The Squire's Tale
Folio 130r
3 of 18 folios
And vp he rydeth / to the heighe bord
In al the halle / ne was ther spoke a word
For merueille of this knyght hym to biholde
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Ful bisily / they wayten / yonge and olde
¶ This straunge knyght that cam thus sodeynly
Al armed saue his heed / ful richely
Salueth kyng and queene / and lordes alle
By ordre / as they seten in the halle
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With so heigh reuerence / and obeisaūces
As wel in his speche / as in his contenaūces
That Gawayn / with his olde curteisye
Thogh he were come agayn / out of Fairye
Ne koude hym nat amende / with a word
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And after this / biforn the hye bord
He with a manly voys / seyde his message
After the forme / vsed in his langage
With outen vice / of silable / or of lettre
And for his tale / sholde seme the bettre
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Acordant to his wordes / was his cheere
As techeth art of speche / hem þt it leere
Al be / þt I kan nat sowne / his style
Ne kan nat clymben / ouer so heigh a style
Yet seye I this / þt as to cōmune entente
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Thus muche amounteth / al that euere he mente
If it so be / þt I haue it in my mynde
¶ He seyde / the kyng of Arabe and of Inde
My lige lord / on this solempne day
Salueth yow / as he best kan and may
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And sendeth yow / in honour of youre feste
By me / that am al redy / at youre heste
This Steede of bras / that esily and weel
Kan in the space / of o day naturel
This is to seyn / in .xxiiij. houres
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Wher so yow list / in droghte / or ellis shoures
Beren youre body / in to euery place
To which youre herte / wilneth for to pace
With outen wem of yow / thurgh foul or fair
Or if yow list to flee as hye in the Ayr
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As dooth an Egle / whan hym list to soore
This same Steede / shal bere yow eueremoore