the halidom and oaths enough-that I will loyally conceal you, and never tell tale that ever ye fled for any man that I know of." "Gramercy," quoth Gawain. And sternly he added, "Well worth thee, man, who wishes my good; and I well believe thou wouldst loyally conceal me. But if thou kept promise never so faithfully, and I gave up here, sought for fear to fly as you advise, I were a knight coward; I could [60 not be excused. But I will go to the chapel whatever chance may fall, and talk with that same man the tale that I like, be it good or evil, as it pleases fate to have it. Though he be a stern champion to cope with, and armed with a club, full well can God manage to save his servants." 7. "Mary!" quoth that other man, "now thou sayest as much as that thou wilt take upon thyself thine own destruction; if it pleases thee to lose thy life, I shall not let nor hinder thee. Have [70 here thy helm on thy head, thy spear in thy hand; and ride down this same lane by yon rock-side till thou be brought to the bottom of the rugged valley; then look a little up the grassy slope on thy left hand, and thou shalt see in that ravine the chapel itself, and the burly man on the field who keeps it. Now farewell in God's name, Gawain the noble, for all the gold in the world I would not go with thee nor bear thee fellowship through this wood a foot further." [80 At that the man turned his bridle in the wood, hit the horse with the heels as hard as he could; leaped over the land, and left the knight there all alone. "By God's self," quoth Gawain, "I will neither grieve nor groan. To God's will I am full obedient, and to him I have entrusted myself." 8. Then he spurs Gringolet and follows the path; pushes in by a hollow beside a thicket; rides through the rough slope right to the [90 dale; and then he looked about him, and wild it seemed to him. He saw no sign of dwelling anywhere around, but on both sides high steep banks, and rough hunched crags with projecting stones; the shadows of the cliffs seemed to him terrible. Then he paused and held back his horse, and oft changed his cheer while seeking the chapel. He saw none such on any side, and strange it seemed to him. But soon, a little distance off on a grassy spot he descried a mound as it were, a smooth [100 hill by the bank of the stream near a ford of the flood that ran there. The burn bubbled there as if it were boiling. The knight urges his steed, and comes to the hill; lights nimbly down, and ties the rein and his rich bridle to a tree by a rough branch; then he turns to the hill and walks about it, debating with himself what it might be. It had a hole at the end and on either side, and was overgrown with grass in clumps everywhere, and was all hollow within-nothing but an old [110 cave or a crevice of an old crag. He could not understand it at all. "Alas, Lord," quoth the gentle knight, "can this be the green chapel? Here about midnight the devil might tell his matins." 9. "Now," quoth Gawain, "it certainly is mysterious here; this oratory is ugly, overgrown with herbs. Well it beseems the wight clad in green here to do his devotions in the devil's wise. Now I feel in my five wits it is the fiend that has [120 made this bargain with me, to destroy me here. This is a chapel of mischance; may ill fortune betide it! It is the cursedest kirk that ever I came in!" With high helm on his head, his lance in his hand, he strides up to the rock of the rude dwelling. Then he heard from that high hill, in a rough cave, on a bank beyond the brook, a marvellously savage noise. Lo, the cliff clattered as though it would split, as if one were grinding a scythe on [130 a grindstone. It whirred and screeched like water at a mill; it rushed and rang that it was ruth to hear. "By God," quoth Gawain then, “that gear, I fancy, is being prepared to give me a good reception. Yet though I must lose my life, fear shall never make me change colour." 