The Ellesmere ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall.

[Cresus.]

This riche Cresus / whilom kyng of Lyde [¶ Cresus] Of which Cresus / Cirus soore hym dradde Yet was he caught/ amyddes al his pryde And to be brent/ men to the fyr hym ladde Line 3920 But swich a reyn / doun fro the welkne shadde That slow the fyr / and made hym to escape But to be war / no grace yet he hadde Til ffortune / on the galwes / made hym gape Line 3924

Whanne he escaped was / he kan nat stente ffor to bigynne / a newe werre agayn He wende wel / for þat ffortune hym sente Swich hape / that he escaped thurgh the rayn Line 3928 That of hise foos / he myghte nat be slayn And eek a sweuene / vp-on a nyght he mette Of which / he was so proud / and eek so fayn That in vengeance / he al his herte sette Line 3932

[6-text p 279] , [6-text p 280] , [6-text p 268] Line 3932

Vp-on a tree / he was / as that hym thoughte Ther Iuppiter hym wesshe / bothe bak and syde And Phebus eek a fair towaille hym broughte To dryen hym with / and therfore wax his pryde Line 3936 And to his doghter / that stood hym bisyde Which þat he knew / in heigh science habounde He bad hire telle hym / what it signyfyde And she his dreem / bigan right thus expounde Line 3940

The tree quod she / the galwes is to meene [folio 181a] And Iuppiter / bitokneth snow and reyn And Phebus / with his towaille so clene Tho been / the sonne bemes for to seyn Line 3944 Thou shalt anhanged be / fader certeyn Reyn shal thee wasshe / and sonne shal thee drye Thus warned hym / ful plat and ful pleyn His doghter / which that called was Phanye Line 3948

An-hanged was Cresus / the proude kyng His roial Trone / myghte hym nat auaille Tragedies / noon oother maner thyng / Ne kan in syngyng crie ne biwaille Line 3952 But that ffortune / alwey wole assaille With vnwar strook / the Regnes þat been proude ffor whan men trusteth hire / thanne wol she faille And couere hire brighte face / with a clowde [[These 4 modern instances should follow Zenobia, p. 268.]] Line 3956