The Wife of Bath's Tale
Folio 73v
4 of 9 folios
This knygħt / of which / my tale is specially
Whan that he saugħ / he myghte nat come therby
This is to seye / what wommen loue moost
With Inne his brest ful sorweful was the goost /
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But hoom he gooth / he mygħte nat soiorne
The day was come / þt homward moste he torne
And in his wey / it happed hym to ryde
In al this care / vnder a Forest syde
Wher as he saugħ / vp on a daunce go
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Of ladyes / foure and twenty / and yet mo
Toward the which daunce / he drow ful yerne
In hope / that som wysdom / sholde he lerne
But certeinly / er he cam fully there
Vanyssħed was this daunce / he nyste where
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No creature saugħ he / that bar lyf
Saue on the grene / he saugħ sittynge a wyf
A fouler wigħt ther may no man deuyse
Agayn the knygħt this olde wyf gan ryse
And seyde sir knygħt / heer forth ne lith no wey
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Tel me / what that ye seken / by your fey
Parauenture / it may the bettre be
Thise olde folk kan muchel thyng quod she
¶ My leeue mooder quod this knygħt certeyn
I nam but deed / but if that I kan seyn
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What thyng it is / that wōmen moost desire
Koude ye me wisse / I wolde wel quite youre hire
¶ Pligħt me thy trouthe / heere in myn hand quod she
The nexte thyng that I requere thee
Thou shalt it do / if it lye in thy mygħt
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And I wol telle it yow / er it be nygħt
¶ Haue heer my trouthe / quod the knygħt I grante
¶ Thanne quod she / I dar me wel auante
Thy lyf is sauf / for I wol stonde therby
Vpon my lyf / the queene wol seye as I
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Lat se / which is the proudeste of hem alle
That wereth on / a couerchief / or a calle
That dar seye nay / of that I shal thee teche
Lat vs go forth / with outen lenger speche
Tho rowned she / a pistel in his ere
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And bad hym to be glad / and haue no fere
¶ Whan they be comen to the court / this knygħt
Seyde / he had holde his day / as he hadde higħt
And redy was his answere / as he sayde
Ful many a noble wyf and many a mayde
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And many a wydwe / for þt they been wise
The queene hir self sittynge as Iustise
Assembled been / his answere for to heere
And afterward / this knygħt was bode appeere