The Miller's Tale Folio 44v 2 of 15 folios
But of o th yng / I warne th e ful rigħ
Be we a vysed / on that ilke nyght
That we ben entred / in to shippes bord
400
That non
Ne clepe ne crie / but ben in his prayere
For it is / goddis / owen heste dere
Thy wyf and thow / mot hange fer a twynne
For that betwixe ȝow / shal be no synne
405
No more in lokyng / than there shal in dede
This ordynance is seid / so god the spede
To morwe at nygħ t / whan men ben alle a slepe
In to oure knedyng tubbes / wol we crepe
And sitten there / a bidyng goddis grace
410
Go now thy wey / I haue no lengere space
To maken of this / no lengere sermonynge
Men seyn thus / sende the wyse / & sey no thynge ¶ Mitte Sapientem & cetera
Thow art so wys / it nedeth the nougħ t to teche
Go saue oure lyf / and that I the byseche
415
Ful ofte he seide / allas and wellawey
And to his wyf / he told his preuyte
And she was war / and knewe it bet than he
What al þ is queynt cas / was for to sey
420
But natheles / she ferd as she wold dey
And seide allas / go fortħ thy weye a non
Help vs to skape / or we ben dede ichon
I am thy trewe / verray wedded wyf
Go dere spouse / and help to saue oure lyf
425
Lo whiche a gret thyng / is affeccioū ¶ Auctor
Men mounū
So depe / may imper ssiou
This sely Carpenter / begynneth quake
Hym thynketh verraylicħ / that he may se
430
Noes flode / come walwyng as the see
To drenchen Alisoū / his hony dere
He wepeth wailleth / and maketh sory chere
He sigħ etħ / with ful many a sory swougħ
And goth & getith hī / a knedyng trow
435
And after a tubbe / and a kemelyn
And preuyly he sent hē / to his In
And heng hem in the roof / in preuytee
His owen hand / he made laddres thre
To clymben by the roumes / and the stalkes
440
Vn to the Tubbes / hanggyng in the balkes
And hem vetailled / bothe kemelyn trow and Tubbe