Honoured were, and to the paleis fette. Duk Theseus is at the window sette, Araied right as he were a god in trone; The peple preset thiderward ful sone, Him for to seen, and don high reverence, And eke to herken his heste and his sentence. An heraud on a scaffold made an o, Til that the noise of the peple was ydo, And whan he saw the peple of noise al still, Thus shewed he the mighty dukes will. The lord hath of his high discretion Considered that it were destruction To gentil blood to fighten in the gise Of mortal bataille now in this emprise; Wherefore to shapen that they shul not die, He wol his firste purpos modifie. No man therefore, up peine of losse of lif, No maner shot, ne pollax, ne short knif, Into the listes send, or thider bring, Ne short swerd to stike with point biting, No man ne draw, ne bere it by his side, Ne no man shal unto his felaw ride But o cours, with a sharpe ygrounden spere; Foin if him list on foot, himself to were; And he that is at meschief shal be take, And not slaine, but be brought unto the stake That shal ben ordeined on eyther side; Thider he shal by force, and ther abide; And if so fall the chevetain be take On eyther side, or elles sleth his make, No longer shal the tourneying ylast. God spede you; goth forth and lay on fast: With longe swerd and with mase fighteth your fill. Goth now your way; this is the lordes will. The vois of the peple touched to the heven, So loude crieden they with mery steven, God save swiche a lorde that is so good, He wilneth no destruction of blood. Up gon the trompes and the melodie, And to the listes rit the compagnie By ordinance, thurghout the cite large, Hanged with cloth of gold, and not with sarge. Ful like a lord this noble duk gan ride, And these two Thebans upon eyther side, And after rode the Quene and Emelie, And after that another compagnie, Of on and other after hir degree; And thus they passen thurghout the citee, And to the listes comen they be time; It n'as not of the day yet fully prime. Whan set was Theseus ful riche and hie, Ipolita the quene, and Emelie, And other ladies in degrees aboute, Unto the setes preseth all the route. And westward, thurgh the gates under Mart, Arcite, and eke the hundred of his part, With baner red, is entred right anon; And in the selve moment Palamon Is, under Venus, estward in the place, With baner white, and hardy chere and face: And in al the world, to seken up and doun, So even without variation Ther n'ere swiche compagnies never twey; For ther was non so wise that coude sey, That any hadde of other avantage Of worthinesse, ne of estat, ne age; So even were they chosen for to gesse: And in two renges fayre they hem dresse.