That him in song or wisdom mighte passe.
I have wel rad in daun Burnel the Asse
Among his vers, how that ther was a cok,
For that a prestes sone yaf him a knok
Upon his leg, whil he was yong and nyce,
He made him for to lese his benefice.
But certyn ther nis no comparisoun
Betwix the wisdom and discrecioun
Of youre fader, and of his subtilté.
Now syngeth, sire, for seinte Charité,
Let se, konne ye youre fader countrefete?"
This chauntecleer his wynges gan to bete,
As man that couthe his tresoun nought espye,
So was he ravyssht with his flaterie.
Allas! ye lordes, many a fals flatour
Is in youre courtes, and many a losengour,
That plesen yow wel more, by my faith,
Than he that sothfastnesse unto yow saith.
Redeth Ecclesiaste of flaterie;
Betth war, ye lordes, of here treccherie.
This chauntecleer stood heighe upon his toos,
Strecching his nekke, and held his eyen cloos,
And gan to crowe lowde for the noones;
And daun Russel the fox sterte up at oones,
And by the garget hente Chauntecleer,
And on his bak toward the woode him beer.
For yit was ther no man that hadde him sewed.
O destiny, that maist not ben eschewed!
Alas, that Chauntecleer fleigh fro the bemes!
Allas, his wif ne roughte nought of dremes!
And on a Friday fel al this mischaunce.
Certes such cry ne lamentacioun
Was nevere of ladies maad, when Ilioun
Was wonne, and Pirrus with his streite swerd,
Whan he hadde hent Kyng Priam by the berd,
And slayn him (as saith us Eneydos),
As maden alle the hennes in the clos,
Whan they hadde seyn of Chauntecleer the sighte. But sovraignly dame Pertelote schrighte,
Ful lowder than dide Hasdrubales wyf;
Whan that hire housbonde hadde lost his lyf,
And that the Romayns hadde i-brent Cartage,
Sche was so ful of torment and of rage.
That wilfully into the fyr sche sterte,
And brende hirselven with a stedefast herte.
O woful hennes, righte so criden ye,
As, whan that Nero brente the cité
Of Rome, criden senatoures wyves,
For that here housbondes losten alle here lyves;
Withouten gult this Nero hath hem slayn.
Now wol I torne to my tale agayn;
This sely wydwe, and eek hire doughtres tuo,
Herden these hennes crie and maken wo,
And out at dores sterten thay anoon,
And seyen the fox toward the grove goon,
Ank bar upon his bak the cok away;
They criden, "Out! harrow and weylaway!
Ha, ha, the fox!" and after him they ran,
And eek with staves many another man;
Ran Colle our dogge, and Talbot, and Garlond,
And Malkyn, with a distaf in hire hond;
Ran cow and calf, and eek the very hogges,
So were they fered for berkyng of the dogges
And schowtyng of the men and wymmen eke,
Thay ronne so hem thoughte here herte breke,
Thay yelleden as feendes doon in helle;
The dokes criden as men wolde hem quelle ;
The gees for fere flowen over the trees;
Out of the hyves cam the swarm of bees;
So hidous was the noyse, a benedicite!
Certes he jakke straw, and his meyné,
Ne maden nevere schoutes half so schrille,
Whan that thay wolden eny Flemyng kille,
As thilke day was maad upon the fox.
Of bras thay broughten bemes, and of box,
Of horn, of boon, in whiche thay blewe and powpede And therewithal thay schrykede and thay howpede;
It semede as that hevene schulde falle.
Now, goode men, I praye you herkneth alle;
Lo, how fortune torneth sodeinly
The hope and pride eek of hire enemy!
This cok that lay upon the foxes bak,
In all his drede, unto the fox he spak,
And saide," Sire, if that I were as ye,
Yet schulde I sayn (as wis God helpe me),
Turneth ayein, ye proude cherles alle!
A verray pestilens upon yow falle!
Now am I come unto this woodes syde,
Maugre youre heed, the cok schal heer abyde;
I wol him ete in faith, and that anoon."
The fox answerde, "In faith, it schal be doon."
And as he spak that word, al sodeinly
This cok brak from his mouth delyverly;
And heigh upon a tree he fleigh anoon.