10. Then the knight called full high: "Who dwells in this place to keep covenant with me? For now the good Gawain is passing right here. [110 If any wight wishes ought, let him come hither fast, now or never, to fulfill his need!" "Abide!" quoth one on the bank over his head. "Thou shalt have in all haste that which I pro nised thee once." Yet he kept on with that noise sharply for a while, turning and whetting, ere he would come down. And then he crossed by a crag and came from a hole, whirling out of a dark place with a fell weapon--a Danish axe new dight, to give [150 the blow with. It had fast to the helve a great head, sharpened on the stone. Four feet long was the weapon-no less, by that lace that gleamed full bright. And the man in the green was arrayed as before-both his skin and his limbs, locks, and beard; save that on foot he strides fairly on the earth. He set the steel shaft to the stone and stalked beside it. When he came to the water, where he did not wish to wade, he hopped over on his axe, and fiercely advanced, with savage [160 ferocity pacing the broad snow-covered glade. Sir Gawain met the knight and bowed to him, not at all low. The other said, "Now, sweet ir, in a covenant a man can trust thee." II. "Gawain," quoth the green warrior, "n ay God preserve thee. Indeed thou art welcome, hero, to my place; and thou hast timed thy travel as a true man should. And thou knowest the covenants made between us; at this time twelve month, thou tookest what fell to thee,-and I [170 at this New Year was to repay you handsomely. And now we are in this valley entirely alone; here are no men to part us, however we may behave. Have thy helm off thy head, and have here thy pay. Make no more debate than I offered thee then, when thou whipped off my head at one blow." "Nay," quoth Gawain, "by God that lent me life, I shall grudge thee not a whit whatever misfortune falls. But arrange thee for thy one [180 stroke, and I shall stand still and hinder thee not the least from doing the work as you like." He bent the neck and bowed down, showing the flesh all bare; and behaved as if he cared not. For no dread would he flinch. 12. Then the man in the green got ready quickly, gathered up his grim tool to smite Ga wain. With all the might in his body he bare it aloft, and aimed a savage blow as though he wished to kill him. Had it driven down as ear- [190 nestly as he feinted, the ever doughty one would have been dead of his dint. But Gawain glanced to one side on the gisarm as it came gliding down to slay him there in the glade, and shrank a little with the shoulders from the sharp iron. The other warrior with a quick motion withheld the bright weapon, and then he reproved the prince with many proud words. "Thou art not Gawain," said the man, "who is held so good, who never flinched for any army by hill nor by vale; and [200 now thou fleest for fear before thou feelest any harm. Such cowardice I never heard of that knight. I neither winced nor fled, sir, when thou didst strike, nor tried any tricks in King Arthur's house. My head flew to my foot, and yet I never budged; and thou, ere any harm taken, art fearful in heart. Wherefore the better man I ought to be called for it." "I flinched once," quoth Gawain, "and will do so no more. Yet if my head should fall on the [210 stones, I cannot restore it. 13. "But make ready, sir, by thy faith, and bring me to the point. Deal to me my destiny, and do it promptly; for I shall stand thee a stroke, and not start again till thine axe has hit mehave here my troth." "Have at thee then!" quoth the other, and heaves it aloft, and aims as savagely as if he were mad. He strikes at him mightily, but touches the man not; for he withheld his hand cleverly [220 ere it could hurt. Gawain awaits it properly and flinches with no member, but stands still as a stone, or a stump that is twisted into the rocky ground with a hundred roots. Then merrily spoke the man in the green: "So, now thou hast thy heart whole it behoves me to hit. Now keep back the fine hood that Arthur gave thee, and see if thou canst keep thy neck whole from this stroke." Said Gawain in great anger: "Why, thrash [230 on, thou wild man! Thou threatenest too long. I guess that thine own heart is timid!" "Forsooth," quoth the other warrior, "thou speakest so fiercely that I will not delay thine errand a bit longer." Then he takes his stride to strike and knits both brow and lip. No wonder Gawain mislikes it and gives up all thought of escape. 