After supper, he made us all laugh a good deal with his witty jests; and when we had all paid our reckonings, he addressed us all:-- And sayde thus: Lo, lordynges, trewely truly Ye ben to me right welcome hertily: For by my trouthe, if that I schal not lye, shall, lie I ne saugh this yeer so mery a companye saw At oones in this herbergh, as is now. inn (auberge) Fayn wolde I do yow merthe, wiste I how. And of a merthe I am right now bythought, To doon you eese, and it schal coste nought. do, ease And said to us: “My masters, certainly Ye be to me right welcome, heartily: For by my truth, and flattering none, say I, I have not seen so large a company At once inside my inn this year, as now! I’d gladly make you mirth if I knew how. And of a pleasant game I’m just bethought To cheer the journey--it shall cost you nought! “Whoever wants to know how, hold up your hands.” We all held up our hands, and begged him to say on. “Well, my masters,” said he, “I say that each of you shall tell the rest four stories--two on the way to Canterbury, and two on the way home. For you know it is small fun riding along as dumb as a stone. And whichever in the party tells the best story, shall have a supper at this inn at the cost of the rest when you come back. To amuse you better, I will myself gladly join your party, and ride to Canterbury at my own expense, and be at once guide and judge; and whoever gainsays my judgment shall pay for all we spend by the way. Now, tell me if you all agree, and I will get me ready in time to start.” We were all well pleased; and the next morning, at daybreak, our clever host called us all together, and we rode off to a place called the Watering of St. Thomas.[75] There we halted, and drew lots who should tell the story first, knight, clerk, lady prioress, and everybody. The lot fell to the knight, which every one was glad of; and as soon as we set forward, he began at once. Notes by the Way. One of the things most deserving of notice in reading Chaucer is his singularly strong grasp of character. In the ‘Canterbury Tales’ this is self-evident, and the succinct catalogue of the thirty-one pilgrims, which in feebler hands would have been dry enough, is a masterpiece of good-humoured satire, moral teaching, and, above all, photographic portraits from life. You will notice that Chaucer meant to make his ‘Canterbury Tales’ much longer than he lived to do. His innkeeper proposes that each of the pilgrims shall tell four stories. Only twenty-four of these exist. You will never find any character drawn by Chaucer acting, speaking, or looking inconsistently. He has always well hold of his man, and he turns him inside out relentlessly. He very seldom analyzes thought or motives, but he shows you what _is_ so clearly, that you know what _must_ be without his telling you.