The Reeve's Tale
Folio 49r
4 of 10 folios
And namelicħ there was / a gret College
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Men clepen the Soler halle / of Caumbrygge
There was here whete / & eke here malt I gounde
¶ And on a day / it happed in a stounde
Seke lay the Maunciple / on a maladie
Men wenden wysly / that he shulde deye
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For whicħ this Millere / stal bothe mele & corñ
An hondred tymes more / than byforn
For there biforn / he stale but curteisly
But now he was a thef / outrageously
For whicħ the wardeyn chide / & made fare
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But þerof sette the Millere / nougħt a tare
He craketh bost / and swor it was nat so
¶ Thāne were there ȝonge / pore scoleres two
That dwelleden in the halle / of whicħ I sey
Testyf they were / and lusty for to pley
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And only for here myrthe / and reuelrye
Vp on the wardeyn / besily they crye
To ȝeue hē leue / but a litel stounde
To go to Mille / and sen here corn I grounde
And hardily / they durst leyn here nekke
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The Millere shuld nat stelen hem / half a pekke
Of corñ / by sleigħt / ne by force hē reue
And at the last / the wardeyn ȝaf hē leue
Ioħn higħt þat one / & Aleyn hygħt that other
Of on toun were they born / that higħt Strother
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Fer in the Nortħ / I can nat telle where
This Aleyn maketh redy / al his gere
And on an hors / the sakke he caste a non
Forth goth Aleyn the Clerk / & also Ioħn
With good swerde & bokeler / by here syde
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Ioħn knew the weye / hem nedeth no gyde
And at the last / the sakke doun he laytħ
Aleyn spak first / al hayl Symond in faytħ
How fares thy fair dougħter / and thy wyf
¶ Aleyn welcome qd Symkyn / be my lyf
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And Ioħn also / how now what do ȝe here
By god qd Ioħn / nede must / nede hatħ no pere
Hym byhoues to serue hi self / þt has na swayn
Or ellis he is a fool / as clerkes sayn
Oure Maunciple I hope / he wol be dede
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Swa werkes ay / the wanges in his hede
And forthy is I come / & eke Alayn
To grynde oure corn / and carye mele a gayn
I pray ȝow spede vs hethen / what ȝe may
¶ It shal be do qd Symkyn / be my fay