The Corpus ms (Corpus Christi coll., Oxford) of Chaucer's Canterbury tales. Ed. by Frederick J. Furnivall.

[6-text p 552]

[THE PREAMBLE.]

With þis chanon dwelled haue I seuen ȝeer And of his science am I neuer þe neer Line 721 Al þat I hadde I haue y-lost þerby And god wot so haue many mo þan I þer I was wont to be right freissch and gay Of cloþing and of good array Line 725 Now may I were an hose vpon myn heed And wher my colour was boþe freissh and reed Now is it wan and of a ledene hewe Who so it vseth sore schal he rewe Line 729 And of my swynk ȝit blered is myn yȝe lo which auauntage it is to multiplye That slydynge science haþ me maad so bare That I haue no good where þat euer I fare Line 733 And ȝit I am endetted so þer by Of gold þat/ I haue borwed trewely þat whil I lyue I schal it quite neuere / lat euery man be war by me for euere Line 737 What maner man þat casteþ him þerto If he continue I holde his þrifte y-do [folio 180b] So help me god þer-by schal he not wynne But empte his purs and make his wittes þinne Line 741 And whan he þorugh his madnesse and folye haþ lost his owne good þorugh Iepardye þanne he exciteþ oþer men þerto To lese here good as himself haþ do Line 745 ffor vnto schrewes Ioye it is and ese To haue here felawes in peyne and disese

[6-text p 553] Thus was I ones lerned of a clerk Of þat no charge I wol speke of oure werk Line 749 Whan we ben þere as we schulle exercise Oure eluysshe craft; we semen wonder wise Oure termes ben so clergeal and so queynte I blowe þe fuyr. til þat myn herte feynte Line 753 What scholde I telle eche proporcion Of þinges whiche þat we worchen vppon As on fyue or sixe vnces may wel be Of siluer or of som oþer quantite Line 757 And besye me to telle ȝou þe names Of Opyment brent bones yren squames That in to poudre grounden ben ful smal And in an erþen pot how þat put is al Line 761 And salt y-put in and also paupere Bifore þise poudres þat I speke of here And wel y-couered wiþ a laumpe of glas And of muche oþer þing what þat þer was Line 765 And of þe pot and glas englutyng That of þe aier mighte passe no þing And of þe esy fyr and smert also Which þat was mad and of þe care and wo Line 769 þat we hadde in oure matiers sublymynge And amalgamynge and Calcenynge Of quyk syluer y-cleped mercurie crude ffor alle oure sleightes we can nouȝt conclude Line 773 Oure orpymed and sublimed mercurie Oure grounde litarge eek on þe porphirie [folio 181a] Of ech of þise of vnces a certayn Nouȝt helpeþ vs oure labour is in vain Line 777 Ne eek oure spirites ascencioun Ne eek oure matieres þat lyn al fixe a doun Mowen in oure werkynge no þing vs auayle ffor lost is alle oure labour and trauaile Line 781 And al þe cost on twenty deuele wey Is lost also which we vpon it ley

[6-text p 554] þer is also many anoþer þing/ þat is to oure crafte aperteynyng Line 785 þough I by ordre hem here ne reherse can By cause þat I am a lewed man ȝit wol I telle hem as þey come to mynde Though I ne kan nat sette hem in here kynde Line 189 As boole armonyak verdegres Boras And sondry vesseles made of erþe and glas Oure vrinales and oure descensories Violes creseletes and sublimatories Line 793 Concurbites and Alembykes eeke And oþer swiche deere ynough a leeke Nat needeþ it/ to rehersen hem alle Wateres Rubysynge and boles galle Line 797 Arsynek Sal armonyak and Brymston And herbes couþe I telle eek many oon As Egrymoyne Valerian and lunarie And oþer suche if þat me luste tarie Line 801 Oure laumpes brennyng boþe night and day To bringe aboute oure craft if þat we may Oure fornays eke of Calcynacion And of watres albyficacion Line 805 vnslekked lym chalk and glaire of an ey Poudres dyuers aisshes dong pisse and cley Seryd pokettes Sal petre and vitriole And diuerse fyres made of woode and cole Line 809 Salt tartre Alcaly and Salt preparat And combust matieres and coagulat [folio 181b] Cley maad wiþ horses or mannes heer and oyle Of tartre alym glas berme wort and argoyle Line 813 Rysalgar and oþer matieres enbykynge And eek of oure matieres encorporynge And eek of Siluer Citrynacion Oure sementynge and fermentacion Line 817 Oure Ingotes testes and many mo I wol ȝou telle as was me taught also /

[6-text p 555] þe foure spirites and þe bodyes seuene / By ordre ofte as I herde my lord neuene Line 821 The fyfte spirit quyk siluer called is þe seconde orpiment. þe þridde y-wys Sal armoniak and þe ferþe bremston The bodyes seuene eek lo hem heere anon Line 825 Sol gold is and luna siluer we threpe / Mars yren mercurie quyk syluer we clepe Saturnus leed and Iubiter is tyn And venus Copur by my fader kyn Line 829 This cursede craft who so wol exercise he schal no good han þat may him suffise ffor alle þe good he spendeþ þer aboute he lese schal þer-of haue I no doute Line 833 Who so þat list to outen his folye let him come forþ and lerne to multiplie And euery man þat haþ aught in his cofre lat him appere and wexe a philosophre Line 837 As-scaunce þat craft is so light for to lere Nay nay god woot al be he monk or frere / Preste or Chanon or eny oþer wight þough he sitte at his book boþe day and night Line 841 In lernyng of þis eluyssh nyce lore / Al is in veyn and par de moche more Is to lerne a lewed man þis sotilte ffy speke nouȝt þerof for it/ wol not be Line 845 Al cowde he letterure or couþe he non As in effecte he schal fynde it al on [folio 182a] ffor boþe tuo by my saluacion Concluden in multiplicacion Line 849 I-liche wel whan þey han alle y-do This is to seyn þey faille boþe tuo ȝit forȝat I to moche rehersaille Of watres corosif and of lymaille Line 853 And of bodyes mollificacion And also of here induracion

