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eke.
516. F. agayne. 518. F. hire. 519. C. dayes eye; F. daysie. F. owene. 520.
F. weel. 521. C. bothe; F. both. F. aftir hir deth. C. ek (_for_ in). 524.
C. dayesye; F. daysye. 526. F. hire goodenesse. 527, 529. C. coroun; F.
corowne. 527. F. berith. 528. C. hath (_badly_). 529. F. Th. florouns;
_rest_ floures. 530. F. honoure. 531. _In margin of_ F.--Cibella mater
deorum. F. maade; daysye; floure. 532. C. I-coroned; F. Y-crowned. F.
white. 533. C. corone; F. corowne. F. reede. 534. C. set; F. sette. 537. F.
Thanne. C. gret; F. grete. F. necligence. 538. F. ys (_wrongly_); _rest_
hit, it. 540. Th. forgete; F. Tn. forgate; T. A. forgat. F. songe. 542. T.
A. Add. so; _rest om._ F. shee. 543. F. bee. 544. C. taughte; F. taught. F.
crafte; Tn. T. A. craft. 545. F. wyfhode; lyvyng. 546. F. al; oght. 547. F.
witte. 548. F. the. C. lyf; F. lyfe. 549. F. legende. C. wif; F. wyfe. 550.
F. y-maade. 551. C. no more; F. namore. 552. F. goo; the. 555. F. Th. my;
_rest_ thy. 556. F. bookes. 557. F. _misplaces_ now _after_ legende; Tn.
Th. _place_ now _after_ hem. 558. F. ben; knowyng. 559. F. here; thousande
moo sittyng. 560. F. Thanne. A. that ben; T. Add. and; _rest om._ 561. Tn.
aught; F. oght. 562. F. lest; Tn. leste. 563. F. home. F. west; Tn. weste.
564. F. thise; _rest_ this. 565. F. fressh; Th. fresshe; A. fresche. 566.
F. wole. 567. F. forthe. C. Tn. shalt; F. shal. 569. F. stronge. 571. F.
Tn. A. swich; T. Th. P. suche. F. Tn. dide; T. dedyn; P. deden; Add. diden.
573. B. Suffyceth; F. Suffich (!). 574. A. lyf; F. lyfe. 575. A. listen
trete; Tn. the lasse to trete (!); Add. the lesse to trete (!); _rest_
listen for to trete (_badly; omit_ for). 576. F. storye. 578. A. word; F.
worde. 579. F. legende.

I. THE LEGEND OF CLEOPATRA.

INCIPIT LEGENDA CLEOPATRIE, MARTIRIS, EGIPTI REGINE.

