The Nun's Priest's Tale
Folio 202v
4 of 18 folios
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His snowte was smal with glowyng eyen tweye
Yit for his look for feer almost I deye
This caused me my gronnyng doutelees
¶ A way qd she fi on yow herteles
Allas quod she for bi that god aboue
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Now haue ye loost myn hert and eek my loue
I kan nat loue a coward bi my feith
For certes what so eny womman seith
We alle desiren yif it myght be
To han husbondes hardy wise and fre
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And secree / and no nygard ne no fool
Ne him that is agast of euery tool
Ne noon auaunter bi that god aboue
How dorst ye seyn for shame vnto your loue
That eny thing myght make yow a ferde
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Haue ye no mannes herte and han a berde
¶ Allas and konne ye been agast of sweuenes
No thing god woot but vanyte in sweues es
Sweuenes engendren of recomplexions
And often of fume and of compleccions
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Whan humours ben to habundant in a wight
Certes this dreme which that ye han mette to nyght
Comth of the grete superfluytee
Of your reed colour pardee
Which causeth folk to dreden in hir dremes
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Of arwes and of fire with reed lymes
Of reed bestes that thei wil hem bite
Of contek and of whelpes grete and lite
Ryght as the humor of malencolye
Causeth ful many a man in his sleep to crie
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For feere of grete beres and boles blake
Or elles blake deueles wol hem take
¶ Of other humours coude I telle also
That werken many a man in slepe ful wo
But I wol passe as lightly as I can
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¶ To Catoun which that was so wise a man
Seide nat thus / ne do no force of dremes
Now syr quod she whan we fle fro the bemes