University of Virginia Library

In Tessaile hit tyde as thus in tyme olde,
A prouynce appropret aperte to Rome,
An yle enabit nobli and wele
With a callid of men, mermydons:
There was a kyng in þat coste þat þe kithe ought,
A noble man for þe nonest [is] namet Pelleus.
That worthy hade a wyfe walit hym-seluon,
The truthe for to telle, Tetyda she heght:
Þes gret in þere gamyn gate hom betwene,
Achilles by chaunce chiualrous in armes.
(More of thies Myrmydons mell I not now,
Enabit in (þat aile,) [ne] Etill will I ferre,
How Mawros were men made on a day
At þe prayer of a prinse þat peopull hade loste
This Pelleus pert, prudest in armys,
Hade a broþer of birthe born or hym-seluyn,
That heire was & Eldist, and Eson he hight.
Till it fell hym by fortune, faintyng of elde,
Unstithe for to stire, or stightill the Realme,
And all were, & weike, wantide his sight,
Of Septur and soile he sesit his brothir,
And hym crownede as kyng in þat kithe riche.
Eson afterwarde erdand on lyffe,
Endured his dayes drowpynge in age,
As Ovide openly in Eroydos tellus,
How Medea the maiden made hym all new,
By crafte þat she kouth of hir coint artys.
Eson, þat elde man þat I er saide,
Hade a son of hym-selfe semly to wale,
And Jason, þat gentill aioynet was to name:
A faire man of feturs, & fellist in armys,
As meke as a Mayden, & mery of his wordis.
This Jason for his gentris was ioyfull till all,
Wele louit with þe lordes & the londe hole;
All worshipped þat worthy inwones aboute,
No les þan þe lege þat hom lede shuld:
And he as bainly obeyede to the buerne his Eme,
As þof his syre hade the soile & septure to yeme.
Pelleus persayuit the people anone,
That the londe so hym louede, lorde as he were,
And ay drede hym on dayes for doute þat might falle,
Lest he put hym from priuelage & his place take,
Of Tessaile, as truthe wolde, to be trew kyng.
Thus Pelleus with payne was pricket in hert,
ffull egurly with enuy, & euer hym bethoght,
With a course of vnkyndnes he caste in his thoghte,
The freike vpon faire wise ferke out of lyue,
And he no dauuger nor deire for þat dede haue.
He bethought hym full thicke in his throo hert,
And in his wit was he war of a wyle sone,
Of a fame þat fer in fele kynges londes,
And borne was a brode for a bare aunter.
Out in the Orient Orible to here,
In a cuntre was cald Colchos by name,
Was (an) aunter in a nyle þat I nem shall,
Beyonde the terage of Troy as þe trety sayse,
There was a wonderfull wethur weghes to be-holde,
With a flese þat was fyne, flamande of gold;
And þe Kyng of þat coste callid was by name
Chethes, for sothe, as souerayne & lord:
He was mighty on molde & mekull goode hade,
His pride well ouerput, past into elde.
This whethur and þe wole were wonderly keppit
By the crafte & the cure & conyng of Mars,
That with charmes & enchauntementes was chefe gode.
Thus coyntly it kept was all with clene art,
By too oxen oribull on for to loke,
And a derfe dragon drede to be-holde.
These balfull bestes were, as þe boke tellus,
ffull flaumond of fyre with fnastyng of logh,
That girde thurgh ther gorge with a grete hete
A nelne brode all Aboute, þat no buerne might
ffor the birre it abide, but he brente were.
And wo this wethur shuld wyn bude wirke as I say,
Ayre euyn to þe Oxen, entre hom in yoke,
With striffe or with stroke till þai stonde wolde;
Aftur ayre vp the erthe on ardagh wise.
Sythen drawe to þe dragon, & þe derfe qwelle,
Girde out the grete teth of the grym best,
And alse sede in þe season sowe it on þe erthe,
Than a ferlyfull frute shall he fynde after:
The tethe shall turne tite vnto knightes
Armyt at all peses, able to were
Thai to falle vpon fight as fomen belyue,
With depe woundes and derfe till all be dede euyn.
All thes perels to passe with-outen payne other,
That the flese wold fecche & ferke yt away.
Of this wonderfull wethur for to here more,
Why it kept was by craft on so coynt wyse;
Hit was said oft sythes and for sothe holden,
That Chethes the same kyng had a som hoge
Of grete gobbettes of gold in the ground hide,
And so kepid it with craft of his coynt artys:
And for to get of this gold & the grete sommys,
ffor couetous þere come knightes full ofte,
And endit in Auerys to ay lastand sorowe.
This Pelleus with pyne printede in hert
Iff he might sleghly be sleght & sletyng of wordes,
Gar Jason with any gyn the jorney vndertake:
He were seker as hym semyde for sight of hym euer,
And most likly be loste & his los keppit.
He purpast hym plainly in his pure wit
ffor to tyse hym þerto, if it tyde might,
To take it hertely on honde in a high pride,
And þe way for to wylne with wilfull desyre.
He cast hym full cointly be cause of this thyng,
In a Cité be-syde to somyn a fest,
With princes and prelates & prise of the lond,
Thre dayes to endure with daintes ynogh.
The iijd day throly he thought in his hert
ffor to mele of this mater, þat he in mynde hade:
He cald Jason in his Japis with a Joly wille.
Before the baronage at ther burde thus þe buerne saide—
“Cosyn, it is knowen þat I am Kyng here,
And mekyll comfordes me the crowne of this kyde realme;
But more it Joyes me, Jason, of þi just werkes,
Þat so mighty & meke & manly art holdyn:
Now þi fame shall goo fer & þu furse holdyn,
And all prouyns & pertes þi pes shall desyre.
To tessayle a tresure tristy for euer,
Thy selfe to be sene and in suche fame,
By þi name þus anoisyt & for noble holden,
Whyle you rixlis in this Reame no riot we drede,
But all fferd be þerfore and frendship dyssire.
Hit wold sothely me set as souerayne in Joye,
Iff our goddes wold graunt þat þu grace hade,
That the fflese þat is ffreshe flamond of gold
Were brought throw þi boldness into þis byg yle
And þat wold doutles be done & no dere In,
Wold þu afforce þe þerfore and þe fight take,
Be of gouernance graithe & of good wille.
Yiff þu puttes þe pristly þis point for to do,
Thou shall arayit be full ryolle with a route noble
Of my Baronage bolde & my best wise.
I shall spare for no spence & þu spede wele,
And do þi deuer duly as a duke nobill:
Thou shalt haue holly my hert & my helpe alse,
And be lappid in my luffe all my lyffe after.
þu may be glad for to get such a good name,
And haue for þi hardynes a full hegh mede:
Leve þis for lell, me list it perfourme,
And to hold it with hert þat I hete nowe,
I will fayne þe [no] faintis vnder faith wordes.
When my dayes be done þu shalt be Duke here,
And haue þe Crowne to kepe of þis Kyd Realme;
And while I liffe in this londe, no less þan my selfe,
Halfe for to haue & hold for þi name,
And with all weghis to be worshipt to þe worldes ende.”