," fait-il, " faire mellée,Et estormir ceste maison?Verité est, tu ies bricon,He has a wife,a little child,and a pretty 160 daughter, whom he puts at night in a bin, locks it outside, and gives her the164 key through ahole.168They all sup;172one Clerk with the daughter,the other with 176 the Miller.[leaf 166, col. 2]In an andiron is amovable ring.The Clerk with the Daughter180 hides the ring;and at night watches how the Miller locks her in her bin, and gives her the key 184 through the hole.188192When they sleep,this Clerk196Tost nos en porroit mal venir. ""Je ne voldroie por morir,Que je n'aille à li savoirHuche: f. A Hutch or Binne; a kneading Trough, orTub; also a Mill- hopper. -Cotgrave.2 hearth?3 Andier, s. m. (V. lang) Landier (kitchen fire- dog, andiron)espèce de chenet (fire- dog) .CH. ORIG.Suppl. to Dict . de l'Acad. Franç.798 A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.goes to the bin,scratches on it,he's dying for her.and has brought her aringofgold, of which the stoneS'el me porroit de rien valoir."A la huche vient erranmant,tells the daughter Un petit grate; et el l'antant:"Q'est-ce," fait-ele, "là defors? ""C'est celui qui por vostre cors Est si destroiz et mal bailli,Se vos n'avez du lui merci,Jamais nul jor joie n'aura.C'est celui qui o vos manja,Qui vos aporte un enel d'or,Onques n'austes tel tresor;Bien est esprové et sauQue la pierre en a tel vertu,Que ja fame, tant soit legere,Ne tant par ait esté corsiere,¹Qui chaste et pucele ne soit,S'au matin en son doi l'avoit.Tenez, ge l' vos en fas presant."Errant cele la clef li tant,Et il desferme errant la huche,Dedanz se met, ele s'acluche;will restore virginity.She gives him the key; he opens the bin; and they take their pleasure.Or puent faire lor deduit,200204208[leaf 166, back, col. 1]212216220Car ne trovent qui lor anuit.The Miller's La fame o munier, ainz lo jorgoes naked into Wife gets up, and Se leva d'enprés son seignor;224the court. Tote nue vait en la cort.Par devant lo lit trescortAu clerc, qui en l'aire gisoit.The Second Clerk Li clers au trespasser la voit;Qant il la vit, si l'esgarda,sees her, thinks on his mate'senjoyments,228De son conpaignon li manbra,Qui en la huche fait ses buens;Moult convoite faire les suens; 232goes to the Miller's bed,and pulls thePansa que il la decevroitAu revenir, se il pooit:Puis repansoit no feroit mie,2Tost em porroit sordre folie.Un autres angin li est creuz:S'anprès est de son lit chauz,A l'autre lit s'an va tot droit,cradle to his own. Là o li muniers se gisoit,236[leaf 166, back, col . 2]240? from L. cursus (and so a gadabout, coureuse, streetwalker), or L. corpus; cp. Fr. Corser. To imbrace, take, orhold, by the bodie; to catch, take, or lay, hold of the bodie.-Cotgrave.2 Tost em porroit sordre Folie sordre folie MS. sic.A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE. 99L'anfant à tot lo briez¹ aporte,2Et qant la dame entre en la porteLi clers tire à l'anfant l'oroille,Et l'enfes crie, si s'esvoille:Cele ala à son lit tot droitQant ele oi o cil estoit;3 Puis est erranmant retornée;Au cri de l'anfant est alée;Lo briez trove, don s'ascure,Puis solieve la coverture,De joste lo clerc s'est cochiée,Et cil l'a estroit enbraciée;Vers soi la trait, formant l'acole,A son deduit tote l'afole;Si sofre tot, si ne mervoille.Et l'autres clers si s'aparoille,Qant il oit lo coc chanter;Car il cuidoit trop demorer.De la huche s'an est issuz,Puis est droit à son lit venuz,Lo briez trove, si s'esbaist;N'est pas mervoille s'il lo fist.Il ot peor, et ne porqantUn petit est alez avant,Et qant .ij . testes a trovées,Erranmant les a refusées.A l'autre lit, o se gisoitLi muniers, s'an va cil tot droit;De joste li s'estoit cochiez,Ne s'est pas encor esveilliez,Ne ne s'est mie aparceuz."Conpainz, " fait li clers, " que fais-tu?Qui toz jorz se test rien ne valt;Or sai-je bien, se Dex me salt,Que j'ai eu boene nuitiée .Moult est la pucele envoisiée,La fille à cest nostre munier,Moult par si fait mal anvoisier,Et si fait trop bon foutre en huche.Conpeignon, car va, si t'i muce,' bres berceau. -Hippeau, Glossaire, 1866.2 This line is made two in the MS.Et quant la dame Entre en la porte.3 This line makes two in the MS.Puis est erranmantWhen the Wife comes back, the Clerk makes her 244 child cry,she goes to the 248 cradle, and lies252down in the Clerk's bed.He creeps to her,and amuses himself.256 The First Clerk,at co*ck crow,gets out ofthe bin, and comes to his bed; but finds the cradle 260 by it,264Пleaf 107, col. 1] and 2 heads in it.268So he goes to the other bed,272 and says to the Miller,"Mate,276 I've had a good night,280Retornee.100 A SECOND FRENCH FABLIAU LIKE CHAUCER'S REEVE'S TALE.and swived theEt si pran do bacon ta part;Assez en a jusq'à la hart;Par .vij . foiz l'ai anuit corbée,Miller's Daughter Des or sera boene l'asnée,El n'a fors l'anel de l'andier;Si ai je fait bien mon mestier. "7 times, all for an andiron ring."The Miller seizes Qant li muniers entant la bole,Tantost prant lo clerc par la gole;him bythe throat, but theClerk soon nearly Et li clers lui qui s'aperçoit,kills the Miller.His wife says the Clerks will strangle one another.Her bed-fellow says, "Let ' em."As soon as the Miller escapes,he goes to lightTantost le met en si mal ploit66 doitA po li fait lo cuer criever.Et la dame aquialt à boterL'autre clerc, qui o lui gisoit." Sire, " fait-ele, " ce queServiax, car nos levon tost sus,Jà s'estranglent cil clerc laissus. ""Ne te chaut," fait-il, "lor ester,Lai les musarz entretuer."Il savoit bien, si n'ot pas tort,Que ses conpainz ere plus fors.Qant li muniers pot eschaper,Tantost cort lo feu alumer;the fire; sees his Et qant il sa fame aparçoit,Qui avoc lo clerc se gisoit:Wife with the other Clerk, and calls her a proved whor*."Or sus," fait-il, " pute provée,284288292[leaf 167, col. 2]296300304She says she's one thro' guile,whereas he's aproved thief,Qui vos a ici amenée?Certes il est de vos tot fait."66 Sire," fait-ele, " autremant vait, 308Car se je suis pute provée,Par engin i sui atornée;Mais vos estes larron prové,Qui en cez clers avez embléas he's stolen the Lor sac de blé et lor jumant,Clerks' corn and mure.Don vos seroiz levez au vant.Tot est en vostre granche mis. "Li dui clerc ont lo vilain pris,thrash the Miller, Tant l'ont folé et debatu,¹The Clerks thentake their mare,and wheat, and grind it at another mill.Par po qu'il ne l'ont tot nolu;Puis vont modre à autre molin.Il orent l'ostel saint Martin,Et ont tant lor mestier menéQ'il se sont do mal an gité.3123163201 afoler, maltraiter blesser, meurtrir, tuer, . . du latinfullare .. d'apres le subst. fullo onis (foler faire des folies, railler,moquer, dire des injures): debatre, débattre, agiter, frapper.- Burguy. Affoler. To foyle, wound, bruise, or hurt sore with blows. -Cotgrave.101NOTES BY MR HENRY NICOL ON THE TWO FRENCHFABLIAUX.De Gombert et des Deux Clers.TEXT. p. 87, 1. 18. amor should be amors, to be grammatical; butthe text is evidently late enough to excuse such a fault.1. 29. Similarly nul should be nus.1. 88. The other reading, E vous, is required to make grammar.1. 103. le vilain should be li vilains, but this would spoil the rhyme;from the note it is clear the text has been altered by the scribe.1. 110. Final x is regularly used for us; indeed some think it isonly a corrupted mode of writing these two letters, and originally hadnothing to do with a, just as our old y in y°, y' is not the Latin y, but the thorn. This seems to be very probable; in any case the forms iex(1. 12) for ieus, miex (1. 16) for mieus , &c. , show that the modern Frenchuc is a barbarisın.1. 114. lut is an impossible form here, though it may be MS.; itought to be lait or leit..1. 143. grande for grant is late Old French; the proper feminine islike the masculine ( Latin grandem in both cases) . The other MS. givesmainte, which suits metre and grammar.1. 145. Esraument is often found in print, but the original form is-anment (iterante mente) .1. 170. je's is a contraction, through jel's, of je les. departir is hereactive, as in the original reading ' till death us depart,' for which do partis a modern corruption.NOTES. p. 87, n. 4. If plus et replaces plus qu' the line has a syllable too many.n. 16. I cannot make que s'en merveille fit.p. 88, n. 12. This reading also does not seem to make sense.p. 89, n. 28. The sense requires donc, not dont.p. 90, n. 2. The reading gives a syllable too few; in any case beschought to be berch, though the MS. may have the former (and of courseought to be followed if it has); see n. 17.n. 15. M. P. Paris's note on voie marie seems to me out of place;no doubt marvoie is common, and has the meaning he gives, but in thiscase marie is a participle. The construction is ' bien cuide avoir mariela voie '; ' he thinks he has missed his way.'p. 91 , n. 1. I very much doubt whether quailes is only another formfor chaud, from callidus. In the first place, qu for Latin c before a,which generally becomes ch, is unheard of; in the next, ai for a, exceptin cases of attraction, or before gutturals and nasals, is equally unknown.However, I have nothing better to suggest.102 NOTES ON THE TWO REEVE'S-TALE FRENCH FABLIAUX.The dialect of the MS. printed as text seems to be ordinary latoBurgundian; that of the one given in the notes is certainly Picard(seur for sor, berchuel for berçuel, caufes for chaufez, puchele for pucele,carie for charie, &c. ).— H. N.The Miller and the Two Clerks.TEXT. p. 93, 1. 6. chier ought properly to be chiers.1. 12. This has a syllable too many; probably il ought to be omitted.1. 35. This is too short; je ai for j'ai would suit.1. 90. à mort may be MS. , but is neither sense nor rhyme; amors(participle of amordre) would be nearer the former, and quite the latter.1. 93. auramant I cannot make out; it may be for erraumant or erranmant.1. 100. This line is too short; Que il for Qu'il would do.1. 141. an es lo pas =in ipsum illum passum.1. 154. This line is too short, and unsyntactical; nient for ni wouldsct it right.1. 159. MS. file for fille. Yet MSS. are generally careful to markthe liquid by doubling, except when final.1. 165. Another line too short; par dedesus for par desus would suit;see 1. 186.1. 166. pertius for pertuis may be a license for the rhyme; 1. 188 hasthe right form .1. 171. This is too long; the plural eves makes no sense, and thesingular eve would admit the elision and make the verse scan.1. 174. L'um for L'un is odd; m for n rarely occurs, except beforea labial.1. 176. artre ought to be astre, to make something intelligible.1. 226. Another line too short; par dedevant for par devant would do.1. 236. em is quite right, as the following word, porroit, begins witha labial, though I see en porroit, l . 197.1. 237. This is too long; autre for autres would do, though strictlywe ought to have uns autres angins.1. 241. The form briez, which also occurs 1. 249 and 1. 261 , has its rtransposed.1. 271. aparceuz is grammar, but does not rhyme with tu.1. 300. fors is likewise grammatical, but not a rhyme to tort.1. 318. nolu seems a mere mistake for molu; the first form does notexist, as far as I can discover.The dialect is Burgundian, as shown by poïssiens for poïssions, secroifor secret, porroiz for porrez, oroille for oreille, &c . The frequent lo forle, accusative masculine of the article in the singular, points to theneighbourhood of the Provençal language, as the text is too modern toallow us to consider that the old form could otherwise have beenpreserved. -H. N.1035.Two Latin StorieslikeChaucer's " Friar's Tale."104" Soon after the age of Berchorius [the compiler or collector of theGesta Romanorum, who died in 1362] , a similar collection of stories, ofthe same cast, was compiled, though not exactly in the same form, professedly designed for sermon- writers, and by one who was himself aneminent preacher; for, rather before the year 1480, a Latin volume wasprinted in Germany, written by John Herolt, a Dominican friar of Basil,better known by the adopted and humble appellation of DISCIPULUS, andwho flourished about the year 1418. It consists of three parts. Thefirst is entitled ' Incipiunt Sermones pernotabiles DISCIPULI de Sanctisper anni circulum '. That is, a set of sermons on the saints of thewhole year. The second part, and [ that] with which I am now chieflyconcerned, is a PROMPTUARY, or ample repository, of examples for composing sermons; and in the Prologue to this part the author says thatsaint Dominic always abundabat exemplis in his discourses, and that heconstantly practised this popular mode of edification. This part contains a variety of little histories. Among others are the following.CHAUCER'S Friar's Tale. The third part contains stories forsermon- writers , consisting only of select miracles of the Virgin Mary.The first of these is the tale of the chaste Roman empress [ Merelaus'swife see above], occurring in the Harleian manuscripts of the GESTA,and versified by Occleve; yet with some variation. This third part isclosed with these words, which also end the volume: Explicit tabulaExemplorum in tractatulo de Exemplis gloriose Virginis Marie contentorum.' I quote from the first edition , which is a clumsy folio in arude Gothic letter, in two volumes; and without pagings, signatures, orinitials. The place and year are also wanting; but it was certainlyprinted before 1480, ¹ and probably at Nuremburg. The same authoralso wrote a set of sermons called ' Sermones de tempore ' 2 (containingstories in the Gesta, Boccaccio's Decameron, Parnell's Hermit, &c.) . "—Warton's Hist. of English Poetry, vol. i , p. ccv, ed. 1840.For the second edition is at Nuremburg, 1482, fol.fore 1500.Others followed, be2 "The only edition I have seen, with the addition of the Sermones deSanctis, and the Promptuarium Exemplorum above-mentioned, was printed by M. Flaccius, Argentin. 1499, fol. But there is an earlier edition. Atthe close of the last Sermon, he tells us why he chose to be styled Discipulus;-because, ' non subtilia per modum Magistri, sed simplicia per modum Dis- cipuli, conscripsi et collegi. ' I have seen also early impressions of hisSermones Quadragesimales, and of other pieces of the same sort. All his works were published together in three volumes, Mogunt. 1612, 4to. TheExamples appeared separately, Daventr. 1481. Colon . 1485. Argentorat. 1489.1490. Hagen. 1512. 1519. fol." See Hain.A LATIN STORY LIKE CHAUCER'S FRIAR's tale. 105[Cotton MS. Cleopatra D VIII, leaf 110. ]NARRATIO DE QUODAM SENESCALLO SCELEROSO.¹Erat vir quidam Senescallus & placitator. pauperum ▲ Seneschal,calumpniator. & bonorum huiusmodi spoliator. Qui hard to the poor,die quadam forum iudiciale causa contencionis faciende" another man,& lucrandi adiuit. ¶ Cui quidam obuiauit in itinere is met by dicens ei. "Quo vadis? Et quid habes officij who asks himRespondit primus. " vado lucrari. ” Et ait secundus. his business.' Ego tui similis sum. Eamus simul. " Primo consenciente dixit secundus ei. 'Quid est lucrum6666tuum?" Et ille " emolumentum pauperum quamdiu " Grinding thealiquid habent. vt per lites contenciones & vexaciones poor,""What's yours? 'curst, and given to the Devil."for not going"but not with hissiue iuste siue iniuste. Modo dixi tibi lucrum meum justly or unjustly.vnde est. Dic mihi queso? vnde est & tuum?Respondit secundus dicens. " quicquid sub maledictione " Taking every- traditur diabolo computo mihi pro lucro." Risit thing that'sprimus & derisit secundum. non intelligens quod esset diabolus. Paulo post cum transirent per ciuitatemaudierunt quemdam pauperem maledicere cuidam vitulo Apoor man quem duxit ad vendendum quia indirecte ibat. Item curses his calfaudierunt consimilem de muliere fustigante puerum straight tosuum. Tunc ait primus ad secundum. "Ecce potes market;lucrari si vis. Tolle puerum & vitulum." Respondit heart, so the secundus non possum quia non maledic*nt ex take it.corde." T Cum vero paululum processissent. pauperes But when someeuntes versus iudicium. videntes illum Senescallum poor folk curseceperunt omnes vnanimiter maledictiones in ipsumingerere. Et dixit secundus ad primum. " audis quid isti dic*nt?" " audio " inquit. "Set nichil ad me. " Etdixit secundus. "Isti maledic*nt ex corde & te tra- with all theirdunt diabolo. Et ideo meus eris. " Qui statim ipsum heart, the Fiendarripiens cum eo disparuit.66¹ Printed by Mr Thomas Wright in the Archæologia, vol.xxxii. Now re-read with the MS. by Miss L. T. Smith.CH. ORIG. 7*Fiend can'tthe Seneschalcarries him off.106 A SECOND LATIN STORY LIKE CHAUCER'S FRIAR'S TALE.A grasping lawyer, out to gather prey, met the Devil in the form ofa man,quit of him.A poor man,you!'But as he didn'tDE ADVOCATO ET DIABOLO.¹hom*o quidam erat diversarum villarum advocatus,immisericors, avarus, faciens graves exactiones in sibisubditos. Die quadam, cum propter exactionem faciendam ad villam unam properaret, diabolus in speciehominis se illi in itinere sociavit, quem tam ex horrore quam ex mutua collocutione diabolum esse intellexit.and couldn't get Ire cum eo satis timuit; nullo tamen modo, nequeorando neque cruce signando, ab eo separari potuit.Cumque simul pergerent, occurrit eis hom*o quidam angry with his pauper porcum in laqueo ducens. Cumque porcus huc perverse pig,Baid, ' Devil take illucque diverteretur, iratus hom*o clamavit, " Diaboluste habeat!' Quo verbo audito, advocatus sperans setali occasione a diabolo liberari, ait illi , “ Audi, amice:porcus ille est tibi datus; vade tolle illum. " Responditdiabolus, " Nequaquam mihi illum ex corde donavit, et ideo illum tollere non possum. " Deinde transeuntesper aliam villam, cum infans fleret, mater in foribusdomus stans, turbida voce dicebat, "Diabolus tehabeat! quid me fletibus tuis inquietas? "advocatus dixit, " Ecce bene lucratus es animam unam!tolle infantem, quia tuus est." Cui diabolus, ut prius,"Non mihi illum dedit ex corde: sed talis est conWhen, however, suetudo hominibus loquendi, cum irasc*ntur. " Incipientibus autem appropinquare loco ad quem tendebant,homines a villa longe videntes, et causam ejus adventusthey all cried out, non ignorantes, omnes una voce simul clamabant,dicentes, " Diabolus te habeat, ac diabolo venias."Quo audito, diabolus, caput movens et cachinnans, aitadvocato, " Ecce, isti dederunt te mihi ex intimo corde,et ideo meus es. "" Ac rapuit eum in ipsa hora diabolus,hearts, the Devil et quid de eo fecerit ignoratur. Verba mutuæ confabulationis ac facta istius, per famulum advocati, qui secumfuit in itinere, declarata sunt.say it from his heart, the Devil couldn't take the Pig: nor could he a Child, to which its Mother said, ' Devil take you!'some townsmen saw the Lawyer coming,' May the Devil take you!'and as they did it from the bottom of theircarried the Lawyer off;as his man bore witness.Tunc1 This story is printed in the Selection of Latin Stories,edited by Mr Thomas Wright for the Percy Society, Early Eng.Poetry, vol. 8, p. 70. He says he took it from the printed Promptuarium Exemplorum, which was compiled in the early part of the 15th century. (The English version of the Alpha- betum Narrationum- stories for quotation in sermons, &c.,is in Addit. MS. 25,719, Brit. Mus., and the Latin, which differsfrom the Promptuarium Exemplorum, is in Harl. MS, 268. )1076.Alphonsus of Lincoln,A STORY LIKE CHAUCER'S PRIORESS'S TALE,FROM THEFortalitium Fidei. Lugdun. 1500, fo. ccviii.CII. ORIG. 8TYThe third ex- pulsion ofthe Jews was from England.In Lincoln apoor widow had a little sonAlphonsus,whom she sentto learn grammar and music;and a ' religious gave him his meals.·108Alphonsus of Lincoln,A STORY LIKE CHAUCER'S PRIORESS'S TALE,from theFortalitium Fidei.¹ Lugdun. 1500, fo. ccviii.Tertio iudeorum expulsio fuit a regno anglie, cuiusexpulsionis causa duplex assignantur quarum primamlegi in quibusdam miraculis sub ordine qui sequitur.In li[n]conia, ciuitate regis anglie, accidit quoddammiraculum quod deus voluit ostendere precibus beatevirginis. Unde mulier quedam vidua et paupercula,filium quendam nomine alfonsum habebat: quemtradidit ad docendum primas litteras, et postquamsciuit legere, tradidit imbuendum rudimentis grammaticalibus, & in musica; qui licet in grammaticalibusprocesserit, in musicis tamen gratissimus erat. Et quiapredicta mulier paupercula erat, recommendauit illumcuidam religioso sui generis: vt devictu saltem ipsiprouideret: & ita factum est, quia quotidie postlectiones suas recipiebat suam refectionem cum predictoreligioso. Erat autem predictus puer etatis annorum.x. cuius erat consuetudo ordinata: vt primo quotidiechurch, to school, iret ad ecclesiam, deinde ad scolas, & hora refectionis,vt dictum est, ad domum religiosi; nocte vero admatris domicilium se conuertebat. Cum autem sepe inecclesia illam preclaram antiphonam " Alma redemptoris " audiret cantare, tantam deuotionem concepit invirgine beata, et sic menti impressit predictam antiphonam, quod quocunque iret de die et de nocte pervicos et plateas, more puerorum, supradictam antiTheboy was ten years old,and daily went toto meals, and home at night.He so liked the anthem,Alma Redemp- toris, that he sang it night and morningthrough the Jews' street.1 This book was composed in 1459, says the 1485 edition ofit. It is given by Hain, &c . , to Alphonsus a Spina."Prohemium in Fortalicium fidei Fol. 1. Incipit prohemium fortalicij fidei conscripti per quendam doctorem eximium ordinis minoris. Anno domini M.cccclix. in partibusoccidentis. Et primum ponitur scribentio intentio. "Colophon. " Anno incarnate deitatis. M.cccclxxxv. vj.Idus octobris. Indictione .iij. Hic liber (quem fidei fortali- cium editor intitulauit) impressoria arte Nurembergk ImpensisAnthonij koberger inibi ciuez est completus & in hunc finem vsque perductus. "In the text above, from the 1500 edition, the expansions of the printed contractions are not italicised as usual.ALPHONSUS OF LINCOLN, FOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 109phonam alta voce dulcissime cantabat. transitus autem eius erat, cum iret ad domum matris vel rediret abeadem, per vicum quendam iudeorum; qui audientesfrequenter predictam virginis cantationem ab oreiuuenis, quidam illorum habuit querere a quodam A Jew askt adocto Christiano, quis esset sensus illius cantationis, what the songcum eius cantus tam dulcis esset. Et vt cognouit quod meant.illa erat antiphona quedam, que ad laudem et honorem ' It's an anthem virginis beate marie, matris redemptoris iesu Christi, in honour ofveri messie, decantabatur a fidelibus in ecclesia, concepit Christ's Mother.'dolorem & peperit iniquitatem, quod consilium habuitChristian doctorthe Virgin,cum suis complicibus, quorum corda diabolus posside- The Jew plots bat: quomodo predictum infantem mortui traderent & with his fellows.occiderent. hora ergo opportuna obseruata, cum paruulus predictus alta voce cantando predictam antiphonam They seizetransiret per eorum vicum, subito, sicut a rugientibus Alphonsus,leonibus, rapitur, & reclusus in domo quadam, de modo mortis eius tractaverunt. Et diffinitum est inter eos,quod eius lingua, cum qua beatam virginem laudabat, cut out hisextraheretur per oppositam capitis partem. secundo tongue,quod extraheretur etiam eius cor, cum quo cogitabat tear out his predictam cantationem, et vltimo quod corpus eius heart, and throwproiiceretur in loco profundissimo et immundissimo, their jakes.fetoribusque pleno, qui locus erat eorum continua 1his body intocomes to thelatrina, vt nullatenus signum eius inveniri posset: et factum est sic. Sed virgo beata, quæ mater est mise- But theVirginricordie et pietatis, nec obliuioni tradit seruicium quod dead boy,cunque sibi factum, statim sic ille deuotissimus suuscantor in predicto loco fetido fuit proiectus, affuitpresens eidem, et posuit in ei[ u]s ore lapidem quendam gives him apreciosum, qui locum lingue suppleret, et statim cepit precious stonecantare, sicut prius, predictam antiphonam, immomelius & altius quam primo, nec aliquando cessabat de heat once begins die, nec de nocte, a predicto cantu; et tali modo stetit to sing Almain predicto loco paruulus ille quattuor diebus: cum and keeps on forThis is in the early French Ballade that FrancisqueMichel publisht in his Hugues de Lincoln, 1834. After theJews have crucified young Hugh, and ' Agim le Ju' has stabbedhim on the cross, they bury the boy's corpse in the ground,but next morning find it on the top of the grave. Then theyconsult, and agree Qe le cors de l'enfantGeté fut demeintenentEt à chambre privé tut puant:Mult furent fols et mescréant.But next morning the body is found on the seat of the privy.Then it's thrown into a fountain behind the Castle of the City,but rises from the bottom, and is found by the Christians.Redemptoris,4 days.110 ALPHONSUS OF LINCOLN, FOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE.Meantime his mother seeks him, throughout the city,and at the end of the 4th day goes through the Jewry, and hears her son's voice.folk come with the Judge;break into the house, find the boy, and take him out, always singing, tho' he is dead.the Cathedral,singing still.vero mater eius videret, quod [ ut] consueuerat ad domumeius non veniret, celeri gressu ad domum supradictireligiosi peruenit, ac deinde ad scolas, nec poteratinuenire. Discurrebat vndique per ciuitatem anxiamulier, si posset alicubi inuenire filium suum; et disponente deo, in fine quattuor dierum predictorum,mulier illa transiuit per vicum illum in quo filius suusfuerat occisus, et in latrinam proiectus, & ecce voxfilij sui cantantis dulcissime cantationem illam virginisquam sepissime ab eo audierat insonuit in auribus eius.She cries aloud; Quo audito, clamoribus magnis predicta mulier clamarecepit, et congregate sunt multe gentes, et cum eis iudexciuitatis, intraveruntque domum illam in qua vox illaaudiebatur, & finaliter inuentus est inuenis in loco predicto, & extractus; nec vnquam cessabat a cantu illodulcissimo, licet mortuus foret. Indutisque, alijs vestimentis per dominos qui ibidem venerant, notificatumest episcopo ciuitatis, qui ilico veniens ad spectaculumprecepit quod poneretur honorifice in quodam lecto, et They bear him to sic deductus est cum solenni processione et magnohonore ad ecclesiain cathedralem predicte ciuitatis .Semper tamen continuabat canticum suum; conuenien- tibus ergo in vnum ad predictam ecclesiam, dictus episcopus celebrauit et fecit solennem sermonem, precepitque omnibus audientibus quod deuotas funderentorationes, vt precibus beate virginis deus dignaretur reuelare hoc secretum. Finito vero sermone, placuitaltissimo et sue beatissime matri, quod fuit detectaimpijssimorum iudeorum proditio et crudelitas, quiaeadem hora surrexit paruulus ille & iste, et stetit pedesin lecto in quo iacebat, et extraxit ab ore suo vnumpreciosissimum lapidem, dixitque omni populo, leta ettakos the precious hylari facie, qualiter sibi acciderat, sicut dictum est, etquomodo virgo beata ad eum venerat, et posueratdictum lapidem in ore eius, vt non cessaret mortuus abeius laude et vt ostenderetur gloria filij sui in salutemVirgin had made credentium, et perditionem odientium & incredulorum.post hec autem vocauit ad se episcopum, et dedit sibipacem similiter, & matri: et facta expeditione ab omnipopulo, certificauit eos quod ascendit ad celos insocietate virginis gloriose, & tradidit predictum lapidempreciosum episcopo, vt poneret cum alijs reliquijs inaltari. Quo facto, signaculo sancte crucis se insigniuit,& coaptans se lecto, animam tradidit saluatori; qui honorifice sepultus fuit in quodam sepulchro marmoreo,and was buried in quod multo tempore preciosos lapides, vt fertur, emanauitquo[u]sque quedam pestifera heresis ibidem orta fuit.The Bishop celebrates Mass,and prays that this secret may be revealed.Then the dead boy stands up on his bed,stone from his mouth, and tells his tale,and how thehim sing while he was dead.Then he said he was going to be with the Virgin in heaven.He handed his stone to the Bishop,gave up the ghost,a marble tomb.1117.How Regnand caught Chanticleer,the source of Chaucer's " Nun's Priest's Tale,"from the French ofMarie de France and the Roman du Kenart.112 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.As the original of Chaucer's famous Tale of Chanticlere and Pertelote, Tyrwhitt pointed out the Fable of the co*ck and Fox by Marie deFrance. Since then, Mr Thomas Wright has called attention to theenlargement of that Fable in the French Roman du Renart, as the moreimmediate source of Chaucer's story. That our poet, in this instanceas in all others, adorned what he touched, and brightened his originalwith his own cheery spirit and humorous skits, will be evident to all whor*ad the French Fable, and its expansion now first printed separately,from Méon's edition, for English readers. That the French writer ofthe Roman also ' improved ' the estoire from which he took his tale,may well be supposed, just as that estoire writer probably toucht- up hisoriginal, which was no doubt Marie de France's Fable, translated fromthe English of King Alfred. Certain it is that, if the Roman writer wasserious in his appeal to an estoire as his authority for the co*ck's dreaming (1. 1382-4) , that authority cannot have been Marie's Fable, whichdoes not contain the dream. If, however, the estoire reference was onlychaff, then lines 29-35 of the Fable, as compared with lines 1696-1704ofthe Roman du Renart, render it probable that the co*ck and Fox storyin the latter was taken immediately from the Fable.The incidents of the story as told by Chaucer are better arrangedthan in the French Roman du Renart, where the co*ck's seizure is directlyforetold by his wife, and the co*ck listens to the Fox's flattery after hehas just misst losing his life by him. The picturesqueness and realityof the story, too, are much enhanced by Chaucer; but then the Frenchwriter does not make his co*ck quote learned Latin treatises on dreams.Still, il n'y a que le premier pas qui coute; if a saint can walk one stepwith his head under his arm, there can be no objection to his walkinga mile; and so Chaucer must not be blamed for carrying further thehint of his foregoing story- tellers, especially as his episode ofthe dreamcontains the happiest touches of humour in the whole Tale. M. Méondoesn't name the MSS. from which he prints, further than to say theyare Manuscrits de la Bibliothéque du Roi des xiije, xiv et xvº Siècles;and as to what parts come from what MSS. , all that M. Méon says is,"L'ordre des branches n'étant pas le même dans les douze manuscritssur lesquels j'ai collationné ce Roman, j'ai cherché à en établir un quiles liât ensemble de manière à en former un tout; je désire que laclassification que j'ai adoptée soit jugée la plus convenable. Autantqu'il m'a été possible, j'ai profité des variantes que m'offraient quelquefois ces différens manuscrits, et j'en ai augmenté mon texte."•REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 113Confound such editing! I say. M. Paul Meyer says that in 1835Chabaille publisht a ' Supplèment au Roman de Renart,' in which hegave, at pages 65-7, some various readings to Méon's text, and at p. 391some corrections ( one on 1. 1580) , with this list of MSS. in the NationalLibrary which contain the co*ck and Fox Story:-Fonds français 371 (formerly 6985-4, langé 68) , fol. 34 c.99 1,579 (formerly 7607), fol. 8 d.99 19 1,580 (formerly 7607-5), fol. 20 b."" "" 12,584 (formerly Suppl. fr. 98-14) , fol . 59 a."" 20,043 (formerly Saint- Germain 1980) , now out ofthe library, lent abroad.Chabaille also mentions two MSS. in the Arsenal Library.As to the original story, Professor Bernhard ten Brink writes me thisletter:"DEAREST SIK,“ Marburg, 21 March, 1872."Though the story of Reinardus and Isengrimus, no doubt, isfounded on original German traditions, as may be proved by the namesof the chief heroes occurring in it, yet it is chiefly to France and toFlanders that we are indebted for the original poems belonging to thiscycle. The first part (about 10,000 lines) of the ‘ Roman du Renart,' asedited by Méon, is thought to have been written at the beginning ofthe 13th century; but it was preceded by earlier poems on the samesubject, and written in the same language, as we may infer from theexistence of two Latin poems, and one German, belonging to the 12thcentury, all of which appear to have been drawn from French sources.They are:" 1. Isengrimus, composed about 1100 in Artois, or the southernpart of Flanders. It contains but two stories, and probably has comedown to us in a fragmentary state." 2. Reinardus Vulpes, about 1148-1160, composed in a monasteryin the neighbourhood of (Gent or) Ghent. It seems to be a recast of theIsengrimus, and contains twelve stories. Though founded on Frenchtraditions, and probably drawn from French sources, these two poemscan't be said to have been translated from the French. But we possessa faithful translation from an early French Roman du Renart ' in"3. Reinhart Fuchs, by Heinrich der Glîchezâre or Glîchesaere, after1150. This translation in its original form has perished, with the exception of three fragments ( 11. 588-981 , 11. 1524-1596, 1831-1901 ) ,but there exists a younger version or recast of it, made in the 13thcentury, in which nothing material seems to have been altered. In thismanner the German ' Reinhart Fuchs ' represents an earlier phase in thedevelopment of the French ' Roman du Renart' than the poemn of Pierrede St Cloud in the first part of Méon's edition."The story of the co*ck and the Fox occurs in Reinhart Fuchs aswell as in Reinardus Vulpes, and may have occurred also in the lost114 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR 1HE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.parts of Isengrimus. In Reinhart Fuchs we have the dream, but not inReinardus Vulpes. Respecting the epigrammatic conclusion of the storyin Marie de France, and the ' Roman du Renart ' (Méon), I make nodoubt but both borrowed it from some earlier author. In ReinhartFuchs, 1. 162-169, we read something very nearly approaching to it.But we find it in terms almost identical with those used by Marie in aLatin collection of Æsopian fables in a MS. at Göttingen, Cod. theol. 140,fol. (15th century), see Oesterley, Romulus, Berlin, 1870, p. 108. Onthe whole, Marie de France must have worked after an original of acharacter very much resembling that collection. But I'll copy thewhole fable from Oesterley:Qui" Quomodo Vulpes sitivit cantum Galli. Gallus in sterquilinio conversabatur, quem vulpes intuens accessit, et ante illum residens, in hecverba prorupit. Nunquam vidi volucrem similem tibi in decore, nec cuiplus laudis debetur pro vocis dulcedine, patre tantum tuo excepto.cum altius voluit cantare, oculos claudere consuevit. Gallus igitur,amator laudis, sicut vulpes edocuit, lumina clausit, et alta voce clamarecepit. Protinus vulpes in eum irruens, cautum in tristitiam vertit, raptumque cantorem ad nemus properans detulit. Aderant forte pastoresin campo qui vulpem profugam canibus et clamoribus insequebantur.Tunc gallus ait vulpi: ' Dicite quod vester sum, et quod nichil spectatad eos rapina ista . ' Vulpe igitur incipiente loqui, gallus elapsus ab oreipsius. Auxilio pennarum mox in arbore summa refugium invenit. Tunc vulpes ait: ' Ve sibi, qui loquitur cum melius deberet tacere! ' Cuigallus de sublimi respondit: ' Ve sibi qui claudit oculos cum potius deberet eos aperire! ' Moralitas. Non est exigua res suo tempore loqui etsuo tempore reticere. Mors enim et vita in manibus lingue sunt.'"The same story, you know, is found in other medieval collectionsof fables. I don't know whether it occurs in MS. Royal, 15 A. VII. ( Brit.Museum ) , as I cannot look this moment into Dr Eduard Mall's paper,' Zum Romulus,' Jahrbuch für roman. u. engl. Lit., XII, p. 18–28. Itit does, it would be interesting to compare that version with thetwo other ones. (The Royal MS. 15 A. VII. is said to belong to thebeginning of the 13th century, whereas the MS. of Göttingen is of the15th century, but the latter is much more complete than the former. )"A proof of the popularity of the story of the Fox and the co*ck inFrance during the 12th century is to be found in the Roman d'Alexandre (cited by J. Grimm, Reinhart Fuchs, p. cxcvii. )' Li Grezois les engignent, com Renart fist le gal,Quil saisi par la gorge, quant il chantoit clinal.'"Yours most sincerely," BERNHARD TEN BRINK."After what Prof. Ten Brink has said, I suppose he and the scholarsof the Continent will pooh-pooh any claim of England to the origination' No, it doesn't. -F.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 115of the co*ck and Fox story; yet, inasmuch as no version of sop containing this story has yet been found which is so early as King Alfred'stime, England can, at present, show the best primâ facie title to the authorship of the fable. In the 13th century Marie de France translateda set of Æsop's Fables (Ici cumence le ysope) , she says, from the Englishof Li reis Alurez¹-King Alfred, whose version of Æsop is lost, —andamong these is the following fable of the co*ck and Fox, which wasprinted by Tyrwhitt in his ' Introductory Discourse to the CanterburyTales,' § xxxvii:-1 "The name of the King, whose English version she professes to follow, isdifferently stated in different MSS. In the best MS. , Harl. 978, it is plainlyLi reis Alured. In a later MS. , Vesp. B. xiv, it is Li reis Henris. * Pasquier(Recherches, 1. viii, c. i . ) calls him Li roy Auuert, and Du Chesne (as quotedby Menage, v. ROMAN) Li Rois Mires; but all the copies agree in making Marie declare, that she translated her work de l'Anglois en Roman.' ALatin Esop, MS. Reg. 15 A. vii, † has the same story of an English version byorder of a Rex Angliæ Affrus. " -Tyrwhitt.6That readers may judge for themselves on this point, I print here the windup of Marie's Fables from the Harl. MS. 978, leaf 67, col. 2. (cp. Roquefort,II. 401. )AL finement de cest escrit48E del engleis en romanz treire.Esope apelum cest liure,Qu'il translata e fist escrire;Del griu en latin le turna.Li reis Alurez, qui mut l'ama,Le translata puis en engleis;E ieo l'ai riméé || en franceisSi cum ieo poi plus proprement.1216Ore pri a deu omnipotent, 20que en romanz ai treite e dit,Me numerai pur remembrance:Marie ai nun; si sui de france.Put cel estre, que clerc plusur [1/67, bk]Prendreient sur eus mun labur;Ne uoil que nul sur li le die,E il fet que fol ki sei ublie.Pur amur le c*nte Willame,Le plus uaillant de nul realme,M'entremis § de cest liure feire,Ke a tel oure puisse entendre,Que a lui puss* m'alme rendre.In her proem to her ' Esope ' ( Harl. 978, leaf 40, col . 1; cp. Roquefort, II.60) Marie says again of Asop, and of the flower of chivalry and courtesy (' lec*nte Willame ' ) , who askt her to translate her book,Esop escrist a sun mestre,Qui bien cunust lui e sun estre,Vnes fables ke ot trouéésDe griu en latin translatéés.Merueille en eurent li plusur,Qu'il mist sun sen en tel labur;Mes n'i ad fable de folie,V il nen ait philosophie[EST] Essamples ki sunt apres,V des c*ntes est tut li fes.A mei ki dei la rime faire,N'auenist nient a retrairePlusurs paroles que i sunt;Mes nepuruc, cil me sumuntKi flurs est de cheualerie,4 D'enseignement, de curteisie;E quant tel hume me ad requise,812Ne uoil lesser, en nule guise,Que n'i mette trauail e peine,16Ki que m'en tienge pur uileine ** 20 De fere mut pur sa préére;Si comencerai la premereDes fables ke esopus escrist,qu'a sun mestre manda e dist. 24I cannot find this name in the Cotton MS. , but Harl . 4333, lf 96, col. 1 , 1. 1 , has ' Li rois Henris.'The Cotton MS. has no epilogue as in the Harl. MS. 978 ( see leaf 32, back); and all its Proem, except the last 8 limes, is lost: see leaf 19. Our co*ck Fable is on leaf 31, near the foot. (If 86, bk, col. 1 , of Harl. 4333.)Deinde rex anglie affrus in anglicam linguam eum transferri precepit (leaf 77, col. 1 , 1. 9-10).Every final t has a tag. § Meintenur, Harl. 978; Mentremis, Harl. 4338.The accents are in the MS. Harl. 4333. leaf40, col. 2.116 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.To a co*ck,crowing,comes a Fox,and praises the co*ck'svoice beyond all others, exceptwhen he crowed,shut his eyes.The co*ck then shuts his eyes too, to crow better;MARIE DE FRANCE'S FABLE OF THEco*ck AND FOX.[Harl. MS. 978, leaf 56 (old mark 76), col. 2. ]D'vn co*k rec*nte, ki estot¹¹Sur un femer, e si chantot.Par de lez li uient' un gupilz,Si l'apela par muz beaus diz.Sire," fet il, " mut te uei bel;Vnc ne ui si gent' oisel.Clere uoiz as sur tute rien,his father's, who, Fors tun pere, que io ui bien:Vnc oisel meuz ne chanta;Mes il le fist' meuz, kar il cluna.”' Si puis ieo fere,' dist' li cocs;Les eles bat', les oilz ad clos,Chanter quida plus clerement.Li gupil saut', e si l[e] prent;Vers la forest' od lui s'en ua.Par mi un champ .v. il passa,Curent apres tut' li pastur;Li chiens le huent' tut entur.Veit le gupil, ki le co*k tient',Mar le guaina si par eus uient'.'Va,' fet' li cocs, ' si lur escrie,Que sui tuens, ne me larras mie. 'and the Fox seizes him, and carries him off.The shepherds and dogs chase the Fox.The co*ck says,"Tell ' em you have me, andThe Fox opens his jaws to do this,and the co*ckflies up in a tree.[leaf 56, back]The Fox thinks he's been a fool,and curses the mouth that speaks when it ought to be silent.won't let mego. Li gupil uolt parler en haut,E li cocs de sa buche saut;Sur un haut fust' s'est muntez.Quant li gupilz s'est' reguardez,Mut par se tient' enfantillé,Que li cocs l'ad si enginné.De mal talent' e de dreit ireLa buche cumence a maudire,Ke parole quant deuereit taire.Li cocs respunt', ' si dei ieo foire,Maudire l'oil ki uolt cluinerQuant' il deit guarder e guaiterQue mal ne uienge a lur seignur! '¶ Ceo funt' li fol tut li plusur;Parolent quant deiuent' taiser,Teisent quant il deiuent parler.The co*ck says he ought to curse the eye that shuts when it ought watch.This fools do:tospeak when they should be silent;say nothing when they should speak.48121620242812233638' I print these tags of this early French MS. to show that the like tags inlater English MSS. are almost certainly valueless, though they often come wherea final e ought to be. Far oftener they are used where an e could never havefollowed.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 117[Le Roman du Renart, ed. D. M. Méon, 1826,Vol. I , p. 49. ]Si conme Benart prist Chanteclerle Coc.Il avint chose que RenartQui tant est plain d'engin et d'art,Et qui moult set de mainte guile,S'en vint corant à une vile.La vile séoit en un bos,Reynard1270 comes to a home- steadMoult i ot gelines et cos,Anes, ¹ malarz, et jars et oes;Et mesire Costant Desnoes,Uns vilains qui moult ert garniz,Manoit moult près du plaiséiz .Plentéive estoit sa mesons:De gelines et de chaponsBien avoit garni son ostel,Assez i avoit un et el:Char salée, bacons et fliches,De ce estoit li vilains riches.Moult par estoit bien herbergiez;Tout entor estoit li plaissiez;Moult i ot de bones cerises,Et plusors fruiz de maintes guises,Pomes i ot, et autre fruit:Renart i va por son deduit.Cest cortil fut moult très bien closDe piez de chesne aguz et gros:Hordez estoit d'aubes espines.Dedens avoit mis ses gelinesDant Costant por la forteresce,Et Renart cele part s'adresce:Tout coiement, le col bessiéS'en va tot droit vers le plessié.Moult fu Renart en grant porchaz,Mès la force des espinazLi destorbe de son afereSi qu'il n'en set à quel chief trere;Latin anas, a duck. Jars is a gander.with many co*cks 1274 and hens,12781282and Constant Desnoes owns them all.Well stockt is his housewith bacon, &c. ,and he has many 1286 fruit-trees.His yard is well 1290 fenced12941298with oakstubs plasht with hawthorn;and in it are his hens.The Fox tries to get into it,but the thorns stop him.118 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST's tale.1302So he squats on the path,Ne por luitier ne por saillirAs gelines ne puet venir.Acroupiz s'est enmi la voie,Moult se doute que l'en nel' voie.thinking that he Porpense soi que se il saut won't spring on the hens,or he'll frighten them.As gelines et il i faut,1306Il ert véuz, et les gelinesSe repondront soz les espines;Si porroit estre tost sorprisAinz qu'il éust gueres conquis.1310Moult par estoit en grant effroi.He choses abroken pale,and hides there,where cabbages .have beenplanted.He lets himself fall in a heap,Des gelines velt trere¹ o soiQui devant lui vont pasturant.Et Renart va le col baissant:El retor del paliz choisist1314Un pel froissié, dedenz se mist;Là où li palis fu desclosAvoit li vilain planté chos 1318Renart i vint, outre s'en passe,Chaoir se laisse à une massePor ce que la gent ne le voient,which makes the Mès les gelines s'en effroient 1322 hensfly away.Chanticleer the co*ck comes in from the wood,Qui l'ont oï à sa chéoite;Chascune de foir s'esploite.Qant sire Chantecler li cosEn une sente lez le bos, 1326Entre deus piex en la raiereEstoit alé en la poudriere,2Moult fierement lor vint devant,La plume el pié, le col tendant; 1330and asks whyhis Si demande par quel resonEles s'en fuient en meson. hens fly home.Pinte, the biggest Pinte parla qui plus savoit,egg layer,says, "We're afraid of asavage beast hurting us.I saw him,Cele qui les gros oés ponnoit;Et près du Coc juchant à destre,Si li a conté tout son estre,Et dist, " paor avons éue. "' De quoi? avez chose véue?'"Oil. " ' Et quoi?'Qui tost nos puet fere domageSe ne vidions le porpris."" Beste sauvageCe est naienz, jel' vos plevis,'Ce dist li Cos, ' n'aiez péur,Mès soiez trestoute aséur. '133413381342Dist Pinte, " par ma foi jel' vi ,Et loiaument le vos afi 1346Que je le vi tout à estrous. "1treres.-Méon, 2 Pouldriere, dust. —Cotgrave.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 119' Et conment le véistes-vous? '"Conment? Je vi la soif branlerEt la feuille du chol tremblerOù cil se gist qui est repost,Qui tout domageroit les noz. "6 Tais, sote! ' ce respont li Cos,'Ja Renart n'aura si dur osQue céens s'ost mucier ne metre,Ne s'en oseroit entremetre:Nostre paliz n'est pas si viezJà par Renart soit despeciez.Treves avez, jel' vos otroi ,Que par la foi que je vos doiJe ne sai Putois ne GorpilC'osast entrer en cest cortil,and saw the 1350 cabbage leaf tremble, where he's lying.""Hold your1354 tongue, silly,'says the co*ck;1358' our paling isn't so oldthat fulmart or1362 Fox can get in here.'N'est se gas non, tornez ariere . 'Atant se trait en sa poudriere,Mès il n'est mie aséurez,Sovent regarde de toz lez.But still Mr co*ck1366 doesn't feel comfortable;Moult se contient or fierement,Mès il ne set c'à l'oil li pent;Il se doutast d'aucune chose,Mès la cort ert si bien enclose,Riens ne douta, si fist que fox;L'un oil overs et l'autre clox,L'un pié cranpi et l'autre droit,S'est apoiez delez un toit.Là où li Cos est apoiezCome cil qui ert anoiezEt de chanter et de veillier,Si conmença a sonmeillier.Au sonmeillier que il fesoit,Et el dormir qui li plesoit,Conmença li Cos à songier,(Ne m'en tenez a mençongier,Que il songa, ce est la voire,Trover le poez en l'estoire, )Que il véoit ne sai quel choseQui iert dedenz la cort enclose,Qui li venoit enmi le vis,Einssi con li estoit avis;Si en avoit moult grant friçon.Et avoit un ros peliçonDont li ourlet ' estoient d'os,1370he keeps one eyo open, and one leg straight,1374 props himself against a roof,1378 and goes to sleep.Then he dreams1382 (Don't think Ilie: it's all in the Story:)that he sees a1386 thing in the yard,with a red-furred 1390 pelisse bordered with bones, which he forces on the co*ck's back.Chanticleer is 1394 greatly troubledSi li vestoit à force el dos.Moult fu Chantecler en grant paineDel songe qui si le demaineDont les gueules, MS. 371; gules, MS. 1580; cf. v. 1479.-P. Meyer.120 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.about his dream, Endementiers que il someille,the pelisse and the collar; Et du peliçon se merveille Dont la chevesce ' ert en travers,Et si li vestoit à envers.he wakes withfright,1398Estroite en estoit la chevesce,Si qu'il en ert en grant destresce,Et de péor c'est esveilliez;Mès de ce est plus merveilliez 1402Que blans estoit desoz le ventre,Et que par la chevesce i entreSi que la teste iert en la faille,Et que la qeue en la cheveçaille.Por le songe s'est tressailliz,Que bien cuide estre maubailliz.Por la vision qu'a véue1406Dont il a grant péor éue,1410Esveilliez s'est et esperiz,and says, ' Holy Ghost, protect Et dist li Cos, ' Sainz Esperiz,me! 'Then he runs offGaris hui mon cors de prisonEt met à sauve garison! '1414Lors s'en torne grant aléureCon cil qui pas ne s'aséure,to his hens under Et vint corant vers les gelines the hedge,Qui estoient soz les espines;Jusqu'à eles ne se recroit.1418calls Pinte aside, Pintain apele où moult se croit,and tells her he's frightened A une part l'a apelée:of being treacher- Pintain, n'i a mestier celée ,ously carried Moult sui dolenz et esmarriz,1422offby a bird or a beast. Grant péor ai d'estre traïz² D'oisel ou de beste sauvageQui trop me puet fere domage.'1426She comforts "Avoi!" dist Pintain, "biax doz sire,him, and says Ce ne devriez-vos pas dire;Mal fetes qui vos esmaiez;Si vos diré, çà vos traiez. 1430l'en prie,1434he's like the dog that howls before the stone hits it.What's the matter?'Why,'saysPar trestoz les Sainz queVos resemblez le chien qui crie Ainz que la pierre soit chéue.Dont avez tel péor éue?Or me dites que vos avez."' Qoi! ' fait li Cos, ' vos ne savez,co*ckie, ' I've had Orains songé un songe estrange.a dream,Delez le trou de cele grange 1438Chevece, chevesce, chaperon, collet, la partie de l'habit qui entoure le cou;ouverture supérieure de la jupe d'une femme: de capitium (from caput).Chevesce était aussi le nom d'une partie du harnachement du cheval. -Burguy.2 trais is traditus, not tractus. - P. M.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 121Vi une vision moult malePar qoi vos me véez si pale;Tout le songe vos conteré,1442and seen a vision that's turned me pale.I sawJà riens ne vos en celeré.Sauriez m'en vos conseillier?Avis me fu el sommeillierQue ne sé quel beste venoitQui un rous peliçon portoitBien fet, sanz cisel et sanz force,Sel' me fesoit vestir à force:D'os estoit fete l'orléureToute blanche, mès moult ert dure.Le poil avoit defors tornéa strange beast in a red furred 1446 coat1450bordered with white bones,and the hairLe peliçon si atorné;Par la cheveçaille i entroie,Mès moult petit i arestoie.Le peliçon vesti einsiEt puis après le desvestiPor la qeue qui ert deseure.Lors m'esveillai à icele heure.Çà sui venuz desconseilliez.Pinte, ne vos en merveilliezSe li cors me fremist et tremble;Mès dites moi que vos en semble.turned outside,into which I got1454 for a little while,1458 Then I awoke,trembling.1462Moult sui par le songe grevez;Par cele foi que me devez Savez-vos que il senefie? 'Pinte respont où moult se fie:"Dit m'avez," fet ele, “ le songe,1466What can it mean?'Pinte answers,Mès, se Dieu plet, ce ert mençonge;Neporquant jel' vos voil espondre,Que bien vos en sauré respondre. 1470Cele chose que vos véistes "The thing youEl someillier que vos féistes sawQui le rous peliçon portoit with the red fur is the Fox.Qui einsi vos desconfisoit,1474C'ert li Gorpiex, jel' sai de voir.Bien le poez aparcevoirAu peliçon qui rous estoit,Et que par force vos vestoit. 1478Les goles d'os erent les denz The hem ofA qoi il vos metra dedenz;La chevesce qui n'estoit droite,Qui si vos ert male et estroiteCe est la goule de la besteDont il vos estraindra la teste:Par ileuques i enterroizSanz faille que vos le verroiz,bones is his teeth,with which he'll put you inside.1482 The crooked neck1486is the Fox's throat, with which he'll squeeze your head.122 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.Lors sera la qeue deseure¹;Einssi ert, se Diex me seceure.The Fox ' ll catch C'iert li Gorpil qui vos prendra you by the neck. Parmi le col qant il vendra,1490Ne vos garra argent ne ors,His hair is turned Et le poil ert tornez defors:out when it rains.C'est voir que tot jors porte enverseSa pel qant il plus pluet et verse.1494This is what your Or avez oï sanz faillance dream means;and it'll all happen to you before noon.Du songe la senefiance;Tot séurement le vos diQue ainz que soit passé midiVos avendra, ce est la voire;Mès se vos me voliez croire,The Fox is hid in Nos retornerions ariere,the thicket1498Car il est muciez çà deriere 1502En cel buisson, jel' sai de voir,to deceive you. " Por vos traïr et decevoir."The co*ck says Qant il ot oï le responsDel songe que cele ot espons, 1506it's all nonsense: 'Pinte,' fait-il, ' moult par es fole!Moult as dite fole parole!Cuidiez que je soie sorprisEt que la beste est el porpris 1510Qui par force me conquerra?Dahez ait cil qui le croira!no harm 'll come ofsuch a dream.Ne m'as dit riens où ge gaaingne,Je ne croi mie mal m'en viengne,Jà n'auré mal por itel songe.151466 Sire," fet-ele, " Diex le donge!Mès s'ainsi n'est con je vos dit,2Je vos otroi sans contredit 1518Que ne soie mès vostre amie. ”He goes back to the yard,begins to wink,and drops off to sleep.6Bele,' fet-il, ' ce n'i a mie,A fable ert le songe tornez. 'A cest mot s'en est retornezEn la poudriere au souleil,Et conmença à cliner l'oil,1522Ne doute que Gorpil s'i mete.Mès Renart qui le siecle abete, 1526 Sitost con il oï la noise,Besse la teste, si s'acoise;D'une pierre a fait orillierSi conmença a someillier,Chantecler s'est aséurez.1 Sic, MS. 1579; sequeure, MS. 371 and 1580.15302 Sic Méon, from MS. 1579; but MSS. 371 and 1580 have com vos ai dit, which is better. -P. Meyer.· REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 123Moult fu Renart amesurezEt veziez à grant merveille;Et qant il voit que cil someille,De lui s'aprime sanz demeureRenart, qui tot le mont.aqeure,Et qui moult sot de mavès tors:Pas avant autre, sanz escors, ¹S'en va Renart le col bessant,Se Chantecler par atent tantQue il le puisse as denz tenir,Il li fera son gieu partir.Qant Renart choisi Chantecler,Il le vodra, s'il puet, haper;Renart sailli qui est legiers,Et Chantecler saut en travers,Renart choisi, bien le conut,Desor un fumier s'arestut.Qant Renart vit qu'il ot failli,Forment se tint à mal- bailli;Lors se conmence à porpenserConment il porra ChanteclerEngingnier, qar s'il se remueDont a-il sa proie perdue.Dant Chantecler," ce dist Renart,"Ne fuiez pas, n'aiez regart,Moult par sui liez qant tu es sains,Que tu ies mes cosins germains."Chantecler lors s'aséura,De la joie un sonet chanta.Ce dist Renart à son cosin,"Membre[z]-vos mès de ChanteclinLe bon pere qui t'engendra?Onques nus Cos si ne chanta;Tele voiz ot, et si cler ton,Que d'une liue l'ooit- on,Et moult chantoit à longue alaineLes deus eulz clos et la voiz saine;D'une grant lieue l'en l'ooit66Qant il chantoit et refrenoit."Dist Chantecler, ' Renart cosin,Volez me prendre par engin.'"Certes," ce dist Renart, non voil,Mès or chantez, si clingniez - l'oil;D'une char somes, et d'un sanc;Miex vodroie estre d'un pié mancQue vos mesface tant ne qant,Que tu es trop près mon parent."The For1534makes ready for him,1538creeps up,1542and hopes to snap him.The Fox springs,1546 but the co*ck springs too,15501554and the Fox misses him.Then the Fox thinks how he can deceive the co*ck."Chanticleer,"says he, "don't fly away.1558 I'myour Cousin.1562 Don't you15661570remember your good father Chanteclin?No co*ck can crow like him.He shut both his eyes, and crowed so that you heard him a league off."'Cousin, you want to trick me."No, indeed, I1574 don't, Do shut your eyes and sing. We're one flesh and blood.I'd sooner lose afoot than hurt 1578 you."tout sans cors, MS. 1580, which seems better. -P. Meyer.CH. ORIG.124 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE.The co*ck tells the ox to draw off alittle, and he'll sing.Then the co*ck does sing one verse, with one eye shut.Dist Chantecler, ' pas ne te croi,Un poi te trai en sus de moi,Et je diré une chançon;N'aurai voisin ci environQui bien n'entende mon fauset. 'Lors s'en est souriz Renardet,Et dist Renart, " chante, cousins,Je sauré bien se ChanteclinsMes oncles s'il vos fu noient. "Lors enconmence hautement,Lors chanta Chantecler un vers,L'un oil ot clos, et l'autre overs,15821586" Oh, that's nothing to Chanteclin," sayswith both eyes .the Fox, " hesang A un lonc tret à eulz cligniez,C'on l'ooit d'outre les plessiez."Chantecler cuide que voir die,Lor conmence sa melodieshut, and you could hear himoverthe hedge."The co*ck then shuts both eyes,and sings,1590Car moult forment cremoit Renart;Sovent regarde cele part.Ce dist Renart, 66 ce n'est noient;Chanteclin chantoit autrement 15941598Les eulz cligniez par grant aïr.Lors ne volt plus Renart soffrir,Par dedesus un rouge chol and the Foxneck, and runs off.seizes him by the Fuiant s'en va, et fet grant joieDe ce qu'il a encontré proie.Le prent Renart parmi le col,1602Pinte laments Pinte voit que Renart l'enporte,1606over the co*ck.Dolente est, moult se desconforte,Moult se conmence à dementerPor Chantecler qu'en voit porter,it 'd be,and hethought me afool."I told him how Et dist, " Sire, bien le vos dis,Et vos me gabiez tout dis, ¹ 1610Et si me teniez por fole;Mès ore est voire la paroleDont je vos avoie garni;His pride has betrayed him.Vostre orgoil si vos a traï. 1614Fole fui qant je vos apris,Que fox ne crient tant qu'il soit pris.Renart vos tient qui vos enporte,WouldI were dead! I've lost my Love! "Mrs Desnoesopens the door,La bone dame del mesnilA overt l'uis de son cortil,Que vespres ert, et si voloitLasse dolente! con sui morte! 1618Qant je ainssi pert mon seignor,Trestoute ai perdue m'amor. "1622Ses gelines metre en son toit.and calls herhens. Pinte apela, Bisse et Rousete,¹ Sic Méon, and MSS. 1579, 1580; but MS. 12584 has ' tous dis.-P. Meyer.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 125L'une ne l'autre ne recepte.Qant voit que venues ne sont,Moult se merveille qu'eles font:Son Coc rehuche à longe alaine,Renart voit qui si mal le maine;Avant passe por lui rescorre,Et Renart conmença à corre.Qant el voit qu'el ne rescorra,"Harou! " s'escrie à plaine goule,Porpense soi qu'ele fera.Et vilains qui sont en la coule,Qant il oent que cele bret,Tantost se sont cele part tret,1626None come.She calls her co*ck, and sees 1630 the Fox carryinghim off.She tries to catchhim,1634 shouts Harou!and tells the men near1638Si li demandent que ele a.En soupirant lor aconta,"Lasse! trop m'est mesavenu! "'Conment,' font-il, ' c'avez perdu?'"Mon Coc que cil Gorpil enporte. "Ce dist Costant, ' pute vielle ordeC'avez vos fet que nel' préistes?"Sire, que est-ce que vos dites?Par les Sains Dieu je nel' poi prendre,Ne il ne me volt pas atendre.'Sel' ferissiez? ' je n'oi de qoi.' De cel baston? ' et je ne poi,Car il s'en va le grant troton;Nel' prendroient deus chien breton. "'Par où s'en va? ' " Par ci tout droit. "Li vilain corent à esploit,66 Et tuit crient, or çà, or çà! "Renart l'oï qui devant va:Qant Renart l'ot, si sailli sus;1642 of her loss.'Constant abuses her.Why didn't she 1646 catch the Fox?1650Because he wouldn't wait.1654 The villeins run,shouting,after the Fox,1658 Si qu'à terre ne fiert li cus.Le saut c'a fait ont cil oï,Tuit s'escrient, " oci, oci! ""Costant lor dist, or tost après! 'Les vilains corent à eslès.Costant apele son mastin Que l'en apelcit Mal-voisin.Au corre c'ont fait l'ont véu,Et Renart ont aparcéu.and Constant1662 sends his mastiff too.1666Tuit s'escrient, " vez le Gorpil! ”Or est Renart en grant peril;Et le Coc, se il ne set d'art.'Conment, ' fet-il, ' sire Renart,N'oez-vos quel honte il vos dientCil vilain qui si fort vos huient }Costant vos suit plus que le pas;The Fox is in danger; so's the co*ck.1670 The co*ck says,'Mr Fox, don't you hear how these villeins abuse you?-126 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST's tale.16741678168216861690Why don't you chaff ' em, and say, in spite of you I've got your co*ck? '(Wise men will befools some- times. )The Fox,taken in,cries out,"In spite ofyou,I'll carry off the co*ck."But the co*ck,when the Fox's mouth opens,flaps his wings,flies on anapple- tree,and asks theCar li lanciez un de vos gasA l'issue de cele porte;66Qant il dira Renart l'enporte ''Maugré vostre," ce poez dire;Ja nel' porrez miex deșconfire.'N'est si sage qui ne foloit.Renart, qui tot le mont deçoit,Fu decéuz à ceste foiz,Caril cria à haute voiz,"Maugré vostre," ce dist Renart,66 Enpor-ge de cestui ma part,Maugré vostre en ert-il portez! "Li Cos qui ert touz amortez,Qant il senti laschier la bouche,Bati ses éles, si s'en touche,Et vint volant sor un pomier,Et Renart fu seur le terrier,Grains et marriz et trespensezDu Coc qui li est eschapez.Chantecler a gité un ris,' Renart,' fet-il , ' que vos est vis?Fox how he feels. De cest siecle que vos en semble?'Li lechierres fremist et tremble,Si li a dit par felonie,"Confound the mouth that speaks when it ought to be silent!"says the Fox."And may thateye go blind that shuts when it ought to watch!'says the Cook.'Curse your cousinship,Mr Fox!Be off at once,or you'll catch it!'"La bouche," fet-il, " soit honieQui s'entremet de noise fereA l'eure qu'el se dévroit tere! "Fait Chantecler, " et je le voil,La male goute li criet l'oilQui s'entremet de someillier A l'eure que il doit veillier!Cosin Renart,' dist Chantecler,Nus ne se doit en vos fier:Dahez ait vostre cosinage!Il me dut torner à domage;Renart traïtre, alez vos ent,Se vos estes ci longement,16941698170217061710Vos i lerez cele gouele.'The Fox Renart n'a soing de la favele,Ne volt plus dire, ainz s'en retorne,Que ileques plus ne sejorne.1714Besoingneus est, s'a le 'cuer vain.Par une broce lez un plain goes off,sorrowing over the co*ck's escape.Renart s'en va toute une sente,Moult est dolent, moult se demente 1718Du Coc qui li est eschapez,Que il ne s'en est saoulez.REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE. 127MR HENRY NICOL'S NOTES TO " HOW REYNARDCAUGHT CHANTICLEER. "TITLE. I do not know why Méon has got Roman du Renart;Renart is here always a proper name, gorpil being the general one, so itdoes not require an article. Bartsch and Burguy have de.p. 115, 1. 3 of note. I do not know where Tyrwhitt got Li reisAlured, which is half nominative, half accusative; the MS. has correctlyAlurez. I need hardly remark that both derivation and metre (in thequotation you give, 1. 16) require u to be read as v: Alvrez.1st extract, 1. 8. This is too long; either il should come out, or seiublic be s'ublie.1. 20. This is too long; Ore should be Or.I find Bartsch has printed your 2nd extract from Roquefort's edition,.which is from a MS. partially written in another dialect; here it is.Izopes escrit a sun mestre,ki bien quenust lui e sun estre,unes fables k'il ot truvees,de griu en laitin translatees;mervoille en urent li plusurk'il mist sun sens en tel labur;mes n'i ad fables ne folie,u il n'ad de filosofieas essamples qui sunt aprés,u des c*ntes sunt li grant fes.a moi qui la rime en doit feiren'avenist noient a retreireเplusurs paroles que i sunt.meiz nepurquant cil m'en sumuntqui flourz est de chevalerie,4 d'anseignemenz, de curteisie: 16et quant tex hum m'en ad requise,ne voil lessier en nule guise812que n'i mette traveil e peine.or ke m'en tiegne pur vileine, 20mult deit fere pur sa preiere.ci cummencerai la primieredes fables k'Ysopez escrit,k'a son meistre manda et dist. 241. 1. Esopes ' here, as it is nominative, is preferable to the Harl,' Esop, ' and makes metre.1. 5. Bartsch has correctly urent, making metre.1. 10. This suggests sunt for the Harl. est, rather than tuz for tut.1. 17. This gives tex hum for tel hume, making grammar and metre.1. 20, 21. The Harl. has much the best reading.1. 23. I see here k'Ysopez, for ke esopus, making mctre.p. 116, 1. 3. un should be uns, for grammar.1. 6, 9. Metre requires Unques for Unc.1. 9. oisel requires a z.1. 10. This is too long; Mes le for Mes il le would do.1. 14. gupil requires a z.1. 18. The 8 of chiens is ungrammatical.128 REYNARD AND CHANTICLEER, FOR THE NUN'S PRIEST's tale.1. 19. le gupil, being nominative to Veit, should be li gupilz.1. 20. guaina. I think a future, not a perfect, is clearly required.1. 23. goupil again ungrammatical. The MS. has ou here, not u aselsewhere.1. 25. This is too short; se est for s'est would do.1. 29. dreit should be dreite, ire being feminine.1. 32. foire should be faire.p. 117, Title. Méon reads wrongly coume. Grammar requires Re- narz for Renart. But in 1. 1267 rhyme requires Renart.1. 1274. Costant should be Costanz, for grammar; but the text isclearly so late that it is useless remarking these frequent errors.1. 1276. plaiséiz should have ss here as elsewhere.1. 1277. Plentéive, rather Plentëive. In this, and all the other caseswhere é is merely put for ë, I should print ë.p. 119, 1. 1361. The capitals to Putois and Gorpil seem out of place;the same with Coc, 1. 1335. When the proper names Chantecler, Renart, .are used it is another thing; but here the nouns are used quite indefinitely.1. 1383. songa must be read songea, but MSS. seldom mark the distinction; some would put sonja.p. 120, 1. 1401. c'est should be s'est; but the MS. may be wrong.1. 1406. This is too long; Et la for Et que la would do.1. 1422. Here and 1. 1427, Pintain is the accusative ( L. pintám), andshould be nominative, Pinte; in 1. 1420 it is correct.1. 1430. diré for dirai, and similar forms elsewhere, are decidedly late Old French.p. 122, 1. 1488. seceure is odd; it should be seqeure, as it is hard.1. 1517. The t of dit is quite uncalled-for; the scribe seems to havedetermined to make at least an eye-rhyme to contredit.1. 1523. souleil should be souloil (a common dialectic form) torhyme to oil, which cannot be eil.p. 124, 1. 1610. tout should be tous, to agree with dis.1. 1625. Rousete ought to have ss.1. 1626. The p has no business in recepte (rhyming with Rousete).As M. Paul Meyer says it is the reading of MS. 12584, we must put itdown as an ' etymological ' spelling of the 15th century.441298.Two Italian Stories, and a Latin one,likeChaucer's "Pardoner's Tale."1. CHRIST AND HIS DISCIPLES.2. THE HERMIT, DEATH, AND THE ROBBERS.8. THE TREASURE IN THE TIBER.130Tyrwhitt first pointed out that one of the Cento Novelle Antiche contained a story which might have served as the germ of the Pardoner'sTale. This Novella is here reprinted from an early edition, 1525 A.D.,which may be the first, if M. Panizzi's note in the Grenville copy inthe Museum is to be trusted. As another like story is substituted inthe edition of 1572¹ for the first Christ one, I have reprinted the secondstory too.Ritson says that the Cento Novelle Antiche are of much higher antiquity than the tales of Boccaccio (1871 ed. of Warton, iv. 339) . Butwhether he had seen any 13th-century MSS. of them is to be doubted.A sixteenth-century Latin version of a story like the Pardoner's isgiven by Morlinus, and reprinted at p. 134.' I haven't lookt at the intermediate editions.-CHRIST AND HIS DISCIPLES; FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE: 131Two Italian Stories, and a Latin one,like Chaucer's " Pardoner's Tale."1. CHRIST AND HIS DISCIPLES.FromLe Ciento Novelle Antike. 1525. [ No. LXXXIII, ] p. 35.Come Cristo, Andando un giorno co disciepoli suoi Christ and hisper un foresto luogo, uidero molto grande tesoro.disciples,A christ walle66thro' a wild country with his disciples .They see some gold piastres,and say to him,Let us takethese for ourHe refuses:which robs usAswe come back,wants.''You want thatof souls.Soon, two companions findOne goes to fetchthe other guardsthe gold.a mule for it;it.The first comesforesto luogo, nel quale i disciepoli ke ueniano dietro uidero luciere, da una parte, piastre doro fine. Ondeessi chiamando Cristo, marauigliandossi perke non eraristato, ad esso si dissero. Singniore! prendiamoquello oro kecci consolera di molte bisonguie. " ECristo si uolse erripreselli, e disse. "Voi uolete quellecose ke togliono al rengnio nostro la maggior partedellanime. E ke cio sia uero, alla tornata nudiretelassempro," e passaro oltre. Poco stante, due cari you'll see.'compangni lo trouaro, onde furo molto lieti, et inconcordia andaro alla piu presso uilla per menareuno mulo, ellaltro rimase a guardia. Ma udite opereree kenne seguiro poscia de pensieri rei kel nemico dieloro. Quelli torno col mulo, e disse al compangnio,"io o mangiato alla uilla, ettu dei auere fame; mangiaquesti duo pani cosi belli e poi carikeremo. " Quel lirispose, " io non o gran talento di mangiare ora, e pero carichiamo prima. " Allora presero a caricare. Equando ebbero presso ke caricato quelli kando per lomulo, si kino per legar la soma, ellaltro li corse didietro a tradimento con uno appuntato coltello, etuccisello. Poscia prese luno di que pani, e diello almulo. Ellaltro mangio elli . Il pane era attoscato:cadde morto elli el mulo inanzi ke mouessero di quelluogo, elloro rimase libero come di prima. H nostroSingnior passo indi con suoi disciepoli nel detto giorno,e mostro loro lassempro ke détto auea.back with themule, and askstwo nice loavesHis mate refuses,companion ashis mate to eatthat he's brought.but stabs hishe's stooping.mule one loaf, Then he gives theents anotherboth full dead.Christ, returning,ciples the deadhimself, andshows his disbodies, as he "had foretold,132 DEATH AND THE ROBBERS; FOR THE PARDONEr's tale.The Hermit who saw a great Treasure.Ahermit lying down in a cave,sees there much gold.At once he runs away,Robbers.They see no one chasing the hermit,and ask him What he's run- ning away from."Death, which is chasing me."2. THE HERMIT, DEATH, AND THE ROBBERS.From theLibro di Novelle, et di bel Parlar Gentile. Fiorenza,1572, p. 86. NOVELLA LXXXII.QUI CONTA D'VNO ROMITO CHE ANDANDOper un luogo foresto trouo molto grande Tesoro.Andandovn giorno vn Romito per vn luogo fôresto: si trouò vna grandissima grotta, laquale era moltocelata, et ritirandosi verso là per riposarsi, pero che eraassai affaticato; come e'giunse alla grotta si la vide incerto luogo molto tralucere, impercio che vi haueamolto Oro e si tosto come il conobbe, incontanente sipartio, & comincio a correre per lo diserto, quanto e' neand meets three potea andare. Correndo cosi questo Romito s'intoppoin tre grandi scherani, liquali stauano in quella forestaper rubare chi unque vi passaua. Ne gia mai si eranoaccorti, che questo oro vi fosse. Hor vedendo costoro,che nascosti si stauano, fuggir cosi questo huomo, nonhauendo persona dietro che'l cacciasse, alquanto hebberotemenza, ma pur se li pararono dinanzi per sapereperche fuggiua, che di cio molto si marauigliauano.Ed elli rispose & disse. " Fratelli miei, io fuggo la morte, che mi vien dietro cacciando mi. " Que' nonvedendo ne huomo, ne bestia, che il cacciasse, dissero:"Mostraci chi ti caccia: & menaci cola oue ella è. "Allhora il Romito disse loro: " venite meco, & mostrerrollaui," pregandoli tutta via che non andassero ad essa,impercio che elli per se la fuggia. Ed eglino volendolatrouare, per vedere come fosse fatta, nol domandauanodi altro. Il Romito vedendo che non potea piu, &hauendo paura di loro, gli condusse alla grotta, ondeegli s'era partito, e disse loro, " Qui è la morte, che mi cacciaua," & mostro loro l'oro che u'era, ed eglino ilconobbero incontanente, & molto si cominciarono araliegrare, & a fare insieme grande sollazzo. Allhoraaccommiatarono questo buono huomo: & egli senʼandoper i fatti suoi: & quelli cominciarono a dire tra loro,come elli era semplice persona. Rimasero questischerani tutti e tre insieme, a guardare questo hauere, eincominciarono a ragionare quello che voleano fare.L'uno rispuose & disse. "A me pare, da che Dio ci"Where is he?Show him us.'"Come with me,and I will."The hermit takes them to the cave,and shows them Death, the gold.They laugh at him, and make great joy,and say the hermit's a fool.Then the three Robbers consult as to what they ahall do.DEATH AND THE ROBBERS; FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 13366 l'vnoproposes thatthe town, buy one shall go tobread and wine,and all things needful.But the crafty Devil puts into the heart of theRobber who goesthat he shallthe treasure, andman in thatcountry.be the richestha data cosi alta ventura, che noi non ci partiamo diqui, insino a tanto che noi non ne portiamo tutto questo hauere." Et l'altro disse; ' non facciamo cosi.di noi ne tolga alquanto, & vada alla cittade & vendalo, The second& rechi del pane & del vino, et di quello che ci bisogna,e di cio s'ingegni il meglio che puote: faccia egli, purcom' elli ci fornisca." A questo s'accordarono tutti etre insieme. Il Demonio ch'è ingegnoso, e reo d'ordinare di fare quanto male e puote, mise in cuore a costuiche andaua alla citta per lo fornimento, " da ch'io sarònella cittade " (dicea fra se medesimo) " io voglio man- giare & bere quanto mi bisogna, & poi fornirmi di certe to the towncose delle quali io ho mestiere hora al presente: & poi feed himself,auuelenero quello che io porto a miei compagni: si che, poison his mates,da ch'elli saranno morti amendue, si saro io poi Signore and then have alldi tutto quello hauere, & secondo che mi pare egli ètanto, che io saro poi il piu ricco huomo di tutto questopaese da parte d'hauere: " et come li venne in pensiero,cosi fece. Prese viuanda per se quanta gli bisogno, &poi tutta l'altra auuelenoe, et cosi la porto a que suoicompagni. Intanto ch'ando alla cittade secondo che Meantimedetto hauemo: se elli pensoe & ordinoe male per plot to murderuccidere li suoi compagni, accio che ogni cosa li rima- their mate asnesse: quelli pensaro di lui non meglio ch'elli di loro,et dissero tra loro. "Si tosto come questo nostro compagno tornera col pane et col vino, et con l'altre coseche ci bisognano, si l'uccideremo, & poi mangeremoquanto uorremo, e sara poi tra noi due tutto questogrande hauere. Et come meno parti ne saremo, tanton'haueremo maggior parte ciascuno di noi. " Hor vienequelli, che era ito alla cittade a comperare le cose chebisognaua loro. Tornato a suoi compagni incontanenteche'l videro, gli furono addosso con le lancie et con le and they murdercoltella, & l'uccisero. Da che l'hebbero morto, mangi- Thenthey eatarono di quello che egli hauea recato: & si tosto come the food he's furono satolli, amendue caddero morti: & cosi morirono brought, andtutti e tre che l'vno vccise l'altro si come vdito hauete,& non hebbe l'hauere: & cosi paga Domenedio li traditori, che egli andarono caendo la morte, & in questomodo la trouarono, et si come ellino n'erano degni. Etil saggio sauiamente la fuggio, e l'oro rimase libero comedi prima.the other Robberssoon as he comes back with thebread and wine,and then share the treasure.Their matereturns from the city,him at once.both fall dead.Thus does ourLord God ' quitoThe Robbers found death.fled, and left thetraitors .The wise mangold free.134 THE TREASURE IN THE TIBER; FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE.The Wizard learnt from the spirits that atreasure lay hid in the Tiber.On its beingcompany go to atown near, to fetch food and liquor. Thesepoison to kill their fellows.The others,meanwhile, con- spired to kill them;3. THE TREASURE IN THE TIBER.[ From Morlini Novellae. Paris reprint of the Naplesedition of 1520, in 1799, leaf LIIII, back.¹]¶ De illis qui, in tiberi reperto thesauro, ad inuicemconspirantes, ueneno & ferro periere.Nouel. XLII.MAgus magico susurro in tiberi delitere thesaurum/ quadam in cauea spirituum reuelacione cognouit':quo reperto, cum magnum siclorum cumulum aspiceret,communi uoto pars sotiorum proximum oppidum seufound, part of the castellum, epulas aliasque res comparaturi, accedunt:ceteri uero copiosum interea ignem instruunt, thesau-`rumque custodiunt. Dumque in castellum conuenissent, radice malorum cupiditate affecti, ut consotiosconspired tobuy thesauri parte priuarent, diro ueneno illos interimere statuerunt: cum dicto, in caupona epulantes,ebrii ac uino sepulti / aliquatenus moram fecere. Intiberi expectantes atque esurientes, consotios de moraincusabant: Iouemque adiurauerunt, repedantes exoppido atque castello & uita & thesauri parte priuare.Sicque ad inuicem conspirantes, non multo post adueniunt ex pago illi , uinarios utres, pullos, piscesaliaque tuc[etos]i saporis pulmentaria atque prelectumhircum ferentes. Quibus o[b]uiam dederunt ieiuni, illosque omnes morti [im]paratos incautosque insecauereatque crudeli strage perdiderunt. Pone sumptis cibariis[diro] ueneno tabefactis, insigni jocunditate / gnauitercuncta ministrare incipiunt: alter uerrit /alter sternit /And then, eating pars coquit / atque tuceta concinnat. Pone omnibusscitule appositis, ac mensa largiter instructa edere ceperunt, omniaque ingurgitauerunt. Commodum / ex eismensa erectis erant quod, morte preuenti, cum sotiisuitam fato reddentes, sub elemento mortui & sepultiwhich on their return they do.ofthe poisoned cates, themselves perish.Cremansere.¶ Nouella indicat: nec esse de malo cogitandum:nam quod quis seminat, metit.1 Corrected by the Paris edition of Morlinus's works, 1855,in the Bibliothèque Elzevirienne, which I did not know of when the text above was first set. 2 facunditate, orig.135!9.The Tale of the Priest's BladderA Story like Chaucer's Summoner's Tale,)beingLI DIS DE LE VESCIE A PRESTREparJakes de Basiw.M. Sandras, in his Etude sur Chaucer, 1859, p. 237, first calledattention to this analogue of Chaucer's Summoner's Tale: " Ce qu'il ya de saillant dans ce poëme, la convoitise des frères disputant auxhéritiers légitimes ou à d'autres religieux, le legs d'un mourant, sert dematière à un fabliau de Jacques de Baisieux, traduit par Legrandd'Aussy, publié par Méon, et analysé et commenté dans le XXIII®136volume de l'Histoire littéraire de ia France (article de M. VictorLeclerc¹ ). La scène du poëme anglais, au lieu d'être a Anvers, esttransportée à Holdernesse; la plaisanterie du curé mourant fait place àun tour d'un autre genre, et approprié à la grossièreté d'un vilain.Mais plusieurs passages 2 sont imités fidèlement. On peut voir dans cefabliau, dont la première moitié seule est lisible³, ce que devient unfaible germe fécondé par le génie. Le discours du Jacobin, fort bienesquissé d'ailleurs par le trouvère de Flandres, est dans Chaucer un chefd'œuvre à mettre en parallèle avec une page quelconque de Molière¹."¹ L'ordre de St. Dominique . . . a fourni à l'audace des trouvères une seuleaventure: c'est beaucoup. Il n'y avait guère parmi eux que Rutebeuf qui,avec sa fougue ordinaire et, comme il dit, sa tête falle, eût osé braver les terribles frères. Jacques de Baisieux, qui parait être du Baisieux de Flandreplutôt que de celui de Picardie, leur reproche aussi l'ardeur qu'ils manifestenten toute occurrence à recueillir les successions, et qui avait fini par faire croirequ'un mourant, s'il ne les prenait pour exécuteurs, perdait son âme. Nous ne savons s'il eut à se repentir d'avoir fait le Dit de la Vessie du curé.Le curé, près de mourir d'hydropisie ( Entropikes ert devenus, 1. 15) , avaitcompris dans son testament, outre ses parents pauvres et les gens du village,non loin d'Anvers, où il avait sa cure, les orphelins et les infirmes, les béguineset les cordeliers. Surviennent alors deux quêteurs jacobins du couvent d'Anvers, qui voudraient bien n'être pas oubliés non plus: " Vos ne moreis pasjustement, " &c. (see 1. 112-131 , below).Comme ils insistent, malgré le soin qu'il prend de leur répéter plusieursfois qu'il a tout donné; comme ils vont jusqu'à demander que le moribondréforme pour eux son testament, le curé, de plus en plus mécontent, leurpromet enfin un joyau précieux, mais dont il ne peut se défaire avant sa mort.Grande joie au couvent, dès qu'on y apprend cette nouvelle; on se fait servirflans, pâtés, les meilleurs vins; on sonne toutes les cloches, comme pour rece- voir un corps saint. Au point du jour, cinq frères, pleins d'espoir et d'impatience, entourent le lit du testateur, qu'ils trouvent encore vivant, et qui lesengage à convoquer, comme témoins de l'accomplissem*nt de sa promesse, lemaire et les échevins. Après d'assez longs discours, où il fait déjà pressentir la punition de ceux qui l'ont menacé des tourments éternels s'il ne leur donnait quelquechose, il annonce qu'il va déclarer quel est ce joyau qu'il leurréserve après lui: [his bladder, line 287, below. ] Les moines, baissant la tête,s'en vont sans rien dire, et tout le pays se moque d'eux. Le trouvère, en finis- sant, a la hardiesse de se nommer.-L'Hist. Littéraire de la France, Vol. 23,pp. 156-7.2 I haven't been able to find these. M. Sandras often indulges in gammon,3 What this means, I can't guess.4.66"Voyez le texte anglais (v. 7384-7709) . Le début du discours est emprunté aux Gesta Romanorum, comme l'indique M. G. Brunet, dans sa récente edition du Violier des histoires romaines, p. 311." Gammon again, if not dishonesty the fact is, that the story of the ' irous potestate, ' who had 3knights killed for nothing, which Chaucer tells from Seneca in 28 lines, beyond the middle of the Summoner's Tale, D 2017-2042, is also told in the Gesta Romanorum of Eraclius a wise Emperoure reignynge in the citee of Rome,'p. 194 of the Early English version, ed. Madden, Roxb. Club, 1838. M. Brunet rightly says in his note, p. 311, "Cette anecdote est, pour le fond des choses,empruntée à Sénèque ( De ira, 1 , 8) . Chaucer l'a reproduite dans un de ses contes de Canterbury. Vois le Sompnoures Tale, v. 7599."1372'LI DIS DE LE VESCIE A PRESTRE;PAR JAKES DE BASIU.En lieu de fable vos diraiUn voirs, ensi k'oï dire ai,D'un prestre ki astoit manans Deleis Anwiers: li remanansEstoit mult biaus de son avoir,Car plains estoit do grant savoir;Si n'avoit pas tot despendut;A amassier avoit tendut,S'estoit riches hons et moblés;Buez et vaches, brebis et blées,Avoit tant c'on n'en savait conte.Mais li mors, qui roi, duc, ne conteN'espargne, l'ot par son message Somont al naturel passage.Entropikes ert devenus,De nul home n'estoit tenusKi li promesist longe vie.Li prestes qui out grant envieDe bien morir et justement,Mande tost et isnelementSon doiien et toz ses amis;Son avoir entre lor main misPor donner et por departirCant ilh verront que departirDe son cors estovra l'ame.Jowel, cossin, pot, ne escame,Cuette, tuelle, neiz une nape,Brebis, moutons, buef, ne sa chapeInstead of afable, I'll tell you a true tale of a Priest4 near Antwerp,8A wise manand a rich.12 Being about to die,1620 he sends for his Dean and his friends, and gives them all his property,to divide,2428' From " Fabliaux ou Contes, Fables et Romans du XII etdu XIII Siècle, Par Legrand D'Aussy." 1829. Vol. IV, at the end, p. 18.2 Vessie: f. A bladder: Cotgrave. Lat. vesica.3 M. Victor Leclerc translates ' Entropikes ' by ' près demourir d'hydropisie.' He doubtless reads ' Eutropikes,' and holds that to be ' hydropique.'when he's dead,138 THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER'S TALE.among thepeople he names.And open letters are written and sealed in witness thereof.Two Jacobin Friarscome to the Priest,ask how he is,handle him,and think he must die.[p. 19, col. 1]Ne li remaint que tot ne donne;Et nome chasconne personeA cui ilh wet c'on doinst ses chozes.Descovertes, et non pas closesLettres saeler et escrireEn fist, que ne le vos puis direPlus briement; quant qu'il avoitIl dona tot quant qu'il savoit,Con chil qui n'avoit esperanceD'avoir de son mal aligance;Car sa maladie ert amere.Atant se sont d'Anwier dui frereDe Saint Jake¹ issu por prechier,Qui mult se wellent estachierCant aucun desviiet ravoient.Cele par tot droit ont lor voie,Si sunt chil le prestre venus;I estre quidarent retenusAl mangier, à joie et à feste,[Ici un vers manque. ]Si c'autrefois esté i furent;Mais ne mangierent ne ne burent,Car malade ont trové le prestre.Nonporquant li ont de son estreDemandé, et de son afaire.Ses mains manient, son viaire,Ses piés, ses jambes regarderent,Et tot son cors mult bien tansterent;Si lor sembla bien par droitureC'awoir ne poist de son mal cure,K'i ne l'en coviengne morir.Trop lonc tans l'a laisié norrir,Si n'est pas legiers à curer.Friar Lewis says, "Mais desir nos covient curer, '"We can't cure him, but he ought to give99Dist l'uns à l'autre, " c'est passé,Ke de l'avoir k'a amasséour house £20to Doinst à nostre maison vingt livres,mend our books."A le por refaire nos livres;"True," says Friar Simon,Se nos le poons ensi faire,"2A nos prius devera plaire,Et si seront liet no frere.'Vos dites voir, parFrere Lowis, or i parraLiqueis miez à lui parlera,Dieu no pere;1 Jacobin: m. A Jacobin, or white Frier. -Cotgrave.2. See ' Frere Lowis, frere Symons, ' 1. 249, below.3236404448525660646872THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER'S TALE. 139Et mostrera nostre besongne. "Al prestre qui out grant esoingne De maladie ont dit sans faille:" Sire, chis maus mult vos travaille,Vos nos sembleis mult agreveis,De vostre ame penser deveis;Doneis por Dieu de vostre avoir."Dist li prestes, " ne puis savoirK'aie caché sortout ne cote,Neis les linchues à coi me frote,Ke tout n'aie por Deu doné. ""Coment aveis- vos ordené, "Dient li frere, " vos besongne?Li Escriture nos temongneC'on doit garder à cui on done,S'enploiiet est à la persone A cui on wet aumone faire."Li prestes respont sans contraire:"J'ai à mes povres parentiausDoné brebis, vaces et viaus,Et as povres de cele vilheAi doné ausi, par Saint Gilhe,De bleis qui vaut plus de dis livres;Par ce ke je soie delivresDe ce ke j'ai vers iaus mespris;So they tell the sick Priest that hé must think 76 of his soul,and give money 'for God's use.780 The Priest says he's given every- thing for God.84 "Ah, but whom have you given88it to?Scripture says you must be careful.",The Priest says he's given his cattle to his 92 poor relations,96and £10 worth of corn to his poor townsmen,Car en toz iaus mon vivre ai pris.Si ai doné as orfenines,A orfenins et à beguines,100besides legacies to the Orphans and Nuns,Et à gens de povre puisance;Et si ai laisiet por pitanceCent souz as freres des cordeles ¹."" Ces amuenes se sunt mult beles:Et as freres de no maison104and 100 sous to the Franciscan Friars."But have you given nothing to us Jacobins? ”" Nai voir. " "Ce comment puet estre?Aveis-vos fait nule raison? "Ce dient li doi frere al prestre.En maison a tant de preudomes;Et si vivons mult sobrement;Vos ne moreis pas justementEt à vos prochain voisien somes;Se del vostre ne nos laiiés."Li prestes trestous esmaiésRespont: "par les celz de ma teste,A doner n'ai ne bleif ne beste,[p. 19, col. 2]108 No.112"What! When we're your neighbours,and so good!You'll not die well ifyou give us nothing."The Priest says116 he's nothing left to give.¹ Cordelier: m. A Grey Frier (of the Order of S. Francis),a Cordelier. -Cotgrave.CII. ORIG. 10(140 THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER'S TALE."Well, but you might revoke one of your other gifts, and give it us.We'll help your soul.And alms to us isso well bestowed;we never wear shirts, and we fare hardly."The Priest thinks he'll be revenged,and trick them.So he says he'll give them ajewel that he wouldn't takeOr ne argent, chanap ne cope."Chascons des freres li rencope,Et li mostre, par exemplaire,K'ilh puet un de ses dons retraireEt rapeler, por iaus doner."No nos vorimes mult penerKe vostre ame fust adrechie,Car chaiens a esté drechieSoventes fois bien notre escuele;Et li amuene si est bieleKi est à nostre maison mise.Nos no vestons nulle chemise,Et si vivomes en pitance:Ce sache Diex, por la valhanceDe vostre argent nel' disons mie."Li preste l'ot, si s'en gramie,Et pense qu'il s'en vengera,S'ilh puet, et qu'il les trufera:Mar le vont or si près tenant.As freres respont maintenant:"Appenseis sui, doner vos welhUn jowel ke mult amer suel,Et aime encore par Sains Piere;1000 silver marks Je n'ai chose gaires plus chiere,for:Milh mars d'argent n'en prenderoieEt se je bien haitiés estoie,120124128132136140Je n'en voroi mies avoirDeus cens marchies d'autre avoir.Diez vos a chaiens asseneis;144let them fetch their Prior,and he'll then tell ' em where thejewel is,Vostre prieus me ramineis,Si vos en ferai conissancheAins de vie aie faillance." 148 queLi frere, sans duel et sans ire,Ont respondut: " Diex le vos mire!Cant voleis-vos que revenons,Et nostre prieuz ramenrons? "152to-morrow.[p. 20, col. 1]The Friars goback to Antwerp,and tell theirChapter."Demain, je sui ou Diex plaisir,Vo promesse deveis saisirAins que je trop aggreveis soie. "Atant ont acueilli lor voie 156Li frere à Anwier sont venu,Si ont lor chapitre tenu.Chascons s'aventure raconte,Mais chil n'ont cure de lonc conte,Ains ont dit haut en audience,160A grand feed is ordered on the Faites venir bone pitance;Deux cent libvres gaangniet avons,THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER's tale. 141Àun prestre ke nos savons Malade chi à une vilhe. "Frere Nichole et frere Gilhe,3Frere Guilhiame et frere AnsiausVinrent oïr ces mos nouviauzKi mult forment lor abelissent.164 strength ofthe jewel:1683De ces grans poisons mander fisent,Viez vin novel, fions¹ et pasteis;Chil grans mangier fu mult hasteis;Chascuns de lui bien aisier pense,Ne burent pas vin de despense,De boire et de mangier bien s'aisent;Por le prestre le hanap baisentKi le jowel lor ot promis.Cant en lor testes orent misDe ce bon vin, grant feste fisent,big fish, old wine,flawns, and pasties.172They drink,176 toast the dying.Priest,rejoice, and ring their bells as for Lor cloches sovent en bondissentAusi con ilh i awist cor sain.180 a saint's corpse.N'i a voisin qui ne se saint,The neighboursEt se merveillent qu'il avoient.wonder.Qui miez miés as preschers s'avoient 184Por la grant merveilhe esgarder.Nus d'iauz ne se savoit garderDe mener vie deshoneste,Car chascons a ferre la reste 188De bon vin et de lor pitance.A lor diverse contenanceEt al maintieng et à lor estreSemblerent bien hors de sens estre;Chascons ki les voit, s'en merveilhe.Et frere Lowis s'aparailhe De demander con faitementIl poroient plus sagementAl prestre querre lor promesse.Demain anchois c'on chante messeSe fera bon metre à la voie;Dist chascons, " se Jhesu m'avoie,Anchois ke li mors le sorprengne,Si comment ke la choze prêngne,De nos don aions conissance:Nos i arons mainte pitance,Si s'en doit-on mult bien pener.Frere Lowis, lesqueis minerI voreis-vos, or le nos dites? "" Frere Guilhiames li ermitesFlans: m. Flawnes, Custards, Egge- pies. -Cotgrave.192Friar Lewis asks how they can best get the 196 Priest's promise out of him .They settle that next day the Friars shall 200 set off,204[p. 20, col. 2]Friar Lewis and208 Friars William,142 THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER's tale.Nicholas, andRobert, (with their breviary),but not their Prior.Soin the morn.ing the Friars go off(though before night they wish they'd stopt at home),En venra, et frere Nicole;Bien savons dire la parole;Et si venra frere Robiers,Çaiens n'a ni sage convers,Si portera no breviaire;De nos prieus n'avons ke faire. "Ensi ont le plait oriiet.Lendemain se son avoiietTot droit vers la maison le prestre,Jà n'i cuidierent à tans estre;Mais ans ke li jors fut passeis,Amassent ilh miex estre asseisA Anwiers dedens lor maison.Atant ont le prestre à raisonsalute the Priest, Mis, et de Deu l'ont salué;Puis demandent s'il a mué and ask if he's botter.The Priest212216220224Son mal en nul aligement.Li prestes mult très sagement welcomes them, Lors dist: "bien soiiés vos venu:and says he Je n'ai mie desconëu 228 hasn't forgottenthe gift for them; La don ke promis vos avoie;Encor en sui je bien en voie:but they must Faites les eschevins venir,fetch the Sheriffs Et le maieur, si k'au venir and Mayor,and then he'll tell ' em what and where the jewel is.Friar Robert fetches the Sheriffs andMayor,The Priest says,"My friends,Ne vos en puist nule grevance;Devant iaus la reconissanceMult volentiers vos en ferai,Et la chose vos nomeraiEt vo dirai ù ele ert prise."Entrués ke li prestes deviseFrere Robers a tant pené,K'ilh a le maieur aminéEt toz les eschevins ensemble.Li quatre frere, ce me samble,Les ont hautement benvigniés.Li prestres qui fu ensigniés,Si a parlé promierement,Et lor a dit si faitement:66 Sangnor, vos estes mi ami,yesterday Friars Por Dieu, or entendeis à mi.Lewis and Simon came to preach to me,[p. 21, col. 1]-Frere Lowis, frere Symons Vinrent ier chi faire sermonsK'ilh me cuidoient en santé;2322.36210244248Mais Dieu par sa grasce a plantéEn moi maladie si grieve,252C'aparant est ke mais me n' lieve.Il me virent'et esgarderent,THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER'S TALE. 143Et après si me demanderentSe j'avoie pensé de m'ame.256 and askt if I'd thought of my soul,Et je lor dis par nostre Dame,Ke j'avoie trestot donet.Ilh demanderent s'ordinéA lor maison rien née avoie;Et je dis ' non. ' Se Diex m'avoie,Il ne m'en estoit sovenu.Or estoient trop tart venu,Je n'avoie mais que doner.'Non,' disent ilh, ' trop malmenéVos voi; mavaisem*nt moreisS'en cestui propoz demoreis,Se vos ne nos doneis del vostre ':Et je, par sainte patenostre,Ne welh pas morir malement;Si ai pensé si longementK'apenseis me sui d'une cozeKe j'ai en mon porpris encloze,!"Ke j'aime mult, et ting mult chiere;Mais je lor doin en tel maniere K'ilh ne l'aront tant con vivrai,Car onkes ne le delivraiEn autrui garde qu'en la moie.Sachiés ke durement l'amoieEt amerai toute ma vie.Sans convoitise et sans envieLor done chi en vo presence,Et que nus n'i amene tenche."Dient al prestre li cinc frere, '"Dite quel chose c'est, biaz pere"Volentiers voir: c'est me vesie!Se vos l'avoiiés bien netoiie,Miez que de corduan varra,Et plus longement vos durra;Se poreis ens metre vo poivre.""Nos aveis-vos ci por dechoivreMandeis, fos prestes entesté?Avoir nos cuidiés ahonteis,Mais n'en aveis, par Saint Obert,Bien nos teneis or por bobert! "" Mais vos, por beste me teneisCant les dons que je ai doneis Me voleis faire recolhir;Bien me faites le sanc bolir,Ki voleis que le rapiele;[p. 21, co?. 2]' Only 4 are mentioned, 1. 206-211 .260 and if I'd given their house anything.I said No;264and they told me I should die in danger 268 ifI didn't give them something.272 So I've thought ofa thingthat I value 276 very much,but that I can't give away while I live,so much do I280 love it.284But I'll bestow it in your presence."The 5 Friars say,"Tell us what it is.""Well, it's my 288 Bladder.If you'll have292296it cleaned ,you can keep your pepper in it! ""False Priest!You've had us here to shame us!""Quite true.You treated me like a brute when you askt me to 300 revoke my gifts,144 THE PRIEST'S BLADDER; FOR THE SUMMONER'S TALE.when I told you I'd nothing for you."Bien vo di que pot ne paele,Ne riens née à doner n'avoie.Or me voleis metre en tel voieK'en vos soit miex l'amouene afiseK'en liew ù je l'ewise mise,304The Jacobins go home with Borry face;and the neigh.bours all laugh at ' em about the cheat of the Bladder,Por ce que de tos melhor estes."Li Jacobin baisent les testes, 308Si se sunt retorné arriereVers lor maison à triste chiere;Et tot chil qui là demorerentDe ris enaise se pamerent 312Por la trufe de la vesieQue li prestes ot tant prisie,that they feasted As Jacobiens qui bien en burent over.Jakes de Baisiwrymed this joke because heenjoyed it.Et mangierent, et en rechurentDe vin et de poissons pitance.Jakes de Baisiw sans dotanceL'a de nex en romant rimécPor la trufe qu'il a amée.316320At the end of his translation of this story, which he calls La Vessie duCuré, M. Legrand d'Aussy says (Fabliaux ou Contes, vol. iv, p. 184): " Cetestament burlesque et dérisoire est encore une de ces plaisanteries dont onfait communément honneur à Jean de Meung. Fauchet la lui a attribuée,d'après une chronique d'Aquitaine; et nos compilateurs anecdotiers, peupleignorant et amoureux de la singularité, l'ont copiée, sans examen, d'aprèsFauchet. Jean, selon celui- ci, avoit, par son testament, légué aux jacobins deParis des coffres qu'il disoit renfermer toute sa fortune; mais c'étoit à condition qu'ils célébreroient un service pour le repos de son âme, et qu'ils ne lesouvriroient qu'après le service célébré. Ils lui en firent un maguifique; maisles coffres ne contenoient que des ardoises; et quand ils vinrent à les ouvriret qu'ils se virent dupés, ils entrèrent dans une telle colère, qu'ils exhumèrentle corps. Fauchet ajoute que le parlement vengea le poète, et qu'il obligea lesmoines de lui donner dans leur cloître une sépulture honorable.Il pourroit bien en être de cette historiette comme de celles de la plus puteet du cœur mangé. Je suis convaincu au moins que, si Fauchet eût connu lesdeux fabliaux qu'on vient de lire, tout dépourvu qu'il etoit de goût et de critique, il eût été frappé de l'imitation.Dans le Parangon des nouvelles, fol. 56, Wlespiegle joue à un curé un tour pareil à celui du fabliau,"145NOTES TO THE TALE OF THE PRIEST'S BLADDER,BY MR HENRY NICOL.Title, p. 135, 1. 4. Le for la is not uncommon, but the text seems to have the latter.1. 6. Jakes should be Jake, being accusative; see 1. 41 , de Saint Jake.p. 137, 1. 2. voirs should be voir, being accusative.1. 4. Similarly Anwiers should be Anwier, as in 1. 40.1. 6. do? de; the preposition without the article seems more suitable.1. 10. The form blées is unknown; it ought to be bleis or blés.The rhyme-word moblés is right enough.1. 22. As there are several people, I should have expected mains,not main. mis ought to be mist, but this would spoil the rhyme.1. 24. I suppose ilh is in the MS. , as lh occurs several times later on; but I do not understand it. lh is the regular Provençal representation of the liquid l, French ill, final il; but I have not heard ofits being found in French except in some very old MSS. Here, too,the word has the common l in French, not the liquid; so what the lhmeans I cannot guess. Provençal has the identical form here, ofcourse liquid.1. 25. This is too short; estovera, which is not uncommon, would do,p. 138, 1. 35. The line is too short; que il for qu'il would suit.1. 44. par should be part; the initial of the following tot may have caused the omission of the final t.1. 45. chil - ceux) makes no sense; probably it ought to bechiés (= chez). venus, being nominative plural, ought to be venu or venut.1. 46. This is too long; the removal of I, the change of quidarentto quident, or that of retenus to tenus, would put it right. quidarentfor quiderent occurs in some MSS. , but here -erent seems the form in allother places. retenus should be retenu or retenut, as above.1. 56. tansterent for tasterent seems unknown, and has no supportin etymology (taxitāre).1. 59. It strikes me that the initial Ki ought to be Ke; I cannot construe the line with Ki or K'i. Kil would make sense.1. 62. desir should be desirs.146 NOTES TO THE TALE OF THE PRIEST'S BLADDER.1. 69. The line is too short; probably no should be nostre.p. 139, 1. 82. linchues: linçol (shirt) occurs in early Old French.1. 95. As vaut is singular, bleis should be bleif, as in l . 116.1. 108. Also too short; puet-il for puet would do.p. 140, 1. 117. chanap I do not know; hanap (cup) , as in 1. 176, isprobably meant.1. 122. Such a form as vorimes I do not know; the usual one isvoriemes, in this dialect.1. 125. notre for nostre is late, or a mistake.1. 132. preste should be prestes.1. 139. aime for aim (1st sing. ) is late, and is not needed for the metre. Sains should be Saint.1. 143. voroi is clearly a mistake for voroie, which is wanted forsyntax and metre.1. 151. revenons should be revenrons, to suit ramenrons, next line.1. 153. Diex should be Dieu.1. 163. libvres for livres is a case of etymological spelling, which Ihope is of the 15th century. gaangniet for gagné is, on the other hand,two or three centuries earlier; it makes the line too long, so I supposeganguiet is meant. Deux is, I suppose, an extension of MS. ii.p. 141 , 1. 171. fions I do not understand; the metre will allow ofonly one syllable, so flons may be meant. This, however, is doubtful;the only forms I know are Old French flaons, modern flans.1. 172. mangier should be mangiers.1. 181. This is too long; ilh or i might be removed. sain shouldbe saint.1. 183. merveillent does not agree with saint of the preceding line.1. 188. ferre ought to be forré (fourré), as this would give some meaning.1. 200. Jhesu should be Jhesus; probably the MS. has a contraction.p. 142, 1. 214. This means, we do not require our prior.' Thepriest asked the friars to bring him, but they do not. Thus there areonly 4 friars, not 5, as 1. 285 says.1. 215. oriiet I do not know; ariiet (arrayed) would make sense.1. 215. son should be sont.1. 221. Anwiers should be Anwier.1. 229. As don is masculine, La should be Le.1. 245. I have met with prumierement for premierement, but neverwith promierement.1. 247. I think Sangnor should be Saingnor or Seingnor; a occursfor e before nasals, but hardly for ei or ai.p. 143, 1. 259. donet rhyming on ordiné is a useless archaism.1. 266. malmené does not rhyme with doner of the line before; but malmener does not suit the syntax as well.1. 267. The voi here I do not understand, as it ought to be plural(disent ilh). To change it to voir (= vrai) suits the sense, but not the construction of the line before.KOTES TO THE TALE OF THE PRIEST'S BLADDER. 1471. 275. Here is aime for aim again; but it is wanted for the metre;thoughje aim would do.1. 283. done for don is in the same case; vostre for vo would make it up.1. 285, note. The poet has clearly omitted one of the names in 11 .206-211; in 1. 242 four friars are mentioned, besides Robert, who hadgone to fetch the sheriffs, &c.1. 286. dite should be dites.1. 287. me for ma is not uncommon, like le for la; but the a forniseems the regular one in this text.1. 288. This is too long; vos might be struck out.1. 293. entesté should be entestés (or -teis) for grammar and rhyme.1. 301. Here again it seems that Ki should be Ke. The line is tooshort; probably je should be inserted between que and le. le itselfought to be les, to agree with dons before.p. 144, 1. 312. The derivation of en-aise is doubtful; its meaning,according to Burguy, is environ, à peu près, presque; he gives only anaises, enaises.1. 315. I do not know the form Jacobiens for Jacobins.1. 319. nex I do not know, and I cannot hit on a probable emenda- tion.The dialect is, on the whole, Picard, but mixed with other forms.Many forms are late, others early; only an examination of the MS.could determine its age, but I think it must be a late copy of somethingearly, from the mixture of forms. The original editor talks of XII andXIII centuries; the poem may be of either date, but I do not think thetext given can be earlier than the last half of the XIV. The dialectseems to agree with the scene of the poem; but such forms as ilh ( =il),valhance ( 1. 130, = vaillance) look as if taken from the Provençal iland valhansa. In the absence of the MS. I cannot attempt precision.