And whan the fox seigh that he was i-goon,
"Allas!" quod he, "O Chauntecleer, allas!
I have to yow," quod he, "y-don trespas,
Ir-as-moche as I makede yow aferd,
Whan I yow hente, and broughte out of the yerd;
But, sire, I dede it in no wikke entente;
Com doun, and I schal telle yow what I mente.
I schal saye soth to you, God help me so!"
"Nay than," quod he, "I schrewe us bothe tuo
And first I schrewe myself, bothe blood and boones,
If thou bigile me any ofter than oones.
Thou schalt no more, thurgh thy flaterye,
Do me to synge and wynke with myn eye.
For he that wynketh, whan he scholde see,
Al wilfully, God let him never the!"
"Nay," quod the fox," but God yive him meschaunce, That is so undiscret of governaunce,
That jangleth whan he scholde holde his pees."
Lo, such it is for to be reccheles,
And necgligent, and truste on flaterie.
But ye that holden this tale a folye,
As of a fox, or of a cok and hen,
Taketh the moralité thereof, goode men.
For seint Poul saith, that al that writen is,
To oure doctrine it is i-write i-wys.
Taketh the fruyt, and let the chaf be stille.
Now goode God, if that it be thy wille,
As saith my lord, so make us alle good men ;
And bringe us to his heighe blisse. Amen.
Fle fro the pres, and dwelle with sothfastnesse :
Suffice thee thy good, though hit be smal;
For hord hath hate, and clymbyng tikelnesse,
Pres hath envye, and wele blent over al
Savour no more then thee behove shal;
Do wel thy-self that other folk canst rede,
And trouthe thee shal delyver, hit ys no drede.
Peyne thee not eche croked to redresse
In trust of hir that turneth as a bal,
Gret reste stant in lytil besynesse ;
Bewar also to spurne ayein a nal,
Stryve not as doth a crokke with a wal;
Daunte thy-selfe that dauntest otheres dede,
And trouthe thee shal delyver, hit is no drede.
That thee is sent receyve in buxomnesse,
The wrastling of this world asketh a fal;
Here is no hoom, here is but wyldernesse.
Forth pilgrime, forth! forth best, out of thy stal!
Loke up on hye, and thonke God of al;
Weyve thy lust, and let thy gost thee lede,
And trouthe shal thee delyver, hit is no drede.
1. History.-Pauli's "Pictures of Old England" (valuable for social conditions, etc., in Chaucer's time); Jusserand's English "Way-faring Life in the Fourteenth Century"; Wright's "History of Domestic Manners and Sentiments in England During the Middle Ages"; Cutt's "Scenes and Characters in the Middle Ages"; Brown's "Chaucer's England." S. Lanier's "Boys' Froissart" and Bulfinch's "Age of Chivalry" may be used with class.
2. Chaucer-Ward's "Life of" (English Men of Letters Series), Lowell's Essay on, in "My Study Windows"; Minto's "English Poets"; Haweis's "Chaucer for Schools"; Alexander Smith's Essay on, in "Dreamthorpe" (contains prose version of "Knight's Tale"; not strictly reliable, but gives graphic pictures of chivalry); Saunders's "Canterbury Tales"; Lounsbury's "Chaucer," three volumes. The poem on "The Pilgrim and the Ploughman" in Palgrave's "Visions of England," p. 82, is admirable from critical as well as poetical point of view, and should be read with class.
3. Chaucer's Works.-Edition in Clarendon Press series is recommended; at present it contains The Prologue, The Knight's, Nonne Prestes', Prioress', Monk's, Clerk's, Squire's tales, The Rhyme of Sir Thopas, and a number of the minor poems.
For works not included in this edition, Bell's or Gilman's "Chaucer" may be used, also Wright's "Canterbury Tales," with notes.
4. Langland. Wharton's "History of English Poetry," section 8; Morley's "English Writers," vol. iv.
5. Language.-Marsh's "Lectures on the English Language"; Lounsbury's "English Language"; Earle's "Philology of the English Tongue "; Carpenter's "English in the Fourteenth Century "; Trench's "English Past and Present."
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