The Nun's Priest's Prologue Folio 187v 1 of 1 folios
Here bigynneth the pro loge of the Nonnes prest /
Written in the header in brown
Hoo qd the knygħ t / good sire nomore of this
That ȝe han seid / is rigħ t I now I wys
And mochel more / for litel heuynesse
Is rigħ t I now / for mechil folk I gesse
I seye for me / it is a gret dissese
Where as men han ben / in gret welthe & ese
To heren of here sodeyn fal allas
And the conta rie is ioye / & gret solas
As whan a man hatħ ben / in poure estat
And there abydetħ / in pro sper itee
Swicħ thyngħ me
Ȝa qd oure hoost / by Seynt
Ȝe seye rigħ t sotħ / this monke he clappetħ loude
He spak how fortune / couered was wt a cloude
I not neuer e what / and als of a tragedie
Rigħ t now ȝe herde / and parde no remedie
Is it / for to be wayllen / ne compleyne
Corrected from: <nothing> idid Corrected from: þ atqd qd is don / and als it is a peyne
As ȝe han seide / to heere of heuynesse
Sire Monke no more of this / so god yow blisse
Ȝoure tale anoyetħ / al this compaignye
Swicħ thyngħ / a boterflye
5
For þ er e Inne is ther no / disporte ne game
Wherfore sire Monke / o daun Piers by thy name
I preye yow hertily / telle vs som what elles
For sikerly / nere clynkyng
That oon ȝoure bridel hange / oon euer y syde
10
By heuene kyngþ t for vs alle dyde
I shulde er this / haue fallen doun for slepe
Al thougħ the slougħ / had neuer e ben so depe
A small cross is in the left margin next to this line.
Thā ne had ȝoure tale / al ben tolde in veyn
For certeynly / as þ t theise Clerkes seyn
15
Where as a man / may haue noon audience
Nat helpetħ it / to tellen his sentence
And wel I woot / the substaū ce is in me
If any thyng
Sire seye somwhat / of huntyng
20
Now lat another telle / as I haue tolde
Thā ne spak oure hoost / wt rude speche & bolde
And seide / vn to the Nō nes preest a noon