HKB
which I am obedient, To further thee with all my might, And wiss* and teache thee aright, *direct Where thou may’st moste tidings hear, Shalt thou anon many one lear.”
And with this word he right anon Hent* me up betwixt his tone,** *caught *toes And at a window in me brought, That in this house was, as me thought; And therewithal me thought it stent, stopped And nothing it aboute went; And set me in the floore down. But such a congregatioun Of folk, as I saw roam about, Some within and some without, Was never seen, nor shall be eft, again, hereafter That, certes, in the world n’ is left is not So many formed by Nature, Nor dead so many a creature, That well unnethes in that place scarcely Had I a foote breadth of space; And ev’ry wight that I saw there Rown’d evereach in other’s ear whispered A newe tiding privily, Or elles told all openly Right thus, and saide, “Know’st not thou What is betid, lo! righte now?” happened “No,” quoth he; “telle me what.” And then he told him this and that, And swore thereto, that it was sooth; “Thus hath he said,” and “Thus he do’th,” And “Thus shall ’t be,” and “Thus heard I say “That shall be found, that dare I lay;” wager That all the folk that is alive Have not the cunning to descrive describe The thinges that I hearde there, What aloud, and what in th’ear. But all the wonder most was this; When one had heard a thing, y-wis, He came straight to another wight, And gan him tellen anon right The same tale that to him was told, Or it a furlong way was old, <84> And gan somewhat for to eche eke, add To this tiding in his speech, More than it ever spoken was. And not so soon departed n’as was He from him, than that he met With the third; and ere he let Any stound, he told him als’; without delaying a momen Were the tidings true or false, Yet would he tell it natheless, And evermore with more increase Than it was erst. Thus north and south at first Went ev’ry tiding from mouth to mouth, And that increasing evermo’, As fire is wont to quick and go become alive, and spread From a spark y-sprung amiss, Till all a city burnt up is. And when that it was full up-sprung, And waxen more on ev’ry tongue increased Than e’er it was, it went anon Up to a window out to go’n; Or, but it mighte thereout pass, It gan creep out at some crevass, *crevice, chink And fly forth faste for the nonce. And sometimes saw I there at once A leasing, and a sad sooth saw, a falsehood and an earnest That gan of adventure draw true saying by chance Out at a window for to pace; And when they metten in that place, They were checked both the two, And neither of them might out go; For other so they gan to crowd, push, squeeze, each other Till each of them gan cryen loud, “Let me go first!” — “Nay, but let me! And here I will ensure thee, With vowes, if thou wilt do so, That I shall never from thee go, But be thine owen sworen brother! We will us medle each with other, mingle That no man, be he ne’er so wroth, Shall have one of us two, but both At ones, as beside his leave, despite his desire Come we at morning or at eve, Be we cried or still y-rowned.” quietly whispered Thus saw I false and sooth, compouned, compounded Together fly for one tiding. Then out at holes gan to wring squeeze, struggle Every tiding straight to Fame; And she gan give to each his name After her disposition, And gave them eke duration, Some to wax and wane soon, As doth the faire white moon; And let them go. There might I see Winged wonders full fast flee, Twenty thousand in a rout, company As Aeolus them blew about. And, Lord! this House in alle times Was full of shipmen and pilgrimes, <85> With scrippes bretfull of leasings, wallets brimful of falsehoods Entremedled with tidings true stories And eke alone by themselve. And many thousand times twelve Saw I eke of these pardoners,<86> Couriers, and eke messengers, With boistes crammed full of lies boxes As ever vessel was with lyes. lees of wine And as I altherfaste went with all speed About, and did all mine intent Me for to play and for to lear, to amuse and instruct myself And eke a tiding for to hear That I had heard of some country, That shall not now be told for me; — For it no need is, readily; Folk can sing it better than I. For all must out, or late or rath, soon All the sheaves in the lath; barn <87> I heard a greate noise withal In a corner of the hall, Where men of love tidings told; And I gan thitherward behold, For I saw running ev’ry wight As fast as that they hadde might, And ev’reach cried, “What thing is that?” And some said, “I know never what.” And when they were all on a heap, Those behinde gan up leap, And clomb upon each other fast, <88> *climbed And up the noise on high they cast, And trodden fast on others’ heels, And stamp’d, as men do after eels.