This hors anoon bigan to trippe and daunce,
Whan that this knight leyde hand up-on his reyne,
And seyde, ‘sir, ther is na-more to seyne,
But, whan yow list to ryden any-where, 315
Ye moten trille a pin, stant in his ere,
Which I shall telle yow bitwix vs two.
Ye mote nempne him to what place also (310)
Or to what contree that yow list to ryde.
And whan ye come ther as yow list abyde, 320
Bidde him descende, and trille another pin,
For ther-in lyth the effect of al the gin,
And he wol doun descende and doon your wille;
And in that place he wol abyde stille,
Though al the world the contrarie hadde y-swore; 325
He shal nat thennes ben y-drawe ne y-bore.
Or, if yow liste bidde him thennes goon,
Trille this pin, and he wol vanishe anoon (320)
Out of the sighte of every maner wight,
And come agayn, be it by day or night, 330
When that yow list to clepen him ageyn
In swich a gyse as I shal to yow seyn
Bitwixe yow and me, and that ful sone.
Ryde whan yow list, ther is na-more to done.’
317. E. Hn. Cm. yow telle; _rest_ telle yow. 322. E. ther; Cm.
theere; _rest_ ther-inne, ther-in. 324. Cp. Hl. abyde; Hn. abiden;
Pt. Ln. abide; E. Cm. stonde; _see l._ 320. 326. E. Hn. nor; _the
rest_ ne. 327. Cp. liste; Ln. luste; Hl. lust to; Cm. wit; E. Hn. Pt.
list. 330. Hl. by; _rest omit._
Enformed whan the king was of that knight, 335
And hath conceyved in his wit aright
The maner and the forme of al this thing,
Thus glad and blythe, this noble doughty king (330)
Repeireth to his revel as biforn.
The brydel is un-to the tour y-born, 340
And kept among his Iewels leve and dere.
The hors vanisshed, I noot in what manere,
Out of hir sighte; ye gete na-more of me.
[471: T. 10658-10692.]
But thus I lete in lust and Iolitee
This Cambynskan his lordes festeyinge, 345
Til wel ny the day bigan to springe.
338. E. Cm. Thus; _rest_ Ful. E. Cm. _omit_ doughty. 341. E.
Iueles.
=Explicit prima pars. Sequitur pars secunda.=
The norice of digestioun, the slepe,
Gan on hem winke, and bad hem taken kepe, (340)
That muchel drink and labour wolde han reste;
And with a galping mouth hem alle he keste, 350
And seyde, ‘it was tyme to lye adoun,
For blood was in his dominacioun;
Cherissheth blood, natures freend,’ quod he.
They thanken him galpinge, by two, by three,
And every wight gan drawe him to his reste, 355
As slepe hem bad; they toke it for the beste.
Hir dremes shul nat been y-told for me;
Ful were hir hedes of fumositee, (350)
That causeth dreem, of which ther nis no charge.
They slepen til that it was pryme large, 360
The moste part, but it were Canacee;
She was ful mesurable, as wommen be.
For of hir fader hadde she take leve
To gon to reste, sone after it was eve;
Hir liste nat appalled for to be, 365
Nor on the morwe unfestlich for to see;
And slepte hir firste sleep, and thanne awook.
For swich a Ioye she in hir herte took (360)
Both of hir queynte ring and hir mirour,
That twenty tyme she changed hir colour; 370
And in hir slepe, right for impressioun
Of hir mirour, she hadde a visioun.
Wherfore, er that the sonne gan up glyde,
She cleped on hir maistresse hir bisyde,
And seyde, that hir liste for to ryse. 375
358. E. heddes; Cm. heedys. 366. Hn. Cm. Nor; E. Hl. Ne; Cp. Pt. Ln.
For [_for_ Nor]. 372. E. Avisioun; _rest_ a visioun.
Thise olde wommen that been gladly wyse,
As is hir maistresse, answerde hir anoon,
And seyde, ‘madame, whider wil ye goon (370)
[472: T. 10693-10728.]
Thus erly? for the folk ben alle on reste.’
‘I wol,’ quod she, ‘aryse, for me leste 380
No lenger for to slepe, and walke aboute.’