And swoor hir ooth / by seint Thomas of Kent
That she wol been / at his comandement
Line 3292
Whan þat she may / hir leyser wel espie
Myn housbonde / is so ful of Ialousie
That but ye wayte wel / and been priuee
I woot right wel / I nam but deed quod she
Line 3296
Ye moste been ful deerne / as in this cas
¶ Nay ther of / care thee noght quod Nicholas
A clerk hadde litherly / biset his whyle
But if he koude / a Carpenter bigyle
Line 3300
And thus they been / accorded and ysworn
To wayte a tyme / as I haue told biforn
¶ Whan Nicholas / had doon thus euerideel
And thakked hire / aboute the lendes weel
Line 3304
He kist hire sweete / and taketh his sawtrie
And pleyeth faste / and maketh melodie
Thanne fil it thus / þat to the paryssh chirche
Cristes / owene werkes / for to wirche
Line 3308
This goode wyf / went on an haliday
Hir forheed shoon / as bright as any day
So was it wasshen / whan she leet hir werk
¶ Now was ther of that chirche a parissh clerk
Line 3312
The which / that was ycleped Absolon
Crul was his heer / and as the gold it shoon
And strouted as a ffanne / large and brode
fful streight and euene / lay his ioly shode
Line 3316
His rode was reed / hise eyen greye as goos
With Powles wyndow / coruen on his shoos
In hoses rede / he wente fetisly [folio 40a]
Yclad he was / ful smal and proprely
Line 3320
Al in a kirtel / of a lyght waget
fful faire and thikke / been the poyntes set
And ther vp on / he hadde a gay surplys
As whit as is / the blosme vp on the rys
Line 3324
A myrie child he was / so god me saue
Wel koude he laten blood / and clippe and shaue
