18
THE CANTERBURY TALES.
Full often time he had the board begun
Aboven allë natións in Prusse.¹
In Lettowe had he reysed,² and in Russe,
No Christian man so oft of his degree.
In Grenade at the siege eke had he be
Of Algesir,³ and ridden in Belmarie.³
At Leyës was he, and at Satalie,
When they were won; and in the Greatë Sea³
At many a noble army had he be.
At mortal battles had he been fifteen,
And foughten for our faith at Tramissene³
In listës thriës, and aye slain his foe.
This ilkë⁴ worthy knight had been also
Some timë with the lord of Palatie,³
Against another heathen in Turkie:
And evermore he had a sovereign price.⁵
And though that he was worthy he was wise,
And of his port as meek as is a maid.
He never yet no villainy⁶ ne said
In all his life, unto no manner wight.
He was a very perfect gentle knight.
But for to tellë you of his array,
His horse was good, but yet he was not gay.
Of fustian he weared a gipon,
Allë besmotter'd with his habergeon,⁷
For he was late y-come from his voyage,
And wentë for to do his pilgrimage.
With him there was his son, a youngë SQUIRE,
A lover, and a lusty bacheler,
With lockës crulle⁸ as they were laid in press.
Of twenty year of age he was I guess.
Of his stature he was of even length,
And wonderly deliver,⁹ and great of strength.
And he had been some time in chevachie,¹⁰
In Flanders, in Artois, and Picardie,
And borne him well, as of so little space,¹¹
In hope to standen in his lady's grace.
Embroider'd was he, as it were a mead
All full of freshë flowers, white and red.
Singing he was, or fluting all the day;
He was as fresh as is the month of May.
Short was his gown, with sleevës long and wide.
Well could he sit on horse, and fairë ride.
He couldë songës make, and well indite,
Joust, and eke dance, and well pourtray and write.
So hot he loved, that by nightertale¹²
He slept no more than doth the nightingale.
Courteous he was, lowly, and serviceable,
And carv'd before his father at the table.¹³
A YEOMAN had he, and servants no mo'
At that time, for him list ridë so;¹⁴
And he was clad in coat and hood of green.
A sheaf of peacock arrows¹⁵ bright and keen
Under his belt he bare full thriftily.
Well could he dress his tackle yeomanly :
His arrows drooped not with feathers low;
And in his hand he bare a mighty bow.
A nut-head¹³ had he, with a brown visage :
Of wood-craft coud¹⁷ he well all the usage :
Upon his arm he bare a gay bracer,¹³
And by his side a sword and a buckler,
And on that other side a gay daggere,
Harnessed well, and sharp as point of spear :
A Christopher¹⁹ on his breast of silver sheen.
An horn he bare, the baldric was of green :
A forster²⁰ was he soothly²¹ as I guess.
There was also a Nun, a PRIORESS,
That of her smiling was full simple and coy ;
Her greatest oathë was but by Saint Loy;²²
And she was cleped²³ Madame Eglentine.
Full well she sang the servicë divine,
Entuned in her nose full seemëly;²⁴
And French she spake full fair and fetisly²⁵
After the school of Stratford attë Bow,
For French of Paris was to her unknow.
At meatë was she well y-taught withal ;
She let no morsel from her lippës fall,
Nor wet her fingers in her saucë deep.
Well could she carry a morsel, and well keep,
That no droppë ne fell upon her breast.
In courtssy was set full much her lest.²⁶
Her over-lippë wiped she so clean,
That in her cup there was no farthing²⁷ seen
Of greasë, when she drunken had her draught;
Full seemëly after her meat she raught : ²⁸
And sickerly she was of great disport,²⁹
And full pleasant, and amiable of port,
And pained her to counterfeitë cheer
¹Been placed at the head of the table, above knights of all nations, in Prussia, whither warriors from all countries were wont to repair, to aid the Teutonic Order in their continual conflicts with their heathen neighbours in "Lettowe" or Lithuania (German, "Litthauen"), Russia, &c.
²Journeyed, ridden, made campaigns; German, "reisen," to travel.
³Algesiras, taken from the Moorish king of Grenada, in 1344 : The Earls of Derby and Salisbury took part in the siege. Belmarie is supposed to have been a Moorish state in Africa; but "Palmyrie" has been suggested as the correct reading. The Great Sea, or perhaps the Greek Sea, is the Eastern Mediterranean. Tramissene, or Tremessen, is enumerated by Froissart among the Moorish kingdoms in Africa. Palatie, or Palathia, in Anatolia, was a fief held by the Christian knights after the Turkish conquests—the holders paying tribute to the infidel. Our knight had fought with one of those lords against a heathen neighbour.
⁴Ilkë, same ; compare the Scottish phrase "of that ilk,"—that is, of the estate which bears the same name as its owner's title.
⁵He was held in very high esteem.
⁶Nothing unbecoming a gentleman.
⁷He wore a short doublet, all soiled by the contact of his coat of mail.
⁸Curled.
⁹Wonderfully nimble.
¹⁰Engaged in cavalry expeditions or raids into the enemy's country.
¹¹Considering the short time he had had.
¹²Night-time.
¹³It was the custom for squires of the highest degree to carve at their fathers' tables.
¹⁴For it pleased him so to ride.
¹⁵Large arrows, with peacocks' feathers.
¹⁶With nut-brown hair; or, round like a nut the, hair being cut short.
¹⁷Knew.
¹⁸Shield for an archer's arm, still called a "bracer," from the French "bras," arm.
¹⁹A figure of St Christopher, used as a brooch, and supposed to possess the power of charming away danger.
²⁰Forester.
²¹Certainly.
²²St Eligius, or Eloy.
²³Called.
²⁴In seemly fashion.
²⁵Properly; Chaucer sneers at the debased Anglo-Norman then taught as French in England.
²⁶Pleasure.
²⁷Not the least speck.
²⁸Reached out her hand.
²⁹Assuredly she was of a lively disposition.
