That with his grene top the heaven raught,
And twenty fadom of brede the armes ftraught;
This is to fain, the boughes were fo brode.
Of ftre first ther was laied many a lode.

2920

But how the fire was maked up on highte, And eke the names how the trees highte, As oke, fir, birch, afpe, alder, holm, poplere, Wilow, elm, plane, ash, box, chestein, lind, laurere, Maple, thorn, beche, hafel, ew, whipultre,

2925

How they were feld, shal not be told for me;

Ne how the goddes rannen up and doun

Difherited of hir habitatioun,

In which they woneden in reft and pees,
Nimphes, Faunes, and Amadriades;
Ne how the beftes and the briddes alle
Fledden for fere whan the wood gan falle;
Ne how the ground agaft was of the light,
That was not wont to see the fonne bright;
Ne how the fire was couched first with ftre,
And then with drie ftickes cloven a-thre,
And than with grene wood and spicerie,
And than with cloth of gold and with perrie,
And gerlonds hanging with ful many a flour,

2930

2935

The mirre, th' encenfe alfo with fwete odour; 2940
Ne how Arcita lay among all this,

Ne what richeffe about his body is;
Ne how that Emelie, as was the gife,
Put in the fire of funeral service;

Ne how fae fwouned whan fhe made the fire, 2945

Ne what the fpake, ne what was hire defire;
Ne what jewelles men in the fire cafte,
Whan that the fire was gret and brente fafte;
Ne how fom caft hir fheld and fom hit fpere,
And of hir veftimentes which they were,
And cuppes full of wine, and milk, and blood,
Into the fire, that brent as it were wood;

Ne how the Grekes with a huge route
Three times riden all the fire aboute
Upon the left hord, with a loud fhouting,
And thries with hir fperes clatering,
And thries how the ladies gan to crie;
Ne how that led was homeward Emelie;
Ne how Arcite is brent to afhen cold;
Nehow the liche-wake was yhold

All thilke night; ne how the Grekes play;
The wake-plaies ne kepe I not to fay;

2950

2955

2960

V. 2960. the liche-wake] The cuftom of watching with dead bodies (lice, Sax.) is probably very ancient in this country. It was abufed, as other wakes and vigils were. See Du Cange inv. Vigilia. "In vigiliis circa corpora mortuorum vetantur chorex "et cantilene, feculares ludi et alii turpes et fatui." Synod. Wigorn. an. 1240, c. 5. Chaucer feems to have confounded the wake-plays (as they were called) of his own time with the funeral-games of the Ancients. So in Troilus, v. 303, Troilus fays to Pandarus,

But of the fire and flambe funeral

In which my body Frennen fhall to glede,
And of the feite and playes palestral,
At my vigile I pray thee take good bede.

Who wrestled beft naked, with oile enoint,
Ne who that bare him beft in no disjoint:
1 woll not tellen eke how they all gon
Home til Athenes whan the play is don,
But fhortly to the point now wol I wende,
And maken of my longe Tale an ende.

By proceffe and by lengthe of certain yeres
All ftenten is the mourning and the teres
Of Grekes by on general affent :
Than femeth me ther was a parlement
At Athenes upon certain points and cas;
Amonges the which points yfpoken was
To have with certain contrees alliance,
And have of Thebanes fully obeifance:
For which this noble Thefeus anon

2965

2970

2975

Let fenden after gentil Palamon,

Unwift of him what was the caufe and why:
But in his blacke clothes forwefully

2980

He came at his commandement on hie;

Tho fente Thefeus for Emelie.

Whan they were fet, and huht was al the place, And Thefeus abiden hath a fpace,

Or

any word came from his wife breft

His eyen fet he ther as was his left,

2985

And with a fad vifage he fiked fill,

And after that right thus he fayd his will.

. 2964. in no disjoint] With no difadvantage: fover. 13341,

in fwiche disjoint; at fuch difadvantage.

Volume 11.

N

The firfte Mover of the caufe above,

Whan he firste made the fayre chaine of love, 2990

Gret was th' effect, and high was his entent;
Wel wift he why and what therof he ment;
For with that fayre chaine of love he bond
The fire, the air, the watre, and the lond,
In certain bondes, that they may not flee:
That fame prince and Mover eke (quod he)
Hath ftablifht, in this wretched world adoun,
Certain of dayes and duration

To all that are engendred in this place,
Over the which day they ne mow not pace,
Al mow they yet the dayes wel abrege.
Ther nedeth non autoritee allege,
For it is preved by experience,

2995

3000

But that me luft declaren my sentence.

Than may men by this ordre wel difcerne

That thilke Mover ftable is and eterne ;

Wel may men knowen, but it be a fool,

30C5

That every part deriveth from his hool;
For Nature hath not taken his beginning
Of no partie ne cantel of a thing,

But of a thing that parfit is and ftable,

Defcending fo til it be cofrumpable;

3010

V. 2993. that fayre chaine of love] Cur Author's philosophy is borrowed, as it is usually, from Boethius, 1. ii. met. 8;

1ane rerum feriem ligat,

Terras ac pelagus regens,

Et cælo imperitans, amor.

See alfo, for what follows, 1. iv. pr. 6.

And therfore of his wife purveyance
He hath fo wel befet his ordinance,
That fpeces of thinges and progreffions

Shullen enduren by fucceffions,

And not eterne, withouten any lie;

This maieft thou understand and feen at eye.

3015

Lo the oke, that hath fo long a norishing

Fro the time that it ginneth first to spring,

3020

And hath fo long a lif, as ye may fee,
Yet at the lafte wafted is the tree.
Confidereth eke how that the harde ftone
Under our feet, on which we trede and gon,
It wafteth as it lieth by the wey;
The brode river fomtime wexeth drey;

The grete tounes fee we wane and wende ;
Than may ye fee that all thing hath an ende.
Of man and woman fee we wel also,
That nedes in on of the termes two,
That is to fayn, in youthe or elles age,

He mote be ded the king as fhall a page;

Som in his bed, fom in the depe fee,

Som in the large feld, as ye may fee:

3025

3030

Ther helpeth nought, all goth that ilke wey; 3035 Than may I fayn that alle thing more dey.

. 3019. Lo the oke] So in The Thefeida;

Lo querci, che anno di lungo nutrimento

E tanta vita quanto noi vedemo,

Anno pur ateun tempo finimento.

Le dure pietre ancor,