The Wife of Bath's Tale
Folio 99r
4 of 11 folios
Til sche cam þer hir herte was on fuyre
945
And as a bytoure bumblith in þe myre
Sche layd hir mouth vnto þe water doun
Bywrey me not þou watir with þi soun
Quod sche to þe I telle it and no mo
Myn housbond haþ long asse eeris tuo
950
Now is myn hert al hool now is it oute
I might no lenger kepe it out of doute
Her may ȝe se þeigh we a tyme abyde
Ȝet out it moot we can no counseil hyde
The remenaūt of þe tale if ȝe wil here
955
Redith ovid . and þer ȝe mow it leere
¶ This knight of which my tale is specially
Whan þat he saugh he migħt nouȝt come þerby
This is to say what wōmen louen most
Wiþinne his brest ful sorwful was þe gost
960
But hom he goþ . he might no lenger soiorne
The day was come þat homward most he torne
And in his way it hapnyd him to ride
In al his care vnder a forest side
Wher as he saugh vpon a daunce go
965
Of ladys four and twenty and ȝit mo
Toward þis ilke daunce I drougħ ful ȝerne /
In hope þat som wisdom schuld I lerne
But certeynly er I com fully þere
Vanysshid was þis daunce he nyste where /
970
No creature saugh he þat bar lif
Sauf on þe greene he saugħ sittyng a wyf /
A fouler wight þer may no man deuyse
Aȝens þe knigħt þis olde wyf gan ryse
And sayder ser knigħt heer forth lith no way
975
Tel me what . ȝe seekyn by ȝour fay
Par aduentre it may þe better be /
Thise olde folk can mochil þing quod sche
My lieue modir quod þis knight certayn
I am but ded but if þat I can sayn
980
What þing is it . þat wōmen most desire
Couþe ȝe me wisse . I wold wel quyt ȝour huyre /