Held hym out a while and the lok also ;

Yit trowid he no gile, but went ner to.

480

And scrapid the dorr welp-lich, and wynyd wyth his mowith, Aftir a doggis lyden, as nere as he couith.

"Awey, dog, with evill deth!" quod he that was within, And made hym all redy the dorr to unpin.

"A!" thought the pardoner, "tho I trow my berd be made,
The tapster hath a paramour, and hath made them glade
With the cawdell that I ordeyned for me, as I guess;
Now the devill hir spede, such oon as she is!

She seid I had y-congerid hir, our lady gyve hir sorowe !
Now wold to God she wer in stokis tyl I shuld hir borowe! 490
For she is the falsest that evir yit I knewe,

To pik the mony out of my purs, Lord! she made hir trewe!"
And therewyth he caught a cardiakill and a cold sot;
For who have love-longing and is of corage hote,
He hath ful many a myry thought tofore his delyte;
And right so had the pardoner, and was in evil plight.
For, fayling of his purpose, he was nothing in ese ;
Wherfor he fill sodenlich into a wood rese;
Entryng wondir fast into a frensy,

For pur very angir, and for jelousy.

500

For when he herd a man within, he was almost wood;
And because the cost was his, no marvel tho the moud
Wer turned into vengaunce, yf it myght be.
But this was the myschief, all so strong as he
Was he that was within, and lighter man also ;
As provid wele the bataile betwene them both to.
The pardonere scrapid efft ageyn, for nothyng wold he blyn;
So feyn he wold have herd more of hym that was within.
"What dog is that?" quod the paramour, "Kit, wost thou

ere ?"

"Have God my trowith!" quod she, "it is the pardonere.” 510

"The pardoner, with myscheff! God gyve hym evil preff!" "Sir," she seid, "by my trowith, he is the same theff!” "Therof thou liest," quod the pardoner, and might nat long forbere,

"A! thy fals body!" quod he, "the devil of hell the tere ! For, by my trowith, a falsher sawe I nevir noon,”

And nempnid hir namys many mo than oon.
Though to rech hir wer noon honesté,

Among men of good of worship and degré.

But shortly to conclude; when he had chid i-nowe,

He axid his staff spitouslich wyth wordis sharp and rowe. 520 "Go to bed!" quod he within, “no more noyse thow make Thy staff shal be redy to morowe I undertake.”

“In soth,” quod he, “I wol nat fro the dorr wend,

Tyl I have my staff, thow bribour!" "Then have the tothir end!"

Quod he that was within; and leyd it on his bak,

Right in the same plase as chapmen berith their pak ;

And so he did to mo, as he coud arede,

Graspyng aftir with the staff in lengith and eke in brede; And fond hym othir whyle redlich i-noughe

With the staffys end high upon the browe.

530

The hosteler ley oppon his bed, and herd of this affray, And stert hym up lightlich, and thought he wold asay; He toke a staff in his hond, and highed wondir blyve Tyl he wer with the feleship that shuld nevir thryve. "What be yee?" quod the hosteler, and knew them both wele. "Huyst! pese!" quod the paramour; "Jak, thow must be fele. Ther is a theff, I tell the, within this hall dorr."

"A theff!" quod Jak, "this is a nobill chere

That thou hym hast y-found; yf wee hym myght cach."

66

'Yis, yis, care the nought; with hym we shal mach Wele i-nowe, or he be go, yf so we had lighte;

540

P

For we to be stronge i-nowe with o man for to fighte."
“The devill of hell,” quod Jak, "breke this thevis bonis !
The key of the kitchen, as it wer for the nonys,
Is above with our dame,' and she hath such usage,
And she be wake of her slepe she fallith in such a rage,
That al the weke aftir there may no man hir plese,
So she sterith aboute this house in a wood rese.
But now I am avysid bet how we shul have lyte;
I have too gistis within, that this same nyght
Sopid in the halle, and had a litill feir.

