Til I coud flee ful high under the skie.
Tho dwelled a tercelet me fafte by
That femed welle of alle gentilleffe,
Al were he ful of trefon and falfeneffe.
It was fo wrapped under humble chere,
And under hew of trouth in swiche manere,
Under plefance, and under befy peine,
That no wight coud have wend he coude feine,
So depe in greyn he died his coloures.
Right as a ferpent hideth him under floures,
Til he may fee his time for to bite,
Right fo this god of Loves hypocrite
Doth fo his ceremonies and obeisance,
And kepeth in femblaunt alle his obfervance 1c830 That founeth unto gentilleffe of love.
As on a tombe is all the faire above,
And under is the corps, fwiche as ye wote,
Swiche was this hypocrite both cold and hote,
And in this wife he ferved his entent,
That fave the fend non wifte what he ment;
Til he fo long had weped and complained,
And many a yere his fervice to me fained,
Till that min herte, to pitous and to nice,
Al innocent of his crowned malice,
. 10840. crowned malice] The reader of tafte will not be displeased, I truft, at my having received this reading upon the authority of mi. A. only: the common reading is crucl.
For-fered of his deth, as thoughte me,
Upon his othes and his feuretee
Graunted him love on this conditioun,
That evermo min honour and renoun
Were faved, both privee and apert;
This is to fay, that after his defert
I yave him all min herte and all my thought,
(God wote and he that other wayes nought)
And toke his herte in chaunge of min for ay.
But foth is faid, gon fithen is many a day
A trewe wight and a theef thinken not on.
And whan he saw the thing fo fer ygon,
That I had granted him fully my love,
In fwiche a guise as I have said above,
And yeven him my trewe herte as free
As he swore that he yaf his herte to me,
Anon this tigre, ful of doublenesse,
Fell on his knees with fo gret humblesse,
With so high reverence, as by his chere,
So like a gentil lover of manere,
So ravished, as it femed, for the joye,
That never Jafon ne Paris of Troye,
Jafon! certes ne never other man
Sin Lamech was, that alderfirst began
To loven two, as writen folk beforne,
Ne never fithen the first man was borne,
Ne coude man by twenty thousand part
Contrefete the fophimes of his art,
Ne were worthy to unbocle his galoche,
Ther doubleneffe of faining fhuld approche, 10870
Ne coude fo thanke a wight as he did me.
His maner was an heven for to fee
To any woman, were fhe never so wife,
So painted he and kenipt at point devise
As wel his wordes as his contenance:
And I fo loved him for his obeifance,
And for the trouthe I demed in his herte,
That if fo were that any thing him fmerte,
Al were it never fo lite, and I it wist,
Me thought I felt deth at myn herte twist.
And, fhortly, fo ferforth this thing is went,
That my will was his willes inftrument;
This is to fay, my will obeied his will
In alle thing, as fer as refon fill,
Keping the boundes of my worship ever:
Ne never had I thing fo lefe ne lever
As him, God wot, ne never fhal no mo.
This lafteth lenger than a yere or two,
That I fuppofed of him nought but good:
But, finally, thus at the last it ftood,
That Fortune wolde that he mufte twin
Out of that place which that I was in.
Wher me was wo it is no queftion;
I cannot make of it defcription:
For o thing dare I tellen boldely,
I know what is the peine of deth therby,
Swiche harme I felt, for he ne might byleve.
So on a day of me he toke his leve,
So forweful eke, that I wend veraily
That he had felt as mochel harme as I,
Whan that I herd him speke and faw his hewe:
But natheles I thought he was so trewe,
And eke that he repairen fhuld again
Within a litel while, foth for to fain,
And refon wold eke that he muste go
For his honour, as often happeth so,
That I made vertue of neceffitee,
And toke it wel fin that it muste be.
As I beft might I hid fro him my forwe,
And toke him by the hond, Seint John to borwe,
And faid him thus, Lo, I am youres all,
Beth fwiche as I have ben to you and shall.
What he answerd it nedeth not reherse;
Who can fay bet than he, who can do werfe?
Whan he hath al wel faid than hath he done; 10915
Therfore behoveth him a ful long fpone
That shal ete with a fend; thus herd I say.
So at the last he mufte forth his way;
And forth he fleeth, til he come ther him left.
Whan it came him to purpos for to reft,
I trow that he had thilke text in mind,
That alle thing repairing to his kind
. 10921. thilke text] Boethius, 1. iii. met. 2 ;
Repetunt proprios quæque recurfus,
Redituque fuo fingula gaudent-
Gladeth himself; thus fain men as I geffe:
Men loven of propre kind newefangelneffe,
As briddes don that men in cages fede;
For though thou night and day take of hem hede,
And ftrew hir cage faire and foft as filke,
And give hem fugre, hony, bred, and milke,
Yet right anon as that his dore is up
He with his feet wol spurnen doun his cup,
And to the wood he wol and wormes ete,
So newefangel ben they of hir mete,
And loven noveltees of propre kind;
No gentilleffe of blood ne may hem bind.
So ferd this tercelet, alas the day!
Though he were gentil borne, and fresh, and gay,
And goodly for to seen, and humble, and free.
He faw upon a time a kite flee,
And fodenly he loved this kite fo
That all his love is clene from me ago,
And hath his trouthe falfed in this wife.
Thus hath the kite my love in hire service,
And I am lorn withouten remedy.
And with that word this faucon gan to cry,
And fwouneth eft in Canacees barme.
Gret was the forwe for that haukes harme
which our Author has thus tranflated; "All thynges feken
ayen to hir propre course, and all thynges rejoysen on hir retourninge agayne to hir nature." The comparison of the bird is taken from the fame place.
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