Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: part in] Apollo whirleth up his chaar so hye, Til that the god Mercurius hous, the slye? At this point Chaucer left the tale 'half-told'.] II. PRIORESS'S TALE The frologe of the Prioresses Tale C LORD, oure Lord, thy name how merveillous Is in this large world y-sprad, quod she; For noght oonly thy laude precious Parfourned is by men of dignitee, But by the mouth of children thy bountee Parfourned is; for on the brest soukynge Somtyme shewen they thyn heriynge. Wherfore, in laude as I best kan or may, Of thee, and of the white lylye flour, Which that the bar and is a mayde alway, To telle a storie I wol do my labour; Nat that I may encreessen hir honour, For she hirself is honour and the roote Of bountee, next hir sone, and soules boote. O mooder mayde O mayde mooder fre O bussh unbrent, brennynge in Moyses sighte That ravysedest doun fro the Deitee, Thurgh thyn humblesse, the goost that in thalighte; Of whos vertu, whan he thyn herte lighte, Conceyved was the fadres sapience, Helpe me to telle it in thy reverence Lady, thy bountee, thy magnificence, Thy vertu, and thy grete humylitee, Ther may no tonge expresse in no science; For somtyme, lady, er men praye to thee, Thou goost biforn of thy benygnytee, And getest us the lyght, thurgh thy preyere, To gyden us unto thy sone so deere. My konnyng is so wayk, O blisful queene, For to declare thy grete worthynesse, That I ne may the weighte nat susteene; But as a child of twelf months oold or lesse, That kan unnethes any word expresse, Right so fare I, and therfore I yow preye, Gydeth my song that I shal of you seye. Heere bigynneth The Prioresses Tale Ther was in Asye, in a greet citee, Amonges cristene folk, a Jewerye, Sustened by a lord of that contree, For foule u...