The Wife of Bath's Tale
Folio 76r
9 of 9 folios
Or elles / ye wol han me yong and fair
And take youre auenture / of the repair
That shal be to youre hous / by cause of me
Or in som oother place / may wel be
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Now chese your seluen / wheither þt yow liketh
¶ This knygħt auyseth hym and sore siketh
But atte laste / he seyde in this manere
My lady and my loue / and wyf so deere
I put me / in youre wise gouernance
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Cheseth your self / which may be moost plesance
And moost honour to yow and me also
I do no fors / the wheither of the two
For as yow liketh / it suffiseth me
¶ Thanne haue I gete of yow / maistrie quod she
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Syn I may chese / and gouerne as me lest
¶ Ye certes wyf quod he / I holde it best
¶ Kys me quod she / we be no lenger wrothe
For by my trouthe / I wol be to yow bothe
This is to seyn / ye bothe fair and good
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I prey to god / þt I moote steruen wood
But I to yow / be also good and trewe
As euere was wyf syn þt the world was newe
And but I be tomorn / as fair to seene
As any lady / Emperice or queene
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That is bitwixe the Est and eke the West
Dooth wt my lyf / and deth / rigħt / as yow lest
Cast vp the curtyn / looke how that it is
¶ And whan the knygħt saugh verraily al this
That she so fair was / and so yong ther to
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For ioye / he hente hir / in hise armes two
His herte bathed / in a bath of blisse
A thousand tyme arewe / he gan hir kisse
And she obeyed hym in euery thyng
That myghte doon hym plesance or likyng
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¶ And thus they lyue / vn to hir lyues ende
In parfit ioye / and Ihū crist vs sende
Housbondes meeke / yonge / and fressħ a bedde
And grace / touerbyde hem þt we wedde
And eek / I pray Ihū shorte hir lyues
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That nat wol be gouerned by hir wyues
And olde and angry nygardes of dispence
God sende hem soone / verray pestilence ~
¶ Heere endeth / the Wyues tale of Bathe ~