The Shipman's Tale
THERE was a merchant in St Denys once
1 Who being rich was held to be no dunce.
He had a wife, unusually fair,
One of a gay, companionable air,
A thing which causes more pecunial dearth
Than all the foppish compliments are worth
That menfolk offer them at feasts and dances.
Such nods and becks and party countenances
Pass as a shadow passes on.a wall.
But woe to him that has to pay for all!
The silly husband always has to pay,
He has to clothe us, he has to array*
Our bodies to enhance his reputation,
While we dance round in all this decoration.
And if he cannot pay, as it may chance,
Or won't submit to such extravagance,
Thinking his money thrown away and lost,
Then someone else will have to bear the cost
Or lend us money, and that's dangerous.
This noble merchant kept a splendid house
And all day long so many guests there were
— For he was generous and his wife was fair —
You would have been surprised; but to my tale.
His guests from up and down the social scale
Included a young monk, well-made and bold;
I judge he was some thirty winters old:
And he was always visiting the place.
Now this young monk, with his delightful face,
Was on such friendly terms with this good man
Ever since their acquaintance first began
That he was welcomed as familiarly
As it is possible for a friend to be.
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The Shipman's Tale
And for as much as this good-natured man,
He and the monk, of whom my tale began,
Were born in the same village, the monk stated
That they were cousins, very near related;
The claim was neither questioned nor withdrawn;
Both were as glad of it as bird of dawn.
It pleased the merchant's heart, and his compliance
Had furthered this unbreakable alliance,
And each was happy to assure the other
He always would regard him as a brother.
This monk, Sir John, was very free in spending
Whenever he stayed there, carefully attending
To what should please; he poured out tips like wages,
Forgetting not the meanest of the pages
About the house; to each in his degree,
Master or man, he gave a gift or fee
Whenever he came – some honest kind of present –
And so, to them, his coming was as pleasant
As sunrise is to bird upon the nest.
I must have said enough, so let it rest.
The merchant, as it happened, one fine day,
Began to make arrangements for a stay
Somewhere near Bruges to further his affairs
And buy a fresh consignment of his wares.
And so he sent a message thereupon
To Paris, and invited good Sir John
Down to St Denys, so as to give pleasure
To him and to his wife, and spend his leisure
With them agreeably, a day or two,
Before he left – as he would have to do
For Bruges. This noble monk I am describing
Was glad enough, and needed little bribing;
He saw his Abbot and he got permission,
Being a man of prudence and position,
In fact a superintendent, one to ride
Inspecting abbey granges far and wide.
Off to St Denys, then, the monk has gone.
Who was so welcome as my lord Sir John,
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The Shipman's Tale
So full of courtesy and 'cousin mine' ?
He brought with him a jug of Malmsey wine
And also one of sweet Italian juice,
With these a brace of birds as was his use.
And thus I leave them at their meat and drink,
Merchant and monk, a day or two, I think.
On the third morning up the merchant gets
In serious thought about his needs and debts
And up into his counting house he goes
To reckon up, as you may well suppose,
All the past year and how things stood with him,
What he had spent, how the accounts would trim,
And whether his business had increased or not.
Many a ledger and money-bag he got
And laid them out upon his counting-board.
He had a deal of treasure in his hoard
And so he locked the door with an abrupt
Command that no one was to interrupt
His casting of accounts; he worked away
Sitting up there till past the prime of day.
Sir John had risen early too, to go
Into the garden. Walking to and fro
He said his ofifce, courteous and devout.
This excellent wife then stealthily came out
Where he was walking softly in