550

Go up," quod Jak, "and loke, and in the ashis pire;
And I wol kepe the dorr, he shall not stert out."
"Nay, for God! that woll I nat, lest I cach a clout,"
Seid the tothir to Jak; "for thou knowist bettir then I
All the estris of this house, go up thy self and spy."
"Nay, for soth," quod Jak, "that were grete unrighte,
To aventur oppon a man that with hym did not fighte.
Sithens thou hast hym bete, and with thy staff y-pilt,
Me thinkith it wer no reson that I shuld bere the gilt; 560
For by the blysyng of the cole he myght se myne hede,
And lightly leve me such a stroke ny hond to be dede.
Then wol we to by common assent sech hym al about,
Who that metith hym first pay him on the snout;
For methought I herd hym here last among the pannys.
Kepe thou the tothir side, but ware the watir cannys,
And if he be herin, ryght sone we shull hym fynde;
And we to be stronge i-nowghe o theffe for to bynde.”
"Aha ha!" thought the pardoner, "beth the pannys aryn?"
And drowghe oppon that side, and thought oppon a

gynne ;

So at last he fond oon, and set it on his hede.

For, as the case was fall, therto he had grete nede.

570

But yit he graspit ferthirmore to have somwhat in honde ;

And fond a grete ladill, right as he was gonde,

And thought for to sterte out betwene them both to ;
And waytid wele the paramour that had doon hym woo;
And set him with the ladill on the gruscill on the nose,
That all the week after he had such a pose,

That both his eyin waterid erlich by the morowe.
But she that was the cause of it had therof no sorowe.
But now to the pardoner; as he wold stert awey,
The hosteler met with hym, but nothyng to his pay;
The pardoner ran so swith the pan fill hym fro,
And Jak hosteler aftir hym, as blyve as he myght go;
And stapid oppon a bronde al unware,

That hym had bin beter to have goon more asware ;
For the egg of the pann met with his shynne,
And karff atoo a veyn, and the next syn.

But whils that it was grene he thought litil on,

580

But when the greneness was apast, the greff sat ner the bone.

Yit Jak leyd to his hond to grope wher it sete,

And when he was y-hurt, the pardoner he gan to threte; And swore by seint Amyas, that he shuld abigg

With stroks hard and sore, even oppon the rigg;

590

Yf he hym myght fynd, he nothyng wold hym spare. That herd the pardoner wele, and held hym bettir asquare, And thought that he had strokis ryght i-nough, Wytnes on his armes, his bak, and his browe. "Jak," then quod the paramour, "wher is the theff ago?” "I note,” quod tho Jak; "right now he lept me fro, That Cristis curs go with hym, for I have harm and spite." "Be my trowith, and I also, and he goith nat al quyte; But and we myght hym fynd, we wold aray hym so

600

593 seint Amyas. I know not the saint referred to in this name, unless it be St. Aimé or Amatus.

That he shuld have legge, ne foot, to morowe on to go.
But how shull we hym fynd; the moon is adown,"

(As grace was for the pardoner) and eke when they did roun,
He herd them evir wele i-nowe, and went the more asyde,
And drew him evir bak-ward, and let the strokis glide.
"Jak,” quod the paramour, "I hold it for the best,
Sith the moon is down, for to go to rest,

And make the gatis fast; he may not then astert,
And eke of his own staff he berith a redy mark,
Wherby thou mayest him knowe among all the route,
And thou ber a redy ey and weyte wele aboute,

To morowe when they shull wend; this is the best rede.
Jak, what seyst thou therto? is this wele y-seyd ?”

610

“ "Thy wit is clere," quod Jak, "thy wit mut nedis stonde." He made the gatis fast; ther is no more to doon.

The pardoner stode asyde, his chekis ron and bled, And was ryght evil at ese al nyght in his hede: He must of force lige lyke a colyn swerd; Yit it mevid him wondir sore for making of his berd; He payd at full therfore, through a womans art, For wyne, and eke for cawdill, and had therof no part; He therfor preyd seynt Juliane, as ye mowe onderstonde, That the devill her shulde spede, on watir and on londe, So to disseive a travellyng man of his herbegage; And coud not els save curs, his angir to aswage; And was distract of his wit, and in grete despayr;

620

For aftir his hete he caught a cold through the nightis

eyr ;

That he was ner asoundit, and coud none othir help.
But as he sought his loggyng, he happid oppon a whelp
That ley undir a steyir, a grete Walssh dog,

630

625 seynt Juliane. St. Julian was the patron saint of hospitality, and of places of public entertainment.