The General Prologue
Folio 11r
19 of 22 folios
To wynne siluer / as he ful wel koude
Ther fore he soong the muryerly and loude
715
¶ Now haue I toold yow / soothly in a clause
Thestaat / tharray / the nombre / and eek the cause
Why þt assembled was this compaignye
In Southwerk. at this gentil hostelrye
That highte the tabard / faste by the belle
720
But now is tyme / to yow for to telle
How þt we baren vs / that ilke nyght
Whan we weere / in that hostelrye alyght
And after wol I telle / of oure viage
And al the remenant of oure pilgrymage
725
¶ But first I pray yow / of youre curteisye
That ye narette it / noght my vileynye
Though þt I pleynly speke / in this matere
To telle yow / hir wordes / and hir cheere
Ne thogh I speke / hir wordes proprely
730
For this ye knowen / also wel as I
Who so shal telle a tale / after a man
He moot reherce / as neigh as euere he kan
Euerich a word / if it be in his charge
Al speke he / neuer so rudeliche and large
735
Or ellis / he moot telle his tale vntrewe
Or feyne thyng or fynde wordes newe
He may noght spare / al thogh he weere his brother
He moot as wel / seye o word / as another
Crist spak hym self ful brode in holy writ
740
And wel ye woot no vileynye is it
Ek Plato seith / who so kan hym rede
The wordes / mote be cosyn / to the dede
¶ Also I pray yow / to foryeue it me
Al haue I nat set folk / in hir degree
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Here in this tale / as þt they sholde stonde
My wit is short ye may wel vnderstonde
¶ Greet cheere / made oure hoost vs euerichon
And to the souper / sette he vs anon
He serued vs / with vitaille / at the beste
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Strong was the wyn / and wel to drynke vs leste
A semely man / oure hoost was with alle
For to been / a Marchal in an halle