The groyning, and the privy enpoysoning. I do vengeaunce and pleine correction While I dwelt in the signe of the Leon. Min is the ruine of the highe halles, The falling of the toures and of the walles Upon the minour, or the carpenter; I slew Samson in shaking the piler. Min ben also the maladies colde, The derke tresons and the castes olde: My loking is the fader of pestilence. Now wepe no more; I shal do diligence That Palamon, that is thin owen knight, Shal have his lady as thou hast him hight. Thogh Mars shal help his knight yet natheles, Betwixen you ther mot sometime be pees: All be ye not of o complexion, That causeth all day swiche division. I am thine ayel, redy at thy will; Wepe now no more, I shall thy lust fulfill. Now wol I stenten of the goddes above, Of Mars and of Venus, goddesse of Love, And tellen you as plainly as I can The gret effect for which that I began. Gret was the feste in Athenes thilke day, And eke the lusty seson of that May, Made every wight to ben in swiche plesance, That all that Monday justen they and dance, And spenden it in Venus highe servise; But by the cause that they shulden rise Erly a-morwe, for to seen the sight, Unto hir reste wenten they at night. And on the morwe, whan the day gan spring, Of hors and harneis, noise and clattering, Ther was in the hostelries all aboute; And to the paleis rode ther many a route Of lordes upon stedes and palfreis. There mayest thou see devising of harneis, So uncouth, and so riche, and wrought so wele, Of goldsmithry, of brouding, and of stele; The sheldes brighte, testeres and trappures, Gold-hewen helmes, hauberkes, cote armures, Lordes in parementes, on hir courseres, Knightes of retenue, and eke squires, Nailing the speres, and helmes bokeling, Guiding of sheldes, with lainers lacing; Ther, as nede is, they weren nothing idel; The fomy stedes on the golden bridel Gnawing, and fast the armurers also With file and hammer priking to and fro; Yemen on foot, and communes many on With shorte staves, thicke as they may gon; Pipes, trompes, nakeres, and clariounes, That in the battaille blowen blody sounes; The paleis full of peple up and doun, Here three, ther ten, holding hir questioun, Devining of these Theban knightes two. Som sayden thus, som sayde it shall be so; Som helden with him with the blacke berd, Som with the balled, som with the thick herd; Some saide he loked grim, and wolde fighte, He hath a sparth of twenty pound of wighte. Thus was the halle full of divining, Long after that the sonne gan up spring. The gret Theseus that of his slepe is waked With minstralcie and noise that was maked, Held yet the chambre of his paleis riche, Til that the Theban knightes bothe yliche