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¶ How mawgys, he beynge in his hermytage / came hym a wylle by a vysion that he had by nyghte in his slepe / for to goo see reynawd & his bredern, And how he mette wyth ii marchauntes, that vii theves had robbed in a wood, of whiche theves the sayd mawgys slewe fyve / and deliverred to ye marchauntes all their good agayn / And after this he wente to ardeyne1 for to see reynawd & his bredern /
Now sheweth the history, that whan mawgys was in his hermytage, and had watched soo long aboute his prayers to god, he felle a slepe / and him semed in his slepe that he was at mountalban, & sawe reynawd & hys bredern, that cam agenst hym, and made their complaynte to hym of charlemagn, that wolde take fro theim the goode horse bayarde / but reynawd had hym fast by the brydle / and wolde not lete it goo / And wyte it, that mawgys had soo grete sorowe in his dreme, that he awoke wythall all wrothe, and arose on his fete incontinent / And thenne he sware our lorde he sholde never ceasse to goo / tyll he had seen reynawde and his brethern, his good cosyns / And whan mawgys had sayd soo, he made none other taryenge, but he shet the dore of his chapell, and toke his wede & his staffe, and wente on his waye all soo sone as he myghte / And abowte the hour of noone he founde hymselfe in a grete woode / where he founde two men, that wente makynge evyll chere [folio D.D.viii.b] and grete sorowe / and whan mawgis sawe theym, he cam to theym, & sayd, 'God be wyth you' / and one of theim answered & sayd / 'certes, god is not wyth vs / but rather the devylle; For vnhappy was that hour that ever we cam in to this wode; for we ben vndoon for ever' / 'Goode sires,' sayd mawgys, 'what eyleth you that ye speke so' / 'Good man,' sayd the one of the two, 'a lityll byfore you are theves, that hathe robbed vs of our clothe, and have sleyn one of our felawes / by cause he spake to theim angrely' / Whan mawgys herde thise pour marchantes speke thus, he had grete pyte of theim, & sayd to theym / 'my frendes, come wyth me / I shall praye the theves, in our lordes behalfe, that they wyll deliver you agen your goodes / and yf they wyl not doo it, I shall
be wroth with theim / and soo I shall fyghte wyth theym aswell as I can / wyth my staff, for to wyte yf theyr hedes ben softe or harde.' Whan the marchantes herde mawgis saye soo / they began to loke vpon hym, yf they cowde knowe hym; 1but they myghte not knowe what he was1 / Thenne spake to hym one of theym in this maner / 'and what devyll is that ye say? thou art but a man alone all naked, & thei ben all armed / and also ye can scantly heve vp your staff.' 'Lete this fole alone,' sayd that other, 'see ye not how his eyen goo in his hede.' and thenne they sayd to mawgys, 'Broder, goo thy wayes, and lete vs in peas / or elles I shall gyve the suche a stroke wyth this staff that thou shalt fele it well' / and whan mawgis sawe the marchante speke thus to hym, he sayd / 'Broder, thou doost not well to speke to me so / for by force thou can not gete oughte of me' / And thus departed mawgys fro the marchauntes, & went his way somoche that he overtoke the theves, & sayd to them, 'lordes, god save you / I pray you tell me why ye take away ye goodes fro thise marchantes: ye know wel that it is not [folio E.E.i.a] yours / Wherfore, I praye you, lete theym have agayne theyr marchandyse, and god shall conne you thanke' / Whan the theves herde mawgis speke to theym thus / they were angri for it, And behelde vpon mawgis from over the sholder, as he had be a sarrasyn / Thenne spake the mayster of the theves, & sayd to mawgys / 'Goo thy waye, hourson / or elles I shall gyve the suche a stroke wyth my fote that I shall breste the herte wythin the bely.' And whan mawgis herde this, & knewe that the theeves fered nother god nor his moder / he was right an angred / And heved vp his
palmers staffe, & smote the mayster theef wythall vpon his hede soo strongly, that he caste hym doun deed to the grounde. And whan thother theves sawe their mayster deed / they ranne all vpon mawgys for to have kylled hym / but mawgys areched theym so wyth his staffe, that he slewe fyve of theym wythin a lityll while / and thenne the other tweyne beganne to flee awaye thrughe the wood. And whan mawgys sawe that they forsoke the place, he followed theym not / but cryed vpon theym, 'Ha, false theves, tourne agen for to deliver your thefte where ye toke it.' And whan the marchantes herde mawgys crye thus, they came Incontynent towarde hym / and they founde that the theves that had robbed theym were deed / And thenne they sayd the one to the other, 'here is a good pylgryme! I wene it is my lorde saynt martyne.'
