Chaucer's Works-The Canterbury Tales Part 5

And have me somwhat in your souvenaunce.

My woful herte suffreth greet duresse; 15 And [loke] how humbl[el]y, with al simplesse, My wil I conforme to your ordenaunce, As you best list, my peynes to redresse.

10: _I insert_ you. 11: (_Accent on_ Al); live. 12: besynesse.

13. _Dr. Furnivall supplies this lost line_; cf. Complaint to Pity, l.

84. 15. hert suffrith grete. 16: _I supply_ loke; humbly. 17: ordynaunce. 18: for to (_I omit_ for).

Considring eek how I hange in balaunce In your servyse; swich, lo! is my chaunce, 20 Abyding grace, whan that your gentilnesse Of my gret wo list doon allegeaunce, And with your pite me som wyse avaunce, In ful rebating of my hevinesse; And thinkth, by reson, wommanly n.o.blesse 25 Shuld nat desyre for to doon outrance Ther-as she findeth noon unbuxumnesse.

19: eke. 20: service suche loo. 21: (_Perhaps omit_ that). 22: grete woo; do. 23: wise. 24: rebatyng; myn hevynesse. 25: And thynkith be raison that (_too long_). 26: desire; for til do the (_I omit_ the). 27: fyndith non vn-.

_Lenvoye._

Auctour of norture, lady of plesaunce, Soveraine of beaute, flour of wommanhede, Take ye non hede unto myn ignoraunce, 30 But this receyveth of your goodlihede, Thinking that I have caught in remembraunce Your beaute hool, your stedfast governaunce.

29. Soueraigne; floure. 31. receyvith; goodelyhede. 32. Thynkyng.

33. hole; stidefast.

[xxvii]

XXV. COMPLAINT TO MY MORTAL FOE.

Al hoolly youres, withouten otheres part!

Wherefore? y-wis, that I ne can ne may My service chaungen; thus of al suche art The lerninge I desyre for ever and ay.

And evermore, whyl that I live may, 5 In trouthe I wol your servant stille abyde, Although my wo encrese day by day, Til that to me be come the dethes tyde.

From MS. Harl. 7578, fol. 15. At the bottom of fol. 14, back, is the last line of Chaucer's Complaint to Pity, beneath which is written 'Balade.' But the present poem is really a Complaint, like the preceding one. Rejected readings of the MS. are here given. There is no t.i.tle in the MS. except 'Balade.'

1. holly; others parte. 2. I wisse. 3. By (_surely an error for_ My); arte. 4. lernynge; desire; euer (_and_ u _for_ v _often_). 5.

while; leue. 6. trought (_sic_); youre; abide. 7. be (_for_ by).

Seint Valentyne! to you I renovele My woful lyf, as I can, compleyninge; 10 But, as me thinketh, to you a quarele Right greet I have, whan I, rememberinge Bitwene, how kinde, ayeins the yeres springe, Upon your day, doth ech foul chese his make; And you list not in swich comfort me bringe, 15 That to her grace my lady shulde me take.

9. valentine; Renouele. 10. compleynynge. 12. grete; whanne; remembringe. 13. Bytwene howe kende. 14. Vppon youre; doith eche foule. 15. lyste; suche comforte.

[xxviii]

Wherfor unto you, Cupide, I beseche, Furth with Venus, n.o.ble l.u.s.ty G.o.ddesse, Sith ye may best my sorowe lesse and eche; And I, your man, oppressed with distresse, 20 Can not crye 'help!' but to your gentilnesse: So voucheth sauf, sith I, your man, wol dye, My ladies herte in pite folde and presse, That of my peyne I finde remedye.

21. cry helpe; vnto (_for_ to); gentelnesse. 22. safe. 24. peine; fynde I may (_for_ I finde); remydie.

To your conning, my hertes right princesse, 25 My mortal fo, whiche I best love and serve, I recommaunde my boistous lewednesse.

And, for I can not altherbest deserve Your grace, I preye, as he that wol nat swerve, That I may fare the better for my trouthe; 30 Sith I am youres, til deth my herte kerve, On me, your man, now mercy have and routhe.

