The General Prologue
Folio 3v
14 of 22 folios
And on that oother syde / a gay daggere
Harneysed wel / and sharpe / as poynt of spere
115
A xpeofre on his brest of siluer sheene
An horn he bar / the bawdryk was of greene
A Forster was he / soothly as I gesse
¶ Ther was also / a Nonne a Prioresse
That of hir smylyng was ful symple and coy
120
Hir gretteste ooth / was but by Seint Loy
And she was clepyd / madame Eglentyne
Ful wel she soong / the seruyce dyuyne
Entuned in hir nose / ful semely
And frenssħ she spak / ful faire and fetisly
125
After the scole / of Stratford at the Bowe
For frenssħ of Parys / was to hire vnknowe
At mete / wel ytaught was she with alle
She leet no morsel / from hir lyppes falle
Ne wette hir fyngres / in hir sauce deepe
130
Wel koude she carye a morsel / and wel keepe
That no drope / fille vp on hir brist
In curteisye / was set muchel hir list
Hir ouer lyppe / wyped she so cleene
That in hir coppe / ther was no ferthyng seene
135
Of grece / whan she dronken hadde hir draghte
Ful semely / after hir mete she raghte
And sikerly / she was of greet desport
And ful plesaunt and amyable of port
And peyned hire / to countrefete chiere
140
Of Court and been estatlich of manere
And to been holden / digne of reuerence
But for to speken / of hir conscience
She was so charitable / and so pitous
She wolde wepe / if þt she sawe a Mous
145
Caught in a trappe / if it weere deed / or bledde
Of smale houndes / hadde she / þt she fedde
With rosted flessħ / or mylk and wastel breed
But soore wepte she / if oon of hem weere deed
Or if men smoot it / with a yerde smerte
150
And al was conscience / and tendre herte
Ful semely / hir wympel pynched was
Hir nose tretez / hir eyen / greye as glas