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Stant in the hond of Venus the goddesse,

Bot whan sche takth hir conseil with Satorne,

Ther is no grace, and in that time, I gesse,

Began mi love, of which myn hevynesse

Is now and evere schal, bot if I spede:

So wot I noght miself what is to rede.

Forthi to you, Cupide and Venus bothe, 2280

With al myn hertes obeissance I preie,

If ye were ate ferste time wrothe,

Whan I began to love, as I you seie,

Nou stynt, and do thilke infortune aweie,

So that Danger, which stant of retenue

With my ladi, his place mai remue.

O thou Cupide, god of loves lawe,

That with thi Dart brennende hast set afyre

Min herte, do that wounde be withdrawe,

Or yif me Salve such as I desire: 2290

For Service in thi Court withouten hyre

To me, which evere yit have kept thin heste,

Mai nevere be to loves lawe honeste.

O thou, gentile Venus, loves queene,

Withoute gult thou dost on me thi wreche;

Thou wost my peine is evere aliche grene

For love, and yit I mai it noght areche:

This wold I for my laste word beseche,

That thou mi love aquite as I deserve,

Or elles do me pleinly forto sterve. 2300

Whanne I this Supplicacioun

With good deliberacioun,

In such a wise as ye nou wite,

Hadde after min entente write

Unto Cupide and to Venus,

This Prest which hihte Genius

It tok on honde to presente,

On my message and forth he wente

To Venus, forto wite hire wille.

And I bod in the place stille, 2310

And was there bot a litel while,

Noght full the montance of a Mile,

Whan I behield and sodeinly

I sih wher Venus stod me by.

So as I myhte, under a tre

To grounde I fell upon mi kne,

And preide hire forto do me grace:

Sche caste hire chiere upon mi face,

And as it were halvinge a game

Sche axeth me what is mi name. 2320

"Ma dame," I seide, "John Gower."

"Now John," quod sche, "in my pouer

Thou most as of thi love stonde;

For I thi bille have understonde,

In which to Cupide and to me

Somdiel thou hast compleigned thee,

And somdiel to Nature also.

Bot that schal stonde among you tuo,

For therof have I noght to done;

For Nature is under the Mone 2330

Maistresse of every lives kinde,

Bot if so be that sche mai finde

Som holy man that wol withdrawe

His kindly lust ayein hir lawe;

Bot sielde whanne it falleth so,

For fewe men ther ben of tho,

Bot of these othre ynowe be,

Whiche of here oghne nycete

Ayein Nature and hire office

Deliten hem in sondri vice, 2340

Wherof that sche fulofte hath pleigned,

And ek my Court it hath desdeigned

And evere schal; for it receiveth

Non such that kinde so deceiveth.

For al onliche of gentil love

Mi court stant alle courtz above

And takth noght into retenue

Bot thing which is to kinde due,

For elles it schal be refused.

Wherof I holde thee excused, 2350

For it is manye daies gon,

That thou amonges hem were on

Which of my court hast ben withholde;

So that the more I am beholde

Of thi desese to commune,

And to remue that fortune,

Which manye daies hath the grieved.

Bot if my conseil mai be lieved,

Thou schalt ben esed er thou go

Of thilke unsely jolif wo, 2360

Wherof thou seist thin herte is fyred:

Bot as of that thou hast desired

After the sentence of thi bille,

Thou most therof don at my wille,

And I therof me wole avise.

For be thou hol, it schal suffise:

Mi medicine is noght to sieke

For thee and for suche olde sieke,

Noght al per chance as ye it wolden,

Bot so as ye be reson scholden, 2370

Acordant unto loves kinde.

For in the plit which I thee finde,

So as mi court it hath awarded,

Thou schalt be duely rewarded;

And if thou woldest more crave,

It is no riht that thou it have."

Venus, which stant withoute lawe

In noncertein, bot as men drawe

Of Rageman upon the chance,

Sche leith no peis in the balance, 2380

Bot as hir lyketh forto weie;

The trewe man fulofte aweie

Sche put, which hath hir grace bede,

And set an untrewe in his stede.

Lo, thus blindly the world sche diemeth

In loves cause, as tome siemeth:

I not what othre men wol sein,

Bot I algate am so besein,

And stonde as on amonges alle

Which am out of