The Canterbury Tales, and Other Poems Part 32

"The devil," quoth she, "so fetch him ere he dey,* *die And pan and all, but* he will him repent." *unless "Nay, olde stoat,* that is not mine intent," *polecat Quoth this Sompnour, "for to repente me For any thing that I have had of thee; I would I had thy smock and every cloth."

"Now, brother," quoth the devil, "be not wroth; Thy body and this pan be mine by right.

Thou shalt with me to h.e.l.le yet tonight, Where thou shalt knowen of our privity* *secrets More than a master of divinity."

And with that word the foule fiend him hent.* *seized Body and soul, he with the devil went, Where as the Sompnours have their heritage; And G.o.d, that maked after his image Mankinde, save and guide us all and some, And let this Sompnour a good man become.

Lordings, I could have told you (quoth this Frere), Had I had leisure for this Sompnour here, After the text of Christ, and Paul, and John, And of our other doctors many a one, Such paines, that your heartes might agrise,* *be horrified Albeit so, that no tongue may devise,* -- *relate Though that I might a thousand winters tell, -- The pains of thilke* cursed house of h.e.l.l *that But for to keep us from that cursed place Wake we, and pray we Jesus, of his grace, So keep us from the tempter, Satanas.

Hearken this word, beware as in this case.

The lion sits *in his await* alway *on the watch* <16> To slay the innocent, if that he may.

Disposen aye your heartes to withstond The fiend that would you make thrall and bond; He may not tempte you over your might, For Christ will be your champion and your knight; And pray, that this our Sompnour him repent Of his misdeeds ere that the fiend him hent.* *seize

Notes to the Friar's Tale

1. Small t.i.thers: people who did not pay their full t.i.thes. Mr Wright remarks that "the sermons of the friars in the fourteenth century were most frequently designed to impress the ahsolute duty of paying full t.i.thes and offerings".

2. There might astert them no pecunial pain: they got off with no mere pecuniary punishment. (Transcriber's note: "Astert"

means "escape". An alternative reading of this line is "there might astert him no pecunial pain" i.e. no fine ever escaped him (the archdeacon))

3. A dog for the bow: a dog attending a huntsman with bow and arrow.

4. Ribibe: the name of a musical instrument; applied to an old woman because of the shrillness of her voice.

5. De par dieux: by the G.o.ds.

6. See note 12 to the Knight's Tale.

7. Wariangles: butcher-birds; which are very noisy and ravenous, and tear in pieces the birds on which they prey; the thorn on which they do this was said to become poisonous.

8. Medieval legends located h.e.l.l in the North.

9. The Pythoness: the witch, or woman, possesed with a prophesying spirit; from the Greek, "Pythia." Chaucer of course refers to the raising of Samuel's spirit by the witch of Endor.

10. Dante and Virgil were both poets who had in fancy visited h.e.l.l.

11. Tholed: suffered, endured; "thole" is still used in Scotland in the same sense.

12. Capels: horses. See note 14 to the Reeve's Tale.

13. Liart: grey; elsewhere applied by Chaucer to the hairs of an old man. So Burns, in the "Cotter's Sat.u.r.day Night," speaks of the gray temples of "the sire" -- "His lyart haffets wearing thin and bare."

14. Rebeck: a kind of fiddle; used like "ribibe," as a nickname for a shrill old scold.

15. Trot; a contemptuous term for an old woman who has trotted about much, or who moves with quick short steps.

16. In his await: on the watch; French, "aux aguets."

THE SOMPNOUR'S TALE.

THE PROLOGUE.

The Sompnour in his stirrups high he stood, Upon this Friar his hearte was so wood,* *furious That like an aspen leaf he quoke* for ire: *quaked, trembled "Lordings," quoth he, "but one thing I desire; I you beseech, that of your courtesy, Since ye have heard this false Friar lie, As suffer me I may my tale tell This Friar boasteth that he knoweth h.e.l.l, And, G.o.d it wot, that is but little wonder, Friars and fiends be but little asunder.

For, pardie, ye have often time heard tell, How that a friar ravish'd was to h.e.l.l In spirit ones by a visioun, And, as an angel led him up and down, To shew him all the paines that there were, In all the place saw he not a frere; Of other folk he saw enough in woe.

Unto the angel spake the friar tho;* *then 'Now, Sir,' quoth he, 'have friars such a grace, That none of them shall come into this place?'

'Yes' quoth the angel; 'many a millioun:'

And unto Satanas he led him down.

'And now hath Satanas,' said he, 'a tail Broader than of a carrack<1> is the sail.