25. konnyngge; princes. 26. foo. 27. leudenesse. 29. prey; swerue. 30. trouth. 31. herte wol kerue (_I omit_ wol). 32. haue; routh.

[xxix]

XXVI. COMPLAINT TO MY LODE-STERRE.

Of gretter cause may no wight him compleyne Than I; for love hath set me in swich caas That la.s.se Ioye and more encrees of peyne Ne hath no man; wherfore I crye 'allas!'

A thousand tyme, whan I have tyme and s.p.a.ce. 5 For she, that is my verray sorowes grounde, Wol with her grace no wyse my sorowes sounde.

From MS. Harl. 7578, fol. 15, back. No t.i.tle but 'Balade'; but it is really a Complaint. Rejected readings of the MS. are here given.

2. y (_for_ I); hath me sette in swiche. 3. encrese. 5. whenne; haue. 6. sheo; werry (_for_ verray). 7. Wolle; wise; (sounde _means_ heal).

And that, shulde be my sorowes hertes leche, Is me ageins, and maketh me swich werre, That shortly, [in] al maner thought and speche, 10 Whether it be that I be nigh or ferre, I misse the grace of you, my lode-sterre, Which causeth me on you thus for to crye; And al is it for lakke of remedye.

9. Ys; swide (_miswritten for_ swiche). 10. _I supply_ in; alle manere. 11. Whethre. 12. mys; loode-. 13. Whiche. 14. alle; remydie.

My soverain Ioye thus is my mortal fo; 15 She that shulde causen al my l.u.s.tinesse List in no wyse of my sorowes saye 'ho!'

[x.x.x]

But let me thus darraine, in hevinesse, With woful thoughtes and my grete distresse, The which she might right wele, [at] every tyde, 20 If that her liste, out of my herte gyde.

15. souu_er_aine; foo. 16. alle; l.u.s.tynesse. 17. Liste; wise; say hoo. 18. lete; heuinesse. 19. wooful; grette. 20. sheo; _I supply_ at; eu_ery_. 21. oute; guyde.

But it is so, that her list, in no wyse, Have pite on my woful besinesse; And I ne can do no maner servyse That may me torne out of my hevinesse; 25 So wolde G.o.d, that she now wolde impresse Right in her herte my trouthe and eek good wille; And let me not, for lakke of mercy, spille.

22. liste; wise. 23. Haue pitee. 24. kanne; manere seruice. 25.

be (_for_ me); oute; heuynesse. 26. sheo nowe. 27. herre (_for_ her); trough (_sic_); eke. 28. lette; lake.

Now wele I woot why thus I smerte sore; For couthe I wele, as othere folkes, feyne, 30 Than neded me to live in peyne no more, But, whan I were from you, unteye my reyne, And, for the tyme, drawe in another cheyne.

But wolde G.o.d that alle swich were y-knowe, And duely punisshed of hye and lowe. 35

29. woote; why that I thus smerte so sore (_two syllables too much_).

30. couth; sayne (_for_ feyne). 31. Thanne nedes; lyue. 32. whenne; vnteye. 33. into (_for_ in); a-nothre. 35. punisshede both of high (_I omit_ both).

Swich lyf defye I, bothe in thoughte and worde, For yet me were wel lever for to sterve Than in my herte for to make an horde Of any falshood; for, til deth to-kerve My herte and body, shal I never swerve 40 From you, that best may be my fynal cure, But, at your liste, abyde myn aventure;

36. Swiche; defie. 37. yette; sterue. 38. Thanne; hoorde. 39.

falshode; til deth the kerue (_but see note on_ p. x.x.xii). 40.

neu_er_e swerue. 41. youre (_for_ my). 42. atte youre; abide.

And preye to you, n.o.ble seint Valentyne, My ladies herte that ye wolde enbrace, [x.x.xi]

And make her pite to me more enclyne 45 That I may stonden in her n.o.ble grace In hasty tyme, whyl I have lyves s.p.a.ce: For yit wiste I never noon, of my lyve, So litel hony in so fayre hyve.

43. prey; sainte valentine. 45. pitee. 46. here. 47. whiles; haue lyues. 48. yitte; neuere none; lyfe. 49. hiue.

NOTES TO THE PRECEDING POEMS.