The Squire's Tale
Folio 136r
15 of 18 folios
Til any womman / were she neuer so wys
So peynted he / and kembde at poynt deuys
As wel his wordes / as his contenaunce
And I so loued hym / for his obeisaunce
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And for the trouthe / I demed in his herte
That if so weere / that any thyng hym smerte
Al were it neuer so litel / and I it wiste
Me thoughte / I felte deeth myn herte twiste
And shortly / so ferforth this thyng is went
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That my wyl / was his willes Instrument
This is to seyn / my wyl obeyed his wil
In alle thyng as fer as reson fil
Kepynge the boundes / of my worship euere
Ne neuere hadde I thyng so lief ne leuere
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As hym god woot ne neuere shal namo
¶ This laste lenger / than a yeer / or two
That I supposed of hym nat but good
But finally / thus a the laste it stood
That Fortune wolde / þt he moste twynne
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Out of that place / which þt I was Inne
Wher me was wo / that is no questioū
I kan nat make of it descripsioū
For o thyng dar I tellen boldely
I knowe what is / the peyne of deeth ther by
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Swich harm I felte / for he ne myghte bileue
So on a day / of me he took his leue
So sorwefully eek / that I wende verraily
That he hadde feelyd / as muche harm as I
Whan that I herde hym speke / and saw his hewe
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But nathelees / I thoughte he was so trewe
And eek / that he repeyre sholde agayn
With Inne / a litel while / sooth to sayn
And reson wolde eek þt he moste go
For his honour / as ofte happeth so
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That I made / vertu of necessitee
And took it wel / syn þt it moste be
As I best myghte / I hidde from hym my sorwe
And took hym by the hand / Seint Ioħn to borwe
And seyde thus / lo I am youres al
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Beeth swich / as I to yow haue been and shal