14910.Petrarch's Latin Tale of Griseldis(WITH BOCCACCIO'S STORY FROM WHICH IT WAS RE-TOLD)THE ORIGINAL OFChaucer's " Clerk's Tale."150Tyrwhitt, in § xx. of his Introductory Discourse to the CanterburyTales, says, " The Clerkes Tale is in a different strain from the fourpreceding. He tells us, in his Prologue, that he learned it from Petrarchat Padua; and this, by the way, is all the ground that I can find forthe notion that Chaucer had seen Petrarch in Italy. It is not easy[unless we are content to suppose that Chaucer did not needlessly lie]to say why Chaucer should choose to own an obligation for this tale toPetrarch rather than to Boccacce, from whose Decameron, Day X, Novel10, it was translated by Petrarch in 1373,1 the year before his death, asappears by a remarkable letter, which he sent with his translation toBoccacce, Opp. Petrarch. [p. 601 , ed. 1554, and] p. 540-7, ed . Bas. 1581 .It should seem too from the same letter that the story was not inventedby Boccacce, for Petrarch says, ' that it had always pleased him when heheard it many years before,' whereas he had not seen the Decameron tillvery lately."CI see no good outward reason why Chaucer should not have metPetrarch in 1368-9 at Milan. Chaucer might have gone with his oldmaster, Lionel, Duke of Clarence, to Milan, where the Duke married hissecond wife, Violante, the daughter of Galeazzo, Duke of Milan, Petrarchbeing at the marriage-feast. Prince Lionel had 475 men in his retinue,and his first wife's old page might well have been among them, withoutbeing specially named. Chaucer's pension on May 25, 1368, was notreceived per manus proprias as it was on Nov. 6, 1367 (Works, i . 95).The inward argument that there is no Italian allusion in his Dethe ofBlaunche of 1369-70 is not necessarily strong. At any rate during hisItalian embassy in 1373, Chaucer may have met Petrarch.I call the attention of readers to the ' Note ' at the end of Petrarch'sTale, by my friend Mr J. W. Hales, on Chaucer's treatment of the story,and on the characters of Griselda and the Marquis. Mr Hales has alsokindly revised the Latin text, and sidenoted part of it.1 See Sir Harris Nicolas's comments on this letter in his Life of Chaucer,Works, ed. Morris, i . 11-13: " The precise time when Petrarch translated theTale of Griselda is uncertain. Two much earlier copies of that Letter are in theBritish Museum, one in Gothic characters without date, and another printed atVenice in 1493; but in neither of those copies does the latter part of the translation, containing the date, occur. That the date was not printed literally inthe editions of 1554 and 1581 is evident from the figure ' 6 ' being used insteadof a Roman numeral,"151Here is the ' remarkable letter ' that Tyrwhitt refersto:-[Petrarchae Opera, Basil. 1581 , p. 540, corrected byUlrich Zell's edition of about 1470 A.D.]Franciscus Petrarcha Ioan. Boccatio .S.Linyour book whichyour youth, aspublished in ourmother tongue,I1 think, youII see has reached ine. I cannot sayhave read it . It is a big book, and have little time,and that little is disturbed by wartacked, butwelldefended by you.it has been atwith my glanceIbrum tuum, quem nostro materno eloquio utopinor olim iuuenis edidisti, nescio quidem undeuel qualiter, ad me delatum uidi. Nam si dicam legi ,mentiar, siquidem ipse magnus ualde, ut ad uulgus &soluta scriptus oratione, & occupatio mea maior, & tempus angustum erat; idque ipsum , ut nosti, bellicis undique motibus inquietum, à quibus & si animo proculabsim, nequeo tamen fluctuante Republica non moueri.Quid? ergo Excucurri eum, &festini uiatoris in morem, commotions; sohinc atque hinc circ*mspiciens nec subsistens. Animad- I have only run ituerti alicubi librum ipsum canum dentibus lacessitum, over,tuo tamen baculo egregiè tuaque voce defensum. Nec miratus sum. Nam & uires ingenij tui noui, & scio I have noted thatexpertus esse hominum genus & insolens & ignauum,qui quicquid ipsi uel nolunt uel nesciunt uel non possunt, in alijs reprehendant, ad hoc unum docti &arguti, sed elingues ad reliqua. Delectatus sum in ipsotransitu, & si quid lasciuiæ liberioris occurreret, excusabat ætas tunc tua, dum id scriberes, stilus, idioma,ipsa quoque rerum leuitas & eorum qui lecturi taliauidebantur. Refert enim largiter, quibus scribas, mo- rumque uarietate stili uarietas excusatur. Inter multa Amidst manysanè iocosa & lenia, quædam pia & grauia deprehendi, levities, I havede quibus tamen diffinitiuè, quid iudicem, non habeo, things of graverut qui nusquam totus inhæserim: at quod uerè accidit tone.eo more currentibus, curiosius aliquantò quàm cæteralibri principium finemque perspexi; quorum in alteropatriæ nostræ statum, illius scilicet pestilentissimi temporis, quod præ omnibus nostra ætas lugubre ac miserum mundo uidit, meo quidem iudicio, & narrasti propriè & magnificè deplorasti. In altero autem historiam At the beginningultimam & multis præcedentium longè dissimilem you have toldposuisti, quæ ita mihi placuit meque detinuit, ut inter that terribleat it I have been delighted.marked someNaturally, Iturned specially to the beginningand the end.well the story ofplague-time;T1152 PETRARCH'S LETTER TO BOCCACCIO.at the end astory tot curas, quæ penè mei ipsius immemorem fecêre,that charmed me. illam memoriæ mandare uoluerim, ut & ipse eam animo,I learnt it by heart, to repeat to my friends.Then it occurred to me that it might delight those who did not know Italian.quotiens uellem, non sine uoluptate repeterem, et amicisut sit confabulantibus renarrarem, si quando aliquidtale incidisset. Quod cum breui postmodum fecissemgratiamque audientibus cognouissem, subitò talis interloquendum cogitatio superuenit fieri posse, ut nostrietiam sermonis ignaros tàm dulcis historia delectaret,cum &mihi semper ante multos annos audita placuisset,& tibi usque adeò placuisse perpenderem, ut uulgarieam stilo tuo censueris non indignam & fine operis,ubi Rhetorum disciplina ualidiora quælibet collocariSo one day Iset iubet. Itaque die quodam, inter uarios cogitatus, animummore solito discerpentes & illis & mihi ut sic dixerim late it, hoping youwould be glad iratus, uale omnibus ad tempus dicto, calamum arripiens,historiam ipsam tuam scribere sum aggressus, te hauddubiè gauisurum sperans, ultrò rerum interpretem metuarum fore. Quod non facilè alteri cuicunque præstiterim, egit me tui amor & historiæ: ita tamen, neHoratianum illud poetica artis obliuiscerer:myselfto transfor meto do so.my own words,with just a few changes.Nec uerbum uerbo curabis reddere fidusInterpres:I have given it in Historiam tuam meis uerbis explicui, [ ¹imò alicubi autpaucis in ipsa narratione mutatis uerbis aut additis,quod te non ferente modò sed fauente fieri credidi.¹ ]Quæ licet à multis & laudata & expetita fuerit, ego remtuam tibi non alteri dedicandam censui. Quam quideman mutata ueste deformauerim an fortassis oruauerim, tuTo youI wishto iudica; illuc enim orta illuc redit, notus iudex, nota dedicate this version.domus, notum iter, 2 ut unum & tu noris, & quisquishæc leget, tibi non mihi tuarum rationem rerum essereddendam. Quisquis ex me quæret, an hæc vera sint,hoc est an historiam scripserim an fabulam, respondeboillud Crispi: Fides penes auctorem, meum scilicetIoannem, sit. Hæc præfatus incipio.1-1 These words are not in Ulrich Zell's edition.2 Ulrich Zell's edition omits ut unum.' What do the editions of 1554 and 1581 mean, or wish to mean, by the phrase? —J. W. H. (It is a common enough phrase in English, though not of much use-" that you and our readers may know one thing-that, &c. "-H. H. G.)153PETRARCH'S TALE OF GRISELDIS(FROM FRANCISCI PETRARCHÆ OPERA, BASILEA(1581 ), p. 541, AND BOCCACCIO'S (ed. 1827-34), FROMWHICH PETRARCH RE-TOLD IT. )Francisci Petrarcha V. C. de Obedientia ac fideuxoria Mythologia.high mountainEst ad Italiæ latus occiduum Vesulus ex Appen- On the west ofnini iugis mons unus altissimus, qui uertice nubila Italy is a verysuperans liquido sese ingerit ætheri, mons suapte where the Ponobilis natura, sed Padi ortu nobilissimus, qui eius à liss,latere fonte lapsus, exiguo orientem contra solem fertur,mirisque mox tumidus incrementis, breui spacio deis warm andpleasant, and isThe land of Saluces lies there,ruled by Marquises, ofWalter, wascalled Piedmont.cursu, non tantum maximorum unus amnium, sed the king of rivers.fluuiorum à Vergilio rex dictus. Liguriam gurgiteuiolentus intersecat, dehinc Aemiliam, atque Flaminiam, Venetiamque discriminans, multis ad ultimum &ingentibus ostijs, in Adriaticum mare descendit. Cæte- The countryrum pars illa terrarum, de quà primùm dixi, que &grata planitie, & interiectis collibus ac montibus circumflexis, aprica pariter ac iucunda est, atque ab eorumquibus subiacet Pedemontium pede nomen tenet, & ciuitates aliquot & oppida habet egregia. Inter cætera adradicem Vesuli, terra Salutiarum, uicis & castellis satisfrequens, Marchionum arbitrio nobilium quorundam regitur uirorum, quorum unus primusque omnium &maximus fuisse traditur Gualtherus quidam, ad quemfamiliæ ac terrarum omnium regimen pertineret, & hicquidem forma uirens atque ætate, nec minus moribus aquam sanguine nobilis, & ad summam omnium ex parteuir insignis, nisi quòd præsenti sua sorte contentus,incuriosissimus futurorum erat. Itaque uenatui aucu- but too fond of pioque deditus, sic illis incubuerat, ut alia penè cuncta hunting, andnegligeret: quodque in primis ægrè populi ferebant,whom the first,noble and illustrious man,hated marriage.Già è gran tempo, fu tra' marchesi di Saluzzo il maggior della casaun giovane chiamato Gualtieri, il quale essendo senza moglie e senzafigliuoli, in niuna altra cosa il suo tempo spendeva che in uccellare e incacciare, nè di prender moglie nè d' aver figliuoli alcun pensiere avca,154 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.At last his subjects remonstrated:"You please us,and we shallalways be happy under you; butone thing weask,marriage at once.that you think ofab ipsis quoque coniugij consilijs abhorreret. Id aliquamdiù taciti cùm tulissent, tandem cateruatim illum adeunt, quorum unus, cui uel auctoritas maior erat uelfacundia, maiorque cum suo duce familiaritas, "Tua(inquit) humanitas, optime Marchio, hanc nobis præstat audaciam, ut & tecum singuli quotiens res exposcitdeuota fiducia colloquamur, & nunc omnium tacitas uoluntates mea uox tuis auribus inuehat, non quòdsingulare aliquid habeam ad hanc rem, nisi quod tu me inter alios charum tibi multis indicijs comprobasti.Cùm meritò igitur tua nobis omnia placeant, semperqueplacuerint, ut felices nos tali domino judicemus: unumest, quod si à te impetrari sinis teque nobis exorabilempræbes, planè felicissimi finitimorum omnium futuri sumus, ut coniugio scilicet animum applices, collumquenon liberum modò sed imperiosum legitimo subijciasiugo, idque quàmprimùm facias: uolant enim diesrapidi, & quamquam florida sis ætate, continuè tamen hunc florem tacita senectus insequitur, morsque ipsaomni proxima est ætati. Nulli muneris huius immunitas datur, æquè omnibus moriendum est, utque idcertum, sic illud ambiguum, quando eueniat. Suscipeigitur, oramus, eorum preces, qui nullum tuum imperium recusarent, quærendæ autem coniugis studium nobislinque; talem enim tibi procurabimus, quæ te meritò fit one. Free us digna sit, & tam claris orta parentibus, ut de ea spesoptima sit habenda, libera tuos omnes molesta sollicitudine quæsumus, ne si quid humanitus tibi forsanaccideret, tu sine tuo successore abeas, ipsi sine uotiuorectore remaneant. " Mouerunt piæ preces animum Viri,& "cogitis (inquit) me, amici, ad id quod mihi in marrying; but I animum nunquam uenit; delectabat omnimoda liberYour youth passes, old age and death will follow.You may leave the choice of your wife to us;we'll get you afrom the fear of your dying without aBuecessor.'Marquis Walter answers: 'I've never thought ofdi che egli era da reputar molto savio. La qual cosa a' suoi uomininon piacendo, più volte il pregarono che moglie prendesse, acciocchè egli senza erede nè essi senza signor rimanessero, offerendosi di trovargliele tale e di sì fatto padre e madre discesa, che buona speranza se ne potrebbe avere ed esso contentarsene molto. A' quali Gualtieririspose: "amici miei, voi mi strignete a quello che io del tutto avevadisposto di non far mai, considerando quanto grave cosa sia a poter trovare chi co' suoi costumi ben si convenga, e quanto del contrario sia grande la copia, e come dura vita sia quella di colui che a donna nou bene a sè conveniente s'abbatte. E il dire che voi vi crediate a' costumi de' padri e delle madri le figliuole conoscere, donde argomentatedi darlami tal che mi piacerà, è una sciocchezza; conciò sia cosa che io non sappia dove i padri possiate conoscere, nè come i segreti dellemadri di quelle, quantunque pur cognoscendoli, sieno spesse volte lePETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 155tas, quæ in coniugio rara est. Cæterùm subiectorum give way to you.uoluntatibus me sponte subijcio, & prudentiæ uestræfisus & fidei: Illam uerò quam offertis quærendæ curamconiugis, remitto, eamque humeris meis ipse subeo; quidI'll marry atmust promise toreverence myonce but youwife, whomsoeveras if she were aunius enim claritas confert alteri? Sæpè filij dissimili Only, I'll choose sunt parentum. Quicquid in homine boni est, non ab mywife myself.alio, quàm à Deo est. Illi ergo & status & matrimonijmei sortes, sperans de sua solita pietate, commiserim;ipse mihi inueniet, quod quieti meæ sit expediens acsaluti. Itaque quando uobis ita placitum est, uxorem To please you,ducam, id uobis bona fide polliceor, uestrumque desiderium nec frustrabor equidem, nec morabor: unum uosmihi uersa uice promittite ac seruate, ut quamcumque coniugem ipse delegero, cam uos summo honore ac I may choose,ueneratione prosequamini, nec sit ullus inter uos, qui de meo unquam iuditio aut litiget aut queratur. Vestrum Roman prince'sfuit me omnium quos nouistis liberrimum, iugo sub- promise.iecisse coniugij; mea sit iugi ipsius electio, quæcunqueuxor mea erit, illa, ceu Romani principis filia, dominauestra sit." Promittunt unanimiter, ac lætè nihil defuturum, ut quibus uix possibile videretur optatumdiem cernere nuptiarum, de quibus in diem certummagnificentissimè reparandum domini iubentis edictumalacres susceperunt. Ita à colloquio discessum est, &ipse nihilominus eam ipsam nuptiarum curam domesticis suis imposuit, edixitque diem.daughter.' TheyWalter orderspreparations for his marriage, and fixes the dayNot far from hisJanicola, with anFuit haud procul a palatio uillula paucorum atque for it.inopum incolarum, quorum uni omnium pauperrimo palace dwelt aIanicolæ nomen erat, sed ut pauperum quoque tuguria very poor man,nonnumquam gratia cœlestis inuisit, unica illi contigerat only daughter Griseldis nomine, forma corporis satis egregia, sed Griseldis, lovely pulchritudine morum atque animi adeò speciosa, ut and good.nihil suprà. Hæc parco uictu, in summa semper inopia Poorly broughteducata, omnis inscia uoluptatis, nil molle, nil tenerum up,cogitare didicerat, sed uirilis senilisque animus uirgineo she had a man'slatebat in pectore. Patris senium inextimabili refouens mind.figliuole a' padri e alle madri dissimili. Ma, poichè pure in questocatene vi piace d' annodarmi, e io voglio esser contento e acciocchè ionon abbia da dolermi d' altrui che di me, se mal venisse fatto, io stessone voglio essere il trovatore, affermandovi che, cui che io mi tolga, seda voi non fia come donna onorata, voi proverete con gran vostro dannoquanto grave mi sia l' aver contra mia voglia presa mogliere a' vostriprieghi. " I valenti uomini risposon ch' erano contenti, sol che esso sirecasse a prender moglie.Erano a Gualtieri buona pezza piaciuti i costumi d' una poveragiovinetta, che d' una villa vicina a casa sua era, e parendogli bellaCH. ORIG. 11 p. 542.156 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.She took tendercare of her father,and did all her duties well.Her had Walter often seen,had noted herrare virtue,charitate, et pauculas eius oues pascebat, et colo interimdigitos atterebat, uicissimque domum rediens, olusculaet dapes fortunæ congruas præparabat, durumque cubiculum sternebat, et ad summum angusto in spatiototum filialis obedientiæ ac pietatis officium explicabat.In hanc uirgunculam Gualtherus sæpè illâc transiens,quandoque oculos non iuuenili lasciuia sed senili grauitate defixerat, et uirtutem eximiam supra sexum supraque ætatem, quàm uulgi oculis conditionis obscuritasand resolved that abscondebat, acri penetrarat intuitu. Vnde effectum,ut et uxorem habere, quòd unquam antè uoluerat, &simul hanc unam nullamque aliam habere disponeret.Instabat nuptiarum dies, unde autem uentura sponsawhence the bride esset, nemo nouerat, nemo non mirabatur; ipse interim& anulos aureos & coronas & balteos conquirebat,uestes autem pretiosas & calceos & eius generis necessaria omnia, ad mensuram puellæ alterius, quæ staturasuæ persimilis erat, præparari faciebat. Venerat expectatus dies, & cum nullus sponsæ rumor audiretur,admiratiò omnium uehementer excreuerat, hora iamhe'd marry none but her.No one knowsis to come,though Walter prepares jewels and dresses for her.The wedding day comes; no bride is named; folk wonder.assai, estimò che con costei dovesse potere aver vita assai consolata;perciò, senza più avanti cercare, costei propose di volere sposare:fattosi il padre chiamare, con lui, che poverissimo era, si convenne ditorla per moglie. Fatto questo, fece Gualtieri tutti i suoi amici dellacontrada adunare, e disse loro: "amici miei, egli v'è piaciuto e piaceche io mi disponga a tor moglie, e io mi vi son disposto, più por compiacere a voi che per desiderio che io di moglie avessi.Voi sapetequello che voi mi prometteste, cioè d'esser contenti e d'onorar comedonna qualunque quella fosse che io togliessi: e perciò venuto è il tempo che io sono per servare a voi la promessa, e che io voglia che voi aine la serviate. Io ho trovata una giovane secondo il cuor mio assaipresso di qui, la quale io intendo di tor per moglie e di menarlami fraqui a pochi dì a casa; e perciò pensate come la festa delle nozze siabella, e come voi onorevolmente ricever la possiate, acciocchè io mipossa della vostra promession chiamar contento, come voi della mia vipotrete chiamare. " I buoni uomini lieti tutti risposero ciò piacer loro,e che, fosse chi volesse, essi l'avrebber per donna e onorerebbonla intutte cose sì come donna. Appresso questo tutti si misero in assetto difar bella e grande e lieta festa, e il simigliante fece Gualtieri. Egli fece preparare le nozze grandissime e belle, e invitarvi molti suoi amici eparenti e gran gentili uomini e altri dattorno: e oltre a questo fecetagliare e far più robe belle e ricche al dosso d' una giovane, la'quale della persona gli pareva che la giovinetta la quale avevaproposto di sposare; e oltre a questo apparecchiò cinture e anellae una ricca e bella corona, e tutto ciò che a novella sposa si richiedea.E venuto il dì che alle nozze predetto avea, Gualtieri in su la mezzaPETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 157him.water, to be inasks for herprandij aderat, iamque apparatu ingenti domus totaferuebat. Tum Gualtherus aduentanti uelut sponsæ Then Walter setsobuiam profecturus domo egreditur, prosequente out; many followuirorum & matronarum nobilium caterua. Griseldis Griseldis is justomnium quæ erga se pararentur ignara, peractis quæ carrying-in someagenda domi erant, aquam è longinquo fonte conuec- time to see thetans, paternum limen intrabat, ut expedita curis alijs, Bride, whenad uisendam Domini sui sponsam cum puellis comiti- Walter calls her,bus properaret. Tum Gualtherus cogitabundus ince- father,dens, eamque compellans nomine: Vbinam patereius esset,' interrogauit; quæ cum illum domi essereuerenter atque humiliter respondisset, " Iube (inquit)ad me ueniat." Venientem seniculum, manu præhensum, parumper abstraxit, ac submissa uoce, Scio and says to him,(ait) me Ianicola charum tibi, teque hominem fidum I know you arenoui, & quæcunque mihi placeant, uelle te arbitror;unum tamen nominatim nosse uelim: an me quemdominum habes, data mihi hac tua in uxorem filia66.66my liege man,but will you give me your daughter to wife?'' As you please,Sire.''Let us then askher."generum uelis?" Inopino negotio stupefactus senexobriguit, et uix tandem paucis hiscens, " Nil (inquit)aut uelle debeo, aut nolle, nisi quod placitum tibi sit,qui Dominus meus es." Ingrediamur soli ergo (inquit) ut ipsam de quibusdam interrogem, te præsente."Ingressi igitur, expectante populo ac mirante, puellamcirca patris obsequium satagentem, & insolito tantihospitis aduentu stupidam inuenere, quam ijs uerbisGualtherus aggreditur: "Et patri tuo placet (inquit) &mihi, ut uxor mea sis. Credo id ipsum tibi placeat,sed habeo ex te quærere, ubi hoc peractum fuerit, quodmòx erit, an uolenti animo parata sis, ut de omnibustecum mihi conueniat, ita ut in nulla unquam re à will in everythingmea uoluntate dissentias, & quicquid tecum agere of resistance."' Griseldis!Your I willfather that you andbemy wife. But first I ask you whether you'llalways do mywithout any signterza montò a cavallo, e ciascun altro che ad onorarlo era venuto: eogni cosa opportuna avendo disposta, disse: " signori, tempo è d' andareper la novella sposa ": e messosi in via con tutta la compagnia sua, pervennero alla villetta: e giunti a casa del padre della fanciulla, e leitrovata, che con acqua tornava dalla fonte in gran fretta, per andarpoi con altre femmine a veder venire la sposa di Gualtieri. La qualecome Gualtieri vide, chiamatala per nome, cioè Griselda, domandò doveil padre fosse. Al quale ella vergognosamente rispose: " signor mio,egli è in casa. " Allora Gualtieri smontato, e comandato ad ogni uomche l'aspettasse, solo se n' entrò nella povera casa, dove trovò il padredi lei, che avea nome Giannucole, e dissegli: " io sono venuto asposar la Griselda; ma prima da lei voglio sapere alcuna cosa in tuapresenzia: e domandolla se ella sempre, togliendola egli per moglie,s' ingegnerebbe di compiacergli, e di niuna cosa, che egli dicesse o158 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S Tale..She answers,' Yes, I will neveragainst your will,even thinkand will not murmur if you bid me die.'Enough, says Walter; leads her out, declares herhis wife, and bids his people love her.uoluero, sine ulla frontis aut uerbi repugnantia te ex animo uolente mihi liceat. " Ad hæc illa miraculo reitremens, " Ego mi domine (inquit) tanto honore me indignam scio: at si uoluntas tua, síque sors mea est,nil ego unquam sciens, nedum faciam, sed etiamcogitabo, quòd contra animum tuum sit, nec tu aliquidfacies, & si me mori iusseris, quòd molestè feram. ”"Satis est " (inquit ille); sic in publicum eductampopulo ostendens: " Hæc (ait) uxor mea, hæc dominanostra est, hanc colite, hanc amate, & si me charumhabetis, hanc charissimam habetote. ' Dehinc, ne quidreliquiarum fortunæ ueteris nouam inferret in domum,nudari eam iussit, & à calce ad uerticem nouis uestibusHe has her clad indui, quòd a matronis circ*mstantibus ac certatim sinuillam gremioque fouentibus uerecunde ac celeriter adimpletum est. Sic horridulam uirginem, indutam,and crowned, so laceramque comam recollectam manibus comptamque that the people pro tempore insignitam gemmis, & corona uelut subitòtransformatam, uix populus recognouit; quam Gualtherus anulo pretioso, quem ad hunc usum detulerat, so- her,and takes her lenniter desponsauit, niveoque equo impositam, adpalatium deduci fecit, comitante populo & gaudente.Ad hunc modum nuptiæ celebrate, diesque ille lætissimus actus est. Breui dehinc inopi sponsæ tantumdiuini fauoris affulserat, ut non in casa illa pastoriased in aula imperatoria educata atque edocta uideretur,she is loved and atque apud omnes supra fidem chara & uenerabilis reverenced by all, facta esset, uixque his ipsis, qui illam ab origine noueanew,hardly recognize her.Then Walter wedsto his palace on asnow-white palfrey.Soon, by God's grace, she seems as ifbred in an imperial court;6699facesse, non turbarsi, e s' ella sarebbe obbediente, e simili altre coseassai; delle quali ella a tutte rispose di sì. Allora Gualtieri, presala permano, la meuò fuori , e in presenzia di tutta la sua compagnia e d'ognialtra persona la fece spogliare ignuda, e fattisi quegli vestimenti venireche fatti aveva fare, prestamente la fece vestire e calzare, e sopra i suoicapegli così scarmigliati com' egli erano le fece mettere una corona, eappresso questo, maravigliandosi ogni uomo di questa cosa, disse:signori, costei è colei la quale io intendo che mia moglie sia, dove ellame voglia per marito: e poi a lei rivolto, che di sè medesima vergognosa e sospesa stava, le disse: " Griselda, vuo'mi tu per tuo marito? "A cui ella rispose: " signor mio, sì. " Ed egli disse: e io voglio teper mia moglie; e in presenza di tutti la sposò. E fattala sopra unpallafren montare, onorevolmente accompagnata a casa la si mend.Quivi furon le nozze belle e grandi, e la festa non altramenti che sepresa avesse la figliuola del re di Francia. La giovane sposa parve che co'vestimenti insieme l'animo e i costumi mutasse. Ella era, come giàdicemmo di persona e di viso bella, e così come bella era divenne tantoavvenevole, tanto piacevole e tanto costumata, che non figliuola di"966PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 159and sweetness.and is held wiseGriseldis'swell as home, andsets disputers at one.beautifulWalter resolves toth try his wife's faith.rant, persuaderi posset Ianicolæ natam esse; tantus erat so great is her uitæ, tantus morum decor, ea uerborum grauitas ac grace, her gravity,dulcedo, quibus omnium animos nexu sibi magni amorisastrinxerat. Iamque non solùm intra patrios fines, sed Her fame is per finitimas quasque prouincias, suum nomen celebri noised abroad.præconio fama uulgabat: ita ut multi ad illam uisendam uiri ac matronæ studio feruente concurrerent.Sic Gualtherus humili quidem sed insigni ac prospero Walter enjoys amatrimonio, honestatis summa domi in pace, extra uerò happy home,summa cum gratia hominum uiuebat, quodque eximiam for havinguirtutem, tanta sub inopia latitantem, tam perspicaciter discerneddeprehendisset, uulgo prudentissimus habebatur. Ne- qualities.que uerò solers sponsa muliebria tantum hæc domestica, She attends tosed ubi res posceret, publica etiam obibat officia uiro state affairs asabsente, lites patriæ nobiliumquæ discordias dirimensatque componens tam grauibus responsis tantaquematuritate & iudicij æquitate, ut omnes ad salutempublicam demissam cœlo fœminam prædicarent. Nequemultum tempus effluxerat, dum grauida affecta, primumsubditos anxia expectatione suspendit, dehinc filiam. Shebears aenixa pulcherrimam, quamuis filium maluissent, tamen daughter.uotina fœcunditate non virum modò sed totam patriamlætam fecit. Cepit, ut fit, interim Gualtherum cumiam ablactata esset infantula, mirabilis quædam, quàmlaudibilis doctiores iudicent, cupiditas satis expertamcharæ fidem coniugis experiendi altiùs & iterum atqueiterum retentandi. Solam igitur . in thalamum seuoca- He reminds herGiannucole e guardiana di pecore pareva stata, ma d'alcun nobile signore di che ella faceva maravigliare ogni uom che prima conosciuta l'E oltre a questo era tanto obbediente al marito e tanto servente,che egli si teneva il più contento e il più appagato uomo del mondo: esimilmente verso i sudditi del marito eratanto graziosa e tanto benigna, cheniun ve n' era che più che sè non l' amasse e che non l' onorasse di grado,tutti per lo suo bene e per lo suo stato e per lo suo esaltamento pregando:dicendo (dove dir soliano Gualtieri aver fatto come poco savio d'averlaper moglie presa) che egli era il più savio e il più avveduto uomo cheal mondo fosse; perciocchè niun altro che egli avrebbe mai potutoconoscere l'alta virtù da costei nascosa sotto i poveri panni e sotto l'abito villesco. E in brieve non solamente nel suo marchesato, ma pertutto, anzi che gran tempo fosse passato, seppe ella sì fare, che ella feceragionare del suo valore e del suo bene adoperare; e in contrario rivolgere, se alcuna cosa detta s' era contra 'l marito per lei quando sposata l' avea. Ella non fu guari con Gualtieri dimorata, che ella ingravidò,e al tempo partori una fanciulla, di che Gualtieri fece gran festa. Mapoco appresso entratogli un nuovo pensier nell'anino, cioè di volere conlunga esperienzia e con cose intollerabili provare la pazienzia di lei,avea.160 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.of her former state,says he loves her,but his nobles don't, and hemust give wayto them, and get rid of her child .She must yield,and show the patience she has promist.'I and my girl are yours. Do with us as you will.You alone do Idesire, or fear to lose.'Walter goes,and sends one of his servants to Griseldis,who tells her that he must obey his master and take away her babe.vano.tam, turbida fronte sic alloquitur: " Nosti, ô Griseldis,neque enim præsenti fortuna te præteriti tui statusoblitam credo: nosti inquàm, qualiter in hanc domumueneris. Mihi quidem chara satis ac dilecta es; at meisnobilibus non ita, præsertim ex quo parere incepisti,qui plebeiæ Dominæ subesse animis ferunt iniquissimis.Mihi ergo, qui cum eis pacem cupio, necesse est de filiatua non meo sed alieno iuditio obsequi, & id facere,quo nil mihi posset esse molestius. Id enim uerò teignara nunquam fecerim, uolo autem tuum mihi animumaccomodes, patientiamque illam præstes, quam ab initionostri coniugij promisisti. " Iis auditis, nec uerbo mota,nec uultu. "Tu (inquit) noster es Dominus, & ego, &hæc parua filia tuæ sumus; de rebus tuis igitur fac utlibet, nil placere enim tibi potest, quod mihi displiceat.Nil penitùs uel habere cupio uel amittere metuo, nisite, hoc ipso mihi in medio cordis affixum, nunquam indeuel lapsu temporis uel morte uellendum. Omnia priusfieri possunt, quam hic animus mutari." Lætus ille responso, sed dissimulans uisu moestus abscessit, & postpaululum unum suorum satellitum fidissimum sibi,cuius opera grauioribus in negocijs uti consueuerat,quid agi uellet edoctum, ad uxorem misit, qui ad eamnoctu ueniens, " Parce (inquit) ô domina, neque mihiimputes, quæ coactus facio. Scis sapientissima, quidest esse sub dominis, neque tali ingenio præditæquamuis inexperta dura parendi necessitas est ignota:iussus sum hanc infantulam accipere; " atque eam hicsermone abrupto, quasi crudele ministerium silentio exprimieramente la punse con parole, mostrandosi turbato e dicendo chei suoi uomini pessimamente si contentavano di lei per la sua bassa condizione, e spezialmente poichè vedevano che ella portava figliuoli; edella figliuola, che nata era, tristissimi, altro che mormorar non faceLe quali parole udendo la donna, senza mutar viso o buon proponimento in alcuno atto, disse: " signor mio, fa' di me quello che tucredi che più tuo onore e consolazion sia; chè io sarò di tutto contenta,sì come colei che conosco che io sono da men di loro, e che io non eradegna di questo onore al quale tu per tua cortesia mi recasti." Questarisposta fu molto cara a Gualtieri, conoscendo costei non essere in alcuna superbia levata per onor che egli o altri fatto l'avesse. Pocotempo appresso avendo con parole generali detto alla moglie che i sudditi non potevan patir quella fanciulla di lei nata, informato un suofamigliare, il mandò a lei, il quale con assai dolente viso le disse:madonna, se io non voglio morire, a me conviene far quello che il miosignor mi comanda. Egli m'ha comandato che io prenda questa vostrafigliuola e ch'io . e non disse più. La donna udendo le parole, e66PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 161child, but neitherhis orders, butlittle one's corpse,moved,primens subticuit. Suspecta uiri fama, suspecta facies, She thinks he suspecta hora, suspecta erat oratio, quibus etsi clare means to kill heroccisum iri dulcem filiam intelligeret, nec lachrymulam cries nor siglus.tamen ullam nec suspirium dedit, in nutrice quidem,nedum in matre durissimum. Sed tranquilla frontepuellulam accipiens, aliquantulum respexit, & simulexosculans, benedixit, ac signum sanctæ crucis im- She blesses it,pressit, porrexitque satelliti: " vade (ait) quodque tibi bids the man obeyDominus noster iniunxit exequere. Vnum quæso, cura not let beasts orne corpusculum hoc feræ lacerent, aut uolucres, ita birds tear hertamen, nisi tibi contrarium sit præceptum. " Reuersusad Dominum, cum quid dictum, quidue responsumesset exposuisset, & ei filiam obtulisset, uehementer pa- Walter, onterna animum pietas mouit; susceptum tamen rigorem hearing this, ispropositi non inflexit, iussitque satelliti obuolutampannis, cista iniectam, ac iumento impositam, quiete but tells his man omni quanta posset diligentia Bononiam deferret, ad to take the childsororem suam, quæ illic Comiti de Panico nupta erat, Countess ofeamque sibi traderet alendam materno studio, & charis Pavia, and chargemoribus instruendam, tanta præterea occultandam cura, whothe baby is.ut cuius filia esset, à nemine posset agnosci. Iuit illeillicò, & sollicitè quod impositum ei erat impleuit.Gualtherus interea, sæpe uultum coniugis ac uerba Walter studiesconsiderans, nullum unquam mutati animi perpendit and words,indicium; par alacritas atque sedulitas, solitum obse- but finds her lovequium, idem amor, nulla tristitia, nulla filiæ mentio, she never names nunquam siue ex proposito siue incidenter nomen eius her child.ex ore matris auditum. Transiuerant hoc in statu anniquatuor, dum ecce grauida iterum filium elegantissimum peperit, lætitiam patris ingentem atque omnium Four years go by,amicorum. Quo nutrici ab urbe post biennium subducto,ad curiositatem solitam reuersus pater, uxorem rursus after, Walterto his sister, theher not to tellhis wife's facestill the same;and she bears ason. Two yearsvedendo il viso del famigliare, e delle parole dette ricordandosi, comprese che a costui fosse imposto che egli l' uccidesse per che prestamente presala della culla e basciatala e benedettala, come che gran noianel cuor sentisse, senza mutar viso in braccio la pose al famigliare, edissegli; "te', fa' compiutamente quello che il tuo e mio signore t' haimposto; ma non la lasciar per modo che le bestie e gli uccelli la divorino, salvo se egli nol ti comandasse. Il famigliare presa la fanciulla,e fatto a Gualtieri sentire ciò che detto aveva la donna, maravigliandosiegli della sua constanzia, lui con essa ne mandò a Bologna ad una suaparente, pregandola che, senza mai dire cui figliuola si fosse, diligentemente allevasse e costumasse. Sopravvenne appresso, che la donnada capo ingravidò, e al tempo debito partorì un figliuol maschio, il checarissimo fu a Gualtieri. Ma, non bastandogli quello che fatto avea, conmaggior puntura trafisse la donna, e con sembiante turbato un dì le162 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.again tries his wife, tells her that his people murmur againstson ruling them,and he must make away with her boy as he did with her girl.of me and my children. Do as you will with your own.Adaffatur: "&olim (ait) audisti populum meum ægrè nostrum ferre connubium, præsertim ex quo te fœcundamcognouere. Nunquam tamen egregiùs, quam ex quoJanicola's grand marem peperisti, dic*nt enim & sæpè ad aures measmurmur hoc peruenit, obeunte igitur altero, Ianiculonepos nostri dominabitur, & tàm nobilis patria talidomino subiacebit. Multa quotidie in hanc sententiamiactantur in populis; quibus ego & quietis auidus, & utuerum fatear mihi metuens permoueor, ut de hoc infante disponam, quòd de sorore disposui. Id tibi prænuncio ne te inopinus & subitus dolor turbet. "hæc illa: " dixi (ait) & repeto, nihil possum seu uelle,seu nolle nisi quæ tu, neque uerò in ijs filijs quicquam" You are master habeo præter laborem; tu mei, & ipsorum dominus, tuisin rebus uire tuo utere, nec consensum meum quæras,in ipso enim tuæ domus introitu ut pannos, sic &uoluntates affectusque meos exui; tuos indui; quacunque ergo de re quicquid tu uis, ego etiam uolo: nempèquæ si futuræ tuæ uoluntatis essem præscia, ante etiamquicquid id esset, & uelle, & cupere inciperem, quamtu uelles; nunc animum tuum, quem præuenire nonpossum, libens sequor: fac sententiam tibi placerequòd moriar, uolens moriar, nec res ulla denique necmors ipsa nostro fuerit par amori. " Admirans fœminæconstantiam, turbato uultu abijt, confestimque satellitem olim missum ad eam remisit, qui multum excusatanecessitate parendi, multumque petita uenia, siquid eimolestum aut fecisset aut faceret, quasi immanescelus acturus poposcit infantem. Illa eodem quosemper uultu, qualicunque animo filium forma corporistatque indole non matri tantum sed cunctis amabilemin manus cepit, signansque eum signo crucis, & benedicens ut filiam fecerat, & diuticule oculis inhærens,atque deosculans, nullo penitùs signo doloris edito,petenti obtulit. "Et tene (inquit); fac quid iussus es,Ifyou want meto die, I willingly will. Death cannot conquermy love for you. 'Walter sends his servant again,who demands the boy.Griseldisblesses and kisses her baby, and gives him up,saying,'Keep his tenderdisse: " donna, poscia che tu questo figliuol maschio facesti, per niunaguisa con questi miei viver son potuto, sì duramente si rammaricanoche un nepote di Giannucolo dopo me debba rimaner lor signore:di che io mi dotto, se io non ci vorrò esser cacciato, che non mi convenga far di quelle che io altra volta feci, e alla fine lasciar te e prendere un' altra moglie." La donna con paziente animo l'ascoltò, nè altro rispose se non: "signor mio, pensa di contentar te, e di soddisfare al piacer tuo; e di me non aver pensiere alcuno, perciocchè niunacosa m'è cara se non quant' io la veggo a te piacere. " Dopo non molti dì Gualtieri in quella medesima maniera che mandato avea per la figliuola mandò per lo figliuolo, e similmente, dimostrato d' averlo fattoPETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 163unum nunc etiam precor, ut si fieri potest, hos artus limbs from birdteneros infantis egregij protegas à uexatione uolucrum and beast.'ac ferarum. " Cum ijs mandatis reuersus ad Dominum, Walter wondersanimum eius magis in stuporem egit, ut nisi eam nosset at her goodness,amantissimam filiorum, paulòminùs suspicari posset, hocfœmineum robur quadam ab animi feritate procedere,Her boy is takenGriseldis, excepttrue and kind than ever.sed cùm suorum omnium ualdè, nullus erat amantior and her greatquàm uiri. Iussus inde Bononiam proficisci, & illum love for him.tulit, quo sororem tulerat. Poterant rigidissimo coniugi to his aunt.hæc beneuolentiæ & fidei coniugalis experimentasufficere: sed sunt, qui ubi semel inceperint non desinant, imò incumbant, hæreantque proposito. Defixis Walter can see ergo in uxorem oculis, an ulla eius mutatio erga se fieret no change incontemplabatur assidue, nec ullam penitùs inuenire that she is morepoterat, nisi quod fidelior illi indies atque obsequentiorfiebat, sic ut duorum non nisi unus animus uideretur,isque non communis amborum, sed uiri duntaxat unius,uxor enim per se nihil, uel uelle, ut dictum est, nihilnolle firmauerat. Cœperat sensim de Gualtero decolor Disgracefulfama crebrescere, quòd uidelicet effera & inhumana reports about Walter spread,duritie, humilis pœnitentia ac pudore coniugii filios that he has hadiussisset interfici, nam neque pueri comparebant, nequeubinam gentium essent ullus audierat; quo se ille uiralioquin clarus & suis charus multis infamem odiosumque reddiderat. Neque idèo trux animus flectebatur,sed in suspecta severitate experiendique sua dura illahis children killed.uccidere, a nutricar nel mandò a Bologna, come la fanciulla aveva man- data. Della qual cosa la donna nè altre parole fece, che della fanciullafatte avesse di che Gualtieri si maravigliava forte, e seco stesso affermava niun' altra femmina questo poter fare, che ella faceva. E, se nonfosse che carnalissima de' figliuoli, mentre gli piacea, la vedea, leiavrebbe creduto ciò fare per più non curarsene, dove come savia lei farlocognobbe. I sudditi suoi credendo che egli uccidere avesse fatti i figliuoli, il biasimavan forte e reputavanlo crudele uomo, e alla donna avevangrandissima compassione. La quale con le donne, le quali con lei de'figliuoli cosi morti si condoleano, mai altro non disse se non che quellone piaceva a lei , che a colui che generati gli avea. Ma, essendo piùanni passati dopo la natività della fanciulla, parendo tempo a Gualtieridi fare l'ultima pruova della sofferenza di costei, con molti de' suoidisse che per niuna guisa più sofferir poteva d' aver per moglie Griselda,e che egli cognosceva che male e giovenilmente aveva fatto quando l'aveva presa, e perciò a suo poter voleva procacciar col papa che conlui dispensasse che un' altra donna prender potesse e lasciar Griselda, diche egli da assai buoni uomini fu molto ripreso. A che null' altro rispose se non che convenia che così fosse. La donna sentendo questecose, e parendole dovere sperare di ritornare a casa del padre, e164 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.61Twelve years after his daughter's birth,for a false bull,and says it lets him put away Griseldis and take another wife.Griseldis hears ofthis,libidine procedebat. Itaque cùm iam ab ortu filiæduodecimus annus elapsus esset, nuncios Romam misit,he sends to Rome qui simulatas inde literas apostolicas referrent. Quibusin populo uulgaretur, datam sibi licentiam à RomanoPontifice, ut pro sua & suarum gentium quiete, primomatrimonio rejecto, aliam ducere posset uxorem: necoperosum sane fuit alpestribus rudibusque animisquidlibet persuadere. Quæ fama cùm ad Griseldisnotitiam peruenisset, tristis ut puto, sed ut quæ semelde se suisque de sortibus statuisset, inconcussa constitit,expectans quid de se ille decerneret, cui se & sua cuncta subiecerat. Miserat iam ille Bononiam cognachildren; and the tum que rogauerat, ut ad se filios suos adduceret, famaundique diffusa uirginem illam sibi in coniugiumadduci. Quod ille fideliter executurus, puellam iamwith the girl and nubilem, excellentem forma præclaròque conspicuamand waits patiently for her lord to decide.He sends for hisgirl is set down as his new bride.The Count of Pavia sets outboy.theWalter sayspublicly to Griseldis,ornatu, germanumque suum simul annum iam septimumagentem, ducens cum eximia nobilium comitiua, statutodie iter arripuit. Hæc inter Gualterus solito, ut uxoremretentaret, ingenio, doloris ac pudoris ad cumulum, inpublicum adducta coram multis, " Satis (inquit) tuoconiugio delectabar, mores tuos non origine respiciens:nunc quoniam, ut uideo, magna omnis fortuna seruitusmagna est, non mihi licet, quod cuilibet liceret agricolæ." Mypeople force Cogunt mei, & Papa consentit, uxorem me alteramhabere, iamque uxor in uia est statimque aderit. Estoigitur forti animo, dansque locum alteri, & dotem tuamway to her. Take referens, in antiquam domum æqua mente reuertere.back your dowry, Nulla homini perpetua sors est. " Contrà illa, " Ego(inquit) mi domine, semper sciui, inter magnitudinem་me to take another wife.She is on her road here. Giveand go to your old home."forse a guardar le pecore come altra volta aveva fatto, e vedere ad un'altra donna tener colui al quale ella voleva tutto il suo bene, forte insè medesima si dolea; ma pur, come l' altre ingiurie della fortunaaveva sostenute, così con fermo viso si dispose a questa dover sostenere.Non dopo molto tempo Gualtieri fece venire sue lettere contraffatte daRoma, e fece veduto a' suoi sudditi il papa per quelle aver seco dispensato di poter torre altra moglie e lasciar Griselda. Per che, fattalasivenir dinanzi, in presenza di molti le disse: " donna, per concessionfattami dal papa, io posso altra donna pigliare e lasciar te: e perciocchèi miei passati sono stati gran gentili uomini e signori di queste contrade, dove i tuoi stati son sempre lavoratori, io intendo che tu più miamoglie non sia, ma che tu a casa Giannucolo te ne torni con la doteche tu mi recasti, e io poi un' altra, che trovata d' ho convenevole a me, ce ne menerò." La donna udendo queste parole, non senzagrandissima fatica, oltre alla natura delle femmine, ritenne le lagrime,e rispose: " signor mio, io conobbi sempre la mia bassa condizione allaPETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 165wife; a handI thank you forI was bred,Toyour new onetuam & humilitatem meam nullam esse proportionem,meque nunquam tuo, non dicam coniugio, sed servitio ' I have been yourdignam duxi, inque hac domo, in qua tu me dominam fe- servant, not yourcisti, Deum testor, animo semper ancilla permansi. De maid here, andhoc igitur tempore, quo tecum multo cum honore longè not a mistress.supra omne meritum meum fui, Deo & tibi gratias ago; the honouryou'vede reliquo, parata sum bono pacatoque animo paternam done me, and willdomum repetere, atque ubi pueritiam egi, senectutem go and die whereagere & mori, felix semper atque honorabilis uidua, happy to havequæ uiri talis uxor fuerim. Nouæ coniugi uolens cedo, been your wife.quæ tibi utinam felix adueniat, atque hinc ubi iucun- 1 give placedissimè degebam, quando ita tibi placitum est, non willingly.inuita discedam: at quid iubes dotem meam mecum ut As to mydowry,auferam, qualis sit uideo, neque enim excidit, ut paternæolim domus in limine spoliata meis, tuis induta uestibus ad te ueni, neque omninò alia mihi dos fuit,quam fides & nuditas. Ecce igitur ut hanc uestem exuo,anulumque restituo, quo me subarasti, reliqui anuli &uestes & ornamenta quibus te donante ad inuidiamaucta eram, in thalamo tuo sunt: nuda ex domo patrisegressa, nuda itidem reuertar, nisi quod indignum reor,ut hic uterus, in quo filij fuerunt quos tu genuisti,populo nudus appareat. Quamobrem si tibi placet, &non aliter, oro atque obsecro, ut in precium uirginitatis,quam huc attuli, quamque non refero, unicam mihicamisiam linqui iubeas, earum quibus tecum uti soleo, womb.qua uentrem tuæ quondam uxoris opperiam." Abundabant uiro lachrymæ, ut contineri amplius iam non Walter weepspossent, itaque faciem auertens, & " camisiam tibi unicam and consents.habeto," uerbis trementibus uix expressit. Et sic abijtit was but faithHere are yourgarments, jewels,and nakedness.and your ring.Naked I came,naked I will go;but thewomb that bare yourchildren, people should not seemaidenhood give meone shift, tonaked. For mycover your wife'svostra nobiltà in alcun modo non convenirsi, e quello, che io stata soncon voi, da voi e da Dio il riconoscea, nè mai come donatolmi mio ilfeci o tenni, ma sempre l' ebbi come prestatomi. Piacevi di rivolerlo,e a me dee piacere e piace di renderlovi. Ecco il vostro anello colquale voi mi sposaste, prendetelo. Comandatemi che io quella doteme ne porti che io ci recai: alla qual cosa fare, nè a voi pagatore nè ame borsa bisognerà nè somiere, perciocchè uscito di mente non m' è cheignuda m' aveste. E, se voi giudicate onesto che quel corpo, nel qualeio ho portati figliuoli da voi generati, sia da tutti veduto, io me n'andrò ignuda; ma io vi priego in premio della mia virginità, cheio ci recai e non ne la porto, che almeno una sola camicia sopra la dotemia vi piaccia che io portar ne possa. " Gualtieri, che maggior voglia di piagnere avea che d' altro, stando pur col viso duro, disse: e tuuna camicia ne porta." Quanti dintorno v' erano il pregavano che egliuna roba le donasse, chè non fosse veduta colei , che sua moglie tredicianni e più era stata, di casa sua così poveramente e così vitupero-"166 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.her shift only,silent amid theto her father's house.He, who had always thought that Walter would put her away, had kept her old gown,and now put it on her.Griseldis goes, in illachrymans; illa coram cunctis sese exuens, solam sibiretinuit camisiam, qua contecta, nudo capite, pedibusque nudis, coram cunctis egreditur, atque ita prosequen- crowd's laments, tibus multis ac flentibus fortunamque culpantibus, siccisuna oculis, & honesto ueneranda silentio, ad paternam domum remeauit. Senex qui has filiæ nuptias sempersuspectas habuerat, neque unquam tantam spem menteceperat, semperque hoc euenturum cogitauerat, utsatietate sponsæ tàm humilis exorta, domo illam quandoque uir tantus & more nobilium superbus abijceret,tunicam eius hispidam, & attritam senio, abditam paruædomus in parte seruauerat. Audito ergo non tam filiætacitæ redeuntis quâm comitum strepitu occurrit inlimine, & seminudam antiqua ueste cooperuit. Mansitilla cum patre paucos dies, æquanimitate atque humanitate mirabili, ita ut nullum in ea signum animi tristioris, nullum vestigium fortunæ prosperioris extaret,quippè cum in medijs opibus inops semper spiritu vixisset atque humilis. Iam Panicius comes propinquabat, et de nouis nuptijs fama undique frequens erat,præmissoque uno ex suis, diem quo Salutias peruenturus esset acceperat. Pridie igitur Gualterus ad se Griher he wants his seldam euocans, deuotissime uenienti: "Cupio (ait) utpuella cras huc ad prandium uentura magnificè excipiatur, uirique & matronæ qui secum sunt, simulque &nostri, qui conuiuio intererunt, ita ut locorum, uerborumque honor integer, singulis pro dignitate seruetur;domi tamen fœminas ad hoc opus idoneas non habeo,proinde tu, quamuis ueste inopi, hanc tibi quæ moresShe stayed with him some days,showing no sign ofsadness,when the Count of Pavia's near coming was announced.Walter sends for Griseldis, tellsguests well received and placed, and thathe relies on herto see everything properly done.samente uscire, come era uscirne in camicia. Ma in vano andarono iprieghi di che la donna in camicia e scalza e senza alcuna cosa incapo, accomandatili a Dio, gli uscì di casa, e al padre se ne tornò con lagrime e con pianto di tutti coloro che la videro. Giannucolo (checreder non avea mai potuto questo esser vero, che Gualtieri la figliuoladovesse tener moglie, e ogni di questo caso aspettando) guardati l'aveva i panni, che spogliati s ' avea quella mattina che Gualtieri lasposò per che recatigliele, ed ella rivestitiglisi, a' piccioli servigi della paterna casa si diede, sì come far soleva, con forte animo sostenendo ilfiero assalto della nimica fortuna. Come Gualtieri questo ebbe fatto,così fece veduto a' suoi, che presa aveva una figliuola d' uno de' contida Panago e faccendo fare l' appresto grande per le nozze, mandò per Griselda, che a lui venisse. Alla quale venuta, disse: " io meno questadonna, la quale io ho nuovamente tolta, e intendo in questa sua prima venuta d' onorarla; e tu sai che io non ho in casa donne che mi sappiano acconciare le camere nè fare molte cose che a così fatta festasi richeggiono; e perciò tu, che meglio che altra persona queste cose diPETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 167do it, not onlystrews beds, &c.The Countmeos nosti, optimè suscipiendorum locandorumque hospitum curam sumes. ' "Non libenter modò (in- She says she'llquit illa) sed cupide, & hæc & quæcunque tibi placita willingly, butsensero faciam semper, neque in hoc unquam fatigabor eagerly.aut lentescam dum spiritus huius reliquiæ uelle supererunt; " & cum dicto, seruilia mox instrumenta corripi- She sets to work,ens, domum uerrere, mensas instruere, lectos sternere, arrangestables,hortarique alias cœperat, ancillæ in modum fidelissimæ.Proximæ lucis hora tertia, Comes superuenerat, certatimque omnes & puellæ & germani infantis mores acpulchritudinem mirabantur. Erantque qui dicerentprudenter Gualtherum ac fœliciter permutasse, quod etsponsa hæc tenerior esset, & nobilior, & cognatus tàmspeciosus accederet. Sic feruente conuiuij apparatu,ubique præsens omniumque sollicita Griseldis, nec Griseldis sees totanto casu deiecto animo nec obsoletæ uestis pudore everything,confusa, sed sereno uultu intranti obvia puellæ, flexo old clothes,poplite seruilem in modum, uultuque demisso reuerenter humbly welcomesarrives. All admire the girland her brother.Some say Walter's made agood change.regardless of hercasa sai, metti in ordine quello che da far ci è , e quelle donne fa' invitareche ti pare, e ricevile come se donna qui fossi: poi , fatte le nozze, te nepotrai a casa tua tornare. " Coine che queste parole fossero tutte coltellaal cuor di Griselda, come a colei che non aveva così potuto por giù l'amore che ella gli portava, come fatto avea la buona fortuna, rispose:"6 signor mio, io son presta e apparecchiata. " Ed entratasene co' suoipannicelli romagnuoli e grossi in quella casa della qual poco avantiera uscita in camicia, cominciò a spazzar le camere e ordinarle, e a farporre capoletti e pancali per le sale, a fare apprestare la cucina,e ad ogni cosa, come se una piccola fanticella della casa fosse, porre lemani; nè mai ristette, che ella ebbe tutto acconcio e ordinato quantosi convenia. E appresso questo, fatto da parte di Gualtieri invitare tutte le donne della contrada, cominciò ad attender la festa. E venutoil giorno delle nozze, come che i panni avesse poveri in dosso, conanimo e con costume donnesco tutte le donne, che a quelle vennero, econ lieto viso ricevette. Gualtieri, il quale diligentemente aveva ifigliuoli fatti allevare in Bologna alla sua parente, che maritata era incasa de' conti da Panago ( essendo già la fanciulla d' età di dodici anni,la più bella cosa che mai si vedesse, e il fanciullo era di sei) avea mandato a Bologna al parente suo pregandol che gli piacesse di dovere conquesta sua figliuola e col figliuolo venire a Saluzzo, e ordinare di menarebella e orrevole compagnia con seco, e di dire a tutti che costei per sua mogliere gli menasse, senza manifestare alcuna cosa ad alcuno chi ellasi fosse altramenti. Il gentile uomo, fatto secondo che il marchese ilpregava, entrato in cammino, dopo alquanti dì con la fanciulla e col fratello e con nobile compagnia in su l'ora del desinare giunse aSaluzzo, dove tutti i paesani e molti altri vicini dattorno trovò, che attendevan questa novella sposa di Gualtieri. La quale dalle donne168 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.her new mistress, atque humiliter, "Benè uenerit domina mea," inquit.and receives the other guests so courteously that all wonder at her dignity and grace.Walter asksherof his newbride.what she thinksDehinc cæteros dum conuiuas læta facie & uerborummira suauitate susciperet, & immensam domum multaarte disponeret, ita ut omnes & præsertim aduenæ undeea maiestas morum atque ea prudentia sub tali habitu,uehementissime mirarentur, atque ipsa in primis puellæpariter atque infantis laudibus satiari nullo modòposset, sed uicissim modò uirgineam, modo infantilemelegantiam prædicaret. Gualtherus eo ipso in tempore,quo assidendum mensis erat, in eam uersus, clara uocecoram omnibus, quasi illudens, " Quid tibi uidetur (inquit) Griseldis de hac mea sponsa? Satis pulchra atque honesta est? " "Plane (ait illa) nec pulchrior ulla,nec honestior inueniri potest, aut cum nulla unquam,aut cum hac tranquillam agere poteris, ac felicem uitam;utque ita sit cupio, & spero: unum bona fide te precorpierced another's. ac moneo, ne hanc illis aculeis agites, quibus alteramShe cannot suffer agitasti. Nam quod & iunior & delicatiùs enutritaest, pati quantum ego auguror non ualeret." Taliadicentis alacritatem intuens, atque constantiam totiensI have tried you tamque acriter offensæ mulieris examinans, & indignamsortem non sic meritæ miseratus, ac ferre diutiùs nonualens, " Satis (inquit), mea Griseldis, cogitata &'None more beautiful . May you live happy with her! But do not pierce her heart as you'velike me.'Walter can bear it no longer:enough, my Griseldis!ricevuta, e nella sala, dove erano messe le tavole, venuta, Griselda così,come era, le si fece lietamente incontro dicendo: " ben venga la miadonna." Le donne (che molto avevano, ma invano, pregato Gualtieriche e' facesse che la Griselda si stesse in una camera, o che egli alcunadelle robe che sue erano state le prestasse, acciocchè così non andassedavanti a' suoi forestieri) furon messe a tavola e cominciate a servire.La fanciulla era guardata da ogni uomo, e ciascun diceva che Gualtieriaveva fatto buon cambio: ma intra gli altri Griselda la lodava molto,e lei e il suo fratellino. Gualtieri, al qual pareva pienamente averveduto quantunque disiderava della pazienza della sua donna, veggendoche di niente la novità delle cose la cambiava, ed essendo certo ciò permentecattaggine non avvenire, perciocchè savia molto la conoscea, gliparve tempo di doverla trarre dell' amaritudine la quale estimava cheella sotto il forte viso nascosa tenesse. Per che, fattalasi venire in presenzia d'ogni uomo, sorridendo le disse: "che ti par della nostrasposa? " "signor mio, " rispose Griselda, " a me ne par molto bene, e, secosì è savia come ella è bella, che ' l credo, io non dubito punto che voinon dobbiate con lei vivere il più consolato signor del mondo: maquanto posso vi priego, che quelle punture, le quali all' altra, che vostrafu, già deste, non diate a questa: chè appena che io creda che ellale potesse sostenere, sì perchè più giovane è, e sì ancora perchè in dilicatezze è allevata, ove colei in continue fatiche da piccolina era stata."Gualtieri veggendo che ella fermamente credeva costei dovere esser suaPETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 169""alone are my wife; no otherwill I have. Herethere your son.and says, ' Youis your daughter;condemned her;spectata mihi fides est tua, nec sub coelo aliquem esseputo, qui tanta coniugalis amoris experimenta perceperit.' Simul hæc dicens, charam coniugem læto He embraces her,stupore perfusam & uelut è somno turbido experrectain,cupidis ulnis amplectitur, " & tu (ait) sola uxor mea es,aliam nec habui, nec habebo; istam autem quam tusponsam meam reris, filia tua est; hic qui cognatusmeus credebatur, tuus est filius; quæ diuisim perditauidebantur, simul omnia recepisti. Sciant qui con- I have but triedtrarium credidêre me curiosum atque experientem esse, my wife, notnon impium, probasse coniugem, non damnasse, occul- hidden mytasse filios, non mactasse." Hæc illa audiens pene children, notgaudio exanimis & pietate amens iucundissimis que Griseldis rushescum lachrymis, suorum pignorum in amplexus ruit, into herchildren'sfatigatque osculis, pioque gemitu madefacit; raptimque smothers themmatronæ alacres ac fauentes circum fusæ, uilibus with kisses.exutam suis, solitis uestibus induunt exornantque, She is dressedplaususque lætissimus & fausta omnium uerba circum- anew,sonant, multoque cum gaudio & fletu ille dies celeber- and all is joy.rimus fuit, celebrior quoque quam dies fuerat nuptiarum.killed them.'arms, andmoglie, ne perciò in alcuna cosa men che ben parlava, la si fece sedereallato, e disse: "Griselda tempo è omai che tu senta frutto della tualunga pazienza, e che coloro, li quali me hanno reputato crudele einiquo e bestiale, conoscano che ciò, che io faceva, ad antiveduto fineoperava, vogliendo a te insegnar d' esser moglie, e a loro di saperlatorre e tenere, e a me partorire perpetua quiete mentre teco a vivereavessi il che quando venni a prender moglie gran paura ebbi che nonm' intervenisse: e perciò, per prova pigliarne, in quanti modi tu sai, tipunsi e trafissi. E perocchè io mai non mi sono accorto che in parolanè in fatto dal mio piacer partita ti sii, parendo a me aver di te quellaconsolazione che io disiderava, intendo di rendere a te ad una ora ciòche io tra molte ti tolsi, e con somma dolcezza le punture ristorare che io ti diedi. E perciò con lieto animo prendi questa, che tu mia sposacredi, e il suo fratello per tuoi e miei figliuoli. Essi sono quegli liquali tu e molti altri lungamente stimato avete che io crudelmenteuccider facessi, e io sono il tuo marito, il quale sopra ogni altra cosa t'amo, credendomi poter dar vanto che niuno altro sia che, sì com' io, sipossa di sua moglier contentare." E così detto, l' abbracciò e basciò,e con lei insieme, la qual d' allegrezza piagnea, levatisi n' andarono làdove la figliuola tutta stupefatta queste cose sentendo sedea: e abbracciatala teneramente, e il fratello altresì, lei e molti altri, che quivi erano, sgannarono. Le donne lietissime levate dalle tavole, conGriselda n' andarono in camera, e con migliore agurio, trattile i suoipannicelli, d' una nobile roba delle sue la rivestirono, e come donna, la quale ella eziandio negli stracci pareva, nella sala la rimenarono, Equivi fattasi co' figliuoli maravigliosa festa, essendo ogni uomo lietissi-170 PETRARCH'S AND BOCCACCIO'S TALES OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.live long.Her father ishonoured intheShe and Walter Multosque post per annos ingenti pace concordiaqueuixere, & Gualtherus inopem socerum, quem hactenusneglexisse uisus erat, ne quando conceptæ animoobstaret experientiæ, suam in domum translatum inhonore habuit, filiam suam magnificis atque honestisnuptijs collocauit, filiumque sui domini successoremliquit, & coniugio lætus & sobole.palace; her daughter nobly married; andherson succeeds his father.I have retold this tale, not to put before our ma- trons an inimit- able example of patience, but to excite all readersto constancy and firmness under trial.It is out of affection foryou that In my old age Ihave written what I scarcelyHanc historiam stylo nunc alio retexere uisum fuit,non tam ideò, ut matronas nostri temporis ad imitandam huius uxoris patentiam, quæ mihi uix imitabilisuidetur, quam ut legentes ad imitandam saltem fœminæconstantiam excitarem, ut quod hæc uiro suo præstitit,hoc præstare Deo nostro audeant, qui licet (ut Jacobusait Apostolus) intentator sit malorum, & ipse nemineni tentet. Probat tamen & sæpe nos, multis ac grauibusflagellis exerceri sinit, non ut animum nostrum sciat,quem sciuit antequam crearemur, sed ut nobis nostrafragilitas notis ac domesticis indicijs innotescat; abundèergo constantibus uiris asscripserim, quisquis is fuerit,qui pro Deo suo sine murmure patiatur, quod pro suomortali coniuge rusticana hæc muliercula passa est.Vrsit amor tui, ut scriberem senex, quod iuuenisuix scripsissem, nescio an res ueras, an fictas, quæ iamnon historiæ, sed fabellæ sunt, ob hoc unum, quod restuæ, & à te scriptæ erant, quamuis hoc præuidens, fidemrerum penes auctorem, hoc est, penes te fore sim præfatus: & dicam tibi, quid de hac historia, quam fabulam dixisse malim, mihi contigerit. Legit eam primumAcommon friend, communis amicus Patauinus uir altissimi ingenij, multishould have writ.ten in my youth.mo di questa cosa, il sollazzo e 'l festeggiare multiplicarono e in piùgiorni tirarono, e savissimo reputaron Gualtieri, come che troppo reputassero agre e intollerabili l' esperienze prese della sua donna; e sopratutti savissima tenner Griselda. Il conte da Panago si tornò dopo alquanti dì a Bologna, e Gualtieri, tolto Giannucolo dal suo lavorio, comesuocero il pose in istato, sì che egli onoratamente e con gran consolazione visse e finì la sua vecchiezza. Ed egli appresso maritata altamente la sua figliuola, con Griselda, onorandola sempre quanto più sipotea, lungamente e consolato visse. Che si potrà dir qui, se non cheanche nelle povere case piovono dal cielo de' divini spiriti, come nellereali di quegli che sarien più degni di guardar porci, che d' avere soprauomini signoria? Chi avrebbe, altri che Griselda, potuto col viso nonsolamente asciutto ma lieto sofferire le rigide e mai più non udite pruove da Gualtier fatte? Al quale non sarebbe forse stato male investito d' essersi abbattuto ad una che, quando fuor di casa l ' avesse incamicia cacciata, s' avesse sì ad un altro fatto scuotere il pelliccione,che riuscita ne fosse una bella roba.PETRARCH'S LETTER ON THE TALE OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE. 171of great abilitying, read it; butweeping brokeand various learndown at theplicisque notitiæ, & cum epistolæ medium uix transisset, a Paduan, a mansubito fletu præuentus substitit: post modicum ueròcum in manus eam resumpsisset, firmato animo perlecturus, ecce iterum, quasi ad condictum rediens, lecturam gemitus interrumpit. Fassus itaque se non posseprodesse, eam uni suorum comitum docto satis uirolegendam tradidit. Quod accidens quorsum alij traherent incertum habeo, ego in optimam partem traxi,mitissimumque uiri animum intellexi; uerè enim hom*ohumanior, quem ego quidem nouerim nullus est . Redijtillo flente, ac legente ad memoriam Satyricum illud:-mollissima cordaHumano generi dare se natura fatetur,Quæ lachrymas dedit; hæc nostri pars optima sensus.middle. He triedagain, but couldnot get on; and had to give it to one of his retinueto read.Another friend ofVerona read it on to end unmoved.' I too, ' he said,'should have wept, only I be- lieved and believeit is all fiction.For whenever could there be aGriselda?'reply, but I had an answer ready:Post tempus amicus alter noster Veronensis, sunt enimnobis ut reliqua, sic amici etiam communes, audito quidalteri inter legendum accidisset, eandem legere optauit.Gessi morem ingenioso, & amico uiro, legit eam totam,nec alicubi substitit, nec frons obductior, nec uox fractior, nec lachrymæ, nec singultus interuénere, & infinem, " Ego etiam (inquit) flessem. Nam et piæ res,& uerba rebus accommodata filetum suadebant, nec egoduri cordis sum, nisi quod ficta omnia credidi, & credo.Nam si uera essent, quæ usquam mulier, uel Romana,uel cuiuslibet gentis hanc Griseldim æquatura sit: ubiquæso tantus amor coniugalis? ubi par fides? ubi tàminsignis patientia atque constantia? " Iis tunc ego nilrespondi, ne rem à iocis amicique colloquij festa dulcedine ad acrimoniam disceptationis adducerem: erat I did not thenautem prona responsio: esse nonnullos, qui quæcunquedifficilia eis sint, impossibilia omnia arbitrentur, sicmensura sua omnia metientes, ut se omnium primoslocent, cùm tamen multa fuerint fortè & sint, quibusessent facilia quæ uulgò impossibilia uiderentur. Quisest enim exempli gratia, qui non Curium ex nostris, &Mutium, & Decios: Ex externis autem Codrum, &Philenes fratres, uel quoniam de foeminis sermo erat,quis uel Portiam, uel Hipsicrateam, uel Alcestim &harum similes non fabulas fictas putet? Atqui his- history?toriæ ueræ sunt. Et sanè, qui pro alio uitam spernit,quod non spernere, quid non pati possit non intelligo.Cæterùm & illam, & alteram duas magnas epistolas ad But I now seete non peruenisse nunc sentio: sed quid faciam? Pati- that that [ P]oportet, indignari licet, non ulcisci. Apparuit ecce per have not reachedCisalpinam Galliam tædiosissimum hoc hominum genus, you.custodes passuum, imò pestis nunciorum, qui literas This is through C11. ORIG. 12That some menjudge what is possible by their own capacities.Have we not hadCurius, Mutius,And others,Codrus, Porcia,belong truly tothe Decii?Alceste, wholetter and another172 PETRARCH'S LETTER ON THE TALE OF GRISELDIS. CLERK'S TALE.those accursed fellows who will read all open letters,and sometimes keep them.apertas introspiciant &morosissimè contemplentur, quoddominorum forsan iussus [sic] excusat, qui sibi omniumconscij, trepida ac superba uita, de se & contra se omnia dici putant, atque omnia nosse uolunt. Illudnihil excusat; quod si quid in literis ipsis inueniunt,quod aures asininas mulceat, solebant quidam in transcribendo tempus terere, & nuncios detinere, nunc crescente licentia, ut digitis suis parcant, abire illos iubentsine literis, quodque grauissimum tædij genus est, hicilli maxime faciunt, qui nihil intelligunt: Similes ijs,quorum ampla & præceps gula est, & lenta digestio,qui mala ualetudini proximi sint oportet. Importunitatum talium nemo me stomachantior, nullus impatientior, ita ut sæpe me à scribendo diuerterit, sæpe quoscripserim dolore coëgerit, quando contra hos prædonesliterarum nulla uindictæ alterius patet occasio, turbatisMoreover, I grow omnibus et Reipublicæ libertate pessundata. Sanè huictædio accedit ætas, & lassitudo rerum penè omnium ,scribendique non satietas modò, sed fastidium, quibusiunctis inducor, ut tibi amice, & omnibus quibus scriAnd sonow I say bere soleo, quod ad hunc epistolarem stylum attinetSuch meddling often stops my writing alto- gether.old and weary.to you, and all my correspond- ents, good-bye.I once promised I would writetween friendsultimum, vale dicam, tâm ne usque in finem me, quoddiutiùs iam fecerunt, à meliori studio scripturæ fragiliores impediant, quàm ne ad horum nebulonum manusineptissimas scripta nostra perueniant, quorum sicsaltem ab iniurijs tutus ero, si quando uel tecum uelcum alijs scripto opus sit, sic scribam ut intelligar, nondelecter. Promiseram memini in quadam ordinis huiusshortly; but be- epistola, me deinceps in epistolis breuius scripturum,decliui iam temporis urgente penuria, promissum implere non ualui, multoque facilius, ut intelligi datur,silentium cum amicis est, quam breuiloquium; tantusest, ubi semel incepimus, ardor colloquendi, ut faciliùsfuerit, non coepisse, quàm frenare impetum cœptisermonis. Sed promissum, nonne sat promissum implet, qui plus præstat? Eram credo, dum promitterem,oblitus Catonis illud apud Ciceronem latè notum:Quod natura ipsa loquacior est senectus. Valete amici,ualete epistolæ, inter colles Euganeos .6. Idus Juniassilence is easier than brevity.Adieu, my friends; adieu,letter-writing.M CCC LXXIII.173MR J. W. HALES'S NOTE ON CHAUCER'SCLERK'S TALE.CHAUCER has followed Petrarch's version very closely throughouthis poem, noticeably in his treatment of Wautier, and in the comment towards the end:This story is sayd, not for that wyves scholde, &c.Petrarch's version , though mainly founded on that of Boccaccio, as heexpressly states, differs from that ' Novel ' in several important waysFor the mere form the ' novel ' is certainly to be preferred. Petrarch'sLatinity is by no means faultless. Sometimes it is marred by gravesolecisins; seldom, or never, does it attain any complete fluency andgrace. He is not, nor was it in the nature of things that he should be,absolute master of an instrument that was, in fact, foreign to his hands. He was not to that manner born. His own conceptions of hisLatin skill were a delusion. Would that he had had the wisdom ofDavid, who declined moving to battle in arms he had not proved! Atranslation of the old story that stirred him so deeply-" quæ ita miliplacuit meque detinuit ut inter tot curas quæ pene mei ipsius immemorem facem illam memoriæ mandare voluerim ut et ipse eȧm animoquotiens vellem, non sine voluntate repeterem et amicis ut sit confabulantibus renarrem, si quando tale accidisset "—if given metrically in hismother tongue, could scarcely have failed to have added glory to hisown renown, and to that of the literature of which he was, and is, sobrilliant an ornament. But even through the not immaculate mediumof Early Renaissance Latin the exquisite beauty of the old story shinesout with a piercing effulgence, just, indeed, as the fairness of theheroine herself, when we first see her, could not be hid for all the meancottage in which she lived obscurely with her father, and the sordid dress that marked and befitted her humble rank. And certainly it wasfrom that version that Chaucer formed his rendering, whether or not hehad previously been attracted to the tale by any vivâ voce recital of itheard in some personal interview with Petrarch.For the spirit, Petrarch seems to have entered more profoundly intothe proper motive of the tale than did Boccaccio.Boccaccio grows174 MR HALES'S NOTE ON THE CLERK'S TALE..somewhat impatient and angry with Gualtieri, even as Ellis, in a misapprehending contrast he draws between Griselda and the Nut BrownMaid. Probably Chaucer, too, when maturer, would not have toleratedhim; but Chaucer, when he wrote the Clerkes Tale, had not yetacquired that breadth and comprehension of view-that wide andcatholic survey-that habit of independent realization, which characterize his more perfect works; he still wrote with the subservience ofthe disciple rather than with the authority of the master; he took whatfood the gods provided, or seemed to provide, and aimed at an obeisant and faithful reproduction. Petrarch retold the story in the medieval.spirit in which he had originally found it; for the Decameron revivedit in his mind, not first made it known; when the Decameron reachedhim, he bethought him how mihi semper ante multos annos auditaplacuisset. ' And in that same spirit Chaucer accepted , and echoed it .Now it is the characteristic of the unsophisticated medieval litterateurthat he deals with one idea at a time. It would often lead to a highlyinjurious conclusion to attach at all equal moral importance, or ratherany moral importance, to the subordinate parts of what he sets forth .The central lesson is kept well in view; the others must look to themselves. The principal figure is brought into relief with enthusiasm; onthe mere surroundings and background little or no care is spent. Thusmany of the stories the Knight of the Tour Landry tells his daughtersare sound enough at the core; but as wholes are anything but edifying-are not only not moral, but immoral and contra-moral. The mindof the hearer, as of the reciter, is supposed to be fixed on the mainnotion , and so incapable of seduction by any lateral matters of a lessexemplary sort. So, when the Trouvère sang of Friendship in Eger &Grime, he did not, when concentrated on that noble theme, deem it hisconcern to see that other virtues were not violated, provided that onewas honoured and glorified. And so in the story of Griselda, if wewould read it in the spirit of the day when it became current, weshould not vex ourselves into any righteous indignation against theimmediate author of her most touching distresses. The old story doesnot make the Marquis a monster in human shape; indeed it representshim as a man of a noble and loveable nature; if he is not so, then evenin the end Griselda reaps no earthly reward in perinanently securing his admiration and love. And yet this Marquis perpetrates inexpressible cruelties; he is a very wolf, ruthlessly teasing and tearing thegentlest of lambs. The explanation is in accordance with what hasjust been said; the patience of Griselda is the one theme of the tale,and nothing else is to be regarded. In relation to her the Marquis hasno moral being; he is a mere means of showing forth her supremeexcellence; a mere mechanical expedient. He is no more morallythan a thorn in the saint's footpath, or a wheel, or a cross. Surely itis vain to be wroth with him who rages against the mere fire that enfolds the Martyr, or the nails that pierce the hands of a crucifiedBeliever? Indeed, nothing in the tale is of any ethical moment butMR HALES'S NOTE ON THE CLERK'S TALE. 175the carriage of the heroine herself. The eyes and the heart of the oldcentury when she first appeared were fastened devoutly on that singleform, and let all else go by. She is wifely obedience itself, nothingelse . Before that virtue all other virtues bow. It enjoys a completemonopoly, an absolute sway. Other moral life is suspended in this representation of it. She has but one function; for her there is but onesin possible, and that is to murmur. She is all meekness, all yielding,all resignation.Such a figure has comparatively few charms for us of these latterdays. But it pleased the world once-even down to Shakespeare's time,who himself portrayed it in one of his earliest plays: Catherine in theTaming of the Shrew is a phase of Griselda. Perhaps in ages whenmuch most ignorant abuse of women prevailed in literature-abusespringing mainly out of the vile prejudices and superstitions of themedieval Church-some such figure might have been expected to arise. It is the figure of a reaction . The hearts of men refused toaccept the dishonouring pictures so often drawn of their fellow mortals.They rose in a loyal insurrection against lying fables of essentialwantonness and of shameful obstinacy. To such chivalrous rebels thepale, sad, constant face of Griselda showed itself as the image of farother experiences and histories; and they gazed on it as on the face of their Saint. With an infinite reverence they saw her still calm andquiet in the midst of anguishes, with heart breaking, but lips utteringno ill word, with eyes that through the tears with which kindly natureof herself would relieve the terrible draught of sorrow still lookednothing but inalienable tenderness and love.In Prof. Child's English and Scottish Ballads, vol. iv. , may befound the ballad of Patient Grissel. (Prof. Child is certainly wrong insaying that Boccaccio derived the incidents from Petrarch. ) Thisballad is the work of Thomas Deloney, a mere day-labourer in versemaking of Queen Elizabeth's time, and is worthy of its author. A playon this subject, written by Dekker, Chettle, and Haughton, has beenprinted by the Shakespeare Society. Another play of earlier date islost; as also probably an older ballad than that by DeloneyWith the incidents in the third temptation of Griselda, when she'waits ' at the new wedding of her husband, and at last finds that thesupposed bride is her own daughter, should be compared the old balladof Fair Annie. There, too, the heroine performs a like service, notwithout much weeping, for a fair lady who has come from over the seato wed the Fair Annie's lover. At last it is found that this new comeris the Fair Annie's sister, who nobly refuses to marry at her expense;and so all is made well . See Lord Thomas and Fair Annie in theMinstrelsy of the Scottish Border; see also Herd's, Motherwell's, andChambers' Collections. Scott points out that the tale is much thesame with the Breton romance called Lay le Frain, or the Song of the176 MR HALES'S NOTE ON THE CLERK'S TALE.THE·Ash. ' He also states that a ballad agreeing in every respect with thatwhich follows exists in the Danish Collection of ancient songs entitledKæmpe Viser. It is called Skiæn Anna, i. e. Fair Annie, and has beentranslated literally by my learned friend, Mr Robert Jamieson. See hisPopular Ballads, Edin. , 1806, vol . ii . , p. 100.' See Lai le Fraine, 305,and Weber's Metrical Romances, vol. i. See a translation of the Danishballad in Prior's Ancient Danish Ballads, iii . 298-306, and AppendixH in that volume.J. W. HALES.17711.Five Versions of a Pear-tree Storylike that inChaucer's Merchant's Talę,from1. Adolphus's Latin, 1315 A.D.2. The Appendix to Esop's Fables, ab. 1480 a.d.3. Caxton's English, translated 1483 a.d.4. Comadia Tydiæ.5. Boccaccio's Decameron.178Tyrwhitt says, "The scene of the Merchant's Tale is laid in Italy, butnone of the names, except Damian and Justin, seem to be Italian, butrather made at pleasure; so that I doubt whether the story be really ofItalian growth. The adventure of the Pear- tree I find in a small collection of Latin fables, written by one Adolphus, in Elegiac verses ofhis fashion, in the year 13151. " Tyrwhitt printed this Pear- tree fable,all except 9 lines; and Mr Thomas Wright printed the whole in hisLatin Stories for the Percy Society: with a prose version from the Appendix to Æsop's Fables, printed in 1480 A.D. Both are reprinted here,for convenience of reference, with the Englisht fable next mentioned byTyrwhitt: "The same story is inserted among The Fables of Alphonseprinted by Caxton in English, with those of Æsop, Avian, and Pogge,without date; but I do not find it in the original Latin of Alphonsus,MS. Reg. 10 B xii, or in any of the French translations of his work thatI have examined. " (It is nearly the same as the Æsop-Appendix fable. )-M. Edélestand du Méril says that the story is without doubt ofEastern origin, see his note on page 183, -and M. Sandras (Etude,p. 243) states that M. Victor Le Clerc pointed out in the ' Histoire littéraire de la France ' , vol. xxii. p. 62, the Comœdia Lydiæ as the commonoriginal that Boccaccio and Chaucer may have followed. But of coursethe fable existed separately before it was workt- up in the Comedia, andwas more likely to have been adapted by Chaucer and Boccaccio fromits separate form.' Of Adolfus himself we seem to have no other information than thatfurnisht by the poem. He states that he composed it in 1315, and he dedicatesit to Ulric, then a celebrated professor in the University of Vienna in Austria.T. Wright's Pref. to Latin Stories, p. xii.2 The second among the fables of Adolf.A PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 1791. The Blind Man and his Fair Wife.[Adolphi Fabule, in Polycarpi Leyseri Historia Poetarum et Poematum Medii Ævi decem. Halæ Magdelburgiæ, 1721 , p. 2008. ]FABULA I.Coecus erat quidam, cui pulcra virago. ReseruansHanc puro pure, ne lu[d]at haec alias.In curtis viridi resident hi cespite quadamLuce. Petit mulier robur adire pyri.Vir fauet, amplectens mox robur ubique lacertis,Arbor adunca fuit, qua latuit iuuenis.Amplexatur eam, dans basia dulcia.Incepit colere, vomere cum proprio.TerramAudit vir strepitum. Nam crebro carentia sensusVnius, in reliquo, nosco, vigere solet.Heu miser! clamat: " Te laedit adulter ibidem!Conqueror hoc illi qui dedit esse mihi. "Tunc Deus omnipotens, qui condidit omnia verbo,Qui sua membra probat, vasc'la velut figulus,Restituens aciem misero. Tonat illico; " FallaxFemina! cur tanta fraude nocere cupis?Heu, mihi, quam fraude mulier mala varia sordet.Integra iura thori non tenet illa viro:Alterius segetes semper putat vberiores.Yo confinis vbera magna tenet.Alterius thalamo mala credit inesse sapinum,Quamvis sit spado, nil valeatque thoro. "Percipit illa virum. Vultu respondet alacri:66 Magna dedi medicis; non tibi cura fuit.Ast, ubi lustra sua satis uda petebat Apollo,Candida splendescens Cynthia luce mera,Tunc sopor irrepsit mea languida corpora: quædamAstitit. Insonuit auribus illa meis:' Ludere cum iuuene studeas in roboris alto.Prisca viro dabitur lux cito, crede mihi.'Quod feci. Dominus ideo tibi munera lucisContulit: idcirco munera redde mihi. "Addidit ille fidem mulieri, de prece cujusSe sanum credit. Mittit & omne nefas.Esse solet nullum peius muliere venenum.Excolit hanc, adamat vir, [arat?] alter eam.Ablind man's 20 pretty wife asks him to go to aPear-tree. She climbs up to ayoung man there,who ploughs her.24The blind man28 hears the noise,and scolds his32wife.God gives him his sight again.36 He reproaches his wife bitterly.4044She says she spent much on doctors for him in vain;then in sleep she was bidden to play with a youth up a tree, and her48 husband would be cured.This she did, and 52 he is whole.He thanks her.541180 A PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE.Ablind man sits with his pretty wifeone daynear a pear-tree.She climbs up to get some pears;and a young man up there before her, embraces her.When they are at work, the blind man hears the noise,reproaches his wife,and asks Joveto give him sight.Jove does so; and the man de- nounces his wifeagain.But she at once invents a lie, and says she thanks the Gods for hearing her prayers.In answer to them,Mercury, by Jove's command,on a pear-tree,and then her2.[Wright's Latin Stories (Percy Society, 1842), p. 78,'from the Appendix to the Latin editions of Æsop'sFables printed in the 15th century,' Wright, p. 234.]XCI. DE CECO ET EJUS UXORE.Cacus erat quidam uxorem habens perornatam, quicum cruciatu mentis castitatem suæ uxoris observabat,zelotypus namque fuerat. Accidit autem die quodamut in hortu sederent amoni, prope arborem pirum;uxori vero volenti arborem ascendere ut pira legeret,cæcus assensit, ne tamen quis alter vir ipsam accederetbrachiis suis stipitem arboris amplectitur. Erat autemjabor ramosa, in qua, priusquam uxor ascenderet,iuvenis quidam se absconderet, mulieris expectans ad- ventum . Conveniunt itaque læti, amplexantur se,figunt basia, ac Veneris vomere terra colitur hirsutaumbrosumque nemus. Cumque juvenis in opere fortis.ageret ut potuit, mulier vero vim inferenti vices referret,audit cæcus strepitus amborum, et dolens exclamat," O mulier iniquissima! licet visu caream, auditus tamen et discursus in me sunt intensiores, ut sentiamtibi astare adulterum. Conquero igitur hoc nephandissimum scelus Jovi summo deo, qui gaudium tristiumcorda potest afficere, et lumen cæcis restituere." Hisdictis simul cæco reddita lux est, et suspiciens in arborem, adulterum vidit, exclamatque subito, " O mulierfalsissima! cur has mihi cudis fraudes, cum te bonamcastamque crediderim? Væ mihi! quia lætum diemtecum amplius non pervixero! " Mulier vero audiensmaritum ipsam increpantem, licet primo parumperterrita, alacri tamen vultu, cito fraude inventa, respondit marito, et exclamans, ait, " Gratias ago diis deabusque omnibus, qui preces meas exaudierunt, et visum.restituerunt marito meo charissimo! nam, conjunxdilecte, scias te videre ex opera et precibus meis. Cumenim usque huc multa in vanum expenderem physicis,orationibus institi deorum ut salvum to facerent, acvisum tibi restituerent. Tandem deus Mercurius, JovisQuodbade her copulate supremi jussu, mihi in somno apparuit, dicens, ' Si ascendas in aborem pirum, et Veneris ludum cum juvene perficias, marito tuo lux pristina restituetur.'ego nunc perfeci ut te sanarem. Munera ergo mihidebes ob tale meritum, cum tibi visum jam restituerim. "Cæcus uxoris dolo et fraudibus fidem adhibuit, achusband would get back hissight.Sohe ought to thank herfor it.and makes her Hebelieves this, nephas omne remisit, et muneribus ipsam reconciliat,presents quasi corruptam inique et involuntarie. .A PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 1813. A Fable of a blynd Man and his Wyf,[From "The book of the subtyl hystoryes and Fables ofEsope, which were translated out of Frensshe in toEnglysshe by wylliam Caxton at westmynstre. In theyere of oure Lorde M.CCCC.lxxxiij," leaf cxxxij. ]The xii fable is of a blynd² man and of his wyfwife.and tells him to climb up a pear- tree in hergarden.There was somtyme a blynd man whiche had a Ajealous blindfayre wyf of the whiche he was moche Ialous / He manhas a fairkepte her so that she myght not goo no wher / Foreuer he had her by the hand / And after that she was enamoured of a gentil felawe / they coude not fynde she loves anotherthe maner ne no place for to fulfylle theyr wyll / but man,notwithstandyng the woman whiche was subtyle andIngenyous counceylled to her frende that he sholdcome in to her hows / and that he shold entre in tothe gardyn and that there he shold clymme vpon apere tree /And he did as she told hym / and whenthey had made theyr enterpryse the woman cameageyne in to the hows / and sayd to her husbond / My frend I praye yow that ye wylle go in to our gardynfor to disporte vs a lytel whyle there /of the whicheprayer the blynd man was wel content / and sayd tohis wyf wel my good frend I will wel / lete vs gothyder / And as they were vnder the pere tree / shesayd to her husband / My frende I praye the to lete me goo vpon the pere tre And I shalle gader for vs bothesome fayre peres / Wel my frend sayd the blynd man /I wylle wel & graunt therto / And when she was vponthe tree /the yong man begann to shake the pere treeat one syde / and the yonge woman atthe other syde /And as the blynd man herd thus hard shake the peretree and the noyse whiche they made / he sayde toThe fables of Avian begin on leaf cvi; those of Alfonceon cxx, back; those of Poge the Florentyn on leaf cxxxiiii,2 Caxton's final d here is always d'.Then she asks her husband to walk in the garden.They do, and she gets upthe pear- tree to pick some pears.The wife and hertree shake.lover make the182 A PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S tale.The blind husband abuses her, and prays sight.forJupiter gives it him, and he sees his wife swived.she's done it to get him his sight.Ithem / Ha a euylle woman / how be it that I see hitnot /Neuertheles I fele and vnderstande hit well / Butpraye to the goddes /that they vouchesauf to sendeme my syght ageyne / And as soone as he had madehis prayer Iupiter rendryd to hym his syght ageyn And whanne he sawe that pagent vpon the peretree /he sayd to his wyf Ha vnhappy woman / I shalleneuer haue no Ioye with the / And by cause that theyonge woman was ready in speche and malycious / sheBut she tells him ansuerd forthwith to her husbond / My frend thowarte wel beholden and bounden to me /For by cause[of me] and for the loue the goddes haue [to me theyhaue] restored to the thy syght / wherof I thanke allethe goddes and goddesses /whiche haue enhaunced andherd my prayer / For I desyryng moche that thowmyght see me cessed neuer day ne nyght to praythem that they wold rendre to the thy syghte / wherfore the goddesse Venus vysybly shewed her self tome / and sayd / that yf I wold doo somme playsyr tothe sayd yonge man she shold restore to the thysyght / And thus I am cause of it And thenne thegood man sayd to her / My ryght dere wyf & goodefrende / I remercye and thanke yow gretely / For ryghtye haue and I grete wronge.Venus promist ither if she'd please her young man.This she has done, and her husband sees.He believes and thanks her.A LATIN PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 1834. Another Latin Pear-tree Story.[From the "Comoedia Lydiae," by Matthieu de Vendôme,in a Vienna MS, in “ Anecdota Poetica, &c. PoesiesInédites du moyen âge. " Par Edélestand du Méril.1854, p. 370.]Talibus expletis¹ , mentitur Lydia morbum2sponte sua morbi taedia ficta trahens.Forte salit vena; palpat, sed physicus haeret:mentitur medico saepe dolentis amor.Morbus adest dubius et fallax passio, cum vult;illa calet, quando friget, et aegra jacet.Sic ludens deludit amor, sic Lydia fallitarte mali medicum, fraude doloque virum.(H)ortus erat praecinctus aquis, celeberrimus umbrisarboreis, miti germine poma ferens.Fons fluit in medio; ramis³ loca fontis opacatuna pirus, vere gaudia veris habens.Ut relevet febris aestum vitiique calorem,huc tendit languens Lydia lacta dolo;Lydia, desiring Pyrrhus, has more than once sent her maid Lusca to induce him to gratify her. He refuses at first, butthen agrees to consent if Lydia will get him her husband'sfavourite hawk, five hairs of his beard, and one of his teeth.All these she obtains, and sends to Pyrrhus; then claims herreward, appoints the time and place for it, and gets it, as the poem proceeds to tell.2 Cette histoire du poirier enchanté qu'ont racontée aussiBoccace, 1. 1, [ VII. ix. ] et La Fontaine, 1. II conte 7, est sans doute d'origine orientale; car elle se retrouve dans le Bahar Danush,t. II, p. 64, et quoique le recueil n'ait été rédigé que dans l'ande l'hedschire 1061 ( 1650 de notre ère), les contes dont il secompose étaient certainement connus bien auparavant. Nous n'indiquons cette analogie que d'après Schmidt, Beiträge zurGeschichte der romantischen Poesie, p. 81 , et M. Keller, Liromans des sept sages, p. CCII, car nous n'avons pu trouver letravail de Scott dans aucun des dépôts publics de Paris, etnous ne possédons que la réimpression de Weber qui en arejeté, comme trop libre, tout le Tirrea Bede.3 ramus, orig.Lydia, wife of Duke Decius,feigns illness.To refresh her- self, she waiks in a garden, accoinH1184 A LATIN PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE.Pyrrhus her lover, and Lusca,her maid.panied by Decius, Et dux et Pyrrhus aegre comita[n]tur euntem:dextra quod Pyrrho fit, data laeva duci.Pone subit Lusca; tacito sibi garrula risurespondet, gratis fraude favente jocis;Rictibus ora trahens, Decioque ciconiat¹ usu:naribus obductis cimbalat2 aegra pedem.under a pear-tree.At last they stop, Sistitur hic, faciesque loci succinnit amori:laudantur flores, et placet unda sonans.Visus velle notat; facies suspiria prodit;The duke bids Pyrrhus climb dux ait: " Ascende; collige, Pyrrhe, pira ".3and gather fruit Pyrrhus ad alta piri surrepit, Lusca profatur:for the longing "Jam meliore piro succute, Pyrrhe, pira."lady.Pyrrhus, up the tree, cries out as if he saw theInque piro Pyrrhum succernens Lydia lustrat:arboris in fructu fructus amoris erat."Parce, precor, " Pyrrhus clamat, " dux, parce pudorem;non honor est istis sollicitare locis.duke and his wife " Hic amor est praeceps; hoc est non sana libido;copulating, and bids the duke abstain.Lydia says Pyr- rhus's delusion is caused by the tree up which he is.The duke climbs,to see ifit is so.Lydia, dux, alibi posset anhela quati." Sunt tibi, dux, thalami; sunt et loca talibus apta;fac, sed ne videam rusticitatis opus."Miratur Decius quod habetur5; ludicra Luscasubridens, digitum comprimit ore suum."Arbor habet vitium," suspirans Lydia dixit,"alta quidem visum flectere saepe solent. "Dux inquit: " Descende cito, descende! Quid haeres?""In terra poteris parcere, " Pyrrhus ait.Descendit Pyrrhus, et adhuc: " Dux, parce, " precatur,et tanquam nolit parcere, " Parce, " rogat.Dux ait: Experiar (totiens fantasmata fallunt )an moveat Pyrrhus ludicra sive pirus. "¹ Ce verbe, que ne donne pas le du Cange de M. Henschel,se comprend aisément lorsqu'on se rappelle ce passage de Perse,sat. 1, v. 58:OJane, a tergo quem nulla ciconia pinsit Nec manus auriculas imitata est mobilis albasNec linguae, quantum sitiat canis apula, tantum:usu signifierait Selon l'usage: mais nous croirions volontiersqu'au moins ce dernier mot est altéré.2 Ce verbe ne se trouve dans aucun dictionnaire, et nousserions tenté d'y voir encore une corruption: évidemment le poëte a voulu dire: Inclinant la tête en avant, la malade traînele pied.3 Probablement dans ces vers et dans l'avant dernier de lapièce, pira a un double sens trop obscène pour que nous cherchions à l'expliquer: voyez le du Cange de M. Henschel, t.V, p. 266, col . 2.4 a thoris, orig. 5 habent, orig.Il y a dans le MS.: fallunt fantasmata.A LATIN PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 185Scandit uterque simul, et dux et Pyrrhus anhelans:hic repit ramis; cruribus ille subit.Est in utroque labor; laetus tamen iste laborat:dum quatit iste¹ pirum, concutit iste femur.Miratur Decius et, vix sibi credulus, haeret:plus stupet incertis, certior illa videns.Et notat et dubitat, premit et gemit, insidiatur (sic);vix credens oculis desidet ipse suis."Aut sic est, aut fallor," ait, "et visus inaneventilat, aut vigilans somnia visa puto.Sic mihi, sic illi visum fuit et mihi plus est;nescio si lusit, et puto, ludus erat.Tot mora damna facit, faciet mihi jam mora damna;ut video ludens, ludor et ipse videns. "Imputat hoc ramis Decius frangitque quatitque:Sæpe quidem, Pyrrhe,2 sunt pira missa piro.Labitur ergo citus, et dux et Pyrrhus, uterque,alterius studio fallere facta studens.Dux ait: "Aut furor est, aut hoc molimine fallor. "Lydia: " Nec Pyrrhus me movet, immo pirus."Ut vidits: "Fateor, vidi verumque putavi;sed tamen hic video certius esse nihil.Ut dixi tibi, dux, vitium fuit arboris; illa""(esse potest) alios ludificabit adhuc. "Cujus culpa manet; quia sic malus error obumbrat,sit pirus excisa! " dux jubet; icta, ruit.Lusca tegit risum; Pyrrhus, pira; Lydia, mentem;infelix unus fit sibi fraude trium.1 lege 'ille '2 Peut-être faut-il lire Pyrrho, au datif. 3 Pyrrhus.Then Pyrrhus at once copulates with Lydia in earnest.The duke sees,but thinks it amere ocular de- ception, just such as Pyrrhus had suffered .'It is all the tree's fault,'Lydia.saysSo the duke has the tree felled .186Lydia sends her husband's tooth to Pyrrhus,who promises to yield to her desire.To secure him,she pretends to be ill, and asks her husband Nicostratus, and Pyrrhus, to take her into the garden.They do so, and set her down5. Boccaccio's Pear-Tree Story.[ From the "Decamerone," Giornata settima, Novella ix.¹Ed. 1827-34, tom. iii, p. 257.]posarono:La donna preso il dente, tantosto al suo amante ilmandò. Il quale già certo del suo amore, sè ad ognisuo piacere offerse apparecchiato. La donna, disiderosadi farlo più sicuro, e parendole ancora ogni ora milleche con lui fosse, volendo quello che profferto gli aveaattenergli, fatto sembiante d'essere inferma, ed essendoun dì appresso mangiare da Nicostrato visitata, nonveggendo con lui altri che Pirro, il pregò per alleggiamento della sua noia, che aiutar la dovessero ad andareinfino nel giardino. Per che Nicostrato dall' un de' latiunder a pear-tree. e Pirro dall' altro presala, nel giardin la portarono, e in un pratello a piè d'un bel pero la dove statialquanto sedendosi, disse la donna (che già aveva fattoinformar Pirro di ciò che avesse a fare): " Pirro, io hogran desiderio d'aver di quelle pere, e però montavi susoe gittane giù alquante. " Pirro prestamente salitovicominciò a gittar giù delle pere, e, mentre le gittava,cominciò a dire: " he' messere! che è ciò che voi fate?e voi, madonna come non vi vergognate di sofferirloin mia presenza? Credete voi che io sia cieco? Voieravate pur testè così forte malata: come siete voi cosìtosto guerita, che voi facciate tai cose? le quali se pur far volete, voi avete tante belle 2 camere: perchè nonin alcuna di quelle a far queste cose ve n'andate? esarà più onesto, che farlo in mia presenza."La donnarivolta al marito disse: " che dice Pirro? farneticaegli? " Disse allora Pirro: "non farnetico no, madonna; non credete voi ch' io veggia? " Nicostrato simaravigliava forte, e disse: " Pirro, veramente io credo.She then says,'Pyrrhus, I want some pears;climb up and throw me some down.'He does this,and says, 'Ah,Sir, what are you doing?Madame, aren't you ashamed of yourselffor letting him do it in my presence?[2 p. 258]Why didn't you do it at home?Lydia says he's mad.Nicostratus says he's dreaming.This tale and the Comedia Lydia must be from the same original. Though Boccaccio calls the nobleman Nicostrato, he keeps the names Lidia, Lusca, Pirro, for the wife.maid, and lover.BOCCACCIO'S PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 187""èehe is not.Lydia says that if she were well she'd get up the tree to see what Pyrrhus means.Pyrrhus comeYou on your wife.'' You are out ofwe've never moved.”your senses;[' p. 250]' But I saw you. "Well , I'll see whether the pear- tree's enchanted,"che tu sogni. " Al quale Pirro rispose: "signor mio, Pyrrhus declaresnon sogno nè mica, nè voi anche non sognate, anzi vidimenate ben sì, che, se così si dimenasse questo pero,egli non ce ne rimarrebbe su niuna. " Disse la donnaallora che può questo essere? potrebbe egli esservero che gli paresse ver ciò ch'e' dice? Se Dio misalvi, se io fossi sana, come io fu' già, che io vi sarreisu, per vedere che maraviglie sien queste che costuidice che vede." Pirro d'in sul pero pur diceva, e continuava queste novelle. Al qual Nicostrato disse: Nicostratus bids"scendi giù; " ed egli scese. A cui egli disse: " che down, and asksdi tu, che vedi?" Disse Pirro: " io credo che voi him what he saw.m'abbiate per ismemorato o per trasognato: vedeva voiaddosso alla donna vostra (poi pur dir mel conviene), epoi discendendo, io vi vidi levarvi e porvi costi dove voi siete a sedere. " "Fermamente," disse Nicostrato,"eri tu in questo smemorato; chè noi non ci siamo,poichè in sul pero salisti, punto mossi, se non come tuvedi. " Al qual Pirro disse: " perchè ne facciam noiquistione? io vi ¹pur vidi; e, se io vi vidi, io vi vidiin sul vostro. " Nicostrato più ognora si maravigliava,tanto che gli disse: " ben vo' vedere se questo peroincantato e che chi v'è su vegga le maraviglie; 'montovvi su. Sopra il quale come egli fu, la donnainsieme con Pirro s'incominciarono a sollazzare.Nicostrato veggendo, cominciò a gridare: " ahi, reafemmina che è quel che tu fai? e tu, Pirro, di cui iopiù mi fidava?" e così dicendo cominciò a scendere delpero. La donna e Pirro dicevano: " noi ci seggiamo; "e lui veggendo discendere, a seder si tornarono in quellaguisa che lasciati gli avea. Come Nicostrato fu giù, evide costoro dove lasciati gli avea, così lor cominciò adir villania. Al quale Pirro disse: " Nicostrato, oraveramente confesso io che, come voi diciavate davanti,che io falsamente vedessi mentre fui sopra ' l pero; nèad altro il conosco, se non a questo che io veggio, e soche voi falsamente avete veduto. E che io dica il vero,niun' altra cose vel mostri, se non l'aver riguardo e ' Is it likely yourpensare, a che ora la vostra donna, la quale è onestis- would outrage sima e più savia che altra, volendo di tal cosa farvi you before youroltraggio, si recherebbe a farlo davanti agli occhi vostri.Di me non vo' dire, che mi lascerei prima squartare,che io il pur pensassi, non che io il venissi a fare invostra presenza. Per che di certo la magagna di questotransvedere dee procedere del pero; perciocchè tutto ilmondo non m' avrebbe fatto discredere che voi qui non1oste colla donna vostra carnalmente giaciuto, se io non CH. ORIG. 13Il che say Nicostratus, and climbs up it.His wife and Pyrrhus conjoin.Nicostratusupbraids her, and comes down,The loverssit apart.Nicostratus seesleft them,separate, andthem as he'dbut abuses them.Pyrrhus tells him that as hehad seen falsely,declared Pyrrhusso has he,Nicostratus.excellent wifeown eyes?Orthat I would either?Depend on it,tree's fault.this is the pear.All the world couldn't havemade me believe188 BOCCACCIO'S PEAR-TREE STORY; FOR THE MERCHANt's tale.p. 260]that you weren't with your wife if you hadn't told me I was doing with her what neverLydi gets up and reproaches her husband.If I'd thoughtas you say you saw, be sure that I shouldn't have done themunder your eyes,where you'd have known nothing about it.'Nicostratus, after what they both declare, stops blaming them,and says how wonderful the illusion of sightbut in a roomwas.udissi dire a voi che ¹egli vi fosse paruto che io facessiquello che io so certissimamente che io non pensai, non che io il facessi mai. " La donna appresso, che quasitutta turbata s'era, levata in piè, cominciò a dire: " siaentered myhead. colla mala ventura, se tu m'hai per sì poco sentita che,se io volessi attendere a queste tristezze, che tu dì che vedevi, io le venissi a fare dinanzi agli occhi tuoi. Siiof such sad deeds certo di questo che, qualora volontà me ne venisse, ionon verrei qui, anzi mi crederei sapere essere in unadelle nostre camere in guisa e in maniera, che gran cosami parrebbe che tu il risapessi giammai. " Nicostrato,al qual vero parea ciò che dicea l'uno e l'altro, che essiquivi dinanzi a lui mai a tale atto non si dovesseroesser condotti, lasciate stare le parole e le riprensioni di tal maniere, cominciò a ragionar della novità delfatto e del miracolo della vista, che così si cambiava achi su vi montava. Ma la donna, che della opinione che Nicostrato mostrava d'avere avuta di lei si mostravaturbata, disse: "veramente questo pero non ne faràmai più niuna, nè a me nè ad altra donna, di queste vergogne, se io potrò; e perciò, Pirro, corri e va' e recauna scure e ad una ora te e me vendica tagliandolo,come che molto meglio sarebbe a dar con essa in capo a Nicostrato, il quale senza considerazione alcuna cosìtosto si lasciò abbagliar gli occhi dello intelletto: chè,quantunque a quegli che tu hai in testa paresse ciò chetu dì, per niuna cosa dovevi nel giudicio della tua mente comprendere o consentire che ci fosse." Pirroprestissimo andò per la scure, e tagliò il pero. Il quale come la donna vide caduto, disse verso Nicostrato:' poscia che io veggio abbattuto il nimico della miaonestà, la mia ira è ita via; " e a Nicostrato, che diciò la pregava, benignamente perdonò, imponendogliche più non gli avvenisse di presumere di colei , che più So the miserable che sè l'amava, una così fatta cosa giammai. Così il misero marito schernito con lei insieme e col suoamante nel palagio se ne tornò, nel quale poi molte volte Pirro di Lidia, ed ella di lui, con più agio preseropiacere e diletto. Dio ce ne dea a noi!Lydia says,"The pear- tree shan t shame any other woman.Pyrrhus! get an ave, an cut the tree down!'Pyrrhus cuts the tree down.[ p 261 ]Lydia ells her husband that her anger is past,and that she forgives him.befooled husband goes home with his wife and her lover, who often enjoy one another at case.6618912.The Legend of St Ceciliathe original ofChaucer's " Second Nun's Tale,”in four bersions:1. The Latin of Jacobus a Voragine, ab. 1290 a.d.2. The French of Jehan de Vignay, ab. 1300 a.d.3. The Early English of Ashmole MS 43, bef. 1300 A.D.4. The Later English of Caxton, A.D. 1483.190 THE LATIN, NOT THE FRENCHI, CHAUCER'S ORIGINAL."Tyrwhitt pointed out in his Introductory Discourse, § xxvii, thatChaucer's Second Nun's Tale was almost literally translated from the´life of St Cecilia in the Legenda Aurea of Jacobus Jannensis,' orJacobus a Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, at the end of the 13th century. Tyrwhitt should have said ' freely ' for ' literally,' as Chaucer cutsout dull bits, expands pretty ones, alters phrases, and treats his originalat his own sweet will. ' Mr Robert Bell-or rather his Chaucer- editor,Mr Jephson- stated in a note to the first stauza of the Second Nun'sTale, on p. 6, vol. iii. of his edition of Chaucer, that " The openingstauzas against idleness are taken from Jehan de Vignay's introductionto his French translation of the Legenda Aurea, which was probablyChaucer's original throughout." I therefore reprint here this introduction, to show that Chaucer's opening stanzas were not ' taken ' from it,though the hint of them may have been. I also reprint the French Lifeto show that an instance occurring within the first dozen lines of theLatin text, which is in Chaucer (st. 17, G. 113-119) and is not in Jehande Vignay, negatives the Jephson- Bell suggestion that the French textwas Chaucer's original. Other iustauces of this are noted in the texton after-pages." La Legende doree et vie des Saincts et Sainctes translatee de latinen francoys Nouuellement Imprimee a Paris. [A.D. 1513. ]Prologue.Monseigneur sainct hierosine dit ceste auctorite, Fays tousiours aucune chose de bien, que le dyable ne te tronue oyseux.' Etsaint augustin dit an liure des moynes & de leurs oeuures, que nulhomme puissant de labourer ne doit estre oyseux. ' Pour laquelle chose,quant ie, frere Iehan de viguay, enz fait et acomply le mirouer deshystoires du monde, & trauslate de latin en francoys, a la requeste detrespuissante et noble dame, ma dame Jehanne de bourgongne, par lagrace de dieu royue de France, ie fuz tout esbahy a laquelle oeuurc iene mettroye apres si treshaulte & longue oeuure come i'auoye faicte pardenant. Et pour ce que oysiuete est tant blasmee que sainct Bernarddit qu'elle est mere de truffes / marrastre de vertus: et qui tresbuche lesfors hommes et fait estuindre vertu & nourrir orgueil, et fait la voye d'aller en enfer. Et Cassiodore dit que la pensee de celuy qui estoyseux ne peult penser a aultres choses que aux viandes pour sonventre. ' Et sainct bernard dit en vne epistre, ' quant il nous conui1 Touching Tyrwhitt's note on the parenthetic lines, G. 270-283, observethat they are in the French. He says, "Ver. 15738. And of the miracle] Ishould have been glad to have met with any authority for leaving out thisparenthesis of 14 lines, which interrupts the narrative so awkwardly, and to so little purpose. The substance of it is in the printed Editions of the LatinLegenda aurea, but appears evidently to have been at first a marginalobservation, and to have crept into the text by the blunder of some copyist.Accordingly it is wanting in Caxton's Goldene Legende, and, I suppose, in the French Legende Dorée, from which he translated. The author of the Frenchversion had either made use of an uncorrupted MS. , or perhaps had beensagacious enough to discern and reject the interpolation. "-Tyrwhitt.THE LEGEND OF ST CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale. 191•endra rendre raison du temps oysenx, quelle raison en pourrons nousrendre, quant en oysiuete ne en temp 8 oysenx n'a cause de nulle raison. 'Et orosper dit que celuy qui vit en oysiuete, vit en maniere de bestemue.' Et pour ce que i'ay veu les auctoritez qui blasinent & desprisentoysiuete, ie ne ueil pas estre oyseux: mais me vueil mettre a tel oeuurecome i'ay a coustume. Et pour ce que sainct Augustin sur vng pseaulme dit que ' bonne oeuure ne doit pas estre faicte pour paour depeine, mais pour amour de droicture: & que c'est vraye & souneraine franchise.' Et pour ce qu'il m'est aduis que c'est sonnerain bien faireentendre aux gens qui ne sont pas litterez la natinite / les vies / les pas- sions & les meurs des saincts: et aucuns faitz notoires des tempspassez, me suis ie mis a translater en francoys la legende des saints qui est dicte legende doree ': car ainsi come l'or est plus noble sur tous les aultres metaulx: aussi est ceste legende detenue pour plus noble sur toutes les aultres. Si prie le glorieux pere de paradis qu'il luy plaise amoy donner sens / temps et espace, de parfaire denement cest oeuurecommencee, si que ce soit a la louenge de sou glorieux nom & de toute la court celestielle et au proffit de l'ame de moy: et a l'edification detous ceulx et celles qui la liront et orront lire. Amen. "6I do not know who first pointed out that the 6th, 7th, and 8thstanzas (G. 36-56) of Chaucer's 12- stanza Preamble to his Second Nun'sTale were a translation, with variations, ¹ of either the first twenty- onelines of Dante's Paradiso, Canto xxxiii , or perhaps their origiual in someLatin prayer or hymn, if any:-Chaucer lines 363940-141-243{{Vergine madre, figlia del tuo figlio,Humil & alta più che creatura,Termine fisso d'eterno consiglio.Tu se' colei, che l'humana naturaNobilitasti si , che'l fu' fattoreNon si sdegnò di farsi sua fattura.Nel ventre tuo si raccese l'amore;გ641 Per lo cui caldo ne l'eterno pace.Cosi è germinato questo fiore.Qui se' a noi meridiana face9Di charitate & giuso intra mortaliSe' di speranza fontana viuace. 12Donna se' tanto grande, & tanto vali;Che qual vuol gratia, & a te non ricorre,Sue disianza vuol volar senz' ali. 1553-4 La tua benignità non pur socorre55-6 {50-1 {A chi dimanda; ma molte fiate Liberamente al dimandar precorre.In te misericordia; in te pietate;In te magnificentia: in te s'adunaQuantunque in creatura è di bontate. 21p. 622, ed. 1571.' Chaucer's lines 45-49, in his 7th stanza, differ a good deal from Dante'slines 9-15. Prof. Longfellow printed Chaucer's lines in his notes to his trans- lation of the Paradiso.18192Four derivations:a fifth.1. A heavenly lily.2. Apath for the blind.3. Heaven, asrevolving round,and burning.[Jacobi a Voragine Legenda Aurea. (Recensuit DrTh. Grässe. ) Dresdæ & Lipsia, 1846, p. 771.]DE SANCTA CECILIA.[Her Name explained.]Cæcilia, quasi cœli lilia, vel cæcis via, vel a cœlo et lya. Vel Cæcilia, quasi cæcitate carens. Vel dicitura cœlo et leos, quod est populus. Fuit enim cœlestelilium per virginitatis pudorem; vel dicitur lilium ,quia habuit candorem munditiæ, virorem conscientiæ,ordorem bonæ famæ. Fuit enim cæcis via per exempliinformationem, cœlum per jugem contemplationem, lyaper assiduam operationem. Vel dicitur cœlum, quia,sicut dicit Ysidorus, cœlum philosophi volubile, rotun- dum et ardens esse dixerunt. Sic et ipsa fuit volubilisper operationem sollicitam , rotunda per perseverantiam,ardens per caritatem succensam; fuit cæcitate carensper sapientiæ splendorem; fuit et coelum populi, quia5. Heaven of the in ipsa tamquam in cœlo spirituali populus ad imitandum intuetur cœlum, solem, lunam et stellas, id estsapientiæ perspicacitatem, fidei magnanimitatem et virtutum varietatem.4. Wanting in blindness.people.Cecilia was of noble Roman descent,and ever prayed to God to keep her a virgin.[The Legend about her. ]Cæcilia, virgo præclarissima, ex nobili Romanorumgenere exorta, et ab ipsis cunabilis in fide Christinutrita, absconditum semper evangelium Christi gerebatin pectore, et non diebus neque noctibus a colloquiisdivinis et oratione cessabat, suamque virginitatem conservari a domino exorabat. Cum autem cuidam juveni,nomine Valeriano, desponsata fuisset, et dies nuptiaruminstituta esset, illa subtus ad carnem cilicio erat induta,et desuper de auratis vestibus tegebatur, et cantantibusorganis illa in corde soli domino decantabat dicens:"fiat, domine, cor meum et corpus meum immaculatum,ut non confundar; " et biduanis et triduanis jejuniisorans commendabat domino, quod timebat. Venitautem nox, in qua suscepit una cum sponso suo cubihusband Valerian culi secreta silentia, et ita eum alloquitur: " o dulcissimeatque amantissime juvenis, est mysterium, quod tibiShe wore a hair shirt under her marriage robes,and told heron the first night193[La Legende Dorée. Translated by Jehan de Vignay. ]DE SAINCTE CECILE.(Feuillet .ccxxv. sign. d. ed. 1513.)¶ L'interpretation du nom saincte cecile.Cecile YEcile est autant a dire come lys du ciel ou voye Four derivations:des aueugles: ou elle est dicte du ciel & de a fifth.lya ou elle est dicte ainsi come non aueugle: oude leos: c'est a dire, peuple. Et elle fut lys du ciel 1. A heavenly par pure virginite, et par ce qu'elle eut blancheur de lily.nettete, & resplendeur de conscience, & odeur de bonne 2. A path for therenommee. Elle fut voye aux aueugles par exempled'information / et elle fut ciel par bonne contemplation.[See st. L 113-119 of Chaucer's Second Nun's Tule · •blind.3. Heaven.blindness.] Celle ne fut pas aueugle: 4. Wanting incar elle eut clarte de sagesse. Elle fut ciel du peuple:car on pouoit regarder en icelle le ciel espirituel pourensuiuir l'autre ciel, & veoir en icelle le soleil, la lune, &les estoilles de sagesse par le regard de soy: et par lagrandeur de la diuersite de vertu.Legende de saincte cecile.5. Heaven of thepeople.¹no orig. ]YEcile fut tresnoble virge nee du noble lignage de Cecilia was of Ceil fe, redoble virge une noble Roman descent,to God to keep her a virgin.She wore a hair shirt under hercrist, et portoit tousiours en sa poictrine l'euangile de nos- tre seigneur mussee dedens son cueur. Ne elle ne cessaiour & nuyt de aorer ne de parler de nostre seigneur, et and ever prayedde le prier que il luy gardast sa virginite: et toutesfoysses amys luydonnerent pour maryvng iouuenceau nommevalerien. Etquant le iour des nopces fut estably, elle auoitla haire vestue a sa chair, & estoit dessus paree de veste- mens d'or. et quant les instrumens chantoient, elle chantoit a nostre seigneur en son cueur. "Sire, mon cueur &mon corps soient sans macule si que ie ne soies confuse,"& ieusna trois iours en se commandant a nostre seigneur,qu'elle doubtoit. Et lors vint la nuyt, qu'elle entra en sa and told her chambre auec son espoux, & elle l'arraisonna ainsi. " O husband Valeriantresdoulx amy, bel iouuenceau, ie ayvng maistre, que ie temarriage robes,on the first night194 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN'S TALE.that an Angel loved her, and would kill himconfitear, si modo tu juratus asseras, tota te illud ob- servantia custodire. " Jurat Valerianus, se illud nullanecessitate detegere, nulla prodere ratione. Tunc illaait: " angelum Dei habeo amatorem, qui nimio zelo custodit corpus meum. Hic si vel leviter senserit, quodif he polluted her. tu me polluto amore contingas, statim feriet te, etamittes florem tuæ gratissimæ juventutis, si autemcognoverit, quod me sincero amore diligas, ita quoquediliget te sicut me, et ostendet tibi gloriam suam.Valerian said,'Show me this Angel.'"Tunc Valerianus, nutu Dei correctus, ait: “ si vis, utcredam tibi, ipsum angelum mihi ostende, et si vereprobavero, quod angelus sit, faciam quod hortaris; siautem virum alium diligis, te et illum gladio feriam. "Cui Cæcilia dixit: " si in Deum verum credideris et teShe bade him go baptizari promiseris, ipsum videre valebis. Vade igitur in tertium milliarium ab urbe via, quæ Appia nuncupatur, et pauperibus, quos illic invenies, dices:'Cæcilia me misit ad vos, ut ostendatis mihi sanctumsenem Urbanum , quoniam ad ipsum habeo secretamandata, quæ perferam.' Hunc, dum tu videris, indicaand get baptized; ei omnia verba mea; et postquam ab eo purificatusfueris et redieris, angelum ipsum videbis."Valerianus perrexit, et secundum signa quæ acceperat,sanctum Urbanum episcopum intra sepulchra martirumCecilia had tamed latitantem invenit; cumque ei omnia verba Cæciliæto St Urbanand then he'd see the Angel.Valerian found St Urban, who thankt God thather spouse.an old man from heaven.66Tunçdixisset, ille manus ad cœlum expandens cuin lacrymisait: " domine Jesu Christe, seminator casti consilii,suscipe seminum fructus, quos in Cæcilia seminasti,domine Jesu Christe, pastor bone, Cæcilia famula tuaquasi apis tibi argumentosa deservit; nam sponsum,quem quasi leonem ferocem accepit, ad te quasi agnummansuetissimum destinavit. " Et ecce subito apparuitTo them appeared senex quidam niveis vestibus indutus, tenens librumaureis litteris scriptum. Quem videus Valerianus prænimio timore quasi mortuus cecidit, et a sene levatus,Valerian profest sic legit: unus Deus, una fides, unum baptisma, unusDeus et pater omnium, qui super omnes, et per omnia,et in omnibus nobis. " Cumque hæc legisset, dixit ci senior: " credis ita esse an adhuc dubitas? " Tuncexclamavit dicens: non est aliud, quod verius credipossit, sub cœlo. " Statimque illo disparente, Valerianusa sancto Urbano baptisma suscepit, et rediens, Cæciliamcum angelo loquentem in cubiculo invenit. Angelusautem duas coronas ex rosis et liliis in manu habebat,et unam Cæciliæ, et alteram Valeriano tradidit, dicens:66 istas coronas immaculato corde et mundo corpore1 Feuillet .ccxxv. back. 2 This holy old Urban.'-Chaucer:belief in God,was baptized by St Urban, and,going home, saw Cecilia's Angel,who gave them each a crown of roses and lilies.66DE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 195loved her, and would kill himdiray se tu me iures que tu le garderas en secretde tout ton pouoir. " & valerien iura qu'il ne le descouuriroit pour nul besoing, & lors celle luydist. " I'ay vng ange de dieu amy, qui garde mon corps that an Angela trop grant amour: et se il sentoit que tu me touchasses par nulle amour desordonnee, il te frapperoit tantost if he polluted her.si que tu perdrois tantost la fleur de ta ieunesse /et s'il scait que tu m'aymes de pure amour, il t'aymera ainsi come moy, et si te demonstrera son amour.'& valerien, corrige par la voulente de dieu, dist. " Se tu Valerian said,veulx que ie te croye, monstre moy celuy ange: & si ie voy Angel."proprement que ce soit vng ange, ie feray ce que tu reqers;&sec'est vngaultrehomme.iete occiray et luyd'unglaiue. "Auquel cecile dist. " Se tu crois au vray dieu, & tu19'Show me thises baptise, tu le pourras bien veoir. va en la voye She bade him goqui est nommee apienne, a trois mille de la cite de romme:& diras aux poures que tu trouueras:' Cecile m'a enuoye a vous que vous me monstrez vrbain, to St Urbanvng sainct home ancien: car ie luy ay a dire vng secretqu'elle luy mande ': & quant tu le verras, dyluy toutes mes parolles: & quant tu 1 seras baptise and get baptized;de luy, tu verras adonc l'ange." Et quant and then he'd see the Angel.St Urban, whoCecilia had tamedthankt God thatvalerien s'en alla a vrbain pape², qui se mussoit Valerian founddedens les sepulchres des martyrs, & luy eut dit toutes les parolles de cecile, vrbain tendit les mains& dist. " Sire iesucrist, semeur de conseil droicturier, her spouse.recoy le fruit de la sem*nce que tu semias en ta benoiste ancelle cecile. Sire iesucrist, cecile ta chamberierete sert ainsi come la mouche a miel en accroissant tousiours: car son espoux, qu'elle print cruel comme vng lyon,elle enuoye a toy comme vng tresdoulx & tresdebonnaireseigneur." Et tantost apparut entre eulx deux vng ancien Tothem appearedhomme, vestu de blancz vestemens, qui tenoit vng liure an old man from escript de lettres d'or: et quant valerien le veit, il cheut66"Croy& valerienheaven.de paour ainsi come mort, & celuy ancien home le leua,et luy leut. Vng dieu vne creance, vng baptesme. Valerian profestVng dieu, pere de tous, et est sur tout & en tous lieux. " belief in God,& quant il luy eut tout leu, il luy dist.tu estre ainsi, ou se tu doubtes encores? "dist. " Il n'est chose qui puisse estre creue plus vrayement soubz le ciel & tantost il se desapparut,& valerien receut baptesme, & retourna, et trouua en la chambre cecile parlant a l'ange; & l'angetenoit en sa main deux couronnes de roses [ &] de lys,& bailla l'une a cecile, & l'autre a valerien et dist:"Gardez ces couronnes de cueur & de corps net sansmacule car ie vous les apporte de dieu de paradis; newas baptized bygoing home, sawCecilia's Angel,who gave themSt Urban, and,each a crown of roses and lilies.196 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale.Valerian askt that his brother might know the truth.At once the brother,Tiburtius, camehe smelt roses and lilies.Valerian toldcustodite, quia de paradiso Dei eas ad vos attuli; necunquam marcescent, nec odorem amittent, nec ab aliis,nisi quibus castitas placuerit, videri poterunt.Tuautem, Valeriane, quia utili consilio credidisti , petequodcumque volueris, et consequeris." Cui Valerianus:nihil mihi in hac vita exstitit dulcius, quam unicusfratris mei affectus, peto igitur, ut et veritatem ipsemecum agnoscat. " Cui angelus: " placet domino petitiotua; et ambo cum palma martirii ad dominum venietis. "Post hoc, ingressus Tiburtius, frater Valeriani, cumnimium rosarum sensisset odorem, dixit: "miror, hocin, and askt why tempore roseus hic odor et liliorum unde respiret; namsi ipsas rosas vel lilia in manibus meis tenerem, nec sicpoterant odoramenta tantæ mihi suavitatis infundere;confiteor vobis, ita sum refectus, ut putem me totum subito immutatum. " Cui Valerianus: "coronas habemus, quas tui oculi videre non prævalent, floreo coloreet niveo candore vernantes; et sicut me interpellanteodorem sensisti, sic et, si credideris, videre valebis. "Cui Tiburtius: "in somnis hoc audio, an in veritateista tu loqueris, Valeriane? " Cui Valerianus:"insomnis usque modo fuimus, sed jam nunc in veritate manemus." Ad quem Tiburtius: " unde hoc nosti? " EtValerianus: " angelus domini me docuit, quem tu viderepoteris, si tu purificatus fueris, et omnibus ydolis abrenuntiaveris." (Huic miraculo de coronis rosarum Am- brosius attestatur in præ'atione sic dicens: sanctaCæcilia sic coelesti est dono repleta, ut martirii palmamassumeret; ipsum mundum est cum thalamis exsecrata;testis est Valeriani conjugis et Tiburtii provocata confessio, quos, domine, angelica manu odoriferis floribuscoronasti; viros virgo duxit ad gloriam, mundus agnovit,quantum valeat devotio castitatis.' Hæc Ambrosius. )him he could see'em if hebelievedrenounced idols.in God and(St Ainbrose attests this miracle ofthe crown ofroses . )Cecilia converts Tiburtius,Tunc Cæcilia evidenter ostendit ei, omnia ydola esseinsensibilia et muta, ita ut Tiburtius responderet acdiceret: " qui ista non credit, pecus est. " Tunc Cæcilia kisses his breast, Osculans pectus ejus dixit: "hodie te fateor meum essecognatum, sicut enim amor Dei fratrem tuum mihiconjugem fecit, ita te mihi cognatum contemtus facietand tells himto ydolorum. Vade igitur cum fratre tuo, ut purificationem accipias et angelicos vultus videre valeas. "Dixitque Tiburtius fratri suo: " obsecro te, frater, utmihi dicas, ad quem me ducturus es. " Cui Valerianus:" ad Urbanum episcopum. " Cui Tiburtius: " de illoUrbano dicis, qui totiens damnatus est et adhuc in1 Say what thee list, and thou schalt have thi boone.- Chaucer 2 leaf 225, back, col. 2.be baptizedby St Urban."What! by him whois to beDE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 197that his brother might know theTiburtius, came in, and askt whyheandsmelt liliesroses .elles ne fletriront ia, ne ne perdront leur odeur; ne ellesne pourront estre veues d'aultres s'ilz n'ont chastete. Etvalerien, pour ce que tu as creu profitable conseil, demande ce que te vouldras¹." Et valerien dist. " Il ne Valerian askt m'est rien tant doulce chose en ceste vie comme la bonnevoulente d'un mienfrere que i'ay: iete priequ'il congnoisse truth.auec moy la voye de verite." Et l'ange luy dist. " Il plaista nostre seigneur ce que tu requiers, & vous viendrez tous deux a nostre seigneur par martyre. " Et apres ce, ty- At once theburcien, frere de valerien, entra en la chambre, & sentit brother,tresgrant odeur de roses, & dist. " Ie m'esmerueille queie sens en ce temps odeur de roses & de lys: car se ietenoyeroses & lys en ma main, si ne pourroyent elles donnergreigneur odeur; ie vous confesse que ie me sens soub- dainement nue.' Auquel valerien dist. " Nous auons Valerian toldcouronnes que tes yeulx ne peuent veoir, qui sont- de couleur ro'sine & blanches come lys; & sicome tu sensl'odeur par moy, tu le pourras veoir se tu crois ."& tyburcien dist. " Est ce songe que tu as ouy,valerien, ou se tu dis en verite? " Et valerien respondit."Nous auons este iusques icy en songe: mais nous sommes maintenant en verite. " & tyburcien dist. " Ou l'as tuprins? " & valerien dist. " L'ange de dieu me l'a apprins, him he could seeque tu pourroies veoir se tu estoyes purifie & tu anoyesrenonce a toutes tes ydoles. " (Et ces miracles des cou- renounced idols.ronnes tesmoigne ambroise en son preface &dit . ' Sainctececile fut remplie du don du ciel, que elle print peinede martyre & despita le monde & ses delitz / & de cesttesmoing valerien son mary, & tiburcien son frere, que nostreseigneur couronna par la main de l'ange de fleursodorans: & la vierge mena ces hommes a gloire: & lemonde si congneut combien deuotion de chastete vault.')Et adonc cecile leur monstra clerement que toutes les Cecilia converts ydoles sont mues et sans sens, si que tyburcien rendit & Tiburtius,dist. " Qui ne croit ainsi, il est beste." Et adonc cecile' em if he believed in God and( St Ambrose attests this miracle of thecrown of roses. )luy baisa la poictrine, & dist. " Auiourdhuy te confesse kisses his breast,estre mon cousin, tout ainsi comme l'amour de dieu a faitconioindre a moy ton frere, tout ainsi le despit des ydoles te fera estre mon cousin. va donc anec ton frere pour re- and tells him toceuoirpurification, quetu puisses veoir le visagedesanges. " be baptizedEt adonc dist tyburcien a son frere. "Ie te prie, mon99'What! by him whois to befrere, que tu me dies a qui tu meveulx mener." & valerien luy dist. " A vrbain euesque: et tyburcien dist. " Dis by St Urban.tu de celuy vrbain qui tant de fois a este condamne, & demeure encore en vng lieu secret; & s'il estoit trouue ilseroit ars, & nous auec luy, & quant nous querons la diuinite qui se tapist es cieulx, nous encourons laburnt it he'scaught?burnt too.'We shall be198 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN'S TALE.burnt if he's caught?We shall bo burnt too.'life than this,'says Cecilia,"ofwhich God's Son has told us."She shows him howthere are 3Gods in one,and how Christ suffered.' He, the blessed,was curst, to win man blessings;latebris commoratur? hic, si inventus fuerit, cremabitur; et nos in illius flammis pariter involvemur, etdum quærimus divinitatem latentem in cœlis, incurre-" There is a better mus furorem exurentem in terris. " Cui Cæcilia: " Sihæc sola esset vita, juste hanc perdere timeremus; estautem alia melior, quæ nunquam amittitur, quam nobis Dei filius enarravit. Omnia enim, quæ facta sunt,filius ex patre genitus condidit, universa autem, quæcondita sunt ex patre procedens spiritus animavit.Hic igitur filius Dei in mundum veniens verbis et miraculis aliam vitam esse nobis monstravit. " CuiTiburtius: certe unum Deum esse asseris, et quomodonunc tres esse testaris? " Respondit Cæcilia: " sicut inuna hominis sapientia sunt tria, scilicet ingenium,memoria et intellectus, sic et in una divinitatis assentiatres personæ esse possunt." Tunc coepit ei de adventufilii Dei et passione prædicare, et multas congruitatesipsius passionis ostendere. "Nam ideo," inquit, " filiusDei est tentus, ut genus humanum dimittatur peccatodetentum; benedictus maledicitur, ut hom*o maledictusbenedictionem consequatur; illudi se patitur, ut hom*oab illusione dæmonum liberetur; spineam coronamaccepit in capite, ut a nobis sententiam auferat capitalem; fel suscipit amarum, ut sanaret hominis dulcemgustum; exspoliatur, ut parentum nostrorum nuditatemoperiat; in ligno suspenditur, ut ligni prævaricationemtollat." Tunc Tiburtius fratri suo dixit: " misereremei, et perduc me ad hominem Dei ut purificationemaccipiam." Ductus igitur, et purificatus, angelos Deisæpe videbat, et omnia quæ postulabat, protinus obtinebat. Valerianus igitur et Tiburtius elemosinis insistebant; et sanctorum corpora, quos Almachius præfectusoccidebat, sepulturæ tradebant. Quos Almachius ad sevocans, cur pro suis sceleribus damnatos sepelirent,inquisivit. Cui Tiburtius: "utinam illorum serviessemus, quos tu damnatos appellas! Qui contemseruntillud, quod videtur esse et non est, et invenerunt illud,quod non videtur esse et est." Cui præfectus: “ quidnam est illud? " Et Tiburtius: " quod videtur esse etnon est, est omne, quod in hoc mundo est, quodhominem ad non esse perducit; quod vero non videturesse et est, est vita justorum et pœna malorum. " Cuihe was stript,to clothe our fathers.'Tiburtius is baptized and sees angels.He and Valerianare taken before Almachius,questioned by him,' Chaucer, like the Latin, gives this speech to Cecilia: " To whom Cecilie answerde boldely ' .2 Here again Chaucer follows the Latin and not the French:By word and miracle liche goddes sone,Whan he was in the world, declared heere, ' &c.DE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 199

