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as the sonne, and day hath lost his light; (100)
 And in he com un-to a privy halke, 1780
 And in the night ful theefly gan he stalke,
 Whan every night was to his reste broght,
 Ne no wight had of tresoun swich a thoght.
 Were hit by window or by other gin,
 With swerde y-drawe, shortly he comth in 1785
 Ther as she lay, this noble wyf Lucresse.
 And, as she wook, her bed she felte presse.
 'What beste is that,' quod she, 'that weyeth thus?'
 'I am the kinges sone, Tarquinius,' (110)
 Quod he, 'but and thou crye, or noise make, 1790
 Or if thou any creature awake,
 By thilke god that formed man on lyve,
 This swerd through-out thyn herte shal I ryve.'
 And ther-withal unto her throte he sterte,
 And sette the point al sharp upon her herte. 1795
 No word she spak, she hath no might therto.
 What shal she sayn? her wit is al ago.
 Right as a wolf that fynt a lomb aloon,
 To whom shal she compleyne, or make moon? (120)
 What! shal she fighte with an hardy knight? 1800
 Wel wot men that a woman hath no might.
 What! shal she crye, or how shal she asterte
 That hath her by the throte, with swerde at herte?
 She axeth grace, and seith al that she can.
 'Ne wolt thou nat,' quod he, this cruel man, 1805
 'As wisly Iupiter my soule save,
 As I shal in the stable slee thy knave,
 And leye him in thy bed, and loude crye,
 That I thee finde in suche avouterye; (130)
 And thus thou shalt be deed, and also lese 1810
 Thy name, for thou shalt non other chese.'
 Thise Romain wyves loveden so hir name
 At thilke tyme, and dredden so the shame,
 That, what for fere of slaundre and drede of deeth,
 She loste bothe at-ones wit and breeth, 1815
 And in a swough she lay and wex so deed,
 Men mighte smyten of her arm or heed;
 She feleth no-thing, neither foul ne fair.
 Tarquinius, that art a kinges eyr, (140)
 And sholdest, as by linage and by right, 1820
 Doon as a lord and as a verray knight,
 Why hastow doon dispyt to chivalrye?
 Why hastow doon this lady vilanye?
 Allas! of thee this was a vileins dede!
 But now to purpos; in the story I rede, 1825
 Whan he was goon, al this mischaunce is falle.
 This lady sente after her frendes alle,
 Fader, moder, husbond, al y-fere;
 And al dischevele, with her heres clere, (150)
 In habit swich as women used tho 1830
 Unto the burying of her frendes go,
 She sit in halle with a sorweful sighte.
 Her frendes axen what her aylen mighte,
 And who was deed? And she sit ay wepinge,
 A word for shame ne may she forth out-bringe, 1835
 Ne upon hem she dorste nat beholde.
 But atte laste of Tarquiny she hem tolde,
 This rewful cas, and al this thing horrible.
 The wo to tellen hit were impossible, (160)
 That she and alle her frendes made atones. 1840
 Al hadde folkes hertes been of stones,
 Hit mighte have maked hem upon her rewe,
 Her herte was so wyfly and so trewe.
 She seide, that, for her gilt ne for her blame,
 Her husbond sholde nat have the foule name, 1845
 That wolde she nat suffre, by no wey.
 And they answerden alle, upon hir fey,
 That they foryeve hit her, for hit was right;
 Hit was no gilt, hit lay nat in her might; (170)
 And seiden her ensamples many oon. 1850
 But al for noght; for thus she seide anoon,
 'Be as be may,' quod she, 'of forgiving,
 I wol nat have no forgift for no-thing.'
 But prively she caughte forth a knyf,
 And therwith-al she rafte her-self her lyf; 1855
 And as she fel adoun, she caste her look,
 And of her clothes yit she hede took;
 For in her falling yit she hadde care
 Lest that her feet or swiche thing lay bare; (180)
 So wel she loved clennesse and eek trouthe. 1860
 Of her had al the toun of Rome routhe,
 And Brutus by her chaste blode hath swore
 That Tarquin sholde y-banisht be ther-fore,
 And al his kin; and let the peple calle,
 And openly the tale he tolde hem alle, 1865
 And openly let carie her on a bere
 Through al the toun, that men may see and here
 The horrible deed of her oppressioun.
