Nothing ne knew he that it was Arcite; God wot he wold have trowed it ful lite. That feld hath eyen, and the wood hath eres. 1525 For al day meten men at unset steven. That was fo neigh to herken of his faw, Whan that Arcite had romed all his fill, 1530 And fongen all the roundel luftily, Into a ftudie he fell fodenly, As don thefe lovers in hir qucinte geres, Now in the crop, and now down in the breres, 1535 Right as the Friday, fothly for to tell, 1540 . 1524. feld bath eyen] An old monkish verfe to this effect is quoted in mf. Bod. James, n. 6, p. 161; "Campus habet "lumen, et habet nemus auris acumen." . 1537. Now shineth it, and now] I have printed this line fo upon the credit of edit. M. which profefies to follow m tho' perhaps we might fafely read with mf. A. Now itte thineth now-ite may have been a diffyllable formerly as well as atte And fet him doun withouten any more; Alas! (quod he) the day that I was bore! 1545 1550 1555 Now highte I Philoftrat not worth a mite. 1560 Thus hath your ire our linage all fordo, fhert. 1565 1570 Of all the remenant of min other care And with that word he fell doun in a trance 1575 This Palamon, that thought thurghout his herte For ire he quoke, no lenger wolde he hide: 1580 And art my blood, and to my confeil fworn, 1585 And haft beiaped here Duk Thefcus, And though that I no wepen have in this place, I drede nought that eyther thou shalt die Or thou ne fhalt nat loven Emelie : 1590 1595 Chefe which thou wolt, for thou shalt not afterte. This Arcite, tho with ful dispitous herte, Volume II. H Whan he him knew, and had his tale herd, Which that thou faift that I have made to thee. 16co 1605 1610 Have here my trouth, to-morwe I will not faille, That here I wol be founden as a knight, And bringen harneis right ynough for thee, 1615 And chefe the beste, and love the werfte for me: This Palamon anfwerd, I grant it thee: And thus they ben departed til a morwe, 1620 1625 Ful foth is fayde, that love ne lordship Arcite is ridden anon unto the toun, 1630 Both fuffifant and mete to darreine The bataille in the feld betwix hem tweine; And on his hors, alone as he was borne, 1635 He carieth all this harneis him beforne; And in the grove, at time and place yfette, Tho changen gan the colour in hir face, 1640 That stondeth at a gappe with a spere, Whan hunted is the lion or the bere, And hereth him come rushing in the greves, And thinketh here cometh my mortal enemy, 1645 For eyther I mote flain him at the gappe, Or he mote flen me if that me mishappe. . 1628. bis thankes] With his good will. See alfo ver. 2109, 5854, and ver. 2116, hir thankes, with their good will. So in the Sax. Chron. p. 243, "fume here thankes, and fume here "unthankes," aliqui libenter et aliqui ingratis. . 1644. And breking] The mff. all read breketh. But it is more likely, I think, that the first transcriber thould have made a mistake in that word than that Chaucer thould have offended fo unneceffarily againft grammar. |