" There is a better life than this,'says Cecilia,of which God's Son has told us."how there are 3Gods in one,forcenerie ardant es terres:" & valerien¹ dist. " Se cestevie estoit seule, par raison doubterions nous a la perdremais il est vue meilleure vie qui ne peult estre perdue,laquelle le filz de dieu nous raconte: car toutes les chosesqui sont faictes, le filz engendre du pere fist; & toutes leschoses faictes du sainct esperit viennent du pere viuifiee;& ce filz nous demonstre2 au monde vne aultre vie estre. "&tyburciendist. "Tu affermes vng dieu estre; & comment She shows himcongnois tu maintenant estre trois dieux? " & cecile respondit. "Sicome en la sages³se d'un seul homme sonttrois choses, c'est engin, memoire, & entendement, ainsique vne essence de diuinite sont trois personnes. " Etadonc luy prescha de l'aduenement & de la passion de and how Christdieu, et luy demonstra moult de conuenabletez de la passion car elle dist " Pour ce souffrit le filz de dieu a estretenu, qu'il delaissast aller l'humain lignage qui estoit detenu en peche. Le benoist fut mauldit affin que homemauldit eust benediction. Il souffrit estre despite, affinque l'home fust hors du despit du diable. Il eut en sonchief couronne d'espines, affin qu'il ostast l'home de capitalle sentence. Il receut le fiel tresamer, affin qu'ilrendist a l'home son doulx goust. Il fut despouille, pour he was despoiled,couurir la nudite des premiers peres. Il fut pendu aufust de la croix, affin qu'il ostast le trespassem*nt & l'outrage du fust de vie. " Et lors tiburcien dist a son frere.Ayes pitie de moy, & me meine a l'homme de dieu, si 664suffered.He, the blessed,was curst, to win man blessings;to clothe our fathers.'angels.que ie recoiue purification. " & lors le mena, &fut purifie. Tiburtius is Et tantost apres il veoit souuent les anges de nostre baptized and seesseigneur, & auoit tantost ce qu'il requeroit. Et lorsvalerien & tiburcien se mirent a aumosnes faire, & He and Valerianensepuelissoient les corps sainctz que almachien faisoitdecoller. Et almachien les appella, & leur demanda are taken before' pourquoy ilz ensepuelissoient les corps des damnez Almachius,56him , pour leur felonnies. ' auquel tiburcien dist. " Ma vou- questioned by lente fust que nous fussions seruiteurs d'iceulx que tu appelles damnez: car ilz despriserent ce qui est veu estre,& n'est pas c'est tout ce qui est en ce monde qui demeine l'home a non estre. & ce qui n'est pas veuestre, & est: c'est la vie des iustes & la peine des mauuais. "& le preuost dist. " Ie ne cuide pas que tu parles de ta pensee." Et lors commanda valerien estre amene deuant and re- roved forluy, & luy dist. " Pour ce que ton frere ne parle pas de their errors.3 Feuillet.ccxxvi. sign. d. ii.4 Chaucer leaves out the next statement.Chaucer, like Caxton, cuts out the following discussion,saying only that Almache ' hem opposed, and knew alle hereentente.'200 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN'S TALE.their errors.Valerian tells Almachiusthat his passingjoy will end in everlasting grief.66 præfectus: "non puto, quod mente tua loquaris. "Tunc jubet adstare Valerianum dicens ei: quoniamnon est sani capitis frater tuus; tu saltem poteris sapiand reproved for enter dare responsum; constat plurimum vos errare,qui gaudia respuitis et omnia inimica gaudiis affectatis. "Tunc Valerianus " se vidisse ait glaciali tempore otiososjocantes, et operarios agricolas deridentcs, sed æstivotempore, dum advenissent gloriosi fructus laborum,gaudentibus illis, qui putabantur vani, cœperunt flere,qui videbantur urbani. Sic et nos nunc quidem sustinemus ignominiam et laborem, in futuro autemrecipiemus gloriam et æternam mercedem. Vos autemnunc transitorium habetis gaudium, in futuro auteminvenietis æternum luctum. " Cui præfectus: ergonos invictissimi principes æternum habebimus luctum ,et vos personæ vilissimæ perpetuum possidebitis gaudium?" Cui Valerianus: " homuntiones estis , nonprincipes, tempore nostro nati, citius morituri et Deorationem plus omnibus reddituri. " Dixit autem præfectus: " quid verborum circuitu immoramur? offerteDiis libamina et illæsi abscedite. " Sancti responderunt: nos Deo vero quotidie sacrificium exhibemus. "Quibus præfectus: quod est nomen ejus? " CuiValerianus: 66 nomen ejus invenire non poteris, etiamsipennis volaveris. " Præfectus dixit: " ergo Jupiternomen Dei non est?" Cui Valerianus: nomenhomicidæ et stupratoris est." Ad quem Almachius:' ergo totus mundus errat! et tu cum fratre tuo verumDeum nosti? " Valerianus respondit: 66 nos soli nonsumus, sed innumerabilis multitudo hanc sanctitatemrecepit. " Traduntur igitur sancti in custodiam Maximi.into the custody Quibus ille ait: " o juventutis flos purpureus, o gerAlmachius bids the brothers sacrifice to his gods.On their refusal,he puts themofMaximus,whom they convert, with his family and the executioners.At daybreak Cecilia encourages them.66666666manus fraternitatis affectus, quomodo ad mortem quasiad epulas festinatis? " Cui Valerianus ait, quod, sicrediturum se promitteret, gloriam animarum eorum post mortem videret. Et Maximus: "fulminibusigneis consumar, si non illum solum Deum confitear,quem adoratis, si contingat, quod dicitis. " Ipse igiturMaximus, et omnis ejus familia, et universi carnificescrediderunt; et ab Urbano, qui illuc occulte venit,baptisma susceperunt. Igitur dum aurora nocti finemdaret, Cæcilia exclamavit dicens: " eia milites Christi,abjicite opera tenebrarum, et induimini arma lucis. "Quarto igitur milliario ab urbe sancti ad statuam JovisFeuillet.ccxxvi. col. 2.2 Chaucer translates a line here.orig. mon.3on.5 Chaucer begins to translate again,DE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 201saine pensee, par aduenture pourras tu donner responceplus sagement. Il m'est aduis que vous foliez trop quirefusez les ioyes, & couuoitez les choses contraires a ioye.'Et lors valerien dist " I'ay veu au temps de glace iouer les Valerian tellsoyseaulx & se mocquoient des ouuriers & des laboureurs, Almachiusmais au temps d'este, quant les glorieux fruitz estoientvenus, les laboureurs s'esiouyssoient & ceulx qui lesauoient mocquez pleuroient. Et ainsi faictes vous orendroit: vousvous mocquez mainte¹nantde ce que nous soustenons les tristesses & les labeurs: & au temps aduenir that his passingnous en aurons plus grant loyer de gloire. & vous qui joy will end inaymez orendroit ioye transitoire, aurez au temps aduenirla mort pardurable: " & almachien dist. " Donc auronsnous entre nous nobles princes pleurs pardurables:"". ]everlasting grief.sacrifice to his& valerien dist. "Vous estes hommes nudz: & nonprinces: nez en vostre temps, pour mourir hastiuement & rendre raison a dieu plus que nulz autres." Etlors le preuost dist. " Pourquoy demourons nous tant Almachius bids en parolles? 2 offrez sacrifices aux dieux, & vons en allez the brothersquittes. " Et les sainctz respondirent. " Nous offrons gods.chascun iour sacrifice au vray dieu. " Et le prenost leur dist ainsi. "Quel est son nom? " & valerien dist."Son nom est tel que tu ne le pourroyes trouuer,voulsisses tu." Et le preuost dist. " N'est pas donc iupiter nom³ dieu." & valerien dist. "C'est nom4 On their refusal,homicide et auoultre. " Et adonc dist almachien. " Doncerre tout le monde: & toy & ton frere recongnoissez levray dieu tant seullement: " & valerien respondit. " Nousne sommes pas seulz: car grande multitude sans nombrerecoit ceste sainctete." " Et lors les sainctz furent mis enprison en la garde de maximien. Ausquelz il dist. " Obeaulte de ieunesse, voulente de fraternite humaine, comment vous hastez vous d'aller a la mort ainsi come se cefust vng conuy?" auquel valerien dist. " Se tu nous prometz que tu croiras en dieu , tu nous verras apres la mort: "& maximien dist. " Ie soye ars & enflambe de feu seie ne confesse celuy vray dieu seul que vous adorez, s'iladuient ce que vous dictes." Et lors maximien & toutesa mesgnie & tous les bouchers creurent en dieu, et furentbaptisez de sainct vrbain. Et quant l'aube du iour apparut, cecile s'escria en disant. Moult ioye, cheualiersde iesucrist ostez les oeuures de tenebres, & vestez lesarmes de lumiere." Et adonc les sainctz furent meneza quatre mille de la cite a l'ydole de iupiter. & lorsmaximien iure par son serment qu'il veit les anges al'heure de leur passion: car ilz furent decollez ensemble,he puts them into the custody ofMaximus,whom they convert, with hisexecutioners.At daybreak Cecilia encouragesfamily and thethem.202 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN'S TALE.The brothers are beheaded, and Maximus seestheir souls borne to heaven.Maximus is beaten to death.Almachius has Cecilia brought before him,and bids her sacrifice or die.She tells the weeping folk around her thatvile body for aglorious one.She convertsduc*ntur et dum sacrificare nollent, pariter decollantur.Tunc Maximus cum jurejurando asseruit, se in horapassionis eorum angelos vidisse fulgentes et animaseorum quasi virgines de thalamo exeuntes, quas ingremio suo in cœlum angeli detulerunt. Almachiusvero audiens Maximum christianum effectum, eumplumbatis tamdiu cædi fecit, quousque spiritum excussit. Cujus corpus sancta Cæcilia juxta Valerianum etTiburtium sepelivit. Tunc Almachius facultates amborum cæpit inquirere, et Cæciliam tamquam Valerianiconjugem coram se fecit adstare, jussitque, ut ydolis immolaret, aut sententiam mortis incurreret. Cumautem ad hoc ab apparitoribus urgeretur, et illi vehementer flerent, eo quod puella tain decora et nobilisultro se morti traderet, dixit ad eos: " hoc, bonijuvenes, non est juventutum perdere, sed mutuare,she'll change her dare lutum et accipere aurum, dare vile habitaculum etaccipere pretiosum, dare brevem angulum et accipereforum pellucidum. Si quis pro nummo solidos daret,nonne velocius festinaretis? Deus autem, quod accepitsimplum, reddet centuplum. Creditis his, quæ dico? "Et illi: " credimus, Christum verum esse Deum, quithem, and above talem possidet famulam. " Vocato igitur Urbano episcopo, CCCC et amplius baptizati sunt. Tunc Almachiussanctam Cæciliam ad se vocans ait: " cujus conditionises? " Et illa: " ingenua sum et nobilis. " Cui Almachius: "ego te de religione interrogo. " Cui Cæcilia:"interrogatio tua stultum sumit initium, quæ duas responsiones una putat inquisitione concludi. "Almachius: " unde tibi tanta præsumtio respondendi?"At illa: " de conscientia bona, et fide non ficta." Cuiand tells himthat Almachius: " ignoras, cujus potestatis sim? " Et illa:"potestas vestra est quasi uter vento repletus, quem siacus pupugerit, omnis protinus rigor pallescit et quidquid in se rigidum habere cernitur, incurvatur. " CuiAlmachius: " ab injuriis cæpisti, et in injuriis per- severas. ' Cæcilia respondit: " injuria non dicitur nisiquod verbis fallentibus irrogatur; unde aut injuriamdoce, si falsa locuta sum, aut te ipsum corripe calumthat she will not niam inferentem, sed nos scientes sanctum Dei nomen deny God,omnino negare non possumus, melius est enim felicitermori, quam infeliciter vivere. " Cui Almachius: "adquid cum tanta superbia loqueris? " Et illa: " non estsuperbia, sed constantia. " Cui Almachius: " infelix,ignoras, quia vivificandi et mortificandi mihi traditaleaf 226, back.400 are baptized.She dares Almachius,his power is amere bladder ofwind,2 Chaucer follows the Latin rather than the French.CuiDE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN's tale. 203pour ce qu'ilz ne vouloient sacrifier. Et dit plus maxi- Maximus seescorps ainsi come their souls borne to heaven. mien qu'il veit les anges yssir hors desvierges yssent hors de leurs chambres, & les anges lesemportoient en leurs girons au ciel. ¹Et quant almachien Maximus is ouyt qua maximien estoit crestien, il le fist beaten to death.tant batre de plombees qu'il mist hors l'esperit.enterra le corps delez valerien &Et almachien print tous les biensou qu'ellemue:prensweeping folk around her that she'll change her vile body for aglorious one.Et ceciletyburcien.d'iceulx, & fist venir cecile, come femme de Almachius hasvalerien, et dist qu'elle sacrifiast Cecilia brought before him,receust sentence de mort. Et quant elle fut and bids hercontraincte a ce des seruiteurs qui plouroient sacrifice or die.si fort pour ce que si belle pucelle & si noblese mettoit a mort de son gre, elle leur dist. " Doulx She tells theiouuenceaulx, ie ne pers pas ma iuneesse: mais ie la ie donne boue, & recois or: ie laisse vng vil habitacle, &recois vng precieux: ie donne vng brief anglet, &vng tres cher lien. se aucun donnoit solz pour deniers,vous vous hasteries d'y aller. Dieu, qui prent la simplechose, la rend a cent fois plus. Croyez vous ce que ie dis?"& ils dirent. " Nous le croyons, & croyons que iesucristest vray dieu, qui a telle ancelle. " Et lors fut appellel'euesque vrbain, & furent baptisez quatre cens & plus. She converts Et lors almachien, fist appeller cecile, & dist. " De quelle them, and abovecondition es tu?" & elle dist. " Ie suis de noble lignage: "& il luy dist. " Ie demande de quelle religion: & ellerespondit. "Ta demande a fol commencement qui cuide She dares que ie conclue deux responces soubz vne demande: " & Almachius,almachien dist, "Dont te vient si grande presumption derespondre. " & elle respondit. "De bonne conscience defoy, et non pas fainte. " & almachien dist. " Scez tu dequelle puissance ie suis? " & elle respondit. " Vostrepuissance et vostro ventre est tout plain de vent,2 que sevne aguille le poignoit, toute sa force plieroit, et of wind,toute sa rondeur courberoit." & almachien dist."Tu commencas par iniures, et par iniures per- seueres." & elle dist. " Iniure n'est pas dicte quepar parolles deceuantes: monstre moy se ieparle faulsem*nt, ou corrige toymesmes disant malice:""400 are baptized.and tells him that his power is amere bladdercar, nous qui scauons le sainct nom de dieu, ne le pouons that she will not pas nyer; et trop est meilleure chose mourir bonne- deny God,ment que viure malement." & almachien dist. " Pourquoy parles tu a si grant orgueil?" & elle dist. "Ce n'estpas orgueil, mais fermete: " & almachien dist. "Chetiue!tu ne scais pas que la puissance de viuifier & de mortifierm'est baillee." & elle dist. "Ie preuue maintenantque tu as menty contre la verite com³mo tu peulx oster la r³ col. 2.]CH. ORIG. 14204 DE SANCTA CECILIA. SECOND NUN'S TALE.wwwwwthat he can onlytake life, not give it; he is but aminister of Death,and his gods but stones.Almachius orders her to bebath; and, as that doesn't burn her, to be be- headed."9est potestas? Et illa: "contra veritatem publicamprobo te nunc esse mentitum, vitam enim viventibustollere potes, mortuis autem dare non potes; es igiturminister mortis, non vitæ." Cui Almachius: "jam depone amentiam et sacrifica Diis. " Cui Cæcilia:"nescio, ubi oculos amiseris; nam quos tu Deos dicis,omnes nos saxa esse videmus; mitte igitur manum ettangendo disce, quod oculis non vales videre." Tunciratus Almachius jussit eam ad domum suam reduci,cast into a boiling ibique tota nocte et die jussit eam in bulliente balneoconcremari. Quæ quasi in loco frigido mansit, necmodicum saltem sudoris persensit. Quod cum audivissetAlmachius, jussit eam in ipso balneo decollari. Quamspiculator tribus ictibus in collo percussit, sed tamencaput ejus amputare non potuit, et quia decretum erat,ne quartam percussionem decollandus acciperet, eamsemivivam cruentus carnifex dereliquit. Per triduumautem supervivens, omnia quæ habebat, pauperibustradidit, et omnes quos ad fidem converterat, Urbano episcopo commendavit dicens: "triduanas mihi inducias postulavi, ut nos tuæ beatitudini commendarem,et hanc domum meam in ecclesiam consecrares. 'Sanctus autem Urbanus corpus ejus inter episcopossepelivit, et domum suam in ecclesiam, ut rogaverat,with the bishops, consecravit. Passa est autem circa annos domini CC etXXIII tempore Alexandri imperatoris. Alibi autemlegitur, quod passa sit tempore Marci Aurelii, qui im- peravit circa annos domini CCXX..The headsman strikes 3 strokes,and leaves her half dead.She gives hergoods to the poor,folk, and asks Stconverts manyUrban to turn her house into achurch,which he does,and buries herA.D. 223,Or A.D. 220."9DE SAINCTE CECILE. SECOND NUN's tale. 205it; he is but aand his gods but stones.Almachius orders her to bebath; and, ascast into a boilingher, to be be- headed.and leaves hervie aux vifz: mais tu ne peulx pas donner vie aux mors: that he can only& adonc tu es ministre de mort, & non pas de vie. " A take life, not givelaquelle almachien dist. " Oste ta forcenerie, & sacrifie minister of Death,aux dieux." & cecile dist. " Ie ne scay se tu as les yeulxperdus, car ceulz que tu dis estre dieux, nous voyons tousque ce sont pierres. Metz donc ta main a ta teste, &prens a taster ce que tu peulx veoir. " Et lors almachien courrouce, la commanda mener en sa maison: &la fist nuyt & iour estre en vng baing tout bouillant;et elle estoit la tout ainsi come en vng froit lieu, & ne that doesn't burnsentit oncques vng peu de sueur. Et quant almachienla ouyt, il commanda qu'elle fust decollee en ce baing.Et le martyreur frappa trois fois sur elle, et ne luy peut The headsman oncques coupper le col. et pour ce qu'il estoit ordonne strikes 3 strokes,que celuy qui estoit decolleur ne ferist le quart coup, celuyla laissa demye morte & toute sanglante. Elle suruesquit.trois iours, & donna tout ce qu'elle auoit aux poures,& tous ceulx qu'elle auoit conuertis a la foy, elle recommanda a l'euesque vrbain, disant. " I'ay requis terme detrois iours pour recommander ceulx cy a ta beatitude:et pour ce que tu consacres ma maison en vne eglise.'Et sainct vrbain ensepuelit son corps entre les euesques: which he does,et dedia sa maison en vne eglise, sicomme elle luy auoit and buries herprie. ¹Et elle souffrit mort enuiron l'an de nostre seigneurdeux cens .xxiii. au temps de alexandre empereur. Et on A.D. 223,lit ailleurs qu'elle souffrit mort au temps de marc aurelienqui fut empereur enuiron l'an de nostre seigneur sept or A.D. 720.cens et vingt.1 Chaucer leaves out the rest.""half dead.She gives her goods to the poor,converts manyfolk, and asks St Urban to turnchurch,her house into awith the bishops,

207[From Caxton's Golden Legende, ed. 1483, ¹ folioCCC lxxvij, back, col. 2.]Here foloweth of saint Cecyle vyrgyne andmarter & fyrste of hyr name.C/ Cecilia means lily ofheaven",or heaven of thepeople':or, 'not blindEcylle is as moche to say as the lylye of heuenor a waye to blynde men / Or she is sayd of celoand lya / or ellys cecilia as lackyng2 blyndenes /Or she is sayd of celo that is heuen /and leosthat is peple / she was an heuenly lylye by clennes ofvyrgynyte / a weye to blynde men by Informacion ofexample / heuen by deuoute contemplacion lya by besyoperacyon / lackyng blyndenes by shynyng of wysedom /and heuen of the people / ¶ For the people behelde in hyr as in folowyng the spyrytuel heuen /thesonne /the mone and the sterrys / that is to say /shynyng of wysedom /magnanymytee of feythe / anddyuersyte of vertues / Or she is sayd a lylye for she a ' lily , for shehad the whytenes of clennesse / a good conscience /and odoure of good fame / Or she is sayd heuen / forysodore saith that the phylosopres sayen / that heuen ' heaven,' becauseis meuable rounde and brennyng In lyke wyse good works,was she moeuyng by besy operacion / rounde by perseueraunce / and brennyng by fyry charyte /¹ The colophon to this 1st ed. , on folio CCCC xliiii, is,"Thus endeth the legende named in latyn legenda aurea / thatis to saye in englysshe the golden legende / For lyke as golde passeth in valewe alle other metalles so thys legendeexcedeth alle other bookes / wherin ben conteyned alle thehygh and grete festys of our lord / the festys of our blessydlady the lyues passyons and myracles of many othersayntes and other hystoryes and actes / as al allonge hereafore is made mencyon / whiche werke I haue accomplisshed at the commaundemente and requeste of the noble and puyssaunte erle and my special good lord Wyllyam erle of arondel & haue fynysshed it at westmestre the twenty day ofnouembre /the yere of our lord M / CCCC / lxxxiij / & the fyrst yere of the reygne of Kyng Rychard the thyrd By me Wyllyam Caxton "2 Caxton's g has a curl more like our d's.3 folio CCC lxxviij.was white as purity;she moved inand burnt by fiery charity.208St Cecilia loved Christ from her cradle.When sheAN EARLY- ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA.S[Ashmole MS. 43, leaf 185, back. ]Eyn Cecile of noble kunne ibore was at rome.Our lord crist heo louede wel ar heo fram cradel comeHeo lette hire baptise stilliche as we fi[n]dep iwrite.3erne heo bed ihesu crist hire maidenhod to wite.to Valerian, poru hire frendes strengpe ispoused heo was to a man.Of gret nobleie & richesse pat het valerian.was married· she wore ahairshirt under her robes,[leaf 186]and she prayed Christ to keep her unspotted.At night she told Valerianloved her,and would?his maide werede robe of pal & clopes swipe riche.Gerlans & tresours al of golde pe here next hire liche.Wen þe menstrales songe hor song of hor menstrasie.his maide stilliche song of god? & seynte marie.813Of pe sauter heo song þis vers pat mest was In hire post.'Letlord mynhertevn-wemmed be: pat Ine beconfoundedno3t.'As heo was any3t in riche bedde? wip hire lord ibrozt.Sone hadde pis fole mon of folie hire bisozt."Suete heorte " quap pis maide? " uor loue pat pou hast to me.Grante pat ich pe mote telle a lute priuete.& pat ich me mote scryue to pe as conseil priue '"Tristiliche pou mizt " quap pis oper❝to sope ich bihote pe.""Suete heorte " quap pis maide " In warde icham ido.99 1620 that an Angel An angel is my wardeyn & my lefmon also.Vaste he stont her by me & 3if he vnderzete.bat pou by-nome my maidenhod uor noping he nolde lete.hat he nolde harde smyte & by-nyme pe pi mizteVor al pe nobleie pat pou hast pe ne halt nozt azen him fizteAc 3if he seop pat pou louest me? In good lif & clene.He wole pe wite as he dop me! & ech vuel fram þe zene "kill him if he tried to rob her of her maidenhood.? Valerian said " 3if pou wolt, lefmon pat ich ileue pis.she must show him the angel;ifit were aman, he'd252832 .be angel pou most scewe me pat ich him ise iwis.3if ich mai pat sope ise pat pou hast pat sope isedIn clannesse ichulle pi wille do? al after þi red.3if ich ise pat In folie louest an noper pen me.kill him and I nele bileue uor noping pat I nele him sle & pe. ""Swete heorte " quap pis maide "zif¹ pou wolt pen angel ise.pou most byleue on ihesu crist & icristned be.If he'dbelieve if pou wolt so pou mizt him ise& so gret Ioie worp of our loueAc pre mile henne pou most goher too.[¹ MS. b zif]Cecilia told Valerian thatin Christ he should see the Angel.& wite he wole ous fram hellepat no tonge ne mai telle.to pe wei of apie 37CAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE '. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 209ST Of saint CecillyeShe came ofnoble Romans,a Christian.and was alwaysher husbandAynt cecillye the holy vyrgyn was comen of thenoble lygnage of the Romayns /and fro the tymethat she laye in hir cradle she was fostrid andnourisshed in the feythe of cryste / and alle weyebare in hir breste the gospel hyd / and neuer cessydday ne nyght from holy prayers but recommaunded togod all weye hir vyrgynyte / and whan thys blessydvyrgyne shold be spoused to a yonge man named When she was to be married,valeryan & the day of weddyng was comen / & wascladde in ryal clothes of golde / but vnder she ware thehayre and she heeryng the organes makyng' melodyeshe sange in hir herte onelye to god sayeng / O lord I she prayed God tobeseche the that myn herte and body may be vnde- keep her pure.fowled so that I be not confounded /and euery secondand thyrd day she fasted commendyng hir self vntoour lord whome she dredde / the nyght cam that sheshold goo to bedde wyth hir husbond as the custome When she had tọ is and whan they were bothe in theyr chambre go to bed withallone / she sayd to hym in thys manere / O my beste Valerian,belouyd and swete husbond / I haue a counceyll totelle the /yf so be that thow wylt kepe it secrete / andswere that ye shal bewreye it to no man /to whomvaleryan say that he wold gladly promyse andswere neuer to bewreye ¹it / and thenne she sayd tohym I haue an aungel that loueth me / which euer and would killkepeth my body whether I slepe or wake and yf he him if he pollutedmay fynde that ye touche my body by vylonye or foule her.and pollute loue / certeynly he shal anone slee youand so shold ye lese the floure of your yongthe / andyf soo be that thou loue me in holy loue and clen- nesse he shall loue the as he loueth me & shal sheweto the his grace / Thenne valeryan corrected by thewylle of god hauyng' drede sayd to hir / yf thou wyltethat I beleue that thou sayest to me shewe to methat aungel that thou spekest of and yf I fynde verytable that he be the aungel of god I shal do thatthou sayest / and yf so be that thou loue another manthan me I shal slee bothe hym and the with myswerde / Cecylle answerd to hym yf thou wylt byleue Cecilia bade him& baptyse the thou shalt wel now see hym / goothenne forth to via appia whiche is thre myle out of' col. 2, folio CCC lxxviij.she told him an Angel loved her,Valerian said, 'Show me your Angel, and I'llnot touch you.'210 EARLY ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale.toWaythe, Applan find out St Urban, andHe was to go ou schalt pere vynde pouere men on ihesu crist crie.Sei pat ich pe to hem sendeTo Seyn Vrban þe olde mon& priue conseil wip him spekeben angel pou schalt penne ise Valerian aros anon as our lordget baptized.Valerian went,Urban among the martyrs'tombs.pat hi pe teche anon.vor pou most to him gonuor he þe schal baptise.& he schal ous bope wise."him zef wille.40To pe stude pat pis maide bad uorp he wende wel stille. 44and found St his pouere men him teizte anon! to pe olde mon Seyn Vrban.In an old stude uor-let per as ne com no man.Among olde puttes & burles as me cristene men þreu.After pat hi Imartred were ware meeny ikneu.To is fet he vel adoun anon so he to him com.Пleaf 186,back]St Urban thankt God that Cecilia had tamed Valerian.An old man appeared from heavenand handed Valerian awriting,'One Lord,one faith , one baptism,' &c.Valerian believed it,St UrbanMS is ]& sede pat cicile him sende puder to esce cristendom."Louerd Ihered be pi mizte " sede Seyn Vrban."Is pis pe luper werreour pat me clepep valerian.War cicile habbe Imad him pat was er so wilde.& more tiraunt pen eny wolf as a lomb pus milde. "po com per go a suype old mon & alizte fram heuene þer.Hor wip wite vestemens a suype uair writ he berpo valerian him isei adoun he vel uor drede.Seyn Vrban him nom vp & gan him uorp lede.•·49525660pis halwe of heuene him tok pis writ & bed him uorte rede.Valerian radde pis writ pat pes wordes sede." O lord is & on bileue & on baptisinge.O god & fader of alle pat bep"Ileuestou " quap Seyn vrban "pat ouer al is in eche pinge '" pat pou dest her iseber nys noping" quap pis oper "pat bet to leue be. " 64After pis wite mon he bihuld he nuste war he bicom.Seyn Vrban him nom anon & 3af him cristendom baptized him, To Seyn Cicile he wende azen? po he hadde ibe per ' i-fulletoheCecilia went back ,He vond hire chambre lizt wippinne & swipe suote smulle.and found an He uond Cecile his gode spouse & an angel bi hire stonde.her, who had Bristore pen eny leome to gerlans he huld an honde.Angel withroses 2 garlands and of Of rosen & of lylion suote pat on cicile he toke.lilies,-lilies for Cecilia's& put oper ualerian as we fi[n]dep in boke.66?72Witep pis " he sede " In trewe loue wip chast bodi & cleneIch hem habbe fram heuene ibrozt our lord it dop zou lene.Vor welluwe ne olde neuer hi nellep ac euer ilaste77 be two maner floures pat per bep nellep neuer hor heu caste.be lilie tokenep zoure maidenhod pat is so wit & suote.maidenhood, he rose bitokenep 3oure martirdom uor peron deie зе mote.roses for her & vor pou dest valerian cecilie red sone. martyrdom . Wat pou of my lord bist he wole grante pi bone. "Valerian askt "I ne wilny noping so muche " sede ualerian." As pat tybors my broper were cristeneman. "that his brother Tybors might turn Chris- tian.80My lord wole " quap pis angel " zeue him pulke grace.pat bope ze schollep at one tyme be? Imartred In one place."CAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE '. SECOND NUN's tale. 211baptized, andsee the Angel.at Cecilia's over- coming Valerian.Valerian,him.this towne and there thou shalt fynde pope urban with go to Popepoure folkes / and telle hym thyse wordes that I have Urban, getsayd and whan he hath purged you fro synne by then he shouldbaptesme /thenne whan ye come ageyn ye shal seethe aungel / and forthe wente valeryan and fonde thisholy man vrbane lowtyng emonge the buryellys / towhom he reported the wordes that cecylle had said /and saynt vrbane for ioye gan holde vp his honde and Urban is rejoictlete the teerys falle out of his eyen / and sayd oalmyghty god Ihesu crist sower of chaast counceylleand keper of vs alle / Receyue the fruyte of the seed /that thou hast sowen in cecyllye / For lyke a besy beeshe seruyth the For the spouse whome she hath takenwhyche was lyke a wode lyon / She hath sente hymhyther lyke as a meke lambe / and wyth that wordapperyd sodeynlye an olde man y-cladde in whyte An old manclothes /holdyng a book wryten wyth letters of golde / appearstowhome Valeryan seyng for fere fyl doun to the groundeas he had been deed /Whome the olde man reysed andtoke vp and redde in this wyse / One god one feythe and proclaimsone baptesme / One god and fader of alle / abouen the one God toalle /and in vs alle cuery where / ¹And whan thisolde man had redde this / he sayd byleuest thou thisor doutest thou it say ye or nay / Thenne valeryancryed sayeng / ther is no thynge trewer vnder heuen / Valerian believes,thenne vanysshed this olde man aweye / Thennevaleryan receyued baptesme of seynt vrbane and Urban baptizesretorned home to saynt cecyllye whome he fonde him; he returnswythin hir chambre spekyng wyth an aungel / andthys aungel had two crownes of roses and lylyes /which he helde in his honde / of whiche he gafe oneto cecylle and that other to valeryen sayeng / kepe yethyse crownes wyth an vndefowled and a clene bodyfor I haue brought them to you fro paradyse / andthey shal neuer fade ne wydderne lose theyrsauourne they may not be seen but of theym towhom chastyte pleasyth / & thou valeryan by causethou hast vsed prouffytable counceyl / demaunde whatthou wylt / To whom valeryan sayd There is no thyngein this world to me leuer thenne my brother / whome Valerian asks I wold fayne that he myght knowe this veray trouthewyth me to whome the aungel sayd /thy petycyonpleseth our lord /and ye bothe shal come to hym by' folio CCC lxxviij ( sigu. bb j ) , back.to Cecilia, andfinds with her an Angel,who gives them a crown of roses and lilies that'll never fade while they are chaste.that his brother may be converted,22212 EARLY ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale.The Angel vanisht.85 be angel wende wip þis word me nuste war he bicom .Tybors came, his two clene pinges wip Ioie Inou hor eiper to oper nomTibors com to pe chambre to speke wip is broper pere and askt where the smell of roses and lilies came from.[leaf 187]him from 2invisible garlands.He stod stille & bihuld aboute as he nuste war he were. 88"Broper" he sede " hou gep pis pis tyme of pe zere.66So suote smul ne smulde ich neuere me pencp as ich do hereþei pis hous were vol of rede rosen & of wite lilion alsoI ne miste hem verisore smul: me pench pen ich nou do. 92So vol icham of pis smul & so muche it is In my pozt.pat I not hou icham sodenliche In oper witte ibrozt.'" gerlans we habbep here.bote pou were our Iuere"Valerian told " Leue broper " quap valerianOf floures pat pou ne mizt iseAc so as pou hast þem suote smul per-of poru our bone.3if pou wolt bileue as we dop" Leue broper " quap pis operOper ich stonde in metynge"In metynge " quap valerianTybors sup- posed his brother was dreaming.

pou mist hem ise sone. "

" weper is it sop pis& mete pat it so is."66Valerian he had onlysaid Nou we bep verst of slepe awaked just been awokeby God's angel.Cecilia told Tybors thatonly wood,and that he must become her brother,and be bap:96100we habbep euer ibe.nou we mowe uerst ise.""Suxtou bet nou " quap pis oper " pen pou hast er ido. "3e " sede valerian " wel me bi- houep so 66Vor my lordes angel of heuene hap izeue me sizt& vor our loue he wole pe also 3if pou wolt bileue arizt ”bo sede pis holi maide " tybors leue broper.104109112• 117his idols were Wat bep pis maumetes bote wrechede pou suxt non oper.Ne suxtou hou it is monnes werc Imad of old tre.ping pet ne mai him sulue helpe hou mai it helpe pe "" Noping nys soper " quap tibors! "pen pat pou hast ised.Woder he weper pen eny best pat nolde do pi rede "Seyn Cecile him custe anon "leue tybors " heo sede"To dai pou schalt my broper be vor pou wolt do bi rede.poru clene loue of good bileue pi broper my spouse isper-poru pou schalt bicome also my broper wan pou art hisMyd valerian pou most go to be biscop vrban& be icristned & do also as he þe rede can.""Is pat vrban " quap tybourshat are hap ibe fleme & ihudVorberne he scholde & we also& so pe wole we heuene sozteCecilia speaks " & 3if þer nere " quap pis maide: " soulement bote pis lif.Fol he were put it wolde leseAn wen þer is so muri lif þatFol is pat nele an wule be wotized by St Urban.ofthejoys of the future life."""pat so 3erne hap ibe isozt.& 3if he were uorp ibrozt.3if we wip him werevorberne we miste here. "vor eny strif121124we schullep her-after auonge.to be In Ioie so longe. ”Tybors asks " Leue broper " quap tybours "ich biseche pe to be led to St Urban.He is baptized,Lede me to pulke gode monne: & haue mercy of me.' 128put o broper ladde pat oper to pe biscop Vrban & let him vorsake is fole bileue & bicom cristene man.and sees the Tibours po he com azen: þen angel he sei anon.Angel.CAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE '. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 213the palme of marterdom / and anone tyburce his brother and he, Tyburce,came and entryd in to thys chambre / and anone he feltethe swete odour of the roses & lylyes /and meruaylledfro whens it came / Thenne valeryan sayd we hauecrownes whyche thyn eyen may not see and lyke as bymy prayers [thou] hast felte the odour of them / so yfthou wylt byleue / thou shalt see the crownes of rosesat once comes in,and lylyes that we haue / Thenne cecyllye and and hears ofvaleryan began to preche to tyburcyen of the ioye ofheaven, the abuse ofidols, &c.,heuen / and of the foule creaunce of paynyms / theabusyon of ydolles /and of the paynys of helle whichethe dampned suffre and also they prechyd to hym ofthe Incarnacion of our lord and of hys passyon / and and ofChrist,dyd so moche that Tyburcyen was conuerted and bap- and is baptizedtysed of saynt vrbane / and fro than forthon he had somoche grace of god that euery day he sawe aungellys /by St Urban.214 EARLY ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale.pat Cecile him hadde bihote?Cecilia, being Cecile, vor heo womman wasAc pis breperen pat were mena woman, has to stay at home.leaf 187, bk]The brothers go out, bury martyred Christians,the act,& wen me martred cristenmenIn pe chambre wip hire gon.atom heo moste abide.aboute wende wide.133puder hi wolde gon.& stele to wen hi mizte best & burie hem anon [don.bi-uore pe Iustice hi were ibro3t me lefte hem wat hi woldeHo made hem so hardi to ben pe emperours fon.140144are caught in As hi burede twei gode men pat Imartred were.Come be emperours men & nome hem rizt pere.be misbileued trechours pat were azen our lawe.hat wip rist Iugement of londe were ibrozt of dawe." Sire, we wolde," quepe pis oper! " pat we wurþi wereHor knaues uorte habbe ibe pat ze lette quelle pere.Hi bileuede ping pat nozt nas pei semblaunce hadde& toke pat was aworp & no semblance nadde.Vor pei worldes wele habbe semblance uor sope not it nys.& pei pe blisse of heuene penche lute uor sope muche it is. "Belamys, " pe Iustices seden? "3e me pencp wode.Wurpe he it to habbe wo hose kepep no3t of gode. "and taken before the Justices.the Justices66•Valerian tells " In wynter," quap valerian " idelmen sittep & drinkep.To busemar hi lizep erpetilien pat aboute gode swynkep.In heruest wen hi mowe vair corn repethat when149153In meseise hi mowe go vp & doun vor hi nabbeþ neuer a grepe& we schollep uor our trauail þi blisse repe atenende.Wen ze schulleb uor our Ioie wepynge to helle wende "be in heaven. " Eke we, " quap pe Iustice " pat lordes scholde be.they are in hell, he and Tybors willThe Justice orders the Brothers to sacrifice.They refuse, and are put in prison,where they convert their jailer.Cecilia bids them show their stal wartness.They refuse to sacrifice to idols, and are beheaded,Maxime sees their souls taken to heaven, de- clares himselfa Christian,Scourged toand isdeath.Bep lasse worp pen suche wreches pat nellep neuer ipe. ”"Certes " quap ualerian " pou art lasse itold ben a beggare azen god ne be pou ne so bold"6615716097164Belamy," quap pe Iustice " I ne kepe no3t of pi Ianglinge.Dop 30ure sacrifice anon oper me schal 3ou to depe bringe"Certes" quepe pis gode men? "pou ne bringest ous not perto."be Iustice hem let anon In strong prison do?Maxime pe gailer het pat hem In warde nom.So pat he & alle his poru hem cristene bicomSeyn Cecile com bi pe prison loude heo gan grede."Wat dop 3e, stalwarde kny3tes cupep 30ure stalward hede.Fiztep nou stalwardliche to bileue pis derkhede.169172bat 30 were In þe weie ibrozt pat to cler lizt 30u wole lede "Amorwe to pe maumet pis gode men were ibrozt.pe Iustice hem het do sacrifice ac po hi nolde nozt.Hor heden he het bope of smyte & maxime iseiWar angles hor soulen nome & to heuene bere an hei.To pe Iustice he eode anon " cristene icham " he sede" Ich isei pe gode menne soulen angles to heuene lede. " 176De Iustice him let nyme anon naked he let him bete.Wip stronge scourgen vaste ibounde vorte he gan pat lif lete.TCAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE ' . SECOND NUN's tale. 215Provost of Rome,orders Valerian and Tyburce tosacrifice to Jupiter, or be beheaded.They convert their tormentors,and Maximus and his household,and alle that euer he requyred of our lord he opteyned /After almachyus prouoste of rome / which put to deth Almachius,many crysten men herde say that tyburcyen &valeryen buryed cristen men that were marterd / &gafe al their good to pour peple / he called them toforehym & after longe dysputacion he commaunded thatthey shold goo to the statue or ymage of Iubyter for todoo sacrefyse / or ellys they shold be byheded / & asthey were ledde they prechyd the feyth of our lord toone called maxyme /that they conuerted hym to thecristen feyth / & they promysed to hym that yf he hadveray repentaunce & ferme creaunce that he shold seethe glorye of heuen / which their sowles shold receyueatte hour of theyr passyons / & that he hym self sholdhaue the same yf he wold byleue / Thenne maximusgate leue of the tormentours for to haue them home tohis hows & the sayd maxymus with al his howsholde / and alle the tormentours were torned to thefeyth / thenne came seynt cecyllye thyder withpreestys & baptysed them / and afterward whan themornyng came saynt cecylye sayd to them / Now yeknyghtes of crist /caste aweye fro you the werkes ofderknes & clothe you with the armes of lyght / &thenne they were ledde four myle out of the towne / &brought tofore thymage of Iupyter / but in no wysethey wold do sacrefyse ne encence to thydolle / buthumbly with grete deuocion knelyd doun & there werebyheded & saynt cecylye toke their bodyes & buryed Cecilia bariesthem thenne maxymus that saw this thyng said thathe sawe in the houre of theyr passyon aungels clereshynynge & her sowles ascende in to heuen whychethe aungels bare vp / wherfore many were conuerted tothe cristen feythe / & whan almache herde thatmaxyme was cristened / he dyd do bete hym with till he dies,plomettes of leed so longe tyl he gaue vp hys spyryte &' folio CCC lxxiij, back, col. 2.They refuse toJupiter, and aresacrifice tobeheaded.them.Almachius has Maximus beaten216 EARLY ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA SECOND NUN'S TALE..[leaf 188]Cecilia is taken before the Justice, who abuses her,of what de- scent she is.'Ofbetter than you,·Buys Cecilia;you ask like a fool,and turnshall me from not Christ.'"How dare you call me afool, with my power? "

• Your power is only a

bladderof air,bat bodi hi caste wip-poute toun po gon Cecile orp gon.his pre holi martirs to-gadere heo burede anon.Heo was sone Inome & ilad byuore pe Iustice po." Wat " he sede " hou gep pis bep per zut screwen mo.Artou valerianes wif: bi pe fei ich owe mahon.66 ""180184189196and asks her Bote pou oper do, pi wite heu worp sone ibrozt adonOf wat kun artou icome pat so folliche pe dop lere.""Of betere kunne " quap pis maide " pen pou euer wereIn wuch maner lif quap pis oper pencstou þi lif lyue.pouaxst as afol quap pis maide? & such vnsuere me schal pe zineVor al pi poer pou schalt ise wen pou wost pen ende.pat pou ne schalt fram ihesu cristenes myn herte wende. ”"Hou com it to be " quap pis oper "to be so hardi her.To clepe me fol pat am pi maister ne suxstou my poer." 192 pi poer wreche quap pis maide " worp sone ibrozt bi-hindeVor it nys bote as a bleddore iblowe uol ofwyndehat be ipriked wip a pricke awei it scrynkep al.that 'll shrink Also wip a lute sekenesse pi wreche caroine schal.bi poer pat pou zelpest of worp þenne suype lute. ”"Hou gep pis " quap pe Iustice? " dame, wenne comep þi prute.can I not give Ne mai ich pe 3eue dep & lif? ne suxtou wip pin eie"Certes sire " quap pis maide "pou luxt þer of wel heie.A wreche caroine pou mizte 3eue dep pat wel schort is. 200Ac of lyue pou miste noping 3eue pi sulue no3t iwis.Wen pou mist dep 3eue me pencp bi pur rizt.bat pou art depes sergant & of lif nastou no mizt& wen pou depes sergaunt art dep þi lord is.& In dep wippoute ende pou wolt be iwis. ""Dame " quap pe Iustice " of pi godhede ne kepe ich nost.oper pou worst to depe ibroztSeyn Cecili sede.at a prick.'"Proud woman,you death or Life?' No.' says Cecilia, only death to my carcase.'our gods, or be put to death."Cecilia de- clares she will not66 """" Sacrifice to Do sacrifice to oure godespou seist pat ich gidi am" Ac pou art gidi & eke blynd I sene on pi rede.Scholde ich honoure pine godes pat bep of ston & treI lef 3if ich segge sop 3if pou miзt nozt ise.worshipstone Bote pou be blynd pou mist ise3if pou it suxst & leuest it no3tVor gidi he is pat nele ileue? þat& as gidi mon & blynd pou schaltpat pis ping sop is.gidi pou art iwis.19204209212he sucp myd eie.In helle pyne deie. " 216 The Justice po verde pe screwe as he were wod & het pis maide take.& lede hire to an out hous! & a gret fur make.orders herto be put into a caldron of water,bits.220& per ouer a led uol of water & al amidde hire casteand boiled to & sepe hire pe wule per wole a lym of hire ilaste.po pis Iugement was izeue & me hire uorp laddeWimmen & men pat it iseie loude hi wope & gradde."Alas hi sede "a pis¹ 3ong ping & a pis¹ vair creature.Schal nou zeue hire lif & deie pour fure. "3onge" Bep stille " quaþ þís holi maide? “ uor me ne wepe ze nozt.The folk mourn that [leaf 188, bk]she will lose her life.[¹ MS. þ⁹]224CAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE '. SECOND NUN'S TALE. 217brought to him,to take her,deyed /whos body Saynt Cecyllye buryed by valeryanand Tyburcyan / & after almache commaunded that and then orderscecylye shold be brought vnto hys presence for to doo Cecilia tobesacrefyse to Iubyter & she so prechyd to them that and to sacrifice tocame for hyr that she conuerted them to the feyth Jupiter.which wepte sore / that so fayr a mayde & so nobleshold be put to deth /thenne she said to them /o yegood yonge men it is noo thynge to lese the yongthe / She converts1 but to chaunge hit /that is to gyue claye and take those who cometherfore golde / To gyue a foule habytacle and take aprecyous / To gyue a lytel corner and to take a ryghtgrete place / God rewardeth for one symple / an hondred folde / byleue ye thys that I haue said And theysayd /we beleue cryste to be veray god whiche hathsuche a seruaunte /thenne saynt vrbane was callydand four hondred and moo were baptysed / ¶ Thenne and 400 arealmachyus callyng tofore hym saynt cecylye sayd to baptized.hir / of what condycyon arte thou /& she sayd thatshe was of a .noble kynrede / To whome almachyus Almachius askssayd / I demaunde the of what relygyon arte thou / Cecilia of what religion she is,thenne cecyle sayd thenne begannest thou thydemaunde folyly that woldest haue two answers in onedemaunde To whome almache sayd / Fro whenscometh thy rude answer / & she sayd / of good conscience and feyth not fayned /To whome almachyussayd /knowest thou not of what power I am / and shesayd thy power is lytel to drede for it is like abladder ful of wynde / whiche wyth the pryckyng ofnedle is anone goon aweye and come to nought /¶ Towhome almache sayd / in wronge beganst thou and inwronge thou perseueryst / Knowest thou not how ourprynces haue gyuen me power to gyue lyf and to slee /& she sayd now shal I proue the a lyar ageynst theveray trouthe / Thou mayst wel take the lyf fro themthat lyue but to them that been deed thou maystgyue no lyf / Therfore thou arte a mynystre / not oflyf /but of dethe /To whome almachyus sayd nowlaye a parte thy madnes / and do sacrefyse to the He tells her togoddes / To whome cecyllye sayd / I wote neuer where sacrifice to thethou hast loste thy syght / for them that thou sayestben goddes / we see them stones put thyn hande / and She says theyby touchyng thou shalt lerne that whiche thou mayste are stones.not see wyth thyn eyen / Thenne almachyus was He orders her towrothe and commaunded hyr to be ladde in to hyr be putinto ahows & there to be brente in a brennyng baynefolio CCC lxxix, col. 1 .aand warns her of his power.She says hispower is like abladder full ofair;he cannot givelife, but only take it.gods.burning bath,218 EARLY ENGLISH LIFE OF ST CECILIA. SECOND NUN's tale." Nay, I lose Mi 30nge lif ne lese ich no3t ac to lyue ich worpe ibrozt notmyyoung A scorte dep ich schal auonge & lif wippouten ende.life. Ashort Fol were pat nolde so god him me sende "life, godeath will bring meto life withoutcast into thewaves,converts 400 men. The Justice or- ders her to be!

228236Me caste hire In pe sepende water per-Inne al nyzt heo sepend. She is be lengore per-Inne heo was pe verrore heo was hire depboilingwater, Wippe walmes heo sat & pleide: & prechede of godes grace.plays with its Mo pen four hondred men bicome per cristene In pe place.preaches, and be Iustice isei pat me ne mizte In such dep qulle hire noztHe let smyte of hire heued pat heo were to depe ibrozt.be quellare hire smot wip is mayn pre sipe in hire suere.He ne smot it no3t uolliche of pe dep was ibozt dere.No quellare ne moste bi pulke daie smyte ouer prie.Half slawe hi bileuede hire so hamward he gan hie.Nou an vuel stude god it wolde vor he was a screwe.Wo dude he pe holi maide gulteles so hire to hewe.shrew that he & beleue hire so half alyue welle wo him be.Vor ho muste of no deol per me mizte ise.his holi maide eode aboutebeheaded.The killer hits her 3times, but doesn't quite cut her head off, and he leaves her halfslain,was!Cecilia goes with About halfoff, gives her goods tothe poor,Christ;hire heued half of ismyte.240248bat was half quic & half ded? pat reupe it was to wite. 244& pouere men muche of hire good delede wip hire honde.Hit was a uair grace of god pat heo mizte enes stonde.turns mento Heo prechede & to ihesu crist mony good mon wende.& alle to Seyn Vrban pe biscop to baptise heo sende.& bed him pat he schulde hire hous pat heo wonede Inne.Halwy In our lordes name? & a chirche per bygynne.& burie per hire suete bodi & pat our lordes seruice Vpe is poer per-Inne were ido? In alle wiseand begs St Urban to make her house into achurch.On the 3rd day she dies,Baying that she goes to Jesus.99be pridde day after hire martirdom pis maide adoun lay.& prechede cristene men & bed hem habbe good day.& sede nou ichabbe ido al pat my wille is to.Wende ichulle to ihesu crist & 30 schulle alsoThis was A.D. pis was two hondred 3er & pre & twenti rizt.After pat our lord was In is Nou bidde we our suete lordTo bringe ous to pulke Ioie223.Let us pray God to bring us to joy.moder alizt252256uor hire holi martirdom.pat hire soule to com.260CAXTON'S LYF OF SAYNT CECILYE • SECOND NUN'S TALE. 219beheaded.The headsman strikes 3 strokesat her, and then leaves her halfdead.She sends converts toUrban to be baptized, andbids him turn her house intoa church.which hir semed was a place colde & wel attemperyd /thenne almachyus heeryng that commmaunded that and then tobeshe ' shold be byheded in the same bath / Thenne thetormentour smote at hyr thre strokes / and coude notsmyte of hyr heed /& the fourth stroke he myght notby the lawe smyte / and so lefte hir there lyeng halfea lyue / and halfe dede and she lyued thre dayes afterin that manere / and gaue al that she had to pourepeple and contynuelly prechyd the faythe al thatwhyle / & alle them that she conuerted she sente tovrbane for to be baptysed / and sayd I haue axed respyte thre dayes that I myght commende to you thysesoules / And that ye schold halowe of myn hows achyrche / and thenne at the ende of thre dayes sheslepte in our lord and saynt vrbane wyth his dekenesburyed hir body emonge the bysshoppes /and halowedhir hows in to a chyrche / In whyche vnto this day issayd the servyce vnto our lord / She suffred hirpassyon aboute the yere of our lord two hundred andxxiij in the tyme of alexaunder themperour and it isredde in another place /that she suffred in the tymeof marcij aurelij whyche reygned aboute the yere of ourlord two hondred and twenty Thenne lete vs deuoutelye praye vnto our lord that by the merytes ofthys holy vyrgyne and marter saynt cecyly we maycome to his euerlastyng blisse in heuen amen /Thus endeth the lyf of Saynt Cecillye virgyne& marter.¹folio CCC lxxix ( sign, bb ij), col, 2.He buries her,and makes herhouse a church.Shewas martyredab. 223 or 220 A.D.16CH. ORIG.W22113.The Story of Constance(FOR CHAUCER'S MAN OF LAW'S TALE)ENGLISHT IN A MS. OF ABOUT 1430-1440 A.D., BELONGING TO SIR A.ACLAND-HOOD, BART. , FROM THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OFNICHOLAS TRIVET, AFTER 1334 A.D. (see p. iii, 1, above).CH. ORIG. 16222When the Constance story from Trivet was printed as the first' Original ' in this volume, no Early English of the French wasknown, and so Mr Brock put his modern version opposite Trivet's.But since then, Mr Alfred J. Horwood has, in the course of hissearches for the Historical Manuscripts Commission, come across amid- 15th-century translation, on vellum, of the French Chronicle,belonging to Sir Alexander Acland- Hood, Bart. Mr Horwood'soffer (by Sir A. Acland-Hood's permission) to have the Constancestory copied for us, at our cost, I gladly accepted, and he has kindlyread both copy and proof with the MS. Mr Brock has added somereferences on the variations of the English version from the originalFrench text.The figures outside the text refer to the lines of Chaucer's Manof Law's Tale, numberd from 1. 1 of its Headlink or Prologue.Chaucer's story differs from Trivet in a few particulars; see pagesvii-x above.17 November, 1875.F. J. F.1 The volume wants its last leaf. The now last one ends with the siege of Caen.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 223<The Story of Constance.1The yere after the incarnacioun Dlxx. Tiberie Constantyn heeldethe Empyre xxiij. yere: a good cristen man and a religious, unto whomgod encreased hys tresoures, for the grete almesdedes the whyche heded ¶ ffor all that Tresoure the whyche Narset Patrice gaderedtogeder and heeped, he founde hit, and departed that amonge poremen. ¶ And in hys tyme, that ys to sey, the ix. yere of his empyre,Benoit heelde the See papale, a Romayne be nacion, .iiij . yere .vj .dayes. And the See was then vacaunt vij dayes. And in thetyme of thys Tiberye, seynt Gregory,—Notary of Rome, and afterward pope, dwellyng at Constantinople for the besynesse and nedeof hooly churche, wrote the bokes moralles uppon the booke of Iob,at the request of leander, bysshop of hyspaly. And in the presenceof the emperour Tiberie, that booke was rehersed, and gretlyrenamed. And in the tyme of thys Benoit, the pope now named,and of thys Gregory, Chylderen weir brought to Roome out of Englond for to be solde, the whyche were the Brytons childrene. andamonge alle other that come to by chyldrene, come seynt Gregory,the whyche at that tyme was Archedeken of the Court of Rome.¶ And then seynt Gregory axed ' of whens and of what contre thochylderen were.' And men answered to hym , and seyde that theywere of Engelond. ' And than seynt Gregory axed ' of what contre. 'And men answered to hym, and seyde, that they were of Deram, 3and that her kynges name was Alle.' Than seyde seynt Gregory that' be ryght they mygħt be fulle welle called Engles or Anglys men,for they, for her beaute, myght wele be lykened to the Aungeles.And that they of Deram myght wele be named delyuered fromwrothe. latine. Deram. vel de Ira ¶ And that the sugettes of kyngFr. Renommé .. renowmed, .. exceedingly spoken of. -Cotgr.1p. 89.23 Deira.6"224 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW's tale.973Alle mygħt lerne to syng Alleluya.' And anone seynt Gregory wasso supprysed of the Beaute of thoo chyldren, the whyche there werenamed Angeles, he gate leue of the Pope Benoit to go in to Engelondfor to conuerte hem unto the feyth of holy Chirche. But the Citezeins of Rome disturbelyd hym, and made hym come ageyne whanhe was goyng. And in the tyme of thys Emperoure Tiberie, theCote of oure lorde Ihesu Criste was found by a lewe, in the Cite ofzephat, nat fer from Ierusalem. And in hys tyme, hermengild, theson of kyng lemgild kyng of Visego; in Ethenes wedded the doughterof kyng Sigeberd. And by hys wyfe he was drawen to the ryghtfeythe of Cristen men. for the whyche cause hys fader, the whychewas an herytyk by the doctrine of the Arriens, was angry and rygħtwrothe. And for cause that he myght not withdrawe hys son fromcristen feythe, he made hym to be slayne with a ax in prison oponan Ester Euyn. And anone after dyed hys wycked fader. Andthan regnyd hys son Ricared, the whyche forsoke the eueH feythe ofhys ffader, And sewed the belefe of hys brother, the whyche wasthan a martir, And made clene hys Reame from heresy Arriane, beleaunder, bysshop of hispale beforesayde. Than after Benoitpelagie heelde the see papale a Romayn by nacion .x. yere .ij.monthes and x dayes. Thys Pelagy was sacred pope withoute commaundement of the prince for cause that the lombardes had besegedRome. and noman mygħt go oute of that Cyte. Thys Pope Pelagiemade chaunge the preface of the masse .ix. tymes in the yere.thatysto sey at Cristemasse and at the Twelf day At Ester And at theAscensioun at Witsontide and at the Trinite And at the festes ofthe Crosse and of the aposteles and in the tyme of lentoñ. ¶ Andin his tyme the pestilence of the flank, that ys to sey the hoche,come oute and slewe many a man and chylde of Rome; the whychesekenes, fewe men ascaped hit than. And of thys sekenes dyed thepope Pelagye And than after was the see vacaunt .vij . monthes and.xxv. dayes. And¹ in the tyme of thys Tiberie Constantyne theEmperoure as som Cronicles seyene there was a full worthy knygħtofthe contre of Capadoce called Morys. Thys Morys was chosen bythe forsayde Tiberie to be Emperour with hym. and he gaue to hym' Here begins the French extract, p. 3.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 225Constance hys doughter to be hys wife, And called hym¹ hys Eyre.But as the olde Cronicles of Saxons sayeth, Thys Morys was but ofxviij . yere age when he was ordeynyd by Tiberie un to the Empere,a full gracious yonge man, and of a merueylous strengthe of hys age,and of a wyse wytte, and of a sharpe. Thys Morys after the storyof Saxons was the son of Constance, the doughter of Tyberie of akyng of Saxons, Alle before named, 2the whyche was the secundkyng of Northumber, and was seyde of Cappodoce. ffor xij. yere hewas norysshed in the Courte of the Senatoure Tarquinus of Rome,the whyche was of Cappodoce. Wherfore hit ys to know that thysTyberie Constantyne, as longe as he gouerned the Court and theprouinces of the empyre under the Emperour Iustyne, as hit ys beforesayde at the begynnyng of the xlvj. storye, begate of hys wyfe ytaliea doughter called Constance. T And for that cause that he hadnon other chylde, with fuH grete diligence made her to be taughtthe Cristen feythe, by wyse masteres knowyng the vij sciences,the whyche beth logyke, naturel, moral, astronomy, Geometry,Musique, perspectiue, Whyche bethe the philosophies seculiersynamed and cleped. And made her to be taught in diuerse langages.Than whan she was entird in to the xiij. yere of her age, there 134com unto her fader Court Tiberie, marchaunts paynemes oute fromthe grete Sarasin neym, brynging fut diuerse and ryche merchaundyses. to whom Constaunce come doune for to auyse her ryches.And so she axed hem of hem of her londe and of theyre beleue.And whan that she understode that they were paynemes, she prechedtheym the cristen feythe. And than whan they had assented to thefeythe of Cristen meñ, she made hem to be baptised, and to be taughtparfitely in the feythe of Ihesu Cryst. Than they returnyd and went 173hoome unto her londe. And than when they knowlagyd her feythebefore her neyghbores and her kynrede Sarazins, they were accusedto the grete Sowdan of theyre feythe. And than after that theywere brought before hym, they were reproued by the wyse men ofthat lawe, forcause that they wolde belefe opon a man crucified andmortale. But than after, when they had sufficiently defended thelawe of Ihesu Crist ageynst the paynemes, the whyche cowde nerFr. la clama, p. 3. p. 90.2226 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW's tale.wyst more to sey un to hem, ¹neyther in no wyse alley nothyng by183 reason ageynst hem, ¹ began to preyse the mayde Constaunce, thewhyche had conuerted hem, of her hygħ and so nobull prudence, andof so grete and meruelous beaute and ientilnesse with grete noblesof blood. By the whyche wordes the Sowdan gretely supprysed inthe loue of that maydene. And also, he beyng then a man of yongeage, sente than ageyne in all haste, the same cristen men the whychewere so conuerted to the feythe. And with theym A Admirał, Apayneme, with a fuH grete Aray And richesse un-to the presence ofTiberie, and specially un-to hys doughter,² askyng that mayden Constaunce in mariage with fuH grete promesses of peese and aliauncebetwene the parties of Cristen peple and of the Sarazyns . ¶ Andthan whan Tiberi had counsayle of thys Demaunde, and specially of234 pope Iohan (of whome hit ys abouesayde in the xlvj . storye) , andalso of other men moost reputed of wysdom in a holy churche,And also the Romayns of aH the Senat of Roome, they answeredto the Admiral and to hys messangeres:((That yef the Sowdanwylled hymself to assent for to forsake hys maumettes, and hys untrew mescreaunces and false beleue, And that he wołł resceue bapteme,and the lawe of Thesu Cryste." Than to thys couenaunt Tiberieassented to the alliaunce, but to nothing elles in other fourme. ¶ Anduppon thys, Tiberie sent hys letters to the Sowdan, and gretelyworshypped the Messangers. And than the sayd messengers, athere commyng hoome to the Sowdon, praysed the mayden Constaunceabove all thynges, and her noblesse, and the kynges courte, with allthe ientiH Chivalrye of the nobuH emperoure Tiberie. ¶ And thanthe Admiral, before the Sowdoun and before all his counsay ,avowed hymself to the cristen feythe, yef the Sowdan wylled assenttherto. T Than after, withyn fewe dayes the Sowdan sent ageynethe same Admiral, and ful solempne Messagers of the grettest andthe moste worthyest of hys londe, And in theyre Conduit .xij.chyldren Sarizens, the sonnes unto the grete Sarazins hostages, untoTiberie, in fourme of suerte for hys doughter. And to thys he sent244 hys assent, hygħ and lowe, of the ordinaunce of cristen men.1-1 neyther ..... hem, not in the Fr. See p. 5.2 richesses &presentz a Tyberie & safile, p. 5,And13. TRIVET'S STORY OF . CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 227to thys the Sowdon sent hys letteres full well sealed, and for to haueAn entiere and a hoole pees among all cristen men, And the Sarizens,and also free passage for to goo and com frely with her marchaundises,and for to vysyte the holy place of the sepulture of oure lorde, Andthe mount of Caluary, and of Bedleem and of Nazarethe, And thevale of Josophat, And aH other holy places withyn the marches ofhys power. And he aboundenyd the Cite of Ierusalem un to thelordeshyp of crysten men, for to enhabyte hem and to dwelt yn.And also ffrauncheys to the Cristen Bysshopes And to theyre clergye,to preche and to teche the pepul of that londe the ryght feythe, andfor to cristen and baptise, and to make churches; and ¹moreouer forto destroy the temples of the Maumettes. And opon thys, the Sowdan sent hys letters to the pope, and to the Clergy, and to Tiberiealso, and to the mayden Constaunce, and to all the Senat, with rycheyeftes and tresoures, and for hys meyny full grete expenses. Thenopon) thys maundement and sendyng, al pepul acorded hemselfanone. And in that tyme that mayden Constaunce was sent oute ofher house, and from her faders place, and oute from all knowlege, 268among the straunge barbarins with full grete heuynes and muchepiteful wepynge, and gretly compleynyd of all the cite of Rome.And in that viage and iorney there was a bysshop Cardinal sent, 253And a preest Cardinal with grete nomber of Clergie, And a Senatoureof Roome with full nobul Chyualry and wyth full grete and rychearay and with grete nomber of cristen men, the whyche went wythhem, and som in pilgremage, And som other for theyre heretaunseand seisine of the Cite of Ierusalem. Than hit happed full mys- 323cheuously that the Sowdon Modur, the whyche that tyme leued, ofwhoos lyfe, Allas, was grete pite, had nat the wył of god be. She,seyng and considering that her wyked lawe was in poynt to bedestroyed by cristen men the whyche were comen in to Sarazaneym,she bethought herself of Cursednes and of treasone. ¶ And than,after she had made a pryuy and a secrete aliaunce of Covenant withvij. Sarazyns, the whychre abounded hemself for to lyue and to dyein that queret meued of her son.2 ¶ When she herde the commyng 375of that mayden and of the cristen peple A lytell wey withyn theen la querele, Mist a sonfitz, p. 9.сI p. 91 .2228 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.Clond, she began for to thanke god, And with her false feyntese topreyse god, that she had at that tyme purpose to resceyue the laweof cristen men. And there she swere as a false forsworen creature,that full grete whyle she had be in that wylle for to haue resceyued379 the cristen lawe. ¶ Than finaly prayed her son the Sowdaun, thathe wolde graunt to her the furst feste, before AH the festes of thenobu Espousalys and weddinges. And the Sowdan hymselfthanked her muche, and graunted to her her desyre. ¶ Then was396 that mayden and the cristen men resceyued of the Sowdon and ofhis moder with full grete worshyp and muche grete nobeles. T And414the furst day of her commyng was the feste purueyde for in thepaleys of the Sowdan; and the meete and dyner was ordeynyd thus:That in the halys of the Sowdan moder¹ shulde abyde at the mencristene and Sarizins; And also in the hales and in the feeste of theSowdan2 shuld be but onely the women, al besyde the vij. Sarazins,the whyche were hired for that tresoun, and ordeynyd for to seruefrom oo feste un to the other.3 ¶ And than tho .vij . Sarazins hyred,whan the feeste was most lusty and pleasaunt, they come yn armed,with a grete multitude of theyre Aliaunce and consentours, upon the429 men the whyche were sette at mete. And after, by the ordinaunce ofthys Sowdons moder, they slew all the cristen peple, bothe man andwoman, but onely reseruyng that mayden Constaunce. And therethey slewe the Sowdan and the admirale, and all other conuerted to435the feythe. And thorougħt all the Court, as many as they myghtfynde of the comone peple of cristen men, they put hem unto dethe.But among hem all, .iij seruauntes of cristen meñ ascaped Anoonfurst whan they harde that affray; And in a haste they come toRome, and tolde to the Emperoure that grete myschefe and myscheuous dede, and the grete treason, And the dethe of hys doughterConstaunce, as they than understode. And then, for these tidinges,the Emperour, with all the Clergy and the Senat, was gretly ameuedand affrayed; And grete sorow and heuynesse was made here fore438 thorowgħ al Rome. ¶ And than thus in thys maner of wyse aboodoConstaunce alone, att dismayed among her enemyes. Than after,1 li soudan, p. 11. 2 le soudane [sa miere], p. 11 and footnote.3 del vnefeste & del autre, p. 11.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 229whan Constaunce wold nat for no feere promes of ryches, neyther ofyeftes, neyther also for no manassyng of peyne, neyther of dethe,reney and forsake the cristen feythe, That Sowdenesse, the deuyHmembre, bethought herself of a new torment with all her false crueHwyH. ¶ Nat for that the purueaunce of god, the whyche fayledneuer to folke hauyng her full trust opon hym. Thys mayde Constaunce trustyng opon ałmyghty god, made¹ a shyp for to be storedwyth vytayle of a maner of Brede, the whyche ys called Bisquite,and with pesyn and Benys, and wyth Sugor and hony and wyne forher sustenaunce for .iij . yere. And in that Shyp she had do put aH 442the Ryches and tresoure the whyche the Emperour Tiberie had sentwith that mayde Constaunce hys doughter. ¶ And than in that shyp,that ungoodly Morderes the Sowdans Moder, put 2 that mayd Con- 440staunce, withoute pooles or Orys, and withoute any maner of helpe ofman. And thus thys Constaunce was led amonge other shyppes,unto her shyp was come in to the hygħ see from the sygħt of almaner londe. And then all the Maryners left her allone, And commaunded her to the iiij . wyndes. But oure lorde god was her guydeand mariner; ffor be hoole .iij . yere she was led be god in the greteOcciane, where all that tyme she sawe neuer man) neyther shyp,neyther had neuer comforte of creature; but onely god comfortedher, and was her fuH counsayle. ¶ Than after, in the viij. monetħof the foure yere [it befel] that god-the whyche gouerned that holymannys shyp, Noe, in the grete diluuie, that ys to say, Noes flood,-sent a wynde full propise and couenable, and draue the shyp in to 505Englond, under a castel in the Reame of Northumberlond besydehumber. And the shyp arryued and come to londe on Cristemaseuen. And whan the marineres, the whyche were nere the brynke ofthe londe in her shyppes, sawe thys meruayle, that ys to say, a maydenful fayre, and of a fuH iente feture, but gretly discolored with astraunge atyre, And wele stored with full grete tresoure, They wentthan to the kepar of the castel, whyche than was a Saxoñ, and hysname was called Olda, -ffor at tyme the Brytons had lost the lordeshyp of the ysle, as hit ys before saide in the ende of the .xlv. story,—And there they tolde hym that meruayle. ¶ And than Olda ful 512Dount ele [that is, the Sultaness] fist, p. 11.? p. 92.230 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.curteysly come doune to that mayden Constaunce, and salued her,519 and axed of her ' where she was bore, And of what place. ' 1 Andshe answered to hym and sayde that ' she was a Saxonesse, and bornin Saxon. ' And she spake redyly the tonge of Saxon, ¹ whyche wasthe langage of Olda, as she was full well taught in many diuerse langages as hit ys abouesayde. And also that mayden seyde, ' as forCreaunce and beleue, that she was of the cristen feythe.' And astouchyng her lynage, she sayd that ' she was bore and bred of theryght ryche folke and worthy.' And be her langage she sayde524 that ' she was geuen in to Mariage unto a grete prince; And for thatcause that her mariage displeased the grete astates of that londe, forthat cause she was in such maner exyled.' And among all her seyinges she wold nat be a knowen of Tibery the Emperoure, her ffader,neyther of the Sowdan; for the auenture of that morder of theSowdan and of the cristen men was than knowen thorow a londes.And whan that Olda had herde her so resonably speke hys langage,and found with her so grete tresoure, [he] supposed well that she wasdoughter of som kyng of Saxones beyonde the see, as of Alemayne,or of Saxonie, or of Suece, or elles of Denmark. And with full greteioy full curteysly resceyuyd her with full muche Reuerence and greteworshyp in to hys CasteH. And the tresoure that he had found withher, he locked hit fast in a grete Cofin, under .ij . lockes, of thewhyche lokkes he tooke the mayde the oo key, And kept the otherwith hymself, And commaunded to hys felyshyp that they shuldemake that mayde good chere worshypfully in her chamber.¶ Than after a lyte whyle, after whan she was well strengthed andrecomforted with good metes and drynkes, and well comforted withbathes and with other easem*ntes for her body, And had resceyuedageyn her beaute and her fayre coloure; And she was of a merueloussemelynes of body, And passed in beaulte of vertuous at other, asgod had predestinat her to grace, and to vertew, and to temptacionand to ioye. T Than after whan hermigild the wyfe to Olda aper535 seyued her nobutt lyfe and vertuous conuersacion. She caste herherte and grete loue unto that mayde that nothyng mygħt breke herpurpose neyther her wyt. ¶ Than whan many tymes they .ij . had1- Eele lui respoundi en sessoneys, p. 13.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 231spoke to geder, opon a day, as hermygyld rehersed the holy wordesof the mayden, The mayde Constaunce answered and sayde to her:"Yef ye wył consent un to me, and do after my counsayle, ye shalbe as good as I am." And than hermygild answered to her: " tothat I may neuer atteyne or com to; ffor ye be in thys erthe withoutepere or vertew." And Constaunce than answered and seyde: " tosuche vertew ye may full wele come to, yef ye wołł beleue in thatgod, the whyche ys lorde of al vertu." ¶ ffor that tyme hermigild 533and Olda her housbond, and the other Saxons the whyche had thedominacioun and gouernaunce of the londe, were yet at that tymepaynemes. And euermore hermigilde mekely and deuoutely herde.the doctrine and techyng of the Cristen feythe by the mowthe ofConstaunce whyche taught her of the myghtful puissaunce of god,And of the makyng of all the worlde, and hys grete vengeaunce thathe toke for syn by the grete Noes flood, And after opon grete Citees,when they sonke doune in to helle for syn with men and beestes,And all thyng whyche were withyn hem. ¶ Than after Constaunceshewed to her the grete lof of god, as in hys byrthe, ¹and of grete andgoodly mekenesse in hys dethe and passyoñ, and of the vertue ofhys hygħ godhede, and hys resurreccion and of hys ascensyon, Andall the nature of oo soule god and iij . persounes, And of the gloriouscommyng of the hooly goost. And than afterwarde whan thusmany a day Constaunce had taught hermygyld the feythe of god, andthe .vij . sacramentes and also the .x. commaundementes, she taughtto her the loue and the zele of the ioy of heuen, and also the pynysof helle. ¶ Than hermygild, after thys holsome doctrine and goostlytechyng, deuoutly prayed to Constaunce that she myght be baptized 538after the fourme of holy churche. But for that cause that her housbond was a payneme she mygħt nat wele at that tyme to pursewehere purpose. And than hit happed thus, As Olda and hermigildand also Constaunce shulde walke opon a day on theyre disporting 556toward the See syde, to see the fyssheres fysshe in the see, Therecom ageynst hem a poore cristen Briton al blynde. Thys Brytonwas straunge to all men, but he was wele taught by the hooly goost.And the blynde man began to calle and crye before all folk there:! p. 93.232 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.561 "hermygild, the wyfe of Olda, and the disciple of Constaunce, I prayand beseche the, in the name of Ihesu uppon whom thow beleuest,that thow make me the sygne of the Crosse uppon myñ eyen, thewhyche bethe blynde." ¶ Than, at thys poore blynde man request,hermigild was sore affrayed and agast; but than Constaunce, understondyng and hauyng in mynde the vertu of god in the wordes of the566 blynde man, conforted hermigild, and seyde to her: "Dame, hydenat that vertew that God hathe geue to yow." Than hermigild,before Olda and hys meyny whyche that folowed hym, with hergood feythe and stedfast belefe, made opon the eyen of the blyndeman the marke and sygne of the hooly crosse, and seyde to hym inher langage of Saxon: "¶Buson man, in Thesus name, uppon theroode yslawe, haue thy syght! " ¶ And the blynde man recoueredhys syght anone, and sawe wele and fuH clerely. ¶ Than whan568 Olda had see thus, he merueled gretely where that hys wyfe hermigild had lerned to do so fayre a mastry. And than after, she saydeand answered un to hym, that ' yef he wolde take hede to her counsayle, that he shulde do suche a merueyle, and a more gretter.' Thanhermigild and Constaunce cesed nat to preche to Olda, and unto alhys meyny, the feythe of Ihesu Criste; and they resceyuyd thatpoore bryton, and they gaue to hym hys sustenaunce, for the loue of574 Ihesu Cryste. ¶ Than Olda full ioyfully resceyued the doctrine ofthe feythe; And be her comun assent, sent priuyly that seyde Brytonin to Wales, where than was the most partee of the Brytons fled (ash*t ys beforesayde in the ende of the .xv.¹ story, ) for to bryng fromthens a bysshop of Britayne, the whyche myght and wolde baptizeand cristen Olda and hys wyfe, with her meyny euerychone. Andin the mene tyme Olda made to be breste doune theyre Mahours, thewhyche they had worshypped, and commaunded hem to be cast aweyall a ferre. ¶ Than thys pore Bryton commynge ageyne from walys,brought with hym lucius, oon of the bysshops of walys, and of theCite of Bangor. T Thys bysshop lucius, after that he had assayedand proued that Olda with hys wyfe and with hys meyny wereenformed after the ryght fourme of the feythe, thankyng almyghtygod full deuoutely, And baptized there to the nombur of iiij . score1 quarauntisme quinte, p. 19.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 233persones and .xi. ¶ Than Olda, be a grete avysem*nt and pryuycounsayl of hymself, wente un to hys lorde Alle, the kyng of Northumberlond before named; And in pryuy counsayle he toldehym of that mayde Constaunce, as to hym, whyche be gret affiaunceof trowthe and of wytte had kept her Souerayne of the reame afterthe kyng. And whan the kyng had herkened a hys seyingpriuyly in counsayle betwyxt hem bothe, the kyng than desyredmuche to see and speke with that mayde Constaunce; and for thatdesyre he promysyd to Olda that he wolde come pryuyly and tovisite her. And in that mene tyme, a knygħt of Saxon, of the 582meyny of that Capitayne Olda, amonge all other than baptized, towhom Olda had take the kepyng of hys Castel un to hys commyngayene, was by pryuy temptacion supprysyd in loue of that maydenConstaunce. And for cause that in the absence of Olda al thekepyng was take to hym, be a full euel enterpryse and temptacion ofthe deuel, he wente, and sought, and besyed hym to haue that maydeConstaunce to assented to hym in flesshly syn. And than after- 589warde, whan she had reproued hym oon tyme and other, And thethryd tyme with a full grete herte she revyled hym, and sayyng tohym that he was lyke an hounde, in soo moche as hee, after the hoolysacrament of Baptyme, wolde returne a gayne to hys foule syñ.¶ Than he, douted that he was accused of hys mysdede to hys lordeOlda at his commyng home ageyne, purposed hym full cursydly with 591a cursed puruiaunce. Tffor in the most restyng tyme of the ¹nyght,At whyche tyme Olda shuld enter in to hys Castel with the commyng ageyne from the kyng, And when hermigilde and Constauncewere strong a sleepe after theyre grete wachyng and grete prayeres, 596that same traytoure, the whyche gafe hymself al to geder in to thedeueH handes, cutte a to the throte of hermigil hys lady, besydeConstaunce, whan she was strong a sleepe in the same bed. ¶ Andwhan he had full done his felony, he hyd hys knyfe, al blody, under 601the pylowe of the mayden Constaunce. ¶ And than a lyte whyleafter Olda entred in the castel, and in grete haste wente yn to hyswyfys chambre for to tell her tydinges of the kynges commyng.And than Constaunce, the whyche with hys noyse was a waked, and1 p. 94.234 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.trowed that hermigild, that lady, slepte, And meued her hande forto awake her. And whan she felt that her body was al moyst ofbloode, with a full grete and hydous afray she sayde thus, crying:"My lady ys dede! " At the whyche worde, Olda and all thothat were aboute hym in presence, were soore abasshed, and fulsory, as they that knewe nothyng of that felony, and cried and askedafter lyght. And than whan the lyght and toorches brennyng605 come there, they founde the throte of hermigild hydously cut, andthe body all to-wrapped in bloode. ¶ And than whan all peple hadseen and ascried that cruelte, in askyng of Constaunce the trowthe,620 ¶ That false Traytour the whyche had do that felonye, hugely surmysed and put that tresoun uppon that mayden Constaunce, Andwith a full grete and hasty contenaunce. And for cause that thedethe wente nere hys herte then to any other body, he skyppedaboute the house as a woodman, un to the tyme that he had foundethe knyfe, there where he hymself had hyd hit. And than beforeall folke he shewed the instrument of that felony wythe an hugenoyse and crye, T And appeled that mayde Constaunce of that trea659 soun. ¶ But Olda, the whyche myght nat thynke that cruel dededone of that mayde, defendyd that myschefulle dede fut goodly onthe maydons behalfe. And than that wyked traytour in a full gretehaste toke betwyxt bothe hys handes the boke of the bysshop luciusbefore named, the whyche was a booke of the Gospelles, whychebooke the holy wemen hermigil and Constaunce euery nyght forgrete devocion had hit aboute hem, -And than opon that Booke he667swore, crying: "As god myght hym helpe, and the hooly gospelle,and his bapteme the whyche he had resceued late, that the maydenConstaunce was the morderesse and felonesse of that good lady."1 And anethe he had nat full fynyssed hys langage, but that hys oohande appered closed as the fyste of a man, before Olda, And before669 al pepul that were there in presence, And the false felon smote sohymself opon hys hatered that boothe hys eyen fyH oute from hys2hede, And the teethe oute of hys mouthe, And that felon felle euen673 doune to the erthe. And than sayde a voyse frome heuen, in thea la terre. This passage-1- Contrast the French, p. 23, a peine differs from the French more than any other.... •2 MS. hys hys.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 235heryng of a men): "T Aduersus filiam matris ecclesie ponebasscandalum! hec fecisti, et non tacui. " And for cause the kyngescomyng was nere, therfore Olda wolde nat geue no iugement upponthat treason un to hys commyng. And Olda set that feloun than inpryson. Than after, withyn a fewe dayes, by the kyng was the 687iugement geuen opon hys dethe. ¶ Than after, the kyng, for thegrete loue that he had un to that mayde, and for the myracles shewedfor her before god, Alle made hymself to be baptized of the bysshoplucius before named, And wedded that maydene, the whyche con- 691ceyued be her husbond kyng Alle a soñ. ¶ Than hit happed thathalfe a yere after, come tidinges to the kyng that the peple ofAlbanie, with a greete Oost, whyche ys the londe of Scottes, werepassed theyre boundes, and made grete werre opon the kynges londes,that by the kynges comon counsayle there was assembeled a greteOoste opon kyng Alle syde for to resyste hys enemyes.And or 718the kyng went towarde Scotland, he betoke his Quene Constauncehys wyfe in to the kepyng of Olda, ConstabyH of hys Castel, And 716to lucius the Bysshop of Bangor, And charged to hem that whan sheas sone were deliuered of her chylde, that they in all haste possyblemyght haue tidinges thereof. And also, aboue at thynges in theworlde as hee coude thynke in hys best wyse, that the Quene shuldehaue al maner thyng that she coude desire, And at ease that mygħtbe thought. ¶ And yet at that tyme was kyng Alles moder alyfe, alady in fayre poynt, And a fut feerse and cruel in corage, And thewhyche hated dedly Constaunce the Quene. ffor she had full grete 694disdeyn and scorne that her son the kyng Alle, shulde take a womanof a straunge londe, And moreouer that her linage and byrthe wasnat knowen to her, And also the kyng her son shulde forsake hysfurst lawe, the whyche al hys Auncestirs had ¹ful entierly kept andholden. ¶ And on the oo party she had full grete enuy, and sorehit hurte her at her herte, that Constaunce was so wele beloued withal pepul, riche and poore, withoute eny comparison of her, Andmore worshypped and made of for here goodnesse and for herhoolynesse, and her merueylous beaute. And her spiteous stepmodersupposed euer, and went, 2 that her praysyng and glory of her gretep. 95. weend, thought.1 2236 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.worshyp was hyghly empeyred and diminusyd, for that grete pryceand honoure the whyche peple gafe to that Quene Constaunce.¶ And also here Stepmoder was gretly meued and wrethe, for causethat the Maydenys made songes of Quene Constaunce, And euermorethorowgh the londe they songe Carolles of here. The stepmoderesname was Domuld. T Than after, whan god wolde, and nature,722 Constaunce was delyuered of her fayre Chylde, the whyche was a fulfayre son, And wele begeten, and full well borne, T And at thefoonte stoone was named and called Morys. T Than Olda andlucius, in all the haste that they myght, sente these gracious tydingesto the kyng Alle, howe the quene-blessed be god!-was hoole and ingoode poynt, and was delyuered of here fayre son. T And than atthat tyme was Domild the kynges moder at knaresburgh, a Castellebetwyxt englonde, as ina mene place betwyxt bothe. hit happed than729 that the messanger, the whyche was sent to Olda and lucius, wenteby knaresburgh, for to bere tidinges, and telle to the kynges moder,the Ioyful spede and good deliueraunce of the quene. And as hewente¹ and supposed by hys reasone that he shulde have of her, goodyeftes and grete thanke for hys tidinges. And in deede she feynydherself full ioyfull before all pepul for the tidinges, And gafe to themessanger full grete yeftes, and ryght ryche, and made hym gretechere, And shewed herself full mery and ioyfulle. But that falsewoman thought other than she sayde. ¶ ffor that nyght she made743 the messanger drunke with a full meruelous drynke, the whyche sotoke hys breyne, And so toke frome hymhys wyttes and hys mynde,that he slept lyke a dede man. Than after, by the assent and thecounseyle of her untrew Clerk, they opened the Messangers box, and746 unded the letteres the whyche were sente to the kyng by Olda, andlucius the bysshop abouesayde. Than thys untrew stepdame andher Clerk falsed and contriued other false letteres under tho sameseales, and wreten in the names of the sayde lordes, other letteresbering suche sentence: " That the Quene Constaunce, the whychewas taken to hem to kepe after the departing of the kyng, she was754 chaunged bothe in maneres and in condicion, as hit were all anothercreature; ffor she was an euel spirite in a wommans lykenes, whereof1 weend, thought.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 237the meruayles thynges that she ded, the whyche were lyke tomyracles, they were but the disseytes and the dedes of wyckedspirites in her body; unto the whyche wyttenesseth the chylde thatshe bore, the whyche ys nat semblaunt to the lykenes of a man, but 751fourmyed and mysshape thyng, to heuy and to shameful to sey or tospeke. And for thys cause, sir kyng, for cause that there shuldecome no shame ne vyleny to thy persone, And to thy royal astateand honoure, we have made in monstraunce an other chylde to bebaptized and cristened, And we haue named hym Morice; And theother foule shapyn thyng, after the feendes shappe, we haue pryuylykept hit, and made hit faste in a Cage of yron, un to the tyme thathit may please thy lordeshyp to sende to us what we shall do withalt, and to thy worshyp, of Constaunce and of her hydous engendrure. thys meruelous fortune we wryte to the, with full grete heuynesse of herte, and with full sore weppyng, as we were charged by thyful hygħ and lordly commaundement for to sende to the all the troutheof thy wyfe and of her deliueraunce. And to the brynger of theseletteres hit ys nat knowen, for he weneth that he knowe more thanhe can. ¶ Than the messanger arose from hys bed uppon the morow,at seke and euel at ease, for the malyce and the fume of the drynke,the whyche anoyed soore hys brayne. And than after many falseflateringes and untrew promyses of Domild, he wente hys way unto the kyng. And the messanger was charged by her that he shuldcome ayene by her at hys retornyng from the kyng, and the sameway that he went. ¶ And whan thys messaunger was come to thekyng, he tolde to hym be mouthe all the trouthe, and trewe tidinges,and full ioyouse. But the letteres so false contryuyd as hyt ysbefore sayde, made aH hys wordes to be torned un to grete heuynesse, And made hys langage to be of no credaunce.¹ ffor why,whan the kyng had red and loked uppon the letteres, he was fuH 757hastyly taken with a full grete thought and pensyful heuynesse.And there he defended to the Messanger, uppon hys indignacioun,and under a grete peyne, 2 that he shulde speke nothynge, amongemen of hys Courte, of hys wyfe Constaunce ner of hys chylde. And1 Mes lez lettres lui firent retourner a dolour, & lui fist nounoreable. p. 29.CHI. ORIG.2 p. 96.17238 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.759 anone the kyng wrote ageyne to Olda and to lucius the bysshop, inanswering to the letteres the whyche he supposed and wente had besente to hym by her maundement and commaundement, the whychewere to hym fut merueylous tidinges and full heuy; and nat withstonding he wroote to hem, and commaunded that withoute anydelay, or any maner ageyn saying, that they shulde do make hys764 wyfe to be kepte safe, And her monster, un to hys commyng home. '785¶ Than with theese letteres come ageyn that foole the messangerwith an euel happe be Domyld un to the Castel of knaresburgħayene. And whan he was come theder, he compleyned soore to herof the heuy chere that the kyng made to him, and of hys ungoodly788 semblaunce, nothyng mery ne comfortable. But that treyteresseDomild was passyngly comforted with that worde, Whan he rehersed to her that the kynge made hym suche a semblaunt with ungoodly chere.1 ¶ And that same nygħt she made hym drunke, asshe ded the other tyme before. Than that false woman, whan hewas a sleepe, unded hys box with letteres, as she ded before, andloked opon and considered full wel that the kynges commaundementwas nothyng [un]fauorable to the quene Constaunce. Than under793the same kynges seale she wrote to Olda and lucius, as hit [were] bythe kyng hymself in hys oune persoune, in suche sentence, As bethe answere had to the furst letters sent be him: " That oftetymes in a ferre Contre and straunge, a man may oft tymes heeretidinges souner than at hoone at hys neyghebores house. And forcause that he had herde tidinges of Constaunce hys wyfe, that yefshe abood styl in hys londe, there shulde soone com suche werresand so grete pepull of straungeres to destroye hys londe to be enhabited with folk of straunge nacions, Wherefore he commaunded795to Olda, in peyne of forfayteure of hys lyfe, And of hys londes andgoodes, and of all that he had, And also under peyne of disheritament of all hys lynage, that withyn .iiij. dayes after that he had resceyuyd hys letters, that he shulde ordeyne a Shyp for to be arayed,799 and vytayle thereyn for .v. yere, of mete and drynke, for Constaunceand her chylde; And in the same shyp to be put the same tresoure¹ Mes la treteresce mout le conforta de sonfauz semblaunt. p. 31.2ne lui fut de riens fauorable. p. 31.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 239the whyche was found in her furst shyp; And in the same manerwyse, withoute poole or Oore, orells any other maner engyne orhabilement for a shyp, And her chylde Morys to be put withyn theshyp with her, And soo she to be exiled oute of the londe as shecom in." ¶ And thys same commaundement was commaunded tolucius, the bysshop of bangor, opon the reyne of perpetuel emprisonement. ¶ And than whan these lordes nad resceued these 809letteres, they made (god woote) full grete sorow and muche heuynesse. ¶ And than, for cause that blessed lady Constaunce saweand aperseyued theyre heuy semblant, and her coloures so chaunged,and with so greete a mornyng chere, And also whan the messangercome ageyne, that she had no tokyn neyther sendyng from the kyngher husbond, supposed anon that her souuerayñ lorde shulde bedede, And required the messanger to telle her trouthe, with outeconcelyng of any thyng. ¶ Than the messanger sayde to her that'the kyng made to hym so harde and heuy countenaunce, that hewolde nat heere speke worde, neyther of yow hys lady, neyther ofyoure chylde, in any maner that myght be.' Than the loordes cometo the good lady Constaunce, and shewed to her the kynges lettereswith a full heuy chere, and soore wepyng. ¶ Than Constaunce,replenysshyd with all goodnesse, and aredy to all theyre wylles tofulfyH, and also full redy to obey theyre ordinaunce, sayde to hemwith a meke and a fuH lowly spyryte: " God forbede euer that suchea day shuld come, that for me the londe shulde be destroyed! Andalso that for me, ye, my full dere frendes, shulde suffer dethe,orelles haue or suffer any disease for my sake. But syth hit plesethgod, and to my souuerayn lorde the kyng myne exyle, me oweth for 826to take hit with good wył, in trust and hopyng that thys hardebegynnyng God wołł conuey hit to a full good endyng, And thathe, almygħty, may saue me in the see, the whyche ys ał puissantbothe be See and londe. " ¶ Then the .iiij . day thys nobuH Quene 823Constaunce was exyled, with moryce her feyre soñ, the whychetoke the See full yong. And suche an heuynesse and Crye and 820wepyng pepult was in the Cite and in tounes, of ryche pepu andpoore, oolde folke and yong, that no tung neyther herte mygħt comprehende hit; ffor all pepul made grete lamentacioun, and leyde1240 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.grete blame to the kyng Alle, and cursed hym soore. ¶ And thanwhan her shyp was led forthe with another Nauy in to the hygħ seefrom the sygħt of Englonde, orelles of any other londe, The marinereswith grete heuynesse commaunded her to god, And prayed god that874she myght well come to londe with her son Moryce, and with mucheioye. ¶ Than god gouerned and gyded her shyp unto the Spaynysshe904 See, towarde the londe of the Este, under a Castel ¹of a admirał ofpaynemes. Thys Admirał had hys stewarde, Oon a Renegate of theCristen feyth, Thelous be name. Thys Thelous, when he sawe thatlady in a shyppe, he wente therto with bootes, and brought that ladyoute of her shyp, wyth her fayre son, before the Admiral, thewhyche had grete pyte, boothe of her and of her chylde, And shewas graciously resceued of hym. And than after warde whan shehad dyned and well refresshed herselfe, she wolde nat at nyght beloged in none other place saue in her shyppe, for cause she wolde natto moche be conuersaunt with the paynemes. And she had leuerto floter in the wylde see, under the sauegarde of god, and under hysgouernaunce, then for to be herbored with goddis enemyes. ¶ Thanoure lorde god, the whyche fayleth neuer in tribulacioun to hys beloued frendes, gaue to her suche grace before the Admiral, that hecommaunded to the forsayde Thelous, hys stewarde, that he shuldehaue the kepyng of her, and charged to hym that she shulde haueher desyres withoute any greuaunce or disease. ¶ And thys Thelous,the Stewarde forsede, was ful glad and ioyful hereof. and in the914 derke nyght he wente doune to here alone, and bore to her gretetresoure of golde and syluer and of precious stones. And whan thysThelous had be with thys Quene Constaunce a lyteto knowlache un to her hys grete erroure, spekyng to her fut deuoutely, and mouyng under nethe fuH falsely. And in somoche asthat he was sometyme a cristen mañ, and that he was ageyne god atreytoure Renegate, And for drede and feere of hys lyfe, and for couetyseof erthely worshype, 2prayed her that yef she myght [take him] withher, that he myght be sette ageyne in to the handes of god, and thathe myght torne ageyn to cristen feythe2 be her good prayeres towarde 1p. 97.whyle, he began2-2 lui pria qil se peut ou lui mettre en la meyn dieu pur retourner ascun lieu a sa foy. p. 35 above.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 241god, and for to be nombred amonge cristen meñ. And than pryuyly,by thys Thelous helpe, the shyp wente fer from londe un to theycome to the grete See. And then the gostely enemy, the fende, thewhyche enforseth hym euer to do eueH, meued that Thelous, theknyght Renegate, to greuous temptacion, And for to entyse thatgood blessed lady to bodyly syn. But oure lorde god, to whome shehad geuen att her herte to of youthe, wolde nat suffer her to assente,neyther to consent, to suche a wyked dede. Than whan thys 917wycked Thelous, by harde manasses and hys grete strenghthe hadwyH to afforce her, than she refreynyd hys gret foly by thys reason,ffor cause that her Chylde Moryce, the whyche was of the age of .ij .yere all full syth the tyme that she and he were exyled oute ofEngelonde, mygħt wele understonde, and to hoolde in mynde yefthey .ij . dede suche an horrible dede in Morice presence. And thyswas her coloure to defende her, and for to preserue her from synne.Than she prayed thys Thelous that he shulde loke as ferre as hemyght, And auyse hym opon al partes. yef that he myght see anylonde. And whan they mygħt come to londe in couenabel place,she wolde fulfy hys desyre. And than thys Thelous was hasty forthys promes. And than he wente in to the formest party of theshyppe and auysed hym al a boute yef he myght see any londe. Andthen when he was moost busyest, Constaunce, in sauyng of her 922chastite, pryuyly come behynde hys backe, and tumbeled hym dounein to the see.Than after, withyn a lyte whyle kyng Alle had expletedthe Victory in scotlonde of the puteus hys enemyes; And then witha full grete desyre and muche heuynesse, for cause of hys queneConstaunce, hasted hym in all haste in to ynglonde, ffor cause why, 876hit was tolde hym of folke that come betwene howe that thys blessedlady Constaunce was by hys commaundement exyled oute of hyslonde with her fayre son Morys. T And as the kyng wente andcome by day by the hygħ weyes, by Cytees and by tounes in ynglonde, there come men women and Chyldren and oolde folke cryingand reuylyng the kyng and caste foul harlatrye opon hym with gretestones ayenst hys breste. And men wemen and chylderen despoyledhemselfe naked for despyte, and shewed to hym her pryuytees beE=242 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.(Andhynde. And the kyng had so sore persecucioun of hys peput, thathe must nedes take hys iorneys by nyght and nat by day.than whan the kyng come home to hys Castel with full grete dredeand feere of hys lyfe, he made to be called to hym Olda and lucius878 with full grete angor and wrethe, askyng of hem where they had dohys wyfe Constaunce, the whyche they wrote to hym and called hera wycked spyryte in fourme of a woman. And also where was become her chylde, the whyche [they] sayde that hit was a monstreDemoniac. And here-to than Olda and lucius answered full sooreabasshed and a-baude of thys langage. And they sayde playnely unto hym, that they knewe neuer suche a thyng, but that the ladyConstaunce was an holy woman and a full good, And that here engendrure was full fayre and gracious.' And the kyng, as a manalmoste oute of hys wytte, asked of hem ' what maner reasoun meuedhem for to sende to hym suche unresonables letteres as opynly andapertely he myght shewe there to hem. ' Than whan these letteres882 were seen from the [o] parte un to the other, than the kyng merueledhow that suche letteres were sealed bothe with hys seale and withothere mennys seales. T And they coude nat thynke howe thystreason myght be, but consentyng the Messager. ¶ And so thatmessager was called forthe, the whyche answered utterly, and saydethat he was neuer knowyng neyther culpable in nowyse in that886 treason. Neuertheles he knowleged weele of hys drunkenesse in thecourt of Domyld, the kynges moder, at knaresburgħ; And yef therewere any treasoun do, hit was purposed there.' And than thekynge anone al inflamed with sorowe and angyre, began euen at thederke to go theder. And he sesed neuer unto the tyme that he cometo hys moder, the whyche was that tyme abedde and a slepe. Andwith an hyduous voyse the kyng cryed and seyde to hys modere:"Thow false treyteresse! I commaunde the, that anone in a haste,that thow shewe me these letteres, the whyche thow haste as a falseTreyteresse shulde do, feynyd and falsed. " And anone sodenlyshe, soore afrayed and supprysyd with grete feer'; and she seyng thekyng as a woode man withoute hys wytte holdyng a naked swerdeouer her,-And she knew wele howe she was gylty and culpable of1 p. 98.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 243so hygħ and grete treasoun-withoute eny mo wordes or reherse, shekneled adoune, and asked hym forgeuenesse and mercy. And sheknowleched hit, and tolde to hym all the felony, and howe she dede.And than the kyng with a grete feersenesse sayde to her, that sheshulde haue suche mercy as suche grete treason asketh and demaundeth. "ffor thow, of me, neythere of my wyfe, neyther oponmy chylde, thow haddest no pite, ne I shall neuer haue pyte oponthe. " And with that worde he smote of her hede, and hacked her 894body all to peces as she laye naked in her bedde. Than kyngAlle made solemply hys a-vowe before lucius the Bysshop of Bangor,that he wolde neuer wedde wyfe, neyther haue to do with anywoman, un to that tyme that god, thorough hys moche mercy andgrace, wolde sende to hym tydynges of Constaunce hys wyfe.Than after, thys Constaunce, the thryd yere whan she haddrouned Thelous in the see, the whyche was the fyfthe yere of herexyle, as she was floteryng in her shyp opon the See, she loked at aferre, And she thought she sawe a Nauey in the see, as hit had be agrete wode. And as her full moste nobuH Guyde, oure lorde God,conueyed here shyppe nere and nere, And at the laste she aperseuedthat they were mastes of a full grete nauye, the whyche nauy restedin an hauen under a grete Cite opon the see. And whan the 969mariners sawe suche a shyp so merueylously floteryng uppon the see,they thought that hit had be som voyde shyp withoute marineres,And so drouen by tempestes. But whan they were come nere,they aperseued a woman in the shyp, and also a chylde of .v. yereage, rychely stuffed with tresoure, but fulle pore of vyteles. Andafter that the mariners had spoke with that lady, they brought herand her son in to the Cyte of the paleys of a senatoure of Rome, thewhyche that lady Constaunce knewe full wele. ¶ Thys senatoursname was called Tarquinus¹ of Cappadoce, a full wyse knyght andhardy, and a full excellent man of letterure, And a grete frende andsecrete to the Emperour Tiberie of Constantyne, the fader of Constaunce. Thys senatoure Tarquinus, whan he sawe Constaunce,had no maner knowleche of here, the whyche she was welle apayde 971of, and toke hit to grete ioy. ¶ And Constaunce knewe hym full1 Arcemius, p. 41.244 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.wele, for ofte tymes she had seen hym in her fader the Emperourshouse. Thys Tarquinus was duke and Capteyne of all that hooleNauey. ¶ And than whan he axed the mayden many demaundes ofhere dwellyng place and of her fortune, she answered euer full972 wysely to hys axyng withoute any maner discoueryng of her lynage,or elles of the Emperour her fader. ¶ And she sayde, ' for causethat her fortune was nat in all thinges gracious after the worlde,though hit were as god wolde haue hit; And in so moche as she wasmaryed to a ryche loorde, the whyche had begote her son opon her,to whom she was nat moste plesaunt in all poyntes, and for thatcause she suffered suche penaunce.' And after whan the Senatoureaxed what was her name, she answered and sayde that her name wascalled Conste; ffor so the Saxons called here. Than thys lady Constaunce axed that Senatour, ' what shulde do that grete nauey, ofthe whyche he was Duke and Capyteyn of, and what hit amounted. '¶ And he answered to her and seyde, ' That hit was the nauey ofthe Emperour Tiberie, sente by hym at hys coste in to the hoolylonde, And ayenst tho false Sarrazyns, the whyche treytoresly hadmurdred and sleyne hys doughtre Constaunce with grete nombereof cristen peple, with the Sowdon and hys Allyes, the whyche werefrendes to cristen men.' And more ouer the Senatour sayde to herthat ' on euery partye as they wente, god sente to hemgracious victoryof here enemyes. Tffor the Sowdons moder, that false morderesse,was brent, and there were slayne of the sarazyns mo then xj . M'.;and, blessed be god, there was nat one cristen man slayne ne hurte inhys oste. And also that he had founde all the bodyes of cristenmen the whyche were slayne, and mordred by the Sarazyns, safeonely the body of Constaunce, the whyche after the seying of theSarazyns was drouned in the see.' ¶ Than Constaunce prayed thatnobu Senatoure that hit myght please to hym that she myghte beconduyte, and to haue sewre passage, un to Rome. ¶ And thesenatour with a ioyful wył resceued her in to hys warde, with herson and all her tresoure. And than whan they were come to Rome,974he recommended Conste, that ys to sey, Constaunce, unto hys wyfeElyne, a Romayne, the doughter of Salustius, the brother un to the1 p. 99.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 245Emperour Tiberie, and the uncle to Constaunce. Thys Elene, Neceand Cosyn germayne to Constaunce, louyd so tendurly her' Nece, andMorice her Cosyn, that they had neuer suche a ioye in all her lyfe.And yet myght that more to be encreased, her ioyful loue, yef shehad bewreyed herself to her nece, And tolde to her all the trouthe.Than Constaunce, with her son Morys, dwelled in the compaynyof Arsenie Tarquine and with Eleyne .xij . yere. at hoole a lady of 979grete holynesse and of muche deuocioun. And thys Arsenius andEleynne, the whyche that had none issue of her bodyes, toke andhad Moryce in so grete loue and tendernesse, that they called hymhere son and here eyre. And than in that tyme Alle, the kyng of 988ynglonde, by the counsayle of lucius the bysshop of Bangor, andOlda hys Constabyl, wente with hys peple to make hys pylgremageat Rome, and to resceyue hys absolucioun of the pope for the sleyngof hys moder. And in that tyme in hys absence, he betoke thekepyng of hys reame to Edwyn hys soñ, the whyche was the thrydkyng after hym. ¶ And whan Alle was .vij . dayes iornes fromeRome, he sente Olda before, for to make worshypful purueaunceayenst hys commyng. And than whan Olda was come to Rome, andhad enquired where the kyng of ynglonde mygħt be worshypfullyloged and herbored, hit was answered un to hym, ' that Arsenius, thescnatoure of the Cyte of Rome, was nobully and rychely endowed ofmany fayre Castel and Paleys.' Than Olda wente to Arsenius, andprayed hym that he wolde goodly shew to hym of hys Castelles andpaleys in the whyche the kyng of Engelonde myght be loged in athys commynge. ¶ And than Arsenius assigned to Olda of the moostgoodly places that he had,the whyche Olda had chosyn fuHworshypfully for the kyng. Than whan Arsenius come home to hyspaleys, and was gone in to hys Chambre where hys wyfe Eleyne andConstaunce was, asked of hem ' yef they wolde heere any newetydynges.' And they were wel apayde for to heere good tydynges.And than Arsenius tolde to hem veryly that Alle the kyng ofynglonde withyn .x. dayes shulde come to toune; And that heshulde be loged in hys CasteĦ. And for that entent he sente un tohym a grete Erle and a worthy Capetayñ, hys oune MareschaH.'And when Constaunce herde these tydynges pryuyly for ioy fyH246 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE, MAN OF LAW'S TALE.doune plat for ioye almoste in a swoune. T And than whan her'spyrytes were come to her, folke that were a boute her, asked her,' what come to here, and what she eyled.' And she sayde that hitwas febelnesse of her breyne, that she toke when she was in the see.¶ Than withyn.x. dayes, when kyng Alle was comyng nere to the Cyte998 of Rome, Arsenius that nobu senatoure, whyche shulde resceyuehym withyn hys castelles, rode ayenste hym worshypfully with althe Chyualry of Rome, and with all the ryche Cytezeyns of theRomaynes. And there they resceued thys kyng Alle of ynglondfull worthyly and curteysly. ¶ And as Eleyne, the senatours wyfe,and Constaunce, stoode an hygħ aboue A Galilee ordeyned oponhygħ Greeses so that they myght see the kyng of ynglonde, and toavyse the Chyualry with her worshypful aray in rydyng with all thepepul, there come a worthy knygħt the whyche had seen the kyngbefore hys commyng to the Cyte by the wey, And the whyche wasassigned for the ladies, to shewe to hem the kynges persone, shewedto hem where that he roode under the tresaunce of that Galilie,' And the knyghte² called to the ladies and seyde: " See nowe ladies,kynge Alle! " And the kyng, heryng hys name called, loked up atan hygħ. And than whan Constaunce sawe hys vysage, she felledoune plat besyde Eleyne, the whyche she supposed ded hit forfebelnesse. And than at that tyme of the commyng of the kyngto Rome, Moryce began to enter in to hys .xviij. yere. Thys Moryce1013 was taught pryuyly of hys moder Constaunce, that when he shuldego to the feeste with hys lorde the Senatoure, that all thyng lefte, heshall putte hymselfe before the kyng of Englond when that he weresette to hys mete, and that he were diligent in all thynges for toserue the kyng. And that in nowyse he remeued hymself fro thekynges sygħt. ¶ And that he serue hym wele and curteysly, ¶ fforthys Moryce was passyngly lyke hys moder'. Than whan the kyng1016sawe the chylde stonde before hym, he bethought hym much of hysresemblaunce, And axed hym ' whos son he was. ' And he answeredto hym full curteysly, and seyde that ' he was the son of Arsenie theSenatoure, whyche sate opon hys ryght hande.' And whan Morycehad sayde so, the senatoure sayde to the kyng, that ' he holdetħ¹ p. 100.2 MS. kynghte13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 247hym for hys son, for somoche as he hathe made hym for hyseyre; And hys moder wyst that full wele, but nat hys fader¹; 1020Tffor hys modere wolde neuer telle who was hys fader, in althe tyme of thys. xij. yere. And Moryce knewe nat, for hys moderand he were exyled whan he was nat but .x. wokes of age.' Thanasked the kyng of thys yonge man, ' what was hys name: ' and heanswered and seyde to hym that hys name was Moryce. Thanthe kyng was in a grete thought and pensyful, bothe of the yongemannes name and of the semblaunce of hys vysage un to hys wyfe, 1030hys owne moder'; And also for the wordes of the Senatour, thewhyche he tooke goode hede of before; And axed of the Senatoure' yef that he knewe the chyldes moder, that hit myght lyke hym,that he mygħt see her. ' And the senatoure answered to the kyngthat ' the chyldes moder was in hys place there.' ¶ And than thekyng hasted faste for to see her, and hyed hym in all haste that he 1036myght frome hys mete. ¶ And than the Senatoure wente doune inhys paleys, and commaunded hys wyfe to come doune with Constaunce in her moste goodly atyre and aray to see the kyng.2¶ And assone as the kyng aperseyued that lady Constaunce, he saluedher' in hys moste goodly wyse, And be fulle very certeyn knowlachethat anone he knewe her, he wente and tooke hys wyfe Constaunce 1051in hys armes, and ofte tymes kyssed her. And there the kyngshewed so opyn shewyngs of loue un to her, that the senatoure andhys wyfe and all tho that were there, merueled muche thereof.¶ And than the kyng with an hygħ noyse and cry, in an higħ voysesayde thus: " I have found my wyfe! " Than come Olda andlucius, and knelyng opon here knees, salued that lady Constaunce.And they had full grete ioy, and thanked god full hyghly, the whychefayletħ neuer to hem the whyche trustyn opon hym. ¶ Than oponthe morow the kyng wente to take hys absolucioun for the dethe ofhys modere. And than after, whan he had tolde the pope pelagiebefore named, all these auentures, he assoyled hym, and thankedhyghly god. ¶ Than .xl. dayes that the kyng had a-byden in rome,' Mistranslated; the Fr. has: Esa mere sauoit il bien, mes noun pas son pere, p. 47.E quant il estoit descendu al paleys le Senatour, parust sa femme, qe lui venoit encontre oue lafemme le Senatour, p. 47,248 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.1079 uppon a nyght Constaunce prayed hym, ' that he wolde vouchesafeto sende to the Emperour Tiberie, whyche that dwelled oute of Romeat that tyme but .xij . myle, that he wolde do to hym the worshypfor to come and to dyne with hym at Rome.' And the kyng wasful wele payde with Constaunce for her prayer and desyre. ¶ And1086 than Dame Constaunce charged her son Moryce with the message,and seyde to hym that ' he shulde pray the Emperour, opon thekynges of ynglond behalue, that hit myght please hys hygħnesse tocome dyne with hym. And yef the Emperour wolde nat graunte tohys prayere, that than he shulde require hym, for the loue that euerhe had to the soule of hys doughter Constaunce; ' ffor than she wystewel that the Emperour wolde nat deny hym hys askyng, as he dedto no man that prayed hym of any thyng for hys doughter soule.¶ And than whan Moryce was come before the Emperour, with afull honorable company, and had do hys message from the kyng hysfader. The Emperoure was supprised in grete loue towarde thatchylde Moryce, And seyde to hys knyghtes, wepyng with a full heuy1096 herte, " God, how thys yong man ys full lyke in semblance to mydoughter Constaunce! " And than after he gave grete yeftes toMorice. But the Emperour wolde nat a longe whyle graunt hisprayeres , for cause he tooke suche a full grete heuynesse for hisdoughter Constance, the whyche he supposed that dede was, thatneuer syth that tyme he wolde come to feste, neyther heere mynstralles ne mynstralsy. Then ageyne with full grete prayer, andafter the forme abouesayde, he beseched the Emperour aboue sayde;1093 the whyche than graunted to hym hys axyng. ¶ Than hit happedthat thys feste shulde be holde opon seynt Iohan ys day the baptyst.¶ And than Constaunce2 seyde to the kyng, that she supposed thathit were grete curtesy, And that hit shulde muche please theEmperoure that he wolde resceyue hym in to the Cyte, and for toryde agenst hys commyng. And so the kyng Alle dede; and withthe nobu Chyualry of Rome, and with the Cytezeyns, rode fullhonorably to geder with a worthy company. And so Constaunce1p. 101.2-2 A-vynt la veil seynt Iohan le Baptistre, la feste de sa natiuite, quant la fest se deuoit fere le iour ensuaunt, Constaunce ... , p. 49.13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 249¶rode with the kyng, and with that pepul, and here son Morice also.And than whan Constaunce sawe the Emperour come nere, she prayedthe kyng that he wold vouchesafe to alyghte of hys steede ayenst theEmperour, whyche ded so. And than Constance, before all thecompany, tooke her lorde in her rygħt hande, And Moryce her soñin her lyfte hande; and she come and kneled doune, and salued herfader by these wordes: " My lorde, and my fayre fader Tiberie! 1105I, Constaunce 3our doughtre, thanke hyghly oure lorde god, that yetat thys day hathe graunted to me my lyfe that I may see yourenobuH persone in helthe. " And than anone whan the Emperourehad herde hys doughter, and knewe her voyse and her persone wele,he toke to hym so soden ioy that almoste had fal doune bacwardefrom hys stede. But the kyng Alle and hys son Moryce sawe that,and supported hym. Than, god knoweth, there was grete ioy in that 1114blessed metyng. And than Constaunce tolde her fader all herauentures, and howe she had dwelled .x.¹ yere in the house of thesenatoure Arsenie, And with her Cosyn Eleyne, the whyche knewnat that she was her nece, unto that tyme. T Than after other .xl.dayes passed, whan the kyng Alle returned ageyne homewarde in toynglond, The Emperour Tybery, by the assent of pope Pelagy and ofthe Senat of Rome, for cause of hys age, toke Moryce, his doughterson, for to be hys felowe to gouerne the Empyre; And made hym to 1121be called hys Eyre apperaunt. And than he was called " Moryce ofCapodoce " for that skele, why that he was brought up with thatSenatoure Arsenie, the whyche was of Capodoce, as hyt ys beforesayde at the begynnyng of thys story. Thys Moryce was called ofthe Romaynes in latyn, ' Mauricius, christianissimus Imperator, ' thewhyche ys to sey, " Morice, the moste cristen Emperour." ThanAlle the kyng of ynglonde, the .ix monthe after that he was come in 1142to ynglonde, yelded up hys soule to god ful holyly and with fuHgrete deuocion. ¶ And than a moste halfe a yere after Constaunce,the whyche had euerie grete loue and worshyp unto aH ynglond,torned agene, and wente to Rome, for cause that she had tydynges 1148that the Emperoure her fader was seke and in poynt of dethe. Andthan the .xiij . day after her comyng to Rome, Tiberie her ffaderdozze, p. 51 ,250 13. TRIVET'S STORY OF CONSTANCE. MAN OF LAW'S TALE.deseased full holyly betwyxte the Armes of hys doughter, and yeldedup hys soule to god. ¶ And Constaunce herself desesed the yereafter. The yere was the yere after the incarnacioun Dlxxxiiij . oponseynt Clementes day. And she was buried at Rome besyde herffader the Emperoure in seynt Petir Churche. ¶ And than Olda, thewhyche brought Constaunce un to Roome after the dyssease of kyngAlle, in returnyng ayene towarde ynglonde, dyed full holyly anddeuoutely at the Cite of Toures of Tureyne; And . be lucius thebysshop of Bangor abouesayde, was buried in the churche of seyntMartyn at Toures. ¶ Than lucius come home in to ynglond ayene,un to hys Churche of Bangor, and leued dyuerse yeres after. Andthe body of kyng Alle was buried in the Churche of seynt Amphibet,at the Cyte of Wynchestre, where he deseased.25114.The Boy killd by a JewFOR SINGING GAUDE MARIA!VERSIFIED BYGAUTIER DE COINCY.FROM THE HARLEIAN MS. 4401,leaf 146, back, col. 1;COLLATED WITH POQUET'S EDITION OF GAUTIER DE COINCY'SMIRACLES DE LA SAINTE VIERGE(Paris 1857), col. 557.252The Harleian MS. 4401 , lettered on the binding Miracula B. U. M. MetroGallico, and ascribed in the Catalogue (A.D. 1808) to the 14th century, consists of 189 vellum leaves (numbered in pencil figures), written in two columnsof about 40 lines each. It begins, without a heading, on-leaf 1, col. 1, with Gautier de Coincy's Prologue ( Poquet, col. 3, 1. 1) , at first, on account of the large A, written in half lines:A la loengeEn remanbranceet a la gloireEt en memoire;and ends on leaf 189, back, col. 2 (Poquet, col. 639, 1. 392) , in the middle of aMiracle (C'est dou clerc qui laisa sa fame por nostre dame sainte marie) with:Estoupe est hom & feus & filameTost est espris hom de tel fameTex estoupes pres de tel feu.So some leaves are missing at the end; after this Miracle Poquet gives two more, and some other poems. On leaves 3-5, 106-8 of the MS. are some ⚫ songs with the music. The Abbé Poquet's edition is from a MS. of the Seminary at Soissons; a description of this MS. , and of thirteen others (all inParis) of the many in existence, will be found in his Introduction, pp. ix, xix.The original Latin text of the Miracles also exists in various MSS. ( P. Meyer,Rapports, le partie, p. 15. )Though the Harleian MS. offers a text of this Miracle decidedly inferiorto the Soissons one, it has been deemed advisable to print it, instead of reproducing Poquet's copy of the other. It is always desirable that accurate copies of the different MSS. of a text should be accessible to scholars, that they mayhave all the evidence for determining its original shape; that the Society hasnot in this case chosen the best unpublished one, is the result of that MS. notbeing in London. The present print will be of interest to editors of English,as a French specimen of the mistakes which creep into MSS. by repeated copying, even when the scribes are native, and the language can have presentedlittle or no difficulty. As the readings of Poquet's MS. (excluding, as a rule,differences in orthography and in the use of the nom. and acc. cases) are givenin the footnotes, there will generally be little trouble in correcting the mistakesof the Harleian; though in two or three cases (as in 11. 247, 553-4) both MSS.agree in bad metre or rhyme. Poquet's MS. (supposing his print to be correct)is itself by no means devoid of errors, from almost all which the Harleianis free; in 11. 2, 72 ( a) , 112 , 188, 223, 421 , 563, 628 ( diront) , 629, 647, 664 (ou),717, for example, the Harleian reading is preferable, or even indispensablean instance of the common fact that a MS. may be comparatively bad and yetfar from critically worthless. For the print being a correct copy of the MS.and the variants, as well as for diacritics, punctuation , and expansions, I amresponsible; I may note that though n is often quite distinct from u, the last letter of 11. 677-8 is ambiguous.The Abbé Poquet, who derives his dates from the Chronicon Sancti Medardi, states (Intr. , p. xxxiv) that Gautier de Coincy, probably of a noblefamily of that place, was born in 1177; became a monk of St. Médard in 1193,and prior of Vic in 1214, which office he held when he translated the Miracles,was made grand prior of St. Médard in 1233, and died in 1236.July, 1876. HENRY NICOL.253THE BOY KILLD BY A JEWFOR SINGING GAUDE MARIA."C'est d'un clerc que li iuif tuerent qui chantoit loaf 146, back,Gaude maria.Sainte escriture nos esclaire doit taire 13 Les secrez de toi¹ & celer,& les deu euures reueler.Les euures sont merueilleuses,& a oir moult deliteuses.la letre dit en moult de leusQue ses seinz est deu merueilleus.& qant li rois puissanz & pius& loing & pres est7 moult lis lius,Miracles & meruoilles maintesfait por ses sainz & por ses saintes;bien est buisnarz &9 se meruoilleSe mainte merueillant meruoillefait ior & nuit por la pucelleQui l'alaita de sa memelle,Qui le norri, qui le berça.de pitié tout me tresperçaQant ie le ui10 & oï primes.I. miracle douz & saintime 11Q'an angleterre fist iadis+li puissanz rois de paradis,¹ This line is 2 in the MS.2om. (Poquet).3 The initials are written apart from the words they head.45 dieu inserted. 6 Qu'en 7 leroy9qui CH. ORIG.10lui18en 11 saintismescol. 1]Scripture tells us to keep the King's secrets,4 and reveal God's wonderful works.8He must be a fool who wonders at 12 God working16many a miracle for the Virgin.20I was much moved when Ifirst heard of this one.8 de[t col. 2]254 14. THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;There was once in England a poor woman,who loved the Virgin,¹por essaucier le non sa mere.1Come² raconte ma matere,Que iadis une poure fame,Qui moult amoit la douce dame,En la contree d'angleterre.and had to work Tant par iert poure que porquerre for her living .Sa sustance li couenoit,En la uile ou ele manoit.She had one son, .I. 4tot sol fil auoit, sanz plus,Qui tant iert biaux & genz que nusabeautiful child, Ne remiroit sa belle face,whom she sent young to school.him learn well and fast,Ne li donast moult de sa grace;Moult iert biax li anfes ieunes,Ancor soit il norriz d'aumosnes.Son poure enfant la poure fame,En l'enor deu & nostre dame,Moult ione fist 7la poure metre,Son anfançon a letres metre.The Virgin made la mere deu, qui entremetreSe uost d'aidier le clerçoncel,dedanz son cuer en .i. moncelAmoncela si grant sauoir,242888832364044so he could soon sing and read.Q'an demi an li fist sauoirPlus c'un autre ne sets en quatre.Ne l'estuet pas ferir ne batre,48He sang so wellQue tant par est de cler angienQ'an oubliance ne met riende riens qu'apreigne n'oie dire;Tost sot 10 chanter & tost sot10 lire.de bien chanter est lors si duiz,Quell chançonnetes & conduizCante si afaitiemant,These lines transposed.44 seul enfant7-7 Not in the print.? Ce meestoit8 sout3Qu'out 6 fust9 Car 10 set11Qui52FOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 255Que clerc & lai conmunalment¹& trestuit cil qui chanter l'oent,Sa clere uoiz & son chant loent.Vne uoiz a si tres piteuse,Si2 plaisant &³ si deliteuse,Ce dist chascons qui chanter l'otQue c'est la uoiz d'un angelot.'Ainz mais si faite meloudiede tel anfant ne fu oïe.Qant uoit li anfes c'on le iot¹& que chascuns uolentiers l'ot,de biau chanter tant plus se paine.A son mengier chascuns l'enmoine& il i ua moult uolantiers.les demis pains & les antiers,les pieces de char & l'argent,& quanque li donent la gent,porte a sa mere li cles iones."d'autrui reliez, d'autrui aumosnes,M'auez," "fait il, "norri, ma⁹ mere.Mais foi que doi l'ame mon pere,Souant de10 duel le cuer me serreQant ie uos uoi uostre pain querre.Moult durement au cuer me point;dorenauant n'en¹¹ querrez point.Ce uos pleuis, 12 ma douce mere,Se dex me sauue na13 uoiz clere& il me 14 salue & gart 14 sain,Il n'iert ia iors que plain mon sainNe uos aport tout sanz dotancede pain, de char & de sustance.Se deu plaist, bien nos fornirons56 that all who heard him praised his voice and singing.60[ leaf 147, col. 1]64 Whenthe child heard these praises,he took still more pains,68 and was invited to meals,72768084where he received bread, meat,and money.He brought all to his mother,and told her he hoped she would not long have to work.9-91 communement 2 tres inserted.• le maine3 om . 4 lot 7 om . 8 clors10 le 13 ma11 Corr. in MS. from men14-14 garde sauf et5 moult tosnourri, fait il, tout.12. je256 14. THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;By his singing he earned enough for himself and his mother.One of his songs was the GaudeMaria,Au molin, mais n'au for n'irons,Se deu plaist & la bone¹ dame. "Ainsi la lasse 2 bone fameReconforte li clerçonniaux.³la ou de gent uoit les monciaus,Chançonetes & conduiz chante;Par biau chanter toz les anchante.Tant fait ses chans & sa uoiz clereQue bien fornist lui & sa mere.Entre ses biaus chans qu'il sauoitle biau respons 5apris auoitde la purificacionQui gaude maria a non;li diz en est douz & piteus88.9296100[* col. 2]& li chans biauz & deliteus.which he sang so touchingly ,

• li clerçonnez an la memoire

de la douce dame de gloireOu chanter si se delitoit 104Qu'a plorer pluros escitoit.Si le chantoit piteusem*ntQue clerc & lai conmunalmantas to make many Par fin estrif l'anfant prenoient;por aus deduire l'enmenoient.weep.108He was so good and sensible Tant par est douce sa meniereQue riche & poure l'ont moult chiere.Tant est senez & tant est sages⁹ 112that all loved and praised him.Que nus 10nel' blasme, tant soit sages,10de rien¹¹ que il face ne12 die.Every eveningN'i pert 13 fors san & cortoissie,15Que14 clerc & lai l'aiment & prissent;Tuit le loent, tuit le felissent, 116Tuit font de lui &16 ioie & feste.A l'anuitier nul tens n'areste,21 douce6 pluseurspovre713 Ne puet3 clerronciaus 4 lescommunement10-10 noter en ses aages 14 Et11 En aie15 fetisent8 serrez1166 qu' inserted.⁹saches12 qu'il inserted.61-16 Et tuit de lui fontFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 257Ne s'an reuoist ueoir sa mere.de lui nouele moult amereOrra par tens la bone fame;Or an soit garde nostre dame.C'ilqui ne set barat ne guillo .I. ior ioant aual la uilleSe ua auec ses compaignons;Tant q'an la rue des gaignons,C'est a dire des faus iudex, 2Venuz en est a .i. granz iex,³Ou moult de clerc uenu estoient.de lui grant feste quant le uoientfont chevalier & clerc4 & lai.Tuit li prient que sanz delaide nostre dame .i. petit chant..Si tost con comance son chantde totes parz les genz acorent& de pitié li plusor plorent;Que tant chante piteusemantQue tuit dient conmunalmant?Qu'ils chante bel & outre bien.Nes li iuif, li felon chien,

• I sont uenu auec les autres.

