Chaucer's Works-The Canterbury Tales Part 10

schadowed. 611. Hl. owne; E. owene. 612. E. _om._ and. E. gowne; _rest_ cote. 613. _So_ Hn. Hl.; E. _and rest_ hadde lerned. Cp. Hl.

mester. 618. E. baar.

A SOMNOUR was ther with us in that place, SOMNOUR.

That hadde a fyr-reed cherubinnes face, For sawcefleem he was, with eyen narwe. 625 As hoot he was, and lecherous, as a sparwe; With scalled browes blake, and piled berd; Of his visage children were aferd. (630) Ther nas quik-silver, litarge, ne brimstoon, Boras, ceruce, ne oille of tartre noon, 630 Ne oynement that wolde dense and byte, That him mighte helpen of his whelkes whyte, Nor of the k.n.o.bbes sittinge on his chekes.

Wel loved he garleek, oynons, and eek lekes, And for to drinken strong wyn, reed as blood. 635 Thanne wolde he speke, and crye as he were wood.

And whan that he wel dronken hadde the wyn, Than wolde he speke no word but Latyn. (640) A fewe termes hadde he, two or three, That he had lerned out of som decree; 640 No wonder is, he herde it al the day; And eek ye knowen wel, how that a Iay Can clepen 'Watte,' as well as can the pope.

But who-so coude in other thing him grope, Thanne hadde he spent al his philosophye; 645 Ay '_Questio quid iuris_' wolde he crye.

He was a gentil harlot and a kinde; A bettre felawe sholde men noght finde. (650) He wolde suffre, for a quart of wyn, A good felawe to have his concubyn 650 [20: T. 653-687.]

A twelf-month, and excuse him atte fulle: Ful prively a finch eek coude he pulle.

And if he fond o-wher a good felawe, He wolde techen him to have non awe, In swich cas, of the erchedeknes curs, 655 But-if a mannes soule were in his purs; For in his purs he sholde y-punisshed be.

'Purs is the erchedeknes h.e.l.le,' seyde he. (660) But wel I woot he lyed right in dede; Of cursing oghte ech gilty man him drede-- 660 For curs wol slee, right as a.s.soilling saveth-- And also war him of a _significavit_.

In daunger hadde he at his owne gyse The yonge girles of the diocyse, And knew hir counseil, and was al hir reed. 665 A gerland hadde he set up-on his heed, As greet as it were for an ale-stake; A bokeler hadde he maad him of a cake. (670)

623. Cm. Pt. Somnour; Hl. sompnour; E. Hn. Somonour. 627. E. Hn. Cm.

scaled. 629. Cp. Pt. Hl. bremston. 632. E. the; _rest_ his. 652.

E. Ln. Hl. And; _rest_ Ful. 655. Cm. Cp. erche-; E. erce-; Hl.

arche-. 660. Cp. Ln. him; Hl. Pt. to; _rest om._ 661. Hl. Pt.

saueth; E. sauith. 663. Hl. owne; E. owene. 668. E. bokeleer.

With him ther rood a gentil PARDONER PARDONER.

Of Rouncival, his freend and his compeer, 670 That streight was comen fro the court of Rome.

Ful loude he song, 'Com hider, love, to me.'

This somnour bar to him a stif burdoun, Was never trompe of half so greet a soun.

This pardoner hadde heer as yelow as wex, 675 But smothe it heng, as dooth a strike of flex; By ounces henge his lokkes that he hadde, And ther-with he his shuldres overspradde; (680) But thinne it lay, by colpons oon and oon; But hood, for Iolitee, ne wered he noon, 680 For it was trussed up in his walet.

Him thoughte, he rood al of the newe Iet; Dischevele, save his cappe, he rood al bare.

Swiche glaringe eyen hadde he as an hare.

A vernicle hadde he sowed on his cappe. 685 [21: T. 688-722.]

His walet lay biforn him in his lappe, Bret-ful of pardoun come from Rome al hoot.

A voys he hadde as smal as hath a goot. (690) No berd hadde he, ne never sholde have, As smothe it was as it were late y-shave; 690 I trowe he were a gelding or a mare.

But of his craft, fro Berwik into Ware, Ne was ther swich another pardoner.

For in his male he hadde a pilwe-beer, Which that, he seyde, was our lady veyl: 695 He seyde, he hadde a gobet of the seyl That seynt Peter hadde, whan that he wente Up-on the see, til Iesu Crist him hente. (700) He hadde a croys of latoun, ful of stones, And in a glas he hadde pigges bones. 700 But with thise relikes, whan that he fond A povre person dwelling up-on lond, Up-on a day he gat him more moneye Than that the person gat in monthes tweye.

