Havelok the Dane (Legendary character) -- Romances
+But hwa{n} his wundes were{n} shewed, 2056
[Sidenote: A leech says he can be healed.]
And a leche hauede knawed,
Þat he hem mouthe ful wel hele,
Wel make him gange, and ful wel mele,
And wel a palefrey bistride, 2060
And wel up-on a stede ride,
Þo let ubbe al his care
And al his sorwe ouer-fare;
[Sidenote: Ubbe invites him and Goldborough to his own castle.]
And seyde, “cu{m} now forth with me, 2064
And goldeboru, þi wif, with þe,
And þine seriaunz al þre,
For nou wile y youre warant be;
Wile y non of here frend 2068
Þat þu slowe with þin hend
Moucte wayte þe [to] slo,
Also þou gange to and fro.
I shal lene þe a bowr, 2072
Þat is up in þe heye tour,
Til þou mowe ful wel go,
[Sidenote: [Fol. 214b, col. 1.]]
And wel ben hol of al þi wo.
It ne shal no þing be{n} bitwene 2076
Þi bour and min, also y wene,
But a fayr firrene wowe;--
Speke y loude, or spek y lowe,
Þou shalt[94] ful wel heren me, 2080
And þan þu wilt, þou shalt me se.
[Sidenote: He promises to protect Goldborough.]
A rof shal hile us boþe o-nith,
Þat none of mine, clerk ne knith,
Ne sholen þi wif no shame bede, 2084
No more þan min, so god me rede!”
[Footnote 94: MS. sahalt; _and the second a is expuncted by
mistake, instead of the first_.]
[Headnote: UBBE SEES THE MIRACULOUS LIGHT / WHICH ISSUES FROM HAVELOK’S
MOUTH.]
+HE dide un-to þe borw bringe
Sone anon, al with ioynge,
His wif, and his serganz þre, 2088
Þe beste men þat mouthe be.
[Sidenote: The first night, about midnight, Ubbe wakes
and sees a great light.]
Þe firste nith he lay þer-inne,
Hise wif, and his serganz þrinne,
Aboute þe middel of þe nith 2092
Wok ubbe, and saw a mikel lith
In þe bour þat hauelok lay,
Also brith so it were day.
[Sidenote: Ubbe says he must go and see what it means.]
+“Deus!” quoth ubbe, “hwat may þis be? 2096
Bet{er}e is i go miself, and se:
Hweþer he sitte{n} nou, and wesseyle{n},
Or of ani shotshipe to-deyle,
Þis tid nithes, also foles; 2100
Þan birþe men caste{n} hem i{n} poles,
Or in a grip, or in þe fen:
Nou ne sitten none but wicke men,
Glotuns, reu[e]res, or wicke þeues, 2104
Bi c{ri}st, þat alle folk onne leues!”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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