9Venu i a de9 felons uiautres.I.10 qui de honte ¹¹ formia 12Quant oï gaude maria.Qant an gabrielem le uersOt le iuif fel & paruersle grant oprobre a toz iuis,' Erubescat iudex infelis 1314 Qui dit Christum ex iosephSemine & natum,' 141 Ornamental letter.6 chantoit10 om.73gieus 8Que120 he went home to his mother.124 One day he was playing with128132136140144his fellows in the Jews'quarter,when a crowd collected,who asked him to sing the Gaude Maria.He sang so well that even the Jews came to hear him.[* leaf 147, back,col. 1]148One of them was so enraged at part ofhis song4 cler $ Car9-9 Un en y va des2gieus12 fermia 13 judeus infelix communement11 tout inserted.14-14 Qui dicit ChristumEx Joseph semine esse natuin.258 14. THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;that he wished Moult pres sel ua que d'un baston to kill him,Ne l'a feru par mi le chief.but was afraid of Mais il uoit bien que a² meschiefde s'anredie conuandroit; 3being killed himself.152A morir lors li couandroit, 156Ia ne uerras mais¹ l'andemain,Se il met sor l'anfant la main.N'a en la uile home ne fameQui moult ne l'aint por nostre dame, 160de qui chante si doucemant.So he waited till the crowd had dispersed,Celui qui de l'anuenimement?8de l'anemi est8 antouchiez,Qant li pueples est desfouchiez,l'anfant atrait⁹ an la10 meson;doucemant l'a mis11 a raison,164Moult le losange, 12 moult l'acole.and enticed the child into his house,"Clerçons," dist 13 il, "a bone escole 168As conuersé, ce m'est auis,Que14 onques mais si a demis 15Ne chanta anfes con tu chantes.Par ton bel chant la gent10 anchantes; 172Moi meesme17 as tot anchanté.Hui par as tu si bien chantésaying that if C'onques mais clers miauz18 ne chanta.176 the child would sing his beautiful An cel 19 respons si douz chant a,song again,[* col. 2]& tant est biaux & bien ditez,li cuers m'en est toz apitez.foi que20 doi l'ame mon pere,Miauz an sera ta poure mere,S'an ma maison uiens auec moi.'par le grant deu an cui ie croiCel respons uoil ancor oïr;1g'en6-52qu'a grant seur l'enfant metoit sa 88 Le deable est touz18093 tost venroit 6 Cilentrait 10 sa17 13 fetmeesmes14 Car18 si15 devis• verroit lors7 l'envimenement 11 le met16 les gens 19 20 се je ins.12 et ins.FOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 2591 Tout le cuer me fait¹ esioïrToutes les foiz que chanter t'oi.Ta mere por l'amor² de toiliuerrai toz ses estouoirs ."bien cuide³ que ce soit tot uoirsli las anfes, li clerçonnez;Si simplement con uns angelezle iuif suist an la5 maison.Tel cruialte ne fist mais hom;lor q'anclos l'a dedanz la portevne coigniee lors li aporte,& tel li donne de la hache,Que morte en fust une grant uache.li clerçons chiet toz porfanduz,Contre terre s'est estanduz;Par mi la bouche cleres & belleli saut le sanc & la ceruelle;Touz est froez & esmiez.184 his mother would be the better off.188 The child believed it all,192196200and went in with the Jew,who immediately killed him with an axe,made a grave under the door,Cil qui mar fust onques criez,dedanz son huis plus tost qu'il puetfait une fosse, si l'enfuet;la terre chauche & rahonie.la soue uie soit honie.Moult est dolante & esploreeQant de son fil la demoreeVoit la lasse de bone⁹ fame.plorant deprie nostre damede son anfant daint estre garde;Se sa douçor ne le 10 regardeMoult se doute ne l'ait perdu.Elle a le cuer si esperdu,& si li defaut & desmant,Elle s'escrie¹¹ trop durement.1-1 Le cuer me fet tout 5 ва 66 tost10 la20420821221621' om.3 cuides 4 om.79sa 8 tenre povre 11 Qu'ele s'en crientand buried him.As he did not return,his mother feared he was lost,and went weeping through the town,260 14. THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;inquiring of every Come desuee ua plorant¹ one she met.Aual la uille tout corant.2Assez le trace, assez le quiert,Assez demande, assez anquiert& ça & la & sus & ius.[* leaf 148, col. 1] & qant la lasse ne uoit³ nusNule nouelle n'en set¹ dire,220par .i. petit ne s'ocit d'ire. 224When she heard nothing ofher child,Moult est dolante, moult est morne;A son repaire s'en retorne.Son anfant moult regrete & plaint;A nostre dame se complaint,228she was so over- come with grief that she almost killed herself.She spent the night weeping,

fait la lasse, fet l'esmarrie,"Soiez garde de mon anfant.Ie ne sai demander tant;Nule nouelle nus m'en die.poure,5A nostre dame se doulouse;5Moult uiaut, ce dist, mort & goulose."douce dame, sainte marie,"232lasse lasse mendie,236lasse, lasse, plus de .c.9 foiz;las, 10 las, mesil cuers , qui si est 12 froizdesoz mes lasses de memelles,and imploring Me dist i'orrai 13 froides nouelles 240the Virgin to aid her. Se cil non14 fait qui tout puet faire.Sor lui met ie tout mon afaire,& sor sa douce chiere mere.'" 15Next day sne resumed her search.la poure fame en tel manieretoute nuit se plaint & doulouse.Son uis leue, son uis arousede maintes lermes ainz l'aiornee.l'andemain mate & esploreePar la cité quiest16 son anfant.1 courant 2 plorantThese lines transposed.• mil 10 Mes14 n'el153-3 voit que6 Mort 7 et mort12 m'est 11 de mere chiere4 soit2442488 le ins19 qu'orrai16 quiertFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 261"Riens n'en sauomes,"' 1 font li auquant,"Mais bien sauons, par uerité,N'a clerc ne lai en la citéQui n'en eust au cuer pesanceS'il auoit nule mesestance. "Auquant redient, " bone fame,Vos filz ersoir de nostre dameChanta assez a uns granz2 ieux³En la grant rue des iuex.5Moult chanta bel, moult chanta bien;Mais li iuif, li felon chien,li fax gaignon, li felon uiautre,

• 6I uindrent ausi con li autre;

de toutes parz i7 asemblerent.Il puet bien estre qu'il l'amblerentA l'anuitier qant s'an aloit; 8Que moult le cuer lor esuolloit 10& moult en erent mat & tristeCom11 en lor rue 12 & en lor triste,Meesmement deuant aus toz,Chantoit le haut 13 plaissant & douzde la dame que14 heeNt tant.S'il ont tué n'ocis l'anfant,descouuert iert & reuelez;Ia 15murtres ne sera15 celez."Auquant 16 redient, "n'est pas douteIuif l'anfant n'amoient goute,Que17 il chantoit de nostre dameSi doucement, n'ere 18 hom ne fameQui toz li cuers n'en apitast.Mais quiconques s'i delitast,19 Il ne se¹º delitoient point;Que20 moult lor cuit & moult lor point,1 savon 2 3 om. juif 7 g'i 8 raloit13 leschans1417 Car9 Quarqu'il4 10 5 Juis10 avaloit 15-1518 n'iert12252Some said they knew nothing of her child.Others told her that the night 256 before,260[* col. 2]he was singing in the Jews'264 quarter,268272and that it was likely that these wretches stole him at dark,as he sang ofthe Lady whom they hate;but that if they had killed the276 child,2806-6 Ausi juindrent 11 Quant ame ne sera murtres 16 Aucun19 g'i 20Carthe murder would out.Others said the same,262 14. THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;and hoped the Virgin would reveal the matter;adding that if it was 80,Qant nus l'anore & nus la loe.¹la douce dame ceste choseReueler doint2 par sa puissance.284On les doit toz sanz delaiencebruir en flames & an tissons,S'il est ainsins çon nos dissons." 288the Jews ought to be burnt.Conmunement par la citéEsmeu sont & escitéMoult duremant de cest afaire.Ne set que dire ne que faire 292The poor woman told the Virginthat if she did not get back hor son,la dolante de bone fame;dou tot s'enprent4 a nostre dame,& bien li dit tout en apertQue s'elle ainsi son anfant pert,Iamais nul ior n'aura fianceEn sa douçor, en5 sa puissance.296Assez doulousse, assez lermante,Moult se complaint, moult se demante,Moult est en grant esmarriture;76300[* leaf 148, back, *Ne uos sai pas la multitude col. 1]she would have no more faith in her kindness or her power.de sa tristece raconter.8Mais quant nostre dame racorder⁹ 304Se vost a li de son anfant,.I. miracle fist si tres grantThe poor woman was quite exhausted with watching and weeping.Que touz li monz s'en merueilla.la lasse fame assez ueilladeuant l'ymage nostre dame;la cheitiue de poure fameMainte soignie10 i a portee;de ueillier est toute amortee.11Tant a 12ueillié, tant a oré,12Tant a gemi, tant a ploré13Que ne puet mes mengier ne boiure.141 l'alose 2 daint6 lamente10 soigniee3 flammes 4 se prent7 amaritude11 avortee3083125 n'en• recorder 9 acorder12-12 ouré, tant veillié a13 ploré a14 boireFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 263Moult sont dolant clerc & prouoiredou biau clerçon qui est periz,316 All the clergy were grieved at the loss of the little cleric.Qui tant iert ' douz & seriz& qui tant iert bien antechiez."Cist granz murtres, cist2 granz pechiez,38N'iert mie longuement³ celez.Que dex uost qu'il fust reuelezpor son saint non glorefier,por croistre & manefier porle non la glorieusse mere.'Ce me reconte ma matere"2C'uns iors ala, li autres uint,bien em passerent plus de .xx. ,Ainz que nouelle fust oïede coi fust auques esioïe 5la dolante qui sanz seiorpaumes batant & nuit & iorAual la uile aloit criant,& nostre dame depriantQu'ele la mort li otroiastOu son anfant li anuoiast."320324It was three weeks before the sorrowing mother had news 328 ofher son.332Sicon deu plot, .i. ior auintQ'an la rue des iuis uintla chestiue paumes batant,Gent par som braire asamblant8Qu'il an i ot plus de .x.9 mille.336340One day she happened to go to the Jews' quarter,

• Effree est toute la uille,

& tuit se tienent¹º celle part.[* col. 2]11 "fuiez, fuiez, li cuers me part,"dist 12 la lasse, 66 ce m'est auis .fix douz, fix douz, se fussiez 18 uisNe fussiez 14 pas tant demoré.filz douz, murtri & acoré¹1 estoit 2 estsliee n'el joie • batoit⁹deus10 traient13 fusses15344348sa 3-3 Longues ne puet estre 7 renvoiast • assembla tant11 Fiz, fiz, fiz, fiz 12 Fait14 N'eusses 15 acovrécollecting by her lamentations alarge crowd.264 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;She exclaimed that the Jews had killed her son,T'ont cist¹ iuif, cist¹ puant chien.filz douz, le cuer me dist moult bien[2 Qu'en ceste rue t'ont tué.2Fiz douz, fiz douz, ou es tu, e?]Trop³ est dure ta matere,Qant ne paroles a ta mere,Qui ci s'ocit & ci s'afolle,A tout le mains une parole."352356lors chiet pasmee en mi la rue;Ses cheuex trait, ses cheuex rue,Som piz debat & sa forcelle.beat her breast "dur cuers, dur 5 cuers, dur cuers, " dist5 ele, 360"Trop me fait mal & trop me grieueand tore her hair, Con tu ne faux7 ou tu ne crieuesEn .ix. parties ou en .x.ha, mere au roi de paradis, 364Ia t'auoie ge⁹ conmandé tantand called on A iointes mains mon las d'anfant;the Virgin to give her back her child,Ie le t'auoie tant 10 donné,A letres mis & coroné,368por seruir toi & ton douz fil.Q'an as tu fait, dame, ou est il?di moi, di moi, ou est il donques?ha, mere deu, ce n'auint onquesQue fust perdue & 11 adiree372Chosse 12 qui a toi fust liuree 18Ne14 comandee entre tes mains.alive or dead, 15ha, mere deu, cest Cest 16 or dou mains 376di moi, a toi 17 n'a point d'estrif¹7 or else send her death.Se tu randre le me 18 uiax uif.19 Ren le moi tost o uif ou 19 mort,Ou tu m'enuoies tost la mort.".¹ cil 4qui si 8Je3802 These two lines are not in the MS. 3 par inserted.914 Ou5-5 durs, fait om. 10 tout6greues 11 n'7 Quant tu ne fens 12 Riens 13 atiree15 This line is two in the MS.17-17 n'ai nul 18 ne le estrif16 om.19-19 A tout le mains rent le moiFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 265lors est pasmee sanz plus dire.Tant a doulor & tant a d'ire,

• & tant est persse, noire & tainte,

Que chascuns dit qu'ele est estainte.de toutes parz la gent¹ aqueurentQui de pitié tenrement plorent,& de la mere & de l'anfantOnt grant pitié petit & grant.Mais de la lasse poure fameprist grant pitié² a nostre dame;por³ cele triste tristeceMua en ioie & en leece.4"Qant celle gent fu¹ assambleeQu'a cel5 grant duel est aunee,6par le plaissir de nostre dameli filz a la lasse de fame,Qui enterrez estoit & morz,par grant uertuz, par grant effort?dedanz la fosse s'escria.Le respons Gaude mariaEncomança a si haut ton& a si cler q'ainz¹º n'oï homSi haute uoiz ne si tres clerc.Qant son enfant oï la mer, 'Come desuee en haut s'escrie,"douce dame, seinte marie,11I'oi mon anfant, i'oi mon anfant. "Adonc i ot temoste grant& escrie en moult de lius,"Or au12 iuis, or au12 iuis, 13Qui nos 14 clerçon nos ont embló. "& clerc & lai sont assamblé;Chies le iuif15 moult tost s'embatent,1 les gens5 A ce10 sinz2 Grant pitié prist 6 iert assemblee 11 mere 12 aus7 effors384388392She fell in aswoon,[* leaf 149, col. 1]and the bystanders,taking her for dead,sorrowed over her and her son.But the Virgin made the child,396 who was dead and buried,400 sing the404408Gaude Maria in a loud voice.His mother screamed as if she were mad,that she heard her child.4-4412Queque cele grant 9 Et commençaThere was a great tumult,and all set upon the Jews.3 ce ins.8 sa 13 gieus 14 no 15 les juis266 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;The Jews bolted their doors,Iuif trebuchent & abatent,Iuis tuent,¹ iuis tot2 toillent.3Iuis tantost¹ lor huis Veroillent,butto no purpose. Mais clerc, qui sont plain de derroi,Moult tost i font la clef le roi.Iuis hurtent & iuis fierent,l'anfant apelent, l'anfant quierent;416420N'i a chambre ne repostaille5Ou l'anfant ne quierent chacuns m'aille.7[* col. 2] 'N'est nus quis nouelle lor en die;424Whenthe Jew who had killed the child heard his voice,& s'oent tuit la melodie& la meruoille dou clerçon;Ainz n'ot uielle si9 douz son.Qant de l'anfant antant la uoiz,li pautoniers, li fel, 10 li froiz,he was much frightened,428Qui murtri l'ot¹¹ en sa meson,Si grant paor n'ot ainz 12 mes 13 hom,Come14 ot la noisse & la temote,432and locked himself in.But the people forced the door,& la chose qui est escoute 15Voit par miracle reuelee.Moult a sa maison 16 tost serree,Mais maintenent & clerc & laila froent ausi¹7 sanz dela, 18Con s'ele fust de uiez escorce,19& si saillirent enz tot a19 force.436"Ceanz," font il, "est il sanz doute,"& foant20 uont la meson tote. 440and after search ing the house,were astonished at not finding the boy,though they heard him sing." par foi," font il, " c'est deablieQue nos 21 n'en poons trouer21 mie,& s'est ceanz & ceanz chante.Il nos deçoit, il nos enchante;Il est muciez, ce samble, en terre,1 batent et 2querreom . 3 roillent 6-6 12 13 om.7 n'aillentnus ins.18 delai 11 l'ont17 Ausi la froent 20 Tournoiant4443• moult tost repostaillent 8 om. 9 plus10 juis14 Quant 15 ert occulte 16 porte19-19 Se saillent enz a fine21-21 trouver ne poonsFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 267Q'annuiez somes¹ tuit de querre. "& il reuindrent droit2 a l'uis."Ici desoz chante en .i. puis,"font li auquant, 33 " si con nus samble. "lors le deffuent tuit ensamble,& si le trouent en la fosse,Ausins roont come une cosse.A ausins le trouent sauf & sain,Con se l'eust dedanz son sainla mere deu 5l'a bien 5 gardé.bien l'ont, demi ior regardéAnçois que saoulé s'an soient .& cil & celes qui le queroient?l'esgardent tuit par8 grant meruoille.la face auoit ausi uermoille,A10 ausi rouuante, 11 ausi belle,Come une 12 cerisse 13 nouelle.

• Tant uienent gent de14 grant pooir

de totes parz por lui ueoirQu'a poines 15 i puet nus auenir.448 They returned to the door,452and thinking his voice came from beneath,they dug under it,456 and found the child safe and Bound,460 with his face as red as a cherry.464[* leaf 149, back,col. 1]Qant la mere le puet tenir,Si le tient cort, si le tient chier,Que pou i lait nului 16 touchier.A la lasse de bone fameSamble 17 bien qu'ele soit plus 18 dameQue roïne n'empereriz,Qant ses anfes 19 qui ert periz20fu deuant li & an20 sa brace..C. foiz li baisse front & face;Si grant ioie a dedanz son cuerQu'ele ne puet a nesun fuer.I. tout sol mot parler ne dire.' Quant enuié sunt 2 reviennent tuit5-5 ades • esgardé 10 om . 11 et inserted.15 Que peu1916 puet nuli son enfant7 voient 12 est 133 il aucuns BaCrowds came to see him,but his poor mother would468 hardly let anyone else touch him.She thought herself better472 than queen476om .S-9 facete a14 ou fleur inserted. a18 17 moult inserted. que plus soit20-20 Estraindre puet dedenzor empress,when she again embraced her son.268 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;Thus the Virgin well recompensed her for her sorrow.The boy had round his head a writing de- scribing the miracle;and his face,which had been cut to pieces,was perfectly healed.de mautalent, d'ardor & d'irebien l'a la dame respasseede cui huchier ele¹ est lassee.dou miracle est2 grant la feste •li clerçons a encor³ la testeTel sirografe, tel escritQue le miracle bien descrit.Ia soit ce que mal ne li face,Tout a le uis iusqu'a la face& despecié & despanné.Mais si gari & si sanél'a nostre dame si7 soutilment,Q'ainz n'i ot herbe n'oignement.EN480484488When asked to tell who had killed and buried him,he said that when Qui enfoï leanz l'auoient the people had left,& despecié ainsi la teste.Ntor l'anfant, c'en est la some,Sont assamblé li plus sage home.492por deu li deprient doucemantQue illo lor die isnellemantQui cil furent, qui cil estoient,496"Er soir," dist¹¹ il ,66 a sa12 grant festede ceste rue fu partie,a Jew enticed him .I. gius 13 qui ne m'amoit mieinto his house,de moi blandir tant se pera,14500par ci deuant moi15 amena,L* col. 2]

• & il16 iura l'ame som pere

Que il 16 feroit grant bien me mere,504Se ça dedanz chanter uenoieand struck him with an axe;Le biau respons que ie sauoie.Qant anserré m'ot ça dedanz,Tout me fandi iusques es danzd'une hache qu'il¹7 corrut querre.1 toute5 Qui10 Por dieu2 moult inserted.6jusque en it fait7 om.15 me3 entour 8 Assemblé sont12 quant la 16 moult1317quijuif508et inserted.• Qui14 penaFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 269Ne sai s'il m'enfoï en terre,Que¹ lors qu'il m'ot feru el² someIe m'endormi, c'en est la some.Si grant talant de dormir oi,3Ancor¹ m'est uis5 dormi ai poi; 7Ne m'esueillasse por nule ame.Mais deuant moi uint nostre damela douce mere ihesu crist,Qui m'esueilla & qui me distQue ie trop pereceus estoie,Qant son bel respons ne chantoie,Ainsins con ie soloie faire.la douce mere10 debonaireAtant se departi de moi,& ie au plus haut que iell poi,Encomençai le 12 bel respons.Or uos ai tot dit¹³ & respont14Tot mon afaire, 15 tot mon estre. "Atant s'escrient clerc & prestre,66 Sonnez, sonnez, sonnez, sonnez;16 Ainz puis l'ore 16 que dex fu nezplus biau miracle mais n'auint. "Se .x. langues auoie ou .xx.Ne seroit pas par moi retraitela grant ioie qui i¹7 fu faite.Mainte grant closche i ot18 sonnee;Glorefiee 19 & reclameefu moult20 la mere ihesu crist,Qui cest tres douz miracle fistpar sa tres douce pité.21plusors iuif de 22 la citélor 23 iusdeal uie23 deguerpirent;but that he did not know if he was buried,512 for it seemed to him that ho fell asleep ,516 and had slept520524528but little when the Virgin came to him,and asked him why he did not sing as usual;and that he then began the Gaude Maria.532 The people rang the bells for this great miracle,536 and the Virgin was much glorified.540 Several Jews became Christians;1 Car 2 3 47ou 8euPpeu une 12 son 13 dit tout 1417 la 18ont22 par CH. ORIG.espons 15 et ins.19 Glorefié 20 Moult fu 23-2319 judaismeQu'encor ⚫ qui inserted.Qu'assez 10 dame que j'onques 16-16 Puis le biau jor6 om .01-0121pieté270 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;[* leaf 150, col. 1]those whodid not,were killed.He does well who well serves the Virgin;de cuer amerent & seruirentla' mere 2ihesu crist² de gloire;& tuit cil qui ne uoudrent croireOcis furent & macecré.3A sage tien & a discréCelui qui met entente & cureA seruir la pucelle pure,la douce dame debonaireQui set si douz miracle faire,Si tres piteus, si delitant.Escrit trouons bien delitantQue plus est froiz & durs que fers,Que de lui seruir n'est engrès.544548- 552auoir nos fait ceste matereSaQue bon seruir fait la deu mere;556those who donot Qui bien la sert, s'il la requiert,are beasts and monsters.Let us serve her day and night,for she defends from adversity all whom she loves,7Tost li enuoie ce qu'il quiert.Cist miracles bien dit & mostre⁹Que beste sont tuit cil & mostre& de lor ames10 pou lor chautQuill de li seruir12 ne sont chaut.por deu, 13por deu,18 n'alons tardant,Soiont 14 engrès, soions engrant15de li16 seruir & ior & nuit.Gardez, 17 por deu, ne nos anuitSes seruises qui tant est douz.la douce dame desfant tozCeuz 18 qui l'aiment d'auerssité.Sachent tuit cil 19 de uerité,de paradis est el 20 santierQui l'aime 21 de fin21 cuer antier.de22 paradis fait clerc son litqui inserted. 7 These lines transposed.I douce inserted.610 ame 13-132-3 au roy 3 maceré11 om. 12 qui inserted.16 lui17 Gardons 20 15 ardantou 21-21 et sert de56055645685724virgeom .8 si 9 monstreo'm..18 Ceans22 En14 Soions19 oleroFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 271.Qui uolentiers en chante & lit.Qui de li chante volantiers,En paradis¹ uole antiers& deuant deu ua toz montez.Saintes ne saint si grant bontezfere ne puet con nostre dame;Grant bonté fist la poure famede son anfant quant li randi.Ne2 sai pas s'il³ se randi,

• Ne quel uie puis il5 mena,

Que en mon liure plus n'en a;Mais esperer n'os7 ne ne puis8Qu'il ne fust moult prodoms puis.Asotez fust trop sotemantS'il ne serui deuostementla douce mere ihesu cristpor la bonté qu'ele li fist.& sa mere moult refu⁹ soteS'anuers li¹0 ne fu moult 11 deuote& tote a li12 ne s'otroia.les chandoilles bien emploiaQu'ele porta13 deuant s'ymage.Entendre doiuent tuit li sage& bien 14 doiuent aperceuoir15Que cil & celes font 16 sauoir,Qui metent 17 souant 18 granz poigniees 19& 20 granz tortiz &20 granz poignieesdeuant l'ymage n[ost]re dame;Si21 con fist la poure fameQui mainte belle & mainte grantEn i porta por son anfant.bone22 chose est de luminaire1 touz ins.10quele $ om.fust 132 Je ne 3 si 4Moulttrespreudomqui ne11puis inserted.om. 12 lui15 tuit savoiren576 and they go straight to Paradise.580I do not know[* col. 2]584 what life the588592woman or the boy led after he was restored to her,but they must have been very foolish ifthey did not servethe Virgin well.596 The poor woman6006046• Car 7 nous ⁹ refu moultenporta16 cele fait 17 met 19 soingnees 20 les 21 Ausi 2218 14 le inserted.a inserted.Hautewell employed the candles she burned before the Virgin's image;and those who imitate her do well.272 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;But there are many who burn large candles on their tables till midnight,& ¹ sages est qui le puet faire;Qui enlumine sainte eglysse,& qui esclaire au deu² seruisse.Mais ie uoi moult certes de ceusQui uain en sont & pereceus;Meesmement tuit li plus riched'amuler³ deu tuit4 li plus chiche.biens est an nos si amortiz5608612but give only a Que granz cierges & granz tortiz 6small taper for the altar. Volons ardoir desor" nos tables;Nes8 por 9chanter chançons ou⁹ fables 616Volons ardoir, qui qu'il anuit,Granz cierges iusqu'a10 mie nuit.Mais sor la table ou nos couchomesle cors ihesu crist & leuomes, 620The poor old womenN'ardomes fors mocheronciaus& cirotons 11 & cirocotiaus. 12Fi, que dirons con 13 les uielletes[* leaf 150, back, Qui souler n'ont ne clemisetes, ¹col. 1]who on every saint's day bring large candles,En deu anorer se deportent14 624& granz chandoilles i 15 aportent,Que gaaignent a filochier.which theyhave fit, 16 que diront, " a,17 fi, lochier;to workfor,oughtto make us ashamed of giving only little tapers,but smoke.628doit dex de uos hochier 18 la teste.'les ueilletes chascune festeles chandoilles granz i19 alument;& nos les mocherons qui fumentwhich do nothing & les cierges li alumons,de coi l'autel tot enfumons.Aucun conois, par saint ciqaut, 20A cui 21 si petit de deu 21 chaut,Qu'a ses messes, qu'a ses matinesOne person Iknow burns in church6326364 sont 5 amordis • tordis9-9 cointir et lire 13 10 desqu'aquant 14 chemisetes 19 souvent15 li granz chandeles li21-21 de deu moult petit1que 2om . • D'alumer8 Nous12 cirgonciaus 187 de sus11 cirgetons Fi 17 dirons fi20 SicautFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 273Art chandoilles¹ si frarinesQue2 n'i a cire se tant non,C'un po daube³ limaignon.& qant d'aucun uiaut feste faire,Tel clarté, tel luminaire 46Qu'il art tortiz et cierges poinz. "Em buisnardie est bien empoinz;& 7bien set il ' quant se porpanse,Ce m'est auis, que musarz panse.bien a les iex dou chief forezprestres qui art tortiz dorezdesor⁹ sa table come10 il soupe;& .i. cierge¹¹ farssi d'estoupe,Qui ne puet randre que12 fumiere,Art deuant la uraie lumiere,Qui tant est bele, sainte 13 & monde,Qui tout 14 enlumine le 14 monde,Selonc l'escriture deuine,de fine limiere 15 anlumine.Encor conos ie 16 tel menesterel 17Qui arderoit sor 18 son autel19 Moult uolantiers, par saint romacle, "Se uergoigne n'auoit dou siecle,Chandoile20 de uache ou de buef.bien art tortiz d'uit ou de .ix.Qant se deschauce sor sa couche;& sor21 l'autel met ou 22 il couthe 28le cors son criator & lieue,Chandoille si corte24 & si brieue,Grant 25 ne porroit 26 estre ne27 longueNe par aucent ne par ditongue;1 chandeletes 2 Qu'il 5 6pains en pains • De sus 103 le inserted.7-7 moult set bienciergot 11 quant 14-14 homme venant ou17 menestrel12 fors15 vraie lumiere 19 sainte Tiecle 18 sus 21 22 sus om .25Que26 23 couchepas ins.640a candle almost all wick,but when he gives a dinner to afriend,644 he has a brilliant illumination.648 A priest who burns gilt torches at his suppertable,and only a tow taper at the 652 altar,656must have lost his eyes.I know such a one,660 who, if he were not ashamed of what people would say,664668fait inserted.8 cuer froiz13 vraie, saine 16 om.20 Chandeles24 Si courte chandele 27 om.[* col. 2]would burn atallow-candle at the altar;274 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS;he has eight or nine torches in his bedroom,but burns in church a candle thinner than afly's foot,which will not keep alight& s'est ancor si chetiuete,Si tres aigre,¹ si tres maigrete,Que graile est plus que piez de mouche;Ia n'ardera s'an² ne la mouche.3& nequedant ie ai moult chier¹Que ses doiz arde a les mouchier;without snuffing. Que5 bien demostre a son afaireQue de deu n'a gaires 7que faire.7At St Bartholo- mew's altar he 8Ne l'apostres saint berteminhas hanging apiece of course cloth,gnawed by rats and mice;Ne prise .i. grain de min;A son autel pant .i. bourazQu'a tot rongié soriz &⁹ raz;Aucune foiz, par seint richier, ¹Ai ge ueu plus blanc cendrier.Ses liz uoutis11 est & parez,10672676680I have seen awhiter ashpit.Ses autex nus et esgarez.684His bed is splendid,his altar bare. Que c'est ordre 15 preposterus.li portier d'enfer cerberus,12 & qui en gap, 12 ie n'em puis rire;& ie ai 13 droit, que 14 bien puis dire688Ausi come 16 porter puet fros, 17Unless the co*ck crows,Nul tans, se ne li chante cox, 18N'orra ia uespres ne matines,Cerberus will not Se li deables 19 ne's a dites. 19 hear vespers or matins. porquis sont 20 de fer oupor eschauder s'i fait farain.69221 d'arainpar seint lucien de biauuez,There is more light in his room than in his monastery.Il est pereceus & mauuaiz.En sa chambre a plus luminaireC'an son mostier, par saint hylaire;Qant boiure uiaut mestre ysorez,6961haingre5 Car2 se on 3 les maucheQu'il n'a de dieuThese two lines not in the print.11 vestuz 12-12 15ordo 16 il inserted.19-19 ne matines9 ouQui qui engast 13j'ai voir monchier 7-7 affaire10 Andrier 14 j'ai grant car17 froc18 chantent coc20 Por cuisses21 etFOR THE PRIORESS'S TALE. 275Tortiz poinz¹ & pipelorezAlumer fait deuant sa coupe.Por le cuer beu, deu moie coupe,Pres ua ie² ne di³ meruoilles.deu, deu, tu dorz ou tu somoillesQuant tex menestex ne crauantes¹Qant tu tonnes ou tu uantes.Vers le siecle est trop despissanz,6& uers toi est si tres tandanz,Si tres auers, si tres eschars,Qui s'il auoit chargié .ij . charsde bone cire fine 10 & clere,N'en auroit ia tu ne ta merebiau cierge ne bele chandoille.& s'il auoit .ijij.11 muis d'oille,Ne sera12 ia plaine sa lampe.Ne sai se la soriz i rampe,Ne se li rat par nuit la uoide, 13Que14 ie la uoi moult souant uoide.Ou ce fait espoir la mostoile,Qu'ausi¹5 dit an que moult aime 16 oile.par seint soupliz de pierrefonz,Ne sai se l'eiue fort 17 au fonz,Que18 ie uois 19 ai bien an couantQue blanchoier la uoi 20 souuant.Ia 21 n'iert ia tiex que22 s'an resqueueQue sa lampe n'ait blanche queue.700I wonder God does not strike him dead.704 * leaf 151 , col. 1 ]708If he had two loads of wax,and four tuns of oil,neither God nor the Virgin would 712 have a good candle or a full lamp.716Perhaps the rats drink the oil at night,720 for I often see his724lamp empty;or perhaps aweasel devours it.& pandu i a, 23 par seint pierre,An lieu 24 de plomee vne pierre.Qui souant la uiaut alumer,Ainz li25 couuient l'eiue tumer,261 2 pains om. 3 fines inserted.5quant inserted.⁹ fresche19 14CarVous10 nete15 Ausi20 li voit24 lui11728• menesterex n'acravantes• despendans 7 Que cil XXX 12 N'en seroit16 qu'a' aimme moult 21 Il23 i22 qu'il17 sort26 lumer238X13 vuident18 CarpenduejaI do not know if the fountain in the convent gives water;his lamp is very dirty,and has got astone instead of a lead weight,276 THE BOY KILLED BY THE JEWS; PRIORESS'S tale.Que li plunions i puist plungier.l'autrier li dis, " maistre hugier, ¹so that it is like a 2 & qui ta² lempe bien espie,Elle resamble trop bien pie.magpie,only its tail is white instead of black.Donot be offended ifI havejested a little;I sometimes say a word at the end of these miracles,[* col. 2]which makes those laugh732Mais tant i faut, ce est la uoire,Que queue a blanche & pie³ noire. " 736S'un petit ai ici bordé,Ne uos em poit, por amor dé.Aucune foiz a la parclosede ces miracles, de tel choseSor aucun mot ou ie m'enbat,Ou ge meesmes moult m'esbat,Ou ie refaz a la foiz rire740"Ceuz qui i'ai fait plorer & rire.8de ces miracles i a tex744who had wept at Qui tant sont douz & deliteus the story.Qu'a10 plusors genz les cuers apitent& a plorer les genz¹¹ escitent. 748Cele que uois tant recitant,par sa douçor nos escitant, 12Maywebe stirred Q'ainsi soiomes escitez 13 up to the love ofthe Virgin,as were those ofthe town where the boy was brought to life!Con cil furent 14 de la citéOu le clerçon resucita.A s'amor toz les escita,་& 15uos ausint toz nos 15 escist.Or aus autres finez est cist.¹ Hungier 2-2 Que si sa 3 est inserted.5 di 6 Et dont 97 faiztant piteus 13 escité 88 dont plourer ai fait au lire 11 aucuns 12 escit tant 15_15 nous touz ausi y752756griet pas10Que14 furent cil27715.The Paris Beggan-boy_munderdby a JewFOR SINGING"ALMA REDEMPTORIS MATER! ”An Analogue of Chaucer's Prioress's Tale.FROM THE MIRACLES OF THE VIRGIN ' IN THE VERNON MS.IN THE BODLEIAN LIBRARY, ABOUT 1375 A.D.EDITED BYDR. CARL HORSTMANN,OF SAGAN, SILESIA,EDITOR OF ALTENGLISCHE LEGENDEN, GREGORIUS, ETC. ETC.278 THE PARIS BEGGAR- BOY MURDERED BY A JEW. INTRODUCTION.Or Chaucer's Prioress's tale, the following analogue and olderversion exists among the " Miracles of Oure Lady," which I have justpublisht in Herrig's " Archiv für neuere Sprachen " from the celebratedVernon MS. It is much to be regretted that of these beautiful storiesonly nine are left, the ninth still unfinished; for the whole set, accordingto the index at the beginning of the Vernon MS. , originally amounted tono less than 42. The titles of these are printed on p. 279-280 from theindex. The present tale is the second, with the title " Hou pe Lewes indespit of vre lady prewe a chyld in a gonge. " And truly, even whencompared to Chaucer's tale, this older version has its poetical beauties—in its singular sweetness, its warm, true and tender religious feeling, itssimple and natural language, its light and easy flow. Its general toneis of a more popular kind, whereas Chaucer's poem is more elaborate,exhibiting more art and culture. In some respects I even give thepreference to this older version. In the story told there are some slightdifferences.At the end I add a short poem on a similar subject, from MS.Harl. 2251 , which mostly contains poems of Lydgate; it is there foundtogether with Chaucer's Prioress's Tale, which the writer seems to haveascribed to Lydgate. It tells that a monk, Dan Joos, who had been afervent honourer of Mary, constantly saying the five psalms in honourof the Virgin, is found dead with a rose, inscribed Maria, springing fromhis mouth, and two pairs of roses from his eyes and ears. Evidentlythis poem, written in the same metre as the Prioress's Tale, is an imitation of Chaucer's poem by Lydgate. The artificial style, the longdrawn sentences, and the many relative conjunctions, form quite acontrast to the simple language of the Vernon poem.279[INDEX TO THE]MIRACLES OF VRE LADY.(leaf) C.xxiij.[Vernon MS. , leaf i, back. ]1. Hou pe cite off croteye was delyuered of þeir enemys by vre ladycoote.C.xxiiij.2. Hou þe Lewes in despit of vre lady prewe a chyld in a gonge.3. Hou an holy hermyt prayde a synful womman pray god for hym.4. Hou a Iew putte his sone in a brennyngge ouene for he was communed wit opur cristene children on pe pask day.C.xxv.5. Hou a man for ache cut of his foot and was heled a-zeyn by vre lady.6. Hou a iew lente a cristenemon moneye and took vre lady to borow.7. Of a prest þat lay by a nonne.C.xxvj8. Hou vre lady 3af mylk off heore pappes to a man þat hadde pesquynacye.9. Of an incontinent monk þat was drouned and rered azeyn by vrelady to lyf.10. Of a clerk þat wolde euery day segge pe fyue ioyes of vre lady.11. Hou vre lady dude pe offys of a sextresse fyftene zeer for a nonne..Cxxvij.12. Hou a god wyf by-nam fro an ymage of vre lady þe ymage of heore child.13. Of a deuout knyt off kyrkeby.14. Hou a wommon slow heore doutour hosebonde and was dampned tope fuyr and delyuered by vre lady.15. Hou pe deuel took lyknesse of a wominon and seyde he was godes modur.16. Hou out of a monkes mouth aftur his deeth grew a lilie and in eueryleef was wryten wyt large lettres of gold. Aue maria.280 LIST OF THE MIRACLES OF OUR LADY.Cxxviij17. Hou a nonne furzat to grete vre lady and ful in apostasye.18. Hou seynt Bernard say twey children ydrouned for þeir inobedience.19. Of þys antynene Salue regina.20. Hou vre lady sauter by-gan.C.xxix21. Hou vre lady was a medewyf in pe churche of seynt michel in monte tumba.22. Hou pe feste of pe Natiuite of vre lady by-gan.23. Of a deuout clerk þat died in drenkelenschipe & was wyrnedsepulture.C.xxx.24. Of a þef þat was pre dayes hanget and saued by vre lady.25. Of a prest þat coude non opur masse but Salue sancta parens.26. Hou pe deuel in liknesse of a bole and of oþur bestes encumbrede amonke for he was ones drunke. دار27. Of a wominon off Rome þat conceyuede bi heore owne sone & slou heor child..C.xxx[j ] .28. Off a child þat weddede an ymage of vre lady.29. Hou at pe cite of Tholuse pe priuetes were knowe of Lewes.30. Hou vre lady 3af to seynt Bonyte pe bisschoph holy vestemens.31. Hou pe deuel in fals liknesse of seynt Iame made a man cutte of his priue membres¹.Cxxxij.32. Of a monke of Cisteus þat vre lady took in heore armes and custehym.33. Hou Constantyn pe Emperour ordeynede for euere-mor in seyntpetre churche at Rome in wyrschip of seynt petre a lampe wytBaume perpetuelly brennyngge.34. Of seynt fulbert pe bisschop pat made pe Storye and be legende andopur tretys off þe natiuite of vre lady.35. Of a mayden þat was cald Musa.C.xxxiij.36. Of a malicious priour of seynt sauyours of pe cite of papye.37. Of seynt Ierom bisschoph of papye.38. Of a whyth corporaus was intynt wit red wyn in seynt Micheleschurche pat his cald cluse.39. Hou vre lady taute a clerk hou he schulde segge heore complyn.40. Of pe schrewednesse of Iustynyan þe emperour.41. And why pe feste of pe puryficacioun was ordeyned.42. Hou an ymage of pe child off vre lady taute anopur child and preyde hym to come dyne wyt hym.1 MS, menbres.281The Paris Beggar-boy murderd by a Jew.[Vernon MS. , leaf 123, back. ](Illuminated picture, with scrolls bearing these words: —WRequiem eternam &c.Alma redemptoris mater Salue sancta parens. )•Ose louep wel vre ladi,Heo wol quiten his wille wel whi¹,·Opur in his lyf or at his ende:þe ladi is so freo and hende.•Hit fel sum tyme in Parys,·As witnessep in holy writ storys,// In pe Cite bi-fel þis cas:A pore child was of porchas²,•þat wip þe Beggeri · þat he con wynne •He fond sumdel what of his kinne,•His ffader, his Moder, and eke him self;He begged in Cite⚫ bi eueri half.// pe child non opur Craftus coupe •But winne his lyflode wip his Moupe:þe Childes vois was swete and cler,•Men lusted his song wiþ riht good cher;wip his song⚫ þat was ful swete · ·He gat Mete from strete to strete.Men herked his song · ful likyngly:•Hit was an Antimne of vre lady,·He song pat Antimne eueri wher,I.-Called Alma Redemptoris Mater,4Our Lady will somehow reward all who love her.In Paris8 a poor beggar- boy kept his father and mother by begging12and singing.16 Folk liked his song,20 an Anthem of our Lady,This is our ' somehow ', in some way, the interrogativeused as an indefinite pronoun.Fr. 2 begging. Cp. Chaucer's Prol. 256, ' His purchas was welbettre than his rente: ' the proceeds of his begging.Pourchas: m. Eager pursuit, earnest chace after; diligentsolicitation, or vehement following of a matter. -Cotgrave.' Alma Redemp- toris Mater.'282 THE PARIS BEGGAR-BOY MURDERD BY A JEW. PRIORESS'S TALE.He sang it so delightfully that the Jews hated him.And one Saturdaya Jew enticed the beggar-boy into his house,and cut his throat.But the boy still went on singing his Anthem.þat is forprihtly to mene:• • ·Godus Moder, Mylde and Clene,Heuene 3ate and sterre of se,·Saue pi peple from synne and we¹.·þat song was holden deynteous,ре child song hit from hous to hous.ffor he song hit so lykynglye,•þe Lewes hedde alle to hym Envye.Til hit fel on Aseters day ••pe Childes wey porw pe Iewerie lay:pe Lewes hedden þat song in hayn²,perfore bei schope³ · pe child be slayn.•So lykingly pe Child song per •So lustily song he neuer er.·n of pe Lewes MaliciousOrilled tope child - in -to his hous.•His Malice þere he gan to kuype:He Cutte pe childes prote⚫ alswipe.•// pe child ne spared nout for þat wrong,•But neuer þe latere song forp his song;whon he hedde endet, he eft bi-gon,His syngyng coupe// per-of pe Ieuh•stoppe no mon.•was sore anuyet,Leste his Malice mihte ben a-spyet.So the Jew threw pe Ieuh bi-pouhte him of a gynne:him into a privy.But still the boy sang on.His Mother expected him,as usual,at noon.•In-to a gonge put fer wip-Innepe child a-doun þer-Inne he prong.•pe child song euere be same song,•So lustily pe child con crieþat song he neuer erMen mihte him hereþe Childes vois wasE Childes moderÞE ·••so hyze,fer and neer:so heiz and cleer.was wont to a-bydeEuery day til þe Non tyde,1 A.Sax. wea, woe.3 schemed, plannd.2 Fr. haine, hate.✦ enticed.2428323640444815256THE PARIS BEGGAR-BOY MURDERD BY A JEW. PRIORESS'S TALE. 283þen was he wontSuch as he mihteBote pat day wasperfore his Moder •••·•to bringe heom mete,wip syk and serwewip his song gete.pe tyme a-past.was sore a-gast.Heo souhte wher heo•in eueri stretemihte wip him mete.// Bote whon heo com in-to pe Iewery,Heo herde his vois so cler of cry.Aftur þat vois his Modur dreuh;60As he didn't come,she sought him everywhere.In the Jewry she heard his 64 voice,wher he was Inne,•perbi heo kneuh.// pen of hire child heo asked a siht.pe Lew wip nayted¹ him · a-non riht,And seide per nas non such child þ[e] rinne.pe childes Moder · zit nolde not blinne,•But euer pe Moder criede in on·þe Ieuh seide euere per nas such non.//pen seide pe wommon: pou seist wrong,•He is her- Inne, I knowe his song.pe Ieuh bi-gon toAnd seide per comBut neuer þe laterepe child song euereAnd euer pe lengorstare and swerenon such child pere.men mihte here•so loude and clerc,•herre and herre,Men mihte him here bope fer and nerre.// pe Modur coude ·To Meir and BaylyfsHeo pleynep þe Ieuh·non opur won:·heo is gon,hap don hire wrongTo stelen hire sone so for his song;• •Heo preyep to don hire lawe and riht,Hire sone don come·bi-fore heore siht,Heo preyep pe Meir par ChariteOf him to haue freo lyuere2 .and askt to see him;68 but the Jew said her boy wasn't in his72house,and swore to it.768084But still the boy kept on singing.So his Mother went to the Mayor and Bailiffs,and prayd them to give her her 88 boy.' Old Icel. neita, deny: ' naytyne or denyyne, Nego '.Prompt. Parv. 351; and naitid, Apol . 77.2 delivery, and in 1. 102. Compare the old law-phrase,'livery ofseisin ' , delivery of possession.284 THE PARIS BEGGAR-BOY MURDERD BY A JEW. PRIORESs's tale.TheMayor summondthe Citizens,// penne heo tellep pe Meir a-MongHou heo lyuep · bi hire sone song.// pe Meir pen hap · of hire pite,And sumnep pe folk of pat Cite.··He tellep hem of þat wommons sawe,And seip he mot don⚫ hire pe lawe,92and when they got tothe Jewry,To Bringe pis wommons cause to ende.·And hotep hem wip hym to wende,96// Whon pei cum þider, for al heore noyse •·they all heard the Anon þei herde pe childes voyse,boy's voice.The Jew couldn't deny his guilt.Riht as an Angels vois hit were,pei herde him neuer ·synge so clere.þer þe Meir makeþ entre,And of pe child · he askep lyuere.•100//be Ieuh may nouзt pe Meir refuse,Ne of pe child hym wel excuse,104But nede he moste · knouleche his wrong,•A-teynt¹ bi pe childes song.The boy was found in theprivy,and pulld up,// pe Meir let serchen hym so longe,•Til he was founden · in þe gonge,fful depe I.-drouned in fulpe of fen.108þe Meir het drawe pe child vp pen,•wip ffen and ffulpe riht foule bi-whoruen²,with his throat cut.112The Jew was killd.And eke þe childes prote · I.-coruen.•Anon riht, er þei passede forpere,þe Ieuh was Iugget · for þat Morpere.And er þe peple · passede in sonder,•The Bishop came, pe Bisschop was comen to seo þat wonder.•// In presence of Bisschop and alle I. ferepe child song euere Iliche clere.116// pe Bisschop serchede wip his hond:120 throat and inthe foundboy's awip-inne pe childes prote he fondfair lily on-writ A lilie flour, so briht and cler•So feir a lylie nas neuere sezen er,convicted: ' Atteyntyn. Convinco '.- Prompt. Parv. See Rob . enwrapt, coverd: wheruen, to turn. . Br. 122.THE PARIS BEGGAR-BOY MURDERD BY A JEW. PRIORESS's TALE. 285wip guldene lettres ••eueri wher:Alma Redemptoris Mater.// Anon pat liliepe childes songþat swete songBut as a ded cors// pe BisschopBad bere pe cors··out was taken,bi-gon to slaken,was herd no more.•þe child lay pore.wip gret solempneteporw al pe Cite.And hym self wip processioun ·Com wip pe Cors porw al þe toun,•with prestes and clerkes pat couþen syngen,And alle pe Belles he het hem ryngen,·wip torches Brennynge and clopus riche,• wip worschipe pei ladden þat holi liche.•In-to pe Munstre · whon þei kem ' ,Bi-gonne pe Masse of Requiem,As for pe dede . Men is wont.But pus sone pei weren i-stunt,pe Cors a-Ros in heore presens,Bi-gon pen Salue sancta parens.// Men mihte wel witen po sope per-bi:•þe child hedde i-seruet vr swete ladi,þat worschipede him so on erpe her· And brouhte his soule to blisse al cler.// perfore i rede⚫ þat eueri monSerue pat ladi wel • as he con,• And loue hire in his beste wyse:Heo wol wel quite him his seruise.·Now, Marie, for þi Muchele mihtHelp vs to heuene pat is so briht.with letters of gold,124 Alma Redemp128132136140toris Mater.The lily was taken out;the boy's song ceast;his corpse was carrid in pro- cession thro'the townto the Minster;and when the Requiem was begun,the corpse got up,and sang Salve sancta Parens.This was because he'd honourd 144 Our Lady.Every one should serve and love 148 her.Mary! help us to heaven!152¹ Came. Compare Songs and Carols (from Sloane MS.2593) , ed. T. Wright, for the Percy Society, 1856, p. 40 , poemXXXIV, st. 5:Quan they kemyn into that plas Ther Ihesu with his moder was.The dialect is East- Midland, with the initial a (xal = shall),seen in some of the Lynn Guild returns ( E. E. T. Soc. , 1867) .So too Quan is East- Midland .CH. ORIG. 20286The Monk who honourd the Virgin.OVirgin,flower of Nazareth,MS. Harl. 2251 , leaf 70, back.•welle of swetnes, replete in euery veyne,That almankynd preserued hast fro deth,And al oure Ioye fro langour' didest restrayneAt thy natiuite, o flour of Nazareth,·•Whan the holigost with his swete brethGan to espiren as for his chosen place,For love of man, ⚫ by influence of his grace, 7•¶ And were Inviolate, a bright heuenly sterre,Monge celestynes Reigneng, withouten memorye,That be thyne emprise in this mortal werreOf oure captiuite gatest the ful victory: 11 • bestow a drop of Whan I beseche for thyn excelent glory,Som drope of thi grace adowne to me constille,In Reuerence of the this dyte to fulfille.thy grace on me to help me write this ditty,that Imay notspoil thy Miracle.Thou rewardest those that love thee.Help thy Clerk,in this his need,•¶ That only my Rudenes thy myracle nat deface,Whiche whilom sendest in a devout abbeye •Of an holy Monk thurght thy myght and grace,That of al pite berest both lok and keye:•• For, benyng lady, the soth of the to say,•1418Ful wele thow aquytest that don the love and serve,An hundred sithes better than they deserve.••Ensample of whiche here is in portreyture,Withouten fable, · Right as it was in dede.O refuge and welth to euery creature,Thy clerk to further help now at this nede,For to my purpos⚫ I wil anon procede,•· The trowth to Record I wil no lengger tary,Right as it was, apoynt I wil nat varye.·212528THE MONK WHO HONOURD THE VIRGIN. PRIORESS'S TALE. 287•·•¶ Vincentius in his speculatif historiałOf this saide Monk makith ful mencyoun),Vnder the fourme to yow as I reherse shall,That be a gardyn as he romed vp and down,He herde a Bisshop of fame and grete renown)Sayeng fyve psalmys in honoure of that flourThat bare Ihesu Crist,•·oure alther redemptour.¶ In whiche psalmes stondyng eche in hir degre,Who so lust take hede, in synguler lettris fyve This blessid name maria⚫ there may he see,That first of all oure thraldom can deprive,To the haven of deth whan we gan to Ryve,And fro the wawes of this mortal seeMade vs tescape from aH aduersite.·••¶ Distinctly in latynFolowyng these baladisTo whom the Bisshop •here may ye rede echoneas for your plesaunce.had seyd his meditacion,•The monke anon deliteth in his remembraunceAnd thought he wold as his most affiaunceCotidially with hem only oure lady please,·[leaf71]Vincentius says that as a Monk walkt up and 32 down a garden,353942he heard a Bishop say 5 Psalms in honour of Mary.46 The Monk resolvdThat from all grevaunce his sorwis myght appease. 49¶ And therwithal he writeth hem in his mynde ··So stidefastly with devoute and high corage,That neuer aday aword he forgate behynde,But seyde hem entierly in to his last age,His olde gyltis both to asoft and swage;After his matyns, as was his appetite,•To seyn hem euer was his most delite,•Therto his diligence with al his hert and myght,And forth contynued in his devoute wise.•Til at the last it be-fille vpon a nyght:•The hole covent at midnyght gan a-Rise,•As is her vsage, to don to god servise.So whan they were assembled ther in general,The suppriour · beholdyng aboute ouerat,¶ As is his office,But of Dane IoseHe rose hym vp •·that non of them were absent,he cowde no wise espie.and privelich he is wentIn to hys chambre, and there he fond hym lye Dede as a stone, and lowde he gan to crye:66••' Help, quod he, for the love of oure lady bright,to repeat em daily.53 And so he did,to the day of his death.56[leaf 71, back]One night,6063 the Sub-priormisst the Monk Jose,67 went to his room,Dan Ioos, oure brother, is sodainly [dede] to nyght! "IMS. nereuerand found him dead.288 THE MONK WHO HONOURD THE VIRGIN. PRIORESS'S TALE.The monks saw ¶ The covent anon ganne Renne⚫ half in dred,Til they behielde, whan passid was theyr affray,Out of his mowth a Rose both sprynge and sprede,Fressh in his coloure as any floure in may,2 out of his eyes, And other tweyne out of his eyen gray,Of his Eris as many, ful freshly flouryng,1 fresh Rose spring out of Jose's mouth,and 2 out of his ears.And on the Rose out of his mouth wasgraven Maria•••74That neuer yit in gardyn half so fayre gan spryng. 77¶ This Ruddy Rose they have so long behold,That sprong fro his mowth, til they hau[e] ¹ espyedin letters of gold. Ful fayre I-graven in lettris of bourned goldMaria ful curiously, as it is specifyed[leaf 72]The corpse wastemple.In bookis old and anon they have hym hyedVnto the temple with lawde solempnite,Beryng the Cors, that al men myght it [se] .••818488Whiche they kept in Royalte and perfeccioun)kept 7 days in the Sevene dayes in the temple, there beyng present,Til thre Bisshoppes, of fame and grete Renown),Weren comen thyder · right with devout entent,And many another clerk with hem by on assent,To sene this myracle of this lady brightSayeng in this wise with al theyr hert and myght: 918 Bishops ex- ·••¶ "yowre blynde fantesies now in hertis weyve horted the folk to Of childissh vanyte, and lete hem ouer slyde,And lovith this lady that can no wise disceyve!She is so stidefast of hert in euery sydelove Mary,their needs,••who'll provide for That for youre nedis so wonderly can provyde,And for yowre poyesye these lettres .v. ye takeOf this name maria · only for hir sake,and is not like deceitful women,but rewards men better than they deserve.She is perfect.•9598102¶ "That for youre travaile so wele will yowavaunce,-Nought as these wymmen on whiche ye don deliteThat fedith yow al day with feyned plesaunce,Hid vnder Treason, with many wordes white,But bette than ye deserve she wil yow qwyte,And for ye shal nat · labour' al in veyne,ye shul have hevene. ther is nomore to seyne.••105¶ "whos passyng goodenes may nat be comprehendydIn mannes prudence, fully to determyne,She is so parfite she kan nat be amended,That ay to mercy•Now benyng lady,Mary,reward all In honoure of theAs was dane Ioos that honour thee! ••and pite doth enclyne. "•that didest oure sorwes fyne,that these psalmes Rede109so quyte hemfor hir mede! AMEN.1 page torn here.105109EX21Chaucer Society.STATEMENT FOR THE YEARS 1886-8.PART V. of the Chaucer Analogues (to be issued shortly) willinclude Papers by Mr. W. A. Clouston on the Analogues of theManciple's Tale and the Wife of Bath's Tale, and probably someother versions of Griseldis. It will also contain a Title-page, Contents-table, and Index for the five Parts, so that they may be boundtogether.Mr. Clouston will , in 1887 or 1888, edit for the Chaucer SocietyJohn Lane's continuation of Chaucer's Squire's Tale from its twoMSS. in the Bodleian.The Second Part of the Trial- Forewords to Chaucer's MinorPoems will be written by Dr. John Koch of Berlin, the Editor andTranslator of several of these Poems. It will probably be issuedduring 1887.The issue for 1884, now in arrear, will be made in 1887.391785- B.OTF BLIO LEKK.289KBIBIBLY16.The Damsel's Rash Promise:INDIAN ORIGINALAND SOME ASIATIC AND EUROPEAN VARIANTSCH. ORIG.OFChaucer's Franklin's Tale.By W. A. CLOUSTON.2112290INDIAN (SANSKRIT) ORIGINALBURMESE VERSIONPERSIAN VERSION ...... ...ANOTHER PERSIAN VERSIONINDO-PERSIAN VERSIONHEBREW VERSION ...GERMANO-JEWISH VERSIONPage 291... ... ... 298 ""

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30338291TTHE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE:INDIAN ORIGINAL AND SOME ASIATIC AND EUROPEANVARIANTS OF THE FRANKLIN'S TALE.By W. A. CLOUSTON.THE oldest known form of Chaucer's well-told tale of the chasteDorigen is probably found in a group of Indian fictions entitled ,Vetála Panchavinsati, ' Twenty-five Tales of a Vetála, ' or Vampyre,which are incorporated with the great Sanskrit collection, KatháSarit Ságara, ' Ocean of the Rivers of Story ' (of which some particulars hereafter), but they still exist as a separate and distinctwork, though considerably abridged, in most of the vernacular languages of India: in Tamil, Vedála Kadai; in Hindi, Bytál Pachísí,etc. The Tamil version has been done into English by B. G. Babington, and the Hindi version by Capt. W. Hollings. This is theVetála story, from Professor C. H. Tawney's translation of the KatháSarit Ságara, published at Calcutta, Vol. ii. p. 278:TIndian Original.HERE was an excellent king of the name of Vírabáhu, whoimposed his orders on the heads of all kings: he had a splendidcity named Anangapura, and in it there lived a rich merchant, namedArthadatta; that merchant prince had for elder child a son calledDhanadatta, and his younger child was a pearl of maidens, namedMadanasená .One day, as she was playing with her companions in her owngarden, a young merchant, named Dharmadatta, a friend of herbrother, saw her. When he saw that maiden, who, with the fullstreams of her beauty, her breasts like pitchers half-revealed, andthree wrinkles like waves, resembled a lake for the elephant of youthto plunge in, in sport, he was at once robbed of his senses by the292 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: INDIAN ORIGINAL;arrows of love, that fell upon him in showers. He thought to himself: " Alas, this maiden, illuminated with this excessive beauty, hasbeen framed by Mára, as a keen arrow to cleave asunder my heart. "While, engaged in such reflections, he watched her long, the daypassed away for him, as if he were achakraváka.1 Then Madanasenáentered her house, and grief at no longer beholding her entered thebreast of Dharmadatta. And the sun sank red into the western main,as if inflamed with the fire of grief at seeing her no more. And themoon, that was surpassed by the lotus of her countenance, knowingthat that fair-faced one had gone in for the night, slowly mountedupward.In the mean while Dharmadatta went home, and thinking uponthat fair one, he remained tossing to and fro on his bed, smitten bythe rays of the moon. And though his friends and relations eagerlyquestioned him, he gave them no answer, being bewildered by thedemon of love. And in the course of the night he at length fellasleep, though with difficulty, and still he seemed to behold andcourt that loved one in a dream; to such lengths did his longingcarry him. And in the morning he woke up, and went and saw heronce more in that very garden, alone and in privacy, waiting for herattendant. So he went up to her, longing to embrace her, and fallingat her feet, he tried to coax her with words tender from affection.But she said to him, with great earnestness: "I am a maiden,betrothed to another; I cannot now be yours, for my father hasbestowed me on the merchant Samudradatta, and I am to be marriedin a few days. So depart quietly: let not any one see you; it mightcause mischief. " But Dharmadatta said to her: "Happen what may,I cannot live without you." When the merchant's daughter heardthis, she was afraid that he would use force to her, so she said tohim: " Let my marriage first be celebrated here; let my father reapthe long-desired fruit of bestowing a daughter in marriage; then Iwill certainly visit you, for your love has gained my heart." Whenhe heard this, he said: " I love not a woman that has been embracedby another man;-does the bee delight in a lotus on which another1 Anas casarca, commonly called the Brahmany duck. According to the Hindú poots, the male has to pass the night apart from its female.-C.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 293bee has settled?" When he said this to her, she replied: " Then Iwill visit you as soon as I am married, and afterwards I will go tomy husband." But though she made this promise, he would not letber go without further assurance; so the merchant's daughter confirmed the truth of her promise with an oath. Then he let her go,and she entered her house in low spirits.And when the lucky day had arrived, and the auspiciousceremony of marriage had taken place, she went to her husband'shouse and spent that day in merriment, and then retired with him.But she repelled her husband's caresses with indifference, and whenhe began to coax her she burst into tears. Hethought to himself:"Of a truth she cares not for me, " and said to her: " Fair one, ifyou do not love me, I do not want you: go to your darling, whoeverhe may be. " When she heard this, she said slowly, with downcastface: " I love you more than my life; but hear what I have to say.Rise up cheerfully, and promise me immunity from punishment; takean oath to that effect, my husband, in order that I may tell you."When she said this, her husband reluctantly consented, and thenshe went on to say, with shame, despondency, and fear: “ Ayoungman of the name of Dharmadatta, a friend of my brother, saw meonce alone in our garden, and, smitten with love, he detained me;and when he was preparing to use force, I, being anxious to securefor my father the merit of giving a daughter in marriage, and toavoid all scandal, made this agreement with him: 'When I ammarried, I will pay you a visit, before I go to my husband; ' so Imust now keep my word, permit me, my husband; I will pay him avisit first, and then return to you, for I cannot transgress the law of1 Asiatics have a profound faith in lucky and unlucky days, and the professors of the pseudo- science of astrology are highly respected by all classes.Before setting out on ajourney, or performing the marriage- ceremony, or indeedcommencing any important matter, the almanac and the astrologer are con- sulted to ascertain the precise lucky moment. In one of the Buddhist BirthStories, a man having missed making a good match for his son, because hehad been told by a spiteful astrologer, whom he consulted, that the dayproposed for the nuptials was inauspicious, a wise old fellow remarked: " What is the use of luck in the stars? Surely, getting the girl is the luck! " and recited this stanza:"While the star-gazing fool is waiting for luck, the luck goes by; -The star of luck is luck, and not any star in the sky. " —C.294 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: INDIAN ORIGINAL;truth, which I have observed from my childhood. " When Samudradatta had been thus suddenly smitten by this speech of hers, as by adown-lighting thunderbolt, being bound by the necessity of keepinghis word, he reflected for a moment as follows: " Alas, she is in lovewith another man; she must certainly go; why should I make herbreak her word? Let her depart! Why should I be so eager tohave her for a wife? " After he had gone through this train ofthought, he gave her leave to go where she would; and she rose up,and left her husband's house.In the mean while the cold-rayed moon ascended the great easternmountain, as it were the roof of a palace, and the nymph of theeastern quarter smiled, touched by his finger. Then, though thedarkness was still embracing his beloved herbs in the mountaincaves, and the bees were settling on another cluster of kumudas, acertain thief saw Madanasená, as she was going along alone at night,and rushing upon her, seized her by the hem of her garment. Hesaid to her: " Who are you, and where are you going? " When hesaid this, she, being afraid, said: "What does that matter to you?Let me go; I have business here." Then the thief said: "How canI, who am a thief, let you go? " Hearing that, she replied: " Takemy ornaments." The thief answered her: " What do I care forthese gems, fair one? I will not surrender you, the ornament of theworld, with your face like the moonstone, your hair black like jet,your waist like a diamond, your limbs like gold, fascinating beholderswith your ruby-coloured feet."When the thief said this, the helpless merchant's daughter toldhim her story, and entreated him as follows: "Excuse me for amoment, that I may keep my word, and as soon as I have done that,I will quickly return to you, if you remain here.Believe me, mygood man, I will never break this true promise of mine." When thethief heard that, he let her go, believing that she was a woman whowould keep her word, and he remained in that very spot, waiting forher return.She, for her part, went to the merchant Dharmadatta. Andwhen he saw that she had come to that wood, he asked how it1 In Sanskrit the moon is feminine, and the sun masculine. -C.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 295happened, and then, though he had longed for her, he said to her,after reflecting a moment: "I am delighted at your faithfulness toyour promise: what have I to do with you, the wife of another?So go back, as you came, before any one sees you. " When he hadthus let her go, she said: " So be it, " and leaving that place, shewent to the thief, who was waiting for her in the road. He said toher: " Tell me what befell you when you arrived at the trystingplace. " So she told him how the merchant let her go. Then thethief said: " Since this is so, then I also will let you go, beingpleased with your truthfulness: return home with your ornaments. "So he, too, let her go, and went with her to guard her, and shereturned to the house of her husband, delighted at having preservedher honour. There the chaste woman entered secretly, and wentdelighted to her husband; and he, when he saw her, questioned her;so she told him the whole story. And Samudradatta, perceiving thathis good wife had kept her word without losing her honour, assumeda bright and cheerful expression, and welcomed her as a pure-mindedwoman, who had not disgraced her family, and lived happily withher ever afterwards.When the Vetála had told this story in the cemetery to KingTrivikramasena, he went on to say to him: " So tell me, King,which was the really generous man of those three-the two merchants and the thief? And if you know and do not tell, your headshall split into a hundred pieces. " When the Vetála said this , theking broke silence, and said to him: " Of those three the thief wasthe only really generous man, and not either of the two merchants.For of course her husband let her go, though she was so lovely, andhe had married her; how could a gentleman desire to keep a wifethat was attached to another? And the other resigned her becausehis passion was dulled by time, and he was afraid that her husband,knowing the facts, would tell the king the next day. But the thief,a reckless evil-doer, working in the dark, was really generous to letgo a lovely woman, ornaments and all. "The grand story- book, Kathá Sarit Súgara-which is not only aperfect storehouse of Indian folk-lore, but contains the prototypes of296 16.THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: INDIAN ORIGINAL;many of the tales in the Thousand and One Nights, and the probableoriginals of a very considerable number of European popular fictions-was composed, in Sanskrit verse, by Somadeva, towards the end ofthe eleventh century, after a similar work, entitled Vrihat Kathá,the ' Great Story,' written by Gunadhya, in the sixth century, according to Dr. Albrecht Weber. It is not to be supposed that Gunadhyawas the actual inventor of the tales in his collection; many of thembear internal evidence of Buddhist extraction, and some have beenconclusively traced to such sources. Apart from this, the circ*mstance that his work, as represented by that of Somadeva-for nocopy of the original Vrihat Katha is known to exist; but Somadevais careful to inform his readers that his book " is precisely on themodel from which it was taken; there is not the slightest deviation,only such language is selected as tends to abridge the prolixity ofthe work "—the circ*mstance that the collection contains one entiresection, or chapter, of the celebrated Indian apologues, commonlyknown in Europe as the ' Fables of Bidpai,' or Pilpay (first translated out of the Sanskrit into the Pahlavi, under the title of Kalilagand Damnag, during the reign of Núshírván, king of Persia, sixthcentury) , is sufficient to show that Gunadhya, like the compilers ofthe Arabian Nights, selected from earlier works such stories and fables as suited his purpose, and wove them into a frame-story. Andalthough no copy of the Vetála Tales in Sanskrit has, I believe, yetbeen discovered in separate form, there can be no doubt that it wasoriginally a distinct work, by some ascribed to Sivadasa, by others toJambaladatta; and in the opinion of the learned and acute Benfey,the materials of the stories are of Buddhist origin, and they maytherefore date as far back as the second century before Christ. Inthe Mongolian form of the Vetála tales, the Relations of Siddhí Kúr,which constitute the first part of Sagas from the Far East, by MissM. H. Busk, derived mainly, if not wholly, from Jülg's Germantranslation, little more than the general plan has been preserved; it is,moreover, a comparatively recent work.JFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 297Benfey's opinion, that the Tales of a Vetála are of Buddhistextraction, seems partly confirmed by the existence of a Burmeseversion of the foregoing one, in a small collection which was renderedinto English thirty-five years ago, by Captain T. P. Sparks, underthe title of The Decisions ofPrincess Thoo- dhamma Tsari, Maulmain,1851. This work, like most of the Burmese books, was translatedfrom the Páli, and the tales comprised in it are therefore of Buddhistadaptation, if not invention; yet they may have assumed their present forms in the Burmese language at a period subsequent to thecomposition of Somadeva's Katha Sarit Ságara. In many instanceswhere the same stories are found in the writings of the Brahmans, theBuddhists, and the Jains, it does not follow that one sect copied fromanother; but it is most probable that they were derived from common sources, and more or less modified to adapt them to the doctrinespeculiar to each sect. However this may be, in the absence of anyBuddhist version of our story the date of which is positively ascertained to be earlier than the sixth century—when the Vrihat Katháwas originally composed-the Vetála tale, as above, must be considered as the oldest, notwithstanding the unquestionable antiquityof the Buddhist fictions generally. In the following Burmese version,from Captain Sparks' translation of the Decisions of Princess Thoodhamma Tsari,¹ the tale, it will be observed, is interwoven withanother, to which it may be said to be subordinate, being related forthe purpose of discovering among four persons the one who hadstolen a part of their joint property; a form which differs from theVetála story, but has been reproduced in several Asiatic derivatives,and in at least one European variant: 21 "It is not very clear," says the Translator, " why this title should have been given to the book, for the name of the Princess does not occur before the close of the fourteenth story. One explanation given me is, that it is so called from the Princess having collected the various decisions, and published them together with a few of her own. Another, that the book originally contained the decisions of the Princess only, but that in process of time others were added by different hands, whilst some of her own were lost. I am inclined to favour the latter opinion."2 The notes to the story, excepting a few which are placed within square brackets, are by the Translator.298 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: BURMESE VERSION;Burmese Version.URING the era of Thoomana,¹ four Bráhmans-named MaháBráhmana, Meedze Brahmana, Khoddiha Brahmana, andTsoola Bráhmana2-resided in the country of Thinga-thanago. Eachof them possessed one hundred gold pieces. As they were going tobathe they agreed to put their money together, and accordingly threeof them did so; but the youngest, entertaining a fraudulent design,concealed his in a separate spot, and expecting that from so doingthe three others would divide their portion with him, made as if hehad placed his money with theirs, and went with them to bathe.When they had all four come up out of the water, they found theproperty of three of the Bráhmans, but that of the youngest wasmissing. "Howis this? " said he. " My money is gone, but yoursis still here: will you give me part of yours? " They demurredagainst this, saying: "No one has been here; if your money hasdisappeared from the place where we all deposited ours, why shouldwe make it good?" So they went to the judge of a neighbouringvillage for a decision . He gave judgment as follows: "It is notright that the money of one should be missing out of the stockdeposited by all four; therefore let that which remains be dividedequally between you. " The three Brahmans, being still exceedinglyaverse from a division, went before the governor of the district, whor*ferred them to the chief nobleman. He sent them before the kingof the country, who confirmed the decree of the village judge. Thethree Brahmans, being still not contented, said that they were dissatisfied. Then the king made the chief nobleman undertake thecase, saying: " Hey, my lord noble, completely dispose of this casewithin seven days, or I will deprive you of your rank, and confiscateyour property." The nobleman, in great alarm, called the fourBráhmans, and diligently inquired into the affair; but being unableto make anything of it, he became exceedingly sorrowful and distressed. His daughter Tsanda Kommárí, observingthe dejected condition of her father, asked him, saying: " My good lord and father,why are you so sad? " He said: "Ah, my dear daughter, I am1 The thirteenth Buddha. [ Great, Middle, Small, Tiny. ]FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 299compelled to undertake the case of the four Bráhmans, and if I failto dispose of it within seven days, I shall be degraded from my highestate; for this cause am I sorrowful. " Tsanda Kommarí replied:"Fear not, my father; I will manage to detect the thief; -do youonly build a large pavilion. " The noble did as she desired , andhaving placed each of the Bráhmans in one of the four corners,Tsanda Kommárí stood in the centre. When the evening was past,she asked the Bráhmans to let her hear them discourse upon anysubject with which they were acquainted, selected from the wisdomcontained in the eighteen branches of knowledge, the hundred andone different books of the Lauka Nídí, the Lauka Widú-wiekza, theLauka Bátha, the Lauka Yatrá, the Lenga Thohtika, the WiennauTreatise on Medicine, and the Pintsapoh Yauga Nidan. The Bráhmans replied: " Lady, we are unable to perform what you ask,forasmuch as one amongst us bears a deceitful heart, and none of uscan say which of the four it is; we can no longer, therefore, to ourshame and confusion, exercise the Brahmanical functions. But you,being brought up at the feet of your noble father, are well versed inknowledge, and having all the questions that arrive at the court fromthe four quarters of the globe, deign now to speak to us for ourinstruction. " Said she: " Oteachers, I know nothing; but, if youwish it, I will relate a tale:"In the olden time, a prince, a young nobleman, a poor man'sson, and a rich man's daughter were being educated together in thecountry of Tekkatho.¹ As the rich man's daughter was noting downthe lesson of her teacher, she dropped her style,2 and, seeing theprince below, she said: ' Just give me my style. ' He replied: ' Iwill give it you; but you must make me a promise, that soon afteryou return to your parents you will let me pluck your virgin flower. 'She made him the required promise, whereupon the young princehanded her the style, and she said: ' I will certainly come to you. '1 The Páli name of Tekkatho is Tekkathela, or Tekkasela; and we knowthat Kha corresponds to the Sanscrit Ksha, so the Sanscrit name is Teksheela,which is the famous Taxila of Ptolemy, in the time of Alexander the Great,"the largest and wealthiest city between the Indus and the Hydaspes. "-Notes on the Ancient History of Burmah, by Rev. F. Mason.2 Used for writing on the palm leaf.!L302 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: BURMESE VERSION;thief, whom she found fast asleep; but, although it would have beeneasy for her to take advantage of this and make her escape, sheawoke him, saying, ' My lord thief, my life is yours, and the wealthI have brought with me is yours also. I am here according to mypromise, and have not disobeyed your will.' The thief exclaimed:' This is wonderful, indeed! You have kept the hardest promise inthe world. If I were to do any injury to such a person as you, somegrievous misfortune would be sure to happen to me. Speed you onyour way.' So he let her go, and she returned in safety to herhusband, to whom she related all that had happened to her. Herhusband, when he had heard her narrative, gave her praise for allthat she had done. "When the story was finished, Tsanda Kommári asked the fourBrahmans which of the persons mentioned in it they each thoughtmost worthy of praise. The eldest Bráhman said: " I approve ofthe prince, because his conduct was wonderfully in accordance withthe ten laws,¹ which it is the duty of kings to observe, inasmuch ashe refrained from plucking his promised flower." The next Bráhmangave his opinion in favour of the guardian Nat of the banyan-tree ,saying: " I laud him, because he presented to the rich man's daughter a jar of gold; and where any man would have found it difficultto keep his passions under control, he, a Nat, was able to restrainthem." The third Brahman said: " I praise the husband, because,being like water in which an exceedingly pure ruby has been washed,he curbed his desires, and when his wife asked his permission todepart he allowed her to go.2 That man's mind must have been an1 These are: ( 1 ) To make religious offerings; ( 2) to keep the commandments; (3) to be charitable; (4) to be upright; (5) to be mild and gentle;(6) not to give way to anger; (7) to be strict in the performance of all the prescribed religious ceremonies; (8) not to oppress; (9) to exercise self- control; (10) not to be familiar with inferiors. [The second of the above is, toobserve the Five Precepts of Buddha, which are: ( 1 ) Not to do murder;(2) not to steal; ( 3) not to commit adultery; (4) not to drink intoxicating liquors; (5) not to do anything which is evil. ]2 The meaning of this I conceive to be, that as water would contract noimpurity from a bright gem being immersed in it, so the husband's heart,into which the beauty of the bride had sunk, imbibed therefrom no stain of sensual passion.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 303extraordinary one indeed! " The youngest Bráhman said: " I thinkmost of the thief, because it is the nature of robbers to risk even theirlives to gain a livelihood. For such a man not to covet clothes andjewels, gold and silver, and to allow them to pass through his handswithout retaining them, shows his excellence; therefore I bestow mymeed of praise on the thief. "A young lady, who was Tsanda Kommárí's attendant, when shehad heard these opinions, said [ privately]: " O daughter of our lord,three of the Bráhmans, and I also with them, applaud the prince,the Nat, and the husband , but the youngest Bráhman gives thehonour to the thief. " The nobleman's daughter, on hearing this,replied to her attendant: " The disposition of the youngest of thefour Bráhmans prompting him to consider the thief as the most to becommended, because he gave up, without coveting, the wealth whichhad actually come into his hands, shows that the missing money isin his possession. Therefore, my sister, do you disguise yourself soas to resemble me, and go to the youngest Bráhman and say to him:' The reason of my coming to you is this: The words which thethree other Brahmans have spoken are nought but folly, while yourwisdom is great. You are a young man and have no wife; thereforeI have come to marry you. How, then, can we contrive to livetogether? I am in dread of my father; your property is lost, and Icome to you empty-handed; so, if we remove together to anotherplace, we shall be without the means of subsistence." "Her attendant, on being dismissed with these instructions, onmeeting the young Bráhman, addressed him as she had been taught.The Brahman was greatly rejoiced at her words, and said: “ Dismissyour anxiety. I have not lost my property; it is still in my hands.I only pretended it was gone in order to obtain a share from theothers. There is enough for our support, even if we should go toanother part of the country." She reported the words of the Bráhman to her mistress, who went to her father and told him that shehad ascertained that the lost money was in the young Bráhman'shand, and if he would give her a sum equal to that which was missing she would recover it. The nobleman gave her what she askedfor, and she placed it in the hands of her attendant, desiring her to304 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: BURMESE VERSION;go to the young Bráhman and show him the money, and speak tohim according to the instructions which she then gave her.The attendant went to the young Bráhman, and, showing himthe money, said as she had been taught: " Let me see how muchyou have got. Mine is but a small sum, therefore add yours to it,and then, if we elope together, we shall at least have enough to eatand drink." The Brahman gave her his money, which, on receiving,she conveyed to her mistress, who, rejoicing greatly, said to her:"Now go, my sister, to the three other Bráhmans, and ask them togive you their money, telling them that you will put it by, and allfour of them shall obtain full satisfaction. She went to the Bráhmans and asked them for their money, as she had been told, towhich they consented, and gave it to her.The nobleman's daughter then reported to her father that shehad in her hands the money of all the Bráhmans. He went to theking and said: " O king, I have recovered the money which was thecause of disgrace to the four Bráhmans; " and on the king inquiringby what means he had succeeded, he stated that it was his daughterwho had contrived to find it out. The king sent for the nobleman'sdaughter and the four Bráhmans, and asked them for an explanation.Then the nobleman's daughter said: " This is a deceitful and a fearful business! These four Bráhmans are gifted with wisdom, and asthe nature of us unregenerate mortals is the slave of covetousness,anger, and folly, I will recite this apothegm: First, the ear hears,and this tempts the eye to look; the lust of the eye, being indulged,excites the lust of the heart, and thus the soul becomes wedded tothis world; then it loses its wisdom, and without consideration fallsinto the commission of evil deeds, as a consequence of which, it suffers for ages in subsequent transmigrations. " Having thus spoken,she laid down the four shares of money before the king, who orderedthe owners to take what belonged to them. Each of the Brahmanstook his share; but when three of the shares were gone and theyoungest took the one which remained, "What! " cried the king,"the young Brahman said that he had lost his money, and yet hereit is back again! " The nobleman's daughter answered: " At firsthe himself hid his money, but now he has himself brought it toFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 3051light; therefore the four Bráhmans have each their own again. "The Nat's daughter, who was the guardian of the royal umbrella,¹cried aloud: " Well done! " and the king, struck with admiration atthe wisdom displayed by the nobleman's daughter, and consideringthat she was well qualified to examine and settle the various mattersofimportance brought by the royal ambassadors from all parts of theworld, made her his queen. Therefore judges should take this storyas an example, and exercise wisdom in examining and deciding thecauses before them.2It is not uncommon to find incidents of what are separate tales insome countries, and even two or more entire tales, fused into one inother places; and we have an instance of this in the highly-divertingstory of Ahmed the Cobbler, in Sir John Malcolm's Sketches ofPersia, chap. xx. , as related to " the Elchee " by the Shah's ownstory-teller, the latter part of which is a variant of our story; thepreceding part comprising incidents similar to those in the wellknown German tale of ' Doctor Allwissend ,' in Grimm's collection.Ahmed the cobbler, in consequence of a series of lucky chances, bywhich he gets a reputation for supernatural sagacity, is married tothe king's beautiful and clever daughter, with whom he lives happily,till an untoward thing happens, which is the subject of the following1 [The umbrella is in most Asiatic countries the symbol of sovereignty. ]2 Lady Verney, in an interesting paper, entitled " Bits from Burmah, " in Good Words, for March 1886 (pp. 180-2), gives a somewhat different and much shorter version, as related by "a young Burmese, come to England for his education," who appears to have altered the story to render it in accordance with his conception of our double-distilled English morality, representing the princess as obtaining her parents' leave to set off and take back her promise before her marriage with the man to whom they had engaged her; and when the young Bráhman tells the damsel, who professes love for him, that he had his own share of money hidden in the forest-"thus was the whole matter made clear; the thief was punished, and the lady was made a judge." Lady Verney adds: " The story is interesting, as showing an honourable feeling for a given word, and for the light it throws on the position and respect shown to women. But the same story is well known, as we shall see presently, incountries where " respect for women " is at a sad discount.CH. ORIG.2222306 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: PERSIAN VERSION;Persian Version.\HE king of Sístán had sent an emerald of extraordinary size andTHEbrilliancy as a present to the king of Irák. It was carefullyenclosed in a box, to which there were three keys, and one of themwas given in charge to each of the three confidential servants employedto convey it. When they reached Ispahán the box was opened, butthe emerald was gone. Nothing could exceed their consternation;each accused the others; as the lock was not broken it was evidentone of then must be the thief. They consulted as to what was to bedone; to conceal what had happened was impossible--the veryattempt would have brought death on them all. It was resolvedtherefore to lay the whole matter before the king, and beg that byhis wisdom he would detect the culprit, and that he would showmercy to the other two. [At length the king summons Ahmedinto his presence, in whose skill in astrology his Majesty had greatfaith-albeit it was " as nothing, and less than nothing, and vanity "-and commands him to discover within twenty days who stole theemerald should he succeed, he should receive the highest statehonours; by failure his life should be forfeited. Ahmed is indespair; for how could he expect to escape by another lucky chance?He confides the matter to the princess, his wife, who undertakes thetask for him; and this is how she performed it:]...The princess invited the messengers from the king of Sístán toher palace. They were surprised at the invitation, and still more attheir reception. "You are strangers," she said to them, " and comefrom a powerful king: it is my wish to show you every attention.As to the lost emerald, think no more of it; it is a mere trifle. Iwill intercede with the king, my father, to give himself no fartherconcern on the subject, being convinced that it has been lost by oneof those strange accidents for which it is impossible to account." Theprincess entertained the strangers for several days, and during thattime the emerald seemed to be forgotten. She conversed with themfreely, inquiring particularly of Sístán, and the countries they hadseen on their travels . Flattered by her condescension, they becameconfident of their safety, and were delighted with their royalFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE... 307patroness. Seeing them completely off their guard, the princessturned the conversation one evening on wonderful occurrences, and ,after each had related his story, said: " I will now recount to yousome events of my own life, which you will, I think, deem moreextraordinary than any you have ever heard:" I am my father's only child, and have therefore been a favouritefrom my birth. I was brought up in the belief that I could command whatever the world can afford; and was taught that unboundedliberality is the first and most princely of virtues. I early resolvedto surpass every former example of generosity. I thought my powerof doing good, and making everybody happy, was as unlimited as mywish to do so; and I could not conceive the existence of miserybeyond my power to relieve. When I was eighteen I was betrothedto my cousin, a young prince, who excelled all others in beauty ofperson and nobleness of mind; and I fancied myself at the summitof happiness. It chanced, however, that on the morning of mynuptials I went to walk in a garden near the palace, where I hadbeen accustomed to spend some hours daily from my childhood. Theold gardener, with whose cheerfulness I had often been amused, metSeeing him look very miserable, I asked him what was thematter. He evaded a direct answer; but I insisted upon his disclosing the cause of his grief, declaring at the same time my determination to remove it. ' You cannot relieve me, ' said the old man, witha deep sigh; it is out of your power, my beloved princess, toheal the wound of which I am dying.' My pride was roused, andI exclaimed: ' I swear! '-' Do not swear,' said the gardener, seizing my hand. ' I do swear,' I repeated, irritated by the opposition;me.' I will stop at nothing to make you happy; and I farther swear,that I will not leave this spot until you reveal the grief which preysupon you.' The old man, seeing my resolution, spake with tremulousemotion as follows: Princess, you know not what you have done!Behold a man who has dared for these two years to look upon youwith an eye of admiration: his love has at length reached this pitch,that without you he must be wretched for ever; and unless you consent to meet him in the garden to-night, and become his bride insteadof that of the prince, he must die. ' Shocked by this unforeseen308 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE; PERSIAN VERSIONdeclaration, and trembling at the thought of my oath, I tried to reasonwith the old gardener, and offered him all the wealth I possessed .' I told you, ' he replied , ' beautiful princess, that you could not makeme happy: I endeavoured to prevent your rash vow; and nothingbut that should have drawn from me the secret of my heart. Death,I know, is my fate; for I cannot live and see you the wife of another.Leave me to die. Go to your husband; go to the enjoyment of yourpomp and riches; but never again pretend to the exercise of a powerwhich depends upon a thousand circ*mstances that no human beingcan regulate or control. ' This speech conveyed a bitter reproach. Iwould have sacrificed my life a hundred times, sooner than stain myhonour by marrying this man; but I had made a vow in the face ofHeaven, and to break it seemed sacrilege . Besides, I earnestlywished to die undeceived in my favourite notion, that I could makeall who came near me happy. Under the struggle of these differentfeelings, I told the gardener his desire should be granted, and that Ishould be in the garden an hour before midnight. After this assurance I went away, resolved in my own mind not to outlive thedisgrace to which I had doomed myself."I passed the day in deepest melancholy. A little before midnight I contrived to dismiss my attendants, and, arrayed in mybridal apparel, which was covered with the richest jewels, I wenttowards the garden. I had not proceeded many yards, when I wasmet by a thief, who, seizing me, said: ' Let me strip you, madam, ofthese unnecessary ornaments: if you make the least noise, instantdeath awaits you. ' In my state of mind, such threats frightenedme little. I wished to die, but I wished, before I died, to fulfilmy vow. I told my story to the thief, beseeching him to let mepass, and pledging my word to return, that he might not be disappointed of his booty. After some hesitation he allowed me toproceed."I had not gone many steps when I encountered a furious lion,which had broken loose from my father's menagerie. Knowingthe merciful nature of this animal towards the weak and defenceless ,I dropped on my knees, repeated my story, and assured him, if hewould let me fulfil my vow, I would come back to him as ready toFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 309be destroyed as he could be to make me his prey.aside, and I went into the garden."The lion stepped"I found the old gardener all impatience for my arrival. Heflew to meet me, exclaiming I was an angel. I told him I wasresigned to my engagement, but had not long to live. He started ,and asked what I meant. I gave him an account of my meetingwith the thief and the lion. Wretch that I am, ' cried the gardener;' how much misery have I caused! But, bad as I am, I am notworse than a thief, or a beast of prey; which I should be, did Inot absolve you from your vow, and assure you the only way inwhich you can now make me happy, is by forgiving my wickedpresumption. '"I was completely relieved by these words, and granted theforgiveness desired; but having determined, notwithstanding thegardener's remonstrances, to keep my word to the thief and the lion ,I refused to accept his protection. On leaving the garden thelion met me. ' Noble lion,' I said, ' I am come, as I promised you. 'I then related to him how the gardener had absolved me from myvow, and I expressed a hope that the king of beasts would not beliehis renown for generosity. The lion again stepped aside, and I proceeded to the thief, who was still standing where I left him. I toldhim I was now in his power, but that before he stripped me, I mustrelate to him what had happened since our last meeting. Havingheard me, he turned away, saying: ' I am not meaner than a poorgardener, nor more cruel than a hungry lion: I will not injure whatthey have respected.'"Delighted with my escapes, I returned to my father's palace,where I was united to my cousin, with whom I lived happily till hisdeath; persuaded, however, that the power of human beings to dogood is very limited, and that when they leave the narrow pathmarked out for them by their Maker, they not only lose their object,but often wander far into error and guilt, by attempting more thanit is possible to perform."The princess paused, and was glad to see her guests so enchantedwith her story that it had banished every other thought from theirminds. After a few moments she turned to one of them, and asked:310 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: PERSIAN VERSION;"Now which, think you, showed the greatest virtue in his forbearance-the gardener, the thief, or the lion? ”—“ The gardener, assuredly,"was his answer, " to abandon so lovely a prize, so nearly his own. ""And what is your opinion? " said the princess to his neighbour."I think the lion was the most generous," he replied: " he musthave been very hungry; and in such a state it was great forbearanceto abstain from devouring so delicate a morsel. " "You both seemto me quite wrong," said the third, impatiently. " The thief had byfar the most merit. Gracious heavens! to have within his graspsuch wealth, and to refrain from taking it! I could not have believedit possible, unless the princess herself had assured us of the fact! "The princess, now assuming an air of dignity , said to the firstwho spoke: " You, I perceive, are an admirer of the ladies; " to thesecond: " You are an epicure; " and then turning to the third, whowas already pale with fright: " You, my friend, have the emerald inyour possession. You have betrayed yourself, and nothing but animmediate confession can save your life. " The guilty man's countenance removed all doubt; and when the princess renewed her assurancesof safety, he threw himself at her feet, acknowledged his offence, andgave her the emerald, which he carried concealed about him.THE story also occurs in the celebrated Persian collection , entitledTútí Náma (Parrot- Book), composed by Nakhshabí about the year1306, after a similar old Persian story-book, now lost, which wasderived from a Sanskrit work, of which the Suka Saptatí (SeventyTales of a Parrot) is the modern representative. In this work aparrot relates stories, night after night, to prevent a merchant's wifefrom carrying on an amorous intrigue during her husband's absence.According to an India Office MS. text of Nakhshabí's Tútí Náma,the twelfth story is to this effect:ΟAnother Persian Version.NE day a poor street-sweeper finds among a dust-heap a veryOvavaluableagem poor, inis rest lustre -sweeper equal toto that thatof the suns sun. He resolvesto present it to Raja Bhoja, in the expectation of being suitablyFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 311rewarded. On his way he associates with four men who happen tobe travelling in the same direction. At noontide they all reposebeneath a tree, and while the poor man is sound asleep his companions steal the gem out of his purse. When he awakes anddiscovers his loss, he says nothing about it to them, and they resumetheir journey. Arriving at the capital, the poor man obtains anaudience of the rájá , to whom he recounts the whole affair. Therájá sends for the four travellers, and questions them concerning thegem, but they stoutly deny all knowledge of it, at which the rájá ismuch perplexed. But his clever daughter undertakes to ascertainwhether they really stole the gem, and with this object invites themto her private apartment, and gives them many rich presents; andafter chatting pleasantly with them on various subjects, she relatesthe following story:"In Mázandaran there formerly dwelt a rich merchant who had avery beautiful daughter. One day during the vernal season shewent to a garden, accompanied by her female slaves , and saunteringby a plot of roses, observed with admiration one flower of preeminent beauty and odour, which, like the rose of her own face, wasthornless. Then she said to the gardener: ' Bring down that roseand give it to me. ' Quoth the gardener: ' Fair lady, this charmingrose does not come into your hand without a recompense. ' Thelady demanding to know its price, the gardener replied: " Its priceis this, that you promise to meet me in this garden on the night ofyour nuptials. ' Having set her heart upon possessing the beautifulrose, the lady gave her solemn promise, and , receiving the flower,retired from the garden with her attendants. Some time after this,the merchant married his daughter to a young man of his ownchoice, and when the wedding guests were gone, and she was leftalone with her husband, she told him of her promise to the gardener,at which he was not a little astonished, but gave her leave to keepher promise. So she went forth in her wedding garments, adornedwith priceless jewels, and as she proceeded she was met by a wolf,which would have devoured her, but she told her story, how she hadobtained her husband's leave to keep her promise to the gardener, andAllah softened the wolf's heart, and he allowed her to pass on un-312 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: SECOND PERSIAN VERSION;injured. She next met a robber, to whom she also told her story,and the robber, albeit she was covered with gems of price, and completely in his power, bade her proceed on her way. When sheentered the garden, there was the gardener pacing to and fro, but onher telling him how her husband had freely consented to her requestto be permitted to keep her appointment, and how the wolf and therobber had let her pass on untouched , the gardener at once freed herfrom her promise, and respectfully conducted her back to the dwelling of her husband, with whom she lived in peace and happinessever after. "The rájá's daughter, having finished her story, then says to thefour travellers: " What puzzles me is to say which of those fourindividuals exhibited most generosity." One replies , that thehusband must have been a fool to give his wife liberty to meetanother man on her wedding-night; another, that it was folly on thepart of the wolf to let slip such a prey; the third, that the robberwas a mere blockhead to refrain from taking her jewels; and thefourth, that the gardener was an idiot to relinquish so tempting aprize. The princess, having heard the men express such sentiments,concluded that they must have stolen the gem, and when she communicated this opinion to her father the rájá, he caused all four tobe bastinadoed until they confessed their guilt and delivered up thejewel. Then the rájá gave rich gifts to the poor man, and hangedthe four rascals.1In the Turkish version of the Tútí Náma the story is told with a fewvariations from its Persian original. The precious stone is found by a peasantwhile ploughing his field. He is advised by friends to offer it to the Padishahof Rúm ( Room: Asia Minor, or the Western Empire); for should the sultan come to know of his " find, " he might take it from him, and charge him withhaving stolen it. He joins three travellers on the road. In the story of thedamsel's rash promise, the scene is laid in Damascus; her name is Dil - Furúz,i. e. "inflaming the heart with love "; her attendants attempt to pluck therose, but it is beyond their reach. The gardener gallantly plucks it, and presents it to the young lady, who then asks him what he should wish in return .When she meets him in the garden on the night of her nuptials, and tells him of the generosity of her husband, the wolf, and the robber, he says that hissole object was to try her: " I am thy slave," he adds, " and the gardener ofthis place, and the gardener protects the flowers," implying, of course, that she was "herself the fairest flower!"FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 313There is a somewhat different version in the Bahár-i- Dánush, orSpring of Knowledge, a work written in the Persian language, by'Inayatu-' lláh of Delhi, A.H. 1061 ( A.D. 1650) , the materials of whichare avowedly derived from old Indian sources , to which indeed theyare easily traceable. Dr. Jonathan Scott, who published a translationof this entertaining romance in 1799, seems to have had ratherhazy notions of what kind of stories were fit to be presented to theEnglish readers of his time, since he has given several very " free "tales in full, while he only gives in the Appendix a meagre abstractof our story, without a word of explanation. This is Scott's outlineof what may be called anKIndo- Persian Version.ÁMGÁR, the son of a powerful sultan , having excited thejealousy of his father's vazír, the latter procured his banishment, byaccusing him of rebellious designs. The prince, accompaniedby his friend, the vazír's son, a young merchant, and a jeweller,departs for a foreign country. On the road, the jeweller is promptedby avarice to steal four valuable rubies, which the vazír's son hadbrought with him as a resource against distress . On finding that hewas robbed, he complains to a court of justice; but the judges areunable to fix on the thief. The vazír's son is then recommended tohave recourse to a learned lady, who was celebrated for unravellingthe most knotty cases.She first calls the prince to her, and tells him a story of a personwho, on discovering his friend was in love with his wife, and notbeing aware that she was also in love with his friend, prevails on herto go to his house and gratify his passion. On the way she is stoppedby thieves, who seize her jewels, but upon her informing them of heruncommon errand, and promising to return , if they would but delaytheir plunder till she has visited her lover, they let her go. Whenshe reaches the house, she discovers to her husband's friend who sheis, and the lover, resolved not to be outdone in generosity, conquershis passion. She returns to the thieves, who are so impressed by herperformance of her promise that, instead of robbing her, they makeher a present and conduct her home in safety.314 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: INDO-PERSIAN VERSION;The prince, at the conclusion of this story, bursts into applause ofthe extraordinary friendship of the husband, the virtue of the wife,the forbearance of the lover, and the generosity of the thieves. Thenthe lady relates the same story separately to the vazír's son, themerchant, and the jeweller. The latter exclaims involuntarily, thatthe thieves were very foolish in letting such a rich prey escape fromtheir hands. Upon this the lady accuses him of the robbery, butpromises not to expose him if he will give up the rubies, which hedoes, and she returns them to the vazír's son without disclosing whohad stolen them. The rubies are then offered for sale in the city,when their costliness exciting suspicions against the honesty of theprince and his friends, who were disguised as pilgrims, they are takenup and carried before the sultan of the country. The vazír's son nowdiscloses the rank of his master, upon which the king marries himto his daughter, and appoints him successor to his kingdom.¹1 It is unfortunate that Scott has not given this story more fully. So faras can be seen from his abstract, as above-and I greatly doubt its accuracy—there does not appear to have been any promise made to the lover by thelady. The husband, on learning that his friend is enamoured of his wife, "prevails " upon her to visit him—a circ*mstance which seems reflected (as myfriend Dr. David Ross, Principal of the E. C. Training College, Glasgow, haspointed out to me) in a Senegambian popular tale:There once lived two shepherds who had been close friends from boyhood.One of them married, and the other built his hut adjoining that of the weddedcouple. One day the bachelor, looking through a chink in the party wall, dis- covered the young wife making her ablutions (as David the Hebrew king beheldthe beauteous wife of Uriah), and instantly fell in love with her.Such wasthe force of his passion that he became seriously ill, and took to his bed.Marabouts, old wives, doctors-all failed to discover his disease. At length heconfesses to his friend that he is deeply in love with his wife. The husband isat first horror-struck, but soon conquers his marital feelings, and arranges aplan whereby his friend should gratify his desire, and yet his wife be no wiser,when all was done. He will rise from bed to look after the fire kept burning allnight in the courtyard; meanwhile his friend will go into the house, and the wife won't know but he is her husband. The husband accordingly goes outduring the night, and the wife presently receives the friend with kindlyembrace, ignorant of the subterfuge; but he immediately repents of his design,repulses her, and runs out-friendship thus triumphing over lust. When thehusband re- enters the house, he is secretly rejoiced to hear his wife reproach him for his recent coldness and disdain. His friend after this soon recovershis health and takes a wife to himself.¹The husband's generosity in placing his wife at the service of his friend1 Recueil de Contes populaires de la Sénégamble. Recueilles par L. J. B. Bóranger-Féraud.Paris, 1885.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 315As might be expected, the story is known to the Jews, and inmore than one version. No doubt, many of the fine apologues,parables, and tales contained in the Talmud are genuine inventionsof the rabbins, but it is also certain that they drew freely frompopular fictions of Indian origin, for striking illustrations of theirapothegms and maxims of morality. The learned M. Israel Levi hasgiven two Jewish versions of our story in Mélusine¹ ( 1885) , tome ii. ,c. 542-6; one of themis froma commentary on the Decalogue (EighthCommandment) , an anonymous work of the 10th century, and thesubstance of it is as follows:Hebrew Version.N the time of Solomon three men travelling in company wereINsurprised by Friday evening, so they deposited their moneytogether in a secret place.2 In the middle of the night one of themrose up, stole the money, and hid it elsewhere. When the Sabbathwas ended they all went to unearth their money, but found it haddisappeared. They then began to accuse each other of the theft, butat length agreed to lay their dispute before Solomon for his judgment. The king told them that he would give them a decision onthe morrow. This affair troubled the king not a little, for he thoughtto himself: " If I do not clear up this case, they will say, ' Where,then, is the wisdom of Solomon? "" So he meditated in what mannerhe might surprise the thief by his own words. When the three menrecalls the old Greek story of Stratonice, daughter of Demetrius Poliorcetes,who at the age of 17 ( in B.C. 300) was married to Seleucus, king of Syria, andher step-son Antiochus becoming deeply enamoured of her, Seleucus, in orderto save the life of his son, gave up Stratonice in marriage to the young prince.A precisely similar tale is related by Arabian historians of a nephew of thesultan of Jorjun, whose love for one of his uncle's women was discovered bythe celebrated Avicenna (Abú Sína) feeling his pulse while describing therarities in the palace, and perceiving an uncommon emotion in his patientwhen he mentioned the apartment of the lady; -the sultan made his nephewhappy.1 Mélusine: revue de mythologie, littérature populaire, traditions, etusages. Dirigée par H. Gaidoz et E. Rolland. -A bi-monthly journal, pub- lished at Paris.2 It is said the Jews are prohibited by their laws from carrying money on the Sabbath, which commences at nightfall on Friday, and ends at the appear- auce of the stars on Saturday.316 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: HEBREW VERSION;appeared again before him next day, he said to them: "You areskilful and intelligent merchants; give me, therefore, your advice ona matter which the king of Edessa has submitted to me, desiring myopinion thereon:" There lived in Edessa a young man and a young woman wholoved each other, and the youth said to the damsel: ' If you please,we shall agree by oath that should I engage myself to thee, aftersuch a time thou wilt marry me, and that if during that periodanother should wish to espouse thee, thou wilt not marry him without my permission; ' and the damsel swore accordingly. At the endof that period she was betrothed to another man. And when thehusband would use his rights, she refused , and told him that shemust first obtain the permission of her former fiancé. Then theyboth went together to that young man, carrying gold and silver; andthe damsel said to him: ' I have kept my oath; -if you wish, hereis money free me from my engagement to you. ' The youth replied:' I release you from your oath, and you are free to marry your fiancé.As for myself, I will take nothing; go in peace. ' On their wayhome, an old robber threw himself upon them, and bore off thedamsel, with her jewels and the money she carried , and he wouldhave violated her, but she said: ' I pray you, allow me first to relatemy story,' which having concluded, she added: ' Now if that youngman, whose years might have been some excuse for him, subdued hispassion, how much more incumbent is it on you, an old man, todo likewise-master your feelings, in obedience to the laws of God,and sin not! ' The old robber was moved by her words, and allowedher to depart with her fiancé; moreover, he restored to them all theirproperty." Now," said Solomon, " this is what I ask of you: which ofthose three was most worthy of praise-the young woman whokept her word; the young man, who gave her permission to marry,without accepting anything in return; or the old robber, who, havingthe power to take all they had, and to violate the damsel, yet conquered his passion, and took nothing from them? Tell me youropinion, and I will afterwards decide on the subject of your dispute. "One of the men replied: " I praise the youth who gave permissionFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 317to the girl, for he had long loved her." The second said, in histurn: "I praise the damsel; for women do not usually keep theirword even to their husbands when they sleep together, and the mindof woman is fickle. But she kept her word. " The third said: “ Ipraise the old man, who took their property, and could have violatedher without any one being able to prevent him. Nevertheless herefrained from all sin, and restored the money he had taken fromthem. So I consider him as a pattern of a just man. " Solomon thensaid: " Thou hast judged well, wherefore cleanse thou thy soul, anddeliver the treasure to thy companions, for it is thou who didststeal it; and if thou dost not, I will cause thee to be cast intoprison, where thou shalt remain all thy life. " The man immediatelywent and took the treasure from its hiding-place, and restored it tohis companions, who thanked the king for his judgment. And thisis why it is said that Solomon was the wisest of men.The other Jewish version given by M. Lévi-placed first in hisarticle in Mélusine-differs very considerably in the principal detailsfrom all those already cited , while preserving the fundamental outline of the original story:AGermano-Jewish Version.CERTAIN pious man left his three sons a locked coffer ofgold, desiring them not to open it except in case of necessity.One of them in turn took charge of the coffer, and another of thekey. The three young men swore in presence of the communitythat they would conform to their father's instructions. After hisdeath they divided their heritage, without touching the contents ofthe coffer. The youngest son, having soon dissipated his share, cameto his brothers and demanded that the casket should be opened inorder that he should receive his portion of the treasure; but theeldest preferred lending him 5000 florins to violating their father'sorders. At the end of another year the youngest brother was againwithout money, and the second lent him 5000 florins. During thethird year he had spent everything, but it was now his turn to take318 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: GERMANO-JEWISH VERSION;charge of the casket, while the key was kept by the second brother;so he made a key, opened the casket, took out all the gold, and puta large stone in its place. The following year it was the eldest whokept the coffer, and the youngest, having once more dissipated all hismeans, went and said to his two brothers: " You see I am alwaysunlucky in business, therefore you must now consent to open thecasket, for my condition is truly necessitous. " The casket was thenopened in presence of the people, and only a great stone was foundwithin it. Quoth the youngest with effrontery: " Friends, you arenow witnesses of the manner in which I have been treated by mybrothers. They have stolen the money, and that is why they wouldnever open the casket. It is no wonder they have become rich."Those who were present said: "We cannot decide this matter; butbe persuaded by us: go and lay your case before the rabbi. " Accordingly the three brothers went to the rabbi, who, after hearing thearguments of each at length, said to them:1 " My friends , you muststay here a while, for I cannot give you an off-hand decision. Inthe mean time, as I see you are very learned, I wish to consultyou upon a case regarding which they have asked my advice fromEgypt:"In that country there were two rich men, who had each a child.These were betrothed from the cradle. At last the parents died,leaving each of the children 3000 pieces of money. Very soon theyoung man, being a gambler, had spent all his fortune, so that not acoin was left him. On the other hand, the damsel possessed everyvirtue and was most beautiful. The date fixed for the marriagearrived , and the damsel sent to ask her betrothed to prepare. Theyouth answered that he declined the marriage; that she should bebetter with some other man, who pleased her, for a husband; andthat it was enough for him to remain poor, without making hershare his misery. Finally, the damsel sent for a poor student andsaid to him: ' I wish to marry thee; but first I desire to see myformer fiancé, and ask him if he is willing to obey the advice of his1 I purposely omit an incident which precedes the rabbi's hearing of thebrothers' dispute, and which belongs to a distinct cycle of fictions—that of The Lost Camel, ' familiar to every school-boy.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 319father and marry me. Should he decline, you will be my true betrothed, and we shall marry.' The poor student was overjoyed , andreadily pledged himself as required.6"The damsel, attired in velvet and silk, sought out her formerbetrothed. ' Dear fiancé,' she said, ' I entreat you, do not persist inyour design; have no fear-I have money enough for us both. ' Hereplied: " I cannot break off my bad habits, and I do not wish tosquander thy fortune, so that thou also shouldst become unhappy. 'Eight days after she returned, dressed in gold and silver; and thesame conversation again took place. Still eight days later she wentonce more, covered with pearls and diamonds, and accosted him withthe same entreaty. The youth replied: May God grant thee Hisblessing and prosperity! Choose whom thou wilt. I will not beguilty of the sin of dragging thee to ruin. ' This time the damselreturned and married the student. The hour of going to bed arrived,and they were walking in the street. Now in those days there werein Egypt many robbers, who were wont to carry off married peoplewithout anybody knowing what had become of them. The chief ofthe robbers offered violence to the bride, but she said to him: ' Willyou, for so small a matter, forfeit your portion in the future world? 'The robber was moved with pity, and sent her away in peace andsafety.""' Now," continued the rabbi, " I am asked which of the threeacted best the first betrothed, the bride, or the robber? I cannotreply to the question, and as you are very intelligent, give me youropinion, so that I may solve this problem. " The first replied: " Thebetrothed acted best in not wishing to spend his wife's money. "The second said: " It is the bride, who was unwilling to disobey thepaternal will." The youngest said in his turn: "It is the brigand,who subdued his passion, sent them away without injury, and didnot keep their money, for he might have rightly done so. " Thenthe rabbi exclaimed: " Praised be God, who allows nothing to beconcealed! Young man, you are covetous of the money which youhave not seen-how much more of that which you have seen! " Andthe young man confessed that he had fabricated a false key.320 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: SIBERIAN VERSION;RADLOFF, in his great collection, Proben der Volksliteratur dertürkischen Stämme des Süd-Siberiens, vol. iii. s. 389, gives a version,from the Kirghis dialect , which may have been transmitted throughthe Persian or the Jagataï; or, more probably, through a Mongolian(Buddhist) medium:ONSiberian Version.vind NCE on a time there was a rich man who had three sons,when he died they inherited 300 roubles. Their cattle havingperished , they buried the money and took service in a foreign country.At the end of three years they returned home, and when they wentto dig up their money it was not to be found; and they said one toanother: " Who could have taken it? No person but ourselves knewof our burying the 300 roubles. " After mutual accusations they atlength agreed to seek the prince and submit their dispute for hisdecision. And when they had stated their case to the prince, hesaid to them: " Listen; I will tell you something, after which Iwill decide your affair:"There were two men, one of whom had a son, the other adaughter. The two children were sent to the same school andstudied together. And one day the boy said to the girl: ' If wewere betrothed to each other it would be a good thing. ' By-and-bytheir parents betrothed them. In course of time the father of theyoung man died, and the damsel said to him: ' If my father doesnot give me to you, I will reserve my virginity. ' When she wenthome she was betrothed to another young man; and the bridal couchbeing prepared, her sister-in-law conducted her in to her husband ,whom she thus addressed: Master, I have somewhat to ask of you;will you grant it to me? ' He replied: Ask, and it shall be given. 'Then said she: 'With your leave, I speak. When I was at schoolthere was with me a young lad, and we studied together. Weentered into a mutual engagement, that if I did not keep my promise,1 Previous to this, the incident of The Lost Camel ' occurs, as in theGermano-Jewish version, and it is followed by another interpolated story, alsoa member of a distinct cycle of popular tales, with which we need not here concern ourselves.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 321he would complain of me to God; and if he did not keep his promiseI would complain. ' The husband answered: ' Go, and keep themarriage-night. '"Then the damsel put on man's clothes, and, mounting a horse,proceeded to the dwelling of her first betrothed. Are you in?'said she. 'Who is there? ' he answered from within. ' I madeyou a promise,' said she, ' and have come to keep it. My fatherwould marry me to another; and when I said to my husband , " Ihave a lover; let me seek him," he gave me leave. I make thee apresent of my virginity; for that purpose have I come hither.' Theyoung man replied: " What advantage would that be to me? Yourbusband has shown a great spirit in sending you to me, and I shallalso be magnanimous. He would suppose that I had all along beenintimate with you. Return to your husband. Farewell. ' On herway home the damsel was met by forty robbers, to whom she relatedher story. The robbers having consulted together, one of them said:' Let us forty enjoy her turn about. ' But the youngest said: ' Lether alone; why should we embarrass ourselves with her? The intentions of this young woman are pure, with those of her husband andher first betrothed. Shall we act as beasts? Let her go. ' Then therobbers exclaimed with one accord: ' She may return to her husband'shouse.' And when she had reached home her husband took her tohis own country."The prince then asked the eldest of the brothers: " Which,think you, was the best of the three? " He replied: " It was thehusband." " You are right," said the prince. " And you," addressingthe second-" which did well and which did ill? " Said he: " Thebest was the young man who studied with her. " Lastly the princeasked the same question of the youngest, who answered: " Sire, thehusband was wrong, and the first fiancé was wrong; the forty robberswere right, and had I been one of them I should have enjoyed herforty times. " Thereupon the prince said: " It is thou who haststolen the money, so give it up; for thy opinion is the worst. ""Sire," then said the two others, " we are much obliged to you."After this they returned home, and the youngest brother producedthe money he had stolen.CH. ORIG. 23322 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: TURKISH VERSION;In the same form our story is found in the Turkish collection ,Qirq Vezir, the ' Forty Vazirs,' a work said to have been composedin the 15th century by Shaykh Záda, after an Arabian story-book ofunknown authorship and date, which seems no longer extant. Theframe, or leading-story, of this collection, with which eighty tales areinterwoven, is similar to that of the Book of Sindibád, and its Europeanimitations, commonly known as the History of the Seven Wise Masters-of which the oldest version is a Latin prose work entitled Dolopathos; sive, de Rege et Septem Sapientibus, by a monk namedJohannes, of the abbey of Alta Silva, in the diocese of Nancy,about A.D. 1180, which was rendered into French verse, a centuryor so later, by a Trouvére named Herbers: A young prince havingrepelled the amorous advances of his step-mother-or, in the Easternversions, of one of his father's women-she, like Potiphar's wifewith Joseph, accuses him to the king his father of an attempt uponher virtue. The king at once orders his son for execution, butalternately reprieves and condemns him, in consequence of his counsellors, or vazírs, day after day, and the lady, night after night,relating to him tales of the wickedness of women and of men, untilat length the innocence of the Prince is made manifest, and the lustfullady is fitly punished. Our story is thus related in the Book ofthe Forty Vazírs, according to Mr. Gibb's complete translationrecently published, the first that has been made in English:Turkish Version.N the palace of the world there was a king, and he had threeINsons. One day this king , laid his head on the pillow of death,and called those sons to his side, and spake privately with them. Hesaid: " In such a corner of the palace I have hidden a vase full ofpearls and jewels and diverse gems; when I am dead, do ye washand bury me, then go and take that vase from its place and divide1 An account of the several Eastern and Western versions is given in theIntroduction to my edition of the Book of Sindibád. The author ofthe FortyVezírs has taken little besides the idea of the leading story from its prototype; it is not only a most entertaining story- book, but is also of great valuein illustrating the genealogy of popular fictions.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 323its contents. " The king lay for three days, and on the fourth dayhe drained the wine of death and set forth for the Abiding Home.When the princes had buried their father according to his injunctions, they came together, and went and beheld that in the place ofthose jewels the winds blew. Now the princes began to dispute, andthey said: " Our father told this to us three in private; this trick hasbeen played by one of us. " And the three of them went to the cadi¹and told their complaint. The cadi listened , and then said to them:"Come, I will tell you a story, and after that I will settle thedispute:" Once, in a certain city, a youth and a girl loved each other,and that girl was betrothed to another youth. When the lover wasalone with that girl, he said: ' O my life, now thou comest to me,and I am happy with thee; to-morrow, when thou art the bride ofthy betrothed, how will be my plight? ' The girl said: ' Mymaster, do not grieve; that night when I am bride, until I havecome to thee and seen thee, I will not give the bridegroom hisdesire.' And they made a pact to that end. Brief, when the bridalnight arrived, the girl and the youth went apart; and when all thepeople were dispersed, and the place was clear of others, the girl toldthe bridegroom of the pact between her and the stricken lover, andbesought leave to fulfil it. When the bridegroom heard these wordsfrom the bride, he said: ' Go, fulfil thy plight, and come again insafety.'"So the bride went forth, but while on the road she met a robber.The robber looked at her attentively, and saw that she was a beautifulgirl like the moon of fourteen nights: never in his life had he seensuch a girl, and she was covered with diverse jewels such as cannotbe described. Thereupon the bridle of choice slipped from therobber's hands; and as the hungry wolf springs upon the sheep, sodid the robber spring upon that girl. Straightway the girl began tosigh, and the robber felt pity and questioned her. So the briderelated to the robber her story from its beginning to its end;1 The judge and magistrate in Muslim cities, who performs the rites ofmarriage, settles disputes, and decides civil and criminal cases, according to the Kurán.324 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: TURKISH VERSION;whereupon the robber exclaimed: ' That is no common generosity!nor shall I do any hurt or evil thing to her. ' Then said he to the girl:' Come, I will take thee to thy lover.' And he took her and led herto her lover's door, and said: ' Now go in and be with thy lover.'"Then the girl knocked at the door, and that youth, who laysighing, heard the knocking, and went with haste, and said: ' Whois that? ' The girl answered: Open the door; lo, I have kept myplight, nor have I broken it: I am come to thee.' The youth openedthe door and came to the girl, and said: ' O my life, my mistress,welcome, and fair welcome! how hast thou done it? ' She replied:' The folk assembled and gave me to the bridegroom; then all dispersed, and each went his way. And I explained my case to thebridegroom, and he gave me leave. While on the road I met arobber, and that robber wished to stretch forth his hand to me, butI wept, and told him of my plight with thee, and he had pity, andbrought me to the door and left me, and has gone away.' When theyouth heard these things from the girl, he said: ' Since the bridegroom is thus generous, and has given thee leave to fulfil thy plightwith me, and sent thee to me, there were no generosity in me did Istretch forth my hand to thee and deal treacherously;-from this daybe thou my sister: go, return to thy husband.' And he sent her off."When the girl went out, she saw that robber standing by thedoor; and he walked in front of her, and conducted her to thebridegroom's door. And the girl went in, and the robber departedto his own affairs. While the bridegroom was marvelling, the brideentered, and the bridegroom leaped up and took the bride's hands inhis, and they sat upon the bed. And the bridegroom turned andasked the bride her news; and she told all her adventures fromtheir beginning to their end. And the bridegroom was pleased, andthey both attained their desire. God grant to all of us our desire.Amen."Then quoth the cadi: " O my sons, which of those showedmanliness and generosity in this matter? " The eldest youth said:"The bridegroom, who, while she was his lawful bride, and when hehad spent thus much upon her, and was about to gain his desire,gave the girl leave. What excellent generosity did he display! "FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 325The middle youth said: "The generosity was that lover's, who,while there was so much love between them, had patience when theywere alone in the night, and she so fair of form and in such splendiddress, and sent her back. What excellent generosity: can there begreater than this?" Then asked he of the youngest boy: " O you,what say you? " Quoth he: " O ye, what say ye? when one hunting in the night met thus fair a beauty, a torment of the world,a fresh rose; above all, laden with many jewels; and yet .covetedher not, but took her to her place-what excellent patience! whatexcellent generosity!" When the cadi heard these words of theyoungest boy, he said: " O prince, the jewels are with thee; forthe lover praised the lover; and the trustful the trustful; and therobber the robber. " The prince was unable to deny it, and so tookthe jewels from his breast and laid them before the cadi.¹It is very curious, to say the least, to find this Turkish versioncurrent in much the same terms among the peasantry of the WestHighlands of Scotland. How did it get there? I have not metwith any similar story in Norwegian or Icelandic collections, yet Isuspect that it is not unknown in the Far North, and if so, it wasprobably introduced into the West Highlands by the Norsem*n:1 The History of the Forty Vezírs; or, the Forty Morns and Eves.Translated from the Turkish, by E. J. W. Gibb, M.R.A.S. London: G. Redway, 1886. (The Lady's Eighth Story, p. 105. )-In the German translationof the Arabian Nights, made by Dr. Habicht and others, from a manuscriptprocured at Tunis, and published, in 15 small vols. , at Breslau in 1825 (Tausendund eine Nacht, arabische Erzählungen, zum erstenmal aus einer tunesischenHandschrift, &c. ), a number of tales from the Forty Vezírs are inserted- vol. ii., 173-186-one of which, entitled the History of the Sultan Akshid, issimilar to the above; but the leading story is greatly expanded: The Sultancauses his funeral obsequies to be performed while he is yet alive, in orderthat he should profit by the lesson which such a ceremony was calculated toimpress on his mind-the vanity of earthly grandeur; soon after which he dies, and so on. This story, however, as also the others taken from the FortyVezírs, does not properly form a member of the Arabian Nights; and thatthey were re-translated into Arabic from the Turkish is evident from the fact of their exact agreement with those rendered into French from a Turkish MS.by P. de la Croix. Moreover, they do not appear in the printed Arabic text,commonly known as the Breslau Text, which had not been edited when the German translation of it was published.326 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: GAELIĆ VERSION;Gaelic Version.HERE was once a farmer, and he was well off. He had threeTHEsons. When he was on the bed of death he called them to him,and he said: " My sons, I am going to leave you let there be nodisputing when I am gone. In a certain drawer, in a dresser in theinner chamber, you will find a sum of gold; divide it fairly andhonestly amongst you, work the farm, and live together as you havedone with me; " and shortly after the old man went away. Thesons buried him; and when all was over, they went to the drawer,and when they drew it out there was nothing in it.They stood for a while without speaking a word. Then theyoungest spoke, and he said: " There is no knowing if there everwas any money at all. " The second said: " There was moneysurely, wherever it is now. " And the eldest said: " Our fathernever told a lie. There was money certainly, though I cannotunderstand the matter."-" Come, " said the eldest, " let us go tosuch an old man; he was our father's friend; he knew him well; hewas at school with him; and no man knew so much of his affairs.Let us go to consult him. "So the brothers went to the house of the old man, and they toldhim all that had happened. " Stay with me, " said the old man,"and I will think over this matter. I cannot understand it; but, asyou know, your father and I were very great with each other.When he had children I had sponsorship, and when I had childrenhe had gostje.¹ I know that your father never told a lie." And hekept them there, and he gave them meat and drink for ten days.Then he sent for the three young lads, and he made them sit downbeside him, and he said:" There was once a young lad, and he was poor; and he tooklove for the daughter of a rich neighbour, and she took love forhim; but because he was so poor there could be no wedding. So atlast they pledged themselves to each other, and the young man wentaway, and stayed in his own house. After a time there cameanother suitor, and because he was well off, the girl's father made1 Goistidheachd, or goisteachd: office, or duty, of godfather. -Gaelic Dict.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 3276But her promise to marry him, and after a time they were married.when the bridegroom came to her, he found her weeping andbewailing; and he said: ' What ails thee?' The bride would saynothing for a long time; but at last she told him all about it, andhow she was pledged to another man. 'Dress thyself,' said theman, and follow me.' So she dressed herself in the weddingclothes, and he took the horse, and put her behind him, and rode tothe house of the other man; and when he got there, he struck inthe door, and called out: ' Is there man within? ' And when theother answered, he left the bride there within the door, and he saidnothing, but he returned home. Then the man got up, and got alight, and who was there but the bride in her wedding-dress. ' Whatbrought thee here? ' said he. Such a man, ' said the bride: ' I wasmarried to him to-day, and when I told him of the promise we hadmade, he brought me here himself, and left me.' ' Sit thou there,'said the man; art thou not married? ' So he took the horse, andhe rode to the priest, and he brought him to the house, and beforethe priest he loosed the woman from the pledge she had given, andhe gave her a line of writing that she was free, and he set her on thehorse, and said: ' Now return to thy husband. ' So the bride rodeaway in the darkness in her wedding-dress. She had not gone farwhen she came to a thick wood, where three robbers stopped andseized her. 'Aha! ' said one, we have waited long, and we havegot nothing, but now we have got the bride herself.' 'Oh, ' said she,.'let me go let me go to my husband; the man that I was pledgedto has let me go. Here are ten pounds in gold-take them, and letme go on my journey. And so she begged and prayed for a longtime, and told what had happened to her. At last one of therobbers, who was of a better nature than the rest, said: ' Come, asthe others have done this, I will take you home myself.' ' Takethou the money,' said she. ' I will not take a penny,' said therobber; but the other two said: ' Give us the money,' and they tookthe ten pounds. The woman rode home, and the robber left her ather husband's door, and she went in, and showed him the line-thewriting that the other had given her before the priest, and they werewell pleased."328 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: ITALIAN VERSION;"Now," said the old man, "which of all these do you think didbest?" So the eldest son said: " I think the man that sent thewoman to him to whom she was pledged was the honest, generousman he did well. " The second said: " Yes; but the man towhom she was pledged did still better, when he sent her to herhusband." Then said the youngest: " I don't know myself; butperhaps the wisest of all were the robbers who got the money. "Then the old man rose up, and he said: " Thou hast thy father'sgold and silver. I have kept you here for ten days; I have watchedyou well. I know your father never told a lie, and thou hast stolenthe money." And so the youngest son had to confess the fact, andthe money was got and divided.¹We now come to European versions more closely resembling theFranklin's Tale of Dorigen, which the poet represents that worthyas professing to have derived from a "Breton lai," and which,notwithstanding, some "annotators " of Chaucer still assert to havebeen borrowed from Boccaccio. The illustrious Florentine firstintroduced it in his prose tale of Filocolo, which recounts the adventures of Florio and Biancofiore, a favourite subject with thecourtly minstrels of Europe in medieval times. He reproduced itin his Decameron, Gior. x. , Nov. 5, as follows, according to thetranslation revised by W. K. Kelly (Bohn's edition):Boccaccio's Italian Version.N the country of Frioli, which, though very cold, is yet beautifieda place called Udine, where lived a worthy lady, named Dianora, thewife of a very agreeable man, and one of great wealth, called Gilberto.Nowshe had taken the fancy of a great and noble lord, called Ansaldo ,one of extraordinary generosity and prowess, and known all over thecountry, who used frequently to solicit her with messages and offersof love, but in vain. At length, being quite wearied with his importunities, and seeing that he still persisted , notwithstanding her1 Campbell's Popular Tales of the West Highlands, vol. ii. pp. 16-18:' The Inheritance.'FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 329repeated denials, she resolved to rid herself of him by a novel and,as she thought, impossible demand. So she said to his emissary oneday: " Good woman, you have often told me that Ansaldo loves mebeyond all the world, and have offered me great presents on hispart, which he may keep to himself, for I shall never be prevailedupon to a compliance in that manner. Could I be assured, indeed,that his love is really such as you say, then I should certainly bebrought to return it. Therefore, if he will convince me of that by aproof which I shall require, I shall instantly be at his service. ""What is it, then? " quoth the good woman, "that you desire himto do? " "It is this," she replied; " I would have a garden in themonth of January, which is now coming on, as full of green herbs,flowers, and trees laden with fruit, as though it were the month ofMay. Unless he does this for me, charge him to trouble me nomore, for I will instantly complain to my husband and all myfriends. "Ansaldo, being made acquainted with this demand, which seemedan impossibility, and knowing that it was contrived on purpose todeprive him of all hopes of success, resolved yet to try all possiblemeans in such a case, sending to every part of the world to find outa person able to assist him. At length he met with a magician, whowould undertake it for a large sum of money; and having agreedupon a price, he waited impatiently for the time of its being done.On the night of the first of January, therefore, the cold beingextreme, and everything covered with snow, this wise man soemployed his art in a meadow near to the city that in the morningthere appeared there one of the finest gardens that ever was seen,filled with all kinds of herbs, flowers, trees, and fruits. Ansaldobeheld this marvellous creation with infinite pleasure, and, pickingsome of the fairest fruit and flowers, he sent them privately to thelady, inviting her to come and see the garden which she hadrequired , that she might be convinced of his love, and fulfil thepromise she had made, as became a woman of her word. The lady,seeing the flowers and fruit present, and having already heard frommany people of this wonderful garden, began to repent of what shehad done. But with all this repentance, being still desirous of330 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: ITALIAN VERSION;seeing strange sights, she went thither with many more ladies, and,having highly commended it, returned home very sorrowful, thinkingof her engagement. Her trouble was too great to be concealed ordissembled, so that her husband at last perceived it, and demandedthe reason. For some time she was ashamed to speak, but beingconstrained at last, she related the whole thing. Gilberto wasgreatly incensed about it, till, considering the upright intention ofhis lady in the affair, he began to be somewhat pacified, and said:Dianora, it is not the act of a wise and virtuous lady to receive anymessages, or make any conditions with regard to her chastity.Words have a more ready admittance to the heart than many peopleimagine, and with lovers nothing is impossible. You were highly toblame, first to listen, and afterwards to consent; but, as I know thepurity of your intention, and to free you from your engagement, Iwill grant what nobody else would do in such a case. For fear ofthis necromancer, who, by Ansaldo's instigation, may do us somemischief if you disappoint him, I consent that you go to Ansaldo,and, if you can by any means get quit of that tie with safety to yourhonour, that you endeavour to do so; otherwise, that you comply indeed, though your will be chaste and pure. "The poor lady wept bitterly, and showed great reluctance, but heinsisted upon her doing as he said. So, early in the morning,without any great care to make herself fine, she went with herwoman and two men-servants to Ansaldo's house. He was greatlysurprised at hearing the lady was there, and said to the wise man," You shall now see the effect of your skill. " So he went to meether, and showed her into a handsome room, where there was a greatfire, and after they had sat down, " Madam," he said, " I beg, if thelong regard I have had for you merit any reward, that you willplease to tell me why you come here at this time, and thus attended. "She blushed, and replied, with eyes full of tears: " Sir, it is neitherfrom love nor from regard to my promise, but merely by my husband's order, who, showing more respect to the labours of yourinordinate love than to his honour and mine, has forced me to comehither; therefore, as it is his command, I submit to your pleasure.'If Ansaldo was surprised at the sight of the lady, he was now much19FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 331more so at hearing her talk thus; and, being moved with Gilberto'sgenerosity, his love was changed into compassion. "Madam," hesaid, "Heaven forbid that I should ever take away the honour of aperson who has showed such pity for my love. Therefore, you areas safe with me as if you were my sister, and you may depart whenit seems good to you, upon condition that you tender your husband,in my name, those thanks which you think are due to his greatgenerosity, requesting him, for the time to come, to esteem mealways as his brother and faithful servant. " The lady, overjoyedwith this, replied, " All the world, sir, could never make me believe,when I consider your character, that anything could have happenedon my coming hither, otherwise than it has now done; for which Ishall always be profoundly grateful to you. " She then took herleave, returned to her husband, and told him what had happened,and this proved the occasion of a strict friendship between him andAnsaldo.The necromancer now being about to receive his reward, and,having observed Gilberto's generosity to Ansaldo, and that of Ansaldo to the lady, said, " As Gilberto has been so liberal of hishonour, and you of your love, you shall give me leave to be the samewith regard to my pay: knowing it then to be worthily employed,I desire it shall be yours." Ansaldo was ashamed, and pressed himto take all or part, but in vain. On the third day the necromancer,having made the garden vanish, and being ready to depart, Ansaldothankfully dismissed him, having extinguished his inordinate desirespurely from a principle of honour."What say you now, ladies? " [demands Emilia, the story- teller; ]"shall we prefer the dead lady and the love of Gentil, grown cold,as destitute of all hope, to the liberality of Ansaldo, who lovedmore than ever, and who was fired with the greater expectation,since the prey so long pursued was then in his power? It seems tome mere folly to compare the generosity of Gentil with that ofAnsaldo. "11 Dr. Reinhold Köhler, in Orient und Occident, ii . , 318, has pointed outthat a similar tale, evidently taken from Boccaccio, is found in an anonymouswork, Johann Valentin Andrea's Chymische Hochzeit Christiani Rosencreutz,anno 1459; Strassburg, 1616. It occurs among other riddles, or stories to332 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: ITALIAN VERSION;There seems to me no good reason to believe that Chauceradapted his tale of Dorigen from Boccaccio. Chaucer was not theman to ascribe the materials of any of his charming tales to otherthan the real source, or to lay claim to " originality " of their invention; on the contrary, he declares, in the opening of his Assemble ofFoules, thatOut of olde fieldis, as men saieth,Comith all this newe corne, fro yere to yere;And out of olde bookis, in gode faieth,Comith all this newe science, that men lere.The tale of Griseldon he emphatically says (through the Clerk) heheard Petrarch relate at Padua, and his version agrees closely withPetrarch's Latin variant of Boccaccio's novel. Had he taken Boccaccio's tale of Dianara and Ansaldo for his model, he would mostprobably have acknowledged the fact. But he tells us (through theFranklin) that it is one of the old Breton lays; the scene is"In Armorik, that clepid is Bretaigne; "which are appended questions to be solved. A lady of rank is wooed by ayoung nobleman. "Sie gab ihm endlich den Bescheid: werde er sie imkalten Winter in einen schönen grünen Rosengarten führen, so solte er gewert sein, wo nicht, solle er sich nimmer finden lassen. " He travels far and wideto find some one who would effect this for him, and at last chances upon alittle old man, who engages to do so for the half of his goods, and so on, asin Boccaccio. "Nun weiss ich nit, liebe Herren, " says the story-teller,doch unter diesen Personen die gröste Trew möchte bewiesen haben. "In Chaucer, the Franklin, having ended his story, thus addresses hisfellow-pilgrims:"Lordynges, this questioun wolde I axe now,Which was the moste free, as thinketh yow?Now telleth me, or that I ferther wende,I can no more, my tale is at an ende. "፡፡ werSo, too, in the conclusion of the version in Boccaccio's Filocolo: " Dubitasi oro qual di costoro fusse maggior liberalità," &c. And in the Sanskrit story the Vetála asks the king: Now tell me, which was the really generousperson of those four? " Indeed, the same question occurs in all the versionscited in the present paper, and it reminds one of the " nice cases " said to havebeen decided in the Provençal Courts of Love-though, according to Mr. Hueffer, such courts never existed.Manni, in his Ist. del Decam., ii. 97, cites an anonymous MS. where it is said that Boccaccio's story is found in a collection much older than his time,and adds that Giovanni Tritemio relates how a Jewish physician, in the year876, caused by enchantment a splendid garden to appear, with trees and flowers in full bloom, in mid-winter. A similar exploit is credited to AlbertusMagnus, in the 13th century. The notion seems to have been brought to Europe from the East, where stories of saints, dervishes, or jogis performing such wonders have been common time out of mind.FOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 333all the names in the poem are Breton; ¹ and instead of the taskimposed by the lady on her lover being to produce a blooming gardenin January, it is to remove the dangerous rocks from the coast ofBrittany. Chaucer's treatment of the story is immeasurably superiorto that of Boccaccio, which is throughout very artificial, exhibitingnone of those fine touches which render the old English poet's taleso pleasing from beginning to end.2 This is precisely the sort ofstory which Marie de France would have selected for versification;and in my mind there is no doubt that Chaucer's source was aBreton lay or a fabliau.Another gratuitous assertion of one of Chaucer's critics is thatBoccaccio's novel " is unquestionably the origin of a story whichoccupies the whole of the twelfth canto of Orlando Innamorato, andis related by a lady to Rinaldo, while he escorts her on a journey."That Boiardo was familiar with Boccaccio's story is likely enough;1 "Penmark, " says Mr. Robert Bell in one of the notes to his edition ofthe Canterbury Tales, "is to be found in the modern maps of Brittany,between Brest and Port l'Orient. Penmark is from Pen, caput, and mark,limes, regio; the first element of the word enters into many Welsh names, as Penman Mawr, the great headland. Cairrud means the red city: Cair, acity, is found in Carnarvon, Carlisle, and Carhaix in Brittany. Droguen, orDorguen [Chaucer's Dorigen ] , was the name of the wife of Alain I. Aurelius is a Breton name, derived from the Roman colonists. Arviragus is apparentlya Breton name latinized, as Caractacus from Caradoc, and is found in Juvenal,Sat. iv. 127."2 The poem of Chaucer abounds in striking passages; for example:"Love will nouht ben constreyned by maistre.Whan maistre commeth, the god of love anone Beteth his winges, and fare wel, he is gon."Observe Spenser's audacious plagiarism of these lines, as follows (F. Q. B. iii.c. i. , st. 25):"Ne may love ben compel'd by maistery;For soone as maistery comes, sweet love anone Taketh his nimble winges, and farewel, away is gone. "And Pope's (by no means his only plagiarism):" Love, free as air, at sight of human ties,Spreads his light wings, and in a moment flies, "Butler, in his Hudibras, has thus expanded Chaucer's sentiment:"Love, that's too generous t' abide To be against its nature tied;For where ' tis of itself inclined,It breaks loose when it is confined;And like the soul, its harbourer,Debarred the freedom of the air,Disdains against its will to stay,But struggles out and flies away."334 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE SECOND ITALIAN VERSION;but he may also have known another version current in his day, ofwhich he made use. Be this as it may, his tale is very different, inall the important details, from that of Boccaccio, and much moreinteresting, as may be seen even from the following abstract of it:ABoiardo's Italian Version.KNIGHT named Iroldo had a lady-love called Tisbina, and wasbeloved of her as was Tristan of Iseult the queen: he loved herso that morn and even, from break of day to nightfall, he thought ofher alone, and had no other care. Hard by dwelt a baron, accountedthe greatest in Babylon; rich, and generous, full of courtesy andvalour; a gallant lover and a frank-hearted knight. His name wasPrasildo. And one day he was invited to a garden where Tisbinawith others was playing a strange kind of game: one held his headbowed in her lap, and over his shoulders she waved a palm-bough,and he had to guess whom it was she chanced to strike. Prasildostood and looked at the game. Tisbina invited him to take part inthe beating, and finally he took that place, for he was quickly guessed.With his head in her lap, he felt so great a flame in his heart as hewould never have thought; he took great care not to guess right, forfear of having to rise from thence. Nor afterthe game and festivaldeparted the flame from his head. All day and all night long ittormented him, drove sleep from his pillow, and the blood from hischeek. Love banished every other thought from his heart: onlythose who have felt this passion can understand the description.The hunting-horses and hounds he delighted in are all gone fromhis thoughts. Now he delights in festive company; gives manybanquets; makes verses and sings; and jousts and tourneys oftenwith great steeds and costly trappings. If he was courteous before,he is a hundred-fold so now; for the virtue that is found in a manin love is ever increasing; and in life I have never found a goodman turn out bad through love. So was it with Prasildo, who lovedmuch. For his go-between he found a lady who was a close friendof Tisbina, and she beset her morning and evening, nor was she disconcerted at a repulse. But, in brief, the haughty one bent neitherFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 335to prayers nor pity; for in sooth it always happens that pride is joinedto beauty. How many times she urged Tisbina to accept her goodfortune, which might not happen again:"Delight thee, while thy leaf as yet is green,For pleasure had is never lost again.Youth, which is but a point of time, should be spent in delight; foras the sun dissolves the white snow, and as the vermeil rose loses alltoo soon her lovely hue, so flies our age, incurable as a lightningflash." But in vain was Tisbina assailed with these and other words.And the sovran baron fell away as fresh meadow-violets pale inwintry weather-like glittering ice in the living sun. He feastedno longer as was his wont, hated all pleasure, and had no otherdiversion than often sallying forth and walking alone in a boskywood, bewailing his ruthless love.A morning fell when Iroldo went a hunting in that wood, andwith him the fair Tisbina; and as they went each heard a wofulvoice and breaking tears. Prasildo mourned so gently, and with sosweet a speech as would have subdued a rock to pity. He calledupon heaven and earth to witness his love, and resolved to die forher. He bared his sword, and called continually upon his deardelight, wishing to die on Tisbina's name; for by naming her oftenhe thought to go with that fair name to Paradise. But she and herlover well understood the baron's lament. Iroldo was so kindled topity that his whole visage showed it; and he now concerted withthe lady how to mend his woful case. Iroldo remaining concealed,Tisbina feigns to have come there by chance. She appears not tohave heard his plaints; but seeing him reclined among the greenboughs, she stops awhile as if alarmed. Then she said to him:"Prasildo, if you are my friend, as you have already shown that youlove me, abandon me not in so great need, for else I may not escape.And if I were not at the last extremity, both of life and honour, Iwould not have made you such a request. For there is no greatershame than to refuse the deserving. Hitherto you have borne melove, and I was ever dispiteous; but in time I will yet be gracious toyou. I promise this on my faith , and assure you of my love, if what Iask be done. Hear, now, and let not the deed seem hard to thee:336 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: SECOND ITALIAN VERSION;Beyond the forest of Barbary is a fair garden, which has an iron.wall. Herein entrance can be had by four gates: one Life keeps,Death another, another Poverty, another Riches.Whoso goestherein must depart by the opposite gate. In the midst is a tree ofvast height, far as an arrow may mount aloft; that tree is of marvellous price, for whenever it blossoms it puts forth pearls, and it iscalled the Treasure-Tree, for it has apples of emerald and boughs ofgold.¹ A branch of this tree I must have, otherwise I am in heavycase. Now you can make it clear if you love me as you havedeclared: if I obtain this pleasure by your means I will love youmore than you love me, and give myself to you as reward of thisservice count it for certain. "When Prasildo understood the hope held out to him of such alove, fuller of ardour and desire than before, he fearlessly promisedall. Undoubtingly would he have promised every star, the heavenand its splendour, all air, and earth, and sea. Without delay, in ahabit strange to him, he set out on his journey. Now know thatIroldo and his lady had sent him to that garden, which yet is calledthe garden of Medusa, so that the long time and travel might effaceTisbina from his mind. Besides that, when he got there, that1 This is a very ancient and wide-spread myth. In the Katha SaritSágara we read of trees with golden trunks, branches of jewels, the clear white flowers of which were clusters of pearls; golden lotuses, &c. Aladdin, it willbe remembered, found in the cave where was deposited the magic lamp, treesbearing " fruit " of emeralds and other gems of great price, with which he tookcare to stuff his pockets. In the mediæval romance of Alexander we are toldhow the world-conqueror jousted with Porus for his kingdom, and having over- thrown him, he found in the palace of the vanquished monarch innumerabletreasures, and amongst others a vine of which the branches were gold, the leaves emerald, and the fruit of other precious stones-a fiction, says Dunlop,which seems to have been suggested by the golden vine which Pompey carried away from Jerusalem. The garden of King Isope, as described by Geffrey, inthe Tale of Beryn (Supplementary Canterbury Tales, Ch. Soc. , p. 84) had asimilar tree:"In mydward of this gardyn stant a feire tre,Of alle maner levis that under sky [there] be,I-forgit and I-fourmyd, eche in his degre,Of sylver, and of golde fyne, that lusty been to see.'""As the treasures coveted by the Arimaspians were guarded by griffius, and thegolden apples of the Hesperides by a dragon, so this garden of Isope was keptby eight "tregetours," or magicians, who looked like " abominabill wormys, "enough to frighten the bravest man on earth.wwwFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 337Medusa was a damsel who kept the Treasure-Tree; -whoever firstsaw her fair face forgot the cause of his journey; but whoeversaluted, or spoke to, or touched, or sat beside her, forgot all pasttime.-Away he rode, alone, or rather, accompanied by love. Hecrossed in a ship the arm of the Red Sea, passed through all Egypt,and got among the hills of Barca, where he met a hoary palmer,and talking with the old man he told him the occasion of hisjourney. The old man reassures him, and tells him how to enterby the gate of Poverty (for those of Life and Death are unused).He informs him of the nature of Medusa; bids him have a mirrorwith him, wherein she may see her beauty and so be chased from thegarden; to go without armour and with all his limbs bare, becausehe must enter by Poverty's gate. He must go out by the gate ofRiches, by whom sits Avarice. Here he must proffer a portion ofthe branch. Prasildo thanks the palmer, and departs. In thirtydays he reaches the garden, and covering his eyes with the mirror, soas to avoid seeing Medusa, he enters. Coming by chance upon her asshe leans against the trunk of the Treasure-Tree, she looks at herselfin the mirror, and terrified at seeing her cheeks of white and redtransformed into a fierce and horrible serpent, she flies through theair away. He breaks off a lofty branch, descends, and issues by thegate of Riches.Hastening home, Prasildo sends word to Tisbina that he hasfulfilled her behest, and begs to see her, that he may show her thebranch. She is overwhelmed at the news of his return. Iroldo ,coming to see her earlier than usual, overhears her lamentation, andthey embrace in despair. He bids her keep to her promise, whichhe induced her to make, but to wait until his death, which willbe this very morning. He will not outlive his shame. Tisbinareproaches him, and declares that she will not survive him. Theyagree to take a painless poison and die together; a few hours beingallowed for the fulfilment of her promise to Prasildo. An ancientphysician supplies the poison, of which Iroldo drinks half, andTisbina drains the cup. She then goes to redeem her word. Alonewith Prasildo, he marvels at her wretched looks, and she tells himthe whole truth. He is overcome with sorrow, and reproaches her CH. ORIG. 24338 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: TWO ENGLISH PLAYS;for not having trusted to his generosity. However, he will notsurvive her; and so there will be the strange thing, unbefallenbefore, of three lovers at once "in inferno. " Tisbina replies thatshe is so vanquished by his courtesy that she would gladly die forhim. During the short time she has got to live, she would gothrough fire for him. In great grief, and having resolved for death,Prasildo gives her one kiss and lets her depart, after which he castshimself, in tears, on his bed.Tisbina recounts the interview to Iroldo, who lifts his hands toheaven in thanksgiving for such virtue, and while thus engagedTisbina falls, for the poison works sooner in delicate veins. A chillseizes him to see her dying; he cries out against God and heaven,Fortune and Love, that they do not kill him out of his misery.Meanwhile Prasildo is moaning in his chamber, and an old physiciancomes and insists upon seeing him. His chamberlain (for none elsewould venture to disturb him) persuades Prasildo to admit him.Then the leech tells him that he had been asked for poison by amaid-servant of Tisbina's, and has learned all. But it was simply amild sleeping-draught he had given. Prasildo, reviving like blossomsin sunshine after storm, hastens to Tisbina, finds Iroldo there, andtells him the grateful news. Iroldo relinquishes all claim to Tisbina,and will not be gainsaid; so he departs, leaving her to Prasildo.When Tisbina comes to herself, she at first swoons with grief to hearthat Iroldo is gone; but in the end she is content to take Prasildo."We are all alike," adds the fair story-teller; " we yield at thefirst assault, like rime beneath the heat of the sun." .Two English Plays.BEAUMONT and Fletcher adapted our story for the stage, underthe title of ' The Triumph of Honour, ' a member of Four Plays inOne, written probably about the year 1610. Henry Weber, theeditor of the works of these dramatists, says that the idea of theplot of this play was taken, "as Langbaine observes," from Boccaccio's novel of Dianora and Ansaldo; but both he and Langbaineseem to have overlooked a more likely source, namely, Chaucer'sFOR THE FRANKLIN'S TALE. 339tale of Dorigen.¹ In the ' Triumph of Honour,' Martius, a Romangeneral, is deeply enamoured of Dorigen, the chaste wife of Sophocles,Duke of Athens, and desires her love-favours, when she exclaimsindignantly (pointing to " a rocky view before the city of Athens ")-"Here I vow unto the gods, these rocks,These rocks we see so fixed, shall be removed,Made champain field, ere I so impious proveTo stain my lord's bed with adulterous love. "Martius consults his brother Valerius, who undertakes, shouldDorigen still continue obstinate in her resolution—"By my skill,Learned from an old Chaldean was my tutor,Who trained me in the mathematics, I willSo dazzle and delude her sight, that she Shall think this great impossibilityEffected by some supernatural means.'""The virtuous Dorigen is not to be moved by the passionate appealsof Martius; she again assures him—"My vow is fixed,And stands as constant as these stones do, still; "upon which Martius exclaims:"Then pity me, ye gods, you only may Move her by tearing these firm stones away! "Instantly, by means of the " grammarie " of Valerius, the rocksdisappear. Dorigen declares she will no longer serve the gods, ifthey are capable of such iniquity, and, going home, acquaints herhusband of the whole affair. The duke consoles her-it is a badbusiness, but she must not be forsworn; let her keep her word, butdon't let Martius know that he consents. Dorigen, disgusted at herhusband's want of proper spirit in such circ*mstances, then pretendsthat she had all along loved Martius, and, on quitting her husband,gives vent to these mordacious words:" I mustAttend him now. My lord, when you have needTo use your own wife, pray, send for me;Till then, make use of your philosophy! "61 Dunlop also considers that Boccaccio's story gave rise to Beaumont and Fletcher's ' Triumph of Honour, ' as well as to Chaucer's Franklin's Tale ' andthe 12th canto of Boiardo. He must have read them all very superficially.340 16. THE DAMSEL'S RASH PROMISE: FRANKLIN'S TALE.She goes to meet Martius, and declares to him her purpose to killherself rather than yield to his desire, and Martius, struck with sucha proof of her virtue, releases her from her promise. The play is nothappily conceived, and abounds in bombast.Part of the plot of a comedy, printed in 1620, entitled The TwoMerry Milkmaids, or the best words wear the Garland (" as it wasacted with great applause by the Company of the Revels "), namely,the promise given by Dorigena to Dorillus, of his enjoying her, whenhe should bring her in January a garland composed of all kinds offlowers, seems founded on Boccaccio's novel, yet the heroine's nameis that of the lady in Chaucer's version.There are doubtless other European variants, derivatives, or imitations of the ancient Indian story of Madanasená's Rash Promiseyet to be discovered; meanwhile I must content myself with theforegoing contribution to the literary history of the Franklin's Tale.We have seen that in all the Asiatic variants the original has beeninserted in a leading story of stolen treasure, and that this formreappears in the Gaelic version; but it was probably also brought toEurope at an early period as a separate story, which I consider isrepresented best in Chaucer's Franklin's Tale, and it may have become current in Italy through imitations of a fabliau or a Breton lai.GLASGOW, September, 1886.34117.The Enchanted Tree:ASIATIC VERSIONS AND ANALOGUESOFChaucer's Merchant's Tale.Br W. A. CLOUSTON.22342INTRODUCTORY- THE BRAHMAN WHO LEARNED THE FIFTHVEDA ... ... ... ... Page 343"" 348"" 351353INDO-PERSIAN VERSION OF THE PEAR-TREE STORYTURKISH VERSIONARABIAN VERSIONTHE OFFICIOUS FATHER-IN-LAWSINHALESE STORY OF WOMAN'S WILESLA SAINERESSE ... ....:...QUEEN YSOUDE AND SIR TRISTREM

