The Squire's Tale
Folio 124r
2 of 16 folios
Nat but witħ fyue or sexe / of hire meyne
And in a trenche / fortħ in the Park gotħ she
385
¶ The vapor / whicħ / that from the erthe glode
Made the Sonne to seme / rody and brode
But nathelees it was / so fair a sigħt
That it made alle here hertes / for to ligħt
What for the Sesoū / & the morwenyng
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What for the foules / that she herd syng
For rigħt a non / she wist what they ment
Rigħt by here song / & knew al here entent
¶ The knotte why / that euery tale is told
If it be taried / til the lust be cold
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Of hem / that after it / han herkened ȝore
The sauour passetħ / euere lengere the more
For fulsumnesse / of his prolixitee
And by this same resoū / thynketħ me
I shulde vn to the knot / condescende
400
And maken of here walkyng / sone an ende
¶ A mydde a tree ful drye / as white as chalk
As Canacee was pleiyng / in hire walk
There sat a faucoū / ouer hire hed ful heye
That witħ a pitous voice / so gan to crye
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That al the wode / resouned of hire cry
I betyn had she hire self / so pitously
With bothe hire wenges / til the red blod
Ran endelong the tree / there as she stood
And euere in on alwey / she cried and shrigħt
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And witħ hire beek / hire seluen she so twigħt
That there nas tygre / ne so cruel beste
That dwelletħ either in wode / or in foreste
That nolde han wept / if that he wepe coude
For sorwe of hire / she shrigħt alwey so loude
415
¶ For þere was neuere ȝet / noman a lyue
If that I coude / a faucon wel discryue
That herd of swicħ an other / of fairnesse
As wel of plumage / as of gentilnesse
Of shape / of al that mygħt I rekened be
420
A faucon peregryn / than semed she
Of fremd land / and eueremo there she stod
She swougħned now and now / for lakke of blood
Til wol ny is she fallen / fro the Tree
This faire kynges dougħter / Canacee
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That on hire fyngre / bar the queynt Ryng
Thurgħ whicħ / she vnderstod wel / euery thyng
That any foul / may in his ledne seyn