 After the deeth of Tholomee the king, 580
 That al Egipte hadde in his governing,
 Regned his quene Cleopataras;
 Til on a tyme befel ther swiche a cas,
 That out of Rome was sent a senatour,
 For to conqueren regnes and honour 585
 Unto the toun of Rome, as was usaunce,
 To have the world unto her obeisaunce;
 And, sooth to seye, Antonius was his name.
 So fil hit, as Fortune him oghte a shame (10)
 Whan he was fallen in prosperitee, 590
 Rebel unto the toun of Rome is he.
 And over al this, the suster of Cesar,
 He lafte hir falsly, er that she was war,
 And wolde algates han another wyf;
 For whiche he took with Rome and Cesar stryf. 595
 Natheles, for-sooth, this ilke senatour
 Was a ful worthy gentil werreyour,
 And of his deeth hit was ful greet damage.
 But love had broght this man in swiche a rage, (20)
 And him so narwe bounden in his las, 600
 Al for the love of Cleopataras,
 That al the world he sette at no value.
 Him thoughte, nas to him no thing so due
 As Cleopatras for to love and serve;
 Him roghte nat in armes for to sterve 605
 In the defence of hir, and of hir right.
 This noble quene eek lovede so this knight,
 Through his desert, and for his chivalrye;
 As certeinly, but-if that bokes lye, (30)
 He was, of persone and of gentilesse, 610
 And of discrecioun and hardinesse,
 Worthy to any wight that liven may.
 And she was fair as is the rose in May.
 And, for to maken shortly is the beste,
 She wex his wyf, and hadde him as hir leste. 615
 The wedding and the feste to devyse,
 To me, that have y-take swiche empryse
 Of so many a storie for to make,
 Hit were to long, lest that I sholde slake (40)
 Of thing that bereth more effect and charge; 620
 For men may overlade a ship or barge;
 And forthy to theffect than wol I skippe,
 And al the remenant, I wol lete hit slippe.
 Octovian, that wood was of this dede,
 Shoop him an ost on Antony to lede 625
 Al-outerly for his destruccioun,
 With stoute Romains, cruel as leoun;
 To ship they wente, and thus I let hem saile.
 Antonius was war, and wol nat faile (50)
 To meten with thise Romains, if he may; 630
 Took eek his reed, and bothe, upon a day,
 His wyf and he, and al his ost, forth wente
 To shippe anoon, no lenger they ne stente;
 And in the see hit happed hem to mete--
 Up goth the trompe--and for to shoute and shete, 635
 And peynen hem to sette on with the sonne.
 With grisly soun out goth the grete gonne,
 And heterly they hurtlen al at ones,
 And fro the top doun cometh the grete stones. (60)
 In goth the grapenel so ful of crokes 640
 Among the ropes, and the shering-hokes.
 In with the polax presseth he and he;
 Behind the mast beginneth he to flee,
 And out agayn, and dryveth him over-borde;
 He stingeth him upon his speres orde; 645
 He rent the sail with hokes lyke a sythe;
 He bringeth the cuppe, and biddeth hem be blythe;
 He poureth pesen upon the hacches slider;
 With pottes ful of lym they goon to-gider; (70)
 And thus the longe day in fight they spende 650
 Til, at the laste, as every thing hath ende,
 Antony is shent, and put him to the flighte,
 And al his folk to-go, that best go mighte.
 Fleeth eek the queen, with al her purpre sail,
 For strokes, which that wente as thikke as hail; 655
 No wonder was, she mighte hit nat endure.
 And whan that Antony saw that aventure,
 'Allas!' quod he, 'the day that I was born!
 My worshipe in this day thus have I lorn!' (80)
 And for dispeyr out of his witte he sterte, 660
 And roof him-self anoon through-out the herte
 Er that he ferther wente out of the place.
 His wyf, that coude of Cesar have no grace,
 To Egipte is fled, for drede and for distresse;
 But herkneth, ye that speke of kindenesse. 665
 Ye men, that falsly sweren many an ooth
 That ye wol dye, if that your love be wrooth,
 Heer may ye seen of women whiche a trouthe!
 This woful Cleopatre hath mad swich routhe (90)
 That ther nis tonge noon that may hit telle. 670
 But on the morwe she wol no lenger dwelle,
 But made hir subtil werkmen make a shryne
 Of alle the rubies and the stones fyne
 In al Egipte that she coude espye;
 And putte ful the shryne of spycerye, 675
 And leet the cors embaume; and forth she fette
 This dede cors, and in the shryne hit shette.
 And next the shryne a pit than doth she grave;
 And alle the serpents that she mighte have, (100)
 She putte hem in that grave, and thus she seyde: 680
 'Now love, to whom my sorweful herte obeyde
 So ferforthly that, fro that blisful houre
 That I yow swor to been al frely youre,
 I mene yow, Antonius my knight!
 That never waking, in the day or night, 685
 Ye nere out of myn hertes remembraunce
 For wele or wo, for carole or for daunce;
 And in my-self this covenant made I tho,
 That, right swich as ye felten, wele or wo, (110)
 As ferforth as hit in my power lay, 690
 Unreprovable unto my wyfhood ay,
 The same wolde I felen, lyf or deeth.
 And thilke covenant, whyl me lasteth breeth,
 I wol fulfille, and that shal wel be sene;
 Was never unto hir love a trewer quene.' 695
 And with that word, naked, with ful good herte,
 Among the serpents in the pit she sterte,
 And ther she chees to han hir buryinge.
 Anoon the neddres gonne hir for to stin
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