And thus, with feyned flaterye and Iapes, 705 He made the person and the peple his apes.

But trewely to tellen, atte laste, He was in chirche a n.o.ble ecclesiaste. (710) Wel coude he rede a lessoun or a storie, But alderbest he song an offertorie; 710 For wel he wiste, whan that song was songe, He moste preche, and wel affyle his tonge, To winne silver, as he ful wel coude; Therefore he song so meriely and loude.

669. E. was; _rest_ rood, rode. 670. E. Cm. Pt. Rounciuale. 672. E.

soong. 676. E. heeng. 677, 678. E. hise. 680. But] Cm. Hl. And.

Hl. ne; _rest omit_. 683. E. Discheuelee. 685. Hl. Cp. on; _rest_ vp on. 686. Hl. lay; _which the rest omit._ 687. Hl. Cm. come; _rest_ comen. 688. Hl. eny (_for_ hath a). 690. Hn. yshaue; E.

shaue. 695. _All_ oure. 713. Hl. right (_for_ ful). 714. Cp. Pt.

Ln. so meriely; E. Hn. Cm. the murierly.

Now have I told you shortly, in a clause, 715 Thestat, tharray, the nombre, and eek the cause Why that a.s.sembled was this companye In Southwerk, at this gentil hostelrye, (720) That highte the Tabard, faste by the Belle.

But now is tyme to yow for to telle 720 [22: T. 723-758.]

How that we baren us that ilke night, Whan we were in that hostelrye alight.

And after wol I telle of our viage, And al the remenaunt of our pilgrimage.

But first I pray yow, of your curteisye, 725 That ye narette it nat my vileinye, Thogh that I pleynly speke in this matere, To telle yow hir wordes and hir chere; (730) Ne thogh I speke hir wordes properly.

For this ye knowen al-so wel as I, 730 Who-so shal telle a tale after a man, He moot reherce, as ny as ever he can, Everich a word, if it be in his charge, Al speke he never so rudeliche and large; Or elles he moot telle his tale untrewe, 735 Or feyne thing, or finde wordes newe.

He may nat spare, al-thogh he were his brother; He moot as wel seye o word as another. (740) Crist spak him-self ful brode in holy writ, And wel ye woot, no vileinye is it. 740 Eek Plato seith, who-so that can him rede, The wordes mote be cosin to the dede.

Also I prey yow to foryeve it me, Al have I nat set folk in hir degree Here in this tale, as that they sholde stonde; 745 My wit is short, ye may wel understonde.

715. E. Hl. shortly; _rest_ soothly. 716. Hl. Thestat; Hn. Thestaat; E. The staat; Cm. Cp. The estat. 718. E. as; _rest_ at. 724. E.

oure (_but_ our _in_ l. 723). 725. E. youre; Hl. [gh]our. 726. E.

Hn. Cm. narette; Cp. Pt. Hl. ne rette. 734. E. or; Hl. ne; _rest_ and. 741. _All but_ Hl. _om._ that.

Greet chere made our hoste us everichon, And to the soper sette he us anon; (750) And served us with vitaille at the beste.

Strong was the wyn, and wel to drinke us leste. 750 A semely man our hoste was with-alle For to han been a marshal in an halle; A large man he was with eyen stepe, A fairer burgeys is ther noon in Chepe: Bold of his speche, and wys, and wel y-taught, 755 And of manhod him lakkede right naught.

[23: T. 759-793.]

Eek therto he was right a mery man, And after soper pleyen he bigan, (760) And spak of mirthe amonges othere thinges, Whan that we hadde maad our rekeninges; 760 And seyde thus: 'Now, lordinges, trewely, Ye been to me right welcome hertely: For by my trouthe, if that I shal nat lye, I ne saugh this yeer so mery a companye At ones in this herberwe as is now. 765 Fayn wolde I doon yow mirthe, wiste I how.

And of a mirthe I am right now bithoght, To doon yow ese, and it shal coste noght. (770)

747. E. chiere. E. hoost (_see_ l. 751). 752. Hl. han; _rest om._ 754. E. Hn. was. 755. E. Hn. Boold. 756. Cm. Cp. lakkede; E.

lakked. 761. now] Hl. lo. 764. Hl. ne saugh; _rest_ saugh nat (seigh not, &c.). Hl. Cm. mery; E. myrie.

