The Nun's Priest's Tale
Folio 181r
5 of 14 folios
But whan that he was wakened / of his sleepe
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He turned hym / and took of it no keepe
Hym thoughte / his dreem nas but a vanitee
Thus twies / in his slepyng dremed hee
And atte thridde tyme / yet his felawe
Cam as hym thougħte / and seide I am now slawe
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Bihoold my bloody woundes depe and wyde
Arys vp erly / in the morwe tyde
And at the West gate / of the toun quod he
A Carte / ful of donge / ther shaltow se
In which / my body is hid / ful piuely
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Do thilke Carte / arresten boldely
My gold caused my mordre / sooth to sayn
And tolde hym euery point how he was slayn
With a ful pitous face / pale of hewe
And truste wel / his dreem he foond ful trewe
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For on the morwe / as soone as it was day
To his felawes In / he took the way
And whan þt he cam / to this Oxes stalle
After his felawe / he bigan to calle
¶ The hostiler / answerde hym anon
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And seyde sire / your felawe is agon
As soone as day / he wente out of the toun
¶ This man / gan fallen in suspecioun
Remembrynge / on hise dremes / þt he mette
And forth he gooth / no lenger wolde he lette
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Vn to the west gate of the toun / and fond
A dong Carte / as it were to donge lond
That was arrayed / in that same wise
As ye han herd / the dede man deuyse
And with an hardy herte / he gan to crye
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Vengeance and Iustice / of this felonye
My felawe / mordred is / this same nygħt
And in this Carte / heere he lith gapyng vprigħt
I crye out on the Ministres quod he
That sholden kepe / and reulen this Citee
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Harrow allas / heere lith my felawe slayn
What sholde I moore / vn to this tale sayn
The peple out sterte / & caste the Cart to grounde
And in the myddel of the dong they founde
The dede man / that mordred was al newe
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O blisful god / that art so Iust and trewe
Lo / how þt thou biwreyest mordre alway
Mordre wol out that se we day by day
Mordre / is so wlatsom / and abhomynable
To god / that is so Iust and resonable
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That he / ne wol nat / suffre it heled be
Thougħ it abyde / a yeer / or two / or thre