# The Legend of Good Women/The Legend of Philomela
### The Legend of Philomela

| | Deus dator formarum. |
| | Thou yiver of the formes, that hast wroght |
| | The faire world, and bare hit in thy thoght |
| 2230 | Eternally, or thou thy werk began, |
| | Why madest thou, unto the slaundre of man, |
| | Or -- al be that hit was not thy doing, |
| | As for that fyn to make swiche a thing -- |
| | Why suffrest thou that Tereus was bore, |
| | That is in love so fals and so forswore, |
| | That, fro this world up to the firste hevene, |
| | Corrumpeth, whan that folk his name nevene? |
| | And, as to me, so grisly was his dede, |
| | That, whan that I his foule story rede, |
| 2240 | Myn eyen wexen foule and sore also; |
| | Yit last the venim of so longe ago, |
| | That hit enfecteth him that wol beholde |
| | The story of Tereus, of which I tolde. |
| | Of Trace was he lord, and kin to Marte, |
| | The cruel god that stant with blody darte; |
| | And wedded had he, with a blisful chere, |
| | King Pandiones faire doghter dere, |
| | That highte Progne, flour of her contree, |
| | Thogh Iuno list nat at the feste be, |
| 2250 | Ne Ymeneus, that god of wedding is; |
| | But at the feste redy been, y-wise, |
| | The furies three, with alle hir mortel brond. |
| | The owle al night aboute the balkes wond, |
| | That prophet is of wo and of mischaunce. |
| | This revel, ful of songe and ful of daunce, |
| | Lasteth a fourtenight, or litel lasse. |
| | But, shortly of this story for to passe, |
| | For I am wery of him for to telle, |
| | Five yeer his wyf and he togeder dwelle, |
| 2260 | Til on a day she gan so sore longe |
| | To seen her suster, that she saw nat longe, |
| | That for desyr she niste what to seye. |
| | But to her husband gan she for to preye, |
| | For goddes love, that she moste ones goon |
| | Her suster for to seen, and come anoon, |
| | Or elles, but she moste to her wende, |
| | She preyde him, that he wolde after her sende; |
| | And this was, day by day, al her prayere |
| | With al humblesse of wyfhood, word, and chere. |
| 2270 | This Theseus let make his shippes yare, |
| | And into Grece him-self is forth y-fare |
| | Unto his fader in lawe, and gan him preye |
| | To vouche-sauf that, for a month or tweye, |
| | That Philomene, his wyves suster, mighte |
| | On Progne his wyf but ones have a sighte -- |
| | "And she shal come to yow again anoon. |
| | Myself with her wol bothe come and goon, |
| | And as myn hertes lyf I wol her kepe." |
| | This olde Pandion, this king, gan wepe |
| 2280 | For tendernesse of herte, for to leve |
| | His doghter goon, and for to yive her leve; |
| | Of al this world he lovede no-thing so; |
| | But at the laste leve hath she to go. |
| | For Philomene, with salte teres eke, |
| | Gan of her fader grace to beseke |
| | To seen her suster, that her longeth so; |
| | And him embraceth with her armes two. |
| | And therwith-al so yon and fair was she |
| | That, whan that Tereus saw her beautee, |
| 2290 | And of array that ther was noon her liche, |
| | And yit of bountee was she two so riche, |
| | He caste his fyry herte upon her so |
| | That he wol have her, how so that hit go, |
| | And with his wyles kneled and so preyde, |
| | Til at the laste Pandion thus seyde: -- |
| | "Now, sone," quod he, "that art to me so dere, |
| | I thee betake my yonge doghter here, |
| | That bereth the key of al my hertes lyf. |
| | And grete wel my doghter and thy wyf, |
| 2300 | And yive her leve somtyme for to pleye, |
| | That she may seen me ones er I deye." |
| | And soothly, he hath mad him riche feste, |
| | And to his folk, the moste and eek the leste, |
| | That with him com; and yaf him yiftes grete, |
| | And him conveyeth through the maister-strete |
| | Of Athenes, and to the see him broghte, |
| | And turneth hoom; no malice he ne thoghte. |
| | The ores pulleth forth the vessel faste, |
| | And into Thrace arriveth at the laste, |
