The Clerk's Tale
Folio 101r
28 of 29 folios
¶ Walter hir gladeth / and hir sorwe slaketh
She riseth vp abaysed / from hir traūce
And euery wigħt / hir ioye and feeste maketħ
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Til she / hath caught agayn hir contenaūce
Walter hir dooth / so feithfully plesaūce
That it was deyntee / for to seen the cheere
Bitwixe hem two / now they been met yfeere
¶ Thise ladyes / whan that they hir tyme say
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Han taken hir / and in to chambre gon
And strepen hir / out of hir rude array
And in a clooth of gold / þt brigħte shoon
With a coroune / of many a ricħe stoon
Vp on hir heed / they in to halle hir brogħte
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And ther she was / honured as hir ogħte
Thus hath this pitous day a blisful ende
For euery man and wōman dooth his mygħt
This day / in murthe and reuel to dispende
Til on the welkne / shoon the sterres lygħt
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For moore solempne / in euery mannes sygħt
This feste was / and gretter of costage
Than was / the reuel / of hir mariage
¶ Ful many a yeer / in heigh prosperitee
Lyuen thise two / in concord and in reste
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And richely / his doghter maryed he
Vn to a lord / oon of the worthieste
Of al Ytaille / and thanne in pees and reste
His wyues fader / in his court he kepetħ
Til that the soule / out of his body crepetħ
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His sone / succedeth in his heritage
In reste and pees / after his fader day
And fortunat was eek in mariage
Al putte he nat his wyf / in greet assay
This world is nat so strong it is no nay
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As it hath been / of olde tymes yoore
And herkneth / what this Auctour seith therfoore
¶ This storie is seyd / nat for that wyues sholde
Folwen Grisilde / as in humylitee
For it were inportable / though they wolde
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But for that euery wigħt in his degree
Sholde be constant in Aduersitee
As was Grisilde / therfore petrak writeth
This storie / which wt heigh stile he enditeth