The Reeve's Tale
Folio 43r
3 of 10 folios
Bothe of his catel / and his Mesuage
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And straunge / he made it of hir mariage
His purpos was / for to bistowe hir hye
In to som worthy blood of Auncetrye
For hooly chirches good / moot been despended
On hooly chirches blood / that is descended
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Therfore / he wolde his hooly blood honoure
Though / that he hooly chirche sholde deuoure
Greet sokene / hath this Miller / out of doute
With whete and Malt of al the land aboute
And nameliche / ther was a greet Collegge
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Men clepen the Soler halle at Cantebregge
Ther was hir whete / and eek hir malt ygrounde
And on a day / it happed in a stounde
Sik lay the Maunciple / on a maladye
Men wenden wisly / that he sholde dye
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For which / this Millere / stal bothe mele and corn
An hundred tyme / moore than biforn
For ther biforn / he stal but curteisly
But now / he was a theef outrageously
For which / the wardeyn chidde and made fare
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But ther of / sette the Miller nat a tare
And craketh boost / and swoor it was nat so
¶ Thanne were ther / yonge poure clerkes two
That dwelten in this halle / of which I seye
Testif they were / and lusty for to pleye
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And oonly / for hir myrthe and reuerye
Vp on the wardeyn / bisily they crye
To yeue hem leue / but a litel stounde
To goon to Mille / and seen hir corn ygrounde
And hardily / they dorste leye hir nekke
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The Miller sholde nat stele hem / half a pekke
Of corn by sleighte / ne by force hem reue
And at the laste / the wardeyn yaf hem leue
Ioħn highte that oon / and Aleyn heet that oother
Of o toun were they born / that highte Strother
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Fer in the North / I kan nat telle where
¶ This Aleyn maketh redy al his gere
And on an hors / the sak he caste anon
Forth goth Aleyn the clerk / and also Ioħn
With good swerd / and bokeler by hir syde
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Ioħn knew the wey / hem neded no gyde
And at the Mille / the sak adoun he laytħ
Aleyn spak first / al hayl Symond yfayth
Hou fares thy faire doghter / and thy wyf /
¶ Aleyn welcome quod Symkyn / by my lyf /
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And Ioħn also / how now / what do ye heer
¶ Symond quod Ioħn / by god nede has na peer