14. Lightly he lifts his axe and lets the edge come down fairly on the bare neck. Yet [240 though he smote rudely, it hurt him but little; only cut him on one side so that it severed the skin. The sharp bit reached the flesh through the fair fat, so that the bright blood shot over his shoulders to the earth. And when the hero saw the blood glint on the snow, he leaped forth more than a spear's length, eagerly seized his helm, cast it on his head, threw his shoulders under his fair shield, pulled out a bright sword and fiercely spoke. Never in this world since he was born of his [250 mother was he half so blithe. "Cease, sir, of thy blow! Offer me no more. I have without strife taken a stroke in this place; and if thou givest me more, shall promptly reDay and yield quickly again, trust thou that! Only one stroke falls to me here. The covenant which we made in Arthur's halls provided just that; and therefore, courteous sir, now hold!" 15. The warrior turned from him and rested on his axe. He set the shaft on the ground, leaned [260 on the head, and beheld how the doughty hero stood his ground grimly, fully armed and devoid of fear. In his heart it pleased him. Then with a great voice, and a huge laugh, he spoke merrily to the hero: "Bold sir, in this place be not so savage. Nobody has here unmannerly mishandled thee, nor done but according to covenant made at the king's court. I promised thee a stroke and thou hast it; hold thee well paid. I release thec of the remnant, of all other rights. If I had [270 been skilful peradventure I could have given you a worse buffet. First I menaced you merrily with a pure feint, and gave thee no blow; which was but justice, considering the covenant which we made on the first night, and which thou held with me trustily; for truly all the gain thou gave me as a good man should. The second feint this morning, sir, I proffered thee, because thou didst kiss my fair wife and didst hand the kisses over to me; for these two occasions I gave thee here [280 but two bare feints without harm. A true man truly restores; such an one need dread no harm. At the third time thou didst fail; and so take thee that tap. 16. "For it is my weed that thou wearest, that same woven girdle. Mine own wife gave it thee, I know well, forsooth. Now know I well thy kisses, and thy virtues also. And as for the wooing of my wife, I managed it myself. I sent her to try thee, and truly it seems to me thou art the [290 most faultless hero that ever went on foot. As a pearl is of greater price than white peas, so is Gawain, in good faith, compared with other gay knights. But in this case, sir, you lacked a little, and loyalty failed you. But that was for no amorous work, nor wooing either, but because ye loved your life,-the less I blame you." That other brave man stood a great while in a study; so stricken was he for grief that he groaned within. All the blood of his breast rushed to [300 his face; and he shrank for shame when the warrior talked. This was the first word that the man spoke "Cursed be cowardice and covetousness both! In you is villainy and vice, that destroy virtue." Then he caught at the knot and loosed the fastening; fiercely reached the belt to the warrior himself. "Lo! there is the deception, foul may it fall! For fear of thy knock cowardice taught me to make a truce with covetousness, to forsake my nature, which is generosity and [310 loyalty, that belong to knights. Now am I faulty and false, and a coward have ever been. From treachery and untruth ever come sorrow and care. Here I confess to you, knight, that my conduct is all faulty. Let me but please you now, and after I shall beware." 17. Then the other laughed and said courteously: "I hold it quite remedied, the harm that I had. Thou hast made a clean confession, acknowledging all thy misdeeds, and hast re- [320 ceived the penance openly from the point of my edge. I hold thee quit of that plight, and purified as clean as if thou hadst never forfeited since thou was first born. And I give thee, sir, the girdle that is gold hemmed. Since it is green, as is my gown, Sir Gawain, ye may think upon this same adventure where thou goest forth among great princes; and this shall be a genuine token among chivalrous knights of the adventure of the green chapel, and ye shall come again this New Year [330 to my dwelling, and we shall revel the remnant of this rich feast full well." The lord pressed the invitation and said, "With my wife, who was your great enemy, I think we shall reconcile you." 18. "Nay, forsooth," quoth the hero; and seizing his helm, he took it off quickly and thanked the warrior. "I have had a good visit, bliss betide you; and may He pay you well who directs all