And thanke him of his grete curtefie.
My trouthe wol I kepe, I wol not lie.

With herte fore he goth unto his cofre,
And broughte gold unto this philofophre,
The value of five hundred pound I geffe,
And him befecheth of his gentilleffe
To graunt him daies of the remenaunt,

11875

And fayde; Maister, I dare wel make avaunt 11880
I failled never of my trouthe as yet;
For fikerly my dette fhal be quit
Towardes you, how fo that ever I fare
To gon a begging in my kirtle bare:
But wold ye vouchen fauf upon seurtee
Two yere or three for to refpiten me,
Than were I wel, for elles mote I fell
Min heritage; ther is no more to tell.

This philofophre sobrely anfwerd,

11885

And faied thus, whan he thise wordes herd; 11899 Have I not holden covenant to thee?

Yes, certes, wel and trewely, quod he. Haft thou not had thy lady as thee liketh?

No, no, quod he, and forwefully he fiketh. What was the caufe? tell me if thou can.

Aurelius his tale anon began,

And told him all as ye han herd before;
It nedeth not reherse it any more.
He fayd, Arviragus of gentilleffe

11895

Had lever die in forwe and in diftreffe

11900

Than that his wif were of hire trouthe fals.
The forwe of Dorigene he told him als,
How loth hire was to ben a wicked wif,

And that the lever had loft that day hire lif;
And that her trouth fhe fwore thurgh innocence;
She never erst hadde herd speke of apparence: 11906
That made me han of hire so gret pitee,

And right as freely as he sent hire to me
As freely fent I hire to him again.

This is all and fom; ther n'is no more to fain. 11910
The philofophre answerd ; Leve brother,
Everich of you did gentilly to other :

Thou art a squier, and he is a knight,
But God forbede, for his blisful might,
But if a clerk coud don a gentil dede
As wel as any of you, it is no drede.

Sire, I relese thee thy thousand pound,

11915

As thou right now were crope out of the ground,
Ne never er now ne haddest knowen me:

For, Sire, I wol not take a peny of thee

For all my craft, ne nought for my travaille:

Thou haft ypaied wel for my vitaille.

It is ynough, and farewel, have good day.
And toke his hors, and forth he goth his way.
Lordings, this question wold I axen now,
Which was the mofte free, as thinketh you?
Now telleth me or that ye further wende.
I can no more, my Tale is at an ende.

11920

11925

11926. Which was the mofte free] The fame question is

THE DOCTOURES PROLOGUE,

Ye, let that paffen, quod our Hofte, as now.

Sire Doctour of Phyfike, I prey you,
Tell us a Tale of fom honeft matere.

It fhal be don, if that ye wol it here,

11930

Said this Doctour, and his Tale began anon.
Now, good men, quod he, herkeneth everich on.

THE DOCTOURES TALE.

THER was, as telleth Titus Livius,

11935

A knight that cleped was Virginius,
Fulfilled of honour and worthineffe,

And flrong of frendes, and of gret richeffe.
This knight a doughter hadde by his wif;
No children had he mo in all his lif.

11940

Faire was this maid in excellent beautee
Aboven every wight that man may fee,
For Nature hath with foveraine diligence
Y formed hire in fo gret excellence

ftated in the conclufion of Boccace's 'Tale, Philoc. 1. v. ; Du"bitafi ora qual di cofloro fuffe maggior liberalità," &c. The queen determines in favour of the husband.

V. 11929. re, let that paffen] I have faid all that I have to fay in favour of this Prologue to The Doctour's Tale in the Dif courfe, &c. § 28. It is only found in mf. A. In mff C.1, HA. the following note is at the end of The Frankelein's Tale; "Here "endeth the Fr. T. and biginneth The Phificiens Tale without "a Prologe."

The Dodoures Tale] Virginius flaveth his onely daughter, rather than the thall be defiled by the letcherous judge Appius. 3

As though the wolde fayn, Lo, I Nature,
Thus can I forme and peint a creature,
Whan that me lift: who can me contrefete?
Pigmalion? not though he ay forge and bete,
Or grave, or peinte; for I dare wel fain
Apelles, Xeuxis, fhulden werche in vain
Other to grave, or peinte, or forge, or bete,
If they prefumed me to coutrefete:

For he that is the former principal

11945

11950

Hath maked me his vicaire general

To forme and peinten erthly creatures

Right as me lift; and eche thing in my cure is
Under the mone that may wane and waxe;

And for my werk right nothing wol I axe:.
My lord and I ben ful of on accord;

I made hire to the worship of my lord,

So do I all min other creatures,

1

What colour that they han or what figures.

Thus femeth me that Nature wolde fay.

This maid of age twelf yere was and tway.

In which that Nature hadde fwiche delit ;

11955

11960

11965

For right as fhe can peint a lily whit
And red a rofe, right with swiche peinture
She peinted hath this noble creature

Er fhe was borne upon hire limmes free,

Wheras by right swiche colours fhulden be; 11970

And Phebus died hath hire treffes grete

Like to the ftremes of his burned hete.

And if that excellent were hire beautee,
A thousand fold more vertuous was the.
In hire ne lacked no condition
That is to preise, as by discretion.
As wel in goft as body chaft was fhe,
For which the floured in virginitee
With all humilitee and abstinence,
With all attemperance and patience,
With mesure eke of bering and array.
Difcrete fhe was in answering alway,
Though the were wife as Palias, dare I fain,
Hire facounde eke ful womanly and plain :
No contrefeted termes hadde fhe

To femen wife, but after hire degree

11975

11980

11985

She spake, and all hire wordes more and leffe
Souning in vertue and in gentilleffe.

Shamefait fhe was in maidens fhamefaftneffe,

Constant in herte, and ever in befineffe

11990

To drive hire out of idel flogardie.

Bacchus had of hire mouth right no maistrie,
For wine and youthe don Venus encrefe,

As men in fire wol caften oile and grefe.
And of hire owen vertue unconftreined
She hath hirefelf ful often fike. yfeined,

11995

.11993. For wine and youthe] The context, I think, requires that we thould read

For wine and fouthe don Venus encrefe.

He is giving the reafon why the avoided flogardie, and did not permit Bacchus to have maiftrie of hire mouth, becaufe eine and fouthe encrease the amorous inclinations, as oil and grefe do fire. I can make no fenfe of youthe or thoughte; as fome me. read.