Ye goon to Caunterbury; G.o.d yow spede, The blisful martir quyte yow your mede. 770 And wel I woot, as ye goon by the weye, Ye shapen yow to talen and to pleye; For trewely, confort ne mirthe is noon To ryde by the weye doumb as a stoon; And therfore wol I maken yow disport, 775 As I seyde erst, and doon yow som confort.

And if yow lyketh alle, by oon a.s.sent, Now for to stonden at my Iugement, (780) And for to werken as I shal yow seye, To-morwe, whan ye ryden by the weye, 780 Now, by my fader soule, that is deed, But ye be merye, I wol yeve yow myn heed.

Hold up your hond, withouten more speche.'

774. a] E. the; Hn. _om._ 778. _All but_ Hl. _om._ Now. 782. E. But if; _rest_ But. E. myrie. Hl. merye smyteth of.

Our counseil was nat longe for to seche; Us thoughte it was noght worth to make it wys, 785 And graunted him withouten more avys, And bad him seye his verdit, as him leste.

785. Hl. nas. 787. Cp. verdit; Pt. veredit; Hl. Ln. verdite; Cm.

verdoit; E. Hn. voirdit.

'Lordinges,' quod he, 'now herkneth for the beste; (790) But tak it not, I prey yow, in desdeyn; This is the poynt, to speken short and pleyn, 790 That ech of yow, to shorte with your weye, [24: T. 794-827.]

In this viage, shal telle tales tweye, To Caunterbury-ward, I mene it so, And hom-ward he shal tellen othere two, Of aventures that whylom han bifalle. 795 And which of yow that bereth him best of alle, That is to seyn, that telleth in this cas Tales of best sentence and most solas, (800) Shal have a soper at our aller cost Here in this place, sitting by this post, 800 Whan that we come agayn fro Caunterbury.

And for to make yow the more mery, I wol my-selven gladly with yow ryde, Right at myn owne cost, and be your gyde.

And who-so wol my Iugement withseye 805 Shal paye al that we spenden by the weye.

And if ye vouche-sauf that it be so, Tel me anon, with-outen wordes mo, (810) And I wol erly shape me therfore.'

789. E. taak; Ln. tak; Cp. Pt. take; Hl. Hn. taketh. 791. Cp. Hl.

your; _rest_ our; _cf._ l. 803. 795. Hl. ther (_for_ whylom). 797, 798. E. caas, solaas. 802. E. Hn. Cp. mury. 803. Hl. my seluen gladly; E. my self goodly. 805. E. wole (_but_ wol _in_ l. 809).

This thing was graunted, and our othes swore 810 With ful glad herte, and preyden him also That he wold vouche-sauf for to do so, And that he wolde been our governour, And of our tales Iuge and reportour, And sette a soper at a certeyn prys; 815 And we wold reuled been at his devys, In heigh and lowe; and thus, by oon a.s.sent, We been acorded to his Iugement. (820) And ther-up-on the wyn was fet anon; We dronken, and to reste wente echon, 820 With-outen any lenger taryinge.

812. E. would. 816. Hl. wolde; Pt. wold; _rest_ wol, wolen, wiln, wil. 817. Hl. lowe; E. lough.

A-morwe, whan that day bigan to springe, Up roos our host, and was our aller c.o.k, And gadrede us togidre, alle in a flok, And forth we riden, a litel more than pas, 825 [25: T. 828-860.]

Un-to the watering of seint Thomas.

And there our host bigan his hors areste, And seyde; 'Lordinges, herkneth, if yow leste. (830) Ye woot your forward, and I it yow recorde.

If even-song and morwe-song acorde, 830 Lat se now who shal telle the firste tale.

As ever mote I drinke wyn or ale, Who-so be rebel to my Iugement Shal paye for al that by the weye is spent.

Now draweth cut, er that we ferrer twinne; 835 He which that hath the shortest shal biginne.

Sire knight,' quod he, 'my maister and my lord, Now draweth cut, for that is myn acord. (840) Cometh neer,' quod he, 'my lady prioresse; And ye, sir clerk, lat be your shamfastnesse, 840 Ne studieth noght; ley hond to, every man.'

822. E. Hn. that; Hl. that the; _rest_ the. E. gan for; Hn. Cp. Hl.

bigan. 823. E. Hn. aller; Hl. althur; Cp. alther; Pt. Ln. alder.

825. E. paas. 829. E. foreward (_badly_). E. Hn. _om._ I. 831.

Hl. ferst a tale. 835. Cp. Pt. Ln. ferther; Hl. forther. 836. E.

Hn. shorteste. 840. E. shamefastnesse.