Whan the marchantes sawe this that mawgis hadde doon, they were ryght gladde of it / Soo came they to warde mawgys, & kneled byfore hym, & cryed mercy of that they had sayd to hym. 'Lordes,' sayd mawgys, 'yf ye gaff me grete wordes, soo dyde the theves moche more, For they called me "rybawde, truaunt, & hoursone;" but they have boughte it right 1dere, as ye may see,1 and I am ryght sory that two of [folio E.E.i.b] theym are scaped from me. Stonde vp thenne, & take wyth you your goodes agen / and god be with you! but I pray you, telle me, or ye goo, yf ye wote not where is charlemagn' / 'Syre,' sayd the marchauntes, 'We wote well that charlemagn hathe taken mountalban / but we promyse you he hath not yet taken none of the four sones of aymon; for they were goon oute wyth theyr
folke thorughe a cave vnder the erthe, that they founde vnder the walles of the castelle, vnto the cyte of ardeyn, where as they ben now / And charlemagn hathe layd their his siege afore theym / and wylle not make no peas wyth Reynawd 2nor wyth his bredern'2 / 'Certes,' sayd mawgys, 'I am sori for theym, for they ben good knyghtes & true.' Whan mawgys vnderstode that charlemagne had beseged Reynawd within ardeyn / he comended the marchauntes to god, and toke his waye towarde ardeyn; and soo moche he wente, that he came in to the ost of charlemagn, and went streyght towarde the cyte, and made semblaunt to be sore feble / for he went lenyng vpon his staff / And whan the folke of charlemagne sawe mawgys goo thus / thei loked sore vpon hym, and sayd the one to the other / 'that pylgryme is like to goo ferre / he can not stonde vpon his fete' / 'By my othe,' said a nother, 'it myghte well be mawgys, that is soo dysguysed for to dysceyve vs' / 'It is not soo,' sayd thother / 'mawgys is not a live' / And while that they devysed thus togyder, mawgys cam nere to the wycket of the gate, and founde the meanes that he gate in anone / And whan he was wythin ardeyn, he wente to the palays / where he founde Reynawd, & the duchesse his wyffe, and bothe theyr children, aymonet & yonnet, and ther vncles, his cosins, with a grete meiny of noble knightes, that were all at theyr mete. Whan mawgys had loked a while vpon theym / he lened agenste a pyler that was in 2the myddes of the halle2 [folio E.E.ii.a] afore reynawde. Thenne began he to loke agen vpon his fayr cosins, that he loved so moche above all thynges of the worlde. And whan the maryshall of the halle sawe mawgis, wenyng to hym that it had be a pour hermyte / he commaunded that he sholde be
served of his dyner, for goddys sake / And whan mawgys sawe the mete that was broughte him / he sayd / 'My lordes, I beseche you, for the love of god, that ye wyll playse you for to bryng me som broun brede & water in a treen dyshe / and thus I shall be served as to me apperteyneth, For I dare not take none other mete' / And whan the stywarde 2of reynawde2 sawe that / he made him anone to be brought all that he wold have / Thenne toke mawgys the broun brede, & made soppes in water / and ete of it wyth goode apetyte. And whan reynawd sawe this poure man afore hym, that lived soo pourly, and was soo lene & so pale / he had of hym grete pyte / Soo toke he a dysshe that was before hym, that was full of venyson / and sente it to hym by a squyre of his, that presented it to him, saieng thus, 'holde, goode man, the duke sendeth you this' / 'God yelde hym,' sayd Mawgys. and thenne he toke & set the disshe afore hym, but he ete noo thynge of it. And whan reynawd sawe that, he was gretly merveylled / and sayd to hymselfe / 'God, who is that goode man that liveth soo harde a lif? yf he were not soo lene, I sholde saye it were myn cosin mawgys / but a nother thynge sheweth me that it is not he / For he wolde not hyde hymself from me in noo wyse.'
