The Pardoner's Prologue & Tale
Folio 200r
9 of 19 folios
For cristes sake and herkne to my tale
Þise ryetoures þre of which I telle
Longe er pryme ronge eny belle
335
Were sette hem in a tauerne for to drynke /
And as þey sate þey herde a belle clynke /
Byforn a corps was caryed to his graue
Þat oon of hem gan calle to his knaue /
Go bet quoþ he and axe redyly
340
What corps is þis þat passeþ faste by /
And loke þat þou reporte his name wel
Sire quod þis boye it nedeþ neuer a del
It was me told er ȝe came here to oures
He was perde an old felawe of ȝoures
345
Al sodeynly was he slayn to nigħt /
For drunke as he sate vp his benche vprigħt
Ther came a pryue þeef men cleped deþ
Þat in his cuntre al þe poeple sleþ
And with his spere he smot his herte a tuo
350
And went his way wiþouten wordes mo
He haþ a þousend slain þis pestilence /
And maister er ȝe come in his persence /
Me þinkeþ it were necessarie /
For to be war of such an aduersarie
355
Beþ redy for to mete him euermore /
Þus taughte me my dame I say no more /
By seinte mary seyde þis tauernere
Þe child saiþ soþ for he haþ slayn to ȝere
Hens ouer a myle wiþinne a gret village
360
Boþe man and wōman child and page
I trowe his habitacioū be þere /
To ben auysed gret wisedom it were /
Er þat he dede a man dishonour
Ȝe goddes armes quod þis ryetour
365
Is it such peril wiþ him for to mete
I schal him seeke by wey and eek by strete
I make avow to goddes digne bones