The General Prologue
Folio 9r
3 of 22 folios
Or breke it at a rennynge / with his heed
His beerd / as any sowe / or fox / was reed
555
And ther to brood / as thogh it weere a spaade
Vp on the cope right of his nose he haade
A werte / and ther on stood / a tuft of heerys
Reede / as the bristles / of a sowes eerys
Hise nosethirles / blake weere and wyde
560
A swerd and a bokeler / baar he by his syde
His mouth as greet was / as a greet fourneys
He was a Ianglere / a Golyardeys
And that was moost of synne and harlotryes
Wel koude he stelen corn / and tollen thryes
565
And yet he hadde / a thombe of gold pardee
A whit coote / and a blew hood wered hee
A Baggepipe / wel koude he / blowe and sowne
And ther with al / he broghte vs out of towne
¶ A gentil Maunciple / was ther / of a Temple
570
Of which / Achatours myghte take exemple
For to been wyse / in byynge of vitaille
For wheither þt he payde / or took by taille
Algate / he wayted so / in his achaat
That he was ay biforn / and in good staat
575
¶ Now is nat that of god / a ful greet grace
That swich a lewed mannes wit shal pace
The wysdom / of an heepe / of lerned men
Of Maistres hadde he mo / than thryes ten
That weeren / of lawe / expert and curious
580
Of whiche / ther weere a dozeyne / in that hous
Worthy / to been Stywardes / of rente / and lond
Of any lord / that is in Engelond
To make hym lyue / by his propre good
In honour dettelees / but if he weere wood
585
Or lyue as scarsly / as hym lyst desire
And able / for to helpen / al a Shire
In any caas / that myghte falle / or happe
And yet this Maunciple / sette hir aller cappe
¶ The Reue / was a sclendre coleryk man
590
His beerd was shaue / as neigh as euer he kan
His heer was by his eerys / ful rownd yshorn
His tope was dokked / lyk a preest byforn