Geoffrey Chaucer - The Canterbury Tales

He knew the tavernes wel in every toun,

And everich hostiler and tappestere

Bet than a lazar or a beggestere;

For un-to swich a worthy man as he

Acorded nat, as by his facultee,

245

To have with seke lazars aqueyntaunce.

It is nat honest, it may nat avaunce

For to delen with no swich poraille,

But al with riche and sellers of vitaille.

And over-al, ther as profit sholde aryse,

250

Curteys he was, and lowly of servyse.

Ther nas no man no-wher so vertuous.

He was the beste beggere in his hous;

252 b

[And yaf a certeyn ferme for the graunt;

252 c

Noon of his bretheren cam ther in his haunt;]

For thogh a widwe hadde noght a sho,

So plesaunt was his " In principio ,"

255

Yet wolde he have a ferthing, er he wente.

His purchas was wel bettre than his rente.

And rage he coude, as it were right a whelpe.

(260)

In love-dayes ther coude he muchel helpe.

For there he was nat lyk a cloisterer,

260

With a thredbar cope, as is a povre scoler,

But he was lyk a maister or a pope.

Of double worsted was his semi-cope,

That rounded as a belle out of the presse.

[9: T. 266-300.]

Somwhat he lipsed, for his wantownesse,

265

To make his English swete up-on his tonge;

And in his harping, whan that he had songe,

His eyen twinkled in his heed aright,

(270)

As doon the sterres in the frosty night.

This worthy limitour was cleped Huberd.

208. E. wantowne. 211. Hn. muche; E. muchel. 213. Hl. owne; E. owene. 215. E. And; rest Ful. 217. Hl. Hn. eek; rest omit . 224. Hl. Cm. han; E. haue. 229. E. harde. 231. E. wepynge. 232. E. Hn. moote; see note . 234. E. yonge; rest faire. 235. Hl. mery; E. murye. 237. E. baar. Pt. vttirly; Hl. vtturly; E. Hn. outrely. 240. E. al the; rest euery. 245. E. Hn. Cm. sike; Pt. Ln. seke; see l. 18. 246. Cm. honest; E. honeste. 248. E. selleres. 250. E. lowely. After l. 252, Hn. alone inserts ll. 252 b and 252 c . 259. Hl. Cm. cloysterer; E. Hn. Cloystrer. 260. So all the MSS. ( but with -bare); cf . l. 290. 262. All worstede ( badly ). 266. Pt. Ln. had; rest hadde.

Marchant.

A Marchant was ther with a forked berd,

271

In mottelee, and hye on horse he sat,

Up-on his heed a Flaundrish bever hat;

His botes clasped faire and fetisly.

His resons he spak ful solempnely,

275

Souninge alway thencrees of his winning.

He wolde the see were kept for any thing

Bitwixe Middelburgh and Orewelle.

(280)

Wel coude he in eschaunge sheeldes selle.

This worthy man ful wel his wit bisette;

280

Ther wiste no wight that he was in dette,

So estatly was he of his governaunce,

With his bargaynes, and with his chevisaunce.

For sothe he was a worthy man with-alle,

But sooth to seyn, I noot how men him calle.

271. Ln. motteley; Hl. motteleye; E. Hn. motlee. 272. E. beu er e. 273. Cp. Pt. clapsed; Hl. clapsud. 274. E. Hise. 281. Cp. statly.

Clerk.

A Clerk ther was of Oxenford also,

286

That un-to logik hadde longe y-go.

As lene was his hors as is a rake,

(290)

And he nas nat right fat, I undertake;

But loked holwe, and ther-to soberly.

290

Ful thredbar was his overest courtepy;

For he had geten him yet no benefyce,

Ne was so worldly for to have offyce.

For him was lever have at his beddes heed

Twenty bokes, clad in blak or reed,

295

Of Aristotle and his philosophye,

Than robes riche, or fithele, or gay sautrye.

But al be that he was a philosophre,

(300)

Yet hadde he but litel gold in cofre;

[10: T. 301-336.]

