The Monk's Tale
Folio 177r
17 of 19 folios
665
The tree quod she / the galwes is to meene
And Iuppiter bitokneth snow and reyn
And Phebus / wt his towaille so clene
Tho been / the sonne bemes for to seyn
Thou shalt anhanged be / fader certeyn
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Reyn shal thee wassħe / and sonne shal thee drye
Thus warned hym / ful plat and ful pleyn
His doghter / which that called was Phanye
An hanged was Cresus / the proude kyng
His roial Trone / mygħte hym nat auaille
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Tragedies / noon oother maner thyng
Ne kan in syngyng crie ne biwaille
But that Fortune / alwey wole assaille
W vnwar strook / the Regnes þt been proude
For whan men trusteth hir / thanne wol she faille
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And couere hir brigħte face / with a clowde
O noble / o . worthy Petro / glorie of Spayne
Whom Fortune heeld / so hye in magestee
Wel oghten men / thy pitous deeth complayne
Out of thy land / thy brother made thee flee
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And after at a seege by subtiltee
Thou were bitraysed / and lad vn to his tente
Where as he / with his owene hand slow thee
Succedynge / in thy regne and in thy rente
The feeld of snow / with thegle of blak ther Inne
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Caugħt with the lymerod / coloured as the gleede
He brew this cursednesse / and al this synne
The wikked nest was werker of this nede
Nogħt Charles Olyuer / that took ay heede
Of trouthe and honour but of Armorike
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Genylou Olyuer corrupt for meede
Brogħte this worthy kyng in swich a brike
O worthy Petro / kyng of Cipre also
That Alisandre wan / by heigħ maistrie
Ful many an hethen / wrogħtestow ful wo
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Of which / thyne owene liges hadde envie
And for no thyng but for thy Chiualrie
They in thy bed / han slayn thee by the morwe
Thus kan Fortune / hir wheel gouerne and gye
And out of Ioye / brynge men to sorwe
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OF Melan / grete Barnabo Viscounte
God of delit. and scourge of Lumbardye
Why sholde I nat thyn Infortune acounte