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THE PEASANT IN THE TREE ... ... ... ...36 30355"" 358"" 359"2 363"" 364པ343THE ENCHANTED TREE:ASIATIC ANALOGUES OF THE MERCHANT'S TALE.BY W. A. CLOUSTON.Introductory The Brahman who learned the Fifth Veda.( HAUCER'S diverting tale of " old January that weddid was toCHAfreshè May " belongs to the Woman's Wiles cycle of fictions,which were so popular throughout Europe during medieval times, andseem to have had their origin in the East, where sentiments unfavourable to the dignity of womanhood have been always entertained. Avery considerable proportion of Asiatic fictions turn upon the luxury,profligacy, and craft of women: ever fertile in expedients, they arecommonly represented as perfect adepts in the arts of deceiving andoutwitting their lords and masters when bent upon gratifying theirpassions. It is probable that this class of tales became popular inEurope in consequence of the Crusades, through which the westwardstream of Asiatic tales and apologues was largely swelled. Stories offemale depravity and craft, which are traceable to Persian and Indiansources, often occur in the earliest collections of exempla , designedfor the use of preachers; yet it is curious to observe that in many ofthe tales abusive of women current in medieval Europe-whether inthe form of fabliaux or novelle -a churchman is the paramour whoescapes through the woman's artifices.The Indo- Persian analogue of the Merchant's Tale, referred to byM. Edélstand du Meril (see ante, p. 183, note 2) as occurring in theBahár-i Dánush, forms a subordinate member of the eighth of thestrange tales and surprising anecdotes in debasem*nt of women, andof the inconstancy of that fickle sex, " related to Sultan Jehángír byhis courtiers in order to cure him of a passion which he entertained66344 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: THE FIFTH VEDA;for a princess whose personal charms had been described to him by awise parrot. The story commences in this florid style, according toDr. Jonathan Scott's translation: " In the city of Banáres, which isthe principal place of adoration to the Hindú idols, there lived ayoung Bráhman, the tablet of whose mind was void of the impressions of knowledge, and the sleeve of his existence unadorned by theembroidery of art. He had a wife eloquent of speech, who exaltedthe standard of professorship in the arcana of intrigue. In theschool of deceit she could have instructed the devil in the sciencof stratagem. Accidentally, her eyes meetingthose of a comelyyouth, the bird of her heart took its flight in pursuit of hilove." But her noodle-husband is too often in their way, so shdevises an artful plan for getting quit of him for a time. One nightshe turns away from his proffered endearments with well-affecteddiscontent, and on his asking the cause of her altered demeanourtowards him, she replies that her female neighbours had been chaffing her about his gross ignorance, and that she is in consequenceashamed to meet with them again. The simple fellow, hearing this,at once girded up his skirts , and set out in quest of knowledge, andlong and far did he travel. In every city and town where he heardof a Brahman eminent for his learning, he obtained leave to wait onhim, and at length his mind became enriched by the comprehensionof the four Vedas.1 Returning home, his wife greets him with muchapparent joy and affection, and begins at once to bathe his feet.Meanwhile her lover is expecting her to visit him as usual, and,becoming impatient, sends a trusty messenger urging her to hastento his loving arms. The woman, now resolving to get rid of herhusband once more, after expressing her thanks to the gods that hehas returned in health and safety, says to him: " Doubtless thou hast1 Veda root, ved, " know": divine knowledge. The Vedas are the holy books which are the foundation of the Hindú religion. They consist of hymns written in an old form of Sanskrit, and, according to the most generally received opinion, they were composed between 1500 and 1000 B.C. But there is no direct evidence as to their age, and opinions about it vary considerably.Some scholars have thought that the oldest of the hymns may be carried back a thousand years farther. They are four in number: Rig- veda, Yajur-veda,Sama-veda, and Atharva-veda; the last being of comparatively modern origin.-Dowson's Hindú Classical Dictionary.FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 345attained an ample portion of all sciences, and acquired a rich shareof accomplishments, but I request that thou wilt relate to me theparticulars of thy learning, that a doubt which I have in my mind,in respect of one science, may be done away, and from this apprehension my heart gain perfect satisfaction. I trust that thou hast aperfect knowledge of this science, though others may be wanting. "The Brahman, with all exultation and vanity, said: " O my fellowself and sharer of my griefs, sorrow not now, for I have learnt thefour Vedas, and am chief of learned professors. " The wife exclaimed:"Woe is me if thou hast not learned the Fifth Veda! " Quoththe Brahman: " Why, woman, it has been ascertained by the mostlearned masters and pandits that the Vedas are four; wherefore,then, sayest thou there are five? " The woman instantly, on hearing this speech, beating the hands of mortification against each other,cried out: " What an unlucky fate is mine! Surely in the volumeof decree happiness was not affixed to my name, but in the divinerecords the impression of disappointment stamped on the pages ofmy lot! " Greatly distressed by these words, the husband askedwhat was the cause of her despair. She replied that the rájá hadthen a difficult case before him, the solution of which dependedupon the Fifth Veda, and that day had summoned all the Bráhmansto his court. As they were ignorant of the Fifth Veda they hadbeen imprisoned by order of the rájá, and it was decreed that ifduring the night they could not solve the problem, they should onthe morrow be dragged through the streets to execution. Assuredlyword of his arrival would soon reach the rájá, and he should becomeanother victim, unless he at once escaped , while his presence in thecity was unknown to any but herself, and went forth to acquire theFifth Veda. The poor fellow lost not a moment in setting out ona second pilgrimage, and reaching the outskirts of a city, he satdown to rest beside a draw-well, to which presently came up fiveladies. Observing his toil-worn and woe- begone appearance, theybegan to question him as to whence he had come and whither hewas going, upon which he disclosed all the circ*mstances; "and asthey possessed perfect skill in the Fifth Veda, on hearing his story1 Or the Tirrea Bede, as in Scott.346 17 THE ENCHANTED TREE: THE FIFTH VEDA;.they expanded their mouths with laughter, for they guessed that hiswife was an able professor, and, in order to follow her own pleasures ,had committed the simple man to the desert of pilgrimage. Takingpity on his forlorn condition and ignorance, they said: ' Ah, distracted youth and poor wanderer from the path of knowledge, althoughthe Fifth Veda is as a stormy sea, nay, even a boundless deep whichno philosopher can fathom by the aid of his profound wisdom, yetcomfort thy soul, for we will solve thy difficulty, and expound tothee the mysteries of this science. "" The Brahman expressed his joyand gratitude at meeting with such learned ladies, and they thereupon agreed that each day one of them should engage to disclose tohim a section of the Fifth Veda.son.Next day one of the ladies conducts the simpleton to her house,and introduces him to her husband and mother-in-law as her sister'sThen she gets ready a variety of food and liquors for his entertainment; and at night, having left her husband on some pretext,she comes to the young Bráhman, and makes him an offer of herlove-favours, which he rejects with expressions of horror and indignation. She then assumes a frowning look, and calls out in a loudvoice, as if she was about to be violated. Her female neighbourscrowd into the apartment, and the lady, having at the same momentupset and spilt a dish of rice and milk , said to them: "O my sisters,this youth is my nephew, and he was drinking some rice and milk,when all at once a chill struck his heart, and he fainted-that iswhy I called for assistance." Her friends, having comforted her,took their leave, when she addressed the Bráhman: " O thou inexperienced man, see what a calamity hung over thee! Quick, now,and do my desire. " Remediless, he complied , after which she dismissed him, saying: " Ah, thou dead-hearted creature, this is onesection of the Fifth Veda, in which I have instructed thee.cautious that thou errest not again. "1Be1 In some texts of the Book of Sindibád-the Syriac, Sindban; the Greek,Syntipas; the Hispano-Arabic, Libro de los Engannos et les Asayamientos de las Mugeres: ' Book of the Deceits and Tricks of Women'; the Persian, Sindibád Náma, etc. -this story is told of a philosopher who had compiled a book of Woman's Wiles. When the lady's friends have retired, she asks him:Hast thou written down all this in thy book?" and on his replying that hehad not, she exclaims: " In vain, O man, have you laboured, for you haveFOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 347On the second day another of the learned dames took him to herhouse, and said to her husband that a certain greengrocer's wife hadbragged of his varied accomplishments, but chiefly of his being ableto milk a cow with his eyes blindfolded, and not spill a drop fromthe vessel, and that she herself had laid a wager with the womanthat he (her own husband) could do the like feat, wherefore she hadbrought this young man to act as an impartial witness. The husbandvery willingly consented to have his eyes blindfolded, and while hewas engaged milking the cowthe , lady beckoned to the youngBráhman, who quickly advanced, and studied the second section ofthe Fifth Veda. When she had finished her instructions, she untiedthe band from her husband's eyes, and congratulated him on hissuccess, and he, simple man, was equally rejoiced that he had accomplished so difficult a task as milking a cow with his eyes blindfolded.On the third day another of the ladies, " who by her wiles couldhave drawn the devil's claws," took the Bráhman under her charge,and having placed him in a lodging, went to her own house, whereshe pretended to have a most severe pain in her stomach, and declaredthat she was dying. Her husband was much concerned, and proposedgoing off at once to fetch a physician, but shesaid: " Don't go away;but place a curtain between us, that I may send for a female friendwho is skilled in the cure of this complaint." The curtain was soonfixed, and the husband seating himself respectfully outside it, employed himself in prayers for the recovery of his wife, who sentword to the Brahman to cover himself with a long veil and enter asHe comes without delay, and in due form prescribes forher complaint, which having relieved , he then retires to his lodgingwith the blessings of the husband.a woman.Wehave now reached the fourth section of the Fifth Veda, whichis an""accomplished nothing, and have never fathomed the machinations of women!Then the sage burnt his book, returned home, and took a wife. The story issomewhat differently told in the Persian text-see my Book of Sindibád, fromthe Arabic and Persian, pp. 83-87, and pp. 255-263 where analogous stories are cited.348 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: THE FIFTH VEDA;Indo-Persian Version of the Pear-Tree Story.THEHE fourth lady, through dread of the arrow of whose cunningthe warrior of the fifth heaven¹ trembled in the sky like a reed,having bestowed her attention on the pilgrim Bráhman, despatchedhim to an orchard, and, having gone home, said to her husband:"I have heard that in the orchard of a certain husbandman there isa date-tree, the fruit of which is of remarkably fine flavour; but whatis yet stranger, whoever ascends it sees many wonderful objects. Ifto-day, going to visit this orchard, we gather dates from the tree, andalso see the wonders of it , it will not be unproductive of amusem*nt. "In short, she so worked upon her husband with flattering speechesand caresses, that he went to the orchard, and, at the instigation ofhis wife, ascended the tree. At this instant she beckoned to theBráhman, who was previously seated expectantly in a corner of thegarden. The husband, from the top of the tree, beholding what wasnot fit to be seen, exclaimed in extreme rage: "Ah, thou shamelessRussian-born wretch! 2 what abominable action is this?" The wifemaking not the least answer, the flames of anger seized the mind ofthe man, and he began to descend fromthe tree, when the Brahman,with alacrity and speed, having hurried over the Fourth Section ofthe Tirrea Bede, went his way:The road to repose is that of activity and quickness.The wife, having arranged her plan during her husband's descentfrom the tree, said: " Surely, man, frenzy must have deprived thybrain of the fumes of sense, that, having foolishly set up such a cry,and not reflecting upon thy own disgrace-for, excepting thyself,what man is here present?-thou wouldst fix upon me the charge ofinfidelity." The husband, when he saw no person near, was astonished, and said to himself: " Certainly this vision must have beenmiraculous." The completely artful wife from the hesitation of herhusband guessed the cause, and impudently began to abuse him.Then, instantly tying her vest round her waist, she ascended the1 That is, the planet Mars.2 The Asiatics have a very contemptible opinion of the Russians, especiallyof the females, whom they believe to be void of common modesty. Our earlyEuropean voyagers have expressed the same idea.-Note by the Translator.FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 349tree, and when she had reached the topmost branch she suddenlycried out: " O thou shameless man! what abomination is this? Ifthy evil star hath led thee from the path of virtue, surely thoumightest have in secret ventured upon it. Doubtless to pull downthe curtain of modesty from thine eyes, and with such impudence tocommit such a wicked deed, is the very extreme of debauchery!The husband replied: " Woman, do not thus ridiculously cry out,but be silent; for such is the property of this tree, that whoeverascends it sees man or woman below in such situations." Thecunning wife now came down, and said to her husband " What acharming garden and amusing spot is this, where one can gatherfruit, and at the same time behold the wonders of the world. " Thehusband replied: " Destruction seize the wonders which falselyaccuse a man of abomination! " In short, the devilish wife, notwithstanding the impudence of such an action, escaped safely to herhouse; and next day, according to custom, attending at the well,introduced the Bráhman to the ladies, and informed them of herworthy contrivance.¹

The fifth lady-from whose cunning, quoth our author, the devilwould own there was no escaping-takes the young Bráhman to herdwelling, where she feigns madness. Acting on her previous instructions, he plays the part of a physician, and declares that the lady ispossessed of an evil spirit. He causes the house to be swept andcleansed, and perfumes to be burnt. Finally he has her placed in aclose litter, which he also enters, and while four men carry the litterfour times round the court of the house, to the strains of musicalinstruments, he learns the last section of the Fifth Veda, and is dismissed with the compliments of all the friends of the family onhaving so skilfully caused the evil spirit to depart out of the lady." On the following day the artful lady conducted the Brahmanto the well, and related to her companions the wonderful adventure;on which they applauded, and allowed her superiority in the mysteries1. Although the original of this story has not hitherto been discovered, sofar as I am aware, yet there can be no question of its being of Hindú extraction, and I think it very probable it may be found in the Suka Saptati, whence other tales have been taken into the Bahár-i Dánush.350 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: THE FIFTH VEDA;of the Fifth Veda over themselves. The five ladies , who might beconsidered as the five senses of cunning, now dismissed the Bráhman,saying: ' Thou hast now attained a full knowledge of the FifthVeda, its depth and its difficulties; also, how well instructed thychaste wife is in the science, and for what she has made thee awanderer in the road of pilgrimage.'" ""The Brahman now hastened home in a great rage, twisting hiswhiskers. On his arrival, his wife readily guessed from his mannertowards her that his eyes had been opened to her conduct , butbehaved herself with meekness. At night, unable to resist theimportunities of her lover, when her husband was asleep she left afemale friend to supply her place by his side,¹ and after putting outthe lamp went to her paramour. The Bráhman, waking soon after,in a rage at the woman's not replying to his addresses (for she wasafraid to speak lest he should discover the deceit) , rose up, and takinga sharp knife cut off her nose, believing she was his wife, and thenlay down to sleep again. The wife, returning from her lover, learnsfrom her friend what had happened to her, and having sent heraway, retired into a corner, and prayed to the gods that if she wasfree from vice her nose might be restored. The Bráhman, hearingthis extraordinary petition, at once arose, and lighted a lamp thathe might see whether her nose proved the truth of her words. Finding it unhurt he was overwhelmed with shame, humbly begged herpardon, and now regarding her as the most virtuous of women, livedcontentedly with her the rest of his days.21 A similar device, it will be remembered, occurs in Gil Blas, B. II. ch. vii.,in the story of the young barber of whom the fair Mergellina, the languishingspouse of old Doctor Oloroso, is deeply enamoured. Her duenna, Melancia,has contrived to introduce the youth into the house at night, and the eagerdame, after telling him of her stratagem, laughingly adds: " But the mostpleasant part of this adventure is, that Melancia, understanding from me thatmy husband commonly sleeps soundly, has gone to bed to him, and this very minute supplies my place." "So much the worse, madam," says the timorousyouth; " I cannot approve of this invention: your husband may awake andperceive the cheat. " " He cannot perceive it, " answers she with precipitation;"do not be uneasy on that score.'2 The incident of the woman's confidante losing her nose occurs in the Sanskrit form of the Fables of Pilpay (or Bidpai) , entitled Hitopadesa, orFriendly Counsel, ch. ii. fab. 6. Guerin's fabliau of " Les Cheveux Coupés "(Le Grand, ed. 1781 , tome ii . p . 280) is somewhat similar, and seems to beFOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 351As a notable example of the craft and depravity of women, thestory of the Enchanted Tree is related to the sultan by one of hissage ministers in the Turkish romance of The Forty Vazirs, someaccount of which is given in my preceding paper, p. 322.TTurkish Version.HERE was in the palace of the world a grocer, and he had awife, a beauty of the age; and that woman had a leman. Oneday this woman's leman said: " If thy husband found us out hewould not leave either of us sound." The woman said: " I am ableto manage that I shall make merry with thee before my husband'seyes." The youth said: " Such a thing cannot be. " The womanreplied: " In such and such a place there is a great tree; to-morrowI will go a-pleasuring with my husband to the foot of that tree; dothou hide thyself in a secret place near that tree, and when I make asign to thee, come. " As her leman went off her husband came.The woman said: " Fellow, my soul wishes to go a-pleasuring withthee to-morrow to such and such a tree. " The fellow replied: " Sobe it." When it was morning the woman and her husband went tothat tree. The woman said: "They say that he who eats this sweetmeat sees single things as though they were double." And she atesome, and gave her husband some to eat. Half-an-hour afterwardthe woman climbed up the tree, and turned and looked down, andbegan: " May thou be blind! may thou get the like from God!Fellow, what deed is this thou doest? Is there any one who hasever done this deed? Thou makest merry with a strange womanunder the eyes of thy wife;-quick, divorce me." And she criedout. Her husband said: "Out on thee, woman, hast thou turnedmad? There is no one by me." Quoth the woman: " Be silent,imitated in one of the Tales of the Men of Gotham. -Dr. Jonathan Scott saysthis story of the Tirrea Bede ( Fifth Veda) " was probably originally written by a Hindú of inferior caste, " and he had been told that " the asking of one of those privileged and sacred personages whether he had studied the Fifth Vedais often done by wags when they find him ignorant and insolently proud of his high descent. " There is, however, no special reason for supposing thestory was not composed by a Bráhman: many tales in the Katha Sarit Ságaraare about foolish and ignorant Bráhmans, and that work was not written by 66 a Hindú of inferior caste."352 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: TURKISH VERSION;unblushing, shameless fellow! Lo, the woman is with thee, andthou deniest. " Her husband said: " Come down." She replied:"I will not come down so long as that woman is with thee." Herhusband began to swear, protesting, and the woman came down andsaid to him: "Where is that harlot?-quick, show her me, else thoushalt know." Again the fellow sware, and the woman said: " Canit be the work of the sweetmeat?" The fellow said: "May be! "Quoth the woman: "Do thou go up and look down on me, and letus see. Her husband clutched the tree, and while he was climbingthe woman signed to her leman. The fellow looked down, and sawthe woman making merry with a youth. This time the fellow criedout: "Away with thee! Out on thee, shameless youth! " Thewoman said: " Thou liest. " But the fellow could not endure it, andbegan to come down, and the youth ran off.¹""OUR story of the Enchanted Tree is also found in the Breslauprinted text of the Arabian Nights, edited by Habicht and Fleischerfrom a Tunisian MS. , and published in 12 vols. , 1825-43. It formsone of a series of tales enclosed within a frame-story, which seemsimitated from that of the Book of Sindibád (or the Seven Vazirs):Er-Rahwan, the prime minister of King Shah Bakht, had many enemies who were eager for his ruin, being envious of the great confidence which the king reposed in him. It chanced one night thatthe king dreamt that his vazir had given him a fruit which he ateand died therefrom. The king sent for a famed astrologer to interpret this dream, and he, having been bribed by the enemies ofEr-Rahwan, told him that it signified his favourite minister wouldslay him within the ensuing twenty-eight days. Shah Bakht thensummoned the vazir to his private chamber, and disclosed to him hisdream and the astrologer's interpretation thereof; and Er-Rahwan,perceiving that this was a stratagem of his enemies, at once devised1 From Mr. Gibb's complete translation of the Qirq Vezir Tárikhi, or' History of the Forty Vezírs.'-Regarding this interesting story- book, SirRichard F. Burton writes to me as follows: " I think that the original wasPersian, not Arabic, and that from Persian it was translated into Turkish; -the general tone of the work suggests this to me. When Easterns speak ofArabic texts, it is usually to show that they are of the Ulema. "-FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 353a plan whereby he should save his life and defeat their machinations.Professing himself ready to submit to death, he begged as a lastfavour that he should be permitted to spend the evening with theking, and on the morrow his majesty should do with him as hethought fit. Shah Bakht, who still loved the good vazír, gave hisconsent, and that night Er-Rahwan told him a story which so pleasedhim that he respited the vazír for a day, in order that he should hearanother story which Er-Rahwan offered to relate. In this way heentertained Shah Bakht each night until the fatal twenty-eight dayswere past, when the malice of his enemies was made manifest.¹ Onthe ninth night Er-Rahwan related the following story (according toMr. Payne's translation): 2

Arabian Version.

THERE was once of old time a foolish , ignorant man who had wealth galore, and his wife was a fair woman who loved ahandsome youth. The latter used to watch for her husband'sabsence, and come to her, and on this wise he abode a long while.One day as the woman was private with her lover, he said to her:"O my lady and my beloved, if thou desire me and love me, giveme possession of thyself and accomplish my need in thy husband'spresence, else I will never again come to thee nor draw near theewhat while I abide on life. " Now she loved him with an exceedinglove, and could not brook his separation an hour, nor could endureto vex him; so when she heard his words , she said to him: " [ Sobe it] in God's name! O my beloved and solace of mine eyes , mayhe not live who would vex thee." Quoth he: " To-day?" And

1 Similar to this is the frame of an Indian romance, Alakcswara Kathá,in which four ministers of state are falsely accused of entering the royalharem, and they relate stories to the king which disarm his wrath, after which their innocence is established; and that of the Bakhtyár Náma, aPersian romance, in which ten vazírs seek the death of the king's favourite,Prince Bakhtyár, who saves himself for ten days by recounting to the kingnotable instances of the fatal effects of precipitate judgments, when he is discovered to be the king's own son, and the wicked vazírs are all put to death.

99 2 The Breslau printed text of the Arabian Nights is so very corrupt that Mr. Payne, in such of the tales as he has translated, attempts to " make sense by occasionally inserting some words within square brackets.

she said: " Yes, by thy life," and appointed him of this. When herhusband came home, she said to him: "I desire to go a-pleasuring."And he said: "With all my heart." So he went till he came to agoodly place abounding in vines and water, whither he carried her,and pitched her a tent beside a great tree; and she betook herself toa place beside the tent, and made her there an underground hidingplace [in which she hid her lover]. Then said she to her husband:I desire to mount this tree. " And he said: "Do so." So sheclimbed up, and when she came to the top of the tree she cried outand buffeted her face, saying: "Lewd fellow that thou art! Arethese thy usages? Thou sworest [fidelity to me], and liedst." AndThen she came down from"O villain! if these be thyshe repeated her speech twice or thrice.the tree, and rent her clothes , and said:dealings with me before my eyes, how dost thou when thou artabsent from me?" Quoth he: " What aileth thee?" And shesaid: " I saw thee swive the woman before my very eyes." "Notso, by Allah," cried he. "But hold thy peace till I go up and see. "So he climbed the tree, and no sooner did he begin to do so, thanup came the lover [from his hiding-place] , and taking the woman bythe legs [fell to swiving her]. When the husband came to the topof the tree, he looked and beheld a man swiving his wife. So hesaid: "O strumpet! what doings are these?" And he made hasteto come down from the tree to the ground [ but meanwhile the loverhad returned to his hiding-place] , and his wife said to him: "Whatsawest thou?" " I saw a man swive thee, " answered he. And shesaid: "Thou liest; thou sawest nought, and sayest this but of conjecture." On this wise they did three times, and every time [heclimbed the tree] the lover came up out of the underground placeand bestrode her, whilst her husband looked on, and she still said:"O liar! seest thou aught?" "Yes," he would answer, and camedown in haste, but saw no one; and she said to him: " By my life,look and say nought but the truth. " Then said he to her: Arise,let us depart this place, for it is full of Jinn and Marids. " [So theyreturned to their house] and passed the night [there]; and the man" 11 For a full account of the jinn (genii) , marids, ifríts, and other kinds of beings, see Lane's Arabian Nights, vol. i. pp. 26-33.

arose in the morning assured that this was all but imagination andillusion. And so the lover accomplished his desire.¹-It is obvious, I think, that there is a close connection betweenthis last version and that from the Forty Vazirs, as seems also thecase of many other stories peculiar to the Tunisian (Breslau) text ofthe Arabian Nights, of which variants are found in collections oftheearly Italian novelists- -a circ*mstance which may perhaps serve tothrow some light on the introduction of Eastern fictions into thesouth of Europe. In the Turkish story of the Enchanted Tree,it will be observed, the lover expresses to his paramour his fear lesther husband discover their secret on-goings, upon which she undertakes to sport with him in presence of her spouse, and no harmshould come of it; while in the Arabic version it is the lover whomakes this proposal to the woman, which is doubtless a corruptionof the original, as represented in the Forty Vazirs.-A bulky, if notvery edifying, volume might easily be compiled of analogous stories,both Western and Eastern; but it will be sufficient in the presentpaper to cite only a few of the more remarkable " examples " ofWoman's Wiles, one of which is the story of the meddling fatherin-law, occurring in the Persian Sindibád Náma, 2 the Tútí Náma,³and the Sanskrit Suka Saptati¹:The Officious Father- in- Law.ONE day as a shopkeeper's wife was sitting on the terrace of herhouse a young man saw her, and was enamoured. The womanperceived that the youth had fallen in love with her, so she calledhim to her and said: " Come to me after midnight, and seat yourselfunder a tree that is in my courtyard. " After midnight the youthrepaired to her house, and the woman got out of bed and went to1 Tales from the Arabic of the Breslau and Calcutta ( 1814-18 ) Editionsof the Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, not occurring in theother Printed Texts of the Work. Now first done into English by John Payne. London: Printed for the Villon Society, 1884. In Three Volumes.Vol . i. pp. 270-2.2 Second tale of the Fifth Vazír.3 Eighth Night: story of the Fifth Vazír. 4 Fifteenth Night.356 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: THE FATHER-IN-LAW;him, and slept with him under the tree. It happened that theshopkeeper's father, having occasion to go out of the house, discoveredhis son's wife asleep beside a strange man, and he took the ringsfrom off the woman's ankles, saying to himself: " In the morningI will have her punished. " But the woman, soon after awaking,discovered what had occurred, and she sent away the youth, andgoing to her husband awoke him, and said: " The house is veryhot; come, let us sleep under the tree. " In short, she slept with herhusband in that very spot where she and the young man had sportedtogether. And when her husband was fast asleep, she roused himagain, saying: “ Your father came here just now, and taking therings from off my ankles carried them away. That old man, whomI consider as my father, how could he approach me at the timeI was sleeping with my husband, and take away my ankle-rings? "In the morning the husband was wroth with his father when hecame showing the ankle-rings and disclosed how he had seen hiswife with a strange man. The son spake harshly to his father,saying: "In the night, when, on account of the heat, my wife andI were sleeping under the tree, you came, and taking the rings frommy wife's legs, carried them away-at that very time she awoke meand informed me of the circ*mstance. "" 11 However this story may have come to Europe, it occurs, in a slightlymodified form, in the Heptameron—a work ascribed to Margaret, Queen of Navarre, but it is believed that Bonaventure des Periers, who succeeded thecelebrated Clement Marot as her valet de chambre, had a principal hand in its composition: An officious neighbour, looking out of his window, discovers alady and her gallant in the garden. When the lady finds that she is thuswatched, she sends the lover away, and going into the house, persuades herhusband to spend what remains of the night in the same spot. In the morning the neighbour meets the husband, and acquaints him of his wife's misconduct, but is answered: " It was I, gossip, it was I, " not a little to thegossip's chagrin.It is perhaps not generally known that a highly " moral " operetta based on this tale was performed at Covent Garden Theatre in 1825, entitled ' Twas I,which is thus outlined in the Lady's Magazine, vol . vi. , p . 755: Georgette Clairville, a pretty paysanne, belongs to the household of a farmer namedDelorme. It is the custom of the village to give a marriage portion and achaplet annually to the most innocent and virtuous maiden, so declared by the unanimous voice of the inhabitants. Georgette is announced as entitled tothe prize, to the great indignation of one Madame Mag, an envious old maid,whose window overlooks the farmer's garden. In one of her ill humours shedetects the light- hearted farmer snatching a kiss from his servant, and exclaiming aloud, shuts the casem*nt. Conscious of having been seen,FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 357Thus far, according to Káderi's abridgment of the Tútí Náma,but in the original work of Nakhshabí, as well as in the SukaSaptati, the father-in-law is by no means satisfied with his son'sassurance of the woman's innocence. He cites her to the Tank ofTrial at Agra, the water in which had the property of testingwhether a person spoke truth or falsehood: if the former, theperson when thrown into it floated, and if the latter, he sank tothe bottom. Nowthe woman well knew what her fate would beif she swore falsely, so she requested her lover to feign madness,and to grasp her at the moment she was to undergo the trial,which he did accordingly, and was quickly beaten back by theassembled multitude. Then the woman, advancing to the edgeof the tank, cried: " I swear that I have never touched any manexcept my husband and that insane fellow who assaulted me amoment since. Let this water be my punishment if I have notspoken the truth." Thereupon she boldly leaped into the tank, andthe water bore her on its surface. So she was unanimously declaredinnocent, and returned home with her husband, who had neverquestioned her fidelity.2THE artful device of the woman in the Persian tale, of getting ridof her simple husband by despatching him to learn the Fifth Veda,finds an analogue in a story current in Ceylon, which is thus translated in The Orientalist, vol. ii. ( 1885) , p. 148:Delorme brings his wife into the same situation, and contrives to be as gallant to her as to Georgette. Of course, when the old lady makes heraccusation the wife exclaims "'Twas I, " and Madame Mag is drummed out ofthe village as a slanderer. A male servant of the same farmer, the lover ofGeorgette, is also made unconsciously serviceable in the same exclamatory way, and he is rewarded with her fair hand.-The chronicler adds, that inthe performance of this dainty operetta Madame Vestris played the part ofthe village heroine, and some pretty airs were sung by her in an agreeable manner.1 It is hardly necessary to remind the reader that suspected witches werealso "tested" in this manner in England and other European countries in the bad old times.192 This incident reappears in the medieval " Life " of Virgilius, and in theancient romance of Sir Tristrem ( or Tristan). For analogous tests of chastity I take the liberty of referring the " curious reader to my forthcomingwork. Popular Tales and Fictions: their Migrations and Transformations (Blackwood), vol. i., p. 172 ff.358 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: A SINHALESE NOODLE;ONCESinhalese Story of Woman's Miles.NCE upon a time there lived in a certain country a husbandman. The paddy-crop of his field being ripe, he built a smallwatch-hut near it, and lived in it for four months, on the look- outfor trespassers. At the end of that time he reaped and threshed hiscrop, and returned home. Towards evening, on the day of his return,his wife called to him, and said: "Did you hear of the order thatwas proclaimed this day in the village by beat of tom-tom? " Heanswered in the negative. So she went on to say: "An order wasmade that every field-owner should instantly repair to his watch-hut,and, though there be no crop to take care of, he should remain in itfor full six months. " He believed this story, and very reluctantlyreturned to his watch-hut, and remained there. It chanced that asportsman called at his hut, and asked him: " Why are you stayinghere at such an unusual season?" The simple fellow replied:"Doyou not know that an order was proclaimed throughout the villagethat every field-owner should remain in his watch-hut for full sixmonths, even though there should be no crop to watch over? "Quoth the sportsman: "No such order has been made; but itseems that your wife has taken advantage of your credulity, andimposed on you. The fact is, she is carrying on an intrigue, andthis is only a trick of hers to keep you out of the way." Thepeasant then began to swear to the fidelity of his wife; and after thesportsman had long argued with him in vain, he said: "If youwould ascertain the truth of what I say, go slowly some day and seewhom you will find in the house, and make yourself sure about thematter." He consented to this, and went as directed; but, as hewalked very slowly, day dawned before he reached his house. Whenthe sportsman called again, and inquired what he had seen at hishouse, the noodle told him how he was surprised by the dawn."How so?" "Because I walked slowly." The sportsman explainedthat he meant he should walk fast when he started, and go slowlywhen he neared the house: he should try again. This time theblockhead started to run at the top of his speed, and when about amile from his house he walked very slowly, so that once more it was-FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 359daylight before he reached home. Again the sportsman called, andlearned of this fresh failure. "You are certainly a queer fellow," hesaid. "I've sent you twice. Now try a third time. Listen, anddo exactly what I tell you. Run from this place as fast as you can,and when you get to the fence near your garden, halt a while, walkwith measured steps, then call to the inmates of the house, and seewhom you find there." Reaching the fence, the poor fellow'sgarment got caught by one of the palings; he suspected that it washis wife's paramour who had come behind and seized him. So hebawled out: " Let me alone! let me alone! I assure you I did notcome here as a spy." Hearing these words, the wife and herparamour got out of the house; the latter concealed himself, and thewife, having loosed her simple husband, at once began to scold himfor coming at such an unusual hour; warned him of his danger ifthe king were to know; and then extolled her own virtuous conduct.Thereupon the wittol went back to his watch-hut, and spent the restof the six months, in season and out of season.A UNIQUE example of the wiles of women is found in thefabliauentitled La Saineresse, of which Le Grand has furnished a verymodest and very unintelligible abstract. Barbazan gives it in itsoriginal form, as follows:La Saineresse.D'UN borgois vous acont la vie,Qui se vanta de grant folie,Que fame nel' poroit bouler.Sa fame en a oï parler,Si en parla priveement,Et en jura un scrementQu'ele le fera mençongier,Jà tant ne s'i saura gueter.Un jor erent en lor mesonLa gentil Dame et le preudon,En un banc sistrent lez à lez;N'i furent gueres demorez,I'll tell you of acitizen,who bragged that woman couldn't cuckold him.His wife hears of it, and swears she'd do it, and tell him of it without offence.One day, as they were both sitting 10 on abench,360 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: LA SAINERESSE;a smooth rascal enters, in wo- man's dress (in aloose sinock, with a wimple of saffron hue),with a show of wares and cupping gear,and salutes the citizen:"God be with you, good man,you and your companion.""God keep you,fair friend;come and sit beside me.""I'm not tired,thanks.""Lady, you've sent for me:now tell me your pleasure."She bids her (him)go up-stairs,and she'll settle with him; and tells her husband they'll return soon.She has pains in the back, and must be blooded.Esvos un pautonier à l'uisMoult cointe et noble et sambloit plusFame que home sa moitié,Vestu d'un chainsse deslié,D'une guimple bien safrenée,Et vint menant moult grant posnée;Ventouses porte à ventouser,Et vait le borgois saluerEn mi l'aire de sa meson.Diex soit o vous, sire preudon,Et vous et vostre compaignie.Diex vous gart, dist cil, bele amie:Venez seoir lez moi icy.Sire, dist-il, vostre merci,Je ne sui mie trop lassée.Dame, vous m'avez ci mandée,Et m'avez ci fete venir,Or me dites vostre plesir.Cele ne fu pas esbahie,Vous dites voir, ma douce amie,Montez là sus en cel solier,Il m'estuet de vostre mestier.Ne vous poist, dist-ele au borgois,Quar nous revendrons demanois;J'ai goute és rains moult merveillouse,Et por ce que sui si goutouseMestuet-il fere un poi sainier.Lors monte après le pautonier,203040Les huis clostrent de maintenant.Then she mounts after the rascal,and they shut the door.The rascal seizes her merrily, lays her on the bed,and swives her three times.When they have had enough ofit,they go down- stairs, and into the house.Le pautonier le prent esrant,En un lit l'avoit estendue,Tant il l'a trois fois foutue. queQuant il orent assez joué,Foutue, besié et acolé,Si se descendent del perrin,Contreval les degrez enfin,FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 361Vindrent esrant en la meson;Cil ne fut pas fol ne briçon,Ainz le salua demanois.Sire, adieu, dist-il au borgois.Diex vous saut, dist-il, bele amie;Dame, se Diex vous beneie,Paiez cele fame moult bien,50The rascal salutes the citizen,"Good-bye," and "Lady, God bless you."Quoth the cuck- old, " Wife, see that you pay this woman well."Ne retenez de son droit rienDe ce que vous sert en manaie.Sire, que vous chaut de ma paie?Dist la borgoise à son Seignor.Je vous oi parler de folor,Quar nous deus bien en convendra,Cil s'en va, plus n'i demora,La poche aux ventouses a prise.Le borgoise se r'est assiseLez son Seignor bien aboufée.Dame, moult estes afouée,Et si avez trop demoré.Sire, merci por amor Dé,Jà ai-je esté trop traveillie,Si ne pooie estre sainie,Et m'a plus de cent cops ferue,Tant que je sui toute molue;N'onques tant cop n'i sot ferirConques sanc en péust issir;Par trois rebinées me prist,Et à chascune fois m'assistSor mes rains deux de ses pecons,Et me feroit uns cops si lons,Toute me sui fet martirier,Et si ne poi onques sainier.Granz cops me feroit et sovent,Morte fussent mon escient,S'un trop bon oingnement ne fust.Qui de tel oingnement éust,60"Don't fear, but Ishall."The rascal goes off, with his cupping gear.The citizen's wife sits down, all out ofbreath."Wife, you're fatigued; you stayed too long.""Sir, I thank you; I have been too hard worked,as I couldn't be 70 blooded, and got more than 100 strokes, so I'm beaten all over.For all that not adrop of blood would come.For 3 punctures I got, and each time two of her (his) stings ( P),and got such long strokes I'm sore all over,80 and yet I couldn't be bled.Great strokes Ihad, and deadly they'd have been but for a good ointment.Whoso has such362 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: LA SAINERESSE;ointment can have no pain.And when she (he) had hammer- ed me, she salved mywounds- great and ugly ones, so that I'm quite cured.I like such oint- ment;it issued from agutter, and so descended into an orifice. "Quoth the citizen,"My fair friend,for once you've had good oint- ment."He didn't see the joke, and she wasn't ashamed to tell ofthe lechery;for all the trick she'd played him,she must also tell it him.He's a fool, then,who swears by his head and neck that woman can't cuckold him,and that he knows howto prevent it.But there's not in this country a man who's so clever woman won't outwit him,when she who was bad in the back cuckolded her lord at once.Ja ne fust més de mal grevée,Et quant m'ot tant demartelée,Si m'a après ointes mes plaiesQui moult par erent granz et laies,Tant que je sui toute guerie:Tel oingnement ne haz-je mie,Et il ne fet pas à haïr,Et si ne vous en quier mentir.L'oingnement issoit d'un tuiel,Et si descendoit d'un forelD'une pel moult noire et hideuse,Mais moult par estoit savoreuse.Dist li borgois, ma bele amie,A poi ne fustes mal baillie,Bon oingnement avez éu.Cil ne s'est pas apercéuDe la borde qu'ele conta,Et cele nule honte n'aDe la lecherie essaucier.Por tant le veut bien essaier,Jà n'en fust paié à garant,Se ne li contast maintenant.Por ce tieng-je celui à folQui jure son chief et son colQue fame nel' poroit bouler,Et que bien s'en sauroit garder.Mais il n'est pas en cest païsCil qui tant soit de sens esprisQue mie se péust guetierQue fame nel' puist engingnier,Quant cele qui ot mal es rainsBoula son Seignor preimerains.Explicit de la Saineresse.¹901001101161 Fabliaux et Contes des poètes françois des XI., XII., XIII., XIV., et XV siècles. Tirés des meilleurs auteurs. Publiés par Barbazan. NouvelleÉdition, augmentée, etc., par M. Meon. Paris, 1808. Tome iii . p. 451-4.FOR THE MERCHANT'S TALE. 363KELLER, in the elaborate einleitung to his edition of the Frenchmetrical version of the Romans des Sept Sages, written in the 13thcentury, refers to a number of variants of " The Enchanted Tree, "some of which have but a remote resemblance to the story, such asan incident in the romance of Tristan (or Tristrem), which occurs inFytte Second, stanzas 86 to 93 of Scott's edition of the version inthe Auchinleck MS. (Advocates' Library, Edinburgh):Queen soude and Sir Tristrem.The interviews between Tristrem and Ysoude are discovered bya dwarf, called Meriadok, concealed in a tree. The dwarf advisesKing Mark to proclaim a great hunting match, and, instead of goingto the forest, to conceal himself in the dwarf's hiding-place. Meriadokis sent to Tristrem with a pretended message from Ysoude, appointing a meeting. Tristrem, suspecting the deceit, returns a coldanswer. The dwarf tells the king to put no confidence in hismessage, for Tristrem will certainly meet Ysoude that night. Markhaving climbed into the tree , the two lovers meet beneath it, but,being aware of the king's presence from his shadow, they assumethe tone of quarrel and recrimination. Tristrem charges Ysoudewith having alienated from him the affections of his uncle, the king,so that he was nearly compelled to fly into Wales. Ysoude avowsher hatred of Tristrem, alleging as the cause her husband's unjustsuspicions of their criminal intercourse. The dialogue is continuedin the same strain; Tristrem beseeching Ysoude to procure him adismissal from the court, and she engaging, on condition of hisdeparture, to supplicate Mark to endow him with suitable means ofsupport. The good-natured monarch is overwhelmed with joy andtenderness at the supposed discovery of the innocence of his wifeand nephew. Far from assenting to Tristrem's departure, he createshim high constable, and the grateful knight carries on his intriguewith Ysoude without farther suspicion for the space of three years.THE twelfth tale in Les Cent Nouvelles Nouvelles, entitled " LeVeau," is also included by Keller among analogues of our story, as towhich the reader may judge from the following abstract and extract:364 17. THE ENCHANTED TREE: LE VEAU.The Peasant in the Tree.A douziesme nouvelle parle d'ung Hollandois, qui, nuyt et jour,"LA...à toute heure, ne cessoit d'assaillir sa femme au jeu d'amours;et comment d'auenture il la rua par terre, en passant par ung bois,soubz ung grant arbre sur lequel estoit ung laboureur qui avoit perduson veau. Et, en faisant inventoire des beaux membres de sa femme,dist qu'il veoit tant de belles choses et quasi tout le monde; à qui lelaboureur demanda s'il veoit pas son veau qu'il cherchoit, duquel ildisoit qu'il luy sembloit en veoir la queue. " "Et comme ilestoit en ceste parfonde estude, il disoit: ' Maintenant, je voy cecy!je voy cela! Encores cecy! encores cela! ' Et qui l'oyoit il veoit toutle monde et beaucoup plus. Et, après une grande et longue pose,estant en ceste gracieuse contemplacion, dist de rechief: ' SaincteMarie, que je voy de choses! ' ' Helas! ' dist lors le laboureur surl'arbre, ' bonnes gens, ne veez-vous point mon veau? Sire, il mesemble que j'en voy la queue. ' L'aultre, ja soit qu'il fust bienesbahy, subitement fist la response et dist: ' Cette queue n'est par dece veau. '" ""The model of both Boccaccio's and Chaucer's tales seems to havebeen the version found in the Comedia Lydiae, or one similar to it.The story may, perhaps, exist in some of the great medieval monkishcollections of sermons, or of exempla designed for the use ofpreachers, such as the Sermones of Jacques de Vitry; the Liber deDonis of Etienne de Bourbon; the Promptuarium Exemplorum ofJohn Herolt; the Summa Pracdicantium of John Bromyard. In theabsence of any Eastern version representing the cuckolded husbandas being blind and having his sight miraculously restored to discoverhimself dishonoured, we must conclude that this form of the storyis of European invention. It is needless to add that Chaucer's taleof January and May is incomparably the best-told of all the versions,whether Asiatic or European.GLASGOW, October, 1886.36518.The Innocent Persecuted Wife:ASIATIC AND EUROPEAN VERSIONSOFChaucer's Man of Law's Tale.By W. A. CLOUSTON.

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... ""3671THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:ASIATIC AND EUROPEAN VERSIONS OF THE MANOFLAW'S TALEINBY W. A. CLOUSTON.my last paper, stories are cited of the profligacy and craft ofwomen; this is devoted to " the other side "-to stories of thedepravity of men, and the patience and long-suffering of virtuouswomen, as typified by Constance, the noble heroine of Chaucer'sMan of Law's Tale. The story of Joseph and the wife of Potiphar(whom Muslims call Zulaykhá) , which forms the subject of severalbeautiful Persian and Turkish poems, has its prototype in anEgyptian romance of two brothers, Satú and Anapú, written 3000years ago, of which a copy on papyrus is preserved in the BritishMuseum; and the ancient Greek classical legends as well as Indianand other Asiatic fictions furnish many parallels: e. g. Phædra andHippolytus, Antea and Bellerophon, Sarangdhara and his stepmother Chitrángí, Gunasarman and the wife of King Mahásena." Alas! " exclaims Somadeva, " women whose love is slighted areworse than poison! " But numerous as are the analogues of thestory of Potiphar's Wife, there exist also some tales in which menare represented as playing the like shameful part against women, themost remarkable and wide-spread of which is that of the InnocentPersecuted Wife-the pious Constance of most European versions.The story is related with variations of details in at least threedifferent texts of the Book of the Thousand and One Nights; andthis is how it goes in the Calcutta and Búlák printed Arabic editions ,according to Sir R. F. Burton's rendering:1 See also, ante, pp. iii-xii , 1-84, and 221-250.드368 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:AFirst Arabian Version.MONG the children of Israel, one of the kázís had a wife of surpassing beauty, constant in fasting and abounding in patienceand long-suffering; and he, being minded to make the pilgrimageto Jerusalem, appointed his own brother kází in his stead, duringhis absence, and commended his wife to his charge. Now thisbrother had heard of her beauty and loveliness, and had taken afancy to her. So no sooner was his brother gone, than he went toher and sought her love-favours; but she denied him, and held fastto her chastity. The more she repelled him, the more he pressedhis suit upon her; till, despairing of her, and fearing lest she shouldacquaint his brother with his misconduct whenas he should return,he suborned false witnesses to testify against her of adultery; andcited her and carried her before the king of the time, who adjudgedher to be stoned. So they dug a pit, and seating her therein stonedher, till she was covered with stones, and the man said: " Be thishole her grave! " But when it was dark, a passer-by, making fora neighbouring hamlet, heard her groaning in sore pain; and,pulling her out of the pit, carried her home to his wife, whom hebade dress her wounds. The peasant-woman tended her till sherecovered, and presently gave her her child to be nursed; and sheused to lodge with the child in another house by night.Now a certain thief saw her and lusted after her. So he sent toher, seeking her love-favours, but she denied herself to him; wherefore he resolved to slay her, and, making his way into her lodgingby night (and she sleeping), thought to strike at her with a knife;but it smote the little one, and killed it. Now when he knew hismisdeed, fear overtook him, and he went forth the house, and Allahpreserved from him her chastity. But as she awoke in the morning,she found the child by her side with throat cut; and presently themother came, and, seeing her boy dead, said to the nurse:""Twasthou didst murther him. " Therewith she beat her a grievous beating,and purposed to put her to death; but her husband interposed, anddelivered the woman, saying: " By Allah, thou shalt not do on thiswise." So the woman, who had somewhat of money with her, fledFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 369forth for her life, knowing not whither she should wend. Presentlyshe came to a village, where she saw a crowd of people about a mancrucified to a tree-stump, but still in the chains of life. " Whathath he done? " she asked, and they answered: " He hath committeda crime which nothing can expiate but death or the payment of sucha fine by way of alms. " So she said to them: "Take the money andlet him go; " and, when they did so, he repented at her hands andvowed to serve her, for the love of Almighty Allah, till death shouldrelease him. Then he built her a cell , and lodged her therein; afterwhich he betook himself to woodcutting, and brought her daily herbread. As for her, she was constant in worship, so that there cameno sick man or demoniac to her, but she prayed for him and he wasstraightway healed. When the woman's cell was visited by folk(and she constant in worship), it befell by decree of the Almightythat He sent down upon her husband's brother (the same who hadcaused her to be stoned) a cancer in the face, and smote the villager'swife (the same who had beaten her) with leprosy, and afflicted thethief (the same who had murthered the child) with palsy. Nowwhen the kází returned from his pilgrimage, he asked his brotherof his wife, and he told him that she was dead, whereat he mournedsore, and accounted her with her Maker.After a while very many folk heard of the pious recluse, andflocked to her cell from all parts of the length and breadth of theearth; whereupon said the kází to his brother: " O my brother,wilt thou not seek out yonder pious woman? Haply Allah shalldecree thee healing at her hands. " And he replied: " O mybrother, carry me to her. " Moreover, the husband of the leprouswoman heard of the pious devotee, and carried his wife to her, asdid also the people of the paralytic thief; and they all met at thedoor of the hermitage. Now she had a place wherefrom she couldlook out upon those who came to her, without their seeing her; andthey waited till her servant came, when they begged admittance andobtained permission. Presently she saw them all and recognizedthem; so she veiled and cloaked face and body, and went out andstood in the door, looking at her husband and his brother and thethief and the peasant- woman; but they did not recognize her.CH. ORIG.26370 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:""Then said she to them: " Ho, folk, ye shall not be relieved of whatis with you till ye confess your sins; for when the creature confesseth his sins, the Creator relenteth towards him and granteth himthat wherefore he resorteth to him.' Quoth the kází to his brother:"O my brother, repent to Allah and persist not in thy frowardness,for it will be more helpful to thy relief. " And the tongue of thekází spake this speech:

