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Which that thy fadir heeld 10 in reste and pees,
With title just and trewe in al his age,
And his fadir before him brygelees,"
And his and his, and so forth douteless,
I am ful seur 12 who-so wolde it thee reve,13
Thow woldest thee deffende and putte in prees;
Thy right thow woldest nat, thy thankes,15 leve.
Right so where-as our goode fadres olde
Possessid were, and hadden the seisyne
Peisible of Crystes feith, and no man wolde
Impugne hir right, it sit us to enclyne
Ther-to. Let us no ferthere ymagyne
But as that they dide; occupie our right;
And in oure hertes fully determyne

17

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I dyd hym reverence, for I ought to do so,
And told my case as well as I coode,
How my goodes were defrauded me by falshood.
I gat not a mum of his mouth for my meed,
And for lack of mony I myght not spede.
Unto the Rolles I gat me from thence,
Before the Clarkes of the Chauncerye,
Where many I found earnyng of pence,
But none at all once regarded mee.
I gave them my playnt uppon my knee;
They lyked it well, when they had it reade;
But, lackyng mony, I could not be sped.
In Westmynster-hall I found out one,
Which went in a long gown of raye;

6

I crowched and kneled before hym anon,
For Maryes love, of help I hym praye.

"I wot not what thou meanest," gan he say. 40
To get me thence he dyd me bede; 7
For lack of mony, I cold not speed.
Within this hall, nether rich nor yett poore

8

Wold do for me ought, although I shold dye.
Which seing, I gat me out of the doore,
Where Flemynges began on me for to cry,
"Master, what will you copen or by?
Fyne felt hattes, or spectacles to reede?
Lay down your sylver, and here you may speede."
Then to Westmynster-gate I presently went,
When the sonne was at hyghe pryme;
Cookes to me they tooke good entente,
And proferred me bread, with ale and wyne,
Rybbes of befe, both fat and ful fyne;

A fayre cloth they gan for to sprede.
But, wantyng mony, I myght not then speede.

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16 willingly possession 17 behooves 18 make use of 19 crowd 20 perverse * Probably not by Lydgate.

1 crowd 2 fast 3 Court of Common Pleas then 5 reward 6 a striped cloth

⚫ hasten

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Then I convayd me into Kent,

For of the law wold I meddle no more; Because no man to me tooke entent,1

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I dyght me to do as I dyd before. Now Jesus, that in Bethlem was bore, Save London, and send trew lawyers there mede! For who-so wantes mony with them shall not spede!

FROM THE STORY OF THEBES

How falsly Ethyocles leyde a busshement in the way to have slayn Tydeus

At a posterne forth they gan to ryde

4

By a geyn path, that ley oute a-side, Secrely, that no man hem espie,

IIIO

Only of tresoun and of felonye.
They haste hem forth al the longe day,
Of cruel malys, forto stoppe his way,
Thorgh a forest, alle of oon assent,
Ful covartly to leyn a busshement
Under an hille, at a streite passage,
To falle on hym at mor avantage,
The same way that Tydeus gan drawe
At thylke mount wher that Spynx was slawe.8
He, nothing war in his opynyoun 9
Of this conpassed 10 conspiracioun,
But innocent and lich " a gentyl knyght,
Rood ay forth to 12 that it drowe 13 to nyght,
Sool by hym-silf with-oute companye,

7

Havyng no man to wisse 1 hym or to gye.15

But at the last, lifting up his hede,

Toward eve, he gan taken hede;
Mid of his waye, right as eny lyne,
Thoght he saugh, ageyn the mone shyne,
Sheldes fresshe and plates borned 10 bright,
The which environ 17
casten a gret lyght;
Ymagynyng in his fantasye

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Ther was treson and conspiracye
Wrought by the kyng, his journe 18 forto lette.19