Reynawd behelde stylle mawgys somoche, that he lefte his mete for to loke vpon hym / And whan the tables were take vp / and that everi man had eten at his ease, they wente to their warde to defende the towne as they were wounte to doo / in their harneys. And whan Reynawd saw [folio E.E.ii.b] that every man was goon /
and that there was noo body wythin the hall for whom he wolde leve to saye his wylle, he wente to mawgis, & sayd to hym, 'goode hermyte, I pray you, for the reverence of that god that ye serve, that ye tell me yf ye be mawgis or noo / for ye are well like hym' / Whan maugis herde reynawde speke thus to him / he cowde hide himselfe noo lenger, and sayd all on hie / 'Cosin, I am mawgis without doubt / I am com to se you, and I am glad that I see you, & also all your bredern in good plight.' And whan reynawd vnderstode that it was his cosin that he loved mooste of all the men in the world, and that had kept him dyverse times from perell & dangeur / he had not be soo glad yf men had gyven hym the halve of all the worlde / Soo went he & kyssed him more than a C. tymes, & after he sayd to hym in this maner: 'fayr cosin, I praye you that ye wyll doo of this cope that ye were vpon you / For my eyen can not see you thus pourly arayed.' thenne answerde mawgis to him, & sayd / 'My cosin, be not dysplaysed of that I shall telle you / ye must wyte, that I have made my vowe to god, that I shall never ete but alonly brede & wylde herbes, & that to my drynke I shall take none other but water / and that I shall never were, the dayes of my liff, none other clothes but suche as this is; for I have gyven myself vtterly to serve & love our blessed savyour & his gloryous moder, for to bryng my soule to salvacyon in the blisse that ever shall laste.'
Whan Reynawd herde his cosin mawgys speke thus, he was in a thoughte whether it was mawgis or noo, For he cowde not knowe hym well, by cause he was soo sore apayred of hys persone, And began to loke well vpon hym agen. And he sholde never have knowen hym, yf it had not be a lityll liste that he had by his right eye. And after that [folio E.E.iii.a] he had
very knowlege of him / he made grete ioye for hym. And he prayed hym agen / sayenge in this wyse / 'fayr cosin, I praye you for the love of the feyth that ye owe to me, that ye wylle telle me the trouth of that I shall aske you.' 'Syre,' said mawgis, 'I shall telle it you gladly' / 'Cosin,' sayd reynaude, 'I wolde wyte where ye have be, ever sith that ye wente fro me / and from whens ye come now' / 'Syr,' sayd mawgys, 'sith it playse you to wyte of my livynge, I shall shewe it you wyth a goode wylle. Ye ought to knowe, my fayr cosin, for certeyn that I have made myselfe an hermyte, and I have lefte the worlde for to serve hym that made me, & the blessed virgyn mary, 1his moder,1 for to have pardonne of my sinnes that I have doon in my life / For I have don many grete evylles agenst my creatour / and by me are deed so many folke, wherof I knowe that our lorde is gretly wrothe agenst me' / After that Reynawde had herde mawgis speke thus / he had so grete pyte on hym that the teres felle alonge his chekes fro his eyen for love of his good cosin. And thenne he called his bredern, & sayd to theym / 'come hither, my brethern, and ye shall see your cosin mawgis' / And whan alarde, guychard, & rycharde herde thyse wordes / their hertes rose in their belies for ioye, and ranne all to mawgys, & kyssed hym full swetely / And whan the duchesse wyste that mawgis was com, she came anone there as he was, and kyssed hym / wepynge full sore 1for ioye that she had to see hym1 / And thenne cam there Aymonet & Yonnet, that made grete ioye, 1and welcomed hym1 / And thrughe all the cyte was anone knowen the comynge of the valiaunt mawgys / wherof many folke came to see hym. But he was soo chaunged / and soo apayred, that it was pyte for to see. Thus was Reynawde well glad of the comynge of his goode cosyn / And after that [folio E.E.iii.b] they had made grete ioye
