Today | News | Books | Recipes Adventure | Science Fiction | Ghost stories | Poetry | Children | History Booke wente, 1925 That never-mo hit stille stente. And ther-out com so greet a noise, That, had hit stonden upon Oise, Men mighte hit han herd esely To Rome, I trowe sikerly. (840) 1930 And the noyse which that I herde, For al the world right so hit ferde, As doth the routing of the stoon That from thengyn is leten goon. And al this hous, of whiche I rede, 1935 Was made of twigges, falwe, rede, And grene eek, and som weren whyte, Swiche as men to these cages thwyte, Or maken of these paniers, Or elles hottes or dossers; (850) 1940 That, for the swough and for the twigges, This hous was also ful of gigges, And also ful eek of chirkinges, And of many other werkinges; And eek this hous hath of entrees 1945 As fele as leves been on trees In somer, whan they grene been; And on the roof men may yit seen A thousand holes, and wel mo, To leten wel the soun out go. (860) 1950 And by day, in every tyde, Ben al the dores open wyde, And by night, echoon, unshette; Ne porter ther is non to lette No maner tydings in to pace; 1955 Ne never reste is in that place, That hit nis fild ful of tydinges, Other loude, or of whispringes; And, over alle the houses angles, Is ful of rouninges and of Iangles (870) 1960 Of werre, of pees, of mariages, Of reste, of labour, of viages, Of abood, of deeth, of lyfe, Of love, of hate, acorde, of stryfe, Of loos, of lore, and of winninges, 1965 Of hele, of sekenesse, of bildinges, Of faire windes, of tempestes, Of qualme of folk, and eek of bestes; Of dyvers transmutaciouns Of estats, and eek of regiouns; (880) 1970 Of trust, of drede, of Ielousye, Of wit, of winninge, of folye; Of plentee, and of greet famyne, Of chepe, of derth, and of ruyne; Of good or mis governement, 1975 Of fyr, of dyvers accident. And lo, this hous, of whiche I wryte, Siker be ye, hit nas not lyte; For hit was sixty myle of lengthe; Al was the timber of no strengthe, (890) 1980 Yet hit is founded to endure Whyl that hit list to Aventure, That is the moder of tydinges, As the see of welles and springes,-- And hit was shapen lyk a cage. 1985 'Certes,' quod I, 'in al myn age, Ne saugh I swich a hous as this.' And as I wondred me, y-wis, Upon this hous, tho war was I How that myn egle, faste by, (900) 1990 Was perched hye upon a stoon; And I gan streighte to him goon And seyde thus: 'I preye thee That thou a whyl abyde me For goddes love, and let me seen 1995 What wondres in this place been; For yit, paraventure, I may lere Som good ther-on, or sumwhat here That leef me were, or that I wente.' 'Peter! that is myn entente,' (910) 2000 Quod he to me; 'therfor I dwelle; But certein, oon thing I thee telle, That, but I bringe thee ther-inne, Ne shalt thou never cunne ginne To come in-to hit, out of doute, 2005 So faste hit whirleth, lo, aboute. But sith that Ioves, of his grace, As I have seyd, wol thee solace Fynally with [swiche] thinges, Uncouthe sightes and tydinges, (920) 2010 To passe with thyn hevinesse; Suche routhe hath he of thy distresse, That thou suffrest debonairly-- And wost thy-selven utterly Disesperat of alle blis, 2015 Sith that Fortune hath maad a-mis The [fruit] of al thyn hertes reste Languisshe and eek in point to breste-- That he, through his mighty meryte, Wol do thee ese, al be hit lyte, (930) 2020 And yaf expres commaundement, To whiche I am obedient, To furthre thee with al my might, And wisse and teche thee aright Wher thou maist most tydinges here; 2025 Shaltow anoon heer many oon lere.' With this worde he, right anoon, Hente me up bitwene his toon, And at a windowe in me broghte, That in this hous was, as me thoghte-- (940) 2030 And ther-withal, me thoghte hit stente, And no-thing hit aboute wente-- And me sette in the flore adoun. But which a congregacioun Of folk, as I saugh rome aboute 2035 Some within and some withoute, Nas never seen, ne shal ben eft; That, certes, in the world nis left So many formed by Nature, Ne deed so many a creature; (950) 2040 That wel unethe, in that place, Hadde I oon foot-brede of space; And every wight that I saugh there Rouned ech in otheres ere A newe tyding prevely, 2045 Or elles tolde al openly Right thus, and seyde: 'Nost not thou That is betid, lo, late or now?' 'No,' quod [the other], 'tel me what;'-- And than he tolde him this and that, (960) 2050 And swoor ther-to that hit was sooth-- 'Thus hath he seyd'--and 'Thus he dooth'-- 'Thus shal hit be'--'Thus herde I seye'-- 'That shal be found'--' That dar I leye:'-- That al the folk that is a-lyve 2055 Ne han the cunning to discryve The thinges that I herde there, What aloude, and what in ere. But al the wonder-most was this:-- Whan oon had herd a thing, y-wis, (970) 2060 He com forth to another wight, And gan him tellen, anoon-right, The same that to him was told, Or hit a furlong-way was old, But gan somwhat for to eche 2065 To this tyding in this speche More than hit ever was. And nat so sone departed nas That he fro him, that he ne mette With the thridde; and, or he lette (980) 2070 Any stounde, he tolde him als; Were the tyding sooth or fals, Yit wolde he telle hit nathelees, And evermo with more encrees Than hit was erst. Thus north and southe 2075 Went every [word] fro mouth to mouthe, And that encresing ever-mo, As fyr is wont to quikke and go From a sparke spronge amis, Til al a citee brent up is. (990) 2080 And, whan that was ful y-spronge, And woxen more on every tonge Than ever hit was, [hit] wente anoon Up to a windowe, out to goon; Or, but hit mighte out ther pace, 2085 Hit gan out crepe at som crevace, And fleigh forth faste for the nones. And somtyme saugh I tho, at ones, A lesing and a sad soth-sawe, That gonne of aventure drawe (1000) 2090 Out at a windowe for to pace; And, when they metten in that place, They were a-chekked bothe two, And neither of hem moste out go; For other so they gonne croude, 2095 Til eche of hem gan cryen loude, 'Lat me go first!' 'Nay, but lat me! And here I wol ensuren thee With the nones that thou wolt do so, That I shal never fro thee go, (1010) 2100 But be thyn owne sworen brother! We wil medle us ech with other, That no man, be he never so wrothe, Shal han that oon [of] two, but bothe At ones, al beside his leve, 2105 Come we a-morwe or on eve, Be we cryed or stille y-rouned.' Thus saugh I fals and sooth compouned Togeder flee for oo tydinge. Thus out at holes gonne wringe (1020) 2110 Every tyding streight to Fame; And she gan yeven eche his name. After hir disposicioun, And yaf hem eek duracioun, Some to wexe and wane sone, 2115 As dooth the faire whyte mone, And leet hem gon. Ther mighte I seen Wenged wondres faste fleen, Twenty thousand in a route, As Eolus hem blew aboute. (1030) 2120 And, lord! this hous, in alle tymes, Was ful of shipmen and pilgrymes, With scrippes bret-ful of lesinges, Entremedled with tydinges, And eek a |