No Fear Literature: The Canterbury Tales: The Nun’s Priest’s Tale Page 6

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Original Text	Modern Text
‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.	‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.
Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.	Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.

Original Text	Modern Text
‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.	‘Madame,’ quod he, ‘graunt mercy of your lore. But nathelees, as touching daun Catoun, That hath of wisdom such a greet renoun, Though that he bad no dremes for to drede, By God, men may in olde bokes rede Of many a man, more of auctoritee Than ever Catoun was, so mote I thee, Than al the revers seyn of his sentence, And han wel founden by experience, That dremes ben significaciouns, As wel of Ioye as tribulaciouns That folk enduren in this lyf present. Ther nedeth make of this noon argument; The verray preve sheweth it in dede.
Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.	Oon of the gretteste auctours that men rede Seith thus, that whylom two felawes wente On pilgrimage, in a ful good entente; And happed so, thay come into a toun, Wher-as ther was swich congregacioun Of peple, and eek so streit of herbergage, That they ne founde as muche as o cotage, In which they bothe mighte y-logged be. Wherfor thay mosten, of necessitee, As for that night, departen compaignye; And ech of hem goth to his hostelrye, And took his logging as it wolde falle. That oon of hem was logged in a stalle, Fer in a yerd, with oxen of the plough; That other man was logged wel y-nough, As was his aventure, or his fortune, That us governeth alle as in commune.