The Manciple's Prologue
Folio 203r
3 of 3 folios
Whicħ that he rit on / than he sholde / witħ me stryue
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I wol nat wratthen hym / also moot I / thryue
That that I speke / I seyde it in my bourde
And wite ye what I haue heer in a gourde
A draghte of wyn / ye of a ripe grape
And rigħt anon / ye shul seen a good Iape
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This Cook shal drynke ther of / if þt I may
Vp peyne of deeth / he wol nat seye me nay
¶ And certeynly / to tellen as it was
Of this vessel / the Cook drank faste / allas ;
What neded hym / he drank ynougħ biforn
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And whan he hadde / pouped in this horn
To the Manciple / he took the gourde agayn
And of that drynke / the Cook was wonder fayn
And thanked hym / in swich wise as he koude
¶ Thanne gan oure hoost to laugħen wonder loude
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And seyde / I se wel / it is necessarie
Wher þt we goon / þt drynke we wt vs carie
For that wol turne / rancour and disese
Tacord and loue / and many a wrong apese
¶ O Bacus / yblessed be thy name
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That so kanst turnen / ernest in to game
Worshipe and thank be to thy deitee
Of that mateere / ye gete namoore of me
Telle on thy tale / Manciple I thee preye
¶ Wel sire quod he / now herkneth what I seye
¶ Heere bigynneth the Maūciples tale / of the Crowe ~ ~
WHan Phebus / dwelled heere / in this world adoun
As olde bookes / maken mencioun
He was / the mooste lusty Bachiler
In al this world / and eek the beste Archer
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He slow Phitoū / the serpent as he lay
Slepynge / agayn the sonne vp on a day
And many another / noble worthy dede
He with his bowe wrogħte / as men may rede
¶ Pleyen he koude / on euery Mynstralcie
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And syngen / that it was a melodie
To heeren / of his cleere voys the soun
Certes / the kyng of Thebes Amphioun
That with his syngyng walled that Citee
Koude neuere syngen / half so wel as hee
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Therto he was / the semelieste man
That is or was / sith þt the world bigan
What nedeth it hise fetures to discryue
For in this world / was noon so fair on lyue