Whan sche cam into prison ferst, It thoghte a kinges douhter strange To maken so soudein a change Fro welthe unto so grete a wo;[415] And sche began to thenke tho, Thogh sche be mouthe nothing preide, Withinne hir herte thus sche seide:[416] 5740 ‘O thou, almyhty Jupiter, That hihe sist and lokest fer, Thou soffrest many a wrong doinge,[417] And yit it is noght thi willinge. To thee ther mai nothing ben hid, Thou wost hou it is me betid: [Sidenote: =P. ii. 320=] I wolde I hadde noght be bore, For thanne I hadde noght forlore[418] Mi speche and mi virginite. Bot, goode lord, al is in thee, 5750 Whan thou therof wolt do vengance And schape mi deliverance.’ And evere among this ladi wepte, And thoghte that sche nevere kepte To ben a worldes womman more, And that sche wissheth everemore. Bot ofte unto hir Soster diere Hire herte spekth in this manere, And seide, ‘Ha, Soster, if ye knewe Of myn astat, ye wolde rewe, 5760 I trowe, and my deliverance Ye wolde schape, and do vengance On him that is so fals a man: And natheles, so as I can, I wol you sende som tokninge,[419] Wherof ye schul have knowlechinge Of thing I wot, that schal you lothe, The which you toucheth and me bothe.’ And tho withinne a whyle als tyt[420] Sche waf a cloth of Selk al whyt 5770 With lettres and ymagerie, In which was al the felonie, Which Tereüs to hire hath do;[421] And lappede it togedre tho[422] And sette hir signet therupon And sende it unto Progne anon. [Sidenote: =P. ii. 321=] The messager which forth it bar, What it amonteth is noght war; And natheles to Progne he goth And prively takth hire the cloth, 5780 And wente ayein riht as he cam, The court of him non hiede nam. Whan Progne of Philomene herde, Sche wolde knowe hou that it ferde, And opneth that the man hath broght, And wot therby what hath be wroght And what meschief ther is befalle. In swoune tho sche gan doun falle, And efte aros and gan to stonde, And eft sche takth the cloth on honde, 5790 Behield the lettres and thymages; Bot ate laste, ‘Of suche oultrages,’ Sche seith, ‘wepinge is noght the bote:’ And swerth, if that sche live mote, It schal be venged otherwise. And with that sche gan hire avise Hou ferst sche mihte unto hire winne Hir Soster, that noman withinne, Bot only thei that were suore, It scholde knowe, and schop therfore 5800 That Tereüs nothing it wiste; And yit riht as hirselven liste,[423] Hir Soster was delivered sone Out of prison, and be the mone To Progne sche was broght be nyhte. Whan ech of other hadde a sihte,