The Prioress' Tale
Folio 210v
3 of 8 folios
¶ A litel scole / of cristen folk ther stood
Doun at the ferther ende / in which ther weere
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Children an heepe / ycomen of cristen blood
That lerned in that scole / yeer by yere
Swich manere doctrine / as men vsed there
This is to seyn / to syngen and to rede
As smale children doon / in hir childhede
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¶ Among thise children / was a wydwes sone
A litel clergeon / .vij. yeer of age
That day by day / to scole was his wone
And eek also / wher as he say thymage
Of Cristes moder / hadde he in vsage
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As hym was taught to knele adoun and seye
His Aue Marie / as he goth by the weye
¶ Thus hath this wydwe / hir litel sone ytaught
Oure blisful lady / Cristes moder deere
To worshipe ay / and he forgat it naught
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For sely child / wol alwey soone lere
But ay / whan I remembre / on this matere
Seint Nicholas / stant euere in my persence
For he so yong to Crist dide reuerence
¶ This litel child / his litel book lernynge
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As he sat in the scole / at his prymer
He Alma redemptoris / herde synge
As children / lerned hir Antiphoner
And as he dorste / he drow hym ner and ner
And herkned ay / the wordes and the note
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Til he the firste vers / koude al by rote
¶ Nat wiste he / what this latyn was to seye.
For he so yong and tendre was of age
But on a day / his felawe gan he preye
Texpounden hym this song in his langage
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Or telle hym why / this song was in vsage
This prayde he hym / xx xxxxxxuen and declare
xxx xxxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxxxx xxxe