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 | The Romance of William of Palerne |  |
Lordes, lusteneþ her-to ȝif ȝou lef þinkes!
þemperour bliþe of þe barn on his blonk rides
Fast til þe forest, til he fond al his fre ferd,
þat hadde take þat time moche trye game,
boþe bores & beres fele hors charge,
hertes & hindes & oþer bestes manye.
& whan þe loueli ludes seie here lord come,
þei were geinliche glad & gretten him faire,
but alle a-wondered þei were of þe barn him bi-hinde,
so faire & so fetyse it was & freliche schapen;
& freyned faire of þemperour whar he it founde hadde.
he gaf hem answere a-gayn þat god it him sent,
oþer-wise wist non where he it founde.
þan rod he forþ wiþ þat rowte in-to rome euene,
& euer þat bold barn by-hinde him sat stille.
so passed he to þe paleys and presteliche a-liȝt,
& william þat choys child in-to his chaumber ledde.
a dere damisele to douȝter þis emperour hadde þanne,
of alle fasoun þe fairest þat euer freke seiȝe,
& witerly william & ȝhe were of on held,
as euene as ani wiȝt schuld attely bi siȝt.
& þat menskful mayde melior was hoten,
a more curteyse creature ne cunnyngere of hire age,
was nouȝt þanne in þis world þat ani wiȝt knewe.
þemperour to þat mayde mekliche wendeþ,
& william þat worþi child wiþ him he ladde,
and seide, “dere douȝter y do þe to wite,
I haue a pris presant to plese wiþ þi hert.
haue here þis bold barn & be til him meke,
& do him kepe clenly for kome he his of gode;
I hent þis at hunting swiche hap god me sent;”
& told here þanne as tit treweli al þe soþe,
how he hade missed is mayne & malskrid a-boute,
& how þe werwolf wan him bi wiþ a wilde hert,
& how sadly he him sewed to haue slayn þat dere,
til þei hadde brouȝt him þere þat barn bestes kept,
& how sone of his seiȝt þe bestes seþþen ware;
& how þe couherde com him to & was a-knowe þe soþe,
how he him fond in þat forest ferst, þat faire child,
& how komeliche y-cloþed for ani kinges sone;
& how þe kouherde for kare cumsed to sorwe,
whanne he wold wiþ þe child wende him fromme;
& how boldely þat barn bad þe couherde þanne
to grete wel his gode wiif & gamely þer-after
alle his freliche felawes bi-forn as i told.
“& þer-fore, my dere douȝter” þemperour seide,
“For mi lof loke him wel for lelly me þinkes,
bi his menskful maners & his man-hede,
þat he is kome of god kin to crist y hope;
[OMITTED]
þemperour bliþe of þe barn on his blonk rides
Fast til þe forest, til he fond al his fre ferd,
þat hadde take þat time moche trye game,
boþe bores & beres fele hors charge,
hertes & hindes & oþer bestes manye.
& whan þe loueli ludes seie here lord come,
þei were geinliche glad & gretten him faire,
but alle a-wondered þei were of þe barn him bi-hinde,
so faire & so fetyse it was & freliche schapen;
& freyned faire of þemperour whar he it founde hadde.
he gaf hem answere a-gayn þat god it him sent,
oþer-wise wist non where he it founde.
þan rod he forþ wiþ þat rowte in-to rome euene,
& euer þat bold barn by-hinde him sat stille.
so passed he to þe paleys and presteliche a-liȝt,
& william þat choys child in-to his chaumber ledde.
a dere damisele to douȝter þis emperour hadde þanne,
of alle fasoun þe fairest þat euer freke seiȝe,
& witerly william & ȝhe were of on held,
as euene as ani wiȝt schuld attely bi siȝt.
& þat menskful mayde melior was hoten,
a more curteyse creature ne cunnyngere of hire age,
was nouȝt þanne in þis world þat ani wiȝt knewe.
þemperour to þat mayde mekliche wendeþ,
& william þat worþi child wiþ him he ladde,
and seide, “dere douȝter y do þe to wite,
19
haue here þis bold barn & be til him meke,
& do him kepe clenly for kome he his of gode;
I hent þis at hunting swiche hap god me sent;”
& told here þanne as tit treweli al þe soþe,
how he hade missed is mayne & malskrid a-boute,
& how þe werwolf wan him bi wiþ a wilde hert,
& how sadly he him sewed to haue slayn þat dere,
til þei hadde brouȝt him þere þat barn bestes kept,
& how sone of his seiȝt þe bestes seþþen ware;
& how þe couherde com him to & was a-knowe þe soþe,
how he him fond in þat forest ferst, þat faire child,
& how komeliche y-cloþed for ani kinges sone;
& how þe kouherde for kare cumsed to sorwe,
whanne he wold wiþ þe child wende him fromme;
& how boldely þat barn bad þe couherde þanne
to grete wel his gode wiif & gamely þer-after
alle his freliche felawes bi-forn as i told.
“& þer-fore, my dere douȝter” þemperour seide,
“For mi lof loke him wel for lelly me þinkes,
bi his menskful maners & his man-hede,
þat he is kome of god kin to crist y hope;
[_]
The next folio (Fol. 10) being lost, it is replaced here with a modern translaton of the original French text.
| The Romance of William of Palerne | |