This day oppressor and oppressed meet,And Allah showeth secrets we secrete:This is a place where sinners low are brought;And Allah raiseth saint to highest seat.Our Lord and Master shows the truth right clear,Though sinner froward be, or own defeat:Alas, for those who rouse the Lord to wrath,As though of Allah's wrath they nothing meet!O whoso seeketh honours, know they areFrom Allah, and His fear with love entreat.(Saith the relator, ) Then quoth the brother: " Now I will tellthe truth I did thus and thus with thy wife; " and he confessed the whole matter, adding, " and this is myoffence. " Quoththe leprous woman: " As for me, I had a woman with me, andimputed to her that of which I knew her to be guiltless, andbeat her grievously; and this is my offence." And quoth theparalytic': "And I went in to a woman to kill her, after I hadtempted her to commit adultery and she had refused; and Islew a child that lay by her side; and this is my offence. " Thensaid the pious woman: " O my God, even as thou hast made themfeel the misery of revolt, so show them now the excellence ofsubmission, for thou over all things art omnipotent! " And Allah(to whom belong Majesty and Might!) made them whole. Thenthe kází fell to looking on her and considering her straitly, tillshe asked him why he looked so hard, and he said: " I had awife, and were she not dead, I had said thou art she." Hereuponshe made herself known to him, and both began praising Allah(to whom belong Majesty and Might! ) for that which He hadvouchsafed them of the reunion of their loves; but the brotherand the thief and the villager's wife joined in imploring her forgiveness. So she forgave them one and all, and they worshippedFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 371Allah in that place, and rendered her due service, till Deathparted them.1In the Breslau printed edition we find the story told at muchgreater length, and with additional incidents which this version hasexclusively, though they have their equivalents in other Asiatic andin most European variants. It forms one of the tales related by theVazír Er-Rahwan to King Shah Bakht (18th Night of the Month) 2:THE3Second Arabian Version.\HERE was once a man of Níshábúr, who, having a wife of theuttermost beauty and piety, yet was minded to set out on thepilgrimage. So before leaving home he commended her to the careof his brother, and besought him to aid her in her affairs and furtherher wishes till he should return, for the brothers were on the mostintimate terms. Then he took ship and departed , and his absencewas prolonged. Meanwhile, the brother went to visit his brother'swife at all times and seasons, and questioned her of her circ*mstances, and went about her wants; and when his calls were prolonged, and he heard her speech and saw her face, the love of hergat hold upon his heart, and he became passionately fond of her,and his soul prompted him to evil. So he besought her to lie withhim, but she refused , and showed him how foul was his deed, and hefound him no way to win what he wished; wherefore he wooed herwith soft speech and gentle ways. Now she was righteous in all herdoings, and never swerved from one saying; so when he saw thatshe consented not to him he had no doubts but that she would tellhis brother when he returned from his journey, and quoth he to her:4¹ A plain and literal translation of the Arabian Nights' Entertainments,now entituled The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, with Introduction, Explanatory Notes on the Manners and Customs of Moslem Men, and aTerminal Essay upon the History of The Nights. By (Sir) Richard. F. Burton (K.C.M.G.). Benares: MDCCCLXXXV: Printed by the KamashastraSociety, for Private Subscribers only. Vol. v. pp. 256-259.2 For an account of this series of stories, see ante, pp. 352, 353.3 To Mecca and Medina.She meant " yes " when she said " yes, " and " no " when she said " no."372 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:"An thou consent not to whatso I require of thee, I will cause ascandal to befall thee, and thou wilt perish." Quoth she: " Allah(extolled and exalted be He! ) judge betwixt me and thee, and knowthat, shouldst thou hew me limb from limb, I would not consent tothat thou biddest me to do. " His ignorance¹ of womankind persuaded him that she would tell her spouse; so he betook himself ofhis exceeding despite to a company of people in the mosque, andinformed them that he had seen a man commit adultery with hisbrother's wife. They believed his word, and documented his charge,and assembled to stone her. Then they dug her a pit outside thecity, and seating her therein, stoned her till they deemed her dead,when they left her.Presently a shaykh of a village passed by the pit, and findingher alive, carried her to his house and cured her of her wounds.Now he had a youthful son, who as soon as he saw her loved her,and besought her of her person; but she refused, and consented notto him, whereupon he redoubled in love and longing, and his caseprompted him to suborn a youth of the people of his village andagree with him that he should come by night and take somewhatfrom his father's house, and that when he was seized and discovered,he should say that she was his accomplice in this, and avouch thatshe was his mistress, and had been stoned on his account in the city.Accordingly he did this, and coming by night to the villager's housestole therefrom goods and clothes; whereupon the owner awoke, andseizing the thief, pinioned him straitly, and beat him to make himconfess; and he confessed against the woman that she was a partnerin the crime, and that he was her lover from the city. The news wasbruited abroad. and the people assembled to put her to death; butthe shaykh with whom she was forbade them, and said: "I broughtthis woman hither, coveting the recompense of Allah, and I knownot the truth of that which is said of her, and will not empowerany one to hurt or harm her." Then he gave her a thousanddirhams2 by way of alms, and put her forth of the village. As forthe thief, he was imprisoned for some days; after which the folk1 "Ignorance " (jahl) may here mean wickedness, folly, vicious folly. -B.2 About twenty- five pounds.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 373interceded for him with the old man, saying: "This is a youth,indeed he erred; " and he released him from his bonds.andMeanwhile the woman went out at hap-hazard, and, donning adevotee's dress, fared on without ceasing till she came to a city, andfound the king's deputies dunning the townsfolk for the tributeout of season. Presently she saw a man whom they were pressing for the tribute; so she asked of his case, and being acquaintedwith it, paid down the thousand dirhams for him and deliveredhim from the bastinado; whereupon he thanked her and those whowere present. When he was set free he walked with her, and besought her to go with him to his dwelling. Accordingly, she accompanied him thither and supped with him, and passed the night.When the dark hours gloomed on him, his soul prompted him toevil, for that which he saw of her beauty and loveliness, and helusted after her and required her of her person; but she rejectedhim, and threatened him with Allah the Most High, and remindedhim of that which she had done with him of kindness, and how shehad delivered him from the stick and its disgrace. However, hewould not be denied, and when he saw her persistent refusal of herself to him, he feared lest she should tell the folk of him. So whenhe arose in the morning, he wrote on a paper what he would offorgery and falsehood, and going up to the sultan's palace, said:"I have an avisem*nt for the king." So he bade admit him , andhe delivered him the writ he had forged, saying: " I found thisletter with the woman, the devotee, the ascetic, and indeed she is aspy, a secret informer against the sovran to his foe; and I deemthe king's due more incumbent on me than any other claim, andwarning him the first duty, for that he uniteth in himself all thesubjects, and but for the king's existence the lieges would perish;wherefore I have brought thee good counsel. " The king gavecredit to his words, and sent with him those who should layhands upon the devotee and do her to death; but they foundher not.As for the woman, when the man went out from her, she resolvedto depart; so she fared forth, saying to herself, " There is no wayfaring for me in woman's habit." Then she donned men's dress,374 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:such as is worn of the pious, and set out and wandered over theearth; nor did she cease wandering till she entered a certain city.Now the king of that city had an only daughter, in whom he gloriedand whom he loved, and she saw the devotee, and deeming her apilgrim youth, said to her father: " I would fain have this youthtake up his lodging with me, so I may learn of him lere and pietyand religion. " Her father rejoiced in this, and commanded the pilgrim to take up his abode with his daughter in his palace. So theywere in one place, and the princess was strenuous to the uttermost incontinence and chastity and nobility of mind, and magnanimity anddevotion; but the ignorant tattled anent her, and the folk of therealm said: " The king's daughter loveth the pilgrim and he lovethher." Now the king was a very old man, and destiny decreed theending of his life-term; so he died, and when he was buried, thelieges assembled, and many were the sayings of the people and of theking's kinsfolk and officers, and they counselled together to slay theprincess and the young pilgrim, saying: " This fellow dishonourethus with yonder whor*, and none accepteth shame save the base. "So they fell upon them and slew the king's daughter in her mosquewithout asking her of aught; whereupon the pious woman, whomthey deemed a youth, said to them: "Woe to you, O miscreants!Ye have slain the pious lady." Quoth they: " O thou fulsomefellow, dost thou bespeak us thus? Thou lovedst her and she lovedthee, and we will assuredly slay thee." And quoth she: " Allahforbid! Indeed the affair is clear the reverse of this." They asked:"What proof hast thou of that?" and she answered: " Bring mewomen." They did so, and when the matrons looked on her theyfound her a woman. When the townsfolk sawthis , they repented" Asof that they had done, and the affair was grievous to them; so theysought pardon of Allah, and said to her: " By the virtue of Himwhom thou servest, do thou crave pardon for us." Said she:for me, I may no longer tarry with you, and I am about to departfrom you. " Then they humbled themselves before her and shedtears, and said to her: "We conjure thee, by the might of Allah theMost High, that thou take upon thyself the rule of the realm and ofthe lieges." But she refused and drew her back; whereupon theyFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 375came up to her and wept, and ceased not supplicating her till sheconsented and undertook the kingship.Her first commandment was that they should bury the princessand build over her a dome, and she abode in that palace, worshippingthe Almighty and dealing judgment between the people with justice,and Allah (extolled and exalted be He! ) vouchsafed her, for theexcellence of her piety, the patience of her renunciation, and theacceptance of her prayers, so that she sought not aught of Him towhom belong Majesty and Might but He granted her petition; andher fame was bruited abroad in all lands. Accordingly, the folkresorted to her from all parts, and she used to pray Allah (to whombelong Might and Majesty) for the oppressed, and the Lord grantedhim relief, and against his oppressor, and He brake him asunder;and she prayed for the sick, and they were made sound; and in thisgoodly way she tarried a great space of time.So fared it with the wife; but as for the husband, when hereturned from the pilgrimage, his brother and his neighbours acquainted him with the affair of his spouse, whereat he was sore concerned, and suspected their story, for that which he knew of herchastity and prayerfulness; and he shed tears for the loss of her.Meanwhile, she prayed to Almighty Allah that He would stablishher innocence in the eyes of her spouse and the folk, and He sentdown upon her husband's brother a sickness so sore that none knewa cure for him. Wherefore he said to his brother: " In such a cityis a devotee, a worshipful woman and a recluse, whose prayers areaccepted; so do thou carry me to her that she may pray for myhealing, and Allah (to whom belong Might and Majesty) may giveme ease of this disease. " Accordingly, he took him up and journeyedwith him till they came to the village where dwelt the shaykh, theold man who had rescued the devout woman from the pit and carried her to his dwelling and healed her in his home. Here theyhalted and lodged with the old man, who questioned the husband ofhis case and that of his brother, and the cause of their journey, andhe said: "I purpose to go with my brother, this sick man, to theholy woman, her whose petitions are answered, so she may pray forhim, and Allah may heal him by the blessing of her orisons. " Quoth376 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:the villager: " By Allah, my son is in parlous plight for sickness,and we have heard that this devotee prayeth for the sick and theyare made sound. Indeed, the folk counsel me to carry him to her,and behold, I will go in company with you." And they said: ""Tiswell. " So they all nighted in that intent, and on the morrow theyset out for the dwelling of the devotee, this one carrying his son,and that one bearing his brother. Now the man who had stolen theclothes and forged against the pious woman a lie, to wit, that he washer lover, sickened of a sore sickness, and his people took him upand set out with him to visit the devotee and crave her prayers, andDestiny brought them all together by the way. So they fared forward in a body, till they came to the city wherein the man dwelt forwhom she had paid the thousand dirhams to deliver him fromtorture, and found him about to travel to her, by reason of a maladywhich had betided him.Accordingly, they all journeyed on together, unknowing that theholy woman was she whom they had so foully wronged, and ceasednot going till they came to her city, and fore-gathered at the gates ofher palace, that wherein was the tomb of the princess. Now thefolk used to go in to her and salute her with the salaam, and craveher orisons; and it was her custom to pray for none till he had confessed to her his sins, when she would ask pardon for him and prayfor him that he might be healed, and he was straightway madewhole of sickness, by permission of Almighty Allah. When thefour sick men were brought in to her, she knew them forthright,though they knew her not, and said to them: " Let each of youconfess and specify his sins, so I may crave pardon for him andpray for him. " And the brother said: " As for me, I required mybrother's wife of her person and she refused; whereupon despite andignorance prompted me, and I lied against her, and accused her tothe townsfolk of adultery; so they stoned her and slew her wrongously and unrighteously; and this my complaint is the issue ofunright and falsehood , and of the slaying of the innocent soul, whoseslaughter Allah hath made unlawful to man." Then said the youth,the old villager's son: " And I, O holy woman, my father broughtus a woman who had been stoned, and my people nursed her till sheFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 377recovered. Now she was rare of beauty and loveliness; so I requiredher of her person, but she refused, and clave in chastity to Allah(to whom belong Might and Majesty) , wherefore ignorance promptedme, so that I agreed with one of the youths that he should stealclothes and coin from my father's house. Then I laid hands on himand carried him to my sire and made him confess. He declared thatthe woman was his mistress from the city, and had been stoned onhis account, and that she was his accomplice in the theft, and hadopened the doors to him; and this was a lie against her, for that shehad not yielded to me in that which I sought of her. So there befellme what ye see of requital. " And the young man, the thief, said:" I am he with whom thou agreedst concerning the theft, and towhom thou openedst the door, and I amhe who accused her falselyand calumniously, and Allah (extolled be He! ) well knoweth that Inever did evil with her; no, nor knew her in any way before thattime." Then said he whom she had delivered from torture by paying down a thousand dirhams, and who had required her of herperson in his house, for that her beauty pleased him, and when sherefused had forged a letter against her, and treacherously denouncedher to the sultan, and requited her bounty with ingratitude: "I amhe who wronged her and lied against her, and this is the issue of theoppressor's affair. "When she heard their words, in the presence of the folk, shecried " Praise be to Allah, the King who over all things is omnipotent, and blessing upon His prophets and apostles! " Then quothshe to the assembly: " Bear testimony, O ye here present, to thesem*n's speech, and know ye that I am that woman whom they confess to having wronged. " And she turned to her husband's brotherand said to him: " I am thy brother's wife, and Allah (extolled andexalted be He!) delivered me from that whereunto thou castedstme of calumny and suspicion, and from the folly and frowardnesswhereof thou hast spoken, and now hath He shown forth my innocence of His bounty and generosity. Go, for thou art quit of thewrong thou didst me. " Then she prayed for him, and he was madesound of his sickness. Thereupon she said to the son of the villageshaykh: " Know that I am the woman whom thy father delivered378 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:Thenfrom straint and stress, and whom there betided from thee ofcalumny and ignorance that which thou hast named. " And shesued pardon for him, and he was made sound of his sickness.said she to the thief: " I am the woman against whom thou liedst,avouching that I was thy leman, who had been stoned on thineaccount, and that I was thine accomplice in robbing the house of thevillage shaykh, and had opened the doors to thee." And she prayedfor him, and he was made whole of his malady. Then said she tothe townsman, him of the tribute: "I amthe woman who gave theethe thousand dirhams, and thou didst with me what thou didst. "And she asked pardon for him, and prayed for him, and he was madewhole; whereupon the folk marvelled at her enemies, who had allbeen afflicted alike, so Allah (extolled and exalted be He! ) mightshow forth her innocence upon the heads of witnesses.Then she turned to the old man who had delivered her from thepit, and prayed for him, and gave him presents manifold, and amongthem a myriad, a Budrah; ¹ and the sick made whole departed fromher. When she was alone with her husband, she made him drawnear unto her, and rejoiced in his arrival, and gave him the choiceof abiding with her. Presently, she assembled the citizens andnotified them his virtue and worth, and counselled them to investhim with management of their rule, and besought them to make himking over them. They consented to her on this, and he became king,and made his home amongst them, whilst she gave herself up to herorisons, and co-habited with her husband, as she was with himaforetime.2The story as found in the Wortley Montague MS. text of TheNights, preserved in the Bodleian Library (vol. vii. N. 900-911) ,a translation of which forms one of the Additional Tales in JonathanScott's edition of our common version of the Arabian Nights Entertainments, published at London in 1811 (vol. vi. , p. 376 ff. ) , differsmaterially from the foregoing, especially in the conclusion:1 A myriad ten thousand dínars; about £5000.2 Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand Nights and aNight,' with Notes Anthropological and Explanatory. By (Sir) Richard F. Burton (K.C.M.G.). Benares: MDCCCLXXXVI. Printed by the Kamashastra Society for Private Subscribers only. Vol. I. , pp. 270-8.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 379Third Grabian Version.N the capital of Bagdád there was formerly a kází, who filled theINtseat ofjustice with the purest integrity, and who by his examplein private life gave force to the strictness of his public decrees.After some years spent in this honourable post, he became anxiousto make the pilgrimage to Mecca; and having obtained permissionof the khalif, departed on his pious journey, leaving his wife, abeautiful woman, under the protection of his brother, who promisedto respect her as his daughter. The kází had not long left home,however, when the brother, instigated by passion, made immodestproposals to his sister-in-law, which she rejected with scorn; but,being unwilling to expose so near a relative to her husband, sheendeavoured to divert him from his purpose by argument on theheinousness of his intended crime, but in vain. The abominablewretch, instead of repenting, again and again offered his incestuouslove, and at last threatened, if she would not comply with hiswicked desires, to accuse her of adultery, and bring upon her thepunishment of the law. This threat having no effect, the atrociousvillain suborned witnesses to swear that they had seen her in the actof infidelity, and she was sentenced to receive one hundred strokeswith a knotted whip, and be banished from the city. Havingendured this disgraceful punishment, the unhappy lady was ledthrough Bagdád by the public executioner, amid the taunts and jeersof the populace; after which she was thrust out of the gates to shiftfor herself.She found shelter in the hut of a camel- breeder, whose wife owedher great obligations, and who received her with true hospitality andkindness; consoling her in her misfortunes, dressing her wounds,and insisting on her staying till she was fully recovered of thepainful effects of her unjust and disgraceful punishment; and inthis she was seconded by her honest husband. With this humblecouple, who had an infant son, she remained some time, and wasrecovering her spirits and beauty, when a young driver of camelsarrived on a visit to her host; and, being struck with her beauty,made indecent proposals, which she mildly but firmly rejected,380 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:informing him that she was a married woman. Blinded by passion,the wretch pressed his addresses repeatedly, but in vain, till atlength, irritated by her refusal, he changed his love into furiousanger, and resolved to revenge his disappointed lust by her death.With this view, he armed himself with a dagger, and about midnight,when the family were asleep, stole into the chamber where shereposed, and close by her the infant son of her generous host. Thevillain, being in the dark, made a random stroke, not knowing of theinfant, and instead of stabbing the object of his revenge, plunged hisweapon into the bosom of the child, who uttered loud screams; uponwhich the assassin, fearful of detection, ran away, and escaped fromthe house. The kázi's wife, awaking in a fright, alarmed her hostand hostess, who, taking a light, came to her assistance; but howcan we describe their agonizing affliction when they beheld theirbeloved child expiring, and their unfortunate guest, who had swooned,bathed in the infant's blood. From such a scene we turn away, asthe pen is incapable of description. The unhappy lady at lengthrevived, but their darling boy was gone for ever.Relying on Providence, the kázf's wife resolved to travel toMecca, in hopes of meeting her husband, and clearing her defamedcharacter to him, whose opinion alone she valued. When advancedsome days on her journey, she entered a city, and perceived a greatcrowd of people following the executioner, who led a young man bya rope tied about his neck. Enquiring the crime of the culprit, shewas informed that he owed a hundred dínars, which, being unable topay, he was sentenced to be hung, such being the punishment ofinsolvent debtors in that city. The kázi's wife, moved with compassion, immediately tendered the sum, being nearly all she had,when the young man was released, and falling upon his knees beforeher, vowed to dedicate his life to her service. She related to himher intention of making the pilgrimage to Mecca, upon which theyouth requested leave to accompany and protect her, to which sheconsented. They set out on their journey, but had not proceededmany days when the youth forgot his obligations, and giving way tothe impulse of a vicious passion, insulted his benefactress by addressesof the worst nature. The unfortunate lady reasoned with him on theFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S tale. 381ingratitude of his conduct, and the youth seemed to be convincedand repentant, but revenge rankled in his heart. Some days afterthis they reached the sea-shore, where the young man perceiving aship, made a signal to speak with the master, who sent a boat to theland, upon which the youth, going on board the vessel, told themaster that he had for sale a handsome female slave, for whom heasked a thousand dínars. The master, who had been used topurchase slaves upon that coast, went on shore, and looking at thekázi's wife, paid the money to the wicked young man, who went hisway, and the lady was carried on board the ship, supposing that hercompanion had taken the opportunity of easing her fatigue byprocuring her a passage to some sea-port near Mecca: but herpersecution was not to end here. In the evening she was insultedby the coarse offers of the master of the vessel, who, being surprisedat her refusal, informed her that he had purchased her as a slave fora thousand dínars. The lady told him that she was a free woman;but this had no effect upon the master, who, finding tendernessineffectual, proceeded to force and blows, in order to reduce her tosubmit to his desires. Her strength was almost exhausted, whensuddenly the ship struck upon a rock, and in a few moments wentto pieces. The kází's wife, laying hold of a plank, was washedashore, after being for several hours buffeted by the waves.Having recovered her senses, she walked inland, and found apleasant country, abounding in fruits and clear streams, whichsatisfied her hunger and thirst. On the second day she arrived at amagnificent city, and on entering it was conducted to the sultan,who inquiring her story, she informed him that she was a womandevoted to a religious life, and was proceeding on the pilgrimage toMecca when her vessel was wrecked on the coast, and whether anyof the crew had escaped she knew not, as she had seen none of themsince her being cast ashore on a plank; but as now the hopes of herreaching the sacred house were cut off, if the sultan would grant hera small hut and a trifling pittance for her support, she would spendthe remainder of her days in prayers for the prosperity of himselfand his subjects. The sultan, who was truly devout and pitied themisfortune of the lady, gladly acceded to her request, and allotted382 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE.her a pleasant garden-house near his palace for her residence, atwhich he often visited her, and conversed with her on religioussubjects, to his great edification and comfort, for she was reallypious. Not long after her arrival, several refractory vassals, whohad for years withheld their usual tribute, and against whom thegood sultan, unwilling to shed blood, though his treasury much feltthe defalcation, had not sent a force to compel payment, unexpectedlysent in their arrears, submissively begged pardon for their latedisobedience, and promised in future to be loyal in their duty. Thesultan, who attributed this fortunate event to the prayers of his piousguest, mentioned his opinion to his courtiers in full divan, and theyto their dependants. In consequence of this, all ranks of people onevery emergency flocked to beg the prayers of the devotee, andsuch was their efficacy that her petitioners every day became morenumerous; nor were they ungrateful, for in a short time the offeringsmade to her amounted to an incalculable sum. Her reputation wasnot confined to the kingdom of her protector, but spread abroadthrough all the countries in the possession of the true believers, whocame from all quarters to solicit her prayers. Her residence wasenlarged to a vast extent, in which she supported great numbers ofdestitute persons, as well as entertained the crowds of poor peoplewho came in pilgrimage to so holy a personage as she was nowesteemed. But we must now return to her husband.The good kází, having finished the ceremonies at Mecca, wherehe resided a year, visiting all the holy places around, returned toBagdád; but dreadful was his agony and grief when informed thathis wife had played the harlot, and that his brother, unable to bearthe disgrace of his family, had left the city, and had not been heardof since. This sad intelligence had such effect upon his mind thathe resolved to give up worldly concerns, and, adopting the life of adervish, wander from place to place, from country to country, andvisit the devotees celebrated for their sanctity. For two years hetravelled through various kingdoms, and, at length hearing of hiswife's fame, though he little supposed the much-talked- of femalesaint stood in that relation to himself, he resolved to pay his respectsto so holy a personage. Withthis view he journeyed towards theFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 383capital of the sultan, her protector, hoping to receive benefit fromher pious conversation and prayers. On his way he overtook histreacherous brother, who, repenting of his wicked life, had become adervish, and was going to confess his sins and ask the prayers forabsolution of the far-famed religious woman. Time and alterationof dress-both being habited as dervishes-caused the brothers notto know each other. As travellers, they entered into conversation,and, finding they were boundon the same business, they agreed tojourney together. They had not proceeded many days when theycame up with a driver of camels, who informed them that he hadbeen guilty of a great crime, the reflection upon which so tormentedhis conscience as to make his life miserable; and that he was goingto confess his sins to the pious devotee, and consult her on whateverpenance could atone for his villany, of which he had heartilyrepented, and hoped to obtain the mercy of Heaven by a sincerereformation of life. Soon after this the three pilgrims overtook ayoung man, who saluted them, and inquired their business; ofwhich being informed, he begged to join their company, saying thathe also was going to pay his respects to the pious lady, in hopes thatthrough her prayers he might obtain pardon of God for his mostflagitious ingratitude, the remorse for which had rendered him aburden to himself ever since the commission of the crime. Continuing their journey, they were joined in a few days by the masterof a vessel, who told them he had been some time back shipwrecked,and since then he had suffered the severest distress, and was nowgoing to solicit the aid of the far-famed devotee, whose charities andmiraculous prayers had been noised abroad through all countries.The five pilgrims accordingly journeyed together, till at lengththey reached the capital of the good sultan who protected the kází'swife. Having entered the city, they at once proceeded to the abodeof the female devotee, the courts of which were crowded withpetitioners from all quarters, so that they could with difficulty obtainadmission. Some of her domestics, seeing they were strangers newlyarrived, and seemingly fatigued, kindly invited them into an apartment, to repose themselves while they informed their mistress oftheir arrival; which having done, they brought word that she would384 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:see them when the crowd was dispersed, and hear their petitions ather leisure. Refreshments were then brought in, of which theywere desired to partake; and the pilgrims, having made theirablutions, sat down to eat, all the while admiring and praising thehospitality of their pious hostess, who, unperceived by them, wasexamining their persons and features through the lattice of a balconyat one end of the hall. Her heart beat with joyful rapture when shebeheld her long-lost husband, whose absence she had never ceased todeplore, but scarcely expected ever to meet him again; and greatwas her surprise to find him in company with his treacherousbrother, her infamous intending assassin , her ungrateful betrayer theyoung man, and the master of the vessel to whom he had sold her asa slave. It was with difficulty she restrained her feelings; but notchoosing to discover herself till she should hear their adventures, shewithdrew into her chamber, and, being relieved by tears, prostratedherself on the ground, and offered up thanksgivings to the Protectorof the just, who had rewarded her patience under affliction bysucceeding blessings, and at length restored to her the partner of herheart.Having finished her devotions, she sent to the sultan requestinghim to send her a confidential officer, who might witness the relationsof five visitors whom she was about to examine. On his arrival sheplaced him where he could listen unseen, and, covering herself witha veil, sat down on her masnad to receive the pilgrims , who, beingadmitted, bowed their foreheads to the ground, when, requestingthem to rise, she addressed them as follows: " You are welcome,brethren, to my humble abode, to my counsel and my prayers,which, by God's mercy, have sometimes relieved the repentantsinner; but as it is impossible I can give advice without hearing acase, or pray without knowing the wants of him who solicits me,you must relate your histories with the strictest truth, for equivocation, evasion, or concealment will prevent my being of any service:and this you may depend upon, that the prayers of a liar tend onlyto his own destruction." She then ordered the kází to remain, andthe four others to withdraw, as she should, to spare their shamebefore each other, hear their cases separately.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 385The good kází, having no sins to confess, related his pilgrimageto Mecca, the supposed infidelity of his wife, and his subsequentresolve to spend his days in visiting sacred places and piouspersonages, among whom she stood so famous; that to hear heredifying conversation and entreat the benefit of her prayers, was theobject of his having travelled to her abode. When he had finishedhis narrative, the lady dismissed him to another chamber, and thenheard one by one the confessions of his companions, who, not daringto conceal anything, related their cruel conduct to herself, as abovementioned, little suspecting that they were acknowledging their guiltto the victim of their evil passions. After this, the kázi's wifecommanded the officer to conduct all five to the sultan, and informhim of what he had heard them confess. The sultan, enraged atthe wicked behaviour of the kází's brother, the camel-driver, theyoung man, and the shipmaster, condemned them to death; and theexecutioner was about to give effect to the sentence, when the lady,arriving at the palace, requested their pardon, and, to his unspeakablejoy, discovered herself to her husband. The sultan complied withher request, and dismissed the criminals; but prevailed upon thekází to remain at his court, where for the rest of his life thisupright judge filled the high office of chief magistrate, with honourto himself and satisfaction to all who had causes tried before him;while he and his wife continued striking examples of virtue andconjugal fidelity. The sultan himself was unbounded in his favourtowards them, and would often pass whole evenings in their companyin friendly conversation, which generally turned upon the vicissitudes of life, and the goodness of Providence in relieving the sufferings of the faithful, by divine interposition, at the very instant whenready to sink under them and overwhelmed with calamity.Closely resembling this third Arabian version is the Story ofRepsima in the French translation of the Persian Tales of theThousand and One Days, made by Petis de la Croix, and publishedafter his death.¹ It is stated in the preface that these tales were1 An English translation, from the French, by Ambrose Phillips, waspublished early last century, and reprinted in vol. ii, of Weber's Tales of the East, 1812.CH. ORIG.27386 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:"adapted by a dervish named Mukhlis (Mocles, according to theFrench transliteration of the name), who was famed in his day forpiety and learning, from a collection of Indian comedies , of which aTurkish translation, entitled Al-Faraja Badal Schidda, or Joy afterAffliction, is preserved in the Paris Library; and that Mukhlis,having converted some of these comedies into tales, inserted them ina frame-story, and entitled his work Hazár ú Yek Rúz, or theThousand and One Days. In the year 1675 Mukhlis permittedPetis to make a transcript of his book, and it is said that in histranslation he was assisted by Le Sage, the celebrated novelistwhich sufficiently accounts for the Frenchified style of the narratives-and that " nearly all the tales were afterwards turned into comicoperas, which were performed at the Théâtre Italien. That thesetales are not, as many have supposed, mere French imitations ofOriental fictions is evident from the fact that a Persian manuscriptin Sir William Ouseley's possession contained a portion of theHazár ú Yeh Rúz (see his Travels, ii. , p. 21, note). But the statement that they were taken from Indian comedies, of which a Turkishtranslation exists, is utterly absurd, since these tales are not generallyof a"""comic or humorous character; and my learned friend Mr.E. J. W. Gibb informs me that he does not know of any comediesin Turkish, and that there are no Turkish works which have beentranslated direct from any of the Indian languages, though it isquite likely that there is a Turkish version of the Persian Tales ofthe Thousand and One Days. The frame, or leading story, of thiscollection is as follows: Farruknaz, daughter of the king of Kashmir,was renowned far and wide for her extraordinary beauty, and manygreat and wealthy princes were suitors for her hand in marriage, butshe steadily refused every one, having an insuperable aversion frommen, in consequence of a dream, in which she saw a stag taken in asnare, and disentangled by his mate; and the doe soon after fallinginto the same snare, instead of being delivered from it, was abandonedby the stag. The princess concluded from this dream that all menwere selfish, and repaid the tenderness of women with ingratitude.Her father the king was vexed to find Farruknaz day after dayrefuse the most eligible suitors, and her nurse, Sutlumeme, havingFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 387informed him of the cause, undertook to conquer this unnaturalprejudice of the princess, by relating to her stories which should notonly divert her, but show her that there have been constant loversamong men, and induce her to believe that such still exist. To thisproposal the king most willingly consented, and the nurse at oncebegan to recite to the princess tales of true and faithful lovers, withthe most gratifying result.1 The idea of this frame-story seems tohave been taken from a tale in Nakhshabi's Tútí Náma,² in whichan emperor of China dreams of a beautiful damsel, whom he hadnever seen, and despatches his prime minister in search of her-evenshould he have to travel to the world's end-who, after much toiland trouble, at length discovers the beauty in the person of aprincess, who has a great aversion from men, ever since she beheldin her garden a peaco*ck basely desert his mate and their young ones,when the tree in which their nest was built had been struck bylightning she considered this as typical of the selfishness of men,and was resolved never to marry. The crafty vazir, having ascertained this from a hermit whom he met on his way, prepares a seriesof pictures, and obtaining an interview with the princess, shows her,first, the portrait of his imperial master, and then a picture of a deer,regarding which he tells her a story to the effect that the emperor,sitting one day in his summer-house, saw this deer, his doe, and theirfawn on a bank of the river, when suddenly the waters overflowedthe banks, and the doe ran off in terror for her life, while the deerbravely remained with the fawn and was drowned. This feignedstory, so like her own dream, struck the princess with wonder, andshe at once gave her consent to be married to the emperor of China.1 It is to be observed, that while the Sultan of the Indies, in the ArabianNights, entertains a deadly hatred of women, yet Shahrazad relates her storieswith no other design than that of prolonging her own life from day to dayshe makes no attempt to combat her lord's prejudice by telling him stories ofwoman's fidelity; on the contrary, many of her tales one should suppose rathercalculated to confirm the sultan in the bad opinion he had formed of "thesex." In this respect the Persian collection is more consistent than itscelebrated prototype, since Sutlumeme's recitals all more or less set forth thepains and toils and dangers which men undergo for the sake of the damselsby whose charms they have been ensnared.2 For some account of the Tútí Núma see ante, p. 310.388 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:Persian Version.¹N days of yore a merchant of Basra, named Tamím, had a virtuous INwife whose name was Repsima, whom he loved fondly, andby whom he was beloved. Having to go on a trading voyage tothe coast of India, he left his brother in charge of his house duringhis absence. This brother soon falls in love with the chaste andpious Repsima, but his incestuous suit is rejected. In revenge, hecauses her to be convicted of adultery, by means of four subornedwitnesses, and she is condemned to be buried alive, which is doneaccordingly. A robber coming past, she entreats to be released,and he takes her to his own house, where a negro slave becomesenamoured of her great beauty, declares his passion to her one daywhen the Arab and his wife happened to be gone abroad, and isindignantly repulsed. In order to cause her destruction, he cuts offthe head of the Arab's child one night, and places the knife beneathRepsima's couch. Next morning he accuses her of the murder, butneither the Arab nor his wife could believe her capable of such ahorrid deed. They send her away, with a gift of a hundred sequins.She comes to a certain town, where she lodges with an old woman.One day going to the baths, she sees a man being led to execution;pays sixty sequins and obtains his pardon. This man follows her-for she leaves the town, wishing to avoid the admiration of thepeople for her generosity-at first out of gratitude, but he soon fallsin love with her, and she rejects him. There happened to be a shipready to sail; the captain was still on shore; and this ungratefulscoundrel sells Repsima to the captain for three hundred sequins.The captain takes her on board his vessel, notwithstanding herprotestations that she is a free Muslim woman; he solicits her lovefavours, and at last attempts to force her, when a great tempest arisessuddenly; the vessel goes to pieces, and only Repsima and thecaptain are saved, but are landed at different parts of the coast.Repsima relates her adventures to the people of the island on which1 As Petis' French translation has divested the original of most of itsOriental colouring, and the English version made from it is certainly no improvement, I content myself with an abstract of the story, including all the principal incidents.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 389she lands, who give her a place of abode, where she lives retired,spending several years in prayer. The folk venerate her for hergreat sanctity.In course of time the queen of the island died and left thethrone to Repsima. In this capacity she also did well and wisely;fasting frequently; sick folk had recourse to her; she prayed andthey were healed. Queen Repsima built hospitals for the poor,richly endowing them, and their fame was noised abroad, whereforethe sick came thither from all quarters. One day it was told herthat there were six strangers who wished to speak with her; onewas blind, another was dropsical, another was paralytic. Repsimaconsents to receive them, seated on her throne, with her face concealed by a thick veil. Her husband Tamím comes forward, leadinghis blind brother, and relates how, on his return from his tradingvoyage, his brother had informed him of his wife's crime and punishment, and that he had brought him to her majesty in order that heshould be cured of his blindness. Repsima asks: " Is it true thatthe woman who was buried alive did betray thee? What dost thouthink of it? " Tamím replies: " I cannot believe it, when I bringher virtue to my remembrance." Then the Arab with his paralyticnegro slave makes obeisance; the ship-captain, who is dropsical, andconfesses his crime of buying a free Muslim woman and attemptingto force her to yield to his lust; and the young man whom she hadrescued from death, and who had sold her to the captain, states thathe is haunted day and night with furies. Next day the merchant'sbrother and the negro confess their wickedness, and Repsima havingfervently prayed to Heaven, all the afflicted ones are immediatelycured of their maladies. After this Repsima causes Tamím to sit ina chair of gold, and offers him one of her fairest female slaves inmarriage, and that he should live at her court. Tamím at this burstsinto tears, and says he can think of no other wife than his belovedRepsima; he will spend the rest of his days in mourning over theplace where she was buried alive. Repsima now lifts her veil , andTamím recognises his own wife, who embraces him and relates heradventures in presence of the assembled courtiers. Then she givesrich gifts to those persons who had used her so ill, and whom she390 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:had healed of their diseases and ailments. The laws of that kingdomwould not permit Repsima to resign the throne in favour of herhusband, she tells him, but in future he will dwell with her andshare all her good fortune.It seems to have hitherto escaped notice that to this group alsobelongs one of the tales in the Persian romance entitled BakhtyárNáma (see ante, p. 353, note 1 ), the date of which is not preciselyascertained, but it was probably composed before the 15th century,since there exists in the Bodleian Library, Oxford, a unique manuscript of a Turki version, written, in the Uygur language and characters, in the year 1434, an account of which, together with a Frenchtranslation of the story in question, is furnished by M. Jaubert inthe Journal Asiatique, tome x. , 1827. An Arabian version of theromance is found in the Breslau- printed text ofthe Thousand andOne Nights. In 1800 Sir William Ouseley published the Persiantext with an English translation, under the title of The BakhtyarNameh, or Story of Prince Bakhtyar and the Ten Viziers; and in1805 M. Lescallier printed a French rendering, Bakhtiar Nameh, ouLe Favori de la Fortune: conte traduit du Persan. Farther particulars regarding the different versions are given in the Introductionto my (privately printed) edition of Ouseley's translation, from whichthe following story is taken, with some explanatory notes from theAppendix: it may be entitledTThe Wazir's Pious Daughter:A PERSIAN ANALOGUE.1HERE was a certain king named Dádín, who had two vazírs,Kárdár and Kámgár; and the daughter of Kámgár was themost lovely creature of the age. It happened that the king, proceeding on a hunting excursion, took along with him the father ofthis beautiful damsel, and left the charge of government in the handsof Kárdár. One day, during the warm season, Kárdár, passing nearthe palace of Kámgár, beheld this lady walking in the garden and1 By a droll typo. blunder, in the article on Sir Wm. Ouseley in Allibone the title is given as " Prince Bakhtyar and the Ten Virgins "!FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 3911became enamoured of her beauty; but having reason to believe thather father would not consent to bestow her on him, he resolved todevise some stratagem whereby he should obtain the object of hisdesires. " At the king's return from the chase," said he to himself, " I will represent the charms of this damsel in such glowingcolours that he will not fail to demand her in marriage; and I shallthen contrive to excite his anger against her, in consequence of whichhe will deliver her to me for punishment; and thus my designs shallbe accomplished. "Returning from the chase, the king desired Kárdár to informhim of the principal events which had occurred during his absence.Kárdár replied that his majesty's subjects had all been solicitousfor his prosperity; but that he had himself seen one of the mostastonishing objects of the universe. The king's curiosity being thusexcited, he ordered Kárdár to describe what he had seen; andKárdár dwelt with such praises on the fascinating beauty of Kámgár's daughter, that the king became enamoured of her, and said:"But how is this damsel to be obtained? " Kárdár replied: " Thereis no difficulty in this business. It is not necessary to employ eithermoney or messengers; your majesty has only to acquaint her fatherwith your wishes."The king approved of this counsel, and having sent for Kámgár,mentioned the affair to him accordingly. Kámgár, with due submission, declared that if he possessed a hundred daughters theyshould all be at his majesty's command; but begged permission toretire and inform the damsel of the honour designed for her.2 Havingobtained leave, he hastened to his daughter, and related to her allthat had passed between the king and himself. The damsel expressed her dislike to the proposed connection; and her father,31 The lithographed Persian text, published at Paris in 1839, reads: " Hesaid to himself, ' Kámgár is an ascetic (záhid) and a religious man (pársá),and would not give me his daughter. '992 The lith. text adds, " and, in conformity with the law of Muhammed(shari'at), obtain her consent "-a proof that the lady had attained marriageable age, since the consent of a girl not arrived at the age of puberty is not required.3 The lith. text: "The daughter said, ' I am not worthy of the king;besides, once in the king's service, I cannot [ devote myself to the ] worship[of] God the Most High; and for the least fault the king would punish392 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:dreading the king's anger in case of a refusal, knew not how to act."Contrive some delay, " said she: " solicit leave of absence for a fewdays, and let us fly from this country." Kámgár approved of thisadvice; and, having waited on the king, obtained liberty to absenthimself from court for ten days, under pretence of making the preparations necessary for a damsel on the eve of marriage; and whennight came on he fled from the city with his daughter. Next daythe king was informed of their flight, in consequence of which hesent off two hundred servants to seek them in various directions, andthe officious Kárdár set out also in pursuit of them. After ten daysthey were surprised by the side of a well, taken and bound, andbrought before the king, who in his anger dashed out the brains ofKámgár; then looking on the daughter of the unfortunate man, herbeauty so much affected him that he sent her to his palace, andappointed servants to attend her, besides a cook, who, at her ownrequest, was added to her establishment.¹ After some time Kárdárbecame impatient and enraged at the failure of his project; but heresolved to try the result of another scheme.It happened that the encroachments of a powerful enemy renderedthe king's presence necessary among the troops; and on setting outto join the army, he committed the management of affairs and thegovernment of the city to Kárdár, whose mind was wholly filledwith plans for getting the daughter of Kámgár into his power. One6me.' The Turki version says: " Kerdár was the father of a maiden ofbeauty so perfect that one could not find in the whole world anything to vie with it; and she was so pious that not only did she recite the Kurán all day,but she passed the nights in prayer. Impressed by the greatness of her devo- tion, King Dádín became enamoured of this maiden without having seen her,and he demanded her of her father in marriage, and he promised to advise her. He did so, but she replied; Passing my life in prayer, I cannot agree to become a great lady, and my ambition is limited to the service of God.""1 According to the litho. text, in place of a cook, "in the service [of the late vazír Kámgár] there was a good man (Khayyir) who had acted as aspiritual guide (buzurg), whom the king did not admit in his harem. This holy person, who had been constantly at the side of the daughter, wrote a letter[to this effect]: Do thou confirm the reward of service, and speak to the king about my wish, in order that he may admit me into thy service, seeing that I should perish from disappointment.' [The king gave his consent. ] .. And the daughter continued her devotions in peace and tranquillity." In M. Lescallier's version the individual in question is described as a bouffon, or jester-scarcely the sort of person suitable for the companion of such a devout young lady.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 3931day he was passing near the palace, and discovered her sitting alonein the balcony; to attract her attention, he threw up a piece ofbrick, and on her looking down to see from whence it had come, shebeheld Kárdár. He addressed her with the usual salutation, whichshe returned. He then began to declare his admiration of herbeauty, and the violence of his love, which deprived him of reposeboth day and night; and concluded by urging her to elope withhim, saying that he would take as much money as they could possibly want; or, if she would consent, he would destroy the king bypoison, and seize upon the throne himself. The daughter of Kámgárreplied to this proposal by upbraiding Kárdár for his baseness andperfidy. When he asked her how she could ever fix her affectionson a man who had killed her father, she answered that such hadbeen the will of God, and she was resolved to submit accordingly.Having spoken thus, she retired.Kárdár, fearing lest she should relate to the king what hadpassed between them, hastened to meet him as he returned in triumph after conquering his enemies; and, whilst walking along bythe side of the king, began to inform his majesty of all that hadhappened in his absence. Having mentioned several occurrences,he added that one circ*mstance was of such a nature that he couldnot prevail upon himself to relate it, for it was such as the kingwould be very much displeased at hearing. The king's curiositybeing thus excited, he ordered Kárdár to relate this occurrence; andhe, declaring it was a most ungrateful task, informed the king thatit was a maxim of the wise men, "When you have killed the serpent,you should also kill its young.' He then proceeded to relate thatone day during the warm season, being seated near the door of theharem, he overheard some voices , and his suspicions being excited,he concealed himself behind the hangings, and listened attentively,when he heard the daughter of Kámgár express her affection for thecook, who, in return, declared his attachment for her; and they¹ Bálkhána, a latticed window in the upper storey of the harem—whence our word " balcony. ""122 Thus Sa'dí in his Gulistán (Rose- Garden), i . 4: " To extinguish a fire and leave the embers, or to kill a viper and preserve its young, is not the act of wise men.394 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:spoke of poisoning the king in revenge for his having killed herfather. "I had not patience," added Kárdár, "to listen any longer. "At this intelligence the king changed colour with rage and indignation, and on arriving at the palace ordered the unfortunate cook tobe instantly cut in two.¹ He then sent for the daughter of Kámgár,and reproached her for her design of destroying him by poison.She immediately perceived that this accusation proceeded from themalevolence of Kárdár, and was going to speak in vindication ofherself, when the king ordered her to be put to death; but beingdissuaded by an attendant from killing a woman, he revoked thesentence, and she was tied hands and feet, and placed upon a camel,which was turned into a dreary wilderness, where there was neitherwater nor abode, nor any trace of cultivation. Here she suffered fromthe intense heat, and from thirst, to such a degree that, expectingevery moment to be her last, she resigned herself to the will ofProvidence, conscious of her own innocence. Just then the camellay down, and on that spot where they were a fountain of deliciouswater sprang forth; the cords which bound her hands and feetdropped off; she refreshed herself with a hearty draught of thewater, and fervently returned thanks to Heaven for this blessingand her wonderful preservation.3 On this, the most verdant andfragrant herbage appeared around the borders of the fountain; itbecame a blooming and delightful spot, and the camel placed himselfso as to afford the lady a shade and shelter from the sunbeams.At this time it chanced that one of the king's camel- keepers wasin search of some camels which had wandered into the desert, andwithout which he dared not return to the city. He had sought them1 A horrible mode of putting a culprit to death, and peculiar, it is said, to the criminal code of Persia.2 The Persians seldom put women to death, as the shedding of their bloodis supposed to bring misfortune on the country. But when found guilty andcondemned, the injunction prescribed by the law, of another man's wife beingnever seen unveiled , is strictly observed, by conducting the culprit, envelopedin the veil habitually worn by her, to the summit of a lofty tower, andthrowing her thence headlong.3 This two-fold miracle does not occur either in the Turkí ( Uygur) or the Arabian versions: in the former an old woman mounts the damsel on a camel,takes her to the desert, and leaves her there; in the latter this is done by oneof the king's eunuchs.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 395for several days amidst hills and forests without any success. Atlength coming to this spot he beheld the daughter of Kámgár andthe camel, which at first he thought was one of those he sought, andthe clear fountain with its verdant banks, where neither grass norwater had ever been seen before. Astonished at this discovery, heresolved not to interrupt the lady, who was then engaged in prayer;but when she had finished, he addressed her, and was so charmedby her gentleness and piety, that he offered to adopt her as his child ,and expressed his belief that, through the efficacy of her prayers, heshould recover the strayed camels. This good man's offer she thankfully accepted; and having partaken of a fowl and some bread whichhe had with him, at his request she prayed for the recovery of thecamels. As soon as she had concluded her prayer the camels appeared on the skirts of the wilderness, and of their own accordapproached their keeper. He then represented to the daughter ofKámgár the danger of remaining all night in the wilderness, whichwas the haunt of many wild beasts; and proposed that she shouldreturn with him to the city and dwell with him in his house, wherehe would provide for her a retired apartment, in which she mightperform her devotions without interruption. To this proposal sheconsented, and, being mounted on her camel, returned to the city,and arrived at the house of her companion at the time of eveningprayer. Here she resided for some time, employing herself in theexercises of piety and devotion.1One day the camel-keeper, being desired by the king to relatehis past adventures, mentioned, among other circ*mstances, thelosing of his camels, the finding of them through the efficacy of theyoung woman's prayers, the appearance of a spring of water where.none had been before, and his adopting the damsel as his daughter.He concluded by informing the king that she was now at his house,1 The litho, text reads: " I will prepare an oratory (sawma‘á) , and makeready for thy sake the means (asbáb: furniture) for devotion (asbáb-i'íbúda) "—such as a prayer- carpet (sajjáda) , having a mark upon it pointing towards Mecca, the kibla of the Muslims, or point to which they direct their faces in saying their prayers, as Jerusalem is that of the Jews and Christians: withinthe mosque it is shown by a niche, and is called el- mihráb. There shouldalso be a fountain of running water (for ceremonial ablution) and a copy of the Kurán.396 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:engaged day and night in acts of devotion. The king on hearingthis expressed an earnest wish that he might be allowed to see theyoung woman, and prevail with her to intercede with Heaven in hisbehalf. The camel-keeper, having consented, returned at once to hishouse, accompanied by the king, who waited at the door of theapartment where the daughter of Kámgár was employed in prayer.When she had concluded, he approached, and with astonishmentrecognized her. Having tenderly embraced her, he wept, and entreated her forgiveness. This she readily granted, but begged thathe would conceal himself in the apartment, whilst she should converse with Kárdár, whom she sent for. When he arrived and beheldher with a thousand expressions of fondness, he inquired in whatmanner she had contrived to escape death, and told her that on theday when the king had banished her into the wilderness he had sentpeople to seek her and bring her to him. "How much better wouldit have been," added he, " had you followed my advice and agreedto my proposal of poisoning the king, who, I said, would endeavourto destroy you as he had killed your father! But you rejected myadvice, and declared yourself ready to submit to whatsoever Providence should decree. Hereafter," continued he, " you will pay moreattention to my words. But now let us not think of what is past:I am your slave, and you are dearer to me than my own eyes! " Sosaying, he attempted to clasp the daughter of Kámgár in his arms,when the king, who was concealed behind the hangings, rushedfuriously on him and put him to death.¹ After this he conductedthe damsel to his palace, and constantly lamented his precipitancyin having killed her father.21 This, it seems to me, is quite after the manner of a modern Europeanplay or novel-when in the catastrophe the " villain " is made to unmaskhimself by a pious ruse of " injured innocence." I cannot call to mind a similar scene in any other Eastern tale.2 In the Turki and Arabian versions King Dádín (or Dádbín) deservedlymeets with a very different fate. It is the cameleer of the King of Persiawho is looking for his strayed beasts, when he discovers the fair devotee. He tells the king on his return howhe had recovered the camels at the intercessionof a pious maiden in the wilderness. The king visits her-even causes a tentfor his own use to be erected beside hers; and having heard her story, he setsout with a great army and takes prisoner King Dádín and the wicked vazír Kárdán-as he is called in those texts. After confession of his crimes thevazir is taken to the same desert where the maiden had been left, and thereFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 397The oldest written form of the story seems to be found in theContes Dévots, a collection of miracles of the Virgin Mary, firstcomposed in Latin, in the 12th century, by Hugues Farsi, a monk ofSt. Jean de Vignes, from which selections were rendered into Frenchverse by Coinsi, a monk (afterwards prior) of St. Médard de Soissons ,who died in 1236. Coinsi's version is reproduced in Méon's Nouveaurec. de fabliaux, etc., tome ii. pp. 1-128. Under the title " De labonne Impératrice qui garda loyalement la foi du mariage; aliàs,de l'Empereur de Rome qui fit le voyage d'outre mer," Le Grand hasgiven an extrait of it, which is substantially as follows: 1AEarly French Version.N emperor of Rome was going on a pilgrimage to the HolySepulchre to fulfil a vow that he had made during sickness.Before setting out, he left the administration of his kingdom to hisbrother, but in such a manner that the empress his wife should have ageneral control, and that nothing of importance should be done without her consent. This brother, during the absence of the emperor,becomes enamoured of the empress. He declares his passion to her,which she rejects with indignation; but he is so insolent that at lastshe causes him to be arrested and shut up in a tower. Some timeafter this the emperor returns, and the lady, in order to spare him thegrief he must have suffered at seeing his brother in prison, and notbeing herself able to reveal the cause to him, sets the brother atliberty. Instead of being grateful for this leniency, the brother,resolved to be revenged on the empress, accuses her to the emperorin her presence of gross misconduct, adding that she had caused himto be shut up in the tower because he opposed her improper desires.The too-credulous husband at once condemns his wife to death, anddelivers her into the hands of three knights, ordering them to go andthrow her into the sea. But when they are about to obey his command, they hesitate from respect and compassion. They contentdies of hunger and thirst. King Dádín is beheaded for the murder he hadcommitted, and his kingdom is given to the faithful servant who urged that the maiden should not be put to death.1 Le Grand's Fabliaux et Contes, etc. , Ed. 1781. Vol. v. pp. 164-169.398 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:themselves by exposing the empress upon a barren rock in themidst of the waters, at the same time stripping off her uppergarments, in order to be able to assure the emperor that they hadput her to death. In this plight she has recourse to God, andespecially to the Virgin, whom she had always faithfully served.The Virgin appears before her, assures her of her protection, andshows her an herb, the virtue of which was such that any leprousperson who should drink [an infusion] of it should be infalliblycured, provided that he confessed without reservation and repentedof his sins. Just then a galley, driven by the winds and freightedwith passengers who were going on a pilgrimage, approached therock. They were surprised to find there a beautiful woman enchemise, and questioning her as to the cause of her being in such aforlorn condition, she answered as she thought fit.provided her with clothes, and took her into the vessel.pilgrims arrived at their destination, the lady went on shore, andlodged in the house of an old female devotee, where she worked forher livelihood. The sovereign of the country was leprous, and shehealed him by means of the herb. All who had the same diseasecame to her and were likewise cured.Then theyWhen theAt length these wonders multiplied to such an extent that thenoise of them reached Rome. Since the calumny against theempress, the brother-in-law who had aspersed her fair fame hadsuffered from a frightful leprosy which consumed his flesh and causedhis skin to shrivel up. All the remedies employed for his cure hadproduced no good effect; and when the emperor heard of thewonders performed by the foreign lady he despatched an ambassadorto the king of the country to request him to send her to his court.The lady arrives, covered with a large veil, and announces to thesick man that if he wishes to be cured he must make to her a fullconfession of all his sins. He feigns to consent to this, but keepssilent regarding the calumny by which he had injured his sister-inlaw, and therefore the herb has no effect. The lady then reproacheshim for wishing to deceive Heaven, and warns him that he cannotbe healed so long as his conscience remains sullied . The love oflife at last overcomes him; he confesses with a loud voice that notFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 399only was the empress innocent of the crime of which he accused her,but that it was he himself who was guilty of incestuous love for her.At this avowal all the courtiers burst into tears, lamenting the lossof the virtuous empress. Her husband, who had rashly condemnedher and wished her dead, is horror- struck. Without making herselfknown, the lady attempts to console him, but he answers that hecan never be consoled for his loss, moreover, he will be doublyunfortunate, since henceforth his subjects will hate him." Butthis wife," says she, " whom you have lost, you loved her then verymuch? " Then the emperor broke forth into eulogiums of her goodness, her sweetness of disposition, and the many other virtues of theempress. Suddenly she raises her veil and shows herself. Theythrow themselves into each other's arms. The lady then relates herstrange adventures, and how she had been protected by the Virgin.The three knights who had saved her life receive each for reward athousand marks of silver. The brother, at the moment of his confession having been healed of his leprosy, is pardoned by theemperor, but ordered to depart out of the kingdom. At the sametime, in compliance with the precept of the evangelist, to returngood for evil, he gave him much money. As to the two spouses,they loved one another the rest of their lives: they both devoutlyserved our Lady, and merited at their death that she should openParadise to them.¹Contemporary, or nearly so, with Coinsi was Vincent de Beauvais,who was born in 1190 and died in 1264, and who gives the story intwo parts (Speculum Historiale): cap. xc. , " De Imperatrice cujuscastitatem à violentia servorum eripuit, " and cap. xci. , " De alio casuconsimili circa eandem Imperatricem, " which are joined together inthe following translation:1 A French " mystery, " of the end of 14th or beginning of 15th century,generally agrees with this; but the knights simply affirm their obedience, andproduce no proof.-See Momnerque and Michel: Théâtre Français au moyen âge, p. 365.400 1 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:AVincent of Beauvais' Latin Version.ROMAN emperor lived in loving union with his legal spouse,celebrated for her noble bearing, beauty, and chastity. Hesets out, with her consent, on an extended tour of the world,including visits to the sacred places. He commends her in hisabsence to his younger brother; but the latter falls violently in lovewith her, and so wearies her with his importunity, that at last shepretends she will consent. Meanwhile she causes a tower to beprepared, in which she places two young men and two girls to actas servants, and attaches ropes by which supplies may be drawn up.She invites the youth to go with her to this tower. He is overjoyed, but just as he enters she shuts him in and leaves him therewith the attendants, and thus she is once more at peace. Five yearsafter the emperor's return is announced: she is very glad, and ordersthe towns on the route to be decorated, sets free the youth, and prepares to receive her husband. But the youth hastens on, and firstmeets the emperor. When asked why he is so worn, pale, andbroken-down, he replies that the empress is an abandoned woman,whose embraces are open to all, and whose attempts upon himselfhe had resisted, so as to draw on him the dire punishment of imprisonment in a tower. The emperor falls down in astonishment,and does not recover for an hour. Next morning the emperorarrives at his capital. The empress, advancing towards her husband,receives a blow in the face from him, and he straightway orders twoslaves to take her away into a dark wood and put her to death.They accordingly lead her off, but, considering that a fairer womancould not be found in the world, they resolve to enjoy her beforefulfilling their orders. As they attempt to violate her, she looks toheaven and begs aid from God and the Holy Virgin Mary. Hercries are heard by a nobleman and his retinue on their way to visitRome and the apostolic shrines, and are at first supposed to be thoseof some wild beast caught in a net; but on discovering the truecause, the two lustful slaves are slain and the empress saved.On being asked who she is and why the two slaves should havemade such an attempt upon her, the empress conceals her dignity,FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 401and in a humble tone asks the nobleman to take her with him as aservant. He does so; she is well received by his wife, and theironly son is committed to her care for his education. She attends tohim with greater solicitude than if he had been her own; she avoidsall gaiety and frequents the church, but not even there does the evilspirit cease to tempt, yet in vain. A certain captain of the courtsought to obtain favours of her by fair words and many promises.But she assured him, by the love of their lord, whose brother hewas, that she declined to have anything to do with him. Whereupon the wretch considered how he might kill or drive away awoman who held him so lightly in esteem. He goes, led by thedevil, in the dead of night, to the room where she slept, with thechild in her bosom, quietly cuts the child's throat, and having placedthe knife in her hand, steals off. The blood flows down the bedand over the woman, causing her to awake, and with wild criesshe summons the mother and father of the child, who rush in alongwith the whole household. The wicked homicide comes also, withfeigned tears, and, addressing his brother, says she is an abandonedwretch, who had been adjudged to death in another country, andurges that she should be at once committed to the flames. But the"noble hero and his wife " will not consent. They commit her tosome seamen at the nearest port, with instructions to carry her beyond the seas to another country. The sailors are taken with herbeauty, and in the course of the voyage make unchaste proposals toher. She repels them, upon which they offer her the choice ofgranting their wishes or of being drowned in the sea. She acceptsthe latter. They, however, leave her on a lonely rock in mid ocean.Three days are spent by her on that spot, without sleep or food.At last she sinks into a brief slumber, when the Holy Virgin Maryappears to her, commends her constancy, which she says has beenperfect under every trial. As a reward she is told to gather theherbs under her head, and whatever leper she gives to drink of adecoction thereof shall be healed in the name of the Lord.¹1 We are not informed how the lady got away from the rock; and thesubsequent incidents of her curing her penitent persecutors and her re-union with her husband are omitted. It is evident that Vincent did not take hismaterials from the slightly older French story, in which the murder of the CH. ORIG. 28402 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:Dunlop who does not appear to have known of Trivet's Life ofConstance says, in his History of Fiction, that Chaucer's Man ofLaw's Tale is taken from Ser Giovanni Fiorentino, Il Pecorone, DayI., nov. 10, of which he gives the outline as follows:TSer Giovanni's Italian Version.HE Princess Denise, of France, to avoid a disagreeable marriagewith an old German prince, escapes into England, and is therereceived in a convent. The king, passing that way, falls in lovewith and espouses her. Afterwards, while he is engaged in a war inScotland, his wife brings forth twins. The queen-mother sends toacquaint her son that his spouse has given birth to two monsters.In place of the king's answer, ordering them to be neverthelessbrought up with the utmost care, she substitutes a mandate for theirdestruction and also for that of the queen. The person to whom theexecution of this command is entrusted allows the queen to departwith her twin children to Genoa. At the end of some years, shediscovers her husband at Rome on his way to a crusade; she therepresents him with his children and is brought back with him intriumph to England.-There can be little doubt that this novel was adapted fromNicolas Trivet's Life of Constance, whose Chronicles were written atleast 40 years before Ser Giovanni began to compose his work, in1378 (it was not printed till 1558), while the Canterbury Taleswere probably written very soon after, if not some of them before,that date. A number of later Italian versions seem to have beendirectly or indirectly derived from the French. Of these, twomiracle-plays, cited by D'Ancona in his Sacre Rapp. , vol. iii. , ¹ arepeculiarly interesting; one is the Rappresentazione di Santa Guglichild does not occur. -John Herolt reproduces the story in his SermonesDiscipuli de Tempore et de Sanctis, cum promptuarium exemplorum, et deB. Virgine, of which an edition, now extremely rare, was printed in 1476;there is a copy dated Basil, 1486, in the Euing Collection, Glasgow University Library, and one in the British Museum, printed at London, 1510.1 Sacre Rappresentazione dei secoli XIV. , XV., e XVI.illustrate per cura di Alessandro D'Ancona. 3 vols. Firenze, 1472.Raccolte. eFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 403بهelma, written by Antonia, wife of Bernardo Pulci, at the end of the15th century:THEItalian Miracle-play of Santa Guglielma.HE King of Hungary, newly converted to Christianity, determines to marry, and having heard of the beauty and worth ofGuglielma, daughter of the king of England, sends an embassy, consisting of his brother and some noblemen, to demand her hand. Sheobjects, having resolved to dedicate her virginity to Christ, butultimately is persuaded by her parents to consent. Guglielma induces her husband to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre, anddesires to accompany him, but he refuses to take her, and leaves herto rule the kingdom in his absence, commending her as queen to theobedience of his brother and the nobles. The king's brother makesan attempt upon Guglielma's virtue, but is repulsed, and he resolvesto be avenged. On the king's return, his brother goes to meet him,and answers his inquiries after Guglielma by accusing her of disgraceful conduct. The king, plunged into grief, directs him to dojustice upon her. His brother accordingly gives orders to burnher; but she is released by the executioner at the stake, and only herclothes are burnt, on the condition that she quits the realm forthwith,so that the executioner's disobedience may not be discovered. Inthe desert the Virgin Mary appears to her and comforts her, promising that all her torments shall, by her constancy, be turned intojoy. Two angels procure her a guide (padrone) and escort, andprovide her with a ring as a means of paying them for their services.She heals one of her escort of a disease. The guide leads her to anunnery, in which she is received as a sister, calling herself simplyby the name of " Sinner," and praying the abbess to inquire nofarther after her name, origin, and history. She is made a doorkeeper, and heals many blind and sick. The king of Hungary'sbrother is stricken with leprosy by the judgment of God, and theking sends for his physicians. They declare that the disease cannotbe cured speedily or without great expense. A servant advises theking to send away the doctors, and take his brother to be healed byGuglielma at the nunnery; so he commits the realm to his nobles,404 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:and taking his brother to Guglielma, prays her to heal him. Sherecognizes them, but they do not know her. She consents to prayfor the sick man's restoration to health, but says that he must firstdeclare in the king's presence whether he ever in his life injuredhim, at the same time requesting the king to forgive him anyoffences which he might confess, which the king promises to do.His brother then confesses his double crime of tempting Guglielmaand afterwards falsely accusing her to the king and causing her tobe burnt to death. The king forgives him, upon which he is healedat Guglielma's prayer, and he vows himself to the service of God.Guglielma takes off her veil and discovers herself to the king, andtells him how she had escaped death, and of her subsequent adventures. She returns home with the king and his brother, and theking, giving up his kingdom, retires with his wife and brother to thedesert, where they become hermits.¹D'Ancona also notices an obscure play, or poem, of the 16thcentury, entitled " Del duca d'Angio e de Costanza so mojer," froman account of it by Adolfo Mussafia, contained in the Atti dell' Accademia di Vienna, 1866:Italian Miracle-Play of the duch*ess of Anjou.OUIS Duke of Anjou, while being hospitably entertained byConstance. Going to the Holy Land, he commits her to the care ofhis nephew Glifet, who tempts her, but she resists and flees. Glifet,however, gets her again into his power, and, unable to effect hiswishes, gives her in charge to four ruffians to put her to death.Arrived in a wood, they release her, taking her shift and dipping itin the blood of a wild beast which they slew on purpose, and produceit to Glifet as proof of their obedience. Constance obtains shelterwith a washerwoman, and is afterwards taken into the service of a1 For this and the following abstracts and notes from D'Ancona I am indebted to the courtesy of Mr. E. Sidney Hartland, who has an able andalmost exhaustive paper on a cognate cycle of tales, which he aptly entitles " The Outcast Child, " in the Folk- Lore Journal for October, 1886.FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 405countess, whose clothes she had washed. The countess commits heronly son to her care. The count's nephew, Girardetto, falls in lovewith Constance, and after tempting her ineffectually, to revengehimself, he gains access by night to her room and strangles thecount's little son, sleeping by her side, and in the morning accusesher of the murder. He advises the count to burn her to death, andscatter her ashes to the winds; but at the countess's intercessionher life is spared, and she is abandoned in her shift on a desert isle.There an angel appears before her, and gives her a pot of ointment,informing her that she should leave the island on the following day.She is taken off by a pirate, who conducts her to Spain, to themonastery of the Madonna del Poggio, where she is admitted as aservant, and obtains a great reputation for sanctity. She begins toheal all manner of diseases by means of the ointment, and her famespreads far and wide. Meanwhile, her husband returns from theHoly Land, and Glifet makes him believe that she had fled withoutleaving a trace. On hearing of this, the duke falls sick, and Glifetis presently stricken with leprosy. They are advised to go to Spain,to the monastery of the Madonna del Poggio, in order to be cured.Accordingly they go thither, and after confession of all their sinsare cured by Constance, who then makes herself known to the duke,and she pardons the count for the evil he had done her.In discussing the obscure Italian poem of which the foregoing isan abstract, D'Ancona divides the plot into three heads:I. A prince confides his wife to his brother, who seeks to seduceher; and she, by the traitor's wickedness, is brought into great perilof her life.II. The innocent lady is saved by a gentleman, who receives herinto his house and places his son in her care; but one of the family,enamoured of her and repulsed, slays the child and accuses her of hisdeath, in consequence of which she is again exposed to apparentlycertain death.III. The lady is once more saved, and endowed with power ofcuring the sick. They who have injured her are attacked by disease ,and having made confession of their crimes are healed by her.406 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:ASpanish Version.FTER citing as belonging to this group the " Rapprisentazione diSanta Guglielma," D'Ancona, referring to a number of MSS. andeditions, mentions " La Peregrina Doctora " of Juan Miguel de Fuego,18th century (Romancero general, ed. Duran, Madrid, 1849-51 , andthe 10th and 16th vols. of the Biblioteca de autores españoles, Nos.1269-70) . The scene is laid at Lisbon. The cut-throats employedby the husband to put Ines de Hortocarrero to death come to a fightamong themselves for the possession of her, and the chief is killed.After an apparition of the Virgin Mary, Ines flies, and a lion conducts her to a cave. The ruffians cut out the eyes and heart of theirdead chief and carry them to the husband in proof of having executedhis commands, but recount the truth to his brother Frederic, thecalumniator of the lady, who goes to the cave, but is repulsed by thelion, who wounds him in five places. The Virgin appears again toInes, and gives her the ointment as usual. Ines returns to Lisbon,and cures many sick persons, among them Frederic, now repentant,and is finally recognised.German Versions.HE legend of Ildegarde (Grimm: Deutsche Sagen, ii. 102; Bäckström, ii . 266) preserves the simplest form of the story. Eventhe supernatural is wanting in it . In the wood is a gentleman whosaves the lady from the hands of the ruffians, and the medical artwhich she afterwards so happily practises she had learned longbefore.D'Ancona refers to three German versions: ( 1 ) a poem of the12th century (Kaiserchronik: ed . Massmann, v. 11,367, ed. O. Schade,Berlin, 1853); (2) a prose version taken from a MS. of the 15thcentury ( Haupt.: Altd. Bll. , i . 300; Wackernagel: Lesebuch, i. 987);and (3) an old print of the 16th century, preserved in the ImperialLibrary at Vienna; which tell the story thus: Narcissus, king ofRome, and Elizabeth, his wife, have two sons, both called Theodoric.Their parents having died, the pope orders that he shall reign whofirst takes a wife. Crescenza, daughter of the king of Africa (or, asFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 407in the 3rd version, of Octavian the emperor), is demanded by boththe brothers in marriage. She chooses Theodoric, the ugly butvirtuous brother. Setting out on an expedition, the ugly husbandconfides his wife to his brother, who, having sought to seduce her, isimprisoned in a tower, but afterwards set free. Hence he calumniatesCrescenza to her husband on his return, and the latter causes her tobe flung into the Tiber, whence she is drawn by a fisherman in hisnets and taken to his own house. Reproved for not having caughtany fish during the day, the fisherman relates what has happened,and Crescenza goes then to the court of a certain duke. (In version3 it is the Virgin who conducts Crescenza to the fisherman's cottage,where she is to change her clothes, and the duch*ess, having seen her,takes her away. ) The duke's minister falls in love with Crescenza,and on being repulsed ill-treats her. She suffers all with patience,but the minister, to revenge himself, kills one of the duke's sons, agedthree years. The duke delivers Crescenza into the minister's hands, whocauses her to find a miraculous herb. Crescenza offers to cure theduke and his minister on their confessing their sins. They are cured,but the duke causes the minister to be thrown into the water. (Inversion 3 the Virgin saves Crescenza and gives her the herb, and theduke pardons his minister at the desire of Crescenza. ) She thenreturns to Rome and heals her husband at once and his brother afterconfession, and is recognised. Soon after this Theodoric and Crescenza separate and end their lives in the cloister.TOther Italian Versions.HERE is another Italian narrative of the 14th century, found inNovelle l'incerti autori del sec. XIV. , Bologna, Romagnoli, 1861 ,p. 31, in which are combined the two principal events: the brother-inlaw's treachery and the murder of the child. It also contains theapparitions of the Virgin, the lion which shows the deserted lady theway, and the miraculous cure of the brother-in-law. After the reconciliation the lady builds two convents, one for monks and the otherfor nuns, to which she and her husband respectively retire.-Thestory of the duch*ess of Anjou (D'Ancona remarks) agrees fully with408 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:none of these versions. It is a new version, which is distinguishedfrom all others by the intelligent selection of the events, and theirclear and simple connection. There Glifet is not brother but nephewof the husband. Apparently the intention is to excuse in a certainmeasure the crime by the greater youth of the culprit. This is themore evident in those places in which the struggles which Glifetsustains are recounted. In short, a more regular and truthlikedevelopment is here found than in the other versions. Is the merit(asks D'Ancona) of this to be awarded to the Italian versifier, whosepower of expression is so small, and whose introduction is out ofharmony with the design of the poem? The names of persons andplaces point to France, and he conjectures that the poem was derivedmediately or immediately from the French.The foregoing observations appear to be in substance those ofMussafia in publishing the Italian poem " Del duca d'Angio et deCostanza so mojer." D'Ancona farther contributes the following:It is stated in the Illustrazione storico-monumentale-epigrafica dell'abbazia di Chiaravalle of Michael Caffi (Milan: Gnocchi, 1842) , p.110): " Four centuries before our Guglielma (the Bohemian), anotherof the same name and with similar vicissitudes rendered famous theland of Brunate in the territory of Como. She also called herself aking's daughter, she also led a religious and beneficent life, and diedwith the fame of sanctity and miracles. More fortunate than theBohemian, or more circ*mspect in her behaviour, she aroused nosuspicions of her teachings, and no sentence came to disturb thepeace of her ashes. At Brunate her memory is ever held in veneration. Childing and suckling women, who have her as their advocatewith the Dispenser of Mercies, go thither to make or to perform theirVows. " A note to this says: " After 795 Teodo, king of Hungary,married Guglielma, daughter of the king of England, but having gonevery soon to Palestine, he left the kingdom and his wife in the careof his brother. The latter tempted in vain his sister-in-law's honour,and to revenge himself of the repulse accused her to his brother ofinfidelity. She was condemned to death, but succeeded in eludingthe vigilance of her guards, flying in disguise. She was found bytheFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 409huntsmen of the king of France, who took her before their prince.He received her at his court, where a steward fell in love with her,and finding her intractable to his desires, accused her of infanticide,and she was again condemned to death. She is liberated, and goesto Italy, to shut herself in a nunnery, where by means of an exemplary and austere life she acquires a reputation for sanctity andwonder-working. Moved by this her great fame, the king ofHungary, having come to ask her forgiveness, takes her back to hisown country, and there she piously ceased to live. At Morbegnoand at Brunate she is venerated with special devotion. " An accountof her life, written by one Padre Andrea Ferrari, is in the Vatican.Pietro Monti, the present incumbent of Brunate, writes me concerning this Guglielma as follows (Oct. 11 , 1842): " There still is atBrunate a tradition that a lady from beyond the mountains, by nameGuglielma, came in former times and lived here for many years, havingbeen compelled to leave home by domestic misfortune, and that herhusband, having heard of her, came and led her back to her owncountry. In this parish church is a fresco of her, venerated by piouspersons, who come hither in certain months of the year, which appearsto me to be of date of 1450, or thereabouts. In 1826 the wall in thechurch adjoining the picture was demolished, and there I saw manyother figures (previously covered with a layer of mortar) whichformed a retinue to the picture still existing. They related the storyof Guglielma-that is, how she left her husband's house, came toBrunate, and there lived a solitary life, clad in sackcloth, and usuallywith only one little maid-servant, in company with a crucifix and animage of Our Lady. There were some lines of Latin in Gothiccharacters, few words of which, however, I could put together andread. It was a sin that a hundred years ago the builders coveredwith mortar these old pictures of the 15th century, and partly ruinedthem by the fresh mortar. In 1826 it was believed that in thatstate [ in which they then were] they could not be preserved. Theconvent of Brunate was founded by certain sisters Pedraglio, ofComo, about the year 1350, as appears by memorials in my possession, and by the brief of Pope Martin V. of the 6th April, 1448.Guglielma, however, came here some centuries before the foundation410 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:of the convent, and certainly before the 10th century; but accordingto tradition, where the nunnery was afterwards erected she passedpart of her life in a private and obscure condition. The traditionhere concerning Guglielma is very ancient, and so much as I haveheard of it from the oldest inhabitants ' agrees with a documentsufficiently authentic, old, and in print, in my possession, and veryrare, which makes Guglielma to have lived long before [the year]1000. In this are noted her country, husband, her saintly andheroic Christian virtues, and the vicissitudes of her life, afflicted byprivate calamities. More I will not say of her, because when I havetime I intend to publish a life of her. " 1D'Ancona, referring to the foregoing communication from thepriest of Brunate, goes on to say, that he had written to Como toascertain whether the incumbent had ever carried his intention into1 The simplicity of this worthy ecclesiastic's account of the saintly, wonder- working lady is very refreshing. He claims a high antiquity for the localtradition, but one should like to know something definite regarding the " document, sufficiently authentic, very old and rare, " which represents the piousGuglielma to have lived (at Brunate) long before the year 1000, and with whichthe narratives of the " oldest inhabitants " agreed. Not even the fresco of thelady-saint on the wall ofthe parish church-not even the whole series of muralpictures which the masons ruined by covering with mortar-is to be received as evidence that the " tradition, " so far as concerns Brunate, is founded in fact.That a story of universal popularity such as that of Guglielma should bepictured on a church-wall is not at all surprising; and through the pictures itwould in course of time naturally become identified with the locality.Nothing indeed is more common than to find world-wide stories localisedin different countries, from Iceland to Ceylon, from Portugal to Japan. Thus,for example, the " legend " of the Pedlar of Swaffam-who had a dream ofburied treasure which was realised, and whose picture, with his wife and three children, was, quoth Sir Roger Twysden, " on every window of the aisle " ofSwaffam church, in memorial of his benefactions to that edifice this story,which Blomefield has reproduced in his History of Norfolk, is not only knownin Holland and Germany, but is found in the works of Arabian and Persian writers who were gathered to their fathers centuries before Swaffam churchwas erected. The Welsh "tradition " of Gellert the faithful hound, whosetomb "with stately sculpture decked " is shown even unto this day, was knownin India thirteen hundred years ago, and has been domiciled in the south of France for many centuries. Our nursery tale of Whittington and his Cat wasrelated by Wasif the Persian historian, and moreover was current in differentcountries of Europe long before that Worshipful Lord Mayor of London townwas born. The fabliau of ' Le Sacristan de Cluni ' is reproduced by Heywoodin his History of Women, under the title of ' The Faire Ladie of Norwich, ' andagain in Blomefield's History of Norfolk, where the murderer of the amorousmonk is, strangely, represented to have been Sir Thomas Erpingham. So much for local " traditions "!FOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 411effect, or if anything could be found among his papers; and heobtained the following information, extracted from the papers ofPietro Monti: A life of St. Guglielma was printed at Como byNiccolo Caprani, episcopal printer, 1642, collected by M. R. PadreFrate Andrea Ferrari of S. Donato, and incumbent of the church ofS. Andrea at Brunate. Frate Andrea says at the beginning of thislife that he was induced to write it by having a little book accidentallyfall into his hands , which treated of the life of the saint, and addsthat he made search in the library of the Vatican, where the samelife was found described substantially in the way in which he hadprinted it, little different from that described in the above-mentionedbook. There it is related that Teodo, king of Hungary, in the year795, took to wife Guglielma, daughter of the king of England. Ashort time after his marriage he went to the Holy Land, having leftGuglielma and his brother in charge of the kingdom. The brother,having in vain attempted his sister-in-law's honour, accused her tothe king of adultery. She was therefore condemned to be burnt, butthe executioners only burnt her clothes and an animal, and permittedher to flee from Hungary. Having reached a desert, she was therefirst tempted by the huntsmen of the king of France, and afterwardsconducted by them before the king, who gave his first-begotten sonto her charge. The seneschal, having in vain asked her in marriage,to revenge himself strangled the king's son, attributing the crime toGuglielma. She is condemned to the flames. Two angels miraculously deliver her, lead her to a certain river, and consign her to apilot. While she sails she has a vision of the Virgin Mary. Sheheals by blessing divers sick persons who are in the vessel. Shemakes known to the captain of the ship her desire to live in aconvent, and he, who is nephew of the abbess of a nunnery in hisown country, complies with her wish. Thither, through the fameof her miracles , the sick flocked from various parts of the world.Afflicted by leprosy, the brother of the king of Hungary and theseneschal of France come, and are set free from their disease. Atthis news the king of Hungary and the king of France hasten tothe nunnery, and there the saint makes herself known to her husband,with whom she returns to her kingdom, where in life and after death412 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE:she works many miracles, chiefly curing headache (!) . Frate Andrea,however, at the beginning of her life, says that there are few whoesteem Guglielma among the saints, but her picture in the church ofS. Andrea is held in great veneration, that women who want milkare persuaded that they obtain daily favours by means of her intercession, and that her pictures are seen in divers churches paintedwith a crown on her head.FROM a comparative analysis of the numerous versions andvariants of the ancient and wide-spread story of the Innocent Persecuted Wife it will be very evident that, while the fundamentaloutline is the same in all, Trivet's tale, with its direct derivatives byGower and Chaucer, is a considerably elaborated form, and that theversions in the Contes Dévots and the Gesta Romanorum most closelypreserve the Asiatic story in the principal details. In Trivet, and inthe romance of Emare, however, there is introduced an incidentwhich properly belongs to another but cognate cycle of tales, that,namely, of the malignant mother-in-law telling her son that his wifeis a demon and her child a monster. In the group I refer to, envioussisters, co-wives, or mothers-in-law send the heroine's newly-bornbabes away to be killed, substitute puppies, cats, stones, or bitsof wood, and make the husband believe she has given birth tosuch objects as in the beautiful tale of the ' Swan Children ' (afterwards expanded into the romance of ' Helyas; or, the Knight withthe Swan ') in Dolopathos, the oldest European form of the Historyof the Seven Wise Masters; in the Pleasant Nights (Le Notti Piacevoli) of Straparola, iv. 3; in the German tale (Grimm) of the ThreeLittle Birds '; in the Norse Tale (Dasent) of SnowWhite and RosyRed '; in the French tale of ' Les Trois Filles du Boulanger ' (Mélusine, i. 206); in the tale of The Envious Sisters , ' with whichour common version of the Arabian Nights concludes; in the Indiantale of Truth's Triumph, ' Miss Frere's Old Deccan Days, andthatof ' The Boy with a moon on his forehead,' Bahari Day's Folk TalesofBengal; inthe third tale of the Tamil romance Madana KámarájáKarai, etc.CCFOR THE MAN OF LAW'S TALE. 413The story as found in the Contes Dévots corresponds so closelywith the Gesta version that we might conclude it was the source ofthe latter, but for one or two important differences, which render itprobable that both were independently adapted from oral tradition.In the Gesta the lady is entrapped into a ship under pretence ofshowing her some clothes for sale; the master threatens to force herto comply with his desires; she prays to Heaven; a tempest rises,and all on board are drowned excepting the lady and the shipmaster.This does not occur in the Contes Dévots, but exact parallels to it arefound in the third Arabian version and the Persian tale of Repsima,the sole difference being that the lady is sold as a slave to the shipmaster. In Trivet's tale the lady sails away with a seneschal andpushes him into the sea to save her chastity. -The murder of thechild does not occur in the Contes Dévots, but is found in Vincentof Beauvais, the Gesta, the Italian poem of Santa Guglielma, theGerman versions, the Persian tale of Repsima, and in the first andthird Arabian versions (where the child is killed accidentally in theattempt to murder the lady); in Trivet and its derivatives , it isHermingild, the wife of Elda, who is slain; and in the secondArabian version theft is substituted for murder. -The imprisonmentof the brother-in-law occurs in the Contes Dévots, Vincent of Beauvais, the Gesta, and the German versions. -For the miraculouscures performed in the persons of her evil-doers in nearly all thevariants, we find in Trivet the restoring of his sight to a blind Britonby Hermingild, at the desire of Constance, making the sign of thecross on his eyes. -The German versions seem to have exclusivelythe incident of the lady being cast into the Tiber, and drawn out bya fisherman in his net. -The Gesta story is the only European versionwhich agrees with the Eastern forms in the incident of the ladysaving the man from the gallows-from the bastinado in the secondArabian, where the man, instead of inveigling the lady on board avessel, makes a false charge against her to the sultan; but in the firstArabian the man builds the lady a cell, then betakes himself to woodcutting, and brings her food daily. The lady's disguising herself asa dervish, her associating with the princess as her spiritual director,and the murder of the latter are details peculiar to the second Arabian414 18. THE INNOCENT PERSECUTED WIFE.version; while the third Arabian is singular in representing the evildoers as afflicted with remorse, not with diseases, for their crimes.To conclude: I am disposed to consider the Innocent PersecutedWife as of Hindú, if not of Buddhist, extraction; and the Persiantale of Repsima, though found in a work of much later compositionthan most of the European versions, may perhaps best represent theoriginal form of the tale.GLASGOW, November, 1886.NOTE.In the first Arabian version, p. 368, last line, the lady, onquitting the house of her rescuer, is represented as having " somewhat of money with her," but we are not told how she came by it:evidently the copyist has omitted to state, as in the second version,that the shaykh gave her a thousand dirhams; and this is also leftout of the third version. -The incident, which occurs in the thirdArabian and the Persian versions, of the lady being put on board avessel as a slave, and solicited by the master bears some resemblanceto that which happened to the wife of Placidus, as related in ch.110 of Swan's Gesta Romanorum, and the Legend of St. Eustache,in the Greek martyr acts, to which the story of the InnocentPersecuted Wife is near akin.41519.The Robbers and the TreasureTrove:BUDDHIST ORIGINAL AND ASIATIC AND EUROPEANVERSIONSOFChaucer's Pardoner's Tale.By W. 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ITALIAN MIRACLE-PLAY ...GERMAN, FRENCH, AND PORTUGUESE VERSIONS417.THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE- TROVE:BUDDHIST ORIGINAL AND ASIATIC AND EUROPEAN VERSIONSOF THE PARDONER'S TALE.FEWBY W. A. CLOUSTON.NEW stories were more widely diffused over Europe duringmedieval times than that which Chaucer represents thePardoner as relating to his fellow-pilgrims on the way to the shrineof Thomas à Becket, of the three " riottours " who found a treasure,and perished through their own cupidity. How this simple butimpressive tale was brought to Europe-for it is of Asiatic extractionunquestionably--has not been and may never be ascertained. Wehave already seen (ante, p. 131) that it forms one of the Cento NovelleAntiche, the first Italian collection of apologues and short stories,compiled, it is supposed, in the 13th century. Wright conjecturesthat Chaucer drew the materials of his Pardoner's Tale from afabliau, and it is probable that such was also the source of theItalian novella. We should have expected to find the story occurringfrequently in the voluminous monkish collections of exempla, but myfriend Professor T. F. Crane, of Cornell University, Ithaca, U.S.,who has been long engaged upon a work on Mediæval Sermons andStory-Books, informs me that he has not hitherto met with it inany of them, which is passing strange, since it is well adapted forpopular recital, its moral being so obvious.The original form of the story seems to be one of the BuddhistBirth-Stories, entitled " Vedabbha Játaka," the 48th of Fausböll'sedition of the Páli text of the Játaka-book. The meaning of" Birth-Story " has been thus explained: " According to Buddhistbelief, every man living has entered on his present life in successionto a vast number of previous lives, in any one of which he mayhave been a man-king, monk, or goatherd-an animal, goblin , orCH. ORIG. 29418 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:deity, as the case may be. For the mass of men, those previouslives have left no trace on memory, but a Buddha remembers themall, and not his own merely, but the previous births of other men.And Gautama, so the tradition runs, was in the habit of explainingfacts of the present in the lives of those about him by what theyhad done in other births, and of illustrating his own teaching bywhat he had done himself in earlier births. Of the stories which hethus told of his own previous existences , 550 are supposed to havebeen collected immediately after his decease. "-The first to point outthe identity of the Pardoner's Tale with one of those Buddhist BirthStories was the Rev. Dr. Richard Morris, in the ContemporaryReview, May, 1881, vol. xxxix. p. 738, and afterwards two otherscholars each made the same " discovery " independently: Mr. H.H. Francis in The Academy, Dec. 22, 1883 , and Professor C. H.Tawney, in the Journal of Philology, 1883, vol. xii. pp. 203-8.The Bishop of Colombo, in the Journal ofthe Ceylon Branch oftheRoyal Asiatic Society, 1884, published translations of the first fiftyJátakas, the 48th of which, as already stated, is the " Vedabbha,"but he does not seem to have recognized it as the original of thePardoner's Tale. The following is Professor Tawney's rendering ofthe "Vedabbha Játaka ":Buddhist Original."He who desires advantage unseasonably, he is afflicted;The men of Chedi slew Vedabbha, and they all themselves perished. "This the Master, while sojourning in Jetavana, spake concerningthat obstinate friar. For the Master said to that friar: " Friar, notonly now art thou obstinate, but formerly also wast thou obstinate,and owing to thy obstinacy thou didst disregard the counsel of thewise, and wast cut asunder with a sharp sword, and didst fall deadin the way, and owing to thee alone did a thousand men perish. "When he had said this he told the following tale:LONG ago, when Brahmadatta was reigning in Benáres, a certainBráhman in a certain village knew a spell, Vedabbha by name.That spell was indeed of great, of priceless efficacy. When theFOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 419moon was in conjunction with a certain lunar mansion, he wouldrepeat that spell, and look up to heaven, and then a rain of the sevenkinds of precious things¹ would fall from heaven. At that time theBodhisattva² was studying science under that Bráhman. One day theBráhman left his village, and , taking the Bodhisattva with him, setout for the kingdom of Chedi for some purpose or other. In theway lay a certain forest, where five hundred Sending Thieves waylaid travellers. They took captive the Bodhisattva and the VedabbhaBráhman. And the reason wherefore they were called SendingThieves was this: Whenever they took captive two men, they sentone to fetch wealth; therefore they were called the Sending Thieves.And so, if they captured a father and a son, they said to the father:"Go and bring us wealth, and then receive back thy son and depart."And in like manner, if they captured a mother and her daughter,they sent the mother; and if they captured an elder and a youngerbrother, they sent the elder brother; and if they captured a teacherand his pupil, they sent the pupil. Accordingly on this occasionthey kept the Vedabbha Bráhman and sent away the Bodhisattva.The Bodhisattva respectfully took leave of his teacher, and said: " Iwill return after one or two days; do not be afraid; and moreover,do this that I advise you. To- night there will be a conjunction ofthe moon with a lunar mansion that will enable you to call down arain of wealth; now do not you, fretting under your affliction, repeatthe spell , and make a rain of wealth descend; otherwise, you yourself will meet destruction, and these five hundred thieves also. "Having given his teacher this advice, he went to fetch wealth.The thieves, for their part, when the sun set, bound the Bráhmanand made him lie down. At that moment the full round orb of themoon rose above the western horizon. The Bráhman , considering1 The seven kinds of precious things are variously enumerated by Buddhistauthors. Burnouf, in his translation of the Saddharma Pundaríka, gives two lists. The first is from the Saddharma itself, a Northern Buddhist work, andruns as follows: (1 ) gold; ( 2) silver; (3) lapis- lazuli; (4) crystal; (5) red pearls; (6) diamonds; (7) coral. The second is from a Southern Buddhistsource: (1) gold; (2) silver; (3) pearls; (4) all kinds of precious stones;(5) lapis-lazuli; (6) diamonds; (7) coral.2 Or Bodisat: a potential Buddha-in the present case, Gautama himself in a former birth.420 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:the heavenly bodies, said to himself: " To-night there will take placea conjunction of the moon with a lunar mansion that will enableme to produce a rain of wealth; -why should I any longer endureaffliction I will repeat the spell and cause a rain of precious things.to descend, and bestow wealth on the thieves, and then go where Ilike. " Having thus reflected, he said to the thieves: "Ye thieves,why did ye take me prisoner? " They answered: " In order to getwealth, reverend sir. " He continued: "Then, if you desire wealth ,quickly release me from my bonds, and have my head washed, andhave me clothed in new garments, and anointed with unguents, andadorned with flowers. " The thieves, hearing his speech, did so. TheBrahman observed the exact moment ofthe moon's conjunction withthe lunar mansion, and repeated the spell and looked up to heaven.Immediately precious things fell from heaven. The thieves collectedthat wealth, and tied it up in bundles in their upper garments andstarted off. The Brahman followed them.Then another five hundred thieves made those thieves prisoners.The first five hundred said: " Why do you take us captive? " Thesecond five hundred answered: " To get wealth. " Then the firstfive hundred said: " If you desire wealth, take captive this Brahman;he looked up to heaven, and made a rain of wealth fall; it was hethat gave us what we have here." Then the thieves let those otherthieves go, and seized the Bráhman, exclaiming: " Give us alsowealth. " The Bráhman replied: " I could give you wealth; butthat conjunction of the moon with the lunar mansion that enablesus to call down a rain of wealth will not take place for a year fromthis time. If you need wealth, wait, and then I will cause a rain ofwealth to descend." The thieves were angry, and said: " What!villain of a Brahman, after causing a rain of wealth to descend forothers, do you bid us wait for another year? " Then they cut theBrahman in two with a sharp sword, and left him in the road, andquickly pursuing those other thieves, fought with them, and slewthem all. Then they divided themselves into two bands, and foughtuntil two hundred and fifty were slain; and in this way they slewone another until only two remained.Thus those thousand men perished all but two. But those twoFOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 421men deftly carried off that wealth, and hid it in a thicket near avillage, and one remained guarding it, sword in hand, while the othertook some rice and went off to the village to get it cooked. Trulythis passion of avarice is the root of destruction, ¹ for the one whowas guarding the wealth said to himself: "When my fellow returns,this wealth will have to be divided into two portions , so I had betterkill him with a sword-cut as soon as he arrives." So he made readyhis sword, and remained watching for his return. The other said tohimself: "This wealth will have to be divided into two portions, soI had better put poison in the rice, and give it to my fellow to eat,and so kill him, and take all the wealth for myself. " Accordingly,as soon as the rice was cooked, he ate all he wanted, and put poisonin the rest, and set out with it in his hand. No sooner had he putthe rice down than the other cut him in two with his sword, andthrew his body into a tangled thicket. Then he ate the rice, andfell dead on the spot. Thus, owing to the treasure, all these menperished.As for the Bodhisattva, he returned in one or two days with thewealth that he was sent to fetch. When he did not see his teacherwhere he left him, but saw wealth scattered about, he said to himself: " In spite of my advice, the teacher must have caused a rain ofwealth to descend, and no doubt they will all have perished. " Sohe went on along the highway. As he was going along, he saw onthe highway his teacher cut in two; and he said to himself: " Hehas lost his life through disregarding my advice. " Then he gatheredwood and made a pyre, and burnt his teacher's body, and offeredflowers to it. And, going on, he saw five hundred men lying dead,and then two hundred and fifty, and so on, until at last he saw onlytwo corpses, and then he said to himself: " Behold! here are athousand men slain, save only two; there must be two thieves left1 Mr. Francis, in his paper on this story in The Academy, already referredto, has pointed out that nearly the same reflection occurs in the Latin story-meaning the singularly corrupted version found in Morlini: " radicemalorum cupiditate affecti " (see ante, p. 134, 1. 8); -but he was strangelymistaken in supposing the reflection to be made by the robber under thismistake, however, he makes right merry, remarking that " it would seem as ifthe Devil could quote Scripture in Páli as well as in other languages, " and calling the robber " a veritable Oriental Pecksniff! "

422 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:alive; they will not be able to control themselves. I wonder wherethey are gone. " So, going on, he saw their tracks, where they hadentered a thicket with the treasure, and further on he saw a heap oftreasure made up in bundles, and a man lying dead upon a plate ofrice. Then he understood exactly all the doings of those men, andsaid to himself: " I wonder where the other is," but, after searching,he found him cast away in a thicket, and exclaimed: " Disregardingmy advice, my teacher not only lost his own life by his obstinacy,but caused also the death of those thousand men. Truly, those whounseasonably and wantonly pursue their own advantage meet, likemy teacher, with utter ruin. " And having said this, he repeated thefollowing stanza:"He who desires advantage unseasonably, he is afflicted;The men of Chedi slew Vedabbha,1¹ and they all themselves perished."Then the Bodhisattva made the wood resound with this utterance:" Even as my teacher, unseasonably and improperly exerting power,caused a rain of treasure to fall, and thus himself met his death,and became to others the cause of destruction -even so, whosoever,unseasonably desiring his own advantage, shall make strenuous effort,shall himself perish utterly, and shall cause ruin to others." Andthe sylvan deities applauded him, while he thus set forth the morallesson contained in the above stanza. Then he deftly removed thewealth to his own house, and continued the rest of his life givingalms, and doing other righteous acts, and when he died, he attainedheaven.When the Master had given this instruction in righteousness,saying, " Friar, not only now art thou obstinate, but formerly alsowast thou obstinate, and didst meet with utter ruin," he summedup the Játaka in the following words: " On that occasion thisobstinate friar was the Vedabbha Bráhman and I was his pupil. "From India the story, in all likelihood, passed into Persia, whereit assumed a form consistent with the Muhammedan belief in thesacred (but not divine) character of Jesus the son of Mary. In the1 The commentator tells us that the Brahman was called Vedabbha becausehe knew a spell named Vedabbha-Veddabhamanta- vasena Vedabbho ti lad- dhanamam brahmanam .FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 42312th century Ferídu-'d-Dín ' Attár, the celebrated Súfí philosopherand poet, made it the subject of a poem in his Kitab-i MasibatNáma, or Book of Calamities, from a manuscript copy of which,preserved in the Gotha Library, Dr. F. Rückert published thePersian text, accompanied by a German metrical translation, in theZeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft (Journal ofthe German Oriental Society) for 1860, Bd. xiv. s. 280—7, and thisis how ' Attár tells the story:¹Persian Version.ESUS, from whom beamed light, came into a village, and an JESUS,man was his path- fellow. At that time Jesus had threeloaves of bread, one of which he ate, one he gave to his companion ,and one remained out of the three. Now Jesus went forward to1 The Súfis are the mystics of Islám. -Mr. F. F. Arbuthnot, in hisrecently-published work, Persian Portraits: a Sketch of Persian History,Literature, and Politics, gives the following particulars regarding this illustrious poet:Shaikh Farid-ud-Din Attar, surnamed Muhammed Ibrahim, was a druggistand dealer in perfumes, from which he took his poetical name [ ' Attár] , andonly abandoned his shop on becoming a Sufi philosopher. This he did underthe following circ*mstances, as related by Sir Gore Ouseley: Attar was oneday sitting at his door with a friend, when a religious mendicant approached,and looking anxiously and earnestly into the well- furnished warehouse, heaveda deep sigh, and shed tears, meditating on the transitory state of all earthlyproperty, and on the instability of human life to enjoy the goods of this world.Mistaking the sentiment uppermost in the fakír's mind, and annoyed by hisscrutinizing looks, Attar desired him to be gone, to which the other replied:"Yes, I have nothing to prevent me from leaving your door, or indeed fromabandoning the world at once, as my sole possession is this worn- out garment;but, O Attar, I grieve for thee, for how canst thou ever bring thyself to thinkof death, leaving all these worldly goods behind thee?" Attar was so profoundly touched by the words of the dervish, that he gave up his shop withouta pang, renounced all worldly concerns for ever, and commenced the studyof Súfíism under the celebrated Shaikh Reken- ud- Dín. He continued hisstudies in the mystic doctrines with such assiduity, that although he wasknown to be an inimitable poet, he was more famous as the most perfect Súfí,living as a recluse, and absorbed in the contemplation of the Divine Essence.Attar was born at a place called Shadyakh, appertaining to Naishapur, inthe reign of Sultan Sanjar, and is said to have lived to the age of one hundredand fourteen years, of which eighty- five were spent at Shadyakh and inpilgrimages, and twenty-nine in Naishapur. In A.D. 1230, at the siege ofNaishapur, the son-in-law of Changez Khan the Tartar was killed, and ageneral massacre of the inhabitants of that place was made by the Mughals,and Attar was among the number that were slain.424 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:procure water. His companion ate that bread during his absence.Jesus, son of Mary, when he returned, perceived not the bread bythe man's side, and said: " What is become of the bread, my son?"The other replied: " I know nothing at all thereof. " And then theyboth proceeded on their way till they came to a sea, and Jesus tookthe man by the hand and walked with him over the sea. Nowwhen he had brought him across the sea, he said: "O companion!by the might of the Lord-that Lord who has done such a marvel,which marvel no one could do of himself: tell me now, in this place,who is it that ate the bread yonder? " But the man said: " I haveno knowledge thereof; why dost thou question me when I know itnot? " Jesus now resumed his journey, until there came forth a roefrom afar, and he called the little roe near to him, and made thedust and stones red with its blood. He roasted it then, and thereofate a little; but the other filled himself up to the neck. Thereafter, Jesus, son of Mary, gathered the roe's bones together, andbreathed into them with his breath; and the roe came to lifeimmediately, and having adored him, bounded back into the desert.¹The Saviour-Guide said to the man: "O companion, by the powerof the supreme Lord, who has offered thee this proof of His omnipotence, give me now an account of that bread. " But he said: " Ihave never seen the bread; why wilt thou trouble me so long? "Then Jesus led the man on with him as before, until they came to1 Muslims believe that the breath of the Messiah had the virtue of restoring the dead to life . In the Persian romance of the Four Darweshes, a very skilful physician is named ' Isa (Jesus) in allusion to this notion. And in thePersian Sindibád Náma we read: " Sweet, too, is the air of Ja'farábád [asuburb of Shíráz ] , whose breezes perform the work of the Messiah. " Theresuscitation of the roe from its bones will recall to storiologists similarincidents in European, and especially Norwegian and Icelandic, folk-lore.A noteworthy analogue occurs in the Older Edda. In one recension of thescurrilous Jewish " Life " of Jesus (Toldath Jesu)-not that published, with aLatin translation and castigation, by Ulrico, at Leyden, in 1705, but theversion at the end of the second volume of Wagenseil's Tela ignea Satana,1681-among the first wonders which Jesus is represented as publicly performing, by means of the Ineffable Name (which he is said to have abstractedfrom the Temple and concealed in the flesh of his thigh) is the raising of aman to life from bones taken out of a charnel-house. And in the BuddhistJátakas we read of a youth who, by his skill in magic, resuscitated a tigerfrom its skeleton, an incident which has been adapted in the Persian story- book Túti Náma, or Tales of a Parrot.FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 425three mounds of earth, and Jesus said a pure and sweet prayer, sothat the heaps of earth became pure gold.¹ And he said: " Onepart, companion, is thine; another is mine; and the third partbelongs to him who has secretly eaten that bread." When the mannow perceived the gold, it was wonderful what a change came overhim. Quickly he exclaimed: " "Twas I who ate that bread; I wasan hungered, and ate it secretly in my need. " When Jesus heardthis confession, he said: "For myself I desire nothing; the three arethine. Thou art of no use to me as a travelling companion; thoughthou shouldst desire me, yet do I not desire thee." Thus he spake;dejected was he thereat; and so he left the man, and betook himselfthence.A little while passed by, and then there came two men, who,seeing the gold, at once became at enmity with him whom theyfound on the spot, and who exclaimed: " All this gold is mine."But the two others said: "This gold shall be ours." Between themcontention and discord arose, until tongue and hand grew wearythereof. At length the three men agreed that the gold should beshared in three [equal] parts. All three were by this time veryhungry, and they could no longer breathe for very weariness.said: "Life goes before gold. Now I will go to the town, and thereprocure bread." The other two said: " If thou bringest us bread ,verily in death thou bringest us new life. Go, get bread; and whenOne1 This power of turning earth into gold is often ascribed to holy men inEastern fictions. Take for example the following lines from the currentvolume of Captain R. C. Temple's Legends of the Panjab (vol. iii. pp. 214,215: "A Miracle of the Holy Sayyid Kabír, of Jálandhar "):"After a while a disciple came to the saint,And found him living in the same poor way as before.He said Sir saint, I have a question:Why dost thou dwell poorly now, and art not happy? 'Said the saint: ' Pick me up a clod from the fields,And behold my power, granted by the God of Mercy.'When the saint put his hand upon the clod it became golden!Said he ' God hath granted me all things, but it behoves me still to be dependent on Him. 'And again he said: " The bil¹ is placed there;It is of no use-throw it away.'When the disciple looked at it, he found it as he had left it;Then he saw his fault and craved pardon for his presumption. "1 Captain Temple explains that " the bil is a kind of receptacle used by fakirs , and consists ofthe hard rind of the bil (agle marmelos) fruit, the pulp being scooped out so as to form a cup."426 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:thou returnest hither, we will share the gold in three parts as webefore agreed. " Straightway the man left the gold to his companions, arose quickly, and began his business. He came to thetown, and there bought bread, and for a time ate of it; then hecunningly put poison in the rest of the bread, so that those twomight die, and he remain alive, and all the gold be his only. Butthe two made a covenant on the spot that they would despatch thatone, and then out of those three parts make two. As they wereagreed, the man came up. The two instantly smote him dead, andthen themselves died as soon as they ate the bread.Jesus, son of Mary, returning to the spot, saw the slaughteredone and the two dead men lying there, and said: "If this goldremain here, untold numbers will perish therefore. " And out of hispure soul he spake a prayer, when, lo! the gold became dust andstones again. Then if gold is indeed better than stone and dust, yetbetter is gold that is covered with dust.¹In Mr. M. Cassim Siddi Lebbe's " Account of the VirginMary and Jesus according to Arabian Writers," contributed to TheOrientalist, vol. i. pp. 46-7 (Kandy, 1884), we have a version whichappears to be derived from the same source as that of ' Attár, if notindeed directly from it, although varying in some of the details, andespecially in the catastrophe: had Mr. Lebbe stated his authority,the question might perhaps have been easily decided:First Arabian Version."T is related that Jesus was once journeying in company with aJew, and the Lord proposed that they should put their stock of1 The Persian text, with a Latin translation, of a different version, isgiven by Warner, but without stating the source, in his Proverbiorum etSententiorum Persicarum Centuria (Leyden, 1644, p. 31 ): Three travellers find a treasure. One goes to procure food, and so on. Jesus comes past withhis disciples, and, seeing the three dead bodies, says: " Hæc est conditiomundi! Videte quomodo ternos hosce tractaverit, et ipse tamen post eos instatu suo perseveret. Væ illi qui petit mandum ex mundo! "-This story maybe considered as a link between European versions and the Buddhist original.2 I have considerably abridged the first part of this version, as it does not materially differ from that of the Persian poem.FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 427food together, and make common property of it. Jesus had but oneloaf, and the Jew had two loaves. In the absence of Jesus (toperform his devotions), the Jew ate one of the loaves, and afterwardspersistently denied that he had done so. After Jesus had performedseveral miracles, each time conjuring the Jew to declare who had atethe loaf, and the Jew persisting there were originally but two loaves,the narrative thus proceeds: They came to a lonely place, whereJesus made three heaps of earth, and by his word turned them intothree massive blocks of gold. Then, addressing the Jew, he said:"Of these three blocks, one is for me, one for you, and the other forthe man who ate the loaf. " The Jew immediately exclaimed: " Itwas I that ate the loaf, and therefore I claim the two blocks."Jesus gently rebuked him for obstinately adhering to a falsehood,and, making over to him all three blocks, left him and went away.The Jew then endeavoured to carry off the blocks of gold, butfound them too heavy to be moved. While he was thus wastinghis strength in trying to move the blocks, Jesus returned to the spotand said to the Jew, " Have nothing to do with these heaps of gold.They will cause the death of three men; leave them and follow me."The man obeyed, and leaving the gold where it lay, went away withJesus.Three travellers happened soon afterward to pass that way, andwere delighted to find the gold. They agreed that each should takeone. Finding it, however, a matter of impossibility to carry them,they resolved that one of them should go to the city for carts, andfood for them to eat, whilst the other two should watch the treasure.So one of the travellers set out for the city, leaving the other two toguard the gold. During his absence the thoughts of his companionswere engrossed in devising some means whereby they should becomethe sole sharers of the treasure, to the exclusion of the one who hadgone to the city. They finally came to the diabolical resolution tokill him on his return. The same murderous design had enteredinto the mind of him who had gone to the city in reference to hiscompanions. He bought food and mixed poison with it, and thenreturned to the spot to offer it to them. No sooner had he arrived,than, without a word of warning, his companions fell upon him and428 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:belaboured him to death. They then began to eat the food, whichwas in its turn to destroy them; and so, as they were partaking ofthe poisoned repast, they fell down and expired. A little after ,Jesus and the Jew were returning from their journey along thatroad, and seeing the three men lying dead amidst the gold, Jesusexclaimed, "This will be the end of the covetous who love gold! "He then raised the three men to life, upon which they confessedtheir guilt, repented themselves, and thenceforward became disciplesof Jesus. Nothing, however, could make the Jew overcome hisavarice. He persisted in his desire to become the possessor of thegold; but whilst he was struggling to carry away the blocks, theearth opened and swallowed him up, and the gold with him.As the foregoing Arabian story was perhaps adapted from thePersian poem of Ferídu-'d-Din ' Attár, so the second Persian versioncited, in note, p. 426, may have been the source of the following,which is found in the Breslau edition of The Book of the Thousandand One Nights (Burton's ' Supp. Nights,' vol. i. p. 250):TSecond Arabian Version.HREE men once went out questing treasure, and came upon ablock of gold weighing a hundred pounds. When they sawit they took it upon their shoulders and carried it till they drew neara certain city, when one of them said: " Let us sit in the mosquewhilst one of us goes and buys us what we may eat." So they satdown in the mosque, and one of them arose and entered the city.When he came therein, his soul prompted him to false his twofellows, and get the gold to himself alone. Accordingly he boughtfood and poisoned it; but when he returned to his comrades, theysprang upon him and slew him, in order that they might enjoy thegold without him. Then they ate of the poisoned food and died ,and the gold lay cast down over against them. Presently Jesus, sonof Mary (on whom be the Peace! ), passed by, and seeing this,besought Allah Almighty for tidings of their case; so He told himwhat had betided them, whereat great was his surprise; and heFOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 429related to his disciples what he had seen.¹ Then quoth Jesus (onwhom be the Peace! ): " Had these done prudently, they had takenthought for themselves; but they unheeded the issues of events; forthat whoso neglecteth precaution is lost, and repenteth. " 2In the Arabic texts of The Nights printed at Calcutta and Búlákthe story is presented in such a corrupted form that nearly all thefeatures of the original have disappeared, as will be seen from thefollowing rendering (Burton's " Nights ", vol. ii. p. 158):Third Arabian Version.Na city called Sindah there was once a very wealthy merchant,a, and who made ready his camel-loads, and equipped himself withgoods, and set out with his outfit for such a city. Now he wasfollowed by two sharpers, who had made up into bales what merchandise they could get; and, giving out to the merchant that theyalso were merchants, wended with him by the way. So, halting atthe first halting-place, they agreed to play him false and take all hehad; but at the same time each inwardly plotted foul play to theother, saying in his mind: " If I can cheat my comrade, times willgo well with me, and I shall have all these goods to myself. " Soafter planning this perfidy, one of them took food, and puttingtherein poison, brought it to his fellow; the other did the same:and they both ate of the poisoned mess, and they both died. Nowthey had been sitting with the merchant; so when they left him,and were long absent from him, he sought for tidings of them, and1 Here one of the disciples relates a short story, which has no particularbearing on the incident. -As Muslims do not believe in the divinity of Christ,though they revere him as the Spirit of God, breathed into the Virgin Mary by the angel Gabriel, he is here represented as applying to Allah for an ex- planation of the affair. Yet it is curious to observe that in the last versionhe had foreknowledge that the lumps of gold would cause the death of three men.2 With reference to the Persian and the two Arabian versions cited above,it should be observed that very possibly a Hindú form of the Buddhist storymay have passed into Pahlaví, the ancient language of Persia, and thenceinto Arabic, after the Muhammedan conquest of that country, from which, asin the case of many other ludian tales, it would return to Persia.430 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:found the twain lying dead, whereby he knew that they weresharpers who had plotted to play him foul, but their foul play hadrecoiled upon themselves. So the merchant was preserved, and tookwhat they had.The happy (?) dwellers in the " Vale of Cashmere "--the delightsof which have been chanted by Tommy Moore,In verses smooth and soft as cream,albeit he was never there have a version exclusively their own,apparently, and one which also varies considerably from the Buddhiststory. Mr. Knowles, in his Dictionary of Kashmiri Proverbs andSayings (Bombay, 1885), gives the legend (p. 45) as an illustrationof a Kashmírí proverb; but I suspect that in not a few instances thestory has been made to suit the proverb, instead of the proverbhaving its origin in the tale or fable, as, for example, in the case ofthe sayings, "To bell the cat," " Don't count your chickens untilthey are hatched, " etc. , the sources of which are well known. Inthe following I have condensed a few lines at the beginning, as theyrefer only to the Kashmírí proverb:ONCKashmiri Version.NCE upon a time four men quitted their native land togetherin order to seek their fortune. As they journeyed on, it cameto pass that Allah, according to His power and wisdom, caused alarge golden tree to spring up suddenly, which was loaded with richclusters of golden fruit.¹ Seeing this miracle, the travellers wereastonished, and at once resolved to proceed no farther, but to takethe tree home with them, and be glad for ever. In order to fell thetree, and cut it up into pieces of convenient size, it was arrangedthat two of the party should go to the nearest village and procuresaws and axes, while the two others should remain to guard theprecious treasure; and they went accordingly. The two who wereleft to watch the tree began to consult together how they might killtheir partners, and they resolved to mix poison with their bread, so1 See note on treasure- trees, ante, p. 336.FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 431that, when they ate thereof, they would die, and they themselvesshould have a double share of the treasure. But the other two, whowere going for the tools, had also plotted that they might get rid oftheir partners left behind by the tree, and they resolved to slay themwith one stroke of the axe, and thus have a double share of thetreasure. And when they returned from the village they immediatelyslew them with one stroke of the axe. Then they began to hewdown the tree, and soon cut up the branches and made them intoconvenient bundles; after which they sat down to eat and sleep.They ate of the poisoned bread, and slept the fatal sleep of death.Some time afterward, a party of travellers chanced to pass that way,and found the four bodies lying cold and stiff beneath the goldentree, with the bundles of golden branches ready for carrying away.Along with Buddhism, when it spread eastwards and northwards,the story reached the plains of Tibet, but-probably in consequenceof its having been long transmitted orally from one generation toanother before being again reduced to writing-it has now become,in a shadowy form, mixed up with other tales, the product being"admired disorder ":ΝTibetan Version.INlong past times a hunter wounded an elephant with a poisoned arrow. Perceiving that he had hit it, he followed after thearrow and killed the elephant. Five hundred robbers, who hadplundered a hill- town, were led by an evil star to that spot, wherethey perceived the elephant. As it was just then a time of hungerwith them, they said: " Now that we have found this meat, let 250of us cut the flesh off the elephant and roast it, while 250 go to fetchwater. " Then those among them who had cut the flesh off theelephant and cooked it said among themselves: "Honoured sirs ,now that we have accomplished such a task and collected so muchstolen property, wherefore should we give away part of it to others?Let us eat as much of the meat as we please, and then poison therest. The others will eat the poisoned meat and die, and thenthe goods will be ours. " So, after they had eaten their fill of the432 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE:meat, they poisoned Those who had gone to what remained over.fetch water, likewise, when they had drank as much water as theywanted, poisoned what was left. So when they came back, andthose who had eaten the flesh drank the water, and those who drankthe water ate the flesh, they all of them died.¹One of the Avadánas, or Indian tales and apologues, translatedfrom the Chinese into French by Stanislas Julien, and published, in3 vols. , at Paris, 1859, is sufficiently analogous to be also cited , as afarther illustration of the maxim that " covetousness is the root ofdestruction:"THE ambition of riches exposes us to a danger as formidableas a venomous serpent. We should neither look at them norattach ourselves to them. One day Buddha, journeying in theprovince of Prasirajit, saw a place where a treasure had been deposited by some one, which was composed of a quantity of preciousthings. Buddha said to Ananda, " Do you not see that venomousserpent?" " I see it," replied Ananda. At this moment there wasa man walking behind Buddha. On hearing these words, heresolved to go and see the serpent. Having observed precious andbeautiful objects, he bitterly blamed the words of Buddha, andconsidered them vain and foolish. " These are very precious things,"said he, " and yet he said that it was a venomous serpent! "Straightway he brought all the people of his house to the spot, andby their assistance conveyed away that treasure, so that his wealthbecame immense. But there was a man who presented himselfbefore the king, and told him that that person had lately found agreat treasure, and had not brought it to the judge. So the kingimmediately caused him to be cast into prison, and demanded fromhim the treasure which he had found. He declared that he hadspent it all. But the king would not believe him; he caused himto be stunned with blows, and put him to the most cruel tortures.This man recognized too late the truth of the words of Buddha.21 Tibetan Tales from Indian Sources. Translated from the Tibetan ofthe Kah-Gyur, by F. Anton Von Schiefner. Done into English, from theGerman, by W. R. S. Ralston, M.A. London: Trübner & Co. Pp. 286, 287.2 Avadánas, tome ii. p. 89: the same story, with little variation , also occurs in tome i. p. 60.FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 433These are all the Asiatic versions and variants known to me, andwe may now return to European forms of the story, which do notvery materially differ one from another. The tale of the Hermit,Death, and the Robber, in the 1572 edition of the Cento NovelleAntiche, cited, ante, p. 132, closely resembles the Pardoner's Tale,and it has also a parallel in the old Italian miracle- play of St.Antonio,¹ published in D'Ancona's Rappresentazione Sacre, vol. ii.p. 33ff. , part of the plot of which is as follows:Italian Miracle-Play.( HE Spirit of Avarice places a silver dish in the way of St. THEAntonio, to corrupt his virtue, " for such a springe will snarethe wisest bird. " Antonio walks in the desert and finds the basin.He at once perceives the trick and its origin. Avarice, finding hisdevice unavailing, then sets forth a great pile of gold (monte d'oro) ,resolved, should this attempt fail, to give up the game. Antoniofinds the gold, and roundly rails at the enemy, whose cunning has inthis instance again been foiled.Two robbers, Tagliagambe and Scaramuccia, 2 meet the latterasks the news. Trade is so bad that Tagliagambe has not a groat inhis purse. Scaramuccia has been robbed of a thousand ducats atReggio fair. He proposes that they join hands and take to theroad. At this juncture Carapello, an old acquaintance, comes onthe scene they welcome him, and it is agreed that the three shallshare equally all that they " convey. "The Devil (Satanasso) is introduced, ordering his fiends tosoundly cudgel Antonio, whom pain, if not pleasure, may move.They do his bidding. Antonio is comforted by the appearance ofJesus, who promises him world-wide fame and an eternal reward.Healed of his wounds, Antonio walks into the desert, and meetswith the robbers, whom he counsels to turn back from the death in1 I suppose the holy hero of this play is the Saint Anthony who preached so fervently that the very fish in the sea popped up their heads above water tolisten to him. He was born at Lisbon in 1195, and died at Padua in 1231 .2 Leg-slasher and Skirmisher.CH. ORIG. 30434 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE- TROVE:their way. They take him for a madman, and go on. Finding thepile of gold, they laugh at the hermit's simplicity, who had called itDeath.The three robbers agree to draw lots for one of them to go toDamascus for food and flasks of wine, and a pair of balances toweigh the gold. The lot falls on Scaramuccia, who sets off, but onthe way reflects on his folly in leaving the others in possession ofthe gold, and resolves to have it all for himself. He changes hislump for two and twenty ducats, purchases ratsbane of an apothecary, and plenty of victuals and wine, and, having poisoned theviands, he returns. Meanwhile the two others have concerted hisdeath, and as soon as he appears they pick a quarrel with him anddespatch him. They then sit down to their meal and dine heartily,particularly commending their late comrade's taste in wine; andwhile they are considering how they shall extract the most enjoyment from their treasure, the poison begins to work, and speedilymakes an end of them.Avarice, delighted at his success , returns to Satan, full of confidence, and makes his report. He is promised a crown as his rewardfor having brought three souls below instead of one. An angelcloses the show, and dismisses the spectators with a solemn injunction to take warning by the catastrophe, and to direct their eyesupward, seeking God, who is the true riches.INGerman, French, and Portuguese Versions.N one German version three robbers murder a merchant for hismoney; in another three men of Balkh find a treasure; in yetanother (Kuhn's Westfälische Sagen, Gebrauche, und Märchen) threeJews commit a robbery, and so on. Hans Sachs in a " Meisterlied,"written in 1547, and again in a " Spiel," written in 1555 , has thestory in a form similar to that of the second Italian version (ante,p. 132), the only variations being that the hermit discovers thetreasure in the hollow trunk of a tree, and the robbers, when he hasconducted them to the place and warns them that the treasure isDeath, thinking he is mocking them, instantly kill him.FOR THE PARDONER'S TALE. 435M. Paulin Paris, in Les Manuscrits français, tome iv. p. 83, citesa version from a treatise on the Holy Scripture, " blaming the vicesand praising the virtues " therein, of the 15th century, in which fourrascals find a golden stone, and agree to share it when they havebreakfasted. Two of them keep watch over the treasure while theother two go to buy bread, and so on. Thus may we understandhow things of earth are death to those who know not how to usethem well; for a hundred men may damn themselves for an inheritance, and the inheritance remain in its place to this day. It is thegolden stone which does not die. "66In Theophilus Braga's Contos tradiciones do povo portuguez, No.143, a version is reproduced from the Orto do Sposo of Frei Hermenegildo, 14th century, in which, as in the old French story, the numberof the robbers is four: they open a grave near Rome, and find in itgold and silver, precious stones, and vessels and cups of gold; oneof them goes to the town to procure food, for which he gives thelargest and finest golden cup, and so on.¹On comparing the several versions, it will be found that whilethe principal details of the original reappear in all of them withoutexception, one of its features has dropped out of the greater number,namely, the Bodisat's warning to the Bráhman that his own deathand that of others would result from his reciting the treasureproducing mantra. This is represented in the first Arabian version,in which Jesus counsels the sordid Jew to leave the gold; in thefirst Italian (ante , p. 131 ) , in which Christ tells his disciples that thetreasure they had discovered was the destroyer of souls; in thesecond Italian (p. 132) and Hans Sachs, in both of which a hermitwarns the robbers that Death (the treasure) is in a certain place; andin Chaucer also, where, however, the " old chorle " does not exactlywarn, but rather directs, the three youths where they " may findindeth." In the other versions the evil-doers have no such warning,but the result is precisely the same-they perish through their owncupidity.1 I may state that I have in this paper reproduced and re-arranged someof the variants cited in my work on Popular Tales and Fictions.436 19. THE ROBBERS AND THE TREASURE-TROVE.The writer of a critical paper on the works of Chaucer in theRetrospective Review, 1826, vol. xiv. , Part II. , p. 341, says that " thePardoner gives first a description of his preachings and his traffic ,in such a style as sufficiently to show that it would have required no' thinking time ' to prepare him for ' japes and ribaudry,' and then astory, not unfit to have formed a part of one of his sermons ofvulgar cajollery, which he has described himself as ranting to hiscustomers." What there is at all approaching " vulgar cajollery " inthe Pardoner's Tale no one but this writer, I will venture to assert,has ever discovered. The tale is, on the contrary, not only in itselfstriking, but is told by Chaucer in a manner that is superior to anyother version in prose or verse. Take for example those incidentswhich are apparently of our poet's own invention, and which renderthe catastrophe still more impressive: A pestilence is raging in acertain city, and three young men, dicing in a tavern, learning thatthe church-bell is constantly tolling because a " privie theefe " hascome and is taking away the lives of the folk, start up and swearthey will seek out this traitor called Death, and slay him withoutfail. They meet an old man, and jeer at him because of his greatage and decrepitude. He tells them that though he should walkinto India, yet neither in city nor in village should he find any onewilling to exchange his youth for his own old age, and so he mustcontinue as long time as it is Goddes will," for Death will nothave him, wherefore he walks about like a restless caitiff, vainlyknocking with his staff on the ground (which is his mother's gate),saying, "Dear mother, let me in! " Then the old man directs thethree "riottours " to an oak- tree, at the foot of which they wouldfind Death, who would certainly not be afraid of them.charge, or insinuation, made by the "retrospective " reviewer, thatthe Pardoner's Tale is flippant, is of course utterly absurd. True tohis character, the Pardoner represents himself as indulging in japesand ribaldry in the course of his trade; but he goes on to say thatthough he is a sinful man, yet he can tell a moral tale, and thenfollow a long series of just reflections upon various vices and sins, inwhich there is assuredly nothing of the nature of " vulgar cajollery."GLASGOW, December, 1886.6643720.The Tell- Tale Bird:LATIN SOURCE, OTHER EUROPEAN VERSIONS, ANDASIATIC ANALOGUESOFChaucer's Manciple's Tale.By W. A. CLOUSTON.CH. ORIG.31438LATIN SOURCEGOWER'S VERSION

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... 469439THE TELL-TALE BIRD:LATIN SOURCE, OTHER EUROPEAN VERSIONS, AND ASIATICANALOGUES OF THE MANCIPLE'S TALE.BY W. A. CLOUSTON.THE Manciple's Tale, simple though it be in construction, is ofpeculiar interest to students of the history of popular fictions. Inits more elaborate form-which is of purely Eastern origin-itbelongs to the Woman's Wiles Cycle of tales, as will be shown inthe course of this paper. Chaucer adapted his story from Ovid'sMetamorphoses, Book II, Feb. 9, where it is thus told:"ALatin Source.heard how Nic- temene became abird, for incest? ""Aplague on your omen,"ista malo nos vanum spernimus omen. " quoth the raven,and tells hisN, quæ per totam res est notissima Lesbon, 591 " Haven't youNon audita tibi est, patrium temerâsse cubileNyctimenen? avis illa quidem; sed conscia culpæ,Conspectum lucemque fugit, tenebrisque pudoremCelat et a cunctis expellitur æthere toto. "Talia dicenti; " Tibi, " ait, " revocamina, " corvus,"Sint, precor,Nec cœptum dimittit iter; dominoque jacentemCum juvene Hæmonio vidisse Coronida narrat.Laurea delapsa est, audito crimine, amanti;Et pariter vultusque Deo, plectrumque, colorqueExcidit: utque animus tumida fervebat ab ira;Arma adsueta rapit; flexumque a cornibus arcumTendit; et illa suo toties cum pectore junctaIndevitato trajecit pectora telo.Icta dedit gemitum, tractoque a vulnere ferroCandida pœniceo perfudit membra cruore;Et dixit, " Potui pœnas tibi, Phabe, dedisse;lord of Coronis and a young Harmonian.600 The god in wrath bent his bow,and sped the shaft.She drew it forth:" I might have first brought forth , Phabus."440 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:Her life-blood flows; she dies.Too late he la- mentshis cruelty;hates bird, bow and arrows;610Sed peperisse prius: duo nunc moriemur in una. "Hactenus; et pariter vitam cum sanguine fudit:Corpus inane animæ frigus letale sequutum est.Pœnitet heu! sero poenæ crudelis amantem;Seque, quod audierit, quod sic exarserit, odit:Odit avem, per quam crimen causamque dolendiScire coactus erat; nervumque, arcumque, manumqueOdit, cumque manu, temeraria tela, sagittas:Collapsamque fovet; seraque ope vincere fata.Nititur; et medicas exercet inaniter artes.tries to revive her Quæ postquam frustra tentata, rogumque parariVidit, et arsuros supremis ignibus artus;in vain.He groans to see her on the pyre;snatches the child from the flames;and changes the raven to black.Tum vero gemitus, neque enim cælestia tinguiOra licet lacrimis, alto de corde petitosEdidit: haud aliter, quam quum, spectante juvenca,Lactentis vituli, dextra libratus ab aure,Tempora discussit claro cava malleus ictu.Ut tamen ingratos in pectora fudit odores,Et dedit amplexus, injustaque justa peregit;Non tulit in cineres labi sua Phoebus eosdemSemina sed natum flammis uteroque parentisEripuit; geminique tulit Chironis in antrum:Sperantemque sibi non falsæ præmia linguæ,Inter aves albas vetuit considere corvum.620632Gower has also, and avowedly, taken this fable into his ConfessioAmantis, Book III, as follows, according to Harl. MS. 3869, lf. 101:Phoebus had aloverGower's Version.Phebus, * which makp pe daies lihte,A loue he hadde, which po¹ hihte

• Quia litigantes ova sua cohibere nequiunt hic ponit Confessor Exemplum contra illos qui in amoris causa alterius consilium reuelare presumunt. Et

narrat qualiter quedam auis tunc albissima, nomine Coruus, consilium dominesue Coruide phebo denudauit; Vnde contigit non solum ipsam Coruideminterfici; set et coruum, qui antea tanquam nix albus fuit, in piceum colorem pro perpetuo transmutari. [ Sidenote, in red, in the MS. ]1 Then.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 441Cornide, whom a-bouen¹ alle•He plesep bot what schal befalleOf loue, per is noman knoweþ.Bot as fortune hire happes proweb,So it befell vpon a chance,A 30ng knyht tok hire aqueintance,And hadde of hire al þat he wolde.Bot a fals bridd, which sche hap holdeAnd kept in chambre of pure 30wpe,Discoeuerep al þat euere he cowpe.2This briddes name was as poCorvus, pe which was panne alsoWel more whyt þan eny Swan;And he pat schoot, ³ al þat he canOf his ladi , to phebus seide.And he for wrappe his swerde outbreide, 4Wip which Cornide anon he slowh; 5Bot after him was wo ynowh,And tok a full gret repentance;Wherof, in tokne and remembranceOf hem which vsen wicke" speche,Vpon pis bridd he tok pis wreche:7That per he was snow-whyt tofore,8Euere afterward colblak perforeHe was transformed , as it schewep.And many a man zit him beschreweb,"And clepen 10 him into pis dayA Raven, be whom zit men maiTake euidence, whan he criep,That som mishapp it signefiep.Be war, perfore, and sei pe beste,called Cornide,4 butlove is pre- carious.812She loved a young knightbut a pet bird,a crow, white as a swan,16 told allto Phœbus,and he slew Cor- nide.20 Then he repented24the deed, and, asa warning to slanderers,changed the crow from white to black.28 So the raven's32cry is ominous of evil.Tell no tales,therefore, my son.If you wolt be piself in reste,Mi goode Sone, as .I. þe rede.¹¹1 Above. 2 Knew.4 Drew out. 68 Before; up to that time.353 "Shoot": imp or progeny of the devil.Slew. o Wicked; false.Curseth. 10 Call.7 Revenge.11 Advice; counsel.442 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:Gower, it will be observed, gives the story, not only as a warningto his " son " to be circ*mspect in his speech-to avoid tale-telling,if he would live in peace-but also to account for the croak of theraven being considered as ominous of approaching misfortune to himwho hears it. Chaucer follows his original more closely by simplytelling the fable to explain why " crowes be alle blacke," and he hasa serio-comic reflection on restraining the freedom of women, employing the illustrations of the caged bird and the pet cat.But long before the time of Chaucer and Gower the fable of theTell- Tale Bird had come into Europe in a different form and fromanother source, namely, an oral version of one of the tales in theBook of Sindibád, brought from the East probably during the latercrusades, and included in the Western form of that celebrated work,known generally in Europe as the ' History of the Seven Sages ofRome.' It does not occur in the earliest version, the Latin workentitled Dolopathos (see ante, p. 322) , which, indeed, may beregarded as unique; but it is found in the oldest French metricalversion, Li Romans des Sept Sages, written probably towards theend of the 13th century, which Dr. Adelbert Keller published, atTübingen, with a most learned and elaborate Einleitung, in 1836.The story begins with line 3150 of the MS. preserved in the NationalLibrary, Paris, and on p. 121 of Dr. Keller's edition:A rich man had a pie,that could talk like a woman.THE HUSBAND AND HIS MAGPIE.Oldest French Version.HIL riches hom ot vne pie,CHILHe hiest bien drois, que vous die;El parloit si apertement,Et si tres entendablement,Autressi comme che fust fame;Grant parole en fu par le regne.It was kept in an Eu vne gayole molt biele iron cage,De fier, ki fu faite nouuiele,5པ་Fu enserree cele pie,Ki tant fu sage et ensaignie;10FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 443A vne chaine ert fremeeLa gayole de fier doublee;Vers le toit lauoit on pendue,Si estoit en biele veue;Il ne valsist pour nul chatal,Que nule riens li feist mal.En lostel ot mestier molt grant,Tuit le haoient li serghant;Il ni eust riens mescheue,Que tout ne fust par li conte,Ne fait, ne dit chose en trestor,Que tout ne deist au signor.La dame ne fu tant hardie,Kele issist hors sans compaignie,Sel neust deus hommes ou trois,Et sen reuenoit de manois,La pie le gardoit si fort,De son dru li tolt le deport.Molt le haoient li serghantCommunalment petit et grant,Et la dame molt le haoit,Mais mal faire ne li osoit.Un ior ni fu pas le signor,Ne de ses hommes li pluisor;La dame remest et la pieA sa maisnie a escherie.Ele se sist et pourpensa,Confaitement sen vengera.Ele en apiela un serghant,Et cil en uint ali errant:Puis mege point fier en toi?Oil, ma dama, par ma foi.15202530fastened with achain,hanging from the roof.Hated by the servants for tell- ing tales,so that the wife dared not go abroad alone,for the pie told all.One day the man goes from home,35 so she'll punish the pic.Calls a servant.40Astu veu, de cele pieNe me lait mener druerie,"You see how the pie won't let me play with my friend .LU444 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD

At night go on the roof,throw gravel through the cracks, so the pie may haveabad time

Ne puisa mon ami parler,Baisier, ioir, ne acoler

Sestu ore, que te feras?Sempres par nuit ten monterasPardedesus cele maison,Et si le me descueure enson,Puis ten descen sor le planchier,Menuement le fai perchier,Cue et grauiele porteras,Par les pertruis les jeteras,Si que la pie soit moillie,Et quil traie male nuitie

takea mallet and Et un maillet desus ferras,makea noise,Plain poing de candoilles tenras,flash candles, as it Ki seront molt bien alumees,werea storm."All this is done,Par le pertruis seront mostrees,Quele cuide, che soit ores.Et meruilleuse tempestes.45505560Chil en fist son commandemant,Sor la maison monta errant,Eta tout auoec lui porte,65and the pie hasasad night.Atdawn he comes down,Chou que la damea deuise

Onques ne fina toute nuit,Or ot la pie mal deduit.Quant la gaite corna le iour,Et li serghans tout sans trestour 70De la maison sen descendi,and she bids the lover put on his clothes and be off.Saying"good.bye,"Et maintenant le racouuri,Et la dame refist leuerIsnielement saus demorerSon ami, ki od lui gisoit.La dame molt bien li disoit,Kil se hastast dapparillier.Lors se leua le cheualier,Et se vesti hastiuement,75FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 445Puis semparti isnielement,Congie demande, si senua,Mais la pie li escria:Sire gerart, li fils tierri,Maluais plait nous aues basti.Pour coi natendes mon signor,Quant vus gisies auoec soisor?Honte grant uous en auenra;Je li dirai, quant il venra.Cil semparti, il remanoit.Es vus le signor, ki venoit;De son palefroi descendi,La dame auoit lestrier saisi,Entor le col li mist ses bras,Et dist, kele amoit son solas,Molt se gaboit bien del baron,Quele nel prisoit un bouton.Li cheualiers sesmeruilla,Que sa pie alui ne parla;Droit a la gaiole en venoit,80the pie cries,"Sir Gerard, son of Thierry, has served up an evil 85 dish: I'll tell the master."90 Themaster95comes;his wife holds his stirrup and embraces him.Hewonders at the pic's silence.Sa femme iouste lui estoit.Li sires apiela sa pie:100Que faites vous, mehaut amie?Comment vous est? niestes vous sainne?Dites le moi por sainte helainne!Vous solijes amoi parler,Et molt grant ioie demener;"What's the matter, sweet- heart?105 You usedto amuse me, and now you are coy and mute." Or vous voi si coie et si mue,Et si pensiue et esperdue.Sire, lochoisons est honeste,Tant sui batue de tempeste,Conques toute nuit ne fina;Ne que liauc, caumolin va,Ne de plouuoir, ne de venter,Ne desloidir, ne de tonner;"I've got cause:all night I've been 110 beat with rain,wind, thunder and lightning;446 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD

and your wife lay with Gerard, son ofThierry."Et vostre femme se couchaDedens che lit, ke vees la,Auoec gerart le fil tierri.Dist la dame

sire

, merchi!Says the Dame,"Don't believe it!115Ensi le deues vous bien croire,Plusa dun moys ne fist tonnoire.120Esgardes en cele palu,See ifit has rained!The moon shone all night,Sil la ne tant ne quant pleu.Ainsi auint or la fortune,Que chelui soir raia la lune,Trestout nuit luisant et biele,125De cors estoit non pas nouiele

Que la ou li sires estoit,so much so thatthe knights com- plained of it."En la maison, ou il gisoit,Raia la lune desour lui

Ki molt li faisoit grant anui

A ses cheualiers se plaignoit130De la lune, ki si luisoit.He thinks the pie Lors cuida il bien, que sa pieLi ait par tout dit trecherie

has been false

opens the cage,takes the ple and kills it.La iaiole auoit desfremee,135Sa main auoit dedens boutee,Au maltalent, kil ot honeste,Li auoit rompue la teste

Pui le tua de maintenant."Fly to the devil! Vastu au dyable volant!140for thou'st often made me wroth with my wife. "Car maintes fois ma fait irier,Et ma femme corechier.Presently he Atant en son lit est assis,sees the roofing removed; Molt corechous et molt pensis