How Tydeus outraged fifty knyghtes that lay in awayt for hym

And of al that he no-thyng ne sette,20
But wel assured in his manly herte,

List 21 nat onys a-syde to dyverte,

1130

But kepte his way, his sheld upon his brest, And cast his spere manly in the rest,

1 heed 2 prepared myself 3 ambush 4 convenient

5 purely because of 8 slain 9 not at all

6 greater advantage aware in his thought

7 the same 10 arranged,

formed 11 like 12 till 13 drew 14 direct

16 burnished 17 around 18 journey 19 hinder cared nothing for it 21 wished

15 guide

20 he

2

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8

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And the first platly 1 that he mette Thorgh the body proudely he hym smette, That he fille ded, chief mayster of hem alle; And than at onys they upon hym falle On every part, be compas envyroun. But Tydeus, thorgh his hegh renoun, His blody swerde lete about hym glyde, Sleth and kylleth upon every side In his ire and his mortal tene; 3 That mervaile was he myght so sustene Ageyn hem alle, in every half besette;' But his swerde was so sharpe whette, That his foomen founde ful unsoote." But he, allas! was mad light a foote, Be force grounded,' in ful gret distresse; But of knyghthod and of gret prouesse Up he roos, maugre alle his foon,10 And as they cam, he slogh " hem oon be oon, Lik a lyoun rampaunt in his rage, And on this hille he fond a narow passage, Which that he took of ful high prudence; And liche 12 a boor, stondyng at his diffence, As his foomen proudly hym assaylle, Upon the pleyn he made her blode to raylle Al enviroun, that the soyl wex rede, Now her, now ther, as they fille dede, That her lay on, and ther lay two or thre, So mercyles, in his cruelte, Thilke day he was upon hem founde; And, attonys 14 his enemyes to confounde, Wher-as he stood, this myghty champioun, Be-side he saugh, with water turned doun, An huge stoon large, rounde, and squar; And sodeynly, er that thei wer war, As 15 it hadde leyn ther for the nonys,10 Upon his foon he rolled it at onys, That ten of hem 17 wenten unto wrak, And the remnaunt amased drogh 18 a-bak; 1170 For on by on they wente to meschaunce.19 And fynaly he broght to outraunce 20

Hem everychoon, Tydeus, as blyve,21

16

13

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The longe dayes and the nyghtis eke

I wold bewaille my fortune in this wise, For quhich, agane distresse confort to seke, My custum was on mornis for to ryse Airly as day; O happy exercise,

By the come I to joye out of turment!
Bot now to purpose of my first entent:

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Bewailing in my chamber thus allone,
Despeired of all joye and remedye,
For-tirit 15 of my thoght, and wo begone,

Unto the wyndow gan I walk in hye,18
To se the warld and folk that went forby;
And for the tyme, though I of mirthis fude 17
Myght have no more, to luke it did me gude.

1 succeeded, fared 2 pledge 5 sinned 6 since 7 nature 8 say

pity 11 if 12 planned 13 torture 15 tired out 16 haste 17 food

3 assured

9 should

195

203

210

4 where

10 had

14 living person's

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I kest, behalding unto hir lytill hound, That with his bellis playit on the ground; Than wold I say, and sigh there-with a lyte, 370 "A! wele were him that now were in thy plyte!"

An-othir quhile the lytill nyghtingale,

That sat apon the twiggis, wold I chide, And say ryght thus; "Quhare are thy notis smale, That thou of love has song this morowe-tyde? Seis thou noght hire that sittis the besyde? For Venus sake, the blisfull goddesse clere, Sing on agane, and mak my lady chere."

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Off verry forss 19 behuvit hir to byd,

And to and fro upone that rever deip
Scho ran, cryand 20 with mony peteuss peip.

1 bearing 2 liberality 3 intelligence well

6 these 7 stellified 8 received 9 dies

11 while 12 again 17 she 18 swim

13 frog

14 Esop

whom 10 ceased

15 did

16 to

19 of very necessity 32 crying

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