And at the mille dore eke they toke hir cake Thus is the proude miller wel ybette, THE COKES PROLOGUE. 4310 4315 4320 THE Coke of London, while the Reve spake, A ha (quod he) for Criftes paffion, 4325 Ne bring not every man into thin heus, 4330 .4318. Him thar not] I have reftored this old word upon the authority of the beft mff. in this and other places. See ver. 5911, 5918,6947, 17301. It is derived from the Sax. thearfian, neceffe, habere, and is generally ufed as an imperfonal. Him behoveth not to winne or acquire good that doth evil." I have ventured to fubftitute winne instead of the common reading wene, of which I could make no fenfe. Mr. B. S. reads, He may nought wilne. Wel ought a man avised for to be But God forbede that we stinten here, 4335 4340. Our Hofte anfwerd and fayde, I grant it thee: 4345 .4345. a Jacke of Dover] The general purport of this phrafe is fufficiently explained in the following line, but the particular meaning I have not been able to investigate. .4348.of thy perfelee] An old Boke of Kokery, which I have confulted upon this occafion, mf. Harl. 4016, has a receipt for 64 gole or capon farced," but it does not mention parseley; it only fays in general terms, "Take yolkes of eyeron (egges) "hard yfodde and hew hem finale with the herbes--and cafle "therto pouder of ginger peper canell and falt and grapes in "tyme of yere."--I have lately met with another (I fuppofe the true) receipt for ftuffing a goofe, in mf. Harl. 279. It begins-“ Take percely and fwynis grece or fewet of a thepe " and parboyle hem," &c. ་་ 210 4350 That they han eten in thy ftoble goos, THE COKES TALE, 4360 Gaillard he was as goldfinch in the shawe, 4365 Broune as a bery, a propre short felawe, V. 4355. foth play quade spel] As this is faid to have been a Flemith proverb I have inferted spel from mff. Ajk. 1, 2, inftead of the common reading play. Spel, in Teut. is ludus, as quade or quaed is malus. Sir John Harrington, in his Apologie of Poetrie, quotes an old faying of the fame import, Soth bourde is no bourde. The Cokes Tale] The defcription of an unthrifty prentice given to dice, women, and wine, wafting thereby his master's goods, and purchafing to himself Newgate. The moft part of this Tale is loft, or never finished by the Author, That he was cleped Perkin Revelour: As is the hive ful of hony fwete; 4370 Wel was the wenche with him mighte mete. At every bridale would he fing and hoppe; And danced wel, he wold not come agein; And gadred him a meinic of his fort 4375 To hoppe and fing, and maken fwiche disport; 4380 To plain at the dis in fwiche a ftrete; That fairer coude caste a pair of dis Than Perkin coude, and therto he was fre 4385 That fond his maifter wel in his chaffare, 1 For fothly a prentis, a revelour, 4390 .4375. riding-in Chepe] There were fometimes jufts in Cheaptide. Hollings. v. ii. p. 348. But perhaps any proceffio may be ineant. M. Ak. 1, 2, read revel. .4377. And til] And is added. 4394. they play] So mf. C.; all the reft read be, Revel and trouth, as in a low degree, They ben ful wroth all day, as men may fee. Than that it rote alle the remenant: It is wel laffe harm to let him pace Than he fhende all the fervants in the place : 5395 44C0 4405 And bad him go, with forwe and with mefchance. And thus this joly prentis had his leve: 4411 Now let him riot all the night or leve.. And for ther n'is no thefe without a louke That helpeth.him to waften and to fouke 44T5 Of that he briben can or borwe may, A fhoppe, and fwived for hire fuftenance. * 4420 V. 4413. a louke] A receiver to a thief, Sp. Sk. This explanation, I believe, is a mere fancy, but I have nothing better to propofe. |