The Clerk's Tale
Folio 100v
27 of 29 folios
1065
¶ This is thy dogħter / which thou hast supposed
To be my wyf / that oother feithfully
Shal be myn heir / as I haue ay supposed
Thou bare hym / in thy body trewely
At Boloigne / haue I kept hem piuely
1070
Taak hem agayn / for now maystow nat seye
That thou hast lorn / noon of thy children tweye
And folk / that ootherweys / han seyd of me
I warne hem wel / þt I haue doon this deede
For no malice / ne for no crueltee
1075
But for tassaye / in thee thy wommanheede
And nat to sleen my children / god forbeede
But for to kepe hem / pryuely and stille
Til I thy purpos knewe / and al thy wille
¶ Whan she this herde / aswowne doun she falleth
1080
For pitous Ioye / and after hir swownynge
She bothe hir yonge children / vn to hir calleth
And in hir Armes / pitously wepynge
Embraceth hem / and tendrely kissynge
Ful lyk a mooder with hir salte teeres
1085
She bathed / bothe hir visage and hir heeres
¶ O which a pitous thyng it was to se
Hir swownyng . and hir humble voys to heere
Grauntmercy lord / that thanke I yow quod she
That ye han saued me my children deere
1090
Now rekke I neuere / to been deed rigħt heere
Sith I stonde in your loue / and in your grace
Nofors of deeth / ne whan my Spirit pace
O tendre / o deere / o yonge children myne
Your woful mooder / wende stedfastly
1095
That crueel houndes / or som foul vermyne
Hadde eten yow / but god of his mercy
And youre benyngne fader / tendrely
Hath doon yow kept and in that same stounde
Al sodeynly / she swapte adoun to grounde
1100
And in hir swougħ / so sadly holdeth she
Hir children two / whan she gan hem tembrace
That wt greet sleigħte / and greet difficultee
The children / from hir arm they gonne arace
O many a teere / on many a pitous face
1105
Doun ran / of hem þt stooden hir bisyde
Vnnethe abouten hir / mygħte they abyde