But by thy lif be ne no more so large; Kepe bet my good; this yeve I thee in charge. THE PRIORESSES PROLOGUE. God give the monke a thousand last quad yere. Draweth no monkes more into your in. But now paffe over, and let us feke aboute Who fhal now tellen first of all this route My Lady Prioresse, by your leve, Now wol ye vouchefauf, may Lady dere? Gladly, quod fhe; and faide as ye fhul here. 13380 v. 13368. a thousand lat quad yere] Laft, in Teut, is onus, farcina, Kilian ; and quaed in the fame language is malus: the meaning therefore is, God give the monke a thoufand iaft (ever fo great a weight) of quad yere (bad years, misfortune.) The Italians ufe mal anno in the fame fenfe. THE PRIORESSES TALE. O Lord our Lord! thy name how merveillous But by the mouth of children thy bountee 13385 Wherfore in laude, as I can beft and may, 13390 Of thee and of the white lily flour Which that thee bare, and is a maide alway, Of bountee, next hire fone, and foules bote. 13395 Thurgh thin humbleffe, the goft that in thee alight, Of whos vertue, whan he thin herte light, 13401 The Priorefes Tale] A miracle of a Chriftian child murdered by the Jews. Urry. v. 13383. O Lord our Lord] The Prioreffe begins her legend with the first verses of the 8th pfalm; " Domine, Dominus nofter," &c. V. 13401. whan be thin herte light] i. e. Lighted, made light or pleasant. So in Tro. b. iii. 1088.; Whan wroth is he that hold my forrowes light. Conceived was the fathers fapience, Lady! thy bountee, thy magnificence, My conning is so weke, o blisful Quene !i Ther was in Afie, in a gret citee, Hateful to Crift and to his compagnie, 13405 13410 13415 13420 And thurgh the strete men mighten ride and wende, For it was free, and open at eyther ende. A litel fcole of Criften folk ther stood Doun at the ferther end, in which ther were Swiche manere doctrine as men used there; 13425 This is to fay, to fingen and to rede, As fmale children don in hir childhede. Among thife children was a widewes fone, As him was taught, to knele adoun, and say 13430 13435 Thus hath this widewe hire litel fone ytaught Our blisful Lady, Criftes moder dere, This litel childe his litel book lerning, 13440 13445 As children lered hir antiphonere, And as he dorft he drow him nere and nere, 13450 Til he the firfle vers coude al by rote. .13444. Seint Nicholas] We have an account of the very early piety of this faint in his leffon, Brev. Roman. vi. Decemb. ; "Cujus viri fanctitas, quanta futura eflet, jam ab incunabulis "apparuit. Nam infans, cum reliquas dies lac nutricis frequens fugeret, quartâ et fextâ feriâ (on Wednesdays and Fridays) "femel duntaxat, idque vefperi, sugebat." Nought wift he what this Latin was to say, To expounden him this fong in his langage, 13455 His felaw, which that elder was than he, 13460 Hire to falue, and eke hire for to prey 13465 13470 13475 To fcoleward and homeward whan he wente; 13480 |