Hold up thy tail, thou Satanas,' quoth he, 'Shew forth thine erse, and let the friar see Where is the nest of friars in this place.'

And *less than half a furlong way of s.p.a.ce* *immediately* <2> Right so as bees swarmen out of a hive, Out of the devil's erse there gan to drive A twenty thousand friars *on a rout.* *in a crowd*

And throughout h.e.l.l they swarmed all about, And came again, as fast as they may gon, And in his erse they creeped every one: He clapt his tail again, and lay full still.

This friar, when he looked had his fill Upon the torments of that sorry place, His spirit G.o.d restored of his grace Into his body again, and he awoke; But natheless for feare yet he quoke, So was the devil's erse aye in his mind; That is his heritage, *of very kind* *by his very nature*

G.o.d save you alle, save this cursed Frere; My prologue will I end in this mannere.

Notes to the Prologue to the Sompnour's Tale

1. Carrack: A great ship of burden used by the Portuguese; the name is from the Italian, "cargare," to load

2. In less than half a furlong way of s.p.a.ce: immediately; literally, in less time than it takes to walk half a furlong (110 yards).

THE TALE.

Lordings, there is in Yorkshire, as I guess, A marshy country called Holderness, In which there went a limitour about To preach, and eke to beg, it is no doubt.

And so befell that on a day this frere Had preached at a church in his mannere, And specially, above every thing, Excited he the people in his preaching To trentals, <1> and to give, for G.o.dde's sake, Wherewith men mighte holy houses make, There as divine service is honour'd, Not there as it is wasted and devour'd, Nor where it needeth not for to be given, As to possessioners, <2> that may liven, Thanked be G.o.d, in wealth and abundance.

"Trentals," said he, "deliver from penance Their friendes' soules, as well old as young, Yea, when that they be hastily y-sung, -- Not for to hold a priest jolly and gay, He singeth not but one ma.s.s in a day.

"Deliver out," quoth he, "anon the souls.

Full hard it is, with flesh-hook or with owls* *awls To be y-clawed, or to burn or bake: <3> Now speed you hastily, for Christe's sake."

And when this friar had said all his intent, With qui c.u.m patre<4> forth his way he went, When folk in church had giv'n him what them lest;* *pleased He went his way, no longer would he rest, With scrip and tipped staff, *y-tucked high:* *with his robe tucked In every house he gan to pore* and pry, up high* *peer And begged meal and cheese, or elles corn.

His fellow had a staff tipped with horn, A pair of tables* all of ivory, *writing tablets And a pointel* y-polish'd fetisly,** *pencil **daintily And wrote alway the names, as he stood; Of all the folk that gave them any good, Askaunce* that he woulde for them pray. *see note <5> "Give us a bushel wheat, or malt, or rey,* *rye A G.o.dde's kichel,* or a trip** of cheese, *little cake<6> **sc.r.a.p Or elles what you list, we may not chese;* *choose A G.o.dde's halfpenny, <6> or a ma.s.s penny; Or give us of your brawn, if ye have any; A dagon* of your blanket, leve dame, *remnant Our sister dear, -- lo, here I write your name,-- Bacon or beef, or such thing as ye find."

A st.u.r.dy harlot* went them aye behind, *manservant <7> That was their hoste's man, and bare a sack, And what men gave them, laid it on his back And when that he was out at door, anon He *planed away* the names every one, *rubbed out*

That he before had written in his tables: He served them with nifles* and with fables. -- *silly tales

"Nay, there thou liest, thou Sompnour," quoth the Frere.

"Peace," quoth our Host, "for Christe's mother dear; Tell forth thy tale, and spare it not at all."

"So thrive I," quoth this Sompnour, "so I shall." --

So long he went from house to house, till he Came to a house, where he was wont to be Refreshed more than in a hundred places Sick lay the husband man, whose that the place is, Bed-rid upon a couche low he lay: *"Deus hic,"* quoth he; "O Thomas friend, good day," *G.o.d be here*

Said this friar, all courteously and soft.

"Thomas," quoth he, "G.o.d *yield it you,* full oft *reward you for*

Have I upon this bench fared full well, Here have I eaten many a merry meal."

And from the bench he drove away the cat, And laid adown his potent* and his hat, *staff <8> And eke his scrip, and sat himself adown: His fellow was y-walked into town Forth with his knave,* into that hostelry *servant Where as he shope* him that night to lie. *shaped, purposed

"O deare master," quoth this sicke man, "How have ye fared since that March began?