Briefly, the "Knight's Tale" is the story of two young men, fast friends, who are found wounded on the battlefield and taken prisoners to Athens. There from their dungeon window they behold the fair maid Emily; both fall desperately in love with her, and their friendship turns to strenuous rivalry. One is pardoned; the other escapes; and then knights, empires, nature,--the whole universe follows their desperate efforts to win one small maiden, who prays meanwhile to be delivered from both her bothersome suitors. As the best of the _Canterbury Tales_ are now easily accessible, we omit here all quotations. The story must be read entire, with the Prioress' tale of Hugh of Lincoln, the Clerk's tale of Patient Griselda, and the Nun's Priest's merry tale of Chanticleer and the Fox, if the reader would appreciate the variety and charm of our first modern poet and story-teller. FORM OF CHAUCER'S POETRY. There are three principal meters to be found in Chaucer's verse. In the _Canterbury Tales_ he uses lines of ten syllables and five accents each, and the lines run in couplets: His eyen twinkled in his heed aright As doon the sterres in the frosty night. The same musical measure, arranged in seven-line stanzas, but with a different rime, called the Rime Royal, is found in its most perfect form in _Troilus_. O blisful light, of whiche the bemes clere Adorneth al the thridde hevene faire! O sonnes leef, O Joves doughter dere, Plesaunce of love, O goodly debonaire, In gentil hertes ay redy to repaire! O verray cause of hele and of gladnesse, Y-heried be thy might and thy goodnesse! In hevene and helle, in erthe and salte see Is felt thy might, if that I wel descerne; As man, brid, best, fish, herbe and grene tree Thee fele in tymes with vapour eterne. God loveth, and to love wol nought werne; And in this world no lyves creature, With-outen love, is worth, or may endure.[84] The third meter is the eight-syllable line with four accents, the lines riming in couplets, as in the "Boke of the Duchesse": Thereto she coude so wel pleye, Whan that hir liste, that I dar seye That she was lyk to torche bright, That every man may take-of light Ynough, and hit hath never the lesse.