The Squire's Tale
Folio 116r
2 of 14 folios
In Aries / the colerik hoote signe
Ful lusty was / the weder and benigne
45
For which the foweles / agayn the sonne sheene
What for the sesoū / and the yonge grene
Ful loude / songen hir affeccioūs
Hem semed / han geten hem proteccioūs
Agayn the swerd of wynter / keene and coold
50
¶ This Cambyuskan / of which I haue yow toold
In roial vestiment sit on his deys
With diademe / ful heighe in his paleys
And halt his feeste so solempne / and so ryche
That in this world / was ther noon it lyche
55
Of which / if I shal tellen al tharray
Thanne wolde it occupie a Someres day
And eek / it nedeth nat for to deuyse
At euery cours / the ordre of hir seruyse
I wol nat tellen / of hir strange sewes
60
Ne of hir swannes / nor of hir heronsewes
Eek / in that lond / as tellen knygħtes olde
Ther is som mete / þt is ful deynte holde
That in this lond / men recche of it but smal
Ther nys no man / that may reporten al
65
¶ I wol nat taryen yow / for it is pryme
And for it is no fruyt but los of tyme
Vn to my firste / I wole haue my recours
¶ And so bifel / that after the thridde cours
Whil þt this kyng sit thus in his nobleye
70
Herknynge hise Mynstrals / hir thynges pleye
Biforn hym at the bord / deliciously
In at the halle dore / al sodeynly
Ther cam a knygħt vp on a steede of bras
And in his hand / a brood Mirour of glas
75
Vpon his thombe / he hadde of gold a ryng
And by his syde / a naked swerd hangyng
And vp he rideth / to the heigħe bord
In al the halle / ne was ther spoken a word
For merueille of this knyght hym to biholde
80
Ful bisily / ther wayten yonge and olde
¶ This strange knygħt that cam thus sodeynly
Al armed / saue his heed / ful richely
Saleweth kyng and queene / and lordes alle
By ordre / as they seten in the halle
85
With so heigħ reuerence / and obeisaūce
As wel in speche / as in contenaūce
That Gawayn / with his olde curteisye
Though he were / comen ayeyn out of Fairye
Ne koude hym nat amende with a word
90
And after this / biforn the heigħe bord