Thinketh, “Here comes my mortal enemy,
Withoutë fail, he must be dead or I;
For either I must slay him at the gap;
Or he must slay me, if that me mishap:”
So fared they, in changing of their hue
As far as either of them other knew.474
There was no good day, and no saluting,
But straight, withoutë wordës rehearsing,
Evereach of them holp to arm the other,
As friendly, as he were his owen brother.
And after that, with sharpë spearës strong
They foined475 each at other wonder long.
Thou mightest weenë,476 that this Palamon
In his fighting were as a wood477 lion,
And as a cruel tiger was Arcite:
As wildë boars gan they together smite,
That froth as white as foam, for irë wood.478
Up to the ancle fought they in their blood.
And in this wise I let them fighting dwell,
And forth I will of Theseus you tell.
The Destiny, minister general,
That executeth in the world o’er all
The purveyánce,479 that God hath seen beforn;
So strong it is, that though the world had sworn
The contrary of a thing by yea or nay,
Yet some time it shall fallën on a day
That falleth not eft480 in a thousand year.
For certainly our appetitës here,
Be it of war, or peace, or hate, or love,
All is this ruled by the sight481 above.
This mean I now by mighty Theseus,
That for to hunten is so desiroús—
And namëly482 the greatë hart in May—
That in his bed there dawneth him no day
That he n’is clad, and ready for to ride
With hunt and horn, and houndës him beside.
For in his hunting hath he such delight,
That it is all his joy and appetite
To be himself the greatë hartë’s bane;483
For after Mars he serveth now Diane.
Clear was the day, as I have told ere this,
And Theseus, with allë joy and bliss,
With his Hippolyta, the fairë queen,
And Emily, y-clothed all in green,
On hunting be they ridden royally.
And to the grove, that stood there fastë by,
In which there was an hart, as men him told,
Duke Theseus the straightë way doth hold,
And to the laund484 he rideth him full right,
There was the hart y-wont to have his flight,
And over a brook, and so forth on his way.
This Duke will have a course at him or tway
With houndës, such as him lust485 to command.
And when this Duke was comë to the laund,
Under the sun he looked, and anon
He was ware of Arcite and Palamon,
That foughtë breme,486 as it were bullës two.
The brightë swordës wentë to and fro
So hideously, that with the leastë stroke
It seemed that it wouldë fell an oak,
But what they werë, nothing yet he wote.
This Duke his courser with his spurrës smote,
And at a start487 he was betwixt them two,
And pulled out a sword and cried, “Ho!
No more, on pain of losing of your head.
By mighty Mars, he shall anon be dead
That smiteth any stroke, that I may see!
But tell to me what mister488 men ye be,
That be so hardy for to fightë here
Withoutë judge or other officer,
As though it were in listës489 royally.”
This Palamon answered hastily,
And saidë: “Sir, what needeth wordës mo’?
We have the death deserved bothë two,
Two woful wretches be we, and caitíves,
That be accumbered490 of our own lives,
And as thou art a rightful lord and judge,
So give us neither mercy nor refuge.
And slay me first, for saintë charity,
But slay my fellow eke as well as me.
Or slay him first; for, though thou know it lite,491
This is thy mortal foe, this is Arcite,
That from thy land is banisht on his head,
For which he hath deserved to be dead.
For this is he that came unto thy gate
And saidë, that he hightë Philostrate.
Thus hath he japed492 thee full many year,
And thou hast made of him thy chief esquiér;
And this is he, that loveth Emily.
For since the day is come that I shall die
I makë pleinly493 my confessión,
That I am thilkë494 woful Palamon,
That hath thy prison broken wickedly.
I am thy mortal foe, and it am I
That so hot loveth Emily the bright,
That I would die here present in her sight.
Therefore I askë death and my jewise.495
But slay my fellow eke in the same wise,
For both we have deserved to be slain.”
This worthy Duke answér’d anon again,
And said, “This is a short conclusión.
Your own mouth, by your own confessión
Hath damned you, and I will it record;
It needeth not to pain you with the cord;
Ye shall be dead, by mighty Mars the Red.”496
The queen anon for very womanhead
Began to weep, and so did Emily,
And all the ladies in the company.
Great pity was it as it thought them all,
That ever such a chancë should befall,
For gentle men they were, of great estate,
And nothing but for love was this debate;
They saw their bloody woundës wide and sore,
And cried all at once, both less and more,
“Have mercy, Lord, upon us women all.”
And on their barë knees adown they fall,
And would have kiss’d his feet there as he stood,
Till at the last aslaked was his mood497
(For pity runneth soon in gentle heart);
And though at first for ire he quoke and start,
He hath consider’d shortly in a clause
The trespass of them both, and eke the cause:
And although that his ire their guilt accused,
Yet in his reason he them both excused;
As thus; he thoughtë well that every man
Will help himself in love if that he can,
And eke deliver himself out of prison.
And eke his heartë had compassión
Of women, for they wepten ever-in-one:498
And in his gentle heart he thought anon,
And soft unto himself he saidë: “Fie
Upon a lord that will have no mercy,
But be a lion both in word and deed,
To them that be in répentance and dread,
As well as to a proud dispiteous499 man
That will maintainë what he first began.
That