a longe whyle / Reynawde called his brother Rycharde, & sayd to hym / 'Brother, goo fette anone a goode gowne for our cosin mawgys, and lete hym be brought a payr of shone that ben wyde ynoughe, for I know well that his fete ben sore' / and thenne he sayd to hys wyffe / 'Lady, aryse / and fette hym suche linnen as he nedeth' / 'Syre,' sayd she, 'he shall have of the beste ynoughe anone.' And whan mawgys herde this worde, he sayd to Reynawde, 'Syre, I telle you truly, that I have sworne that I shall never were shone, nor linnen clothes abowte me / But doo to me, if it playse you, to gyve me a newe sloppe and a large hode, a palster well yrende, & a male / and therwyth ye shall well contente me; And thenne I shall comende you to god / and I shall goo my waye. For I am not comen here but only for to see you / wherof my desire was sore sette vnto' / Right sory was Reynawde whan he herde mawgys say soo, in somoche that almoste he was swoninge for sorowe 'Reynawd,' sayd thenne mawgys, 'leve your sorowe, For I have gyven myselfe to god vtterly, for to brynge my soule to blysse of heven / And soo wylle I goo to the holy londe, for to serve to the temple of Iherusalem, and for to vysite the holy sepulcre of our lorde / And whan I have doon so, I shall come agen to see you, 2and god spare me my liffe.2 And thenne I shall goo agayne to myn hermytage / and shall live there as a beest wyth rootes & wyth wylde herbes, as I dyde byfore that I came here' / Whan Reynawde herde this, he was sory for it / and sayd to mawgys in this wyse / 'Fayr cosyn, for god, take wyth you a gode horse, and money ynoughe / For ye shall have all thys of me' / 'Holde your peas,' sayd mawgys / 'I wylle not therof / for whan
I have brede / it is to me ynoughe / For all my hope is in god / to whome I praye that I maye come agayn hole and [folio E.E.iv.a] sounde' /
After all thise thynges thus sayd, Mawgys prayed Reynawd that he wolde make haste to make hym be deliverde suche thynges as he had desired of hym. And Reynawde dyde soo, syth that he myghte not make hym to take none other thynge wyth hym / And whan the morowe came / and that mawgys had his newe sloppe and his hode / he toke his palster, and his newe male that reynawde had gyven hym / he wente & herde masse / and after the masse / he toke his leve of every one, and wente on his waye. And reynawde conveyed hym vnto the wyket of the gate of the cyte, and kyssed him; and in like wyse dyde all his brethern / and also the duchesse clare and her chyldren / And whan they had all kyssed mawgys, he comended theym to god / and wente oute of the towne, and wente forth the ryght waye. But he was not ferre goon, whan he was advyronned rounde abowte hym wyth the folke of the kynge Charlemagne / And the one sayd to the other, 'here is the heremyte that we sawe yesterdaye, but he is now better clothed than he was atte that time / It myghte be well mawgys, the cosin of reynawd, that hathe mocked vs dyverse tymes.' 'Certes,' sayd the other, 'It is he verely: lete vs slee hym / and we shall doo wel' / 'we shall not,' sayd some / 'For this man semeth to be an hundred yere olde / It can not be / but that he muste be a goode man, and it were synne to doo hym harme' / All thus as thise folke said thise wordes, Mawgis herde all that they sayd, and helde his peas, But wente on his waye stylle thorughe the ooste withoute ony lettyng of ony man. ¶ Here leveth the histore to speke of mawgys, that wente in to the holy londe, And retorneth to speke of Charlemagne, that had
Au matin se mist a chemin, F. orig. F. iii.
en son oratoyre, F. orig.
que nous pourtious vendre, F. orig. F. iii. back.
1—1 omitted, F. orig. F. iii. back.
Ils sont sept et .. F. orig. F. iii. back.
qui estoit de mauluaise part, F. orig.
1—1 omitted, F. orig.
si vous en savez ne se Il a pris montauban et les quatre filz aymon qui estoient dedans, F. orig. F. iv.
ne les gens, F. orig. F. iv.
dordonne, F. orig. F. iv.
2—2 omitted, F. orig. F. iv.
les quatre filz aymon, F. orig.
dordonne, F. orig. F. iv.
dordonne, F. orig. F. iv.
dordonne, F. orig. F. iv.
2—2 omitted, F. orig. F. iv.
Et que on luy appourtast et pain et vin aussi de cher a grant plante la quelle chose fust Incontinent faicte ainsi que le seneschal lauoit commande, F. orig. F. iv. back.
2—2 omitted, F. orig.
dedens ung anap de bois, F. orig. F. v.
qui nous a fait suffrir maintes detresses, F. orig. F. v.
et luy nust ses bras au col, F. orig. F. v.
1—1 omitted, F. orig.
1—1 omitted, F. orig.
1—1 omitted, F. orig.
trois ou quatre ans. Et si dieu me donne la grace que Je puisse la venir Je mectray toute ma poine pousse servir, F. orig. F. vi.
2—2 omitted. F. orig. F. vi.
hisstore, orig.
dordonne, F. orig.