[6-text p 556] Oyles ablucion and metalle fusible To tellen alle wolde passen ony bible Line 857 þat owher is wherfore as for þe beste Of alle þise names now wole I me reste ffor as I trowe I haue ȝou told ynough To reysen a feende loke he neuer so rough Line 861 A nay let be þy philosophres ston Elixir cleped we sechen faste echoon ffor hadde we him þan were we syker ynough But vnto god of heuene I make avow Line 865 ffor alle oure craft whan we han al y-do And al oure sleighte / he wol not come vs to He haþ vs maad spende moche good ffor sorwe of which almost we wexen wood Line 869 But þat good hope crepeþ in oure herte Supposyng euere þough we sore smerte To be releuyd by him aftirward Supposyng and hope is scharp and hard Line 873 I warne ȝou wel it is to seken euere þat future temps haþ maad men disseuere In trust þer-of fram al þat euer þey hadde ȝit of þat art þey couþe not wexe sadde Line 877 ffor vnto hem it is a bitterswete So semeþ it for ne hadde þey but a scheete Which þat þey mighte wrappe hem In a night And a bak to walken in by day light Line 881 þey wolde hem sellen and spenden on þis craft They can nouȝt stynte til no þing be laft [folio 182b] And euermore wher þat euer þey gon men may hem knowe by smel of Bremston Line 885 ffor al þe world þey stynken as a goot here sauour is so Rammissh and so hoot That þough a man from hem a myle be That sauour wol enfecte him trusteþ me Line 889 lo þus by smellyng and by þred bare array If þat men list þis folk þey knowe may

[6-text p 557] And if a man wol aske him priuely Why þey ben cloþed so vnþriftily Line 893 Right anon þey wole rownen in his eere And seye if þay aspyed were Men wolde hem sle by cause of here science lo þus þis folk bytrayen Innocence Line 897 Passe ouer þis I go my tale vnto Er þen þe pot be on þe fyr y-do Of metals wiþ a certein quantite My lord hem tempreþ and no man but he Line 901 Now he is gon. I dar say boldely ffor as men sein he can do craftily Algate I wot wel he haþ such a name And ȝit ful ofte he renneþ in þe blame Line 905 And wite ȝe how ful ofte it happeþ so The pot tobrekeþ and far wel alle is go þise metals ben of so gret violence / Oure walles may not make hem resistence Line 909 But if þey were wrouȝt of lym and ston þey percen so and þoruȝ þe wal þey gon And some of hem synken in to þe ground þus haue we lost by tymes many a pound Line 913 And somme are scatered al þe floor aboute Somme lepen in to þe roof wiþouten doute þough þat þe fende nought in oure sighte him schewe I trowe þat he wiþ vs be þat schrewe Line 917 In helle wher þat he is lord and sire / Ne is þer no more woo ne angur nor Ire [folio 183a] Whan þat oure pot is broke as I haue sayd Euery man chit and halt him yuel payd Line 921 Som seyde it was long on þe fyr makyng Somme sayde nay it was on þe blowyng þan was I fered for þat was myn office Straw quod þe þridde ȝe ben lewed and nyce Line 925 It was not tempred as it oughte be / Nay quod þe ferþe stynt and herkne me

[6-text p 558] By cause oure fyr was nat made of bech þat is þe cause non oþer so peech Line 929 I can not telle wher-on it is a long But wel I wot gret stryf is vs among What quod my lord þer is nomore to done / Of þise periles I wil be war eft sone / Line 933 I am right syker þat þe pot was crased Be as be may be ȝe no þing amased As vsage is let swope þe floor as swyþe Pluk vp ȝour herte and be ȝe glad and bliþe Line 937 The mullok on an heep y-swoped was And on þe floor cast a kaneuas And al þis mullok in a Syue y-þrowe And y-sifted and y-plucked many a þrowe Line 941 Parde quod oon som what of oure metal ȝet is þer heere þough we haue not all And þough þis þing myshapped haþ as now Anoþer tyme it may be wel ynow Line 945 vs moste putte oure good in aduenture / A marchant parde may not ay endure / Trustneþ me wel in his prosperite Som tyme his good is drowned in þe see / Line 949 And som tyme comeþ it sauf vnto þe londe Pees quod my lord þe nexte tyme I wol fonde To bringe oure crafte alle in anoþer plyt And but I do sires lat me haue þe wyte Line 953 Ther was defaute in somwhat wel I woot Anoþer seyde þe fyr was ouer hoot [folio 183b] But be it hoot or cold I dar seye þis þat we concluden eueremore amys / Line 957 We faille of þat which þat we wolde haue / And in oure madnesse eueremore we raue And whan we ben togidere euerich on Euery man semeþ as wys as Salomon Line 961 But alle þing which þat semeþ as þe goolde / Is nat golde as I haue herd it tolde /

[6-text p 559] Ne euery appul þat is fair at ye Ne is not good what so men clappe or crye / Line 965 Right so lo fareþ it amonges vs he þat semeþ þe wysest by Ihesus Is most fool whan it comeþ to þe preef And he þat semeþ trewest is a þeef Line 969 That schul ȝe knowe er þat I fro ȝou wende / By þat I of my tale haue maad an ende [[No break in the MS.]]