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Was never ful to speke of this matere,

And for to preysen un-to Pandarus

The bountee of his righte lady dere,

And Pandarus to thanke and maken chere.

This tale ay was span-newe to biginne, 1665

Til that the night departed hem a-twinne.

Sone after this, for that fortune it wolde,

I-comen was the blisful tyme swete,

That Troilus was warned that he sholde,

Ther he was erst, Criseyde his lady mete; 1670

For which he felte his herte in Ioye flete;

And feythfully gan alle the goddes herie;

And lat see now if that he can be merie.

And holden was the forme and al the wyse,

Of hir cominge, and eek of his also, 1675

As it was erst, which nedeth nought devyse.

But playnly to the effect right for to go,

In Ioye and suerte Pandarus hem two

A-bedde broughte, whan that hem bothe leste,

And thus they ben in quiete and in reste. 1680

Nought nedeth it to yow, sin they ben met,

To aske at me if that they blythe were;

For if it erst was wel, tho was it bet

A thousand-fold, this nedeth not enquere.

A-gon was every sorwe and every fere; 1685

And bothe, y-wis, they hadde, and so they wende,

As muche Ioye as herte may comprende.

This is no litel thing of for to seye,

This passeth every wit for to devyse;

For eche of hem gan otheres lust obeye; 1690

Felicitee, which that thise clerkes wyse

Commenden so, ne may not here suffyse.

This Ioye may not writen been with inke,

This passeth al that herte may bithinke.

But cruel day, so wel-awey the stounde! 1695

Gan for to aproche, as they by signes knewe,

For whiche hem thoughte felen dethes wounde;

So wo was hem, that changen gan hir hewe,

And day they goonnen to dispyse al newe,

Calling it traytour, envyous, and worse, 1700

And bitterly the dayes light they curse.

Quod Troilus, `Allas! Now am I war

That Pirous and tho swifte stedes three,

Whiche that drawen forth the sonnes char,

Han goon som by-path in despyt of me; 1705

That maketh it so sone day to be;

And, for the sonne him hasteth thus to ryse,

Ne shal I never doon him sacrifyse!'

But nedes day departe moste hem sone,

And whanne hir speche doon was and hir chere, 1710

They twinne anoon as they were wont to done,

And setten tyme of meting eft y-fere;

And many a night they wroughte in this manere.

And thus Fortune a tyme ladde in Ioye

Criseyde, and eek this kinges sone of Troye. 1715

In suffisaunce, in blisse, and in singinges,

This Troilus gan al his lyf to lede;

He spendeth, Iusteth, maketh festeynges;

He yeveth frely ofte, and chaungeth wede,

And held aboute him alwey, out of drede, 1720

A world of folk, as cam him wel of kinde,

The fressheste and the beste he coude fynde;

That swich a voys was of hym and a stevene

Thorugh-out the world, of honour and largesse,

That it up rong un-to the yate of hevene. 1725

And, as in love, he was in swich gladnesse,

That in his herte he demede, as I gesse,

That there nis lovere in this world at ese

So wel as he, and thus gan love him plese.

The godlihede or beautee which that kinde 1730

In any other lady hadde y-set

Can not the mountaunce of a knot unbinde,

A-boute his herte, of al Criseydes net.

He was so narwe y-masked and y-knet,

That it undon on any manere syde, 1735

That nil not been, for ought that may betyde.

And by the hond ful ofte he wolde take

This Pandarus, and in-to gardin lede,

And swich a feste and swich a proces make

Him of Criseyde, and of hir womanhede, 1740

And of hir beautee, that, with-outen drede,

It was an hevene his wordes for to here;

And thanne he wolde singe in this manere.

`Love, that of erthe and see hath governaunce,

Love, that his hestes hath in hevene hye, 1745

Love, that with an holsom alliaunce

Halt peples ioyned, as him list hem gye,

Love, that knetteth lawe of companye,

And couples doth in vertu for to dwelle,

Bind this acord, that I have told and telle; 1750

`That that the world with feyth, which that is stable,

Dyverseth so his stoundes concordinge,

That elements that been so discordable

Holden a bond perpetuely duringe,

That