Contremont auoit regarde,145Si vit le feste remue,calls fora ladder, Et laisil, qui fu enuiron,Et la liue de la maison,Que pendre molt eni soloit,Mais ore point nen sauoit.150FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 447Un sien serghant lues apicla:Une eschiele maporte cha!Que par ihesu, qui ne menti,Je cuic, ma femme ma trai.Et cil a leschiele aportee,Droit au feste si la leuee.Li sires est amont montes,Que plus ne si est arestes.Vne palu auoit veue,Ki de leue fu espandue,Et le maillet i regarda,Et la cire, kil degoutaDes candoiles, com le seriantLes aloit desus bauloiant.Or seit il bien sans trecherie,Qua tort auoit occis sa pie.De maintenant atrait lespee,Si a sa femme decolee;Or a il fait comme li leus,Pour un damaige en a fait deus." For, by Jesus,my wife is false!"155 He climbs to the roof,160sees the malletand the wax from the candles.165 Nowhe knows he has killed the innocent pie,170and cuts off the wife's head.For one wrong ho has done three.In the 14th century an English metrical version was made fromthe French under the title of The Proces of the Seuyn Sages, theonly copy of which exists in the Auchinleck MS. , preserved in theAdvocates' Library, Edinburgh, and it is printed in the third volumeof Henry Weber's Metrical Romances of the 13th, 14th, and 15thCenturies.¹ As Weber's editions of the old romances are not alwaysaccurate, the story of the Burgess and his Magpie, which follows,has been collated with the original in the Auchinleck MS. byMr. J. T. Clark, of the Advocates' Library, for whose kind services Itake this opportunity of gratefully acknowledging my indebtedness:1 Ellis, in his Specimens of Early English Metrical Romances, gives anepitome of another version, from the Cotton MS. folio in the British Museum;and Wright edited, for the Percy Society ( vol . xvi. ) , a different MS. preservedin the University Library of Cambridge. Our prose version, first printed byWynkyn de Worde (c. 1505), and afterwards by William Copeland ( c. 1550) ,was made from a French translation of the Latin prose work entitled HistoriaSeptem Sapientum Romæ, composed soon after the introduction of printing.448 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:Oldest English Version."There was a rich burgess in Rome,A burgeis was in Rome toun,fickle wife.A richeman, of gret renoun;Marchaunt he was, of gret auoir, 2who had a fair but And had a wif was queint³ and fair;But sche was fikel under hir lok,And hadde a parti of eue smok:And manie ben zit of hire kinne,bat ben al bilapped per inne!He had a pie that could talk in French,and told her lord of his wife's in- trigues.One day when the burgess was from home,the wife sent for her lover,be burgeis hadde a pie in his halle,bat coupe telle tales alleApertlich , in French langage,And heng5 in a fair cage,And sep lemmans comen and gon,And teld hire louerd? sone anon;And, for þat þe pie hadde i-said,he wif was ofte iuel i-paid.8And pe burgeis louede his pie,For he wiste he coupe nowt lie.So hit bifil vpon a dai,he burgeis fram home tok his wai,And wente aboute his marchaundise:he wif waited ancn hire prise,⁹And sente hire copiner 10 fore;And whanne he com to the halle dore,11 who came privily He ne dorste nowt in hie,¹¹ for fear ofthe pie.For pe wreiing12 of the pie.he wif him bi the hond hent,And into chaumbre anon thai went.The pie cries out he pie bigan to grede 13 anon:"Ya! now mi louerd is out i-gon,"You're herefor hou comest hider for no gode!I schal zou wraie, bi pe rode! "no good; I'll tell."1 Auchinleck MS. fol. 60, c, line 6 from foot.4 Openly; plainly.8 Ill-pleased.2 Possessions.510152025303 Neat.6 Sees. 7 Lord; master.10 Lover. 11 Rashly.13 Cry.6 Hung.9 Opportunity.12 Discovering; betraying.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 4491be wif pouzte schent¹ ze was;A wrenche² 3he pouzte napelas,³And clepede a maide to make here bed,And after, bi hir boper4 red,5A laddre pai sette pe halle to,And vndede a tile or two;Ouer pe pie pai gan handelA cler bacyn and a candel;A pot ful of water clerpai schadde upon pe pies swer.7With bacyn beting and kandel liztbai bobbed the pie bi nizt,And water on him gan schenche: 9his was on of wommannes wrenche.bo¹0 the dai dawen gan,Awai stal the yonge man.Men vnlek dore and windowe;The pie hir schok with mochel howe, 11For sche was fain that hit was dai:pe copiner was went his wai.be gode burgeis was hom i-come;In to pe halle pe wai he nome.12be pie saide: " In God Almigt!pe copiner was her to-nizt,And hap i-don thè mochel schame;I-mad an hore of oure dame!And it hit had ben to- niztGret rain and ponder brizt;Sehchen 13 ich was brid in mi nest,I ne had neuere so iuel rest. "be wif hap pe tale i-herd,And pouzte wel to ben amered; 141 Shamed. 2 Stratagem; trick; wile.-The wife devises a trick.35 Calls a maid to her.By means of aladder they undid a tile or two,flashed a basin and candle over 40 the pie,and shed a pot of water on her neck.4550At dawn the lover stole away.The burgess comes home.55 The pie tells him ofthe lover,and howit had thundered all 60 night.3 Nevertheless.4 Bother of both. 6 By their joint counsel.6 A clear basin-polished so as to reflect the light.8 Deceived. 9 Same as skenke, to pour out.11 Much care. 12 Took: nime7 Neck.10 Then.=take. 13 Since.14 Examined; proved innocent: amerian, Sax.The wife, hearing this, says:450 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:"Sir,you should And saide: " Sire, thou hast outrage not believe a pie.The night was clear,and she says it thundered.Many a lie she's told, but I'll beTo leue a pie in a kage!To-nizt was be weder fair and cler,And þe firmament wel fair;And sche saip hit hap ben thonder;She hap i-lowe¹ mani a wonder;revenged of her." But ich be² awreke of here swipe,Ne schal I neuer ben womman blipe! "He learns from his neighbours that it had been a fine night.So he said the pie should lie no more,and broke her neck.But he is soon sorry,and suspects foul play.He goes out;sees the ladder;climbs up to the roof;The godeman askede his negeboursOf þat nizt and of pe ours.And pai saide pat al þat nistWas the weder cler and brizt.he burgeis saide pe pieNe scholde him namore lie.Namo wordes he þar spak,But, also swipe, his nekke to-brak.And whanne he sez his pie ded,For sorewe coude he no red:He sezgh³ hir and his cage,He pouzte of gile and of outrage.He wente him out, pe ladder he seg3,5And up to be halle rof he steg;; 6finds the pot with be pot wi; þe water he fond the water,and the other things.He goes down in a great rage,and with a staff beats his wife out ofdoors,and bids her go to the Devil.1 Laid.4 Suspected.(hat he brak wiz his hond );And mani oper trecheriehat was i-don to his pie.He went him doun, wizouten op,In his herte grim and wrop;And wis a gode staf, ful sket,His wife ate dore he bet,And bade hire go, þat ilche day,"On alders twenti deuel wai! 92 But = except, unless.5 Seeth.3 Beheld.6 Mounteth. Sax. stigan.65707580853090967 That very day that very instant there and then. 8 Alder =of all.9 On the way of all the twenty devils, to hell. -Here the injured husbandcontents himself with driving his wife out of doors, but in the French version he cuts off her head.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 451About a century before the monk of Alta Silva composed hisDolopathos, a Greek version of the Book of Sindibád, entitledSyntipus, was made from the Syriac by one Andreopulos, regardingwhom nothing is known; but there is no evidence that the Frenchmonk was acquainted with this or any other written Eastern versionof the work. With a parrot in place of a magpie our story occurs inall the Asiatic texts of the Book of Sindibád, and this is how it goesin the Greek text as edited by Dr. Eberhard:TGreek Version.HERE was a man of the tribe of Agarenes [ i. e. Arabs] who,being officiously and curiously inquisitive into what was done.in his house, purchased a bird which spoke articulately, that whichin common parlance is called " parrot." And putting the bird in acage, he brought and kept it in his house, and charged the bird towatch his wife closely, [saying], " and if, when I am away fromhome, the woman do aught amiss, take care to tell me. " So theman, having charged the parrot in this manner, departed on ajourney. But then a certain man entered the house and committedadultery with the woman, her handmaid also being aware of this.Now when the man came back from his journey, he asked theparrot what he had seen the woman doing. The parrot declaredto his lord all the licentious conduct of the wife; and the man wassorely grieved, and lay no longer with her. And the wife suspectedher own handmaid of having reported her affairs to the man, andcalling her, said wrathfully and bitterly: " Hast thou of a truthreported to my husband all that I have done? " And the handmaidswore a great oath that she had not told her master a word abouther. "But know, mistress, it is the parrot that has told all aboutthee to the master. " When the woman heard of the bird's accusation, she had recourse to an artifice to prove to her husband that thebird was false. The next night, taking the parrot with his cagewhere she lay, she set near it an upper millstone and turned it ,wherefrom a noise as of thunder was heard; and before the bird'seyes she moved a mirror about, so that it seemed to shoot forthlightnings; moreover, suspending a wetted sponge above the parrot,452 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:she made water to stream upon it. Now the parrot, while all thiswas going on, hid itself in a corner of its cage, and to the bird itseemed all the night through to rain, and roar, and lighten, andthunder. In the morning the woman's husband went tothe parrot,and said to it: "What hast thou seen this night? " And the parrotmade answer: "The rain and thunder and lightnings of the nighthave not suffered me to see what happened this night." Then theman, hearing these words of the bird, said within himself: " Indeedthere was nothing true in all that the bird reported to me, but all hetold me was false and deceiving, as is plain from what he has justnow told me. For nothing has happened this night, nor did raincome down, nor thunders roar, nor lightnings flash; whence also allthat the parrot told me about my yokefellow was verily falsehoodand deceit."1The Book of Sindibád is generally allowed to have originated inIndia, and there is strong evidence that it is of Buddhist invention:if this be so, the classical fable of Phœbus and the Crow must beconsidered as an adaptation of the tale of the Merchant and hisParrot. It is probable that this idea of a man having a talking birdto watch over his wife's conduct during his absence suggested theplan of the Sanskrit collection entitled Suka Saptati, or SeventyTales of a Parrot, in which a parrot detains its mistress from anillicit amour on which she was bent, night after night, while herhusband is on a journey. This work is a comparatively modernversion of a much older book, now lost, which was translated intoPersian, under the title of Tútí Náma, Parrot- Book, or Tales of aParrot, also no longer extant, but it was re-written, as is stated insome verses atthe end, in A.H. 730 ( A.D. 13292), by Ziyá ed-DinNakhshabí, at the command of a great personage, whom he does notname. Ziyá ed-Dín assumed Nakhshabí as his takhallus, or poetical1 Here the man neither kills the parrot nor punishes his wife; and inanother MS. text of Syntipas ( Codex Dresdensis, D 33), also reproduced by Eberhard, we are told that " henceforth he loved his wife better than before,and they dwelt still in concord. -In such wise wrought that all-wicked womanagainst her husband. "-The story also occurs near the beginning of theArabian Nights, and in the Turkish History ofthe Forty Vezírs (Gibb).2 Not 1306, as stated, ante, p. 310.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 453name, from Nakhshab, or Nasaf, the modern Karshí, a town situatedbetween Samarkand and the river Oxus-probably his birthplace.¹The Tútí Náma comprises fifty-two tales, and the work has not yet,I understand, been wholly translated into any European language.The twelve first stories were rendered into English " by a Teacher ofPersic " —that is, the Rev. B. Gerrans and published, at London, in1792, and the translator did not complete his work-perhaps forlack of sufficient public encouragement.2 An abridgment of thePersian text, reducing the number of the tales to thirty-five , madeby Muhammed Kádirí in the last century (through which Nakhshabi's work is now mainly known in India), was translated intoEnglish and published at Calcutta and London, 1800-1 , and intoGerman by G. J. L. Iken, Stuttgart, 1837.9-In most of the Indianversions (Telúgú, &c. ) the parrot is a man who has assumed theform of that bird from some cause-in consequence of a curse orotherwise but this disappears, of course, from the Persian book.As Gerrans' book is now rarely met with outside of great libraries,I here reproduce the introduction and opening tale:Frame of the Persian " Parrot-Book."IN the of peace and plenty,welen eltypaistata N the joyful days of peace and plenty, when every peasant atemilking, there flourished in one of the cities of Hind5 a merchant,whose name was Mubarak.6 His warehouses were filled withmerchandise, his coffers overflowed with gold, and he counted his1 Dr. Rieu's Catalogue of Persian MSS. in the British Museum, vol. ii. ,p. 753.2 Dr. Rieu does not seem to be aware that Gerrans' translation is notcomplete.3 A Turkish version of the Tútí Náma ( Dr. Rieu terms it an " imitation,"but I am informed by a competent Turkish scholar that it is a fair abridgmentof the Persian work) has been translated into German by Georg Rosen,Leipsig, 1858.4 In other words, in the fabulous golden age, when, saith a Persian poet,"the world was free from the ills of strife, and the eye of the arrow saw not the face of the bow." In Hindú tales the cow and the tiger are often represented as living together in amity, and the earth as yielding its fruits in abundance during the reign of a just rájá.5 India.CH. ORIG.Gi. e. Fortunate.32454 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:diamonds by sacks. His house was magnificent and convenient,his attendants numerous and splendid, and his clients as the sandsof the shore. But the bowl of his auspicious fortune was embitteredby the sherbet of anxiety, and the sunshine of his felicity blastedby the mildew of grief; for though the choicest mirabolans ofbeauty ornamented his gilded haram, yet to transmit his name toposterity the pearl-string of succession was wanting. To obtain theblessing of offspring, lowly on the dust of humility he prostrated thebrow of obedience, and daily offered to the Father of Clemency thegrateful incense of prayer. The odour of his supplication gainedadmission to the durbar of benevolence, and the sterile cloud whichhad long overshadowed the horizon of opulence disappeared. Afternine moons had completely filled their orbs, a son was born in hishouse, who, in a two-fold degree of perfection, eclipsed the beauty ofYusuf.11 That is, Joseph the son of the Hebrew patriarch Jacob, whose personalcomeliness is celebrated by many Muslim poets and prose writers. Accordingto the legend, the lady friends of Zulaykha, the wife of Potiphar (who was aeunuch, it is said), having reproached her for being in love with the youngslave, she invited them to afternoon tea (or its ancient Egyptian equivalent),and, after causing a fruit and a knife to be put in the hands of each lady,she secretly summoned Joseph, at the sight of whose beauteous countenance the ladies in their excitement cut their hands with the knives. Then quothZulaykha to them: " Do you now marvel at my love for this Hebrew youth? "This is how Kádirí's version begins: " One of the princes of former times,whose name was Ahmad Sultan, possessed much riches and effects, with anumerous army, so that one hundred thousand horses, fifteen hundred chainsof elephants, and nine hundred strings of camels of burthen stood ready at his gate. But he had no children, neither son nor daughter. He thereforecontinually visited the worshippers of God [i. e. devotees, or darveshes] , to engage their intercession in his favour; and day and night, morning and evening, was himself offering up prayers for a son. After some time theCreator of heaven and earth bestowed on the aforesaid king a son, of beautifulform, his countenance resplendent as the sun, and his forehead resembling the moon. From the delight occasioned by this event, the heart of Ahmad Sultanexpanded like a new-blown rose. He bestowed many thousand rupís and pagodas on darveshes and fakirs. For three months the omras, vazírs, sages,learned men, and teachers in the city were feasted, and he gave away costlydresses." Here we have-quite unnecessarily, and indeed inconsistently-themerchant Mubarak transformed into a powerful monarch. -The want ofchildren is considered by Asiatics as a great disgrace; and by far the greaternumber of Eastern tales begin by describing the unhappiness of a prince,vazír, or rich merchant, because he had not a son. This is perhaps imitatedin the Tale of Beryn (Chaucer Society Publications, Second Series, xx. , p. 28,1. 845 ff. ), where Fawnus and Agen, in answer to their prayers to Heaven,obtain the "blessing " of an heir after twelve years of wedlock. It doesFOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 455132To this decorator of the mansion of joy Mubarak gave the nameof Maymun; ¹ and when the season of life had put the down of hischeek to flight, he obtained for him a virgin bride, whose name wasKhujasta. The mutual joys of this happy pair were manifested bya thousand marks of delight, and no greater portion of happiness didthe Predestinator at any period decree to a lover and a belovedobject than that which existed between Maymún the rich andKhujasta the happy. The demon of perfidy never assailed theskirts of their fancy, and the breeze of mistrust ruffled not thesurface of their minds; but, equally worthy of each other, they longreposed on the sofa of ease, and quaffed the wine of enjoyment.One day, as Maymún passed through the bazár, the commoncrier, by order of the clerk of the market, was offering a parrot forseem rather strange to find Asiatics lay the want of offspring so much toheart, but their prophets and lawgivers have from very remote times reiteratedthe imperative duty of " replenishing and multiplying "; and in order toenforce this, the sacred books of the Hindús denounce dreadful punishments in the next world on all who have died without leaving issue. For example,in the Introduction Book ( Adí Parva) of the ancient Hindú epic, Mahábhárata,sect. xiii , we are told of a sage who " once undertook a journey over the world, equipped with spiritual energy. And he visited divers holy spots, andrested where night overtook him. And he practised religious austerities, hard to be practised by men of undeveloped minds. And he lived upon air, and renounced sleep for ever. Thus going about like flaming fire, one day hehappened to see his ancestors, hanging head foremost in a great hole, their feetpointing to the sky. On seeing them Jaratkaru (the sage) addressed themthus: ' Who are ye thus hanging head foremost in this hole, by a rope of rirana fibres that is secretly eaten into by rats living here? ' The ancestorssaid: ' We are vow-observing rishis [ holy men] of the Yayavara sect. Wehave come by this low state in consequence of want of descendants. We have a son named Jaratkaru. Woe is us! that wretch hath entered upon a life ofausterities, and the fool doth not think of raising offspring by marriage. It is for that reason that we have met with this fate.' The sage (or " fool, " as hissuffering ancestors termed Jaratkaru) at once sets about the task of begetting a son. In the same Book, sect. ccxxi, a rishi is thus addressed by celestials:"Without doubt, it is for religious rites, study according to the ordinance, andprogeny that men are born debtors. These debts are all discharged by sacrifices, asceticism, and offspring. Thou art an ascetic, and hast also performedsacrifices; but thou hast no offspring. These [ celestial ] regions are shutagainst thee only for want of children . Beget thee children, therefore! Then shalt thou enjoy multifarious regions of felicity. The Vedas have declaredthat the son rescueth the father from a hell called Put. Then, O best ofBrahmanas, strive thou to beget offspring! " -and so he did, and succeeded .One should not have supposed any such commands and threats at all necessary,as human nature is constituted!1 i. e. Auspicious. 2 i. e. Prosperous, fortunate, &c.456 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:sale. Approaching the vender, he demanded the price, and wasanswered a thousand dinárs, ¹ to which Maymún replied indignantly:"He must surely be bound with the rope of ignorance who wouldexpend so much money for a bird! " The parrot exclaimed: " Omaster, before you are acquainted with my qualifications, you haveno reason to find fault with my price. If my body is not full ofdelicate flesh, yet do I possess many accomplishments. The learnedare confounded by my eloquence, the illustrious charmed on beholding me, the populace delighted by my loquacity, while my wit is thesalt of assemblies. I am neither angel nor apostle, but like themmy mantle is green. I am neither húrí nor hermit, but my beautiesresemble the one, and my virtues surpass the other. I am neitherfakír nor Muslim, but a flying chief and rapid companion. I am noking of mortals; but the verdant earth is my carpet, the summit ofthe air my throne, and my dominions are the boundless regions whichseparate the earth from heaven. The concealed actions of good orevil fortune, which are hidden in the womb of futurity from mortals,have been explored by my enlightened eye, and the decrees of thetable of destiny are engraved on my retentive memory. To furnisha proof of my prescience, know that before three days shall elapsethere will be so great a demand for sandal-wood, 2 by the sale ofwhich, if you listen to my advice, you may pay the sum demanded forme, and gain considerably besides. Purchase me therefore on thiscondition, that, if after the period I have mentioned, you choose to1 About five hundred pounds." The 2 In Kadiri's abridgment spikenard is substituted for sandal-wood.sandal-tree," says Forbes, "is indigenous on the rocky hills of the Onore districts, and if permitted would grow to a tolerable size; but the wood is so valuable that the tree is cut down at an early stage, and we seldom meet with any more than a foot broad. The wood is either red, yellow, or whitish brown; and, from its colour and size, is called the first, second, and third sorts of sandal-wood, each varying in price, the best from 150 to 200 rupís the caury, of 560 pounds' weight. The wood of the brightest colour and strongest scent is most esteemed, having a fine grain, and an aromatic smell which it communicates to everything near it; it is therefore used in small cabinets,escritoires, and similar articles, and no insect can exist nor iron rust within its influence. From the dust and shavings is extracted an aromatic oil; the oiland the wood are used by the Hindús and Parsís in their religious ceremonies,but the greatest part of the wood is reserved for the China markets, where it sells to great advantage. ” —Oriental Memoirs, vol. i . p. 308,FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 457retain me in your service, you make good your payment for me withpart of your profits, and if not, you may return me to my presentmaster." This marvellous relation of the green-mantled prattlerfound access to the auditory of Maymún's approbation, and hebought him on the conditions proposed; after which he purchasedall the sandal-wood in the city, and before three days were expiredhe paid the thousand dinárs with an inconsiderable part of the profit,and added the remainder to his capital.¹Some days after, as the merchant passed by the same bazár, theclerk of the market was in like manner offering for sale a.sharyk,2which he purchased and placed by the side of the parrot, hopingthat an agreeable companion would mollify the rigour of servitude,and reconcile him to the confinement of a cage.When the parrot had given the most surprising proofs of hiswisdom and ingenuity, Maymún exhibited him as a prodigy beforecrowded assemblies, consulted him in all his affairs, and entrustedhim with the most important commissions. One day as he sat byhis cage, after discoursing on a variety of subjects , the conversationaccidentally changed to the advantages of travel, which the greenmantled secretary so clearly proved that his master, though he hadnever beheld the sea, began instantly to draw on his boots, and makepreparations for a voyage.Then he repaired to Khujasta, and thus addressed her: " Amiableessence of my soul! beloved rennet of my existence! a young manis a slave to the revolutions of time. Autumn robs the rose-tree of1 A sagacious parrot often figures in Hindú stories, where it is generally represented as a human being re-born in the form of that bird. In theBahár-i Dánish (see ante, p. 313) Jehandar Shah, having learned the magicalart of transferring his own soul into any dead body, reanimates a deer, whenhis treacherous tutor in the art immediately transfers his spirit into the king'sbody, returns to the palace, and personates Jehandar. The king afterwardsenters the dead body of a parrot, allows himself to be captured by a fowler,and bids him ask in the market a large sum of money for him, which he should certainly obtain. A merchant is induced to purchase the parrot bythe sagacious observations which he makes, and the bird soon becomes famous for his shrewd decisions in difficult cases.--The ' idea of this story was probablyborrowed from the Prakrit poetical romance of Vikramaditya, king of Ujjain;and it also occurs in the Kátha Sarit Súgara, the Turkish Forty Vazirs, and other Eastern story- books.2 A kind of nightingale that can be taught to imitate the human voice with wonderful precision.458 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:bloom, and the chilling blasts of winter scatter her verdant honoursaround; yet at the gay return of spring the vital sap re-ascends.But when the autumn of manhood is past, and the winter of oldage crowns the heads of mortals with snow, the spring of youthreturns no more. While the season of life permits, therefore, I amdetermined on a foreign expedition, in order to collect the bread ofindustry from the ocean of immensity; each wave of which rollswealth to the shore, and the bark of the merchant is surroundedwith treasure. A man without riches is fatherless, and a housewithout money is deserted. He that is void of cash may be considered as a nonentity, and he wanders in the crowd unknown. Itis therefore every man's duty to procure money: gold is the delightof our lives; it is the bright live- coal of our hearts-the yellow linkswhich fasten the coat of mail-the gentle stimulative of the world-the complete coining-die of the globe-the traveller who speaksall languages, and is welcome in every city-the splendid brideunveiled, and the defender, register, and mirror of the kings of theearth! "Nakhshabí, the man who has dirhams¹ is handsome;A hundred worms gnaw the bowels of the poor;Gold will be the resuscitation of a people.The sun ever shines inauspicious on the man without money.21 That is, money; Scottice, " siller "; Fr. " l'argent. " A dirham is asilver coin, about equal in value to sixpence.2 This eulogium of riches may be compared with the following maximsfrom the Hitopadesa, in which there is , I think, veiled sarcasm:"With wealth every one is powerful; through wealth one becomes learned."" He who has riches has friends; he who has riches has relations; he who has riches is a man of consequence in the world; he who has riches is even a sage."The Hindú poet Bhartrihari says (Niti Sátaka, 41): " If a man be wealthy,he is of good family, he is wise, he is learned in the Scriptures, he is virtuous,eloquent, beautiful. All the virtues attach themselves to gold."66 In the Burmese story-book, Decisions of Thoo-dhamma-tsari, we read that a man without substance is base and contemptible. "The Arabian poet El- Hariri (ob. 1121 A.D. ) thus addresses a gold dínár, inhis Makamat, as translated by Preston:Hail, noble coin! of saffron colour clear,O'er regions wide who passest far and near!Thy worth, thy titles, current still remain;Thy lines the secret pledge of wealth contain;Successful industry thy steps attend;Thy aspect bright all welcome as a friend;Endeared to all, as though thy precious ore Had e'en been molten from their own heart's core.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 459"Allowing the advantages of a sea-voyage to be great," repliedKhujasta, "and that every surge rolls wealth to the shore, yet theaccidents and misfortunes are greater. The merchant of blest independence can never be considered wise, who through a sordid loveof gold should leave the port of security, hoist to the gale of accident,and expose himself to a thousand dangers on the ocean of ruin .What is gold, but the manacle of the abject—the chain of the contemptible-the blinder of the covetous-the fetter of lovers -thesource of insincere friendship-the gaudy idol of the insensate inultitude the wild plum which ripens with the barley of the hypocrite,and the coined image of the enslavers of mankind? But," continued the lady, " if you are determined upon this expedition, permitme to accompany you; for the sages affirm that the presence of awife in a voyage will fill the sails with delight and smooth thebrow of suspicion. "Maymún rejoined: “ O Khujasta, the sages also compare a wife toa threshold as that is at all times immovable, so a wife should bealways at home. Imitate, then, the threshold's constancy, andWhose purse thou fillest boldness may display,Though kindred be remiss or far away;With thee the great their influence maintain;Without thee pleasure's sons of want complain.What heroes thy collected might hath quelled!What host of cares one stroke of thine dispelled!How oft an angry churl whose fury burned,Thy whispered mention hath to mildness turned!Through thee the captive, by his kin forgot,Is ransomed back to joy's unmingled lot.Such power is thine, that if I feared not blame,I e'en would say, " Almighty is thy name! "But the same ingenious poet also considered the fascinating piece of metalfrom a different point of view, saying that it benefits its possessor only when it takes flight, and concluding thatWise is he who spurns without delay Thy proffered aid, and flings thee far away;Who, deaf to all thy soft enticing tones,With scorn unfeigned thy sordid love disowns,And sternly bids thy glittering form begone,How bright soe'er its false allurement shone. "And William Rowley, in his Search for Money (1609) , says that "itsbest part is but earth, and its too much worshipped greatness, in my poorjudgment, is but a bare- legged passage through many acres of briars for ahandful of rushes on the other side, being found not worth half the toil."Nevertheless, as learning is never despised by a learned man, so wealth is always appreciated by a wealthy man-the ignorant and the poverty- stricken are of no account!460 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:during my absence communicate all your affairs to the parrot andthe sharyk: ask their advice, and transact no concern of momentwhich exceeds the boundaries of your comprehension without thejoint concurrence of these two sagacious birds. Virtue is the childof prudence, and prosperity and safety will be the progeny ofattention. "Here the merchant concluded his lecture, and bade adieu to thesweet paste of his affections, who punctually observed all his commands for a considerable time after his departure.When Maymún had prolonged the moons of his absence, itchanced that as Khujasta was one morning standing on the roof of herhouse, to inhale the breeze of health, the son of the rájá of the citywas passing by with his train, whom she no sooner beheld, but thesubtle poison entered at her eyes and pervaded her enamouredframe. The battle-axe of prudence dropped from her feeble hand;the vessel of continence became a sport to the waves of confusion;and while the avenues leading to the fortress of reason remainedunguarded, the sugar- cane of incontinence triumphantly raised itshead above the rose-tree of patience. The sirdar of the vanguard oftranquillity was overpowered by the hurrawal of passion; and thesultan of inconstancy placed his victorious standard on the citadelof her bleeding heart. If some remaining sparks of honour and dutyat first laid the reins of prohibition on the courser of desire, theywere finally extinguished by the torrent of inclination , and, resignedto her infamy, she said: " Day is the veil of lovers, and night theseason of stratagem to those who long to see an absent favourite.This day, when the extensive carpet of splendour shall be folded up,and the obscure curtain of night let down, I will hasten to the abodeof my prince. "11 This incident is related differently in Kádiri's version: " At the end ofsix months, one day Khujasta, after having bathed herself and adorned herperson, was looking out of a window at the top of the house into the street,when a prince of another country, who had travelled into this city, havingbeheld the glowing cheeks of Khujasta, was distracted with love, and Khujasta also was fascinated at the sight of the prince. The same hour the prince senta procuress to Khujasta privately, with a message that, provided she would only take the trouble to visit his house any night for four hours, he, in returnfor this condescension, would present her with a ring estimated at a lakh ofpagodas. At first, however, she did not agree to his proposal, but at lengthFOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 461Accordingly, when the season of evening had arrived, and thesun was retired behind the veil of the west, Khujasta removed theveil of modesty from her countenance, and, imagining that herfeathered counsellors would, through friendship and complaisance toa lady, commend her resolution and facilitate her departure, shethus addressed the sharyk: " O bird of a thousand songs, a seriousaccident has befallen me, and powerful obstacles impede the execution of a most important business. This night I am determined togo secretly to the mansion of a lover, and moisten my thirsty soulwith the wine of society. What approbation do you show to mypurpose, and what indulgence do you give to my expedition? "The sharyk, with the key of zeal, unlocked the gates of sincerity;expanded the doors of eloquence; and in the most affectionatemanner began to exhibit the chapters of precaution. But the mannaof his salutary counsel was wasted on an ungrateful soil; for,inflamed with rage, and distracted with impure desire, the daughterof infamy drew forth the unfortunate songster from the cage, andwith the rude hand of violence dashed him upon the pavement ofdeath.After this, glowing with indignation and stained with cruelty,she repaired to the parrot's cage, and said: " Secretary of the verdantmantle, what advice have you to offer, and what indulgence do yougive to my passion? " The bird of sagacity, after clawing his head,ruffling up his feathers, and rubbing his beak on his perch, drewfrom the treatment of his comrade this conclusion: " If, in thebeaten path of sincerity, I unlock the springs of exhortation, Ishall experience the sharyk's fate; and if, by unbounded indulgenceand ill-timed connivance, I encourage her in her idleness and infamy,we shall both fall from the battlements of honour into the bottomlessabyss of ruin. Some plan must therefore be concerted to rescue mefrom the precipice of danger, extricate her from the labyrinth ofincontinence, and secure my master's honour. "the instigations of the procuress prevailed, and she returned him for answer,that as day reveals and night casts a veil over our actions, she would waitupon the prince after midnight. "-Gerrans probably omitted the business ofthe go- between as being “ improper "; but by so doing he represented the lady as more depraved than she really was.462 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:66The parrot accordingly commiserated her situation , quenchedthe fire of indignation with the water of flattery, in these words:Immaculate governess! since the table of destiny has decreed thatthe eyes of your affection should be transferred from your consort toa lover, and the bird of disloyalty has built his inflammable nest inyour bosom, pluck the thorn of care from your heart, bind yourselfwith the zone of hilarity, and by my powerful mediation you shallarrive at the tent of delight, and enjoy the musky presence of yourbeloved. Should Maymún return during your absence, and theparticulars of your secret connections be whispered by the breath ofenvy, or transmitted on the leaves of explanation, I have an antidoteready to counteract the poison of malevolence; for the son ofMubarak will listen to me, like the merchant Purúbal, who believedhis co*ckatoo, and was reconciled to his wife. " Khujasta inquiredwhat sort of a story that was, and her ingenious secretary proceededto gratify her curiosity by relating the tale ofTHE PRUDENT co*ckATOO.¹IN one of the principal cities of Hindústán there lived a merchant,whose name was Purúbal, who had a co*ckatoo of such marvellousaccomplishments that he committed to his care the managementof all his affairs, and made him steward of his household; whichimportant trust the bird discharged with honour and integrity, andgave an exact account to his master of everything that passed. Ithappened on one occasion that the merchant was obliged to goabroad on some business, and before leaving home he commandedhis wife to form no connection or transact any business of importance without the advice and approbation of the bird of instruction.The lady promised faithfully to follow his injunctions, though indeednothing was farther from her purpose, for the day after his departureshe became so deeply enamoured of a youth in her neighbourhoodthat she entertained him in her house every night, and convertedthe nuptial sofa into the couch of adultery. The co*ckatoo, throughfear, pretended not to observe what was going on, saying to himself,1 In Kádirí the story is told of the Parrot of Farukh Beg.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 463in the words of Shafei, ¹ " May the blessings of Allah rest on theextremity of my pretended ignorance! "When the merchant returned , the parti-coloured steward gave afaithful and circ*mstantial account of all that had occurred in hisabsence, except the intrigue, which he plunged into the gulf ofoblivion and impressed with the signet of silence, charitably concluding that a disclosure of the affair would strip the bark from thetree of union. But in spite of the bird's reticence, his master wassoon acquainted with the whole matter from another quarter, forlove and musk cannot remain long concealed, as the wise have said.The merchant's wife sorely lamented that the tale of her infamywas thus manifested on the carpet of scandal, and , believing thather husband had been informed of her intrigue by the co*ckatoo,became inimically disposed towards the bird of intelligence, permitted the seed of rancour to be sown in her heart, which bydiligent cultivation ripened into the fruit of vengeance.One night, seizing the opportunity, she cruelly extracted one ofthe longest feathers of his wing; another night she spoiled hisfood; and on a third she plucked him from his cage. The haplessbird, crying aloud for help, brought some of the household to hiscage; but seeing it empty concluded that he had been carried off bya cat.2 But fresh disasters awaited him; for the lady, thinking ittoo much indulgence to kill him at once, disguised herself in avariegated robe, placed a diadem on her head, and drawing hergaudy train like a bird of paradise, ascended a canopy of state, thencommanded a slave to tie a string about the foot of the harmlessfeathered secretary, by which he was suspended from the ceiling,turning round like a darwesh; and to augment the horrors of hissituation, the one while made a noise like a lapwing, at anothercounterfeited the crowing of a co*ck, the cry of a woman in labour, or1 The founder of one of the four " orthodox " sects of Muslims.2 In Kádiri's version it is said that the lady " took an opportunity atmidnight of plucking off the bird's feathers, and, flinging him out of doors,called out to the male and female slaves of the family that a cat had carried away the bird. "3 One of the " dancing," or twirling, Muslim devotees , whose extraordinaryperformances are described in Lane's Modern Egyptians, ch. xi. , and LadyIsabel Burton's Inner Life of Syria, vol. i . ch. xiii .464 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:the monthly lamentations made for the dead. As when the balefulhail- storm copiously descends on the peaceful flower-garden, thetender shoots languish, the branch is stripped of verdure, the rootwithers and internally decays; the fragrant volume of the fullblown rose, in fragments torn, becomes the sport of adverse winds,the distressed rose-bud alters, and his green robe is changed into adeadly blue colour; the jasmine, the snow-drop, and the lily thatdecorates the vale become livid, and the tulip, variegated with whiteand red, droops like an expiring lover.Nakhshabí, lament with the people who mourn:The clamour of a woman is like the sound of a bell;The lamentations of the populace are sweet to exalted souls.If the sorrows for the dead and this lady's behaviour to the co*ckatoohave any analogy, they differ in this particular: for the sages affirmthat the departed spirit is insensible of their prayers and complaints,because in the flowery bowers of Paradise, where pleasures are uninterrupted and eternal, no crevice can possibly remain open to admitthe voice of affliction; whereas the poor bird was so deeply affectedby the lady's behaviour that it nearly cost him his life. In theneighbourhood was a cemetery, ¹ to which the mutilated bird repaired,limping, and made choice of a solitary corner from which he neverissued but in the night time to procure himself a scanty meal.While affairs were in this condition, the infamous behaviour ofthe lady spread the gloom of melancholy on her husband's brow, andrent the caul of his heart with the briars of distraction. For theloss of his co*ckatoo he exhibited the energy of woe, and the daughterofadultery he drove from his house; and though conciliating friendspoured the wine of peace and the oil of concord into the wounds ofjealousy, he departed not from the basis of his determination.Nakhshabí, attempt not to move by persuasion the heart afflicted with grief.The heart that is overwhelmed with the billows of sorrow will, by slow degrees, return to itself.When the lady saw that the mediation of friends was vain to bindher husband with the zone of reconciliation, she execrated herwretched existence, and, void of hope, departed to the cemetery,1 According to Gerrans' version, a mosque, but this is evidently an error.and I have substituted cemetery, as in Kádirí.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 465where she determined to pass the remainder of her days indevotion.One night, as she rolled on the pavement of sorrow, tormentedwith the thorn of remorse, the co*ckatoo exclaimed from a hole in amonument: " Contaminated daughter of lewdness, overwhelmedwith the waves of despair, to obliterate thy enormous crimes, andreconcile thee to thy injured husband, the table of destiny decreesthat thou, with thine own hand, pluck every hair from thy head,and spend forty days of penance on the dust of contrition." Thepenitent instantly complied, voluntarily inflicting on herself thisignominious punishment, upon which the bird, coming forth fromits concealment, thus addressed her: " The garment with which youclothed me you yourself shall wear. The ground you have cultivated shall yield its increase, and the seed which you have sown youshall reap . I am that innocent bird whom you so unjustly dishonoured and abused. May this oracular monument bear witness,that the punishment I received from your hand you shall, in duemeasure, receive from me, and the balance of justice shall no longerbe suspended in vain. While I conducted your affairs with rectitude, and carefully guarded your bread and salt, and impressed yourmisconduct with the seal of silence, and disclosed not to yourhusband the history of your enormities, you treated me as a perfidious accuser, and made the corners of the public bazár and theroofs of the bathing-houses echo my imaginary crimes. How shall Imark the packet of your cruelty with the signet of oblivion or forgiveness? How can I attempt to clothe you with the white robe ofinnocence, or with the tongue of hypocrisy impose on my master'scredulity? "The next morning, when the imperial golden-winged co*ckatooof day appeared on his oriental perch, and the serene sharyk ofthe night had retired to his occidental cage, the bird of loquacity,resolving to excel himself in generosity, returned to the merchant'shouse, and with the tongue of congratulation bestowed on him thesalám of health. The merchant asked in surprise: " What artthou? " The bird of ingenuity, unlocking the springs of invention,answered: " I am thine ancient secretary, who was torn from my466 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:cage by the fangs of cruelty, and deposited in the voracious belly ofa cat." The merchant, struck with wonder, doubted the testimonyof his senses, and questioned the bird on the manner of his resurrection, and was answered: " Your innocent and immaculate wife,whom, in the effervescence of your jealous indignation, you turnedout of doors, and branded with the name of adulteress, with no othertestimony of her guilt than the letter of a calumniator unknown, hasnow taken up her residence in the neighbouring cemetery. To thevirtue of her supplication I owe my restoration to life, and I am nowsent to you to be a witness of her chastity, and to testify to theworld that whatever has been reported of her lewdness has nofoundation in truth. " The merchant, full of admiration, exclaimed:"Into what a fatal labyrinth of error has the green-eyed monster ofjealousy conducted me! What an unpardonable crime I have committed! My chaste and virtuous wife, whose prayers are so powerful as to raise the dead, has been by me accused of incontinence! "He then hastened to the mosque, prostrated the forehead of obsequiousness on the threshold of contrition; humbly implored pardonfor the injuries he had inflicted; imprinted on her face and cheekthe salutation of peace; and brought her back to his house with allhonour.The parrot goes on thus every night relating stories to theamorous dame, taking care to prolong his recital until it was toolate for the assignation, and on her husband's return- according toKádiri's version-when the " green-mantled secretary " has informedhim of all that had transpired in his absence: the lady's intendedintrigue; her slaying the sharyk; and his own clever device topreserve her chastity-of body; that of her mind being, as we haveseen, already soiled —he immediately put her to death. Gerrans, inhis Prolegomena, says that " all ends well," from which we maysuppose that in his text the husband was reconciled to his wife. Inone Telúgú version (Totí náma cat'halú) the lady kills the bird afterhearing its recitals; and in another the husband, on learning whathad occurred, cuts off his wife's head and becomes an ascetic-thecruel and foolish man!FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 467This device of a parrot relating diverting stories to keep awanton wife at home is reflected in one of the Kalmuk tales ofArdshi Bordshi (Sanskrit, Raja Bhoja) , where a merchant havingpurchased a wonderfully clever parrot, for a very large sum of money,leaves it to keep watch over the doings of his spouse while he isabroad; and when the lady purposes going out on the pretence ofvisiting her female friends, the parrot detains her all night by tellingher the story of the woman who swore falsely that she had notdishonoured her husband, and yet spoke the truth in so doing,which will be found, ante, p. 357.In Professor T. F. Crane's Italian Popular Tales, pp. 167-183,there are no fewer than three stories of a similar kind, which musthave been derived-indirectly, of course from some Eastern, probably Syriac, version of the ' Parrot- Book.' One of these is fromSicily: A merchant who is very jealous of his wife is obliged to goon a journey, and at her own suggestion he shuts her up in thehouse, with an abundant supply of food. One day she looks outof a window which the husband had inadvertently left open, andjust at the moment a gentleman and a notary happen to pass and seeher. They lay a wager as to which of them should first speak to thelady. The notary (very naturally?) summons an evil spirit , to whomhe sells his soul on the condition that he win the bet. The devilchanges him into a parrot, who gains access to the lady's presence,and to entertain her relates three stories. On the merchant's returnthe parrot is placed on the table at dinner, splashes some of the soupinto the husband's eyes, flies at his breast and strangles him, andthen escapes through the window. After this the notary assumeshis proper form, marries the merchant's widow, and wins his wagerwith the gentleman. In a version from Pisa the story is told verydifferently: A merchant had a beautiful daughter, of whom both theking and the viceroy were deeply enamoured. The king knew thatthe merchant would soon have to go abroad on business, and hewould then have a chance of speaking with the damsel. The viceroywas also aware of this, and considered how he could prevent theking from succeeding in his design. He goes to a witch, and givesher a great sum of money for teaching him how to transform himself468 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:""into a parrot. The merchant buys him for his daughter and departs.When the parrot thinks it about time for the king to come, he saysto the young lady: " I will amuse you with a story; but you mustlisten to me, and not see any one while I am telling it." Then hebegins, and after he has got a little way in it, a servant enters andtells his mistress that there is a letter for her. "Tell her to bring itlater," says the parrot, " and now listen to me." The mistress saidto the servant: "I do not receive letters while my fatheris away,"and the parrot continued. After a while, another interruption;a servant announced the visit of an aunt of her mistress: it was nother aunt, however, but an old woman who came from the king.Quoth the parrot: "Don't receive her-we are in the best bit of thestory," and the lady sent word that she did not receive any visitswhile her father was absent; so the parrot went on. When thestory was ended, the lady was so pleased that she would listen tono one else until her father returned . Then the parrot disappeared,and the viceroy visited the merchant and asked his daughter's hand.He consented, and the marriage took place that very day. Thewedding was scarcely over when a gentleman came to ask the lady'shand for the king, but it was too late. And the poor king, whowas much in love with her, died of a broken heart; and so themerchant's daughter remained the wife of the viceroy, who hadproved himself to be more cunning than the king.It is curious to observe the transformations which the Parrotstory has undergone after having been brought to Italy, as in alllikelihood it was, by Venetian merchants trading to the Levant inthe 14th and 15th centuries, and it is not less strange that the storyhas not found a place among the popular fictions of other Europeancountries.A very remarkable form of the Parrot-story is found in one ofthe numerous legends of the Panjábí hero Rájá Rasálú recited by theBhats or minstrels, a class rapidly disappearing, and therefore adeep debt of gratitude is owing by all who are interested in thegenealogy of folk-tales to Captain R. C. Temple for the valuablecollection he is publishing, under the title of Legends of the Panjab,FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 469of which two, if not three, volumes have already been completed(London agents, Messrs. Trübner & Co.). The following version ofthe Parrot-story is from Captain Temple's first volume: for the noteswhich have not the letter T appended I must be held responsible:Panjabi Wegend.ÁJÁ RASÁLÚ having played at Chaupur with Rájá SarkapRAJA RASALU at with for their heads and won, he spared his opponent's life oncondition that he should never more play for such a stake, andgive him his new-born daughter Kokilán¹ to wife, the legend thusproceeds:Then Rájá Rasálú went to the Múrtí hills and there planted amango branch. There he had the Rání Kokilán placed in an underground palace, and said: “ When the mango branch blossoms thenwill Rání Kokilán arrive at her full youth." After twelve years themango tree began to blossom and give forth fruit, and the RáníKokilán became a woman. One day she said to Rájá Rasálú:"What is it that people say happens when you shoot an animal inthe jangals? " He replied: "When I shoot an animal with anarrow it falls down in a faint, after running seven paces towards me.""This is a very wonderful thing, " said the Rání, " and I shall notbelieve it till I see it with my own eyes. " So next morning the Rájámade Kokilán ride on a pillion behind him, and he wore some coarseclothes over his own, so that her perspiration should not injure him.In this way he went forth into the jungals to shoot. Presently heshot a deer, and the deer as soon as it was wounded ran seven pacesaway from him and fell down. " Last night," said the Rání Kokilán,"you told me that when you hit an animal it would fall seven pacestowards you, but this has fallen seven paces away from you. Yourwords have not come true. " " My virtue has left me," said therájá, " because you have been riding on the same horse with me.""I will catch the deer with my hands," said she, " and will bringthem to you. " And so she opened out seven locks of her scentedhair, and sat on a tower of the palace, and the sweet scent filled the661 i. e. Cooing-dove.CH. ORIG.33470 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:air. Two deer, called Hírá and Nílá, came to where she was sitting,attracted by the scent of her hair, and stood by her. Then RájáRasálú determined to try the power of attraction of Rání Kokilán'shair, and frightened the deer with his bow. As soon as the deerNílá heard the twang of the bow he ran for his life, but the deerHírá was so attracted by the scent of Rání Kokilán's hair that heremained where he was. "It would be a pity to kill this deer thatis so fond of my wife," thought the rájá, " but I will mark him well. "He cut off the tail and ears to mark him, and then the deer said tothe rájá: " I have not injured thy fields, nor have I broken thyhedge: why hast thou cut my tail? what damage have I done? Iam but a deer of the thick jangal; I will bring a thief into thypalace." Saying this the deer Hírá went off to join his fellows, butthey cast him out of their herd, because he had no ears or tail. Sohe became very sorrowful and went into the kingdom of Rájá Hodí,son of Rájá Atki Mall, where he joined a herd of deer. After awhile he brought the whole herd into Rájá Hodí's garden anddestroyed it. As soon as Rájá Hodí heard of this destruction hesent in men to catch the deer, and they all ran away except the deerHírá, who remained hidden in the garden. Presently Rája Hodícame himself into the garden, and then the deer ran off, followed bythe rájá on a horse. The deer led Rájá Hodí to the palace of RájáRasálú, in the Múrtí hills, and then said to him: " Why have youfollowed me so far?" "Why did you destroy my garden? " said therájá. "I have followed you to kill you. " " I destroyed your gardenbecause Rání Kokilán ordered it, " said the deer. "Who is she?"asked the rájá. " She is sitting in that little latticed window abovein the palace. "When he heard this the rájá looked up and saw the RáníKokilán, and they began to talk; meanwhile the deer Hírá hid himself in a bush. Said the rání: " O rájá, wandering beneath thepalace, art thou a true man or a thief? Art thou an enemy to myrájá? or does an animal stand there? "wear dirty clothes, rání, true men, clean.nor does an animal stand here. I camestand here of necessity." Then he said:Hodí replied: " ThievesNor am I Rasálú's enemy,afar after my quarry; I"The black rain-cloudsFOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 471fall from the clouds,¹ what jeweller made thee? O thou of the noseornament! O lips red with the betel-leaves! What king's daughterart thou? what king's wife? Leaving thee in the palace, where hasthe fool gone?" The rání answered: " I fell from no rain-cloud,rájá; no jeweller made me. My nose is a sword- point; betel-leavesare on my lips. I am Rájá Sarkap's daughter; I am Rájá Rasálú'swife leaving me in the palace, he has gone to hunt in the river-sideswamps." And then she asked: "Where is thy city, rájá? Whereis thy home? What king's son art thou? What is thy name?" Therájá replied: " Sindh is my city, rání; Atak is my home. I amRájá Atkí Mall's son; Rájá Hodí is my name. " Said the rání:"The green grapes are ripe; the pomegranate drips: none such asthou can have a footing in the rájá's house. " Then said Hodí toher: " Show me how to get to you "; and she pointed out wherethe steps were, saying: "There is a large stone at the entrance ofthe staircase; you have only to remove that and come up. " Therájá did as he was bidden, but could by no means remove the stone,so he said: " I am a pedlar of Sindh; I sell black camphor: takeinto thy presence what merchandise thy heart doth desire. " Thenthe Rání Kokilán pointed out another flight of three steps, but Hodísaid when he saw the steps: " I am not a bird that I can fly. Ifyou really want me, let down a rope for me to climb up. " So RáníKokilán let down a rope, and Hodí climbed up it. He found inthe palace two cages, in one of which was a mainá¹ and in the othera parrot."13As soon as the parrot saw Rájá Hodí he hid his head under hiswing and told the mainá to do the same. And the mainá did so,while Rájá Hodí climbed up the rope and got on to the first step.Then she said to the parrot: " Listen, O beloved parrot, loved bestof all-listen to my words: stay not here, parrot, where is nor friend¹ Apparent reference to the dark complexion of Kokilán. —T.2 I. e. I am very fascinating. —T.3 In the Shah Náma (Book of Kings), by Firdausí, the Homer of Persia,when Zál visits the beauteous Rúdába, she lets down her long hair, by whichhe climbs up to her balcony-but their interview is innocent, for the hero's"intentions " are perfectly virtuous.4 A hill starling.472 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:nor relative. I have seen a wondrous thing, a crow eating therájá's grapes." "What have you to do with it, mainá? " said theparrot. "Be quiet and hide your head under your wing. " Meanwhile Rájá Hodí had climbed on to the second step, and the mainásaid to the parrot: " Listen, O beloved parrot, loved best of alllisten to my words: I have seen a wondrous thing, a dog eating therice." But the parrot frightened the mainú again, and meanwhileRájá Hodí reached the third step and called out. Then the mainásaid again: " Listen, O beloved parrot, loved best of all -listen tomy words: I have seen a wondrous thing, an ass braying in therájá's palace. " Then the parrot said to the mainá again: " I haveoften told you to be quiet, but you pay no attention." But themainá said: "This thief comes into the house and shouts. This iswhat makes me angry and prevents me from being quiet. " In themeantime the rájá had got in, and being very thirsty asked the ránífor water. But the water could not be easily got, and they bothbegan to break away the stones at the brim of Rájá Rasálú's well toget at the water. After a while Rání Kokilán got up some water ina pitcher and gave it to Hodí to drink. The rájá stopped two orthree hours with Rání Kokilán and then began to inquire aboutgoing away again. " Stay all night," said the rání, but he was afraidand would not stay. So the rání began to weep bitterly, and whenHodí saw her tears he said he would be back in four or five days,and he wiped away her tears with his own hands. Her eyes werecovered with kájal,¹ and as he wiped them his hands got black from1 Kájal, or káyala, is a pigment applied to increase the beauty of the eyes.An Indian poet tells his lady- love that her eyes have completely eclipsed thoseof the deer "then why add káyala? Is it not enough that thou destroy thyvictim, unless thou do it with poisoned arrows? " The Arab poet Ibn Hamdisas-Sakali (ob. 1132 A.D.) says: " To increase the blackness of her eyes, she hasapplied antimony around them, thus adding poison to the dart which was alreadysufficient to give death. " And our English poet Sir John Suckling has thus expressed the same idea:"Th' adorning thee with so much art Is but a barbarous skill:'Tis like the poisoning of the dart,Too apt before to kill. "Thomson's "beauty unadorned " would find no admirers among Asiatics:"Beauty, " says a Persian poet, " decorated with ornaments, portends disastrousFOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 473it. "I will be back in three days," said the rájá as he got ready togo. "You made me a promise before and broke it, " said the rání,"and when you get among the women of your palace you will forgetme and never return at all." "There are no women in my house,"said the rájá. " I will not wash my hands of this kajal, nor will Ieat again, till I come to eat with you here. "That night Rájá Hodí started for Atak and reached the bank ofthe river Sindh. Being very thirsty, he lay down on the bank anddrank water with his mouth like an animal, for he was afraid ofwashing the kajal from his hands if he used them. A dhobi waswashing on the opposite bank, and seeing the rájá drinking like awild beast, he said to his wife: " Listen, O wife beloved, loved bestof all-listen to my words: On the far side has come a prince; norfriend nor company with him. He drinks water like a deer: whatis the matter with his hands? " Said the dhoban: " If you will giveme golden ornaments to wear, I will tell you the real truth of thematter." " I will give you the golden ornaments when I go home,if you will tell me the real truth. " Then said the dhoban: " Listen,O beloved husband, best loved of all -listen to my words: On the farside has come a prince, nor friend nor company with him. A womanpleased him at night. She wept and he wiped the lamp-black fromher eyes with his hands." When the dhoban said this the dhobígave her a great beating, and she began to weep bitterly. WhenRájá Hodí heard the sound of her weeping he loosed the martingaleof his horse and swam across the river. When he got across hespoke angrily to the dhobi: " You foolish washerman, you are abrave man to go beating your wife in my presence. " "Lord of theworld," answered the dhobí, " she said such unworthy things of youthat I cannot repeat them. " Then the rájá suspected that thedhoban had knowledge of things that are hidden, and said to her:"I know thee for a washerwoman; I know thou hast been beaten.events to our hearts. An amiable form, ornamented with diamonds and gold,is like a melodious voice accompanied by the rabáb!1 Other versions of the legend state that Hodí frequently visited the youngwife of Rasálú after he was first conducted to her by the vengeful deer, and itwas evidently to one of those visits that Kokilán alludes when she says, "Youmade me a promise before and broke it. "474 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:How is she passing the time, dhoban, who is separated from herlover? " Answered the dhoban: " She is making fair her arms,rájá wash thou thy hands. How many husbands has the swan,rájá? Young women are in thousands." So Rájá Hodí washed hishands, as the dhoban said, and entered into his palace.Meanwhile Rájá Rasálú had come home from hunting, and RáníKokilán said to him: "O gray-horsed rájá! thy quiver full ofpearls! thy bow studded with rubies! thy shield studded withdiamonds and fastened by a muslin kerchief! riding a prancinghorse -tell me, am I thy wife or sister?" He answered: " I wonthe stake with care, leaving four ránis behind. I gave thee a gardento thy desire, peaches, mangoes, pomegranates -thou hast fattenedon the fruit, rání; thou art fair and well-liking. I, Rájá Rasálú,am thy bridegroom; thou, Rání Kokilán, art my wife. For thisreason I kept thee unread: thus I know thy character." Sayingthis, he dismounted and went up to her; and seeing that the brim ofthe well was broken in, and that there were human footprints about,he said to her: "Who has thrown down the well-brim, rání? Whohas broken the platform? Who has taken out the water in pitchers?Who has thrown down the stones? Who has broken into my palace?Footmarks are in the palace-halls! Who has lain on my bed?-theniwár¹ is loose! " The rání answered: " I broke down the well! Idestroyed the platform! I took out the water in pitchers! I threwdown the stones! The mainá loosened my hair, and the parrot brokemy necklace. Releasing myself, rájá, I ran away: my footmarksare in the palace. My enemy lay on the bed and loosened theniwár." When the rání said this the rájá beat the parrot, and themainá said to the parrot: " It is well that the rájá has beaten you,because you prevented me from telling him in the beginning the evildeeds of the rání. " After this the rájá went to sleep, and nextmorning before the sun was risen he started off for the hunt again,and the parrot said to him: "If we happen into any trouble whileyou are away, where shall we find you? " He answered: " If anything happens within the next three or four days, I shall be found bythe river-side swamps. If anything happens within the next two or1 Cotton tape stretching across the bedstead. -T.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 475three months, I shall be found hunting in the Kashmír mountains,"and then he went away to the river-side swamps.After two or three days Rájá Hodí came to the palace, and dismounting from his horse to see Rání Kokilán, the pair laughedtogether for joy. Then said the mainá to Rání Kokilán: " The firsttime you spoke evil of me and the parrot to Rájá Rasálú -what willyou say to him now? Believe in God, and leave off playing andlaughing with a stranger. " But the rání became very angry andsaid: " I give thee minced cakes, mainá; thou sittest in thy cageand eatest. What hast thou to do with this matter? Be silent!This foreigner will go off to his distant home." The mainá replied:"Eat thy minced cakes thyself, rání. I put my faith in God. Myrájá will come, rání: I will be true to my salt. " When the maináhad said this the rání exclaimed: "You faithless bird, you haveeaten from my hand always. Will you be untrue to my salt? Therájá wanders about in the jungals, and will you rather be true tohim?" So she took the mainá out of the cage and cut off her head,and taking the cage she broke it into pieces and threw them away.3Then she went up to the parrot's cage to kill him as well. But theparrot spoke caressingly in order to save his life, and said: " Thoudidst well to kill the mainá, rání, that was such a backbiter!Female minds are vexed by such things; our masculine minds areabove them. • Let me out of the cage, rání; I wish to see the king's1 In another version, which I have before me, the virtuous bird is repre- sented as exclaiming: "What wickedness is this? "2 Salt is a sacred pledge of hospitality in most Asiatic countries. We have in the well-known Arabian tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, a singularexample of the effect of eating salt, even in the mind of a robber. WhenMorgiana, the faithful slave of Ali Baba, had in the character of a dancer strucka dagger into the heart of a merchant, his guest, and excited the horror of hermaster for such an act, she threw off her disguise and told Ali Baba that in thepretended merchant Khoja Hussain she had destroyed his cruel enemy, the captainof the robbers, to convince him of the truth of her assertion, she discoveredunder his robe the murderous poignard, and asked her master the simple question which caused her suspicion of his guest: " Do you not recollect that herefused to eat salt with you? Can you require a stronger proof of his malicious intention? "3 In the other version it is Rájá Hodí who takes the mainá out of the cage and wrings her neck.476 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:country. " The rání thought to herself that after all he had neversaid anything against her, and moreover had always corrected themainá when she had spoken roughly; so considering him faithfulshe let him out of the cage, and then the parrot said: " Let me go,and I will give the mainá two or three kicks and revenge myself ofthe annoyance she has given me." So the rání, being very pleased,let him loose, and then the parrot, to please the rání more, gave thedead mainá two or three kicks and then asked the rání for a bath,"for," said he, " I am a good Hindú and I have touched a deadbody." The rání, who had now become very fond of him, threwsome water over him and wetted him, and then the parrot asked forsome food. So the rání mixed flour and sugar and ghí2 and madecakes of it, which she gave to the parrot to eat. When the parrothad eaten his fill he flew away to the top of the palace and began toweep, and the rání asked him why he wept. "Rání, live for ever,"said the parrot; "but you have killed my friend the mainá, andhave made me very miserable. " Said the rání: " Friendly parrot,go not incontinently away. For the one mainá I killed I will giveyou ten others. For thy God's sake come back to me. I will takeaway thy grief; speak not harsh words. "But though the Rání coaxed and comforted him much he wouldnot remain, and flew off to Rájá Rasálú, who was sleeping under atree in the hills by the river-side swamps. When he found the rájáthe parrot went into a pool, and after making his feathers all wetand draggled, he sat on a branch of the tree just over Rasálú. Ashe sat there he shook himself to dry his feathers, and the water fromthem was sprinkled over the rájá, who, thinking it was rain, got up,and then the parrot said to him: "O rájá, sleeping beneath the kikartree, take thy sheet from off thy face. The rání has opened hershop and is selling as a trader. A prince who came has fastened herbundle tight. "3 Answered Rájá Rasálú: " Eight mainás, ten mainás,1 In Mr. Swynnerton's version (Folk Lore Journal, 1883, p. 143) the parrotsays to the rání: " O queen . the king my master may return unexpectedly.If you will loose me, I will sit on the mango-tree and keep watch. "2 Clarified butter.3 In Mr. Swynnerton's version the parrot says to Rasálú: "Come home atonce, and you will catch the thief before he departs."FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 477a peaco*ck at every window. So many witnesses, parrot: why hasthe thief entered the palace? " Then the parrot said: “ O rájá, therání has killed the mainá and I only escaped after many devicesand stratagems. " 1When he heard this Rájá Rasálú fastened his cooking-spit tohis girdle and mounted his horse, for when he went shooting healways took two spits with him; on one he cooked his own foodwhich he had killed, and on the other the rání cooked hers. Ashe was journeying home, he passed Márgalá and neared SangJáne, and then his horse got so tired that he could hardly crawl.So the rájá said to his horse: " O Bhaum ' Irákí, you used to flyalong like a bird, and now when my enemy has come you haveturned lazy and crawl along. " And the horse replied: " Thyspurring breaks my heart, rájá. Injure not my body. The day thouwast born my mother Lakhí brought me forth. When thou wastbrought up in the cellar I was fastened there; when thou didst comeoutside I stood at the door; when thou didst mount me the stakeswere never lost. They have broken their oaths, and some day Ishall lose my head."2 Then the horse Bhaum ' Irákí, thinking his1 In my other version the parrot, on secing the fate of the mainá, says toKokilán: " O rání, the steed of Rasálú is very swift; let me out, and I will givethee timely notice of his approach; " and the rání having opened the cage, awaythe parrot flew to where Rasálú was hunting, and, alighting on his shoulder,said to him: " O rájá, a cat is at your cream!992 "One powerful mark to know heroes by is their possessing intelligenthorses and conversing with them The touching conversation of Achilleswith his Xanthos and Balios (Il. 19,400-421 ) finds a complete parallel in thebeautiful Karling legend of Bayard. Cf. also Wilhelm's dialogue with Puzzát(58, 21-59, 8) in the French original with Baucent (Garin, 2, 230-1 ), and Begarswith the same Baucent ( p. 230) . In the Edda we have Skrimr talking with hishorse (Saem. 28 b. ) and Goðrûn, after Sigurd's murder, with Gram. "-Grimm'sTeutonic Mythology, vol. i. p. 392.66Raksh, the famous steed of Rustam, the Persian Hercules, who figures soprominently in the Sháh Náma, although he could not speak, was very intelligent, and understood what his master said to him. In the course of the hero's' Haft- Khan, " or Seven Labours, while Rustam is asleep a monstrous dragonapproaches to devour him. The watchful Raksh neighs and beats the groundso furiously that Rustam soon awakes, but the dragon has vanished , and Rustamupbraids his faithful steed for disturbing his slumbers without cause, and goesto sleep again. Once more the dragon appears, with the same result; yet Rakshwas resolved not to move a step from his side, for his heart was grieved and478 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD:master to be really in need of him, went cheerfully, and RájáRasálú reached his palace in the Murti hills. There too he foundRájá Hodí.A flight of sixty steps led down from the palace, and Rájá Hodíhad descended thirty of them when Rájá Rasálú cried out to himfrom below: "O mine enemy, strike me first, and I will see what Ican do afterwards." But Hodí replied: "It is not right that Istrike you first." Then said Rasálú: " Shoot at me first with yourarrow, and I will shoot afterwards, and we will thus shoot alternately." So Rájá Hodí shot an arrow at Rájá Rasálú, but he parriedit and cut it in two with his sword. Then Hodí got ready anotherarrow, upon which Rasálú cried out: "I said you were to shoot thefirst arrow, and now you are preparing another. Very well, shooton, and no farther desire can remain to you." And Rájá Hodí shotanother arrow, but Rájá Rasálú put it aside with his shield, andthen took an arrow from his quiver to aim at Hodí, while the lattergot ready a third arrow. So Rasálú said: " Thou didst shoot thefirst arrow, rájá, and God saved me; thou didst shoot a second, andI was vexed; thou hast got ready a third, and my good luck hascome. " As he spoke Rájá Hodí's bow broke in two, and he said toRájá Rasálú: " My standard is at home, rájá; my sword too is athome. I am head of a hundred clans; we are four brothers. Forgive me to-day, and I will come to thy doors no more." Then saidRasálú: " You wretch, have you come on such an evil errand, andhave brought nothing to fight with? I will only shoot at you withafflicted by the harsh words that had been addressed to him. The dragonappeared a third time, and Raksh almost tore up the earth with his heels torouse his sleeping master. Rustam again awoke and sprang to his feet, butthere was now sufficient light for him to see the prodigious cause of alarm , anddrawing his sword he attacked the dragon, and with the assistance of Raksh,who bit and tore its scaly side, severed the monster's head.Kyrat, the charger of Kurroglú, the celebrated Persian robber-poet, wasanother intelligent horse: " Whenever my enemy sets out from any place againstme, Kyrat neighs; when the foe has made half the distance, he grows restlessand sneezes; and when at last the enemy is on the point of showing himself,Kyrat digs the ground with his hoof and foams at the mouth. " Kyrat dies onehour before his master, and Kurroglú's mourning song for the loss of hisfavourite steed is considered as amongst the most beautiful elegies in Oriental literature.FOR THE MANCIPLE'S TALE. 479this little arrow-be careful that it does not hurt you! And thenyou can be master of the arrow and everything else for that matter,for I will leave this place for ever."And Rájá Rasálú shot the arrow at Rájá Hodí, who fell senseless, and he tore out his heart with his hands and stuck it on thespit which had no meat on it; for his own spit had meat on it, butthe rání's had none. He took both spits into the palace, and RáníKokilán asked him: "What makes my lord so pleased to- day? "He said: " Let us have a great feast. We have hitherto roastedeach our own food on our own spits, but to-day I will roast yourfood and you must roast mine." And saying this he gave the ráníthe spit with venison on it, and the rájá's heart he had put on thespit he had kept for himself. When the roasting was over theyexchanged meat and began to eat, and before the rání had finishedher food, she said: " How very good the meat is to-day! " And therájá replied: " Living, thou didst enjoy him, rání; dead, thou hasteaten his flesh. Why shouldst thou not relish his flesh who didenjoy thee?" The rání quickly threw down the remainder of themeat, and asked: "What are you saying?" Then the rájá took herby the hand to the corpse of Hodí, and when the rání saw it she atfirst denied all knowledge of it, but at last she said: " Rájá, sitting,he will reproach me; standing, he will abuse me: I too must diewith him who is my reproach." So saying, Rání Kokilán leaptdown from the palace wall and was sorely wounded.¹ The rájá liftedher up and tied her on to one side of Rájá Hodí's horse, and thecorpse of the rájá he tied on the other side, and sent it away toAtak, Hodi's country. After this Rájá Rasálú set out from Múratto Sialkot, and here it was that a Jhínwar2 took the Rání Kokilanto wife and cured her wounds. And here too after a while she boreThis tale of a husband's savage revenge scems to have been brought toEurope byminstrels who accompanied the arinies of the Crusades. It forms the subject of Nov. 9, Day iv. of Boccaccio's Decameron, into which it was avowedlytaken from a Provençal source. -See a somewhat different version from Boc- caccio's in Isaac D'Israeli's Curiositics of Literature, under the title of " The Lover's Heart. "2 The carrying caste; especially the "bheestie " (bahishti) or water- carrying class. -T.480 20. THE TELL-TALE BIRD.him three sons, from whom are sprung the three Jhínwar Gots whodwell there to the present day, namely, Sabír, Gabír, and Sír.¹Such is the ghastly tale of Rájá Rasálú and his beautiful butfrail young wife, as chanted by the minstrels of the Panjáb. Rasálúis no imaginary hero, and it is probable that the main incidents ofthe legend are historically true; and in later times the two speakingbirds, the mainá and the parrot, have been introduced into it fromthe Tútí Náma for the sake of dramatic effect. It is said thatRasálú lamented the loss of his young bride-reflecting, doubtless,when too late, that he had needlessly exposed her to temptation byleaving her solitary during his frequent hunting excursions-andcaused a magnificent fountain to be erected in her memory, in frontof his palace. The ascent of Rájá Hodí to the rání's chamber hasbeen a favourite subject of native artists for mural pictures.1 The tragedy according to Mr. Swynnerton's version concludes differently.It is not the heart but some of the flesh of Hodí that Rasálú cuts off and causesto be cooked for his wife. When she asks what food it is, as she thought shehad never tasted any so good, he replies:"What food is this so dainty and sweet?Alive he languished at your feet.Now dead and gone, he pleases still- You eat his flesh, nay, eat your fill!But O may she whose heart is proved untrue,Ascend the funeral pile and perish too. "On hearing this, the rání leaps from the battlements, and falling on the rocksis killed. Rasálú throws her body and that of Hodí into the river. -Therecan be no doubt that these deviations from the generally accepted legend are ofquite recent date, as is also the introduction of a Muslim washerman and his wife towards the end.GLASGOW, September, 1887.48121.The night and the Loathly Lady:VARIANTS AND ANALOGUESOFChaucer's Wife of Bath's Tale.By W. A. CLOUSTON.482GOWER'S TALE OF FLORENT ... ...WEDDING OF SIR GAWAINE AND DAME RAGNELLMARRIAGE OF SIR GAWAINE ... ... ...

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522... ... 523483THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:VARIANTS AND ANALOGUES OF THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE.BY W. A. CLOUSTON.GOWER anticipated the Wife of Bath's characteristic Tale by afew years in his Confessio Amantis, but there seems no good reasonto suppose Chaucer to have borrowed from his friend, the two versionsdiffering so very considerably in details, and it is probable that bothpoets drew their materials independently from a French source, orsources. This is Gower's story, from the First Book of the ConfessioAmantis, Harl. MS. 3869, beginning on leaf 34:TGower's Tale of Florent.HER* whas wylom be daies oldeas men A worpi knyht, and as men tolde,He was Neuoeu¹ to themperour,And of his Court a Courteour.Wifles he was, Florent he hihte;He was a man þat mochel myhte;Of armes he was desirous ,Chiualerous and amorous;And, for pe fame of worldes speche,Strange auentures for to seche,

• The marginal note, in red, is as follows:

[leaf 34]4Florent, nephew tothe emperor,8a worthy and brave knight,[fol. 346.] in quest of ad- ventures,Hic contra amori inobedientes, ad commendacionem Obediencie Confessor super eodem exemplum ponit, vbi dicit, quodcum quidam Regis Cizilie filia in sue inuentutis floribus pulcherima, ex eius Nouerce incantacionibus in vetulam turpissimam transformata extitit: Florencius, tunc Imperatoris ClaudiNepos, miles in armis strenuissimus, amorosisque legibus intendens, ipsam ex sua obediencia in pulcritudinem pristinam mirabiliter reformauit. 1 Nephew.484 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:He rode pe Marches al aboute;And fell a time as he was oute, 12Fortune, whiche may euery predTo-breke¹ and knette of mannes sped,Schop, 2 as pis knyht rod in a pas,That he be strengpe take was, 16came to a castle,Branchus, he had slain,And to a Castell þei him ladde,Wher þat he fewe frendes hadde.the heir of which, For so it fell þat ilke stounde, ³That he hap wip a dedly wounde,Feihtende his oghne hondes, slainBranchus, which to pe Capitain20Was sone and heir; wherof ben wropeThe fader and pe moder bope;24(That knyht Branchus was of his hond.The worpiest of al his lond;)They would be avenged,but feared the anger ofthe emperor.And fain þei wolden do venganceVpon Florent; bot remembranceThat þei toke of his worþinesse,Of knyhthode and of gentilesse,And how he stod of cousinageTo themperour, made hem assuage,2832And dorsten nogħt slen him for fere.In gret desputeison þei wereAmong hemself? what was pe best.The grandmother 36 of Branchus, a slywoman, devised aplan for causing his death without blame to them.Ther was a lady, pe slyhesteOf alle þat men knewe po,So old, sche myhte vneþes go,8And was grantdame vnto pe dede;9And sche wip pat began to rede,10And seid how sche wol bringe him inne,That sche schal him to depe winne,1 To break in pieces. 2 Shaped. 3 Same time.404 Fighting with. 6 Durst, dared. 6 Dispute; discussion.7 Themselves. 8 Scarcely walk.Grandmother to the dead Branchus. 10 Advise.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 485Al only of his oghne grant,Thurgh strengpe of verray couenant,Wipoute blame of eny wiht.44Anon sche sende for his kniht,And of hire sone sche alleide¹The dep; and pus to him sche seide:"Florent, how so pou be to wyte²Of Branchus dep, men schal respiteAs now to take vengement,Be so pou stonde in iuggement,Vpon certein condicion,That pou vnto a questionWhich I schal axe, schalt ansuere;And ouer³ pis, pou schalt ek swere,[fol. 35.]48She sends for Florent,52 and says he'll be quit if he answer a question,56 but failing, heThat shall be killed.if pou of pe sope faile,Ther schal non oper ping auaile,That pou ne schalt þy dep receiue.And for men schal þee noght deceiue,That pou perof myht ben auised,Thou schalt haue day and time assisel 4And leue saufly for to wende,60Be so pat, at þi daies ende,Thov come azein wip þin auys.5THHIS knyht, which worpi was and wys,This lady preip pat he may wite,And haue it vnder Seales write,What question it scholde be,For which he schal in þat degre6468889He'll be allowed to depart, and time for inquiry.The agreement is sealed .Stonde of his lif in ieupertie.Wip pat sche feignep compaignie,And seip: " Florent, on loue it hongep,Al þat to myn axinge longeþ,1 Alleged; charged against him.4 Fixed.CH. ORIG.2 Blame.723 Besides.5 Opinion; answer to the question.Prays that he may know.34486 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:She asks, "What do women most desire? "Florent returns to his uncle's court,and tells him of his pact.The wisest men are sent for,but can't agree,each having adifferent opinion as to women's chiefdesire.So Florent must needs go forth to inquire,for he would rather die than break his word.'What alle wommen most desire ';This wole I axe, and in thempireWher as pou hast most knowlechinge,Take conseil vpon pis axinge. "FLORENT pis ping hap vndertake;TheThe day was set, pe time take;Vnder his seale he wrot his opIn such a wise, and forp he gopHom to his Emes¹ Court azein,To whom his auenture pleinHe tolde, of pat² him is befalle.And vpon pat, þei weren alle,The wiseste of be lond, asent,3Bot natheles of on4 assentThei myht[e] noght a-corde plat: 5On seide pis, anopre pat,After pe disposiciounOf naturel complexioun:To som womman it is plesance,That to an opre is greuance;Bot such a ping in special,Which to hem alle in generalIs most plesant, and most desiredAboue alle opre, and most conspired,"Such of ping conne þei nogħt fyndeBe constellacion ne kynde.And pus Florent, wipoute cure,Most stonde vpon his auenture,And is al schape vnto pe lere; 9As in defalte of his answere.This knyht hath leuere 10 for to dyeThan breke his trowpe, And for to lyeIn place per as he was swore,1 Uncle's (the Emperor's).4 One. 6 Agree fully.8 Star-gazing or nature.2 Thing which.• Longed for.9 Loss.[fol. 85b. ]7680848892961001048 Sent for.7 One.10 Rather; sooner.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 487And schapp¹ him gon azein þerfore.Whan time cam, he tok his leue,That lengere wold he noght beleue,2And preip his Em³ he be nogħt wrop,For þat is a point of his op;He seip, þat noman schal him wreke,Thogh afterward men hiere spekeThat he par auenture deie.And pus he wente forp his weieAlone, as knyht auenturous;And in hys poght was curiousTo wite what was best to do.And as he rod al- one so ,And cam nyh per he wolde be,In a forest, vnder a tre,He sih 5 wher sat a creature,A loply, wommannysch figure,That for to speke of fleisch and bon,So foul zit syh he neuere non.This knyħt behield hir redely,And as he wolde haue passed by,Sche cleped him, and bad abide;And he his horse heued a sideTho tornep, and to hire he rod;And þere he houep, and abodTo wite what sche wolde mene.And sche began him to bemene,And seide: " Florent, be þi name,Thov hast on honde such a gameThat, bot pou be pe betre auised,Thi dep is schapen and diuised,That al pe world ne mai þe saue,But ifþat pou my conseil haue."1 Shapes; purposes. 2 Remain.3 Uncle (the Emperor). 4 Know.7 Then. 8 Halts.108112116 Alone he goes,120124wondering what to do.Under a forest tree he sees a loathily woman,so foul as never was seen before.128132She calls him to her, and he comes up, marvelling.She says, "Florent, I only can 136 save thee from death."1406 Saw. € Called,488 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:Florent begs her counsel."What will you give me if I save you?""Anything.""Good; butfirst you must promise to marry me.""That I can't do.""Away, then, to thy fate."Hepromises much goods and lands,but she refuses them.He ponders the matter,and resolves to wed her, or forfeit his life;thinking she couldn't live long,and he'd hide her out of men's sight.LORENT, whan he þis tale herde,FLOVn-to pis olde wyht answerde,And of hir conseil he hir preide;And sche azein to him pus seide:"Florent, yf I for pe so schapeThat pou þurgh me þi dep ascape,And take worschipe of pi dede,What schal I haue to my mede?""What ping," quod he, " pat pou wolt axe. ""I bidde neuere a betre taxe,"Quod sche; "bot ferst, er þou be sped,Thou schalt me leue such a wedd¹That I wol haue pi trowpe in honde,That pou schalt be myn housebonde. ”' Nay, " seip Florent, " þat may nogħt be. ""Ryd, panne, forp pi wey, " quod sche;"And if pou go wipoute rede,Thou schalt be sekerliche2 dede. "Florent behihte hire good ynowh, 3Of lond, of rente, of park, of plowh;Bot al pat comptep sche at noght.Tho fell pis knyht in mochel poght;Now gop he forp, now comp azeinHe wot noght what is best to sein;And poghte, as he rod to and fro,That chese he mot4 on of pe tuo:Or for to take hire to his wif,Or elles for to lese his lif.And panne he caste his auantage,That sche was of so gret an ageThat sche mai liue bot a while,And pogħte put hire in an Ile,Wher pat noman hire scholde knowe,Til sche wip dep were ouerprowe.51 Pledge. 2 Surely; certainly.4 Choose he must.[fol. 36.]1441481521561601643 Promised her property enough.5 Overthrown; killed.168172FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 489And pus pis 3onge lusti knyht,Vnto pis olde loply wihtTho seide: "If þat non oper chaunceMai make my deliueraunce ,So he says, "If only the answer 176 to the question can save me,Bot only pilke same speche,Which, as pou seist, pou schalt me teche,Haue hier myn hond , I schal þee wedde! "And pus his trowpe he leip to wedde.¹Wip pat sche frouncep² vp þe browe:" This couenant I wol allowe,"Sche seip, "if eny oper pingBot þat þou hast of my techyng,Fro dep þi body mai respite,I woll þe of þi trowpe acquite,And elles be non oþer weie.Now herkene me what I schal seie:Whan pou art come into pe placeWher now þei maken gret manace,And vpon pi comynge abide,Thei wole anon þe same tideOppose pee of thin answere:I wot pou wolt noþyng for-bereOf pat pou wenest be þi best;And if pou myht so fynde rest,Wel is, for panne is per nomore;And elles, pis schal be my lore,That pou schalt seie vpon þis Molde"That alle wommen lieuest wolde5Be souerein of mannes loue:For what womman is so a-boue,Sche hap (as who seip) al hire wille;6And elles may sche noght fulfilleWhat ping hire were lieuest haue.'1 Lays to pledge.4 Mould; earth.180I'll wed thee."184 "Agreed; for there is no other way.188Listen: Return and make this [fol. 36b.] answer without fear:1921962002042 Wrinkles. 3 Question; demand from .6 Would most dearly, longingly.6 As folk say.'Woman wouldbe sovereign of man's love, andhave her own will.'490 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:Wip þis answere pou schalt saueThiself, and oper wise nogħt.208Then come back to me, without fail."Florent rides back sad at heart, to think of such anugly bride,And whan pou hast þin ende wrogħt,Com hier azein; pou schalt me fynde;And let noping out of þi mynde."HEE gop him forp wip heuy chiere,As he pat not¹ in what manereHe may pis worldes ioie atteigne;For if he deie, he hap a peine,And if he liue, he mot him bindeTo such on, wich² of alle kyndeOf wommen is punsemylieste.212216Thus wot he noght what is pe best;220Bot, be him lief, or be him lop,and comes to the castle, to live or die.Vnto pe Castel forp he goþ,His full answere for to ziue,Or for to deie, or for to liue. 224InThe lord comes with his council,sends for the old dame,and the covenant is read in presence of all there.Forp, wip his conseil, cam pe lord;presence of þe remanant,The pinges stoden of record.He sende vp for pe lady sone,And forp sche cam, þat olde Mone.3 228.The strengpe of al þe couenantTho was reherced openly,And to florent sche bad forpi ,4That he schal tellen his avis ,5As he þat woot what is pe pris.Florent tries other Florent seip al þat euere he coupe;Bot such word cam per non to mowþe answers,That he, for zifte or for beheste,Myte eny wise his dep arest.And pus he tariep longe and late,232236[fol. 37.]Til pat pis lady bad algate1 Ne wot: knew not. 2 One, who.2408 M. L. German, mône: aunt; mother; matron. See line 251.4 On this account. 6 Opinion; answer.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH's tale. 491That he schal, for þe dom final,3if¹ his answere in specialOf pat sche hadde him ferst opposed.And panne he hap trewly supposedThat he him may of noping 3elpe,Bot if so be po wordes helpeWhich as pe womman hath him tawht,Wherof he hath an hope cawht,That he schal ben excused so,And tolde out plein his wille po.And whan pat pis Matrone herdeThe manere how pis knyht answerde,Sche seide: " Ha, treson! wo pee beThat hast pus told pe priuiteWhich alle wommen most desire!I wolde pat pou were afire! "Bot natheles, in such a plit,Florent of his answere is quit;And po began his sorwe newe,For he mot gon, or ben vntreweTo hire wich his trowthe hadde.Bot he, which alle shame dradde,Gop forp in stede of his penaunce,And takp þe fortune of his chaunce,As he þat was wip trowpe affaited.2THis olde wyht him hap awaitedIn place wher as he hire lefte.Florent his wofull heued³ vplefte,And syh pis vecke wher sche sat,Which was pe lopliest whatThat euere man cast on his yhe:Hire Nase bass5; hire browes hihe;1 Give. 2 Tamed.3 Hend.4 Witch; hag: " A rympled vekke, ferre roune in age,Frownyng and yelowe in hir visage. "but the old dame presses him , so there's no help for it,244 and he says as the loathly lady248had taught him." Ha!" says the old dame, "thou 252 hast told truly—256would thou wert burnt!"But Florent is safe;and now he grieves anew, for 260 he must keep his264word with the loathly lady.He finds the old witch in the same 268 place;never saw man such a monster.272Romaunt ofthe Rose, 1. 4495; see 1. 4285.6 Low, flat.492 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:Hire yhen smale, and depe set;Hire chekes ben with teres wet,And riuelen as an emty skyn,Hangende doun vnto pe chin;276Hire lippes schrunken ben for age;Ther was no grace in þe visage;Hir front was nargh; ¹ hir lockes hore;2Sche lokep forp as dop a More; ³280Here Necke is schort; hir schuldres courbe, 4That myhte a mannes lust destourbe;Hire body grete, and nothing smale;And, schor[t]ly to descriue hire al,[fol. 876.]284She seizes his bridle and de- mands his part ofthe bargain,Sche hap non lips wiþoute a lack,Bot lich vnto pe wollesak,Sche proferp hire vnto pis knyht,And bad him, as he hap behyht,So as sche hap ben his warant,6That he hire holde couenant;288And be pe bridel sche him sesep:Bot godd wot? how þat sche him plesep 292flee if he could.and he would fain of suche wordes as sche spekp;Him þenkp welnyh his herte brekpFor sorwe þat he may noyght fle,Bot if he wolde vntrew be. 296OKE how a seke man for his heleTakp baldemoine wip Canele,8As a sick man takes bitter drugs with spice and sugar, Florent drinks this draught.LAnd wip þe Mirre taketh pe sucre;Ryht vpon such a maner lucreStant florent as in pis diete:He drinkp þe bitre wip pe swete;He medlep sorwe wip likynge,And liuep as who seip deynge.1 Her forehead was narrow.3 Moor; root; or mulberry (?).2 Hoar, gray.3003044 Curved; bent. 5 Limbs.7 Knows. Guarantee; protection; saver.8 Gentian with spice.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 493His 3oupe schal be cast a-weieVpon such on, which, as þe weie,Is olde, and loply oueral.Bot nede he mot, þat nede schal; ¹He wolde Algate his trowpe holde,As euery knyht per-to is holde,What happ so euere him is befalle;Thoh sche be pe fouleste of alle,3it to ponour of wommanhiedeHim pogħte he scholde taken hiede;So þat for pure gentilesse,As he hire coupe [he] best adresce,308 But as a true knight he must keep his troth,for the honour of womanhood;312and so he speaks to her as gently 316 as he can, andIn ragges as sche was totore, 2He sett hir on his hors tofore,And forp he takp his weie softe;No wonder pogh he sikep³ ofte.Bot as an oule flep¹ be nyhte320sets her before him on his horse,sighing as he rode along.Like an owl, he hides during the Out of alle opre briddes syhte,day,Riht so pis knyht on daies brodeIn clos him hield, and schop his rodeOn nyhtes time, til þe tide324 andjourneys atThat he cam þere he wolde abide;And priuely wipoute noiseHe bringp þis foule grete Coise?[fol. 38. ]328night, till he comes to his own castle, and smuggles in the loathly lady.To his Castell, in such a wiseThat noman myhte hire schappe auise,Til sche into pe chambre cam,Wher he his priue conseil nam8Of suche men as he most troste,And tolde hem þat he nedes mosteThis best wedde to his wif;For elles hadde he lost his lif.1 "Needs must when the Devil drives." 2 Tattered.4 Flieth. 5 In broad day.332 Then he consults his confidants,how to wed her.3363 Sighs.6 Shaped his riding.7? Thing. Coise: chief; master (! ) —Halliwell.8 Took.494 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:The tire-women take off her rags,bathe and clothe her;but she wouldn't let them comb or cut her hair.HE priue wommen were asent¹TEThat scholden ben of his assent.Hire ragges pei anon of drawe, 2And, as it was pat time lawe,Sche hadde bap, sche hadde rest,And was arraied to pe best.Bot wip no craft of combes brode340Thei myhte hire hore lockes schode, ³ 344She looked more foul in her fine clothes.And sche ne wolde nogh be schoreFor no conseil; and pei perfore(Wip suche atyr as po was vsed)Ordeinen þat it was excused,And hid so crafteliche a-bouteThat noman myhte sen hem oute.Bot when sche was fulliche arraied,And hire atir was al assaied,5Tho was sche foulere on to se;Bot zit it may non oper be.348352that night.They were wedded Thei were wedded in pe nyht;So wo-begon was neuere knyhtAs he was panne of mariage.She begins to fondle him,356And sche began to pleie and rage,As who seip: " I am wel ynowh."Bot he perof noping ne lowh;"360For sche tok þanne chiere on honde,"calls him her hus- And clepeps him hir housebonde,band, invites him to bed,And seip: " my lord, go we to bedde!For I to pat entente wedde, 364That pou schalt be my worldes blisse,"And profrep him wip pat to kisse,and offers him akiss.As sche a lusti ladi were.His body myhte wel be pere,Bot, as of pogħt and of memoire,1 Sent for. 2 Drawn off.4 Shorn; have her hair cut.6 Laughed.8 Shed; part; divide.6 Attire was tried on.7 Began to be gainesome. 8 Calls.368FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 495His herte was in purgatoire.Bot 3it for strengpe of matrimonieHe myhte make non essonie,¹That he ne mot algates plieTo gon to bedde of compaignie.And whan þei were a bedde naked,2Wipoute slepe he was a- waked;He tornep on pat oper side,For þat he wolde his eyhen hydeFro lokynge on þat foule wyht.The Chambre was al full of lyht;The Courtins were of cendal pinne.³This newe bryd which lay wiþinne,Thogh it be nogħt wip his acord,In armes sche beclipte hire lord,And preide, as he was torned fro,He wolde him torne azeinward po; 4" For now," sche seiþ, " we ben bope on; ":And he lay stille as eny ston.Bot euere in on sche spak and preid,And bad him þenke on þat he seide,Whan þat he tok hire be pe honde.He herde, and vnderstod þe bonde,How he was set to his penaunce;And, as it were a man in traunce,HEtornep him al sodeinly,And syh a lady lay hym byOf Eyhtetiene wynter age,Which was pe fairest of visageThat euere in al pis world he syħ.And as he wolde haue take hire nyh,Sche put hire hand, and be his leueBesoghte him þat he wolde leue, 7372[fol. 386.]1 Plea in excuse. L. essonia, exonia; Fr. exonie.He was in tor- ment,but must bed with her.He lies awake,turning his face 376 from the foul sight.380384 She clips him and prays him to turn towards her,388 but he lies still.392At last he takes her hand,and looking on her sees a damsel 396 of 18, the fairest4002 In those days nightshirts were not. 3 Sendal, fine silk.4 Back again to her. ɓ One. 6 Incessantly. 7 Stop.in the world.496 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:She bids him choose whether he would have her so at night or by day.He is at a loss to decide,And seip, þat for to wynne or lese,He mot on of tuo pinges chese:Wher¹ he wol haue hire such on nyht,Or elles vpon daies lyht;For he schal noght haue bope tuo.And he began to sorwe poIn many a wise, and cast his pogħt;Bot for al pat, zit cowpe he nogħtDeuise himself whiche was pe beste.404408and leaves it with And sche pat wolde his hertes reste, 412 herself.Preip pat he scholde chese algate;Til ate laste, longe and late,'My love, I will He seide: "" O 3e, my loues hele,2 be ruled by thee,forIcan't choose." Sey what 30u list in my querele;416Quoth she, "Since you give me sovereignty,I not³ what answere I schal 3iue;Bot euere whil þat .I. may liue,I wol pat ze be my Maistresse,For I can noght mi selue gesseWhich is pe best vnto my chois.Thus grante .L. 30w myn hole vois:Ches for ous bopen, .I. 3ou preie;And what as euer þat ze seie,Riht as 3e wole, so wol .I. "I lord," sche seid, " grant mercy!"M For ofhis word pat ze now sein,That зеze haue made me souerein,Mi destine is ouerpassed,That neuere hierafter schal be lassed 5I shall night and My beaute which pat I now haue,daybe as you now see nie.I'm the king of Sicily's daughter,Til I be take into my graue.Bope nyht and day, as .I. am now,I schal alwey be such to 30w.[fol. 39.]420424428432The kynges dowhter of CizileI am; and fell bot sippe a while,"4366 Lessened. 6 Sicily. 7 But a while since; a time ago.1 Whether. 2 Health; salvation. 3 Ne wot; know not.4 Us both.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE, 497<(As .I. was wip my fader late)That my Stepmoder, for an hateWhich toward me sche hap begonne,Forschop¹ me til .I. hadde wonneThe loue and souereineteOf what knyht þat, in his degre,Alle opir passep of good name;And as men sein ze ben þe same,The dede proeueþ it is so.Thus am .I. 30ures euermo. "Tho was plesance and ioie ynowh;Echon wip oper pleide and lowh; 2Thei liue longe, and wel þei ferde.³And clerkes þat þis chaunce herde,Thei writen it in euidence,To teche how pat obedienceMai wel fortune a man to loue,And sette him in his lust a-boue,As it be-fell vn to his knyht.NOR-þi, 4 my sone, if pou do ryht,FORThou shalt vnto pi loue obeie,And folwe her will, be alle weie.and was changed into a foul shape bymystepmother,440 until a good444knight should give me his love and the mastery."Now all wasjoy,and they lived 448 long and happily.And clerks teach from this tale how obedience in love may lead to good 452 fortune.456The chief points of difference between the foregoing and the Wifeof Bath's Tale are as follows: In Gower a knight has slain the sonand heir of a great lord, whose castle he afterwards happens to cometo in the course of his adventures. They dare not openly put himto death, fearing his uncle, the emperor; but the slain man's grandmother induces him to sign a bond, by which he agrees to forfeit hislife should he fail to give the answer to a certain question. InChaucer a bachelor of the royal household is condemned to death forrape. The queen having interceded for him, the king leaves his lifeat her disposal, who tells him that he shall be pardoned if he answerthe question, "What do women most desire? " In Gower the loathly1 Mis- shaped. 2 Laughed. 3 Fared; prospered .4 For this therefore.·498 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:lady who gives the knight the information of which he is in questhad been bewitched by her stepmother, and resumes her proper formwhen she is married to the knight; while in Chaucer she is a benevolent fairy, who assumed a hideous form to test the knight's fidelityto his word and save his life.Judging from the number of versions still extant, this curioustale must have been a great favourite during the middle ages, whenit was so much the fashion to decry women and example-books oftheir profligacy and trickery were rife. The story is the subject oftwo long ballads in the Percy folio MS. , of one of which Prof. Childgives the outline in his English and Scottish Ballads, Boston (U.S.) ,1884, Part ii. , pp. 289, 290:The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell.ARTHUR, while hunting in Ingleswood, stalked and finallyshot a great hart, which fell in a fern-brake. While theking, alone and far from his men, was engaged in making the assay,there appeared a groom, bearing the quaint name of Gromer SomerJoure, who grimly told him that he meant now to requite him forhaving taken away his lands. Arthur represented that it would bea shame to knighthood for an armed man to kill a man in green, andoffered him any satisfaction. The only terms Gromer would grantwere that Arthur should come back alone to that place that daytwelvemonth, and then tell him what women love best; not bringingthe right answer, he was to lose his head. The king gave his oath,and they parted. The knights, summoned by the king's bugle,found him in heavy cheer, and the reason he would at first tell noman, but after a while he took Gawain into confidence. Gawainadvised that they two should ride into strange country in differentdirections, put the question to every man and woman they met, andwrite the answers in a book. This they did, and each made a largecollection. Gawain thought they could not fail, but the king wasanxious, and considered that it would be prudent to spend the only1 Sir Gromer occurs in " The Turke and Gowin, " Percy MS. , Hales and Furnivall, i . , 102; Sir Grummore Grummorsum, " a good knight of Scotland, "in Morte d'Arthur ed. Wright, i., 286, and elsewhere. -Madden.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 499month that was left in prosecuting the inquiry in the region ofIngleswood. Gawain agreed that it was good to be speering, andbade the king doubt not that some of his saws should helpat need.Arthur rode to Ingleswood, and met a lady riding on a richlycaparisoned palfrey, but herself of a hideousness which beggarswords; nevertheless the items are not spared. She came up toArthur, and told him that she knew his counsel; none of hisanswers would help. If he would grant her one thing, she wouldwarrant his life; otherwise, he must lose his head. This one thingwas that she should be Gawain's wife. The king said this lay withGawain; he would do what he could , but it were a pity to makeGawain wed so foul a lady. "No matter," she rejoined, " though Ibe foul, choice for a mate hath an owl. When thou comest to thineanswer, I shall meet thee; else art thou lost. "The king returned to Carlisle with a heart no lighter, and thefirst man he saw was Gawain, who asked him how he had sped .Never so ill; he had met a lady who had offered to save his life,but she was the foulest he had ever seen , and the condition was thatGawain should be her husband. " Is that all? " said Gawain."I will wed her once and again, though she were the devil; elsewere I no friend. " Well might the king exclaim, " Of all knightsthou bearest the flower!"After five or six days more the time came for the answer. Theking had hardly ridden a mile into the forest when he met the lady,by name Dame Ragnell. He told her Gawain should wed her, anddemanded her answer. "Some say this , and some say that, butabove all things women desire to have the sovereignty; tell this tothe knight; he will curse her that told thee, for his labour is lost."Arthur, thus equipped, rode on as fast as he could go, through mireand fen. Gromer was waiting, and sternly demanded the answer.Arthur offered his two books , for Dame Ragnell had told him to savehimself by any of those answers if he could. ' Nay, nay, king,"said Gromer, " thou art but a dead man.' ' Abide, Sir Gromer, Ihave an answer shall make all sure. Women desire sovereignty.""61 See Note at the end of this paper: " Women desire Sovereignty. "500 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:"She that told thee that was my sister, Dame Ragnell. I prayI may see her burn on a fire. " And so they parted .Dame Ragnell was also waiting for Arthur, and would hear ofnothing but immediate fulfilment of her bargain. She followed theking to his court, and required him to produce Gawain instantly,who came and plighted his troth. The queen begged her to bemarried privately, and early in the morning. Dane Ragnell wouldconsent to no such arrangement. She would not go to church tillhigh-mass time, and she would dine in the open hall. At herwedding she was dressed more splendidly than the queen, and shesat at the head of the table at the dinner afterwards. There herappetite was all but as horrible as her person: she ate three capons,three curlews, and great bake meats-all that was set before her, lessand more.A leaf is wanting now, but what followed is easily imagined.She chided Gawain for his offishness, and begged him to kiss her, atleast. "I will do more," said Gawain, and, turning, beheld thefairest creature he ever saw. But the transformed lady told himthat her beauty would not hold: he must choose whether she shouldbe fair by night and foul by day, or fair by day and foul by night.¹Gawain said the choice was hard, and left all to her. "Gramercy,"said the lady, " thou shalt have me fair both day and night." Thenshe told him that her step-dame had turned her into that monstrousshape by necromancy, not to recover her own till the best knight inEngland had wedded her and given her sovereignty in all points.1 In the Gaelic tale of " The Hoodie " (Campbell's Popular Tales of theWest Highlands, i. , 63) we find a similar choice. The hoodie, a kind of crow,having married the youngest of a farmer's three daughters, says to her:"Whether would'st thou rather that I should be a hoodie by day and a manat night, or be a hoodie at night and a man by day? " The woman does notleave the decision to him: "I would rather that thou wert a man by dayand a hoodie at night, " she replies. After this he was a splendid fellow byday and a hoodie at night.-It is a common occurrence in popular tales forthe hero to have one shape at night and another by day. Thus in the Norsetale, " East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon " (Dasent), a girl is married to awhite bear, who becomes a man every night, and before daybreak changesback into a bear and goes off for the day. And in Indian fictions we oftenread of a girl being married to a serpent who casts aside his skin at night and assumes the form of a man. When this is discovered by his wife she burusthe skin while he is asleep, and henceforth he appears only as a man.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 501A charming little scene follows, in which Arthur visits Gawain inthe morning, fearing lest the fiend may have slain him.¹On this ballad, Sir F. Madden suggests, was founded that of the"Marriage of Sir Gawaine, " which Percy printed, supplying fromconjecture the lacunæ, in the first edition of his Reliques of AncientEnglish Poetry, 1765, and the two subsequent editions. It is thusgiven in the Percy Folio MS. , edited by Drs. Hales and Furnivall,vol. i. , and reproduced by Prof. Child:1 This is the scene in the bridal chamber next morning:715 I telle you, in certeyne,Withe joye & myrthe they wakyde tylle daye,And thane wolde rise that fayre maye, ¹'Ye shalle nott,' sir Gawene sayde;'We wolle lye, & slepe tylle pryme,720 And thene lett the kyng calle vs to dyne.''I ame greed,' then sayde the mayde.Thus itt passyde forth tylle mid-daye.' Syrs,' quode the kyng, ' lett vs go ande asaye,Yf sir Gawene be one lyve.725 I ame fulle ferde of sir GaweneNowe, lest the fende haue hyme slayne;Nowe wolde I fayne preve.Go we nowe,' sayde Arthoure the kyng,'We wolle go se theyr vprysing,730 How welle that he hathe spede. '6They came to the chambre, alle in certeyne;Aryse, ' sayde the kyng to sir Gawene,'Why slepyst thou so long in bede?''Mary,' quode Gawene, ' sir kyng, sicurly,735 I wolde be glade ande ye wolde lett me be,For I am fulle welle att eas;Abyde, ye shalle se the dore vndone,I trowe that ye wolle say I am welle goone,I ame fulle lothe to ryse.'740 Sir Gawene rose, ande in his hande he tokeHis fayr lady, ande to the dore he shoke,Ande opynyde the dore fulle fayre;She stode in her smoke alle by that syre,Her her³ was to her knees as rede as golde wyre, —745 Lo! this is my repayre.Lo!' sayde Gawene Arthoure vntille,' Syr, this is my wife, dame Ragnelle,That sauyde onys your lyfe.'He tolde the kyng and the queene heme beforne,750 Howe sodenly frome her shap she dyde torne,'My lorde, nowe be your leve.'Ande whate was the cause she forshapene was,Syr Gawene told the kyng, bothe more ande lesse.1 mayd, MS. 2 Syr, MS. 3 hed, MS.CH. ORIG. 35502 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:King Arthur is at Carlisle,keeping a merry Christmas.1KThe Marriage of Sir Gawaine.INGE ARTHUR liues in merry Carleile,And seemely is to see,And there he hath with him Queene Genever,That bride soe bright of blee.2 And there he hath with [him] Queene Genever,That bride soe bright in bower,And all his barons about him stoode,That were both stiffe and stowre.3 The king kept a royall Christmasse,Of mirth and great honor,And when ·' And for ransom bring me word what is the great desire ofwomen.'Arthur agrees to these terms,and goes back to Carlisle,moaning.Arthur tells Gawain4And bring me word what thing it isThat a woman [doth] most desire;This shalbe thy ransome, Arthur,' he sayes,'For Ile haue noe other hier.'5 King Arthur then held vp his hand,According thene as was the law;He tooke his leaue of the baron there,And homward can¹ he draw.6 And when he came to merry Carlile,To his chamber he is gone,And ther came to him his cozen Sir Gawaine,As he did make his mone.7 And there came to him his cozen Sir Gawaine,That was a curteous knight;'Why sigh you soe sore, vncle Arthur,' he said,'Or who hath done thee vnright?'8 'O peace, O peace, thou gentle Gawaine,That faire may thee beffall!For if thou knew my sighing soe deepe,Thou wold not meruaile att all.1 ' gan, began.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH's tale. 5039 Ffor when I came to Tearne Wadling, ¹A bold barron there I fand ,With a great club vpon his backe,Standing stiffe and strong.10 And he asked me wether I wold fightOr from him I shold begone,O[r] else I must him a ransome pay,And soe depart him from.11 To fight with him I saw noe cause;Methought it was not meet;For he was stiffe and strong with-all,His strokes were nothing sweete.12 'Therefor this is my ransome, Gawaine,I ought to him to pay;I must come againe, as I am sworne,Vpon the New Yeers day;13 And I must bring him word what thing it is[That a woman doth most desire. ]of his encounter with the Baron at Tearne Wadling,and that to get off fighting him,he must find out,by New Year's Day,what a woman most desires .

• * *

14 Then king Arthur drest him for to ryde,In one soe rich array,Toward the fore-said Tearne Wadling,That he might keepe his day.15 And as he rode over a more,Hee see a lady where shee sateBetwixt an oke and a greene hollen;She was cladd in red scarlett.21 A town in Inglewood Forest, near Hesketh, in Cumber- land; sometimes written Tearne Wathelyne.2 This was a common phrase in our old writers; so Chaucer, in his Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, says of the Wife of Bath:"Her hosen were of fyne scarlet red ."-Percy.Arthur sets forth to fulfil his en- gagement.Crossing a moor,he sees a very hideous lady,504 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:with one eye instead of her mouth,and a crooked nose.She asks, 'Who areyou?Fear not me.Perhaps I may succour you.''Succour me,and Gawain shall marry you.'16 Then there as shold haue stood her mouth,Then there was sett her eye;The other was in her forhead fast,The way that she might see.17 Her nose was crooked and turnd outward,Her mouth stood foule a-wry;A worse formed lady than shee was,Neuer man saw with his eye.18 To halch vpon him, King Arthur,This lady was full faine,But King Arthur had forgott his lesson.What he shold say againe.19 ' What knight art thou, ' the lady sayd,' That will not speak to me?Of me be thou nothing dismayd,Tho I be vgly to see.20 For I haue halched you curteouslye,And you will not me againe;Yett I may happen, Sir Knight,' shee said,' To ease thee of thy paine.'21 Giue thou ease me, lady,' he said,' Or helpe me in any thing,Thou shalt have gentle Gawaine, my cozen,And marry him with a ring. '22 ' Why, if I help thee not, thou noble King Arthur,Of thy owne hearts desiringe,Of gentle GawaineAt the tarn he finds the Buron,23 And when he came to the Tearne Wadling,The baron there cold he finde,With a great weapon on his backe,Standing stiffe and stronge.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH's tale. 50524 And then he tooke King Arthur's letters in his hands, whothinksAnd away he cold them fling,And then he pulȧ out a good browne sword,And cryd himselfe a king.25 And he sayd, ' I have thee and thy land, Arthur,To doe as it pleaseth me,For this is not thy ransome sure,Therfore yeeld thee to me.'26 And then bespoke him noble Arthur,And bad him hold his hand:' And giue me leaue to speake my mindIn defence of all my land. '27 He said, ' As I came over a more,I see a lady where shee sateBetweene an oke and a green hollen;Shee was clad in red scarlett.28 ' And she says a woman will haue her will,And this is all her cheef desire:Doe me right, as thou art a baron of sckill,This is thy ransome and all thy hyer.'29 He sayes, ' An early vengeance light on her!She walkes on yonder more;It was my sister that told thee this,And she is a misshappen hore.30 But heer Ile make mine avow to GodTo doe her an euill turne,For an euer I may thate fowle theefe get,In a fyer I will her burne. '

31 Sir Lancelott and Sir Steven bold,¹They rode with them that day,And the formost of the companyThere rode the steward Kay.1 Sir Steven does not occur (says Madden) in the Round Table romances.Arthur cannot 1produce the ran- som or answer,and claims him and his land.Arthur bids him wait a bit,then gives the answer: Awoman will have her will.'The Baron curses the lady (his sister, it turns out).A company of knights, riding out with the King and Sir Gawain,506 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:meet the hag.Sir Kay does not fancy her to kiss.Sir Gawain bids him be quiet,for one of them must have her to wife.Sir Kay says he had rather perish than it should be he.The others are of the same mind.32 Soe did Sir Banier and Sir Bore,Sir Garrett with them soe gay,Soe did Sir Tristeram, that gentle knight,To the forrest fresh and gay.33 And when he came to the greene forrest,Vnderneath a greene holly tree,Their sate that lady in red scarletThat vnseemly was to see.34 Sir Kay beheld this ladys face,And looked vppon her swire;'Whosoeuer kisses this lady,' he sayes,'Of his kisse he stands in feare.'35 Sir Kay beheld the lady againe,And looked vpon her snout;"Whosoeuer kisses this lady,' he sayes,'Of his kisse he stands in doubt.'36 Peace, cozen Kay, ' then said Sir Gawaine,' Amend thee of thy life;For there is a knight amongst vs all,6That must marry her to his wife. '37 What! wedd her to wiffe! ' then said Sir Kay,' In the diuells name anon!Gett me a wiffe where-ere I may,For I had rather be slaine! '38 Then some tooke vp their hawkes in hast,And some tooke vp their hounds ,And some sware they wold not marry herFor citty nor for towne.1 Banier, probably, according to the same authority, a mistake for Bediuer, the King's Constable-Tennyson's Bedivere.Bore is Bors de Gaunes (or Gannes), brother of Lionel.Garrett is Gareth, or Gaheriet, Sir Gawaine's younger brother.-Percy MS., Hales and Furnivall.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 50739 And then be- spake him noble King Arthur,Arthur reproveshis knights.And sware there by this day,' For a litle foule sight and misliking40 Then shee said, ' Choose thee, gentle Gawaine,Truth as I doe say,Wether thou wilt haue me in this liknesseIn the night or else in the day.'41 And then bespake him gentle Gawaine,Was one soe mild of moode,Sayes, 'Well I know what I wold say,God grant it may be good!42 ' To haue thee fowle in the nightWhen I with thee shold playYet I had rather, if I might,Gawain's bride asks whether he will have her foul by day or night.Gawainanswers,Haue thee fowle in the day.' By day.'"43 What! when lords goe with ther feires,' shee said " Then I must hide' Both to the ale and wine,Alas! then I must hyde my selfe,I must not goe withinne.'44 And then bespake him gentle Gawaine,Said, ' Lady, that's but skill;And because thou art my owne ladyThou shalt haue all thy will.'45 Then she said, ' Blessed be thou, gentle Gawaine,This day that I thee see,For as thou seest me att this time,"From hencforth I wilbe.46 My father was an old knight,And yet it chanced soeThat he marryed a younge ladyThat brought me to this woe.from your com- panions.''No; do as you like.''Bless you,Gawain,you have cured me.508 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:I was witched into the likeness of a fiend.'47 Shee witched me, being a faire young lady,To the greene forrest to dwell,And there I must walke in womans liknesse,Most like a feend of hell.48 She witch my brother to a carlish b ..49 .That looked soe foule , and that was wontOn the wild more to goe. '' Kiss her, brother 50 ' Come kisse her, brother Kay,' then said Sir Gawaine,' And amend the of thy liffe;Kay,' says Gawain,⚫ and regret your rudeness.'Kay kisses her,I sweare this is the same ladyThat I marryed to my wiffe.'51 Sir [Kay he] kissed that lady bright,Standing vpon his ffeete;He swore, as he was trew knight,The spice was neuer soe sweete.and congratulates 52 Well, cozen Gawaine, ' sayes Sir Kay,Gawain.He and Kay take the lady between them,and lead her toKing Arthur,Thy chance is fallen arright,For thou hast gotten one of the fairest maidsI euer saw with my sight.'53 It is my fortune,' said Sir Gawaine;' For my vncle Arthurs sakeI am glad as grasse wold be of raine,Great ioy that I may take.'54 Sir Gawaine tooke the lady by the one arme,Sir Kay tooke her by the tother,They led her straight to King Arthur,As they were brother and brother.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 50955 King Arthur welcomed them there all,And soe did Lady Geneuer his queene,With all the knights of the Round Table,Most seemly to be seene.56 King Arthur beheld that lady faireThat was soe faire and bright,He thanked Christ in TrinityFor Sir Gawaine, that gentle knight.57 Soe did the knights, both more and lesse,Reioyced all that dayFor the good chance that happened wasTo Sir Gawaine and his lady gay.who thanks God for Gawain's bliss.All the knights rejoice.The ballad of King Henry, which Scott gives in his Minstrelsyofthe Scottish Border, " from the MS. of Mrs. Brown, corrected bya recent fragment, " may represent an older version than either of thetwo foregoing. Mr. Child says that this MS. was William Tytler's ,"in which, as we learn from Anderson's communication to Percy,this ballad was No. 11. Anderson states that it extended to 22stanzas , the number in Scott's copy. No account is given of therecited fragment. As published by Jamieson, ii. , 194, the ballad isincreased by interpolation to 34 stanzas. 'The interpolation will befound enclosed in brackets; ' but a painful contrast of its style ofitself distinguishes them. They were entered by Jamieson in hismanuscript as well. " The following is Scott's copy:Border Ballad of King Henrie.ET never man a wooing wendLEThat lacketh thingis three:A rowth o' gold, an open heart,And fu' o' courtesey.4And this was seen o' king Henrie,For he lay burd alane;And he has ta'en him to a haunted hunt's ha',Was seven miles frae a toun. 8510 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:He chaced the dun deer thro' the wood,And the roe doun by the den,Till the fattest buck in a' the herdKing Henrie he has slain. 12He's ta'en him to his hunting ha',For to make burly cheir;When loud the wind was heard to sound,And an earthquake rocked the floor.16And darkness covered a' the hallWhere they sat at their meat;The gray dogs, youling, left their food,And crept to Henrie's feet. 20And louder houled the rising wind,And burst the fast'ned door;And in there came a griesly ghost,Stood stamping on the floor.24Her head touched the roof-tree of the house;Her middle ye weel mot span;Each frighted huntsman fled the ha',And left the king alone.28Her teeth were a' like tether stakes,Her nose like a club or mell;And I ken naething she appeared to beBut the fiend that wons in hell. 32' Sum meat, sum meat, ye king Henrie!Sum meat ye gie to me! ""And what meat's in this house, ladye,That ye're na wellcum tee? "1 36"O ye'se gae kill your berry-brown steed,And serve him up to me. "1 Tee for to is the Buchanshire and Gallovidian pronuncia- tion.-S.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 511O when he killed his berry-brown steed,Wow, gin his heart was sair! 40She eat him a' up, skin and bane,Left naething but hide and hair.“ Mair meat, mair meat, ye king Henrie!Mair meat ye gie to me! "44"And what meat's i' this house, ladye,That ye're na wellcum tee? ""O ye do slay your gude gray houndes,And bring them a' to me." 48O when he slew his gude grayhoundes,Wow, but his heart was sair!She's ate them a' up, ane by ane,Left naething but hide and hair. 52"Mair meat, mair meat, ye king Henrie!Mair meat ye gie to me! ""And what meat's i' this house, ladye,That I hae left to gie? ""O ye do fell your gay goss-hawks,And bring them a' to me. ”O when he felled his gay goss- hawks,Wow, but his heart was sair!She's ate them a' up, bane by bane,Left naething but feathers bare."Sum drink, some drink, ye king Henrie!Sum drink ye gie to me! ""And what drink's in this house, ladye,That ye're na wellcum tee? ""O ye sew up your horse's hide,And bring in a drink to me. "O he has sewed up the bluidy hide,And put in a pipe of wine;She drank it a' up at ae draught,Left na a drap therein.726888646056512 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:"A bed, a bed, ye king Henrie!A bed ye mak to me! ""And what's the bed i' this house, ladye,That ye're na wellcum tee? ""O ye maun pu' the green heather,And mak a bed to me."O pu'd has he the heather green,And made to her a bed;7680And up he has ta'en his gay mantle,And o'er it he has spread."Now swear, now swear, ye king Henrie,To take me for your bride!""84"O God forbid! " king Henrie said," That ever the like betide!That e'er the fiend, that wons in hell,Should streak down by my side! " 88•When day was come, and night was gane,And the sun shone through the ha',The fairest ladye that e'er was seenLay atween him and the wa'. 92"O weel is me! " King Henrie said,"How long will this last wi' me?"And out and spak that ladye fair:"E'en till the day ye dee. "96"For I was witched to a ghastly shape,All by my stepdame's skill,Till I should meet wi' a courteous knightWad gie me a' my will. "100William Tytler's version of this ballad was adapted by Lewis forhis Tales of Wonder, under the title of " Courteous King Jamie, " ii. ,453. A similar ballad, " Of a Knight and a Fair Virgin," is foundin Johnson's Crown Garland of Golden Roses, printed about the yearFOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 513.1600. And Voltaire has followed Chaucer in his tale " Ce qui plaîtaux Dames."""Scott, in his prefatory note to the ballad of " King Henrie," afterreferring to its resemblance to that of the " Marriage of Sir Gawaineand the Wife of Bath's Tale, cites what he considers as the " original,"as follows, from Torfous (Hrolffi Krakii, Hist. , Hafn. 1715, p. 49):HEIcelandic Version.ELLGIUS, Rex Daniæ, mærore ob omissam conjugem vexatus, solus agebat, et subducens sehominum commercio, segregem domum, omnis famulitiiimpatiens, incolebat. Accidit autem, ut, nocte concubia,lamentabilis cujusdam ante fores ejulantis sonus auribusejus obreperet. Expergefactus igitur, recluso ostio,informe quoddam mulieris simulacrum, habitu corporisfædum, veste squalore obsita, pallore, macie frigorisquetyrannide prope modum peremptum, deprehendit; quodprecibus obsecratus, ut qui jam miserorum ærumnas expropria calamitate pensare didicisset, in domum intromisit; ipse lectum petit. At mulier, ne hac quidembenignitate contenta, thori consortium obnixè flagitabat,addens id tante referre, ut nisi impetraret, omnino sibimoriendum esset. Quod, ea lege, ne ipsum attingeret,concessum est. Ideo nec complexu eam dignatus Rex,avertit sese. Cum autem prima luce forte oculos ultrocitroque converteret, eximiæ formæ virginem lecto receptam animadvertit; quæ statim ipsi placere cæpitcausam igitur tam repentinæ mutationis curiosius indaganti, respondit Virgo, se unam e subterraneorumhominum genere diris novercalibus devotam, tam tetraet execrabili specie, quali primo comparuit, damnatum,quond thori cujusdam principis socia fieret, multosreges hac de re sollicitasse . Jam actis pro præstitobeneficio gratiis, discessum maturans, a rege formæ ejusillecebris capto comprimitur. Deinde petit, si prolem

