The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue
Folio 192v
2 of 5 folios
A Male tweyfoold / vp on his croper lay
It semed / that he caried lite array
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Al ligħt for Somer / rood this worthy man
And in myn herte / to wondren I bigan
What þt he was / til that I vnderstood
How that his cloke / was sowed to his hood
For which / whan I hadde longe auysed me
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I demed hym / som Chanoū for to be
His hat heeng / at his bak / doun by a laas
For he hadde riden / moore than trot or paas
He hadde ay priked / lik as he were wood
A Clote leef / he hadde vnder his hood
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For swoot and for to kepe his heed from heete
But it was ioye / for to seen hym swete
His forheed dropped / as a Stillatorie
Were ful of Plantayne / and of Paritorie
And whan that he was come / he gan to crye
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God saue quod he / this ioly compaignye
Faste haue I priked quod he / for youre sake
By cause / that I wolde yow atake
To riden / in som myrie compaignye
His yeman eek was ful of curteisye
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And seyde sires / now in the morwe tyde
Out of youre hostelrie / I saugh yow ryde
And warned heer / my lord and my souerayn
Which / to ryden with yow / is ful fayn
For his desport he loueth daliaūce
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¶ Freend / for thy warnyng god yeuexxx thee chaūce
Thanne seyde oure hoost. for certein / it wolde seme
Thy lord were wys / and so I may wel deme
He is ful iocunde also / dar I leye
Can he oght telle / a myrie tale or tweye
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With which / he glade may this compaignye ;
¶ Who sire my lord ; ye / ye with outen lye
He kan of murthe / and eek of Iolitee
Nat but ynougħ / also sir trusteth me
And ye hym knewe / as wel as do I
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Ye wolde wondre / how wel and craftily
He koude werke / and that in sondry wise
He hath take on hym /. many a greet empise
Which were ful hard / for any that is heere
To brynge aboute / but they of hym it leere
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As hoomly / as he rit amonges yow
If ye hym knewe / it wolde be for youre prow
Ye wolde nat forgoon his Aqueyntaūce
For muchel good / I dar leye in balaūce
Al that I haue / in my possessioū
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He is a man / of heigħ discrecioū