All þat nyght with his son solde be.
þe kyng & his counsaile went home;
& with þe childe þe Ermet come,
& þerfore was þe childe wele paid.
Line 1095
& als sone un to him he said:
Trowes þou noght I wote full wele
Of þi deszaite euer ilk a dele?
To me was warned fulwele bifore:
þou was noght berlam, bot nachore;
Line 1100
I wate my maister berlam es
Wunand all in wildernes;
Luf cristes law now, rede I þe,
Als my maister has techid me.
He enfouremed him goddes law to fele.
Line 1105
& nachore grauntes euerilkadele;
He toke baptym wt gude entent,
& so to wildernes he went;
He honord god on alkyns wise,
& lifed & enddid in his seruyse.
Line 1110
þan in þat cuntre wunand was
A terrand þat hight theodeas.
When he herd tell of all þis thing,
He hied him fast un to þe kyng,
& said: sir kyng, I undertake
Line 1115
þat I sall ger þi son for sake
þe maters þat he wt þe has meld,
& hald þe law þt oure faders held;
& þerto will I do my paine.
þis tithing made þe kyng ful faine.
Line 1120
Maister, he said, yf þat þou may
Turn my sun to trow oure lay,
I sall do make in þis same cete
Ane ymage of golde in mynde of þe;
I sall make sacrifice þar to
Line 1125
And cumand all men to do so.
þis lurdan þan þe kyng þus leres:
Sir, do down all his officers
& all men þt now with him dwelles,
& ger him haue gay damaysels
Line 1130
& ladys, lufliest in land,
Vn to him for to be seruand,
At burd & bed with him to be,
Arely & late, in all degre;
& I sall ger a spirit gang
Line 1135
Als a chefe mayden þam omang,
& exite him un to lichery;
So sall he fall sone to foly:
Nothing so sone dessayue him sale.
þat sal I proue þe by a tale:
Line 1140
A king sumtyme in cuntre was,
& had a sun als þou now has.
& sone when þis ilk sun was born,
þe kyng cald his clerkes him bi forn,
He had þam luke & tell him all
Line 1145
What thing solde of his sun bi fall.
& þan þai said on þis manere:
þis childe bi houes be tendid ten zere
þat he nouther se son ne mone,
For, yf he do, he sall als sone
Line 1150
Lose his syght for euermore.
& þus þe kyng ordand þerfore
To kepe him in ahows of stone,
To ten winters war fully gone. [To st. Forto.]
þore was he kepid wt candels lyght,
Line 1155
þat he of sun had neuer syght;
Of werldly syght þore saw he none.
& when ten zeres ware fully gone,
þe kyng gert set his sun þarout,
& bad bring sere bestes him obut,
Line 1160
& fissh & fewles, wilde & tame,
& gert men neuyn þam alle bi name.
Siluer & golde he gert furth bring,
Pelure, perre & riche clething.
. . . . .
Hiermit bricht das Gedicht leider unvollendet ab; das folgende Blatt fehlt im Ms.
