This knight a doghter hadde by his wyf, 5
No children hadde he mo in al his lyf.
Fair was this mayde in excellent beautee
Aboven every wight that man may see;
For nature hath with sovereyn diligence
Y-formed hir in so greet excellence, 10
As though she wolde seyn, ‘lo! I, Nature,
Thus can I forme and peynte a creature,
Whan that me list; who can me countrefete?
Pigmalion noght, though he ay forge and bete,
Or grave, or peynte; for I dar wel seyn, 15
Apelles, Zanzis, sholde werche in veyn,
Outher to grave or peynte or forge or bete,
If they presumed me to countrefete.
For he that is the former principal
Hath maked me his vicaire general, 20
To forme and peynten erthely creaturis
Right as me list, and ech thing in my cure is
Under the mone, that may wane and waxe,
[291: T. 11958-11993.]
And for my werk right no-thing wol I axe;
My lord and I ben ful of oon accord; 25
I made hir to the worship of my lord.
So do I alle myne othere creatures,
What colour that they han, or what figures.’—
Thus semeth me that Nature wolde seye.
16. E. Hn. Apelles; Hl. Appollus; rest Apollus. E. Hn. Zanzis; rest
zephirus (!). 25. E. Hn. ful of oon; _rest_ fully at.
This mayde of age twelf yeer was and tweye, 30
In which that Nature hadde swich delyt.
For right as she can peynte a lilie whyt
And reed a rose, right with swich peynture
She peynted hath this noble creature
Er she were born, up-on hir limes free, 35
Wher-as by right swiche colours sholde be;
And Phebus dyed hath hir tresses grete
Lyk to the stremes of his burned hete.
And if that excellent was hir beautee,
A thousand-fold more vertuous was she. 40
In hir ne lakked no condicioun,
That is to preyse, as by discrecioun.
As wel in goost as body chast was she;
For which she floured in virginitee
With alle humilitee and abstinence, 45
With alle attemperaunce and pacience,
With mesure eek of bering and array.
Discreet she was in answering alway;
Though she were wys as Pallas, dar I seyn,
Hir facound eek ful wommanly and pleyn, 50
No countrefeted termes hadde she
To seme wys; but after hir degree
She spak, and alle hir wordes more and lesse
Souninge in vertu and in gentillesse.
Shamfast she was in maydens shamfastnesse, 55
Constant in herte, and ever in bisinesse
To dryve hir out of ydel slogardye.
Bacus hadde of hir mouth right no maistrye;
For wyn and youthe doon Venus encrece,
[292: T. 11994-12028.]
As men in fyr wol casten oile or grece. 60
And of hir owene vertu, unconstreyned,
She hath ful ofte tyme syk hir feyned,
For that she wolde fleen the companye
Wher lykly was to treten of folye,
As is at festes, revels, and at daunces, 65
That been occasions of daliaunces.
Swich thinges maken children for to be
To sone rype and bold, as men may see,
Which is ful perilous, and hath ben yore.
For al to sone may she lerne lore 70
Of boldnesse, whan she woxen is a wyf.
49. Cp. Pt. Ln. as; _rest om._ 50. E. a (_for_ and). 55. E.
Shamefast. E. _om._ in. 59. E. Hn. dooth; _rest_ doon. E. Hn.
encresse. 60. E. man; _rest_ men. E. wasten; _rest_ casten. E.
oille; greesse. 67. E. Hn. thyng; _rest_ thinges. 70. E. Hn. they;
_rest_ she.
And ye maistresses in your olde lyf,
That lordes doghtres han in governaunce,
Ne taketh of my wordes no displesaunce;
Thenketh that ye ben set in governinges 75
Of lordes doghtres, only for two thinges;
Outher for ye han kept your honestee,
Or elles ye han falle in freletee,
And knowen wel y-nough the olde daunce,
And han forsaken fully swich meschaunce 80
For evermo; therfore, for Cristes sake,
To teche hem vertu loke that ye ne slake.
A theef of venisoun, that hath forlaft
His likerousnesse, and al his olde craft,
Can kepe a forest best of any man. 85
Now kepeth hem wel, for if ye wol, ye can;
Loke wel that ye un-to no vice assente,
Lest ye be dampned for your wikke entente;
For who-so doth, a traitour is certeyn.
And taketh kepe of that that I shal seyn; 90
Of alle tresons sovereyn pestilence
Is whan a wight bitrayseth innocence.
80. E. Hn. han; _rest_ conne. 82. _So_ E. Hn.; _rest_ Kepeth wel tho
that ye undertake. 84. E. Hn. olde; _rest_ theves. 86. _Read_
kep’th; E. Hn. _om._ hem; Hl. hir(!). E. wolde; _rest_ wole (wil).
92. E. Hn. bitrayseth; _rest_ betrayeth.
Ye fadres and ye modres eek also,
Though ye han children, be it oon or two,
[293: T. 12029-12063.]
Your is the charge of al hir surveyaunce, 95
Whyl that they been under your governaunce.
Beth war that by ensample of your livinge,
Or by your necligence in chastisinge,
That they ne perisse; for I dar wel seye,
If that they doon, ye shul it dere abeye. 100
Under a shepherde softe and necligent
The wolf hath many a sheep and lamb to-rent.
Suffyseth oon ensample now as here,
For I mot turne agayn to my matere.
95. E. Hn. surveiaunce; _rest_ sufferaunce (suffraunce). 97. E. Hn.
if; _rest_ that. 99. E. Hn. _om._ ne. 103, 4. E. _om. both lines; I
follow_ Hn. _and the rest_.
This mayde, of which I wol this tale expresse, 105
So kepte hir-self, hir neded no maistresse;
For in hir living maydens mighten rede,
As in a book, every good word or dede,
That longeth to a mayden vertuous;
She was so prudent and so bountevous. 110
For which the fame out-sprong on every syde
Bothe of hir beautee and hir bountee wyde;
That thurgh that land they preysed hir echone,
That loved vertu, save envye allone,
That sory is of other mennes wele, 115
And glad is of his sorwe and his unhele;
(The doctour maketh this descripcioun).
This mayde up-on a day wente in the toun
Toward a temple, with hir moder dere,
As is of yonge maydens the manere. 120