mercies. Commend me to that courteous one, your comely mate; both the one and the other, [340 my honoured ladies, who have thus with their craft quaintly beguiled their knight. But it is no wonder that a fool should rave, and through wiles of women be won to sorrow. For so was Adam beguiled by one, and Solomon by many, indeed; and Samson also, Delilah dealt him his weird; and David thereafter was deceived by Bethsheba, who suffered much sorrow. Since these men were plagued by their wiles, it were a huge gain to love them well and believe them not-if a person [350 but could; for these men were of old the best, and the most fortunate, excellent above all others under the heavens; and all they were beguiled by women whom they had to do with. If I be now deceived, meseems I might be excused. 19. "But your girdle," quoth Gawain, "God reward you for it! That will I keep with good will; not for the precious gold, nor the samite nor the silk, nor the wide pendants, for its wealth nor for its beauty nor for its fine work; but in sign of [360 my fault I shall behold it oft; when I ride in renown I shall lament to myself the fault and the deceit of the crabbed flesh, how tender it is to catch stains of filth; and thus when pride shall prick me for prowess of arms, a look on this lovelace shall moderate my heart. But one thing I would pray you-may it displease you not-since ye are lord of the land yonder where I have stayed worshipfully with you-may the Being who upholds the heaven and sits on high repay you [370 for it!—how name ye your right name? and then "That shall I tell thee truly," quoth the other then. "Bernlak de Hautdesert I am called in this land through the might of Morgen la Fay, who dwells in my house. She has acquired deep learning, hard-won skill, many of the masteries of Merlin;-for she has at times dealt in rare magic with that renowned clerk, who knows all your knights at home. Morgan the Goddess is [380 therefore her name; no person is so haughty but she can tame him. 20. "She sent me in this wise to your rich hall to assay its pride and try if it were true that circulates about the great renown of the Round Table. She prepared for me this wonder to take away your wits, to have grieved Guinevere and caused her to die through fright of that same man, that ghostly speaker with his head in his hand before the high table. That is she, the an- [390 cient lady at home. She is even thine aunt, Arthur's half-sister, the daughter of that Duchess of Tintagel upon whom dear Uther afterwards begot Arthur, that is now king. Therefore, I beg you, sir, to come to thine aunt; make merry in my house; my people love thee, and I like thee as well, sir, by my faith as I do any man under God for thy great truth." But he answered him nay, he would in no wise. They embraced and kissed, each entrusted [400 other to the Prince of Paradise, and they parted right there in the cold. Gawain on horse full fair rides boldly to the king's court, and the knight all in green whithersoever he would. 21. Wild ways in the world Gawain now rides on Gringolet, he who had got the boon of his life. Oft he harboured in houses, and oft without; and many an adventure in vale he had, and won oft; but that I care not at this time to mention in my tale. The hurt was whole that he had got in [410 his neck; and he bare the glistening belt about him, crossed obliquely like a baldric, the lace fastened under his left arm with a knot, in token that he was taken in a fault. And thus he comes to the court, the knight all sound. There wakened joy in that dwelling when the great ones knew that good Gawain had come; joyous it seemed to them. The king kisses the knight, and the queen also; and afterwards many a sure knight, who sought to embrace him and asked him of his [420 journey. And wondrously he tells it, confessing all the trials that he had, the adventure of the chapel, the behavior of the knight, the love of the lady-and, at the last, the lace. He showed them the nick in his neck that he caught at the lord's hands for his unloyalty. He grieved when he had to tell it; he groaned for sorrow, and the blood rushed to his face for shame when he declared it. 22. "Lo! lord," quoth the hero, as he han- [430 dled the lace, "this that I bear in my neck is the badge of this blame. This is the evil and the loss that I have got from the cowardice and covetousness that I