The Prioress' Tale
Folio 150r
5 of 7 folios
¶ O martir / sowded to virginitee
Now maystow syngen / folwynge euere in oon
The white lamb celestial quod she
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Of which / the grete Euangelist Seint Ioħn
In Pathmos wroot which seith / þt they þt goon
Biforn this lamb / and synge a song al newe
That neuere flesshly i. carnaliter / wōmen they ne knewe
¶ This poure wydwe / awaiteth al that nygħt
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After hir litel child / but he cam nogħt
For which as soone / as it was dayes lygħt
With face pale of drede / and bisy thogħt
She hath at scole / and elles where hym sogħt
Til finally / she gan so fer espie
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That he / last seyn was in the Iuerie
With moodres pitee / in hir brest enclosed
She gooth / as she were half / out of hir mynde
To euery place / where she hath supposed
By liklihede / hir litel child to fynde
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And euere / on Cristes mooder meeke and kynde
She cride / and atte laste / thus she wrogħte
Among the cursed Iues / she hym soghte
She frayneth / and she preyeth pitously
To euery Iew / þt dwelte in thilke place
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To telle hir / if hir child / wente ogħt forby
They seyde nay / but Ihū of his grace
Yaf in hir thogħt inwith a litel space
That in that place / after hir sone she cryde
Wher he was casten / in a pit bisyde
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O grete god / that parfournest thy laude
By mouth of Innocentz / lo heer thy mygħt
This gemme of chastite / this Emeraude
And eek of martirdom / the Ruby brigħt
Ther he with throte ykoruen lay vprigħt
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He Alma redemptoris / gan to synge
So loude / þt al the place gan to rynge
¶ The cristene folk / that thurgħ the strete wente
In coomen / for to wondre vp on this thyng
And hastily / they for the Prouost sente
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He cam anon / with outen tariyng
And herieth Crist that is of heuene kyng
And eek his mooder honour of mankynde
And after that / the Iewes leet he bynde