The Merchant's Tale
Folio 112r
5 of 27 folios
510
Hardere / than euere Parys / dide Elyne
But nathelees
/ ȝet had he gret pitee
¶ Nota bene
That thilke nygħt / offende hire must he
And thougħt allas / o tendre creature
Now wolde god / ȝe mygħt wel endure
515
Al my corage / it is so sharpe and kene
I am a gaast / ȝe shuln it nat sustene
But god forbede
/ that I dide al my myg
ħt
There is a pointing hand in the left margin.Est
Now wolde god / that it were wexin nygħt
And that the nygħt / wolde lasten euere moo
520
I wolde / that al this peeple / were a go
And finally / he dotħ al his labour
As he best mygħt / Sauyng his honour
To hast hem fro the mete / in subtil wyse
The tyme cam / that resou was to ryse
525
And after that / men daunce / and drynke fast
And spices / al a boute the hous / they cast
And ful of ioye and blisse / is euery man
Al but a Squyere / hygħt Damyan
Whicħ carf byforñ the knygħt / ful many a day
530
He was so rauysshed / oon his lady / May
That for the verray peyne / he was ny wood
Al most he swelt / and swougħned as he stood
So sore hatħ venus hurt hī / witħ hire bronde
As that she bar it / daunsyng in hire honde
535
And to his bed / he went hī hastily
Nomore of hī / at this tyme speke I
But there / I lete hī wepe I now / and pleyne
Til fresshe May / wol rewen oon his peyne
O perilous fire
/ that in the bedstrawe bredet
ħ ¶ Auctor
540
O famulere foo / that his seruyce bedetħ
O seruaunt traytour / fals homly hewe
Lyke to the Naddere / in bosom sly vntrewe
God shilde vs alle / from ȝoure acqueyntaunce
O Ianuarie / dronken in plesaunce
545
In mariage / se how thy Damyan
Thyn owen Squyer / and thy borñ man
Entendetħ / for to do the velanye
God gaunte the / thyn homely foo / to spye
For in this world / nys werse pestilence
550
Than homely foo / al day in thy persence
Parfourmed hatħ the Sonne / his Ark diurne
No lengere may / the body of hī soiorne
On the orisou / as in that latitude
Nigħt witħ his mantel / that is derk and rude
555
Gan ouer sprede / the Emysperye a boute
For whicħ / departed is / this lusty route
Corrected from: <nothing> <nothing> Fror Ianuarie / witħ thank oon euery syde