K. Helgi, grieved for his wite'sdeath, lived in asolitary house.One night heside; opens thehears a cry outdoor, and sees ahideous- looking woman, whom he lets in.She begs to share his bed, else she'll die.He consents,touch him.but she must notAt dawn he finds byhis side a lovelyvirgin, who tells him she is of therace of gnomes,foul a form tillprince.condemned to soshe lay with a514 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:Helgi embraces her, and sheto receive their offspring, if any,or danger should follow.From this he departs, when andoor. She comes and upbraids him,but will turn theex hoc congressu progigni contigerit, sequente hyeme,exacts his promise eodem anni tempore, ante fores positam in ædes reciperet, seque ejus patrem profiteri non gravaretur,secus non leve infortunium insecuturum prædixit: Aquo præcepto cum rex postea exorbitasset, nec præinfant is laid athis foribus jacentem infantem pro suo agnoscere voluisset,ad eam iterum, sed corrugata fronte, accessit, obqueviolatam fidem acrius objurgatum ab imminente periculo, præstiti olim beneficii gratia, exempturam pollicebatur, ita tamen ut tota ultionis rabies in filium ejuseffusa graves aliquando levitatis illius pænas exigeret.Ex hac tam dissimilium naturarum commixione, Skulda,who did wonders, versuti et versatilis animi mulier, nata fuisse memoratur; quæ utramque naturam participans prodigiosorumoperum effectrix perhibetur.danger on his son.From this union Skulda, a woman,was born.This Norse tale more closely resembles the ballad of King Henriethan those of Sir Gawaine: in both a king is living in a solitaryhouse when the loathly lady comes knocking at the door, and beingadmitted gets leave to lie in his bed; on the other hand, in Gawaine'sWedding with Dame Ragnell, as in King Henrie, she has a mostvoracious appetite, eating and drinking all that is set before her.The story is differently told from any of the preceding in anotherIcelandic version, of which Prof. Child gives the following abstract:GAnother Icelandic Version.RIMR was on the verge of marriage with Lopthæna, but aweek before the appointed day the bride was gone, andnobody knew what had become of her. Her father had given her astep-mother five years before, and the step-mother had been far fromkind; but what then? Grímr was restless and unhappy, and got notidings. A year of scarcity coming, he left home with two of hispeople. After an adventure with four trolls, he had a fight withtwelve men, in which, though they were all slain, he lost hiscomrades, and was very badly wounded. As he lay on the ground,looking only for death, a woman passed, if so she might be called;FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 515བ!for she was not taller than a child of seven years, so stout thatGrímr's arms would not go round her, mis-shapen, bald, black, ugly,and disgusting in every particular. She came up to Grímr, andasked him if he would accept his life from her. "Hardly," said he;"you are so loathsome." But life was precious, and he presentlyconsented. She took him up and ran with him, as if he were ababe, till she came to a large cave; there she set him down, and itseemed to Grímr that she was uglier than before. "Now pay mefor saving your life, " she said, " and kiss me. " " I cannot," saidGrímr, " you look so diabolical. " " Expect no help, then, from me, "said she; " and I see that it will soon be all over with you. ""Since it must be, loth as I am," said Grímr, and went and kissedher; she seemed not so bad to kiss as to look at. When night cameshe made up a bed, and asked Grímr whether he would lie alone, orwith her. "Alone," he answered. " Then, " said she, " I shalltake no pains about healing your wounds. " Grímr said he wouldrather lie with her, if he had no other chance, and she bound up hiswounds, so that he seemed to feel no more of them. No sooner wasGrímr abed than he fell asleep, and when he woke, he saw lying byhim almost the fairest woman he had ever laid eyes on, andmarvellously like his true-love Lopthæna. At the bedside he sawlying the troll-casing which she had worn; he jumped up andburned this. The woman was very faint; he sprinkled her withwater, and she came to , and said , " It is well for both of us; I savedthy life first, and thou hast freed me from bondage." It was indeedLopthana, whom the step-mother had transformed into a horribleshape, odious to men and trolls , which she should never come out oftill a man should consent to three things-which no man everwould-to accept his life at her hands, to kiss her, and to shareher bed.2The first part of the story of " The Daughter of King UnderWaves " in Campbell's Popular Tales of the West Highlands, vol.iii. , p. 403 f. , was probably derived from the same source as that of1 See end of note, p. 500.2 Gríms saga loðinkinna, Rafn , Fornaldar Sögur, ii. 143-152.516 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:the Icelandic tale of King Helgi, the father of Hrolfr Kraki, thoughsome of the details and the conclusion are very different:Gaelic Version.NE dark and stormy night, when the Finn were together, aONEcreature of uncouth aspect, whose hair reached to her heels,knocked at the door of Fionn and besought shelter, but on his looking out and seeing such a hideous being, he refused to admit her,and she went away screaming. Then she went to Oisean, who alsorefused to let her in; but when she next applied to Diarmaid, hesaid to her: "Thou art a strange, hideous creature; thy hair isdown to thy heels; but come in. " When she had entered she said:“ O Diarmaid, I have spent seven years in travelling over ocean andsea, and during all that time till now I have not passed a nightbeneath a roof. Let me come near the fire. " "Come up," saidDiarmaid; and when she drew near the fire the people of Finn beganto flee, she was so hideous. "Go to the farther side," said Diarmaidto them, "and let the creature come to the warmth of the fire. " Sothey went to the other side, but she had not been long at the firewhen she sought to be under the blanket beside Diarmaid himself."Thou art growing bold," said he: " first thou didst ask me to letthee in, then thou didst seek to come to the fire, and now thouaskest leave to come under the blanket with me; but come. "went under the blanket, and he turned a fold of it between them.She was not long thus when he started and gazed at her, and sawby his side the finest drop of blood that ever was, from the beginningof the universe till the end of the world. He called to the others tocome and see the most beautiful woman that man ever saw, andthey were astonished and covered her up. When she awoke, shesaid: " Art thou awake, Diarmaid? " and he answered: " I amawake." Then said she: " Where wouldst thou rather that the veryfinest castle thou hast ever seen should be built? " "Up aboveBeinn Eudainn, if I had my choice," and Diarmaid slept, and shesaid no more to him.SheThere went out one early, before the day, riding, and he saw acastle built upon a hill. He cleared his sight, to see if it was reallyFOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 517there; then he saw it, and went home, and did not say a word.Another went out and also saw it, and said nothing. Then the daywas brightened, and the two came in, telling that the castle was mostsurely there. She sat up and said: " Arise, Diarmaid, go up to thycastle, and be not stretched there any longer." " If there were acastle to which I might go," said Diarmaid. "Look out," said she,"and see if there be a castle there." He looked out and saw a castle,and came in, saying to her: " I will go up to the castle, if thou wiltgo with me. " "I will do that, Diarmaid; but say not to me thricehow thou didst find me." "I will never say how I found thee,"replied Diarmaid. So they went to the castle together. That was abeautiful castle! There was not the shadow of a thing that was ofuse for a castle that was not in it, even to a herd for the geese. Themeat was on the board, and there were maidservants and menservants about it. They spent three days in the castle together, andthen she said to him: "Thou art turning sorrowful, because thou artnot with thy people; and thou hadst best go to the Finn, and thymeat and drink will be no worse than they are." "Who will takecare of the greyhound bitch and her three pups? " said Diarmaid."What fear is there for them? " said she, and then Darmiaid wentaway and reached the people of Finn.The rest of the story is a curious variant of the Cupid and Psychegroup of legends. Fionn, Oisean, and another of the Finn, enviousof Diarmaid's good luck, which might have been that of any of themhad they not refused the woman admittance, visit her one after theother and each obtains of her one of the greyhound's pups. WhenDiarmaid returns after each of the two first visits , he says to the dogthat if his bride had borne in mind how he had found her, with herhair down to her heels, she would not have given away the pup.She asks what he had said, and he begs her pardon; but when hecomes back after the third pup had been given away and repeats thesame remark, he finds himself without wife or castle, and lying in amoss-hole. He sets out in quest of her, and after much troublediscovers her in a palace under the sea, but his love for her is nowsuddenly changed into dislike -a curious departure from the usualconclusion of tales of this class.CH. ORIG .36518 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:The old traveller Sir John Mandeville, like Herodotus, is doubtless to be credited , as a rule, when he tells us of what he himself saw,but when he begins a narrative with " men seyn " we may be sure heis simply about to repeat some fabulous account of " antres vast anddeserts idle; of men whose heads do grow beneath their shoulders,"and other monsters. In the following tale of a damsel transformedinto a frightful dragon, he takes care to let us know that it is onlyfrom hearsay:Analogue from Mandeville."Some Men seyn, that in the Ile of Lango is 3it the Doughtre ofYpocras, in forme and lykenesse of a gret Dragoun, that is an hundredFadme of lengthe, 2 as Men seyn: For I have not seen hire. And theiof the Iles callen hire, Lady of the Lond. And sche lyethe in anolde Castelle, in a Cave, and schewethe twyes or thryes in the Zeer.And sche dothe non harm to no Man, but 3if Men don hire harm.And sche was thus chaunged and transformed, from a fair Damysele,in to lyknesse of a Dragoun, be a Goddesse, that was clept Deane.3And Men seyn, that sche schalle so endure in that forme of a Dragoun, unto the tyme that a Knyghte come, that is so hardy, that darcome to hire and kiss hire on the Mouthe: And then schalle scheturne azen to hire owne Kynde, and ben a Woman azen: But aftrethat sche schalle not liven longe. And it is not long siththen, thata Knighte of the Rodes, that was hardy and doughty in Armes, seydethat he wolde kyssen hire. And whan he was upon his Coursere,and wente to the Castelle, and entred into the Cave, the Dragounlifte up hire Hed azenst him. And whan the Knyghte saw hire inthat Forme so hidous and so horrible, he fleyghe awey. And theDragoun bare the Knyghte upon a Roche, mawgre his Hede; andfrom that Roche, sche caste him in to the See: and so was lost botheHors and Man. And also a 3onge Man, that wiste not of the Dragoun, wente out of a Schipp, and wente thorghe the Ile, til that hecome to the Castelle, and cam in to the Cave; and wente so longe,1 Hippocrates.2 A hundred fathoms long-something like a monster!3 Diana.4 Rock.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 519Andtil that he fond a Chambre, and there he saughe a Damysele, thatkembed hire Hede, and lokede in a Myrour; and sche hadde mecheTresoure abouten hire: ¹ and he trowed, that sche hadde ben a comounWoman, that dwelled there to receyve Men to Folye. And he abode,tille the Damysele saughe the Schadewe of him in the Myrour. Andsche turned hire toward him, and asked hym, what he wolde.he seyde, he wolde ben hire Limman or Paramour. And sche askedhim, 3if that he were a Knyghte. And he seyde, nay. And thansche seyde, that he myghte not ben hire Lemman: But sche bad himgon azen unto his Felowes, and make him Knyghte, and come azenupon the Morwe, and sche scholde come out of the Cave before him;and thanne come and kysse hire on the Mowthe, and have no Drede;for I schalle do the no maner harm, alle be it that thou see me inLyknesse of a Dragoun. For thoughe thou see me hidouse and horrible to loken onne, I do the to wytene, 2 that it is made be Enchauntement. For withouten doute, I am non other than thou seest now, aWoman; and therfore drede the noughte. And 3if thou kysse me,thou schalt have alle this Tresoure, and be my Lord, and Lord alsoof alle that Ile. And he departed fro hire and wente to his Felowesto Schippe, and leet make him Knyghte, and cam azen upon theMorwe, for to kysse this Damysele. And whan he saughe hire comenout of the Cave, in forme of a Dragoun, so hidouse and so horrible,he hadde so grete drede, that he fleyghe azen to the Schippe; andsche folewed him. And whan sche saughe, that he turned not azen,sche began to crye, as a thing that hadde meche Sorwe: and thannesche turned azen, in to hire Cave; and anon the Knyghte dyedc.And siththen hidrewards, myghte no Knyghte se hire, but that hedyede anon. But whan a Knyghte comethe, that is so hardy to kissehire, he schalle not dye; but he schalle turne the Damysele in to hirerighte Forme and kyndely Schapp, and he schal be Lord of alle theContreyes and Iles aboveseyd. "31 From the most ancient times serpents and dragons were believed to bethe guardians of hidden treasure.2 I give thee to know.3 The Voiage and Travaile of Sir John Maundeville, Kt., etc. Reprinted from the edition of A.D. 1725; with an Introduction, Additional Notes, andGlossary, by J. O. Halliwell. London, 1839. Chap. iv. , pp. 23-26.520 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:Mandeville's wonderful tale is quite unique. In all other storiesor legends of the kind the enchanted person is not apparently permitted to reveal the means by which the spell may be done away;but here the "dragoun " young lady tells all about it to every one whovisits her; and it is passing strange that no fortune-hunter could befound bold enough to imprint a kiss on her monstrous mouth, whenassured that she should be thereby instantly changed back into heroriginal form of a super-eminently beautiful damsel, willing to rewardhim with her hand in marriage, and " wealth beyond the dreams ofavarice "! Sir John does not give us to understand that this unhappylady was immortal, so it were useless for any enterprising youth,with an eye on the " main chance," to think of setting forth in questof her at this time of day.There is an interesting analogue of the chief feature of the Wifeof Bath's Tale in a Turkish story-book of a mystical cast, entitled,"Phantasms from the Presence of God," written, in 1796-7, by 'Ali'Aziz Efendi, the Cretan, ¹ which is to this effect:Turkish Analogue.A beautiful young orphan girl, exceedingly poor, returning homewith water one day, is accosted by a very ugly old man, who asksher to marry him. She consents, for she thinks her condition couldhardly be worse. After being married they sail for Abyssinia, wherethey reside for some little time. One day the old man was gone tothe bazaar, and the girl began to long for his return, saying to herself: " Would that my husband were come, that I might talk withhim." When the old man came, she ran to meet him with as muchjoy as if the world had become her own, and when he beheld herlonging in her face, and her countenance glowing with delight, hesuddenly shook himself and became a young man of seventeen years,a sun of the world—a darling of the age; and he clasped her round1 Mukhayyalát- i Ledun-i illáhí- i Giridli ‘ Ali ‘ Aziz Efendi. My friend Mr.E. J. W. Gibb has favoured me with a reading of part of his translation of thiscurious work, which he is preparing for publication, and from which I havemade the abstract of the story that follows.FOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 521the neck and blessed her, saying: " O my lady, my Emína, like asthou hast delivered me from this plight, may God help thee in theHereafter from the torment of hell! " Then he took her by thehand, and they entered the inner room, and the youth addressed herthus: " My lady, I am not of the sons of Adam. I am Retím Shah,king of the fairies of the land of Jábulsá. With us a parent's curseagainst a child forthwith comes to pass. One day while jesting withmy aged mother, I said to her: Thou dost not love me.' Thesewords were grievous to her, and she said: ' If God will, my son,may thou assume a vile form of seventy years old , and until a fairgirl of the children of Adam desire thy beauty, may thou not returnto thy first estate. ' No sooner had she uttered this speech than, lo!I assumed that form which thou sawest, and it is full forty years thatI have wandered the world in that shape, seeking a cure for my woe.I saw that thy poverty was exceeding great, and as the indications oftruth and chastity were visible in thy face, I fancied that I might,with much kindness, in some way win and reconcile thee to myself.And lo! thou hast yearned for me, and, praise be to God most high,my beauty has returned to its old estate. Now am I thy husband,and thy freed slave; henceforth grieve not, nor sorrow for anything.Accept me again as husband, if thou desire; send me away, if thoudesire my loins are girt in thy service till the Resurrection Day. "Needless to add that Sitt Emína was more than charmed with herrejuvenated husband, who supplied her with wealth galore, and cameall the way from his fairy dominions once every week to enjoy hersociety.Sanskrit Analogue.I do not remember any exact parallel to the Wife of Bath's Talein Indian fiction , though the step-dame's transforming the damselinto a hideous hag, so to remain until a knight should consent tomarry her, which occurs in other versions, has many analogues insuch story-books as the Katha Sarit Ságara , where a celestial beinghaving incurred the wrath of a deity is condemned to be re-born on¹ How very absurd is the popular notion that Muslims deny the existence of the soul in woman!522 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY:the earth in human form, or as a snake or other animal, the "curse," orpunishment, to cease when certain things should occur.This powerof " cursing" is also acquired by holy men-rishis-through thevirtue of their austerities, and they often transform an offender intosome kind of beast. Thus in section the eleventh of the IntroductoryBook ofthe Mahábhárata we are told of a rishi who was engaged inthe Agnihotra, or fire- sacrifice, when a friend in sport made a shamsnake of blades of grass, and attempted to frighten him with it. Therishi, burning with wrath on discovering the deceit, exclaimed:"Since thou hast made a powerless snake to frighten me, thou shaltbe turned even into a venomless snake thyself by my curse. ” Theculprit, well knowing the power of the ascetic, thus addressed him,lowly bending, and with joined hands: "O friend, I have done thisby way of jest, to excite thy laughter. It behoveth thee to forgiveme, and to revoke thy curse." But this, it would appear, was impossible the curse itself was irrevocable, and such being the case, rishisshould certainly be careful not to "let their angry passions rise," asthey do so often-in story-books. But the duration of the cursecould be limited, and so the rishi, perceiving the culprit's terror, said:"What I have spoken must come to pass. But when Ruru, thepure son of Pramati, shall appear thou shalt be delivered from thecurse the moment thou seest him," and this takes place in the fulnessof time.Legends similar to the tale of the Knight andthe Loathly Ladyseem to be of universal currency and of very ancient date.Have wenot all listened to them in the nursery, and been especially charmedwith the tale of " The Frog Prince "? And there are several parallelsto it among the natives of South Africa. To cite two examples only,in conclusion:Two Kaffir Analogues.In Theal's Kaffir Folk-Lore a youth refrains from killing acrocodile, and in return it gives him many cattle and a greatquantity of millet. Then the crocodile said to him: " You mustsend your sister for the purpose of being married to me." TheFOR THE WIFE OF BATH'S TALE. 523crocodile gave one of his daughters to the young man, and his sisterwent to the village of the crocodile to be a bride. They said to her:"Whom do you choose to be your husband?" The girl replied: " Ichoose Crocodile. " Her husband said to her: " Lick my face.' Shedid so, and the crocodile cast off his skin and arose a man of greatstrength and fine appearance, and told her that he had been so transformed by the enemies of his father's house (ed. 1882, p. 37) .-Inanother story ( p. 53) a girl goes to be the bride of the snake with fiveheads, who had devoured her sister because she was afraid of him;and having baked and served him with bread to his satisfaction, hebecame a man, and she was ever afterwards the wife he loved best.NOTE.66 WOMEN DESIRE SOVEREIGNTY. "THE " self-willed " disposition of women is harped upon by many ofour old English authors. In a curious 16th century tract entitled TheWyll of the Devyll ( Ballad Society Publications) occurs the following bequest: "Item. I give to all women sovereignty, which they most desire, and that they never lack excuse." And, in his Breviary of Health,Andrew Borde says of woman: " She is subject to man, except it be there where the white mare is the better horse; therefore, ut hom*o non cantet cum cuculo, let every man please his wife in all matters, and displease her not, but let her have her own wyll, for that she wyll have,who so ever say nay; "-according to the proverbial lines—"The man's a fool who thinks by force of skill To stem the torrent of a woman's will;For if she will, she will, you may depend on't,And if she won't, she won't, and there's an end on't."It would appear from the above passage from Borde that the wife who ruled her husband was then called the " white mare " -in moderntimes she is termed the "gray mare, " and the origin of the expression isthus accounted for:Agentleman, whohad " seen the world, " one day gave his son a pairof horses, and a basket of eggs, saying, " Do you travel upon the high- road until you come to the first house in which there is a married couple.If you find that the husband is master there, give him one of the horses.If, on the other hand, the wife is ruler, give her an egg. Return atonce if you part with a horse, but do not come back so long as you keepboth horses, and there is an egg remaining in your basket." Off wentthe youth, full of his mission, and called at so many houses withoutfinding the husband really master that all his eggs save one were gone,and riding onward he came to a house where he must make his finaltrial. He alighted and knocked at the door. The good wife opened it for him and curtsied. "Is your husband at home? No," but shewould call him from the hay-field. In he came, wiping his brows. The""524 21. THE KNIGHT AND THE LOATHLY LADY.""youngman told them his errand. "Why," said the good wife, simperingand twiddling a corner of her apron, I always do as John wants me to do; he is my master-aren't you, John? " To which John replied, "Yes." "6 Then," said the youth, " I am to give you a horse; whichwill you take? Quoth John, " I think we'll have the bay gelding. ' " If we have a choice, husband," said the wife, " I think the gray mare will suit us better." "No," replied John; the bay for me; he is more square in the front, and has much better legs. " Now," said the wife, "I don't think so; -the gray mare is the better horse, and I shall never be contented unless I get that one." "You must take an egg, " criedthe youth, giving her the only one he had left, and he then returnedhome, with both horses, to inform his father how he had sped in his mission.6666There is a similar Arabian story told of the Khalif Harún er- Rashíd,who figures so often in the Arabian Nights: how he gave one of his favourite companions a great number of donkeys, one of which he wasto present to each man whom he found not to be under " petticoatgovernment "-for it is a mistake to suppose that, although women of acertain class are bought and sold for the harams of Muslims, the actualwife may not sometimes rule her lord very despotically; but on this subject see Lane's Modern Egyptians. The favourite returned withouthaving disposed of a single ass, at which Harún made merry, declaring himself to be the only man in his dominions who was master of his haram, including even his chief wife, Zubaydé. Their conversationhappened to take place in a room where they might be overheard bythatpious but exceedingly jealous lady, and the favourite sawhis opportunity of turning the laugh against the Khalíf himself. So he began to describein glowing terms the personal charms of a girl he pretended to have seen in the course of his journeyings, upon which Harún, in alarm lestZubaydé should hear this account of the strange beauty, whispered:"Don't talk quite so loud. " This was what the companion expected, so he exclaimed in great glee: " O Commander of the Faithful, it is you who must take a donkey!19GLASGOW, January, 1888.52522.The Patient Griselda:ENGLISH ABSTRACT OF AN EARLY FRENCH VERSIONOFChaucer's Clerk's Tale.By W. A. CLOUSTON.526A noble Marquesse,As he did ride a huntinghard by a forrest side,A faire and comely maiden,As she did sit a spinning,his gentle eye espide.Most faire and comely,And of comely grace was she,although in simple attire:She sung full sweetly,With pleasant boyce melodiously,which set the lords heart on fire.The more he lookt, the more he might;Beauty bread his hearts delight,And to this comely damsellthen he went;God speed (quoth he) , thou famous flower,Faire mistresse of this homely bower,here love and vertuedwel with sweet content,HISTORY OF PATIENT GRISSELL.527THE PATIENT GRISELDA:ENGLISH ABSTRACT OF AN EARLY FRENCH VERSION OF THECLERK'S TALE.BY W. A. CLOUSTON.IN striking contrast to the motifof the Wife of Bath's Tale is thatof the Clerk's Tale of the Patient Griselda-such a wife as " ne'erwas, nor is, nor e'er shall be! " The admirable note, by ProfessorHales, on the characters of Griselda and the Marquis, appended tothe Latin and Italian versions (p. 173 ff. ) , leaves little to be addedby subsequent commentators. The tale may indeed be considered asa protest against the abuse of women so common in medieval literature. But as it stands almost alone, it could have had little influencein causing a reaction in men's minds. It may be that the motif ofthe tale was rendered abortive from the characters of Griselda andthe Marquis being so very much exaggerated, or overdrawn-so muchout of keeping with human nature; and one can easily conceive thatthe Patient Griselda would be often held up by men to their wives inmockery of their sex in general, just as they were frequently twittedby their gross-minded lords with stories of female artifice and profligacy taken from example-books, such as that which caused a "row"between the Wife of Bath and Jenkins her husband- in which, asusual, he came off second-best. My only object in presenting thefollowing translation of Le Grand's prose version of the fabliau ofGriselda is to show its close resemblance to Petrarch's Latin story—the details of each run so exactly parallel that either they must havebeen derived from a common source or one has been taken fromthe other.1 According to Le Grand, in his prefatory remarks on the fabliau of Griselda, Noguier asserts that Griselda is not an imaginary person , but that thisPhoenix of women actually lived about the year 1003; and Philippe Foresti ,the Italian historiographer, also gives her story as true; —it is just as true asthe Italian legend of Santa Gugielma-see ante, pp. 409, 410.528 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:The Fabliau of Griselda.N Lombardy, on the confines of Piedmont, is a noble country,atime the title of Marquis. Of all those lords the most illustrious andpowerful was Walter. He was handsome, well made, and endowedwith all the gifts of nature; but he had one fault, that of loving toomuch the liberty of celibacy, and displeased when marriage washinted to him, which sorely grieved his barons and vassals. Theyassembled to confer on the subject, and appointed certain deputies tospeak to Walter in their name, as follows: " Marquis, our onlymaster and sovereign lord, the love which we bear you has inspiredus with boldness to come and speak with you; for everything whichyou possess is pleasing to us, and we think ourselves happy inhaving such a master. But, dear sire, you know that years roll andpass by, and never return. Although you are in the flower of yourmanhood, nevertheless old age and death, from which no one is free,happen every day. Your vassals, who will never refuse to obey you,request you to allow them to seek for you a lady of noble birth,beautiful and virtuous, who would be worthy of becoming your wife.Grant, sire, this favour to your loyal subjects , in order that, in theevent of any misfortune befalling your high and noble person, theyshould not be without a master. ' To this address Walter, muchaffected , answered kindly: " My friends, it is true I please myselfin enjoying that liberty which one feels in my situation , and whichis lost in marriage, if I may believe those who have tried it. AnOther inconvenience of that union is that we are not sure thechildren we so much desire are really our own. Yet, my friends,I promise you to marry; and I hope that the good God will give meone with whom I shall be able to live a happy life. But I wishalso that you first promise me one thing, namely, that her whom Ichoose, whoever she may be, daughter of rich or poor man, you willrespect and honour as your lady, and that there will be no oneamongst you who will dare to blame or murmur at my choice. " Thebarons and subjects promised faithfully to observe what the Marquistheir lord demanded of them. They thanked him for having""FOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 529deferred to their request, and were informed by him of the day forhis marriage, which caused great joy throughout the country ofSaluces.Now at a short distance from the castle there was a village inwhich the labourers dwelt, and through which the Marquis passedwhen he went to the chase. Amongst the villagers was an old mancalled Janicola, poor, bowed down by infirmities , and quite unableto walk. Often in a miserable cottage dwells the blessing ofHeaven; and of this that good old man was a proof, for thereremained to him from his marriage a daughter, named Griselda, witha perfectly-formed person, but a soul still more beautiful, who kindlysupported and comforted his old age. During the day she watchedthe sheep which belonged to them; in the evening, when she hadbrought them home, she prepared their frugal meal, raised and laidher father; in short, all those services which a daughter should dofor a father the virtuous Griselda performed for poor Janicola. Fora long time the Marquis had known by common report of the virtueand modest conduct of this poor girl. Often in going to the chasehe stopped and looked at her; and in his heart he had alreadydecided that if he ever did marry, it would only be Griselda.Meanwhile the day which he had fixed for his marriage cameround, and the palace was crowded with dames, knights, citizens,and people of every condition. All were making inquiries of eachother regarding the wife of their lord, but no one could answer.The Marquis set out from his palace, as if with the intention ofmeeting his bride, and all the ladies and knights followed him. Hewended his way to the village, and entered the cottage of Janicola,to whom he said: " Janicola, I know you have always loved me;to-day I exact a proof of it: grant me your daughter in marriage."The poor man, astonished at this request, humbly replied: " Sire,you are my master and lord, and I should wish whatever you wish. 'The maiden all this time was standing near her old father, quiteabashed, for she was not accustomed to receive such a guest. Thenthe Marquis thus addressed her: " Griselda, I wish you to becomemy wife. Your father consents, and I venture to think that youwill not refuse; but first answer me one question which I will ask""530 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:of you before him: I desire a wife who will be submissive to me ineverything, who will only wish what I wish, and, whatever mycaprices may be, will always be ready to fulfil them. If you becomemine, will you consent to observe these conditions? " Griseldareplied: "My lord, I shall be ever willing to do whatever you mayplease to command. Should you order my death, I promise you tosuffer it without complaining. " "Enough, " said the Marquis; at thesame time taking her hand and leading her out of the house, hepresented her to his barons and people, saying: " My friends, here ismy wife-here is your lady, whom I request you to love and honouras you do myself. " After these words he conducted her to thepalace, where the matrons took off her rustic garments in order todeck her in a rich dress and nuptial ornaments.Griselda blushed,and trembled all over; and you yourself, after having been seena moment before in your village, should you suddenly appear with acrown on your head, I am quite sure would not be able to check thesame kind of astonishment. The marriage was celebrated the sameday. The palace resounded with all kinds of musical instruments;there was everywhere nothing but shouts of joy; subjects as well astheir lord appeared to be enchanted. Hitherto Griselda had beenmuch admired for her virtuous conduct, but now, mild, affable, andobliging, she was more loved than she had been esteemed; and, bothamong those who had known her before her elevation and those whoknew her afterwards, there was not one who envied her good fortune.In due course Griselda gave birth to a daughter, who promised tobe one day as beautiful as herself. Although the Marquis and hissubjects would have more heartily welcomed the advent of a son,there was great rejoicing throughout Saluces. The infant wasnursed in the palace by its mother; but as soon as it was weaned,Walter, who had devised a plan for testing his wife's obedience,although, charmed day after day by her virtues, he loved her moreand more, entered her chamber, and, with the air of a man troubled .about something, spoke to her as follows: " Griselda, you have notperhaps forgotten what was your condition before becoming my wife.I had, however, almost forgot it myself, and my tender love forthee, of which thou hast received many proofs, might assure thee ofFOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 53166it. But for some time, and especially since qur child was born, myvassals murmur, and even haughtily complain of being destined oneday to become the vassals of a grand-daughter of Janicola, and I,whose interest it is to preserve their friendship, am now compelled tomake to them a sacrifice which pains me grievously. I would notact, however, until I had forewarned you; and I come to ask yourpermission, and exhort you to exercise that patience which youpromised me before becoming my spouse. " Griselda humbly replied,without showing any tokens of grief: " My beloved lord, you are mylord and master; my daughter and myself belong to you; and youmay command me in anything, for I shall never forget the obedienceand submission which I promised and owe you. " Such moderationand gentleness astonished the Marquis. He retired with a look ofthe utmost pain, while in his heart full of love and admiration forhis wife. When he was alone he called an old servant, attached tohim for thirty years, to whom he explained his plan, and sent himat once to Griselda. ' Madame, " said he, " deign to pardon the sadcommission which I have undertaken, but my lord requests yourdaughter." At these words Griselda, recalling the conversationwhich she had recently had with Walter, concluded that he hadsent the man to take away her child and put it to death. Shestifled her grief, nevertheless, restrained her tears, and withoutmaking the least complaint or uttering a sigh, took the infant out ofits cradle, looked at it tenderly for a long time, then making thesign of the cross on its forehead, and kissing it for the last time, shehanded it to the servant. When Walter learned from his servantof his wife's courage and submission, he was full of admiration ofher virtue; but when he took the infant in his arms, and saw it cry,his heart was so moved that he was on the point of relinquishing hiscruel trial. Recovering himself, however, he commanded his trustyservitor to carry the infant secretly to his sister, the Countessd'Empêche, at Boulogne, and desire her, in his name, to bring it upunder her own care, but so that nobody-not even the count, herhusband-should have knowledge of the secret. The servant accordingly delivered the child to the countess, who caused it to beprivately educated, as her brother had desired.532 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:The Marquis continued to live with Griselda as before, and oftendid he look on her face to discover whether she nourished eithergrief or resentment, but she always showed him the same love andrespect, never betraying any symptoms of sadness, and neither in hispresence nor absence referred to her daughter. Four years had thuspassed, when Griselda gave birth to a son, which completed thehappiness of the Marquis, and the joy of all his people. Griseldanursed this infant as she had done the other; but when it was twoyears old Gautier resolved to make another trial of his wife'spatience, and came to tell her of his barons' dissatisfaction, in almostthe same words he had formerly ascribed to them regarding herdaughter. O what agony must that incomparable woman havefelt at that moment, when reflecting that she had already lost herdaughter, and now saw that her little son was about to be also takenfrom her! What it must have been I need not tell the tendermother-not even the stranger could at such a sentence have refrainedfrom tears! Queens, princesses, marchionesses, women of all degrees,hearken to the answer of Griselda to her lord, and profit by theexample: " My dear lord, " said she, " I formerly swore to you, andstill swear, never to wish anything that you do not wish. When,on entering your palace, I threw off my poor garments, at the sametime I resolved to know no will except your own. If it were possiblefor me to guess at anything before it was expressed, you would seeyour slightest desires foreseen and fulfilled. Command me now inwhatever you please. If you wish my death, I agree to it; fordeath is nothing in comparison to the unhappiness of displeasingyou." Walter was more and more astonished. Any one who hadnot known Griselda so well would have concluded that such firmness of soul was merely want of feeling; but he, who was frequentlya witness of her tenderness while she was nursing her children,could ascribe it only to the love which she had for himself. TheMarquis sent his old servitor again to Boulogne with his son, wherehe was brought up along with his little sister.After two such cruel proofs Walter ought to have felt certain ofhis wife's submissiveness to his will, and refrained from afflicting herfarther. But his was one of those jealous hearts which nothing canFOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 533cure, for whom the grief of others is a source of pleasure. As forGriselda, she not only appeared to have forgotten her double bereavement, but showed herself more than ever tender and affectionatetowards her husband, nevertheless he purposed to make a still moresevere experiment of her obedience. His daughter was now twelveyears of age, and his son eight, and he sent a message to his sisterthe countess, desiring her to bring them to him; at the same timehe caused it to be noised abroad that he was about to divorce hiswife in order to take another. This news soon reached Griselda.She was told that a young person of high birth, and beautiful as afairy, was coming to be wedded to the Marquis of Saluces. Whethershe was astounded at this, I leave you to decide. Meanwhile shecontinued to wait on him whom she was bound to obey in everything which he imposed upon her. Walter sent for her, and in thepresence of his barons thus addressed her: "Griselda, during thepast twelve years I have been pleased with you as my wife, becauseI have looked at your virtue instead of your birth. But I must havean heir-my subjects demand it; and Rome permits me to take awife worthy of me. She will arrive here in the course of a fewdays, therefore prepare to give up thy present position. Take thydowry with thee, and summon up all thy fortitude. " Griseldareplied: " My lord, I am not ignorant that the daughter of Janicolawas not suited for your wife; and in this palace, of which you mademe the lady, I take God to witness, that every day, whilst thankinghim for that honour, I felt myself unworthy of it. I leave, withoutregret, since such is your will, the place where I have been so happy,and I return to die in the cottage where I was born, and where Ishall still be able to render my father those services which I wasforced to delegate to a stranger. As for the dowry of which youspeak, you well know, my lord, that with a pure heart I could onlybring you poverty, respect, and love. All the dresses which I haveworn here belong to you. Allow me to leave them, and take myown, which I have preserved. Here is the ring with which youwedded me. I came away poor from my father's house, and poorshall I return thither; only wishing to carry with me the honour ofhaving been the irreproachable wife of such a husband. "CH. ORIG. 37534 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:Marquis was so moved by these words that he could not keep backhis tears, and was forced to go out to conceal his emotion. Griseldaleft all her beautiful dresses, her jewels, and head- ornaments, andputting on her rustic clothes returned to her own village, accompanied by many barons, knights, and ladies, who were bathed intears and regretted so much virtue. She alone wept not, butwalked on in silence with head bent down. They arrived at thecottage of Janicola, who did not appear astonished at the event.From the first the marriage had caused him to fear that sooner orlater the Marquis would grow weary of his daughter and send herback to him. The old man tenderly embraced Griselda, and, without exhibiting anger or grief, thanked the ladies and gentlemen fortheir condescension in having accompanied his daughter, exhortingthem to love their lord sincerely and to serve him loyally. Butimagine the sorrow which the good Janicola must have felt whenhe reflected that his daughter after such a long period of pleasure andluxury should be in want during the rest of her life; this, however,gave Griselda no concern, and she cheered her father's spirits.In the mean time the Count and Countess d'Empêche, withWalter's two children, and attended by a great company of knightsand ladies, were drawing near Saluces. The Marquis, to completethis last trial, sent for Griselda, who immediately came on foot andin the dress of a peasant. " Daughter of Janicola," said Walter toher, "to-morrow my wife arrives, and as no one in my palace knowsso well as you what can please me, and I wish to receive her withall honour, as well as my brother, my sister, and the others whoaccompany her, I desire you to superintend all arrangements, andespecially to attend upon my new wife. " " Sire," replied Griselda,"I have received such favours from you that as long as God permitsme to live I will consider it a duty to do whatever may give youpleasure.' She then went and gave the necessary orders to theofficers and servants of the palace, and herself made ready the bridalbed for her whose approaching arrival had caused her own expulsion.When the young lady appeared, Griselda, instead of showing anysigns of emotion, as one might have expected, went out to meether, saluted her respectfully, and conducted her into the nuptialFOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 535room. By a secret instinct, for which she could not account, shewas delighted with the company of the young people, and nevergrew weary of looking at them and admiring their beauty.""The hour of feasting arrived, and when all were assembled attable the Marquis sent for Griselda, and showing her his bridewho to her natural brilliancy added a dazzling dress-asked her whatshe thought of the lady. My lord, " replied she, " you could notchoose one more beautiful and virtuous; and if God hear the prayerswhich I offer up for you every day, you will be happy with her.But in mercy, my lord , spare this one the painful anguish whichanother has endured. Younger and more tenderly brought up, herheart would not have the strength to sustain such trials, and shemight die of them. " At these words tears fell from the eyes of theMarquis. He could dissemble no more; and admiring that unalterable gentleness and that virtue which nothing could weary out, heexclaimed: " Griselda , my dearly beloved Griselda! this is toomuch! To try your love, I have done more than any other manunder heaven has dared even to imagine, and I have only found inyou obedience, tenderness, and devotion. " Then drawing near toGriselda, who suddenly lowered her head at these encomiums, heclasped her in his arms, and bedewing her with his tears , he addedin presence of the numerous assembly: ' Incomparable woman!you only are worthy of being my wife, and such you alone shall everbe! You, as well as my subjects, believed me the executioner ofyour children. But they were simply removed some distance fromyou. My sister, in whose hands I entrusted them, has just broughtthem hither. Behold, there they are! And you, my daughter andson, come and throw yourselves at the knees of your honourablemother." Griselda could not bear with so much joy coming uponher suddenly; she swooned, but when the assistance which waslavished upon her brought her back to consciousness, she took thetwo children, covered them with kisses and tears, and held themlong pressed to her bosom. Every one of the assembled guests was661 This absurd notion of " blood speaking to blood " frequently occurs inAsiatic fictions; it has no more foundatiod in fact than the other superstitionthat a dog will recognize his old master after many years' absence-as towhich, see Byron!536 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:affected even to weeping. At length cries of joy resounded, andthat festival which had been prepared in honour of Walter's newwife became a triumph for the patient Griselda. The Marquiscaused old Janicola to be brought to the palace of Saluces: Walterhad only appeared to neglect him till he had made trial of hisdaughter, and he honoured the good man during the rest of his life.Walter and Griselda lived for twenty years longer in the most perfect concord. They saw their children married and their offspring;and after Walter died his son succeeded to the estate, to the greatsatisfaction of all his subjects.¹The differences between the French and Latin versions, it willbe seen on comparison, are few and immaterial: for the Countessd'Empêche, at Boulogne, Petrarch has the Countess of Pavia; andwhile in the fabliau Griselda is represented as putting on her oldpeasant dress before leaving the palace, in the Latin story she returnsto her father's cottage in her shift only, and her father had kept herold gown, expecting she should be sent back some day. In otherrespects both stories tally. As Petrarch plainly states that he wasfamiliar with the tale long before he had read it in the Decameron,we may, I think, safely conclude that he knew it from a fabliau,which was probably also the source of Boccaccio's novel. Le Grandremarks, that Boccaccio has omitted the affecting and ingenuousaddress of the vassals to their lord, in order to induce him to marry,and the touching picture of Griselda's attentions to her bedriddenfather; and it seems to me that the existence of these incidents inthe Latin story is alone sufficient evidence that it was not adaptedfrom the version in the Decameron. Boccaccio is credited byLe Grand with " some taste " in rejecting the " improbable " statement that old Janicola, who required to be helped in and out of beddaily, lived twelve years "after being abandoned "; but Janicolawas not altogether abandoned to his fate, since Griselda, when aboutto quit the palace, speaks of him as having been cared for, thoughnot by one of his own kin.1 Le Grand's Fabliaux, ou Contes, du XIII et du XIIII siècle. Ed. 1781 ,tome ii. , pp. 232-252.FOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 537Whether the tale of Griselda was originally composed in France,it seems certain that it was first dramatized in that country under thetitle of Mistere de Griséldis, of which a copy in MS. is preserved inthe Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. In England it formed the subjectof a drama, entitled Patient Grissil, written towards the end of the16th century, by Thos. Dekker, Hy. Chettle, and W. Haughton,which was reprinted in 1841 for the (old) Shakspere Society. As apuppet- play it was a popular favourite so late as the year 1770,according to Thos. Warton, in his History of English Poetry. Underdate, August 30 , 1667, Pepys enters in his Diary: "To Bartholomewfayre, to walk up and down; and there, among other things, findmy Lady Castlemaine at a puppet-play (Patient Grizell), and thestreet full of people expecting her coming out. I confess I didwonder at her courage to come abroad, thinking the people wouldabuse her; but they, silly people, do not know the work she makes,and therefore suffered her with great respect to take a coach, and sheaway without any trouble at all. " One cannot help also " wondering "whether my Lady Castlemaine, while seeing the puppet-play performed, thought of another Griselda, who had left her country tobecome the neglected and insulted consort of the heartless andsensual Second Charles-probably not! In Pepys' day the name ofGriselda, or Grissel, seems to have been as proverbial for patienceas that of the Man of Uz. Butler in his Hudibras-the wit andhumour of which, by the way, had no charm for Pepys, since he tellsus "it hath not a good liking in me, though I tried by twice or threetimes' reading to bring myself to think it witty "—speaks of66 words, far bitterer than wormwood,That would in Job or Grizel stir mood. '" 11 Before the Restoration the Diarist was a Presbyterian, or an Independent; and it is said that he suggested as a text for a sermon on the executionof King Charles, "The memory of the wicked shall rot "-a circ*mstancewhich, in after years, when he was " making his pile," gave him no little concern, lest it should come to be known by " old Rowley. " He was all his life aDissenter at heart, as is evident from many passages in his Diary, and henceButler's incomparable satire of the Presbyter Knight who "went a colonelling"wooed his smiles in vain.538 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA:Examples of patient, dutiful wives, like Griselda, are almost asrare in Asiatic as in European popular tales, though we have seensomething of the kind in versions of " The innocent, persecutedWife" (ante, p. 368 ff. ); and in the earlier literature of Indiabefore it could be affected by baleful Muslim notions regardingwomen-there occur several notable tales of faithful, virtuous,obedient wives. A queen who figures in the Katha Sarit Ságara(Tawney's translation , vol. i . , p. 355 ff. ) presents some resemblanceto Griselda. The wives of King Virabhujá, envious of his favourite,queen Gunavará, conspire to cause her destruction. They tell theking that she carries on a criminal intrigue with Suraksh*ta, thesuperintendent of the women's apartments in the palace-it is thegossip of the whole haram. The king thinks this impossible, butresolves to test them both. He sends for the young man, and withassumed anger, accuses him of having killed a Bráhman; so hemust at once go to the holy places, and not return until he hascleansed his soul of the sin. The young man, with every token ofastonishment in his countenance and protesting his innocence, quitsthe royal judgment-hall and sets out on his pilgrimage. "Then theking went into the presence of that queen Gunavará, full of love,and anger, and sober reflection. Then she, seeing that his mind wastroubled, asked him anxiously: 'My husband, why are you seizedto-day with a sudden fit of despondency? ' When the king heardthat, he gave her this feigned answer: To-day, my queen, a greatastrologer came to me and said: " King, you must place the queenGunavará for some time in a dungeon, and you must yourself live alife of chastity, otherwise your kingdom will certainly be overthrown,and she will surely die." Having said this, the astrologer departed;hence my present despondency.' When the king said this, thequeen Gunavará, who was devoted to her husband, distracted withfear and love, said to him: 'Why do you not cast me this very dayinto a dungeon, my husband? I am highly favoured if I canbenefit you, even at the sacrifice of my life. Let me die; but let1 The most heinous crime that can be committed by a Hindú. TheBrahmans have interpolated the Mahabharata with numerous passages exalt- ing their own caste: priestcraft is the same everywhere!FOR THE CLERK'S TALE. 539not my lord have misfortune.wives in this world and the next. ' Having heard this speech, theking said to himself, with tears in his eyes, ' I think there is noguilt in her, nor in that Saraksh*ta; for I saw that the colour in hisface did not change, and he seemed without fear. Alas, neverthelessI must ascertain the truth of that rumour.' After reflecting thus,the king in his grief said to the queen: Then it is best that adungeon should be made here, queen. ' She replied: ' Very good.'So the king had a dungeon, easy of access, made in the women'sapartments, and placed the queen in it. And he comforted her sonby telling him exactly what he had told the queen. And she forher part thought the dungeon heaven, because it was all for theking's good . For good women have no pleasure of their own; tothem their husband's pleasure is pleasure. " -Needless to add that theinnocence of the devoted queen and of the young man is mademanifest in the end.For a husband is the chief refuge ofWe have a noble example of a faithful wife in Sitá, the spouseof Ráma, as portrayed in the great Hindú epic , Rámayana. Shethus pleads with her husband for leave to accompany him intobanishment, according to Sir Monier Williams' rendering of thepassage:" A wife must share her husband's fate. My duty is to follow theeWhere'er thou goest. Apart from thee, I would not dwell in heaven itself.Deserted by her lord, a wife is like a miserable corpse.Close as thy shadow would I cleave to thee in this life and hereafter.Thou art my king, my guide, my only refuge, my divinity.It is my fixed resolve to follow thee. If thou must wander forthThrough thorny, trackless forests, I will go before thee, treading down The prickly brambles to make smooth thy path. Walking before thee, IShall feel no weariness: the forest- thorns will seem like silken robes;The bed of leaves a couch of down. To me the shelter of thy presenceIs better far than stately palaces, and paradise itself.Protected by thy arm, gods, demons, men shall have no power to haunt me.With thee I'll live contentedly on roots and fruits. Sweet or not sweet,If given by thy hand, they will to me be like the food of life.Roaming with thee in desert wastes, a thousand years will be a day;Dwelling with thee, e'en hell itself would be to me a heaven of bliss. "11 In similar language Ad .m, after learning that Eve had plucked the forbidden fruit, say to her:"If DeathConsort with thee, Death is to me as Life. "-Paradise Lost.540 22. THE PATIENT GRISELDA.So, too, in the beautiful episode of the Mahábhárata, the tale ofNala and Damayanti, when Nala proposes that his wife should leavehim to his fate in the forest, and return to her parents, Damayantireplies (Dean Milman's graceful translation):66' Truly all my heart is breaking, and my sinking members fail,When, O King, thy desperate counsel once I think on, once again.Robbed of kingdom, robbed of riches, naked, worn with thirst and hunger,Shall I leave thee in a forest, shall I wander from thee far?When thou, sad and famine- stricken , thinkest of thy former bliss,In the wild wood, O my husband , I will soothe thy weariness.Like a wife is no physician; in a state so sad as thine,Medicine none is like her kindness-Nala, speak I not the truth? "And in the tale of Dushmanta and Sakuntala, which is thesubject of a fine drama by Kalidasa, who has been styled the Shakspere of India (another episode in the Mahábhárata) , we are toldthat " she is a true wife whose heart is devoted to her lord. Thewife is man's half. The wife is the first of friends. They thathave wives have the means of being cheerful. They that have wivescan achieve good fortune. Sweet-speeched wives are as friends onoccasions of joy. They are as mothers in hours of sickness andwoe. "-Sentiments such as these are very seldom found in thewritings of Muslims.NOTE.Two English versions of the Tale of Griselda will be found reprinted invol. iii. of the Percy Society publications. One is a prose tract entitled:"The Ancient, True, and Admirable History of Patient Grisel, a Poore MansDaughter in France: shewing how Maides by her Example, in their Good Behaviour, may marrie Rich Husbandes; and likewise Wives by their Patienceand Obedience may gain much Glorie. Written first in French " &c. London,1619; the other is in ballad form and entitled: "The Pleasant and SweetHistory of Patient Grissell, shewing how she, from a Poore Mans Daughter,came to be a great Lady in France, being a Patterne to all Vertuous Women.Translated out of Italian. " London, n. d. The editor considers that both areat least as old as 1590, and they " are in truth vernacular productions, the in- cidents only being derived either from one language or from the other." ButI think the prose version bears unmistakable evidence of having been to a con- siderable extent translated from the French version of which an abstract isgiven in the foregoing paper.GLASGOW, March, 1888.541ADDITIONAL NOTES." Les Mille et un Jours: Contes Persans," pp. 385-387. -M.Galland was accused by scholars of having himself invented a numberof the tales in his Mille et une Nuits, because they were not to be foundin any of the known Arabic texts of the Elf Layla wa Layla, orThousand and one Nights; but M. Hermann Zotenberg has lately shown that the substance of them was communicated to the illustriousFrenchman by a Maronite of Aleppo, while on a visit to Paris. Another eminent French orientalist, M. Petis de la Croix ( 1645-1713), is commonly believed to have translated his Mille et un Jours: Contes Persansdirect from a Turkish story- book entitled Al- Faraj ba'd al- Shidda, ¹ orJoy after Distress; and I am confident that his integrity in this respectwill yet be as clearly vindicated. To Chaucer students this question can possess little interest, except such as may attach to the version of " The Innocent Persecuted Wife" found in that work of P. de la Croix, ofwhich an abstract is given, ante, in pp. 388-390; but pending the resultsof an investigation, now in progress, as to the source whence the tales in Les Mille et un Jours were derived , I take this opportunity of placingon record all that has been as yet ascertained.(1) The work entitled Les Mille et un Jours: Contes Persans was firstpublished, as a translation , by Petis de la Croix, at Paris, in five smallvols. , 1710-1712. It was reprinted in the Cabinet des Fées, tomes xiv.and xv. , Geneva and Paris, 1786. The following is from the " Avertisse- ment" prefixed to the 14th vol. of the Cabinet des Fées: "Nous devonsces Contes au célèbre Dervis Moclès [ i . e. Mukhlis], que la Perse met aunombre de ses grands personnages. Il étoit chef des Sofis d'Ispahan, etil avoit douze disciples, qui portoient de longues robes de laine blanche.Les grands et le peuple avoient pour lui une vénération singulière, àcause qu'il étoit de la race de Mahomet; et ils le craignoient, parce qu'il passoit pour un savant cabaliste. Le roi Schah- Soliman même le respectoit à un point, que si par hasard il le rencontroit sur son passage,ce prince descendoit aussitôt de cheval, et lui alloit baiser les étriers.2Moclès étant encore fort jeune, s'avisa de traduire en Persan des comédiesIndiennes, qui ont été traduites en toutes les langues orientales , et donton voit à la bibliothèque du roi une traduction Turque, sous le titre deAlfaraga Badal- Schidda, ce qui signifie la joie après l'affliction. Mais1 This Turkish story-book is wholly different from the Persian work, derived from an Arabic collection bearing the same title, of which a brief description is given in Dr. Rieu's Catalogue of Persian MSS. in the British Museum, vol. ii. , p. 750,and which comprises nearly 300 short stories and anecdotes, mostly of the times of the early Khalifs.2 European monarchs used to assist church dignitaries to mount and alight from their horses or mules, the poor priest-ridden creatures! -not the mules and horses,but the monarchs, I mean.542 ADDITIONAL NOTES.le traducteur Persan, pour donner à son ouvrage un air original, mitces comédies en Contes, qu'il appela Hezuryek-Rouz, c'est- à- dire, Milleet un Jour [sic]. Il confia son manuscrit au sieur Pétis de la Croix, quiétoit en liaison d'amitié avec lui à Ispahan en 1675, et même il lui permitd'en prendre une copie. '""The passage, in the foregoing extract, in which Mukhlis the darveshis said to have adapted the tales from " comédies Indiennes, qui ont été traduites en toutes les langues orientales," including the Turkish, under the title of Al- Faraj ba'd al- Shidda, is rather ambiguous. Probably the meaning is, not that the so-called Indian comedies, but the Persian Tales of Mukhlis, have been translated into several Eastern languages.The statement of the Ispahání darvesh to Petis de la Croix, that he took his tales from Indian sources , may be fairly considered as a pure fiction.Persian authors often pretend that they have obtained their materials from learned Bráhmans, when they actually took them out of the Arabic; though several Persian works of fiction have certainly been translated direct from the Sanskrit, such as the romance of Kamálata and Kámarupa.In the " Avertissem*nt du Traducteur " prefixed to the second vol.of Les Mille et un Jours as reprinted in the Cabinet des Fées, t. xv., we find the Persian author and his work referred to as follows: "CommeDervis Moclès s'est sans doute proposé de rendre son Ouvrage aussi utile qu'agréable aux Musulmans, il a rempli la plupart de ses Contes defaux Miracles de Mahomet, ainsi qu'on le peut voir dans quelques-unsde ce Volume; mais je n'ai pas voulu traduire les autres, de peurd'ennuyer le Lecteur. Il y a des Contes encore qui sont si licencieux,que la bienséance ne m'a pas permis d'en donner la traduction. Si lesMoeurs des Orientaux peuvent les souffrir, la pureté des nôtres ne sauroits'en accommoder. " He adds: " J'ai donc été obligé de faire quelque dérangement pour l'Original, pour suivre toujours la même liaison desContes. On passe tout d'un coup du 203 Jour au 960. Mais ce passagese fait de manière qu'il ne sera senti que de ceux qui s'amuseront àcompter les Jours. Pour les autres Lecteurs, ils ne s'en appercevrontpas, et ils liront le Livre entier sans faire réflexion que les Mille et unJour [sic] n'y sont pas tous employés. "(2) There are, I understand, seven MS. copies of the Turkish collection, Al-Faraj ba'd al- Shida, preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale,Paris. M. E. fa*gnan, lately of that Library and now professor in the Ecole des Lettres , Algiers, has kindly furnished me with the titles ofthe 42 tales contained in one of these-No. 377, anc. fonds--which he thinks was written about the end of the 9th century of the Hijra (say, A.D. 1480) , of which at least one-fourth are also found in Les Mille et un Jours; the 30th tale being similar to the story of Repsima, of which Ihave given an epitome, ante, p. 388 ff.; and that Petis de la Croix did not take this story from the Turkish book seems evident from the circ*mstance that in the latter the name of the heroine is not Repsimabut Aruiya, which is also her name in the same story found in acollection, without a title, written probably about the beginning of the 17th century, described in Dr. Rieu's Catalogue of Persian MSS. in the British Museum , vol. ii . p. 759, second col. (Or. 237), and p. 760, where it is entitled " The Arab, his wife Aruiya, and his brother." 11 Possibly this MS. , which has several of the tales in Petis' work, is similar to that referred to by Sir William Ouseley in his Travels, vol . ii. p. 21 , note: " On theADDITIONAL NOTES. 543(3) The only ground, apparently, for supposing Petis de la Croix to have taken the tales of the Mille et un Jours from the Turkish story- book Al-Faraj ba'd al- Shidda are: ( 1 ) That the transcript which he is said to have made of the Persian text while in Ispahán has never been discovered; and (2) that they are found in the Turkish collection. And the charge of imposition on the part of the learned Frenchman would seem to be strongly supported by the existence of a copy of the Turkishbook dating more than two hundred years before the time when he is said to have obtained the Hazár ú Yek Rúz from the author himself.But it would be utterly absurd to suppose for a moment that the Persian work was derived from the Turkish: all the story-books in the Turkish language are translations from the Arabic or Persian. The tales in Al Faraj, &c. , like those in the Persian MS. without title, by Hubbí,above referred to, are not connected by a leading or frame-story, as is the case of those in the Mille et un Jours, while the sequence ofthe tales is different in all the three. It is possible that the Ispahání darvesh adapted his tales from some Arabic or an older Persian collection, and inserted them in a frame-story, after the plan of the Arabian Nights,the title of which he also imitated.¹Whatever may have become of Petis de la Croix' transcript of the Hezár ú Yek Rúz, several of his tales are found in Persian; his work didnot appear till some years after the publication of his Contes Turcs(1708), a portion ofthe Qirq Vezir Táríkhi ( History of the Forty Vazirs) ,so what possible object could he have had in issuing a translation of another Turkish collection as " Persian Tales"?"""Galland informs us in the " Avertissem*nt " to the 9th vol. of hisMille et une Nuits, that the tales of " Prince Zayn al-Asnám and the King of the Genii " and " Codadad ( Khudádád) and his Brothers wereinserted in the preceding vol. without his knowledge; and M. Zotenberg,in his interesting essay, Sur quelques Manuscrits des Mille et uneNuits et de la traduction de Galland, " prefixed to an Arabic text of thewell-known tale of " Aladdin; or, the Wonderful Lamp " (Paris, 1888) ,says that these two stories were translated by Petis de la Croix from theTurkish, and were intended to appear in his Mille et un Jours. They are certainly found in the Turkish Al- Faraj, &c. But M. Zotenberg is apparently not aware that the story of Zayn al - Asnám also occurs in thePersian collection without a title, by Hubbí, described in Dr. Rieu'ssame plan as these Tales [ i. e. the Arabian Nights] a Persian author composed the Hazár ú Yek Rúz, or Thousand and one Days, a collection of entertaining stories,of which Petis de la Croix published a French trans ation, sufficiently accurate,though differing in some proper names from my manuscript containing part of the original work. Thus the far Repsima of Les Mille et un Jours (jour 95 ) is styled Arulah in my copy, and her husband goes to Misr, or Egypt, not to the ' côte des Indes,' as in the printed translation. " -In the work of Petis de la Croix, however,the name of Aruiya is that of the heroine of another tale (" Histoire de la belle Arouya"), in which she cleverly entraps three city dignitaries who wooed her to unholy love.¹ I have before remarked (p. 386) that a tale somewhat similar to the frame of the Mille et un Jours is found in the Persian Tútí Náma, which may have been imitated by Mukhlis . There is a Telúgú collection, written on palm-leaves, entitled Kayúrabahu Charitra, now in the Government Library. Madras, which seems formed on the same plan. It is thus described by Dr. H. H. Wilson in his Catalogue of the Mackenzie MSS. , vol. i . , p. 328: " Story of the marriage of Kayúrabahu with Mriginkavati, daughter of the king of Lita, or L'r. In order to induce the prince to seek her hand, the minister, Bhagurayana, repeats a number of apologues and tales, which constitute the composition."544 ADDITIONAL NOTES.Catalogue, where it is the 12th tale, and is entitled " Zayd al-Ihtishám,the King ofthe Jinns, and the slave Mubarak"; and it maybe assumedthat both the tales in question were in the Persian text translated byP. de la Croix. But M. fa*gnan will probably ere long clear up all this mystery, and, as I believe, at the same time show that the learnedFrench orientalist, like Galland, has been most unjustly accused of literary fraud.The Enchanted Tree, p. 348, 351, 353. -There is a characteristicversion of this story in the Masnavi-of which great work Mr. E. H.Whinfield has recently published a very useful epitome-by Jelál adDín Rúmí, the celebrated Súfí, or Muslim mystic, and founder of thesect known as the Dancing Darveshes, who was born, in Balkh, A.D.1207, and died, at Qonya (the ancient Iconium) , A.D. 1273. As in allthe European versions, it is a pear-tree which the woman climbs up,and when at the top she pretends that she sees her husband act the part of a catamite with a vile sodomite. He replies: "Come down at once!Your head is dizzy-you are stark mad! " When she has come down,her husband climbs the tree, and she at once clasps her gallant to her breast. The husband cries out: " O vile harlot!" and so on. Quoththe woman: " No one is here but myself. You are mad-why do youtalk so foolishly?" He continues upbraiding her, and she answers:" It is all owing to this pear-tree. When I was at the top of it I was deluded just as you are. Come down at once, and see for yourself thatno one is here. "-In his notice of this story, Mr. Whinfield has modestlyomitted the woman's accusing her husband of pederasty, the unnaturalvice to which Persians and Turks, and indeed Asiatics generally, are said to be much addicted.A tale somewhat resembling that of the Third " Veda "-ante, p.347-occurs in an Urdú book of stories turning on the deceits of women,entitled Nauratan, or the Nine Jewels, described by Captain R. C.Temple in a valuable paper on the Bibliography of Indian Folklore,in the Folklore Journal for 1886, p. 285: A man had a chaste wife, overwhomhe kept strict watch, despite her remonstrances, so she played atrick on him by way of retaliation. She pretended to be very ill, anddeclared that no one could prescribe for her complaint but her old nurse, who was sent for at once, and between the two a plan was concocted to " pay off" the husband for his causeless jealousy. Nothingcould cure her, they said, but ajar of magic (jádi ká matká), which thehusband must bring overnight and take away next morning to a placewhich the nurse would point out. The man paid 500 rupis for the jarof magic, and brought it home as ordered, though it was very heavyand no wonder, for it contained a young man, who remained with the lady all night. In the morning, while it was still dark, the husbandcarried off the jar of " magic," but on the road he stumbled and tippedthe young man out, breaking the jar, whereupon he got a good thrashing. Returning home, he was delighted to find his wife perfectly cured,and afterwards left her in peace, and never did he know what hadhappened to him.-This is just the sort of tale which the old Italian novelists would have delighted to recount, had it been known to them.The Robbers and the Treasure-Trove, p. 418 ff.-Through the Arabs this story was doubtless introduced into Barbary. Under theADDITIONAL NOTES. 545title of "Les Trois Voleurs " M. René Basset gives it in his Contes Populaires Berbères (Paris, 1887), the only variation from the Arabianversion being that instead of three men finding a lump of gold, threerobbers kill a traveller and take his money, as in the version fromWestfalia, cited in p. 434.Changing Earth into Gold, p. 425, 1. 2 , and note. -In an Indianstory-book, described by Dr. H. H. Wilson in his Catalogue of theMackenzie Oriental MSS. , " a poor Jangam having solicited alms ofKinnarájá, one of Básava's chief disciples, the latter touched the stonesabout him with his staff, and converting them into gold, bade the Jangam help himself. " And in Dr. R. Mitra's Sanskrit BuddhistLiterature of Nepál, p. 100, we have another instance: " When Dharmasri was very young, Dipankura, who was passing by, asked to begiven what he could afford with good will. He gave a handful of dust,which was instantly changed into gold." -The spittle of St. Helena is said to have possessed the virtue of turning earth into the same preciousmetal: Christian as well as Muslim hagiology owes much to Buddhistlegends.The Tell-Tale Bird, p. 442 ff. -A different form of this story wasalso current in Europe during mediæval times. It is thus told in ch.xvi. of The Book of the Knight de La Tour Landry, compiled for theinstruction of his daughters; one of the publications of the EarlyEnglish Text Society:" Ther was a woman that had a pie in a cage, that spake and woldetelle talys that she saw do. And so it happed that her husbonde madekeepe a gret ele in a litelle ponde in his gardin, to that entent to yeue¹ it [to] sum of his frendes that wolde come to see hym; but the wyff,whanever her husbonde was oute, saide to her maide, ' Late us ete thegret ele, and y wille saie to my husbond that the otour hathe eten hym; 'and so it was done. And whan the good man was come, the pye beganto telle hym how her maistresse had eten the ele. And he yode² to theponde, and fonde not the ele. And he asked his wiff wher the ele was become. And she wende³ to haue excused her, but he said her, ‘ Excuseyou not, for y wote welle ye haue eten yt, for the pye hathe told me. 'And so ther was gret noyse betwene the man and his wiff for etinge ofthe ele. But whanne the good man was gone, the maistress and themaide come to the pie, and plucked of alle the fedres on the pyes hede,saieing, 'Thou hast discouered us of the ele '; and thus was the porepye plucked. But euer after, whanne the pie sawe a balled or a pilled man, or a woman with an highe forhede, the pie saide to him, 'Yespake of the ele.'-And therfor here is an ensaumple that no woman shulde ete no lycorous morcelles in the absens and without weting ofher husbond, but yef" it so were that it be with folk of worshippe, tomake hem chere; for this woman was afterwards mocked for the pye and the ele. "In the Masnavi of Jelál ad-Dín, Book First, we are told that a parrotkept by a grocer chanced to overturn a jar full of oil, and the man,enraged at the loss of so much of his valuable stock- in-trade, struck theunlucky bird and knocked out all its head-feathers. For a long timeafter this the parrot sulked on its perch, and the oil-man regretted his severity towards it, sorely missing the bird's prattle, which had amused1 Yeue, Give. 2 Yode, Went. 3 Wende? hoped.4 Weting, knowledge; cognisance. But yef, unless.-• Hem, them.546 ADDITIONAL NOTES.both himself and his customers. One day, however, the parrot beganto speak again. Seeing an old bald-headed darvesh stop at the shopand ask alms, the bird called out to him: " Have you also upset anoil-jar? "—This story found its way into Italy in the 15th century, whenit assumed this form: Aparrot belonging to Count Fiesco was discovered one day stealing some roast meat from the kitchen. The cook, full ofrage, ran after the bird with a kettle of boiling water, which he threwat it, completely scalding off all the feathers from its head. Some timeafterwards, while Count Fiesco was engaged in conversation with anabbot, the parrot, observing the shaven crown of his reverence, hoppedup to him and asked: " What! do you like roast meat too?"1-Aparallelto the old English version in the Knight's " Book" is found in the Rev.J. Hinton Knowles' Folk-Tales of Kashmir, a recent addition to Messrs.Trübner's " Oriental Series."The Knight and the Loathly Lady, p. 483 ff.-The inventivepower of dramatists seems to be very limited. Even at the present daya French play has been based upon the Wife of Bath's Tale, as will beseen from the following paragraph which appeared in a recent issue of the St. James's Gazette:"M. Claretie (a Paris correspondent says) has had a really happythought in asking M. Theodore de Banville to read his one- act piece,'Le Baiser, ' to the committee of the Comedie Francaise. A few weeksago the correspondent gave an account of a company of amateurs whodevote their talents exclusively to the interpretation of hitherto unper- formed dramatic works. 'Le Baiser' was the chief attraction of thelast of the soirees given by M. Antoine, the chief actor and director ofthe troupe: Pierrot is about to enjoy his mid-day meal in solitude whenthere appears an old woman, on whom he takes pity, and she requites him for his kindness by asking him for a kiss. Her appearance is nottempting, but Pierrot accedes to her request, whereupon the old crone straightway regains her lost youth and beauty. She had been condemned to grow old on earth until the kiss of a young man shouldrestore her to her place among her sister- spirits. Pierrot, Pygmalionlike, of course falls in love with the beauty which he has evoked intonew life, but the fairy turns a deaf ear to his supplications; and whenshe hears the voices of her companions calling to her in the clouds shespreads her wings and is lost to view. "" O most lame and impotent conclusion! " Why did M. Claretienot makethe fairy bestow some reward on the gallant youth who had the hardihood to kiss her shrivelled lips, and thereby restore her to heroriginal form? In a folk-tale she would assuredly have bestowed onher deliverer a supernatural gift, or gifts for the fairies of popularfictions are never ungrateful for services rendered them, but repay their benefactors most liberally. The dramatic effect of the fairy's ascentto the clouds is doubtless very fine-but I cannot help sympathisingwith poor Pierrot!The nursery tale of " The Frog Prince " has been already mentioned as analogous to the Wife of Bath's Tale (p. 522), and I may as wellreproduce here a curious Scotch version, partly in recitative and partly1 For an English variant, see Memoir of Rev. R. H. Barham, prefixed to 3rd Series of the Ingoldsby Legends, 1855, pp. 131-133.ADDITIONAL NOTES.547in verse, given by Robert Chambers in his collection of Scottish Songs;an old Annandale nurse being the story- teller:"A poor widow, you see, was once baking bannocks; and she senther dauchter to the well at the world's end, with a wooden dish, tobring water. When the lassie cam to the well , she fand it dry; butthere was a padda [ i . e. a frog] that cam loup- loup-loupin, and loupitinto her dish. Says the padda to the lassie, I'll gie ye plenty o' water,if ye'll be my wife.' The lassie didna like the padda, but she was fainto say she wad tak him, just to get the water; and, ye ken, she neverthought that the puir brute wad be serious, or wad ever say ony mair about it. Sae she got the water, and took it hame to her mother; andshe heard nae mair o' the padda till that night, when, as she and hermother were sitting by the fireside, what do they hear but the puirpadda at the outside o' the door, singing wi' a' his micht:"open the door, my hinnie, my heart,Oopen the door, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.'Says the mother, ' What noise is that at the door, dauchter? ' -'---' Hout! 'says the lassie, ' it's naething but a filthy padda.'-' Open the door, ' saysthe mother, ' to the puir padda. ' Sae the lassie opened the door, andthe padda cam loup- loup-loupin in, and sat down by the ingle- side.Then out sings he:" O gie me my supper, my hinnie, my heart,Ogie me my supper, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.''Hout! ' quo' the dauchter, ' wad I gie a supper to a filthy padda? '-' Ou, ay,' quo' the mother, ' gie the puir padda his supper. Sae the padda got his supper. After that out he sings again:"O put me to bed, my hinnie, my heart,O put me to bed, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.''Hout!' quo' the dauchter, ' wad I put a filthy padda to bed? '- Ou,ay,' says the mother, ' put the puir padda to his bed. ' And sae she putthe padda to his bed. Then out he sang again (for the padda hadna gota' he wanted yet):'O come to your bed, my hinnie, my heart,O come to your bed, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.'' Hout!' quo' the dochter, ' wad I gang to bed wi' a filthy padda? '•Gae ' wa, lassie,' says the mother; ' e'en gang to bed wi' the puir padda.'And sae the lassie did gang to bed wi' the padda. Weel, what wad ye think? He's no content yet; but out he sings again:'Come, tak me to your bosom, my hinnie, my heart,Come, tak me to your bosom, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.'' Lord have a care o' us! ' says the lassie, ' wad I tak a filthy padda tomy bosom, dae ye think? ' ' Ou, ay,' quo' the mother, ' just be doing543 ADDITIONAL NOTES.your gudeman's biddin, and tak him to your bosom.' Sae the lassie didtak the padda to her bosom. After that he sings out:'Now fetch me an aix, my hinnie, my heart,Nowfetch me an aix, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met.'She brought the axe in a minute, and he sang again:' Now chap aff my head, my hinnie, my heart,Now chap aff my head, my ain true love;Remember the promise that you and I made,Doun i' the meadow, where we twa met. 'I'se warrant she wasna lang o' obeying him in this request! For, yeken, what kind o' a gudeman was a bit padda likely to be? But, lockan-daisie, what d' ye think? She hadna weel chappit aff his head, as he askt her to do, before he starts up, the bonniest prince that ever wasseen. And, of course, they lived happy a' the rest o' their days."In the German version (Grimm's collection) a princess accidentallydrops her golden ball into a well, and a frog puts up his head and offers to restore it to her on condition that she'll love him, let him live withher, eat off a golden plate, and sleep on her couch. She promises to do all the frog requires, in order to get back her golden ball. At night the frog comes to her door and chants:'Open the door, my princess dear,Open the door, to thy own true love here!And mind the words that you and I said Bythe fountain cool in the greensward shade!'She opens the door, and after the frog has supped off a golden dish, he sleeps on her couch till morning, when he goes away. This happensthree nights in succession, but when the princess awakes on the third morning, she is astonished to see, instead ofthe frog, a handsome youngprince, gazing on her with the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen,and standing at the head ofher bed. Hethen explains howhe had been enchanted by a spiteful fairy, and so on.The close affinity which these Scotch and German tales bear to that of the Wife of Bath, and more especially to our first Icelandic and theGaelic versions, to the Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnall, and to the ballad of King Henrie, is very evident; and the nursery form ofthe story may have been adapted from a more complex version, in whichthe grand question of " What do women most desire? " is not quite suitable for the little ones.In another of Grimm's Kinder und Hausmärchen, entitled "DerGoldene Vogel, " and called in one of our English translations "The Fox's Brush,"three brothers set out, in succession, in quest of a golden bird for their father. The two elder ill-use an old fox they meet ontheir way, and are consequently unsuccessful; but the youngest (usually the favourite of Fortune in fairy tales) is kind towards the fox, who, inreward, carries him to the place and instructs him how to obtain theobject of his search; and the adventurous youth not only brings home the Golden Bird, but a beauteous princess as his bride. " After themarriage, he went one day to walk in the wood, and there the old foxmet him once more, and besought him, with tears in his eyes, to be so kind as to cut off his head and his brush. At last he did so, thoughsorely against his will; and in the same moment the fox was changedADDITIONAL NOTES. 549into a prince, and the princess knew him to be her own brother, whohad been lost a great many years, for a spiteful fairy had enchanted him with a spell that could only be broken by some one getting the Golden Bird and some one cutting off his head and brush. ". -The samestory, under the title of " The Golden Bird," is found in the second series of Sir G. W. Dasent's Norse tales, called, not very aptly, Talesfrom the Fjeld. And there is one very similar in the Wortley Montagu MS. Arabic text of the Thousand and One Nights, preserved in theBodleian Library-I think it is told of the Sultan of Yemen's ThreeSons. Not farther to multiply instances, I may mention that in themediæval romance of Cleriadus, the hero, among other exploits, subduesa lion that had ravaged all England, but turns out to be a gallantknight, metamorphosed by the malevolence of a fairy.The Patient Griselda, p. 528 ff.-Dutiful, obedient, submissivehusbands are not usually held up, either in fiction or in real life, asmodels for imitation: on the contrary, they are the subjects of ridicule and infinite jest. Whether it be true, according to the old saw, that"he who has a wife has a master," I cannot say, for-"I'm a plain man, and in a single station! "66 "But I strongly suspect that there exist—and have always existed-at least amongst ourselves, far more gray mares than Griseldas. Andin these double- distilled days, when we hear so much about " Woman'sRights, " I can readily conceive the utterly contemptuous feelings ofone of the " Shrieking Sisterhood " (not to put too fine a point upon it)while reading the tale ofthe peasant girl who became the lawful wife ofa prince, and submitted to the removal of her children-their verydestruction, as she believed-and to be degraded from her high estate,without a murmur of remonstrance-" the poor, spiritless creature!methinks I hear some " strong-minded female" exclaim: "Why, she did not deserve to have her children restored to her and to be reinstated inthe palace! "In fairy romances there are many instances of male Griseldas; for it is common, when a man is to be united to a supernatural being of theother sex, for the latter to impose upon him, as the condition of their union, unquestioning submission to whatsoever she may please to do orsay. One example will suffice, especially as it presents some resemblance to the Tale of Griselda, as regards her children. It is the second tale ofLes Mille et un Jours (concerning which work I have told all I know in a preceding note), and is entitled " Histoire du Roi Ruzvánschád et dela Princess Cheheristani "; and it is also found in the Turkish story- book, Al- Faraj, &c. , No. 4, under the title of the " Story of Ridzvánshád, the Chinaman, and the Sheristání Lady "; and also in the Persiancollection, without title, written by Hubbí, preserved in the Brit. Mus. ,No. 15, " Ruzvánsháh and the Daughter of the Peris. " In this tale,King Ruzvanshád, of China, falls deeply in love with a surpassinglybeautiful damsel, who proves to be Sheheristání, daughter of the King ofthe Genii; and after numerous adventures he is finally married to thecharmer "the torment ofthe world," to employ the regulation Easternphrase on this condition: He must blindly comply with her in allthings. Should she do aught that may seem strange or be displeasing to him, he must be careful not to blame or reprove her for it. Quoth he:CH. ORIG. 38550 ADDITIONAL NOTES." So far from blaming any of your actions, my beloved, I swear to approve of them all "; and so they settled down to the duties of weddedlife. In the fulness of time the lady gives birth to a son, beautiful as, &c. &c. &c. Ruzvánshád was engaged in the chase when the joyful news was brought to him, and " he returned with all speed to the palace to see the child, which at the time the mother held in her arms near agreat fire. He took the little prince, and after having kissed him very gently, for fear of hurting him, he returned him to the queen, and she immediately cast him into the fire; when on the instant the fire and the new-born infant disappeared. This wonderful occurrence troubled the king not a little. But how great soever his grief might be for the loss of his son, he bore in mind the promise he had given to the queen. He indulged his sorrows in silence and retired to his closet, where he wept,saying: 'Am I not very wretched? Heaven grants me a son. I seehim thrown into the flames?"" and so on, and so on. Within thefollowing year a daughter is born (whose beauty, of course, neither tongue nor pen could describe), and the queen delivers it to the tendermercies of a great white she-dog, who vanished with the royal baby.Still poor King Ruzvánshád said nothing-he suffered in silence. In course of time his territories were invaded by the Moguls, and he bravely went forth at the head of his army to repel the insolent foe.Sheheristání appears unexpectedly, accompanied byher fairy attendants,whom she causes to destroy all the food which has been brought to the camp. This proved more than her hitherto submissive spouse could endure, and he demanded to know why she had thus exposed his entire army to certain starvation. And now the beauteous Sheheristání con- descends to explain her former conduct with regard to the children."The great fire, " said she, was really a wise salamander, to whom Ientrusted the education of the young prince. The white she-dog was afairy who has instructed the princess in all accomplishments.' Thenshe ordered the children to be brought to her, and the king on beholdingtheir grace and beauty was quite ravished. He presently finds, however,that the most severe affliction is in store for him. The queen proceedsto explain that she caused the food to be destroyed because it had beenpoisoned by the chief of the commissariat, who had been bribed to do so by the enemy. "And now," says she, " I must take away our children and leave you for ever; since you have broken our compact by question- ing one of my actions "; and before the poor king could say Robinson, " the charming Sheheristání and the children vanished! After sometime, however, they were all reunited, and lived long and happily.— And may such also be the lot of all who read this true story!""19" JackGLASGOW, May, 1888.W. A. C.CHAUCER'S " SQUIRE'S TALE."I may here mention that I am engaged in collecting materials for an Essay onthe ' Squire's Tale, ' as an Introduction to John Lane's ' Continuation, ' which has already been issued to Members. W. A. C.itAPPENDIX.A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE.'[Shirley's vellum MS. Harl. 7333, leaf 30, back. ]¶ Here next folowith a LiteH Tretys by Wey ofcompleint Ageins Fortune.F•Ortune alas alas what haue I gyltIn prison) thus to lye here desolateArt thou the better to haue thus yspylt.Nay nay god wote . but for pou wilt debateWith euery wight . eiper erly or lateAnd art chaungeable eke as is the moneThe playntif 1From wele to woo thou bringest a man ful . sone.For like a whele that turnyth ay aboute 811[2 or en]Now vp now doun) . now est west north & southSo farist thou now . pou drivest ynne & outeAs don the wedris oute of the wyndis mouthIn the no trust is secher2 / thou art so selcouthAnd canst neuer stil where abide.When men wene sekir to be . pou makest hem slide 141 This was sent by accident to the printer, and set. So it's justput here to get rid of it, as more or less an illustration of Chaucer'sFortune.ii + APPENDIX. -A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE.I wote ful wele both lordis prince and kyng 15Thou hast or this welewors I-ouerthrowe.Thi condicion) is euer so varyingThat now pou laughist . & now pou makist a mowe 18Alas fortune who may the trust or troweBut yit I pray . that in somme manere wiseSo turne thi whele . pat I may yit arise.21¶ Why nad I rather died an Innocent/Or seke in bed ful ofte whan I haue layn)22Than had my name be paired not ne shentBetter hit had be so . pan thus to haue me slayn 25But what to stryve with the it may not geyn)And yit thou wotest/ I suffre and shame.For pat /that I god wote am not to blame.·hit wyte¶ But whō a long hit were wold I weteThat wrongfully I lye thus in prison)Saturnus or Mars . I trow I mayOr some infortunate constellacion)But this I wote as for conclusion)Be it by destyny or fortunece chaunce28292932In prison) here I suffre moche myschaunce.35Peaeas of thi wordis þat are both lewid & nyce Fortune 36Wenest thou . pat god chastith pe for noughtThough pou be giltles I graunt wele of this vyceHit is for synnes pat thou hast forwrought 39That now perauntre fuH litel are in thi thought [col . 2]Therfore be glad . for hit is writen) thusMaxima etemin morum semper paciencia virtus 42APPENDIX. -A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE. iii +¶ Thow wotest wele eke god chastiseth whom he lovith 43That of his grace pe graunt be oon of thooEke who þat will be saued hym behovithSuffre in this world aduersite or he go.Thus fortune grace wynne for present woo.The best conceyt eke I can) yeve the.Esto forti Animo cum sis dampnatus unquam.4649¶ Fare wele fortune pan) & do right as pe listeComplayne wit I now . to the Sustres thre.That whan I crope oute of my modirs chesteForthwith anon) thei shope my desteneyCloto come forth . what seist thou let seWilt thou no lenger pe stace of my lift holdeOr be my yeris come vp . dey I shulde505356¶ If it be so the nombre of my daies 57Be comen) vp . that I may not hem paceWhy nadde I than by othir maner weyesOrdeyned me to dye . in othir place 60And not in prison) / is there non othir graceWille . lachesis my threde no lenger twyneBe-ster the than & at my sorow fyne. 63¶ And Antrapos pat makis an ende of alCut of the threde . wherto wilt pou taryeAnd help me hens sith I nedis. shaHThat men to Chirch my corps myght carye6467And my soule to god & seint maryI now be-take / and pray hem yeve me spaceMy rightes . AH to receiue or I pace.710iv t APPENDIX. -A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE.¶ The worste of AH /that grevith me so soreIs that my fame is lost & all my good losAnd spredith wyde euer lengere the moreAs wele amonge my frendis as myfoosFor wykked sclaundre . will in no wise be close.But with the wenges of envy fleth a lofteThere as good los slepith full still and softe.Whan I was fre . and in bounchief at eseIn company ouer att where I wentNo man seid pan . þat I did hem displeseNe worthie was no thing to be shentAnd thus with faire wordis was I blentAnd he þat seid wold me neuer faile.I myght for him synke or saile.71747712788184¶ Thei wold me onys not yeve a draught of drynke 85Ne say ffrend . Wilt pou aught with mc.The soth is said . such frendship sone doth synkeThat from his frend fleeth in aduersite 88And will not bid /but in prosperiteSuche fayned frendis lord pere be full manyFy on her flateryng / pai are not worth a peny. 91I haue no ffrende pat wilt me now visite 92In prison) here to comfort me . of careOf sorow y-now I haue . of ioy but lite.Fare wele my blys . & al my welfareTo telle my sorowe /my wittes be a bare.There is no man) can tell my heuynesse.95•Saue oonly Ekko /that can bere me witnesse. ილAPPENDIX. -A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE. +¶ Now & oure lord / þe kyng of blis IhesusShuld with his fynger here on erth write.Amonges hem that me accusen) thusI trow thei wold on me haue litet dispiteAnd with her mouthis say but right alite[leaf 31 , col. 1]99102Nomore pan ded pe men) . þat soughten) wrecheVpon the woman) . þat take was in spouce breche.105¶ Fy on this world it is but fantesyeSeurete is non . in no degre ne state106Aswele a kyng as a knafe shal dyeNot wetyng where ne whan) erly or late 109When men be meriest . alday deth seith chek mateThere is no man) shall here alway abideThe richest man) eke / from his good shal slide.112¶ Then best is pus/ pe world to set at nought 113And mekely suffre all aduersite.That may vs vaile of synnes we haue wroughtIn mede encresyng or relesynge parde.116Of peynes which in purgatory beAnd so wille I be glad . so god me saveTo suffre men me wrongfully deprave 119¶ Ther is nomore I se now at eize 120hes fayned goddis & goddesse . vaile right noughtFortune & eke thi Sustresse I defieFor I will go to him þat me hath bought 123To whom I pray and euer haue be- soughtMy synnes aH/ þat he wold relesse.And furthermore yit pray I or I cesse.126vit APPENDIX. -A COMPLAINT AGAINST FORTUNE.¶ AH holy Chirche þat is þi veray spouse 127Benigne lorde kepe from al damageAnd make thi people to be vertuouse.The for to serue in euery maner ageWith fervent loue & hertes hool corageAnd alle pat erre; oo lord in any side130Or pou do right/ let mercy be her guyde 133¶ And stedfastly pou make vs to perceyver 134In veray feith & hooly Chirche beleveAnd vs to blys bryng þat lastith euerAnd mary vs help . both morow and eveAnd ofthis world when we take oure leve.Or þat the fende oure soulys pan betrappeHelpe blisful quene. & couer vs with thi lappe.137140¶ Lette not be spilt . þat thi sone dere boughtVpon pe crosse with deth and woundis smert/.And namely hym þat his synnes forthoughtHere in pis lyf . with meke & contrite hert/.And þe of grace . to aske ay vpstert/.Now lady swete I can nomore now sayBut rew on me . and helpe me when I deyExplicit le compleint Agein Fortune./141144147551GENERAL INDEX.BY W. MORRIS WOOD.ACLAND-HOOD, Sir Alexander, his Early English MS. containingthe Story of Constance, 222.Adolphus's fable of "The BlindMan and his Fair Wife " (like theMerchant's Tale) , 179. [In Latin. ]"Advocatio (de) et Diabolo," 106.Esop's fable, " De Cæco et ejusUxore," 180. [In Latin. ]"Al-Faraja ba'd al-Shidda,"Turkishstory- book, 386; 541; 549.Alfred, King, credited as the firsttranslator of Æsop's fable of the co*ck and Fox, 115."Alphonsus of Lincoln," a story like Chaucer's Prioress's Tale,108-110. [In Latin. ]Anjou, Italian miracle- play of the duch*ess of, 404 et seq.Anthony, St., 433."Arabian Nights ," 352; 353; 368;371; 379; 549.Arabian version of the Merchant's Tale, 353; versions of the Man ofLaw's Tale, 368-385; versionsof the Pardoner's Tale, 426-430 .Arbuthnot, F. F., his notice ofShaikh Farid-ud-dín Attar, 423.Attar, Shaikh Farid-ud-din, noticeof, 423."Atti dell' Accademia di Vienna,"404."Avadánas, " Indian tales and apologues, 432."Bahár-i Dánish," a Persian romance, 313, 457.(6' Bakhtyár Náma," 352; 390.Banville, T. de, 546.Barbary version of the Pardoner'sTale, 544.CH. ORIG.| Barbazan's " Fabliaux et Contes,"87; 359.Basiw (Baisieux) , Jakes or Jacques de, his story of "The Priest's Bladder," 135-144.Basset, René, his "Contes populaires Berbères," 545.Beaumont and Fletcher's play,"The Triumph of Honour,"adapted from the Franklin's Tale,338."Beauty unadorned," 472.Bell, Robert, mistaken in attributing to a French original the Second Nun's Tale, 190; his note on Breton and Welsh names, 333.Benfey's opinion that many popular stories are traceable to a Buddhistorigin, 296.Béranger-Féraud, English transla- tion of his French version of aSenegambian popular tale, 314.Bercheur, Pierre, author of the "Gesta Romanorum," 56."Beryn, Tale of," 336; 454.Boccaccio's story of Griseldis , 153-170 [in Italian]; Pear-treeStory, 186-188 [in Italian];Italian version of the Franklin'sTale, 328-331; story of the Lover's Heart, referred to, 479.Boiardo's Italian version of theFranklin's Tale, 334-338."Book of Sindibad " and its derivatives, 322; 452.Border Ballad of " King Henrie,"509.Borde's " Breviary of Health," 523."Boy (The) killed by a Jew forsinging Gaude Maria! " 251- 276.39552 GENERAL INDEX."Christ and his Disciples," a storylike the Pardoner's Tale, 131 .[In Italian. ]"Ciento Novelle Antike," extractfrom, 131.Claretie, M., 546.Clark, J. T., 447.Braga, Theophilus, his Portugueseversion of a story like the Par- doner's Tale, 435."Brahman ( The) who learned the Fifth Veda, " 343 et seq.Bráhmany duck, note on the, 292.Brock, Edmund, translator and editor of Nicholas 66 Trivet'sFrench " Life of Constance," iii ,1-53. [ Old-French text andEnglish translation. ]Brunate, the tradition of Guglielmaat, 409, 410.Buddha's Ten Laws and Five Precepts, 302.Buddhist " Birth- Stories," 417.Buddhist origin of many Asiatic and European popular fictions ,considered, 296; original of the Pardoner's Tale, 418.Burmese version of the Franklin'sTale, 298-305.Burton, Lady Isabel, 463.Burton, Sir R. F. , 352; his translation of the "Arabian Nights "quoted, 352; 368-378; 428- 430.Butler's " Hudibras," 333; 537.Campbell's " Popular Tales of theWest Highlands, " quoted, 326;500; 516.Caxton, W., his English version of Esop's fable of " A blind Manand his Wife, " 181 , 182; his "Life of St. Cecilia," 207-219.Chabaille's " Supplement au Roman de Renart," 113.Chambers's " Scottish Songs, " 546.Chanticlere and Pertelote, Chaucer'stale of, remarks on by Dr. Furni- vall, 112, 113.Chastity, Tests of, 357.Chaucer, his version of the story of Constance, vii-x; Dr. Furnivall'snote on the likelihood of his beingin Milan, 150; reason for con- sidering that his Franklin's Talewas not adapted from Boccaccio,322.Child, Prof. , 498.Children, Want of, a reproach amongAsiatics, 454.Cleridus," Romance of, 549.Clerk'sTale, Petrarch's Latinversion ,and Boccaccio's Italian versionof the story from which it was retold by Chaucer, 149-172; Eng- lish abstract of an Early Frenchversion, 525; additional note,549.Clouston, W. A., his analogues and variants of the Franklin's Tale("The Damsel's Rash Promise "),289-340; of the Merchant's Tale("The Enchanted Tree ") , 341– 364; of the Man of Law's Tale" The Innocent, PersecutedWife "), 365-414; of the Pardoner's Tale ("The Robbers andthe Treasure-Trove "), 415-436;of the Manciple's Tale (" The Tell-Tale Bird " ) , 437-480; ofthe Wife of Bath's Tale (" TheKnight and the Loathly Lady"),481-524; of the Clerk's Tale("The Patient Griselda " ), 525—540; Additional Notes, 541 ff;his " Book of Sindibád, " referredto, 322; his " Bakhtyár Náma,"quoted, 390; his " Popular Talesand Fictions, " referred to, 357.Cluny, legend of the Sacristan of,referred to, 410.co*ckatoo, Tale of the Prudent,462."Comedia Lydiae," Boccaccio's and Chaucer's stories of the Peartree, apparently taken from the,364.Constance, The Life of, by NicholasTrivet, edited and translated byEdm. Brock, iii; 1-53; an EarlyEnglish version of, 221-250;Asiatic and other European versions of, 365-414."Contes Devots, " 397.Crane, Prof. T. F., 417; his "ItalianPopular Tales," 467.Crescenza, the story of, 406.GENERAL INDEX. 553"Damsel's (The) Rash Promise," | Early-English " Life of St. Cecilia, "the Indian original and Asiatic and European variants of theFranklin's Tale, 291–340.D'Ancona, A., his " Sacre Rappre- sentazione referred to andquoted, 402 et seq.Dante's "Paradiso " quoted, to show which lines Chaucer translated, inthe preamble to the Second Nun'sTale, 191 .Dasent's, Sir G. W., Norse Tales,549.D'Aussy, Legrand, his remarks on Basiw's "Story of a Priest'sBladder," 144. See also Le Grand.De Beauvais, Vincent, translation ofhis version of the Man of Law's Tale, 400.De Coincy, Gautier, his tale of"The Boy killed by a Jew for singing Gaude Maria! " 251-272. [In French. ]De Fuego, J. M., his " Peregrina Doctora," 406.De la Croix, Petis, his translation of the Persian "Thousand and OneDays," 385; 541 .De Vendôme, Matthieu, his versionof a Pear-tree story, 183-185.[In Latin.]De Vignay, Jehan de, his French translation of the "LegendaAurea," quoted, 190; 193-205.Des Periers, Bonaventure, probablythe chief compiler of " The Hep- tameron," 356.66 Devil, Wyll of the," 523.in rhyme, 208-218; version ofthe Story of Constance, 221- 250.Early-French version of " The Inno- cent Persecuted Wife," 397.Eberhard, Dr., 451.Ellis' " Early English Metrical Ro- mances," 447.Emare, outline of the tale of (Cott.MS. Calig. A. ii. ), x—xi."Enchanted Tree (The) , " Asiatic analogues of Chaucer's Merchant's Tale, 343-364; 544.English origin suggested forChaucer's tale of Chanticleer,115.English (two) plays like the Frank- lin's Tale, 338-340." Fables of Bidpai," referred to,296.fa*gnan, E. , 542.Farsi, Hugues, author of " Contes Devots," 397.Fausböll, Prof. , editor of the Pali Játaka- book, 417.Ferrari, Padre A. , 409.Ferrari's Life of S. Guglielma, 411.Fifth Veda, the Brahman who learned the, 343 et seq."Florence of Rome, Le bone, " 56.Forbes' "Oriental Memoirs," quoted,456."Fortalitium Fidei," 108."Fortune, A Complaint against,"from Shirley's MS. Harl. 7333,App. 1+-vi (following p. 550).Discipulus, the appellation of John "Forty Vazírs, a Turkish storyHerolt, 104.D'Israeli's "Curiosities of Literature," 479.66 Dolopathos, " Latin version of the"Seven Wise Masters," 322; 442;451.Dowson, J. , his note on the four Vedas, 344.Du Méril, Edélestand, his note onthe Eastern origin of Chaucer's Merchant's Tale, 178; 183.Dunlop's "History of Fiction,"quoted, 402.Dushmanta and Sakúntala, story of,540.book, 322; 325; 351; 452; 520;543.Francis, H. H., his " discovery " ofthe original of Chaucer's Par- doner's Tale, 418; his mistaken"merriment, " 421 .Franklin's Tale, analogues ofChaucer's, 289-340.French versions of the Reve's Tale,85-102; of the Nun's Priest'sTale, 111-128; ofthe Pardoner'sTale, 435; of the Manciple's Tale,442; ofthe Clerk's Tale, 525.Friar's Tale, two Latin stories like Chaucer's, 103-106.554 GENERAL INDEX.Frog Prince, story of the, 522; 546 -548.Furnivall, Dr. F. J., Forewords, 3*;editorial remarks, side-notes, andfoot-notes by, 56-250.Gaelic version of the Franklin'sTale, 326-328; of the Wife of Bath's Tale, 516.Galland's " Mille et une Nuits,"541."Gawain (Sir) and Dame Ragnell,Wedding of," 498; " Marriage of Sir Gawain," 501.Gellert, the legend of, ref. to, 410.German versions of the Man ofLaw's Tale, 406; of the Pardoner'sTale, 434.Germano- Jewish version of the|Franklin's Tale, 317-319.Gerrans' translation of the "TútíNáma" (Parrot- Book) , 453."Gesta Romanorum," quoted, 55.Gibb, E. J. W., his translation of"The Forty Vazírs " quoted , 322; |351; of another Turkish storybook, 520."Gil Blas," quoted, 350.Giovanni's Italian version of theMan of Law's Tale, 56; 402.Glichezare (or Glichesaere) , Hein- rich der, author of " Reinhart Fuchs, " 113 .Gold, Turning earth into, 425; 545.Golden Age, 453."Golden Legende, " Caxton's Life ofSt. Cecilia quoted froin the, 207 -219."Gombert (de) et des deux Clers,"French fabliau of, 87–92.Gower's versification of the story of Constance, v-vi; his version of"The Tell-Tale Bird," 440; his "Tale of Florent, " 483."Gray Mare the Better Horse, "523.Greek version of the Manciple'sTale, 451.Grimm's "Deutsche Sagen," 406;German Popular Tales, 548;"Teutonic Mythology," 477.Griseldis (or Griselda), Tale of,149-176; 525; 549.|" Guglielma, Santa,"Italian miracle- play of, 403.Gunadhya, authorof " VrihatKatha,”296.Habicht, Dr. , note on his German translation of the " ArabianNights," 325.Hales, Prof. J. W., on the Tale of Griselda, 173.Hariri, El, quoted, 458.Harún er-Rashíd and the Donkeys,524.Hartland, E. S., translations by, of Italian miracle- plays, 403 et seq.Hebrew version of the Franklin'sTale, 315-317."Heptameron," the, 356.Hermenegildo, Frei, his Portuguese version of the Pardoner's Tale,435."Hermit (The), Death, and the Robbers,' a story like the Pardoner's Tale, 132, 133. [InItalian. ]Herolt, John, better known as "Dis- cipulus," 104; his Latin storieslike the Friar's Tale, 105, 106."Hitopadesa," a Sanscrit book ofFables, 350; 458.Horses, Intelligent and Talking,477.Horstmann, Dr. Carl, his edition of"The Paris Beggar-Boy murdered by a Jew for singing Alma redemptoris Mater! " 277-285,and of "The Monk who honouredthe Virgin, " 286-288.Horwood, A. J., 222."Husband and Magpie, " Old-French and Old- English versions of theManciple's Tale, 442-450.Icelandic versions of the Wife ofBath's Tale, 513–516.Ildegarde, the legend of, 406.Indian original of the Franklin'sTale, 291-295.Indian queen like Griselda, story of,538.Indo- Persian version of the Frank- lin's Tale, 313, 314; of the Merchant's Tale, 348 et seq.Ingoldsby Legends, " 546.(6GENERAL INDEX. 555"Innocent Persecuted Wife (The) ,".Asiatic and European analogues of the Man of Law's Tale, 365— 414." Isengrimus,” an early story-book,113.Italian and Latin versions of thetale of Patient Grissell, 149-172.Italian miracle-play of St. Antonio,433.Italian versions of the Man of Law'sTale, 403-405; 407-412.Januensis, Jacobus (or Jacobus àVoragine) , compiler of the " Legenda Aurea, " 190; quoted, 192"C-204.Jataka," or Birth- Story, explana- tion of the term, 417.Jelál ad- dín Rúmí, 544, 545.Jephson, Mr., his French origin ofChaucer's tale of St. Cecilia disproved, 190.Jesus, note on the Muslim belief inhis capability ofworking miracles,424."Johann Valentin Andreæ Chymische Hochzeit Christiani Rosenkreutz," a story quoted from this anonymous book, 331.Jorjun, story of the Sultan of, 315.Joseph and Potiphar's Wife, numerous analogues of the story of,367.Joseph the son of Jacob, his beauty proverbial among Muslims, 454.Julien, Stanislas, his translation of aChinese Buddhist legend , 432.Kabir, Sayyid, the miracle of, 425.Kádirí's abridgment of the ParrotBook, 453.Kaffir analogues of the Wife of Bath's Tale, 522.Kalmuk Tales quoted, 467.Kashmirí version of the Pardoner'sTale, 430."Katha Sarit Ságara," remarks onthe, 295-297; quoted , 538."Kayúrabahu Charitra," Indian story-book, 543.Keller's " Romans des Sept Sages, "363; 364; 442.Kelly, W. K., his translation of Boccaccio's version of the Franklin'sTale quoted, 328 et seq."Knight and Loathly Lady," variants and analogues of the Wife ofBath's Tale, 481-524; 546."Knight de La Tour Landry, Book of the," 545.Knowles, Rev. J. Hinton, his Kash- mírí version of the Pardoner'sTale, 430; " Folk Tales of Kashmír, " 546.Köhler, Dr. R., mentioned, 331.Kuhn's "Westfälische Sagen, " &c. ,434.Kurroglú, the Persian bandit-poet,478.Latin and Italian versions of thetale of Patient Grissell, 149-172.Le Grand's " Fabliaux," quoted, 350;397.Le Sage, the French novelist, 386.Lebbe, M. C. S. , his Arabic versionof the Pardoner's Tale, 426.Leclerc, Victor, his summary of Basiw's "Story of a Priest'sBladder," 136."Legenda Aurea, " by Jacobi aVoragine, the life of St. Ceciliaquoted from the, 192-204. [ In Latin. ]"Legende Dorée, " translated byJehan de Vignay, the life of St.Cecilia quoted from the, 193– 205. [In French. ]Levi, Israel, 315."Libro di Novelle," extract from,132."Lincoln, Alphonsus of," 108 et seq.Lover's Heart, Story ofthe, 469; 479.Lucky and unlucky days, note on,293.Lydgate, John, probably the author of " The Monk who honoured theVirgin," 278.Madden, Sir F., 56.Mahábbárata, " the great Indianepic, 455; 538; 540.Malcolm, Sir J. , quotation from his " Sketches of Persia, " 306-310.Manciple's Tale, Latin source and other European versions and analogues, 437-480; 545.

556 GENERAL INDEX.Mandeville's "Travels " quoted, 518.Man-of-Law's Tale, analogues of,iii; 1-84; 221-250; Asiatic and European versions of, 365-414.Manni, a Boccaccio commentator,332.""Margaret, Queen of Navarre, the"Heptameron " attributed to, 356.Marie de France, her fable of the co*ck and Fox, one ofthe sourcesof the Nun's Priest's Tale, 112;text of, 116-126."" Marriage of Sir Gawain." 501."Masnaví " of Jelál-ed Dín, quoted,544; 545.Méon's unscientific editing of the "Romandu Renart" reprehended,112-113.Merchant's Tale, five versions of aPear-tree story like the, 177-188;analogues ofthe, 343-364; 544.Merelaus the Emperor, the story ofthe wife of, 57-70. [In OldEnglish. ]Messiah, Breath ofthe, 424.Michel, F., his "Hugues de Lincoln,"109."Mille et un Jours, " Persian Tales,385-387; 541-544; 549."Miller (The) and the two Clerks,"French fabliau of, 93-100.Milton, quoted, 539.Miracle-plays similar to the Man ofLaw'sTale, 403; to the Pardoner'sTale, 433.Mitra's " Sanskrit Buddhist Literature of Nepál, " 545.Naishapur, the siege of, by Chan- gez Khan, 423.Nakhshabí, compiler of the "Tútí Náma," 310; 452.Nala and Damayanti, story of, 540."Narration de quodam Senescallo Sceleroso," 105.Nats, ogres, and their various con- geners, note on, 300."Nauratan, " an Urdú story-book,544.Nicol, Henry, notes by, on twoFrench fabliaux, 101-102; his notes to " How Reynard caughtChanticleer," 127, 128; his notes to the " Tale of the Priest's Bladder," 145-147; he edits Gautierde Coincy's story, "The Boykilled by a Jew for singing Gaude Maria! " 251-272.Nicolas, Sir Harris, his note on the time when Petrarch translatedBoccaccio's story of Griseldis,150.Nun's Priest's Tale, the source ofChaucer's, 111-128.Occleve's version of the tale of "Merelaus," 56.Offa, King, Matthew Paris's Life of,73-84." Officious Father-in-Law (The),"story ofthe, 355."Orientalist (The)," 357.Ouseley, Sir W., his Persian MS. ofthe "Hazár ú Yek Rúz," 386;542.Money, In praise and dispraise of, Ovid's tale of Phoebus and the Crow,458, 459.Monier-Williams, Sir M., 539."Monk (The) who honoured the Virgin," an analogue of the Prioress's Tale, 286-288.Monti, Pietro, note by, concerningthe legendary Guglielma, 409."Morlini Novellae," extract from,134.Morris, Rev. Dr. R., the first to pointout the resemblance of the Par- doner's Tale to one of the Buddhist Birth-Stories, 418.Mukhlis, a dervish, compiler of the "Hazár ú Yek Rúz, " 386; 541.Mussafia, A., 404.the source ofthe Manciple's Tale,439. [In Latin.]Panjábí Legend, like the Manciple's Tale, 469.Pardoner's Tale, two Italian stories and one Latin story like the,129-134; Buddhist original andAsiatic and European versions of,415-436; 544.Paris, Matthew, his story of " King Offa's intercepted letters and banish*t Queen," 73-84. [ In Latin. ]Paris, Paulin, his account of aFrench story like the Pardoner'sTale, 435.GENERAL INDEX. 557"Paris (The) Beggar- Boy murderedby a Jew for singing Alma redemptoris Mater!" an analogueof the Prioress's Tale, 277-285.Parrot- Book-see "Tútí Náma. "Payne, J., his translation of theArabic version of the Merchant's Tale, 353.Pear-tree Story, five versions of a,177-188; various versions ofthe, 348 et seq."Peasant (The) in the Tree," storyof, 364.Pepys' "Diary" quoted, 537.Persian versions of the Franklin'sTale, 306-312; of the Man ofLaw's Tale, 388-396; ofthe Pardoner's Tale, 423; of the Manciple's Tale, 453-466.Petrarch's letter to Boccaccio, 151 ,152 [in Latin]; tale of Griseldis,153-172. [In Latin. ]Pope's plagiarism of Chaucer, 333.Poquet, the Abbé, his edition ofGautier de Coincy's " Miracles dela Sainte Vierge," 252.Portuguese version ofthe Pardoner'sTale, 435.Potiphar's wife and Joseph, numerous analogues of the story of,367."Priest's Bladder, The Tale of the,"a story like the Summoner's Tale,135--144. [ In Old-French. ]Prioress's Tale, a Latin story likethe, 107–110; " The Boy killedby a Jew for singing Gaude Maria!" an analogue of the, 251- 273; "The Paris Beggar - Boymurdered by a Jew for singingAlma redemptoris Mater! " another analogue, 277-285; "The Monk who honoured the Virgin,"a third analogue, 286-288.Pulci, Antonia, English outline ofher miracle-play of Santa Gugli- elma, 403.| Raksh, the famous steed of Rustam,477.66Ralston's Tibetan Tales, 431 .Rámayana, " the great Indian epic,quoted, 539.Rasálú, Rájá, Legend of, 469.Reeve's Tale, two French fabliauxlike the, 85-100. [In Old- French. ]"Reinardus Vulpes," an early storybook, 113.""" Reinhart Fuchs," the German original of the French Romandu Renart.'66 Retrospective Review," an inappreciative critique of Chaucer's Pardoner's Tale in the, 436."Reynard (How) caught Chanti- cleer," the source of the Nun'sPriest's Tale, 111-126. [ In OldFrench. ]Rieu, Dr. Charles, his Catalogue of Persian MSS. in British Museum ,453; 541; 542.Ritson's " Metrical Romances," 56."Robbers (The) and the Treasuretrove," Buddhistic original and Asiatic and European versions,of the Pardoner's Tale, 415-436;544."Roman du Renart," one of thesources ofthe Nun's Priest's Tale,112.Ross, Dr. David, 314.Rowley's "Search for Money, "quoted, 459.Rückert, Dr. F., his text and trans- lation of Farid-ud-din's versionof the Pardoner's Tale, 423.Russians , contempt of the Asiatics for, 348.Rustam, the Persian Hercules, 477.Ruzvanshád and his Fairy Bride,549.Sachs, Hans, his stories like the Par- doner's Tale, 434."Sacre Representazione," 402."Qirq Vezír Táríkhí "- -see " Forty Sa'di's " Gulistán," quoted, 393.Vazírs."Radloff's South- Siberian Tales , 320." Ragnell (Dame) and Sir Gawain,Wedding of," 498."Saineresse (La) ," fabliau of, 359.Salt, a pledge of hospitality in the East, 475.Sandal-wood, its varieties and uses,456.558 GENERAL INDEX.Sandras, M., a Chaucer critic, 135, | Swynnerton's Panjábí Legends, 476;136.Sanskrit version of the Franklin'sTale, 291-295; analogue of the Wife of Bath's Tale, 521 .Scott, Dr. Jonathan, his translation of the " Bahár-i-Dánish," quoted,313, 314; 344.Second Nun's Tale, four versions ofthe, 189-219.Senegambian popular tale, quoted,314."Shah Náma " (Book of Kings), 471;477.Siberian version of the Franklin'sTale, 320."Sindibád, Book of," 322; 452.Sinhalese story of Woman's Wiles,358.Sita's devotion to her husband Ráma, 539.Smith, Miss L. Toulmin, 56.Somadeva, author of the " KatháSarit Ságara," 296.Spanish version ofthe Man of Law'sTale, 406.Sparks, Capt. T. P. , his translation of the "Princess Thoo-dhammaTsari" quoted, 297 et seq.Spenser's plagiarism ofChaucer, 333.Spina, Alphonsus a, the compiler of "Fortalitium Fidei," 108.St. Cecilia, remarks on the original of Chaucer's story of, 190, 191;four versions of the legend of,192-219; the Latin and Frenchversions from the " Golden Legend" printed on opposite pages,192205; an Early - English rhymed version and Caxton's Lifeof, printed on opposite pages, 207 -219.St. Cloud, Pierre de, compiler of the " Roman du Renart," 113.Stratonice, the old Greek story of,315.Suckling, Sir John, quoted, 472.Súfiism , note on, 423."Suka Saptatí," an Indian story- book, 310; 452.Summoner's Tale, an Old- Frenchstory like the, 135-144.Swaffam, legend of the Pedlar of,referred to, 410.480."Syntipas," a Greek version of theBook of Sindibád, quoted, 451.Tawney, Prof. C. H., 291; 418;538."Tell-Tale Bird," Latin source, andother European and Asiatic ana- logues of the Manciple's Tale,437-480; 545.Temple, Capt. R. C., 425; 468; 544.Ten Brink, Prof. B., on the source of the Nun's Priest's Tale, 113."Thousand and One Days "-see "Mille et un Jours."Tibetan version of the Pardoner'sTale, 431.Tirrea Bede =Fifth Veda, 351.Transmutation of earth into gold,the power of, often ascribed toholy men, in Eastern fictions,425."Treasure (The) in the Tiber," astory like the Pardoner's Tale,134. [In Latin. ]Treasure- Tree, note on the ancient myth ofthe, 336."Treasure-Trove, The Robbers and the, " 415; 544.Trial of chastity, illustration of,357.Trivet, Nicholas, the author of the " Life of Constance," short account of him and his works, iii -V.Turkish Version of the Franklin'sTale, 322-325; of the Man ofLaw's Tale, 351; analogue of the Wife of Bath's Tale, 520 et seq."Tutí Náma," or Parrot- Book, 310;312; 452; 453-466.""Twas I," outline of the operetta of (Covent Garden, 1825) , 356."Two Merry Milkmaids," a comedyapparentlyfounded on Boccaccio'stale of Dianora, 340.Tyrwhitt's notes on the origin of "Chanticleer, " 112, 115; on theoriginal of Chaucer's Clerk's Tale,150; on the origin of Chaucer's Merchant's Tale, 178; on theorigin of the Second Nun's Tale,190.GENERAL INDEX. 559Ulric, anancient Viennese professor, Warton's note on John Herolt, 104.178. Weber's " Metrical Romances," 447.' Wedding of Sir Gawain and Rag- "Vazír's Pious Daughter (The) ," nell," 498.390."Vedabbha Játaka," the original of Chaucer's Pardoner's Tale, 417.Verney, Lady, her Burmese version of the Franklin's Tale, 305."Vescie àPrestre," Jakes de Basiw'sstory of the (like Chaucer's Summoner's Tale), 135–144.Vestris, Madame, 357.Vignay, Jehan de, his French ver- sion of the Second Nun's Tale,193.Vincent of Beauvais' Latin versionof the Man of Law's Tale, 400.Violette, Roman de la," 56.66Von Schiefner, F. A. , his translation of the Tibetan version of "TheRobbers and the Treasure-trove,"432.Voragine, Jacobus a-see Januensis.Whinfield, E. H., 544.Whittington and his Cat, the legend of, 410.Wife of Bath's Tale, variants andanalogues of, 481-524; 546.Wilson, Dr. H. H., his " Catalogue of the Mackenzie Oriental MSS. , "543; 545.Woman's Wiles, stories of, 343 etseq.; Sinhalese story of, 358."Wonen Desire Sovereignty," 523.Wright, Thomas, his note onChaucer's "Constance, " 56; his"Anecdota Literaria," 93; his"Archæologia, " 105; a fable reproduced from his "Latin Stories,"180. [In Latin. ]"Ysoude (Queen) and Sir Tristrem,"363.Warner's version of the story of Zotenberg, Hermann, 541; 543."The Robbers and the Treasuretrove, " 426.R. CLAY & SONS, LIMITED, LONDON & BUNGAY.

The Chaucer Society.Nov. 10, 1888.WITH this, go out the three Texts of the Second Series for1887, and the one Text of the First Series for 1888.The three Second-Series '87 Texts are:22. Originals and Analogs of the Canterbury Tales, Part V(completing the volume): Eastern Analogs, II, by W. A. Clouston.23. John Lane's Continuation of Chaucer's Squire's Tale,edited by F. J. Furnivall from the 2 MSS in the BodleianLibrary, Oxford, A.D. 1616, 1630. Part I, the Text andForewords.24. Supplementary Canterbury Tales: 2, The Tale of Beryn,Part II. Forewords by F. J. Furnivall, Notes by F. Vipan,M.A. &c. , and Glossary by W. G. Stone; with an Essay onAnalogs of the Tale, by W. A. Clouston.The one First- Series Text for 1888 is:LXXIX. A One-Text Print of Chaucer's Troilus and Criseydefrom the Campsall MS. of Mr. Bacon Frank, copied forHenry V when Prince of Wales; put forth by F. J. Furnivall, M.A., Ph.D.The Text for the First Series for 1886,LXXVII. A Ryme- Index to Chaucer's Minor Poems, by MissIsabel Marshall and Miss Lela Porter, in Royal 4to for the Parallel-Text;and for 1887,LXXVIII. A Ryme-Index to Chaucer's Minor Poems, by MissIsabel Marshall and Miss Lela Porter, in 8vo for the OneText print of the Minor Poems,is nearly all in type, and will be finisht as soon as the otherengagements of Miss Marshall and Miss Lela Porter allow.For the Second Series of 1888, Dr. Axel Erdmann of Upsalahas the second Supplementary Canterbury Tale, Lydgate's2 The Chaucer Society's Texts for 1888 and 1889. Concordance.Siege of Thebes all in type from the best MS, an Arundel inthe British Museum, and will soon collate it, completely witha few of the other best MSS, and partially with the wholesixteen. Mr. Alexander J. Ellis will have ready in May, 1889,Part V of his great work on Early English Pronunciation,dealing with our modern Dialects. Mr. W. A. Clouston hasprepared nearly all the material for his Essay on the MagicHorse, Ring and Glass, which, with the Index to Lane (nowin hand), will form Part II of the Continuation of Chaucer'sSquire's Tale.For 1889, Dr. Max Kaluza is preparing an edition of theRomaunt of the Rose (not Chaucer's) from the unique MS inthe Hunterian Museum, Glasgow, with an Introduction on itsdialect, its rymes, its comparison with Jean de Meun's original,&c. Mr. Walford D. Selby has also in type upwards of a hundredpages of the Life- Records of Chaucer-Chaucer documents,with comments-which he and Dr. Furnivall have collected,and will edit: Part I in 1889. Arrangements will be madewith Mr. Henry Ward or his substitute, to complete his comparison of the Knight's Tale with Boccaccio's Teseide in 1889;and Dr. John Koch hopes to be able to write in the same yearhis Trial-Forewords to Chaucer's Minor Poems.A student and friend of Prof. Child has nearly completed afull study of the grammatical and other peculiarities of theMSS of Troilus and Cressida. He hopes to get it to press in1889.Seven years ago Prof. Corson, of Cornell University, undertook to finish The Chaucer Concordance; but he was never ableto touch it, and it has now been taken in hand by Mr. W.Graham, of 64 Mount Pleasant Road, Southampton, to whommuch fresh help has been given in the work. Mr. Graham isanxious for much more aid, and will be glad to receive offersfrom any lovers of Chaucer willing to work. The followingTales and Poems have been lately undertaken:The Chaucer Concordance. The Praise of Chaucer. 3Nun's Priest's Tale.Second Nun's Tale.Clerk's Tale.Monk's Tale.Melibe.Manciple's Tale.Reeve. Cook.Wife's Tale.Friar's Tale.Miller's Tale.Parson's Tale (part).Parliament of Foules.Complaint of Mars.Venus. Truth. Scogan.Marriage. Gentleness.Stedfastness. Purse.Proverbs. Fortune.ABC. Anelida.Troilus, Books I , II, III.House of Fame, Bks. I, II.Lucrece and Phyllis, of TheLegend of Good Women.Concordancers are wanted for part of The Parson's Tale,for Books IV and V of Troilus and Cressida, for Book III ofthe House of Fame, for the rest of The Legend of GoodWomen, for Boece, &c.The Director has long desired the compilation of a volumeof The Praise of Chaucer, allusions to him by all the writers ofhis own day, by others down to Tyrwhitt, and by at least thechief critics of our own time. The work needs some editor whohas access to a large collection of Elizabethan books.¹ An offerhas been made by a resident in a small town in Scotland; buta British-Museum or Bodleian man is the one wanted.Dr. Furnivall and Mr. A. W. Pollard of the British Museumhave undertaken a 6-volume edition of Chaucer's Works forMacmillan & Co., and this, when in progress, will be graduallysent out to Members as part of the Society's issues.The Director regrets much that the Texts for 1884 for theFirst Series are still in arrear; but he has had so much in handfor the last few years, that he has not been able to clear offthe final Parts of the Six Texts of the Canterbury Tales. Hehopes to do so in 1889.With the Chaucer Concordance-in which it is hoped thatthe Clarendon Press will share-the Society's work will end.The Treasurer's Cash-Accounts for 1881-7 are appended.1 The 2 collections of Allusions to Shakspere publisht by the New Shakspere Soc. contain many Chaucer Allusions. Dart has more in Urry's Chaucer. Are Mr. Hales's fresh ones, in his reprinted Essays?4 Treasurer's Cash Account, 1881 . CHAUCER SOCIETY . Abstract ofIncome ad Expenditure for the year 1881 . RECEIPTS . Balance atBank January ,1st881 Cash inhnd Members Subscriptions ':- For back years For 1881 For 1882 PAYMENTS .££s.d s.d£ s.d£ 1317 ... Printing:-31 14831880Part IIdo.Series .1st xiv ,ReprintsLX.Minor Poems ,art II.(balance )LXI .26180103912173 do. XV. do.0747 194102:do. do.xxiv xxix do.Cuts ,Electros Paper &c.(1880 )Onaccount ofPrinting for 1881Colouring ,Collating and CopyingClerkPacking... Binding£207 177Examined correct and found .... 1709040 0 17323...&c.Insurance Postage ,CarriageBalance atBank ,31st December 1881Cash inhand ...GRAHAME ,Auditor .KENNETH1665011054865336 2 ...21 537207 17£7SEC ,HON .DALZIEL A.W.Treasurer's Cash Account, 1882 . СтCHAUCER SOCIETY .Abstract ofIncome ad Expenditure for the year 1882 ..RECEIPTS1882 January 1st atBank ,alancehand inCshMembers Subscriptions ':-For back years1882 ForFor future years ...Commission Agent's Less

PAYMENTS .46s.d32£ s.d CR Printing:-12 Balance due for 1881£s.d33190£s.d753LXIII .Troilus and Criseyde ,Part I 84294420180 926 0230 171 21 229 16075173 193 0LXIV .Troilus and Criseyde ,Part IIonaccount )(AutotypesSoc .Text Englarly toPayment1881 Warehousing Stock ,Clerk ...... Copying and Editor's JourneysPostage Insurance and Packing ,BindingBalance atBank ,31st December 1882

:

...170440505021805112156£237 13KENNETH GRAHAME ,Auditor ..SEC W.A.DALZIEL ,HON237 13£Examined and found correct .6 Treasurer's Cash Account, 1883. CHAUCER SOCIETY . Abstract ofIncome and Expenditure for the year 1883 . RECEIPTS .s.d£ Balance Bank atJnuary ,1st883.ds£156 PAYMENTS .£s.d s.d£ Printing::-Members Subscriptions ':—For back years 77146For 1883 1869Troilus LXIV .Criseyde and ,Part IIbalance () ... 738 60 229 136 LXV .Troilus and Criseyde ,Part II156 51884 For 20266 157General Account:-,1882 Warehousing Stock ... Less Agent's Commission 2124 Insurance ofStock5 02 06 ... 264 3 ClerkBinding50619Packing&c.,PostageCarriage... ... ...Balance atBank ,31st December 1883Cash inhnd£279 19445 6 ...5 54 ...753 33145155016 1615279 19£4Examined and found correct .KENNETH GRAHAME ,Auditor . .SEC ,HON DALZIEL A.W.Treasurer's Cash Account, 1884.7CHAUCER SOCIETY .Abstract ofIncome ad Expenditure for year the 1884 .RECEIPTS .Balance Bank at,January 1st884hand Csh ind.£S. 155 s.d£ Printing:-:-0161615Members 'Subscriptions:For back years1884 ForLess Agent's commissionDonation from P.QKarkeek ,Esq .700145215 812100PAYMENTS .£s. d. £s.d7014615826 15300No. 19. Essays Chaucer on,Pt.V.Onaccount ...Warehousing Stock 1883-84 ,Clerk ... For Facsimiles [onaccount ]Insurance Stock ofPostage ,&c.213 73Packing and carriage50£234 1881005020 017617 6419 0Balance atBank 31st ,December 1884 3848234 £188Examined with the vouchers found and correct .KENNETH GRAHAME Auditor ,. W.DALZIEL A.,HON .SEC8 Treasurer's Cash Account, 1885. SOCIETY .CHAUCER Abstract ofIncome ad Expenditure for the year 1885 . RECEIPTS .d£s.3848 Printing: Balance atBank ,1st January 1885Members Subscriptions 'For back years ... For 1885 ... 1042241051PAYMENTS .s.d£131~8439Co62 20∞ ∞Harleian 7334 MS.balance ()Sundriesaccount On255 170Warehousing Stock 1885 ,Insurance ofStockClerk ...,&c.Postages...Facsimiles ofEllesmere MS.[balance ]Typographic Etching Co.

Balance atBank ,31st December 1885Cash inhnd...0661443805CO176510109550140 ...2061806718294 £ 8294 1£Examined with vouchers the and found correct .Auditor .KENNETH GRAHAME , SEC DALZIEL ,HON .W.A.Treasurer's Cash Account, 1886.6SOCIETY .CHAUCERAbstract ofIncome ad Expenditure for the year 1886 .RECEIPTS .Balance atBank ,1st January 1886PAYMENTS .Cash inhndMembers 'Subscriptions:—For back yearsFor 1886s.d£6602061s.d£ £ Seriesecond 20. No.:Printing d.s5120 £s.d21.* Do. 156 "" 0867 LXXVI . First Seies 229 "" Sundries 7180

144 0 Onaccount 321118616330 116 Pronunciation E.of23CopiesBoece Index tomaking ForFor copyingClerk ...Insurance ofStock&c.,Postages... ... Balance atBank ,December 31st 1886Cash inhnd100 051500410050176397 122£... 190 277 1... 615 277 16 8£397 12 2Examined with vouchers the and found correct .KENNETH GRAHAME ,Auditor . W.A.DALZIEL ,HON .SEC10 Treasurer's Cash Account, 1887..SOCIETY CHAUCER1887 .for the year Income ad Expenditure Abstract of.PAYMENTSs.d£ 277 12ds.£ .ds£Printing:-8277 1665.Series 2nd 15. ,4.7Nos ofReprints XIXVIII ,XI XXVIV ,II 917717710.1st ,XLIVXVII Series .153 9230 16General Account:- Copying Clerk . Stock ofInsuranceNo. LXXV .1st Series ,(balance )Miscellaneous ... onaccount &Sons ,Clay .R.Messrs1262018 18131617 5602350 ... 176 ... Dialects .Eng ofMaps1886-7 etc. slips carriage ,Postage 1887 and ,1886 Stock Warehousing1887 December 31st atBank ,alancehand inCsh ... ...016 ...76010 0 4817140 5 15742 102RECEIPTS .1887 January Bank ,1st Balance athand inCshMembers Subscriptions 'For back yearsFor 1887

correct .vouchers and found Examined with the508 13£.,Auditor GRAHAME KENNETH508 13£HON .SEC W.A.DALZIEL ,11LIST OF MEMBERS OF THE CHAUCER SOCIETY.1888.ABERDEEN UNIVERSITY, LIBRARY OF (by Trübner & Co. ).ALLSOPP, The Hon. A. Percy, Streethay Lodge, Lichfield.ASHER & CO. , 13, Bedford Street, Covent Garden, W.C.ASTOR LIBRARY, New York, U. S. A. ( by B. F. Stevens).BAKER, F. P. (by Trübner & Co. ) .BALLIOL COLLEGE LIBRARY, Oxford.BARTLETT, Francis, 13, Exchange Street, Boston, U. S. A.BENNETT, Miss F. E. , Ogontz, Montgomery Co. , Pa. , U. S. A.BIRMINGHAM CENTRAL FREE LIBRARY, Eden Place, Birmingham .BONN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY (Max Cohen & Sohn, care of Mr. D. Nutt,270, Strand, W.C.) .BOSTON ATHENEUM LIBRARY, Boston, U. S. A. (by Trübner & Co.) .BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, Boston , U. S. A. (by Trübner & Co.).BRASENOSE COLLEGE, Oxford.BRESLAU UNIVERSITY (by Asher & Co.).BROOKE, Rev. Stopford A., 1, Manchester Square, W.BRYN MANOR COLLEGE ( by Trübner & Co. ) .BUCKLEY, Rev. W. E., Rectory, Middleton Cheney, Banbury.CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Cambridge.CARRICK, Rev. J. L. , Spring Hill, Southampton.CHILD, Prof. F. J., Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. , U. S. A. (Hon. Sec.for America).CHRISTIANIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY (care of Simpkins, Marshall, & Co.).CLAY & SONS, Ld. , Bungay.COHN, A., 13, Bedford St, Covent Garden, W.C. (by Asher & Co.).COLERIDGE, The Right Hon. Lord, 1 , Sussex Square, W. CONGRESS, LIBRARY OF, Washington, U. S. A. (by E. G. Allen, 28 Henrietta St. , Covent Garden, W.C.).CORNELL UNIVERSITY, Ithaca, New York, U. S. A. CULLEY, Matthew T., Coupland Castle, Wooler, Northumberland.DA COSTA, Dr. J. M., 1609, Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U. S. A.DALZIEL, W. A. , 67, Victoria Road, Finsbury Park, London, N. (Hon. Sec. ).DERBY, The Right Hon. the Earl of, 23, St James's Square, S.W.DEVONSHIRE, Duke of, Devonshire House, Piccadilly, W. DOGGETT, Hugh G., 31, Richmond Ter. , Clifton, Bristol.DURHAM CATHEDRAL LIBRARY, Durham.ELLIS, Alexander J. , 25, Argyll Road, Kensington, W.ERLANGEN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Germany ( Sampson Low & Co.).Fox, Francis F. , Yate House, Chipping Sodbury.FREIBURG UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, BADEN.FURNIVALL, Dr. F. J. , 3, St George's Square, Primrose Hill, N.W. ( Director).GEROLD & Co. , Vienna (by Asher & Co.).GIBBS, Henry Hucks, St Dunstan's, Regent's Park, N.W.12 Chaucer Society: List of Members, 1888.GLASGOW, THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY of (by Maclehose).GÖTTINGEN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY (by Asher & Co.) .GREIFSWALD UNIVERSITY LIBRARY (by Asher & Co.).GUILDHALL, LIBRARY OF THE CORPORATION OF LONDON, E.C.HARVARD COLLEGE LIBRARY, Cambridge, Mass. , U. S. A. (by E. G. Allen).HAY, C. A., 127, Harley Street, W.HOE, Robt. , junior, 504, Grand St. , New York, U. S. A. (by B. F. Stevens).JENKINS, Sir Jas. , K.C.B., Neviston, Mannamead, Plymouth.JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY, Baltimore, U. S. A. ( by E. G. Allen).KIEL UNIVERSITY, Germany.KOCH, Dr. J., 35 Brückenallee, Berlin, N.W.LEEDS LIBRARY, Commercial St, Leeds.LONDON LIBRARY, 12, St James's Square, S.W. LONDON UNIVERSITY, Burlington Gardens, W.LOWELL, J. Russell, LL.D., Harvard Coll. , Cambridge, Mass. , U. S. A.MANCHESTER, Duke of, 1 , Great Stanhope Street, Mayfair, W. MANCHESTER PUBLIC FREE LIBRARY, Manchester.MAYOR, Rev. Professor John E. B., St John's College, Cambridge.MELBOURNE PUBLIC LIBRARY, Victoria (by S. Mullen).MERCANTILE LIBRARY, Brooklyn, New York, U. S. A. (by E. G. Allen).MERCANTILE LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, San Francisco, U. S. A. (by Trübner& Co.).MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY (General Library of) , Ann Arbor, Michigan, U. S. A. MITCHELL LIBRARY, Glasgow.MUNICH STATE AND COURT LIBRARY, Bavaria.NAPIER, Professor Arthur S. , Headington Hill, Oxford.NATIONAL LIBRARY OF IRELAND, Dublin (by Hodges, Figgis, & Co.) .NEWCASTLE- UPON- TYNE LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.NORTHUMBERLAND, The Duke of, 2, Grosvenor Place, S.W.OLIPHANT, T. L. Kington, Charlsfield, Gask, Auchterarder.PEABODY INSTITUTE, Baltimore, U. S. A. ( by E. G. Allen).PRAG SEMINAR, Prag, Austria.PRIAULX, O. de Beauvoir, 8, Cavendish Square, W.PRINCETON COLLEGE LIBRARY, New Jersey, U. S. A. (by H. Grevel & Co.).QUEEN'S COLLEGE, Oxford.ROMANISCHE- ENGLISCHE SEMINAR, Marburg, Germany.ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY, Bombay (by Trübner & Co.).ROYAL LIBRARY, Munich (by Asher & Co. ) .ROYAL LIBRARY, Stockholm (by Trübner & Co.).ROYAL LIBRARY, Windsor.ST JOHN'S COLLEGE, Annapolis, U. S. A. ( by B. F. Stevens).ST JOHN'S COLLEGE, Cambridge (by Deighton, Bell & Co.).ST LOUIS PUBLIC SCHOOL LIBRARY, Missouri, U. S. A. (by B. F. Stevens).ST PETER'S COLLEGE, Cambridge.SCRIBNER, WELFORD & Co. , New York, U. S. A. (by Trübner & Co.) .SKEAT, Rev. Prof. W. W., 2, Salisbury Villas, Cambridge.SNELGROVE, Arthur G., 6, Portway Ter. , Willoughby Road, Hornsey, N. SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES, Burlington House, W.SOUTHERAN & Co. (by Trübner & Co.) .SOUTHMAYD, Chas. F. , 52, Wall Street, New York, U. S. A.STECHERT, G. E. ( by Trübner & Co.).STEPHENS, Prof. George, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.STORROW, J. J. , 40, State Street, Boston, U. S. A.STRASSBURG UNLVERSITY LIBRARY (by Trübner & Co.) .AChaucer Society: List of Members, 1888.13SWAIN FREE SCHOOL, New Bedford, Mass. , U. S. A. (by H. Grevel & Co.) .SYDNEY FREE LIBRARY (by Trübner & Co. ).TRINITY COLLEGE LIBRARY, Cambridge (by Deighton, Bell & Co.).TRINITY COLLEGE, Dublin (by Hodges, Figgis, & Co., 104, Grafton St, Dublin) .VIENNA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, Vienna.VILES, Edward, 16, Wetherby Gardens, South Kensington, S.W. WALMSLEY, G. G., 50, Lord St, Liverpool.WALTERS, Henry, 68, Exchange Place, Baltimore, U. S. A.WATKINSON LIBRARY, Hartford, Connecticut, U. S. A. (by E. G. Allen) .WATSON, Dr. R. S. , Moss Croft, Gateshead.WELLESLEY COLLEGE (by Trübner & Co.).WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY, Middletown, Connecticut, U. S. A.WHEATLEY, Henry B., 12, Caroline St, Bedford Sq. , W.C.WREN, Walter, 3, Powis Square, Westbourne Grove, W.WRIGHT, Dr. W. Aldis, Trinity College, Cambridge.YALE COLLEGE LIBRARY, New Haven, Connecticut, U. S. A. (by E. G. Allen).ZUPITZA, Prof., 7 Kleinbeerenstrasse, Berlin. [110 Members.The Honorary Secretary of the Early English Text and Ballad Societies is W. A. Dalziel, Esq. , 67, Victoria Rd. , Finsbury Park, London, N.The Hon. Sec. of the New Shakspere Society is Kenneth Grahame, Esq. ,65, Chelsea Gardens, London , S..WThe Hon. Sec . of the Browning Society is W. B. Slater, Esq., 39, WolseleyRoad, Crouch End, London, N.The Hon. Sec. of the Wyclif Society for the publication of the Reformer'sLatin Works (12 vols. out), is J. W. Standerwick, Esq. , General Post Office,London, E.C.The Hon. Sec. of the Philological Society is Dr. F. J. Furnivall, 3, St.George's Square, Primrose Hill, London, N.W.: the Editors of its NewEnglish Dictionary are Dr. J. A. H. Murray and Mr. Henry Bradley. Vol. Iis out, publisht by the Clarendon Press; Vols. II ( ed. Murray) and III ( ed.Bradley) are in hand.The Shakspere Quarto Facsimiles, superintended by Dr. Furnivall, arepublisht by B. Quaritch, 15, Piccadilly, London, W., at 6s. each for the set of 43,or 10s. 6d. separately.BLIOTH EK

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