That to the offryng byforn hire schulde goon,
And if ther dide certeyn so wroth was sche,
That sche was out of alle charité.
Hire keverchefs ful fyne weren of grounde;
I durste swere they weygheden ten pounde
That on a Sonday were upon hire heed.
Hire hosen weren of fyn scarlet reed,
Ful streyte y-teyd, and schoos ful moyste and newe.
Bold was hire face, and fair, and reed of hewe.
Sche was a worthy womman al hire lyfe,
Housbondes at chirche dore sche hadde fyfe,
Withouten other compainye in youthe;
But therof needeth nought to speke as nouthe.
And thries hadde sche ben at Jerusalem;
Sche hadde passed many a straunge streem ;
At Rome sche hadde ben, and at Boloyne,
In Galice at seynt Jame, and at Coloyne.
Sche cowde moche of wandryng by the weye.
Gat-tothed was sche, sothly for to seye.
Uppon an amblere esily sche sat,
Ywympled wel, and on hire heed an hat
As brood as is a bokeler or a targe;
A foot-mantel aboute hire hipes large,
And on hire feet a paire of spores scharpe.
In felaweschipe wel cowde sche lawghe and carpe.
Of remedyes of love sche knew parchaunce,
For of that art sche couthe the olde daunce.
A good man was ther of religioun,
And was a poure PERSOUN of a toun;
But riche he was of holy thought and werk.
He was also a lerned man, a clerk
That Cristes gospel trewely wolde preche;
His parischens devoutly wolde he teche.
Benigne he was, and wonder diligent,
And in adversité ful pacient ;
And such he was i-proved ofte sithes.
Ful loth were him to curse for his tythes,
But rather wolde he yeven out of dowte,
Unto his poure parisschens aboute,
Of his offrynge, and eek of his substaunce.
He cowde in litel thing han suffisaunce.
Wyd was his parische, and houses fer asonder,
But he ne lafte not for reyne ne thonder,
In siknesse nor in meschief to visite
The ferreste in his parissche, moche and lite,
Uppon his feet, and in his hond a staf.
This noble ensample to his scheep he yaf,
That first he wroughte, and afterward he taughte,
Out of the gospel he tho wordes caughte,
And this figure he addede eek therto,
That if gold ruste, what schal yren doo?
For if a prest be foul, on whom we truste,
No wonder is a lewed man to ruste;
And schame it is, if that a prest take kepe,
A [foul] schepherde [to se] and a clene schepe;
Wel oughte a prest ensample for to yive,
By his clennesse, how that his scheep schulde lyve.
He sette not his benefice to hyre,
And leet his scheep encombred in the myre,
And ran to Londone, unto seynte Poules,
To seeken him a chaunterie for soules,
Or with a bretherhede to ben withholde;
But dwelte at hoom, and kepte wel his folde,
So that the wolf ne made it not myscarye;
He was a schepherde and no mercenarie.
And though he holy were, and vertuous,
He was to sinful man nought despitous,
Ne of his speche daungerous ne digne,
But in his teching discret and benigne.
To drawe folk to heven by fairnesse
By good ensample, this was his busynesse:
But it were eny persone obstinat,
What so he were, of high or lowe estat,
Him wolde he snybbe scharply for the nones.
A bettre preest, I trowe, ther nowher non is.
He waytede after no pompe and reverence,
Ne makede him a spiced conscience,
But Cristes lore, and his apostles twelve,
He taughte, but first he folwede it himselve.
With him ther was a PLOUGHMAN, was his brother, That hadde i-lad of dong ful many a fother, A trewe swynkere and a good was he, Lyvynge in pees and perfight charitee. God lovede he best with al his hoole herte At alle tymes, though him gamede or smerte, And thanne his neighebour right as himselve. He wolde thresshe, and therto dyke and delve, For Cristes sake, with every poure wight, Withouten hyre, if it laye in his might. His tythes payede he ful faire and wel, Bothe of his owne swynk and his catel. In a tabard he rood upon a mere.
Ther was also a Reeve and a Mellere,
A Sompnour and a Pardoner also,
A Maunciple, and my self, ther were no mo.
The MELLERE was a stout carl for the nones,
Ful big he was of braun, and eek of boones;
That prevede wel, for overal ther he cam,
At wrastlynge he wolde have alwey the ram.
He was schort schuldred, brood, a thikke knarre,
Ther nas no dore that he nolde heve of harre,
Or breke it at a rennyng with his heed.
His berd as ony sowe or fox was reed,
And therto brood, as though it were a spade.
Upon the cop right of his nose he hade
A werte, and theron stood a tuft of heres,
Reede as the berstles of a sowes eeres.
His nose-thurles blake were and wyde.
A swerd and bokeler baar he by his side,
His mouth as wyde was as a gret forneys.
He was a janglere and a golyardeys,
And that was most of synne and harlotries.
Wel cowde he stele corn, and tollen thries;
And yet he hadde a thombe of gold pardé.
A whit cote and a blew hood werede he.
A baggepipe wel cowde he blowe and sowne,
And therwithal he broughte us out of towne.
A gentil MAUNCIPLE was ther of a temple,
Of which achatours mighten take exemple
For to be wyse in beyying of vitaille.
For whether that he payde, or took by taille,
Algate he waytede so in his achate,
That he was ay biforn and in good state.
Now is not that of God a ful fair grace,
That such a lewed mannes wit schal pace
The wisdom of an heep of lernede men?
Of maystres hadde he moo than thries ten,
That were of lawe expert and curious;
Of which ther were a doseyne in that house,
Worthi to ben stiwardes of rente and lond
Of any lord that is in Engelond,
To make him lyve by his propre good,
In honour detteles, but-if he were wood,
Or lyve as scarsly as hym list desire;
And able for to helpen al a schire
In any caas that mighte falle or happe;
And yit this maunciple sette here aller cappe.
The REEVE was a sklendre colerik man,
His berd was schave as neigh as evere he can.
His heer was by his eres ful round i-shorn.
His top was docked lyk a preest biforn.
Ful longe wern his legges, and ful lene,
Y-lik a staf, ther was no calf y-sene.
Wel cowde he kepe a gerner and a bynne;
Ther was non auditour cowde on him wynne.
Wel wiste he by the droughte, and by the reyn,
The yeeldyng of his seed, and of his greyn.
His lordes scheep, his neet, his dayerie,
His swyn, his hors, his stoor, and his pultrie,
Was holly in this reeves governynge,
And by his covenaunt yaf the rekenynge,
Syn that his lord was twenti yeer of age;
Ther couthe no man bringe him in arrerage.
They were adrad of him, as of the dethe.
Ther nas baillif, ne herde, ne other hyne,
That he ne knew his sleighte and his covyne;
His wonyng was ful fair upon an hethe,
With grene trees i-schadwed was his place.
He cowde bettre than his lord purchace.
Ful riche he was astored prively,
His lord wel couthe he plese subtilly,
To yeve and lene him of his owne good,
And have a thank, and yet a cote, and hood.
In youthe he lerned hadde a good mester;
He was a wel good wrighte, a carpenter.
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