showed there. This is the token of untruth that I am taken in, and I must needs wear it while I may last; for none may hide his shame without mishap, for where it once is incurred, depart will it never." The king and all the court comfort the knight. They laugh loud at his tale, and lovingly [440 agree that the lords and ladies that belong to the Table, each knight of the brotherhood, should have a baldric, an oblique band about him of a bright green, and wear that for the sake of the hero. And that emblem was accorded the renown of the Round Table, and he was ever after honoured that had it. As it is told in the best book of romance, thus in Arthur's day this adventure betid, which the Brutus books bear witness of. After Brutus (450 the bold hero first came hither, when the siege and the assault had ceased at Troy, many adventures of this sort happened. Now may He that bore the crown of thorns bring us to his bliss. AMEN HONY SOIT QUI MAL PENCE. NOTES Figures in bold face refer to the page, others to the line. CHAUCER THE PROLOGUE 1. 1. Whan that Aprille, etc. When April with its sweet showers hath pierced the drought of March to the root, and bathed every vein in the moisture by means of which power the flower is grown. 66 8. The Ram. The expression means: When the sun had completed the halfcourse in the zodiacal sign of the Ram." During the first half of April the sun is in Aries, the Ram; during the second, in Taurus, the Bull. The time is therefore about the middle of April. 53-65. Pruce-Palatye. The proper names are those of various countries and cities in the regions involved in the wars between the Christian nations of western Europe and their Moslem enemies. Pruce, Lellow, Ruce-Prussia, Lithuania, Russia. Gernade, Algezir-Granada, Algeciras, in Spain. Belmarye, Tramissene-Moorish kingdoms in Africa. Lyeys, Satalye, Palatye-in Asia Minor. 2. 125. The scole of Stratford atte Bowe. A Benedictine convent at Stratford-le-Bow, near London. There is no slur here on the Prioress's French; Chaucer merely tells us that her pronunciation was not Parisian. 3. 159. Gauded. Furnished with gaudies," the five large beads in a rosary. 173. Seint Maure. St. Maur and St. Benedict. The latter founded the Benedictine order of monks; St. Maur was one of his disciples. 187. Austin. St. Augustine. 210. Ordres Franciscans, tinians. four. The Dominicans, Carmelites, and Augus 4. 258. Love-dayes. Certain days which were appointed for settling disputes out of court, through the mediation of an umpire, often a friar. 310. Parvys. "The church-porch, or portico of St. Paul's, where the lawyers were wont to meet for consultation." (Skeat). 319. Al was fee simple. No matter how encumbered property might be, the Sergeant could handle it as if it were held in fee simple. His conveyancing could not be attacked. 5. 340. Seynt Iulian. Saint Julian was famed for his generous providing. 364. Fraternitee. They all belonged to one guild. 5 377. Vigilyës. Ceremonies on the eve of a church or guild festival. 6. 417-420. Well coude he fortunen, etc. The doctor was an astrologer; in addition, he was familiar with the humors of the body, and knew the causes of all diseases. In every person, according to the Galenic physiology, there were four humors, viz.: blood, phlegm, bile or choler, and black bile or melancholy. A person's health depended upon maintaining a proper proportion between the four. Thus if blood predominated, the person became too sanguine; if phlegm, he became too phlegmatic. It 429. Esculapius, etc. These were the 7. 507. He sette nat his benefice. He did 8. 624. Fyr-reed cherubinnes face. Cher ubim, in mediæval art, were painted with red faces. 646. Questio quid iuris? What is the law? 652. A finch eek coude he pulle. In the idiom of Wall Street, he knew how to shear a lamb. (Skeat). 9. 662. War him of a significavit. The writ of excommunication, which usually began with the word Significavit. 667. For an ale-stake. Ale-houses were usually marked by a pole, ale-stake, on which was hung a garland. 685. A vernicle. A copy of the picture of Christ supposed to have been miraculously imprinted on the handkerchief of St. Veronica. 11. 826. The watering of seint Thomas. The watering place was at a brook a short distance out from Southwark. THE NUN'S PRIEST'S TALE 24. She fond no lak. She found no fault. 35. By nature knew he ech ascensioun. |