But al that he mighte of his freendes hente,

300

On bokes and on lerninge he it spente,

And bisily gan for the soules preye

Of hem that yaf him wher-with to scoleye.

Of studie took he most cure and most hede.

Noght o word spak he more than was nede,

305

And that was seyd in forme and reverence,

And short and quik, and ful of hy sentence.

Souninge in moral vertu was his speche,

(310)

And gladly wolde he lerne, and gladly teche.

287. E. And; Hl. Al so; rest As. 289. E. Hn. sobrely; rest soburly. 290. All -bare. Hl. ouerest; E. Hn. Cm. ouereste. 291. Cp. Ln. had; rest hadde. 293. Cp. Ln. Hl. leuer; rest leuere. 300. E. Hl. his; rest on.

Man of Lawe.

A Sergeant of the Lawe, war and wys,

310

That often hadde been at the parvys,

Ther was also, ful riche of excellence.

Discreet he was, and of greet reverence:

He semed swich, his wordes weren so wyse.

Iustyce he was ful often in assyse,

315

By patente, and by pleyn commissioun;

For his science, and for his heigh renoun

Of fees and robes hadde he many oon.

(320)

So greet a purchasour was no-wher noon.

Al was fee simple to him in effect,

320

His purchasing mighte nat been infect.

No-wher so bisy a man as he ther nas,

And yet he semed bisier than he was.

In termes hadde he caas and domes alle,

That from the tyme of king William were falle.

325

Therto he coude endyte, and make a thing,

Ther coude no wight pinche at his wryting;

And every statut coude he pleyn by rote.

(330)

He rood but hoomly in a medlee cote

Girt with a ceint of silk, with barres smale;

Of his array telle I no lenger tale.

324. E. yfalle; rest falle. 326. E. Hn. pynchen; rest pynche, pinche.

Frankeleyn.

A Frankeleyn was in his companye;

Whyt was his berd, as is the dayesye.

Of his complexioun he was sangwyn.

Wel loved he by the morwe a sop in wyn.

[11: T. 337-370.]

335

To liven in delyt was ever his wone,

For he was Epicurus owne sone,

That heeld opinioun, that pleyn delyt

Was verraily felicitee parfyt.

(340)

An housholdere, and that a greet, was he;

Seint Iulian he was in his contree.

His breed, his ale, was alwey after oon;

A bettre envyned man was no-wher noon.

With-oute bake mete was never his hous,

Of fish and flesh, and that so plentevous,

345

It snewed in his hous of mete and drinke,

Of alle deyntees that men coude thinke.

After the sondry sesons of the yeer,

(350)

So chaunged he his mete and his soper.

Ful many a fat partrich hadde he in mewe,

350

And many a breem and many a luce in stewe.

Wo was his cook, but-if his sauce were

Poynaunt and sharp, and redy al his gere.

His table dormant in his halle alway

Stood redy covered al the longe day.

355

At sessiouns ther was he lord and sire;

Ful ofte tyme he was knight of the shire.

An anlas and a gipser al of silk

(360)

Heng at his girdel, whyt as morne milk.

A shirreve hadde he been, and a countour;

360

Was no-wher such a worthy vavasour.

332. E. heed; rest berd, berde. E. a; rest the. 335. ever] Hl. al. 336. E. Hn. Cm. owene; rest owne. 338. Hl. verraily; rest verray, verrey, uery. 340. E. was he; rest he was. 341. Cm. Ln. alwey; Hl. alway; E. Hn. Cp. alweys. 342. Hl. Pt. nowher; Cm. nower: rest neuere; cf . l. 360. 349, 350. E. Hn. muwe, stuwe. 357. E. Hn. anlaas; Hl. Cm. anlas. 358. E. Hn. heeng. 359. E. Hn. Cm. om. a.

Habaerdassher.

An Haberdassher and a Carpenter,

Carpenter.

A Webbe, a Dyere, and a Tapicer,