V.

HERKINS HOW KING EDWARD LAY

WITH HIS MEN BIFOR TOURNAY.

TOWRENAY ZOw has tight

To timber, trey and tene;

A bore with brems bright,

Es broght opon zowre grene;

That es a semely sight,

With schilterouns faire and schene:

Thi domes-day es dight,

Bot thou be war, I wene.

When all yowre wele es went
Zowre wo wakkins ful wide,

To sighing er ze sent

With sorow on ilką syde;
Full rewfull es zowre rent,
All redles may ze ride;
The harmes that ze have hent
Now may ze hele and hide.

Hides and helis als hende,
For ze er cast in care,
Ful few find ze zowre frende,

For all zowre frankis fare.

Sir Philip sall zow schende,

Whi leve ze at his lare?
No bowes now thar zow bende,
Of blis ze er all bare.

All bare er ze of blis,

No bost may be zowre bote,

All mirthes mun ze mis,

Oure men sall with zow mote,

Who sall zow clip and kys,

And fall zowre folk to fote;

A were es wroght, i wis,

Zowre walles with to wrote.

Wrote thai sal zowre dene,

Of dintes ze may zow dowt; Zowre biginges sall men brene, And breke zowre walles obout.

Ful redles may ze ren,

With all zowre rewful rout;

With care men sall zow ken

Edward zowre lord to lout.

To lout zowre lord in land

With list men sall zow lere; Zowre harmes cumes at hand,

Als ze sall hastly here.
Now frendschip suld ze fande
Of sir Philip zowre fere,
To bring zow out of band,
Or ze be broght on bere.

On bere when ze er broght,
Than cumes Philip to late;
He hetes, and haldes zow noght,
With hert ze may him hate.

A bare now has him soght
Till Turnay the right gate,
That es ful wele bithoght
To stop Philip the strate,

Ful still:

Philip was fain he moght
Graunt sir Edward his will.

If ze will trow my tale,

A duke tuke leve that tide, A Braban brwed that bale, He bad no langer bide;

Giftes grete and smale

War sent him on his side;

Gold gert all that gale,

And made him rapely ride,

Till dede.

In hert he was unhale,

He come thare moste for mede.

King Edward, frely fode,

In Fraunce he will noght blin To mak his famen wode,

That er wonand tharein.

God, that rest on rode,

For sake of Adams syn, Strenkith him main and mode,

His reght in France to win,

And have!

God grante him graces gode,

And fro all sins us save! Amen.

VI.

HOW EDWARD AT HOGGES UNTO LAND WAN

AND RADE THURGH FRANCE OR EVER HE BLAN

MEN
EN may
Of a grete clerk that Merlin hight;
Ful many bokes er of him wreten,
Als thir clerkes wele may witten;
And zit, in many prevé nokes,
May men find of Merlin bokes.
Merlin said thus, with his mowth,
Out of the north into the sowth
Suld cum a bare over the se,
That suld mak many man to fle;
And in the se, he said ful right,
Suld he schew ful mekill might;
And in France he suld bigin

rede in romance right

To mak tham wrath that er tharein;
Untill the se his taile reche sale
All folk of France to mekill bale.
Thus have i mater for to make,
For a nobill prince sake:
Help me god, my wit es thin!

Now LAURENCE MINOT will bigin.