The Man of Law's Tale
Folio 55v
12 of 27 folios
435
¶ This Constable / and Dame Hermengyld his wyf /
Were payens / and that contree euery where
But Hermengyld / loued hir rigħt as hir lyf
And Custance / hath so longe soiourned there
In orisons / with many a bitter teere
440
Til Ihū / hath conuerted / thurgh his grace
Dame Hermengyld / Constablesse of that place
In al that lond / no cristen dorste route
Alle cristen folk / been fled fro that contree
Thurgħ Payens / that conquereden al aboute
445
The plages of the North by land and see
To Walys / fledde the Cristyanytee
Of olde Britons / dwellynge in this Ile
Ther was hir refut for the meene while
But yet nere cristene Britons so exiled
450
That ther nere sōme / that in hir piuetee
Honored crist and hethen folk bigiled
And ny the Castel / swiche ther dwelten three
That oon of hem was blynd / and myghte nat see
But it were / with thilke eyen of his mynde
455
With whiche men seen / whan þt they ben blynde
Brigħt was the sonne / as in that Someres day
For which the Constable / and his wyf also
And Custance / han ytake the righte way
Toward the see / a furlong wey or two
460
To pleyen / and to romen to romen to and fro
And in hir walk this blynde man they mette
Croked and oold / with eyen faste yshette
In name of Crist / cride this olde Britoū
Dame Hermengyld / yif me / my sigħte agayn
465
This lady / weex affrayed of the soun
Lest that hir housbonde / shortly for to sayn
Wolde hir / for Ihu cristes loue han slayn
Til Custance made hir boold / and bad hir wirche
The wyl of Crist as doghter of his chirche
470
¶ The Constable / weex abasshed of that sigħt
And seyde / what amounteth al this fare
Custance answerde / sire / it is cristes mygħt
That helpeth folk / out of the feendes snare
And so ferforth / she gan oure lay declare
475
That she the Constable / er that it was eue
Conuerteth / and on Crist maketh hym bileue