The Pardoner's Prologue & Tale
Folio 200r
4 of 17 folios
335
Were set hem / in a Tauerne to drynke
And as they sat they herde a belle klynke
Biforn a cors / was caryed to his graue
That oon of hem / gan callen to his knaue
Go bet quod he / and axe redily
340
What cors is this / that passeth heer forby
And looke / þt thow reporte his name wel
¶ Sire quod this boy / it nedeth neuer a del
It was me told / er ye cam heer two houres
He was pardee / an old felawe of youres
345
And sodeynly / he was yslayn to nyght
Fordronke / as he sat on his bench vp right
Ther cam a piuee theef / men clepeth deeth
That in this contree / al the peple sleeth
And with his spere / he smoot his herte atwo
350
And wente his wey / with outen wordes mo
He hath / a thousand slayn this pestilence
And maister er ye come in his persence
Me thynketh / that it were necessarie
For to be war / of swich an aduersarie
355
Beeth redy / for to meete hym euere moore
Thus taughte me my dame / I sey namoore
¶ By Seinte Marie / seyde this Tauerner
The child seith sooth / for he hath slayn this yer
Henne ouer a myle / with Inne a greet village
360
Bothe man and womman / child and hyne & page
I trowe / his habitacioū be there
To been auysed / greet wisdom it were
Er that he dide / a man a dishonour
¶ Ye goddes armes / quod this Riotour
365
Is it swich peril / with hym for to meete
I shal hym seke / by wey / and eek by Strete
I make avow / to goddes digne bones
Herkneth felawes / we thre been al ones
Lat ech of vs / holde vp his hand to oother
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And ech of vs / bicome ootheres brother
And we wol sleen / this false traytour deeth
He shal be slayn / he þt so manye sleeth
By goddes dignytee / er it be nyght
¶ Togidres han thise thre / hir trouthes plyght