 Ne never was ther king in Rome toun (190)
 Sin thilke day; and she was holden there 1870
 A seint, and ever her day y-halwed dere
 As in hir lawe: and thus endeth Lucresse,
 The noble wyf, as Titus bereth witnesse.
 I tell hit, for she was of love so trewe,
 Ne in her wille she chaunged for no newe. 1875
 And for the stable herte, sad and kinde,
 That in these women men may alday finde;
 Ther as they caste hir herte, ther hit dwelleth.
 For wel I wot, that Crist him-selve telleth, (200)
 That in Israel, as wyd as is the lond, 1880
 That so gret feith in al the lond he ne fond
 As in a woman; and this is no lye.
 And as of men, loketh which tirannye
 They doon alday; assay hem who so liste,
 The trewest is ful brotel for to triste. 1885

EXPLICIT LEGENDA LUCRECIE ROME, MARTIRIS.

1681. F. B. dedes; _rest_ doinges. 1682. Addit. (12524) And; _rest om._
1685. F. B. to (_for_ and); _rest_ and. 1686. C. trewe; _rest om._ 1689. F.
Tn. Th. B. _om._ he. 1693. F. _omits this line; I give the spelling as in_
MS. T., _changing_ thyng _into_ thing. 1696, 1697. C. F. Tn. Th. B.
wroughten, thoughten; _but_ thoughten _is bad grammar_; T. A. Add. wrought,
thought. 1701. C. no; _rest om._ 1705. C. highte; Tn. hat; _rest_ hyght
(_perhaps read_ hatte). 1710. _So_ C. T. Add.; _rest_ to Rome to nyght.
1715. B. estres; C. A. estris; F. Tn. esters; T. estes (!); Th. efters
(!!). 1716. _All but_ T. Add. _needlessly insert_ ful _after_ And. 1718. C.
they gan abyde. 1720. C. Discheuele; F. Disshevely. 1721. T. Add. oure boke
seyth; C. seyth (_om._ our book); Th. saith Liui; _rest_ seyth our boke.
1725. C seith; F. sayne. 1727. C. Th. so; _rest_ to. 1728. C. sore; _rest_
to (_badly_). 1729, 1730. C. _has_--That with a swerd me thynkyth that to
myn herte It styngith me whan I thynke on that place. 1730. T. A. Add. the
sege; F. Tn. B. these (_for_ the sege); Th. this. 1731. F. my; _rest_ his
(_before_ grace). 1736. F. the (_for_ her). A. T. honestee; C. oneste; B.
heuyte (!); F. hevytee (!); Tn. Th. heuynesse. 1737. C. Emblemyschid (!).
Th. chastnesse. C. _puts_ ll. 1738-9 _after_ l. 1743. 1744. C. kiste;
_rest_ kissed. 1747. C. T. A. Add. shap; _rest_ bounte. 1749. C. nas;
_rest_ was. 1751. C. brende; B. brente; F. Tn. brent. 1752. C. is al; Th.
A. was al; _rest_ was. 1754. C. T. A. Add. that; _rest om._ 1757. F. Tn.
Th. B. On; _rest_ A. 1760. C. Thymage; _rest_ The ymage. 1763. F. T. This;
_rest_ Thus. 1764. C. A. now; _rest_ newe (new). 1766. C. Yit (_for_ That).
1770. C. _om._ But. 1773. C. T. A. alday; _rest_ alway. 1776. C. forth he
rit; A. Addit. (12524) forth he ride; F. Tn. Th. he forth right (!). 1784.
C. T. A. Add. Were hit; _rest_ Whether. 1787. F. felt; C. felte. 1793. C.
thour-out; T. thorout; A. throughout; _rest om._ out. 1795. C. T. A. Add.
point; _rest_ swerd. C. vp-on; T. opon; Tn. Th. on; _rest_ unto. 1798. C.
T. A. fynt; Add. fyndyth; _rest_ fayneth _or_ feyneth (!). C. lomb; Add.
lombe; T. A. Th. lambe; _rest_ loue (!). 1801. C. T. A. Add. that; _rest
om._ 1802. F. Add. sterte; _rest_ asterte (astert). 1804. C. T. A. Add.
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