The Pardoner's Prologue & Tale
Folio 148r
5 of 16 folios
490
What shuln we doon / what shuln we to hī seye
Shal it be counseil / seide the first shrewe
And I shal telle it / in wordes fewe
What we shuln don / and brynge it wel a boute
I graunte qd that other / out of doute
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That be my trouthe / I wol the nat bewreye
Now qd the first / thow woost wel we ben tweye
And twoo of vs / shuln strengere ben than on
Loke whan that he is set / that rigħt a noon
Arise / as thougħ thow woldest / witħ hī pleye
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And I shal ryue hī / thurgħ the sydes tweye
Whil that thow stroglest witħ hī / as in game
And witħ thy daggere / loke thow do the same
And thāne shal al this gold / departed be
My dere frend / be twix me and the
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Than moun we bothe / oure lustes alfulfille
And pleye at dys / rigħt at oure owne wille
And thus acorded / ben theise shrewes tweye
To slen the thridde / as ȝe han herd me seye
¶ This ȝongest / whicħ that went to the toun
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Ful ofte in herte / he rolletħ vp and doun
The beawte of theise Floreyns / newe and brigħt
O lord qd he / if so were that I mygħt
Haue al this tresour / to my self allone
There is noman / that lyuetħ vnder the trone
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Of god / that shulde lyue so merye as I
And atte the laste / the fend oure enemy
Putte in his thougħt / that he shulde poyson beye
Witħ whicħ he mygħt slen / his felawes tweye
For why / the fend fond hī / in swicħ lyuyng
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That he had leue / hī to sorwe bryng
For this was outrely / his ful entente
To slen hē bothe / and neuere to repente
¶ And fortħ he gotħ / no lengere wold he tarie
In to the toun / vn to a potecarie
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And preyed hī / that he hī wolde selle
Som poison / that he mygħt his rattes quelle
And eke there was a Polkat / in his hawe
That as he seide / hise capouns had I slawe
And fayn he wolde wreke hī / if he mygħt
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On vermyn / that destroyed hī by nygħt
The Potecarie answered / and thow shalt haue