The Shipman's Tale Folio 154v 9 of 9 folios
350
That ȝe in hele / ar comen hom a geyn
And if that I were riche / as haue I blisse
Of twenty thousand sheldes / shuld ȝe nat mysse
For ȝe so kyndely / this other day
Lent me gold / and as I can and may
355
I thanke ȝow by god / and by Seynt Iame
But nathelees / I toke vn to oure dame
Ȝoure wyf at hom / the same gold a geyn
Vp on ȝoure benche / she wot it wel certeyn
By certeyn tokenes / that I can ȝow telle
360
Now by ȝoure leeue / I may no lengere dwelle
Oure Abbot wyl out / of this toun a noon
Grete wel oure dame / mȳ owne nece swete
And fare wel dere Cosyn / til we mete
365
This Marchaū t / whicħ that was / ful war & wys
Creaunced hatħ / and paied eke in Parys
To certeyn lumbardes / redy in here hond
The sō me of gold / and gat of hem his bond ¶ id est obligacionem
370
For wel he knew / he stod in swicħ array
That nedes must he wȳ ne / in that viage
A thousand frankes / a boue al his costage
His wyf ful redy mette hī / atte gate
As she was wont / of olde vsage algate
375
And al that nygħ t / in myrthe they ben sette
For he was riche / and clerely out of dette
His wyf al newe / and kist hire on hire face
And vp he gotħ / and maketħ it ful tougħ
380
Nomore quod she / by god ȝe han I now
Til atte laste / this Marchaunt seide
By god quod he / I am a litel wrotħ
Witħ ȝow my wyf / al thougħ it me be lotħ
385
And wot ȝe why / by god as that I gesse
That ȝe han made / a maner e straungenesse
Bitwixen me / and my Cosyn / Daun Ioħ n
Ȝe shulde han warned me / or I had gon
That he ȝow hadde / an hondred frankes paid
390
By redy tokene / and held hī euele Corrected from: <nothing> aapaid
For that I to hī spak / of cheuysaunce
Me semed so / as by his countenaunce
But nathelees / by god / oure heuene kyng