| 2310 | And up into a forest he her ledde, |
| | And to a cave privily him spedde; |
| | And, in this derke cave yif her leste, |
| | Or leste noghte, he bad her for to reste; |
| | Of whiche her herte agroos, and seyde thus, |
| | "Wher is my suster, brother Tereus?" |
| | And therwith-al she wept tenderly, |
| | And quook for fere, pale and pitously, |
| | Right as the lamb that of the wolf is biten; |
| | Or as the colver, that of the egle is smiten, |
| 2320 | And is out of his clawes forth escaped, |
| | Yet hit is afered and awhaped |
| | Lest hit be hent eft-sones, so sat she. |
| | But utterly hti may non other be. |
| | By force hath he, this traitour, doon that dede, |
| | That he hath reft her of her maydenhede, |
| | Maugree her heed, by strengthe and by his might. |
| | Lo! here a dede of men, and that a right! |
| | She cryeth "suster!" with ful londe stevene, |
| | And "fader dere!" and "help me, god in hevene!" |
| 2330 | Al helpeth nat; and yet this false theef |
| | Hath doon this lady yet a more mischeef, |
| | For fere lest she sholde his shame crye, |
| | And doon him openly a vilanye, |
| | And with his swerd her tong of kerveth he, |
| | And in a castel made her for to be |
| | Ful privily in prison evermore, |
| | And kepte her to his usage and his store, |
| | So that she mighte him nevermore asterte. |
| | O sely Philomene! wo is thyn herte; |
| 2340 | God wreke thee, and sende thee thy bone! |
| | Now is hit tyme I make an ende sone. |
| | This Tereus is to his wyf y-come, |
| | And in his armes hath his wyf y-come, |
| | And pitously he weep, and shook his heed, |
| | And swor her that he fond her suster deed; |
| | For which this sely Progne hath swich wo, |
| | That ny her sorweful herte brak a-two; |
| | And thus in teres lete I Progne dwelle, |
| | And of her suster forth I wol yow telle. |
| 2350 | This woful lady lerned had in youthe |
| | So that she werken and enbrouden couthe, |
| | And weven in her stole the radevore |
| | As hit of women hath be woned yore. |
| | And, shortly for to seyn, she hath her fille |
| | Of mete and drink, and clothing at her wille, |
| | And coude eek rede, and wel y-nogh endyte, |
| | But with a penne coude she nat wryte; |
| | But lettres can she weven to and fro, |
| | So that, by that the yeer was al a-go, |
| 2360 | She had y-woven in a stamin large |
| | How she was broght from Athenes in a barge, |
| | And in a cave how that she was broght; |
| | And al the thing that Tereus hath wroght, |
| | She waf hit wel, and wroot the story above, |
| | How she was served for her suster love; |
| | And to a knave a ring she yaf anoon, |
| | And prayed him, by signes, for to goon |
| | Unto the quene, and beren her that clooth, |
| | And by signes swor him many an ooth, |
| 2370 | She sholde him yeve what she geten mighte. |
| | This knave anoon unto the quene him dighte, |
| | And took hit her, and al the maner tolde. |
| | And, whan that Progne hath this thing beholde, |
| | No work she spak, for sorwe and eek for rage; |
| | But feyned her to goon on pilgrimage |
| | To Bachus temple; and, in a litel stounde, |
| | Her dombe suster sitting hath she founde, |
| | Weping in the castel her aloon. |
| | Allas! the wo, the compleint, and the moon |
| 2380 | That Progne upon her dombe suster maketh! |
| | In armes everich of hem other taketh, |
| | And thus I lete hem in hir sorwe dwelle. |
| | The remenant is no charge for to telle, |
| | For this is al and som, thus was she served, |
| | That never harm a-gilte ne deserved |
| | Unto this cruel man, that she of wiste. |
| | Ye may be war of men, yif that yow liste. |
| | For, al be that he wol nat, for his shame, |
| | Doon so as Tereus, to lese his name, |
| 2390 | Ne serve yow as a mordrour or a knave, |
| | Ful litel whyle shul ye trewe him have, |
| | That wol I seyn, al were he now my brother, |
| | But hit so be that he may have non other. |
| | Explicit Legenda Philomene. |