The Canterbury Tales | The Pardoner’s Tale - Page 2
Not even Death, alas! my life will take;
Thus restless I my wretched way must make
But, sirs, in you it is no courtesy
To speak to an old man despitefully,
Unless in word he trespass or in deed.(130)
In holy writ you may, yourselves, well read
‘Before an old man, hoar upon the head,
You should arise.’ Which I advise you read,
Nor to an old man any injury do
More than you would that men should do to you(135)
In age, if you so long time shall abide;
And God be with you, whether you walk or ride.
I must pass on now where I have to go.”
“Nay, ancient churl, by God it sha’n’t be so,”
Cried out this other hazarder, anon;(140)
“You sha’n’t depart so easily, by Saint John!
You spoke just now of that same traitor Death,
Who in this country stops our good friends’ breath
Hear my true word, since you are his own spy,
Tell where he is or you shall rue it, aye(145)
By God and by the holy Sacrament!
Indeed you must be, with this Death, intent
To slay all us young people, you false thief.”
“Now, sirs,” said he, “if you’re so keen, in brief,
to find out Death, turn up this crooked way,(150)
For in that grove I left him, by my fay,
Under a tree, and there he will abide;
Nor for your boasts will he a moment hide.
See you that oak? Right there you shall him find.
God save you, Who redeemed all humankind,(155)
And mend your ways!”—thus said this ancient man.
And every one of these three roisterers ran
Till he came to that tree; and there they found,
Of florins of fine gold, new-minted, round,
Well-nigh eight bushels full, or so they thought.(160)
No longer, then, after this Death they sought,
But each of them so glad was of that sight,
Because the florins were so fair and bright,
That down they all sat by this precious hoard.
The worst of them was first to speak a word.(165)
“Brothers,” said he, “take heed to what I say;
My wits are keen, although I mock and play.
This treasure here Fortune to us has given
That mirth and jollity our lives may liven,
And easily as it’s come, so will we spend.(170)
But might this gold be carried from this place
Home to my house, or if you will, to yours—
For well we know that all this gold is ours—
Then were we all in high felicity.
But certainly by day this may not be;(175)
For men would say that we were robbers strong,
And we’d, for our own treasure, hang ere long.
This treasure must be carried home by night
All prudently and slyly, out of sight.
So I propose that cuts among us all(180)
Be drawn, and let’s see where the cut will fall;
And he that gets the short cut, blithe of heart
Shall run to town at once, and to the mart,
And fetch us bread and wine here, privately.
And two of us shall guard, right cunningly,(185)
This treasure well; and if he does not tarry,
When it is night we’ll all the treasure carry
Where, by agreement, we may think it best.”
That one of them the cuts brought in his fist
And bade them draw to see where it might fall;(190)
And it fell on the youngest of them all;
And so, forth toward the town he went anon.
And just as soon as he had turned and gone,
That one of them spoke thus unto the other:
“You know well that you are my own sworn brother,(195)
So to your profit I will speak anon.
You know well how our comrade is just gone;
And here is gold, and that in great plenty,
That’s to be parted here among us three.
Nevertheless, if I can shape it so(200)
That it be parted only by us two,
Shall I not do a turn that is friendly?”
The other said: “Well, now, how can that be?
He knows well that the gold is with us two.
What shall we say to him? What shall we do?”(205)
“Shall it be secret?” asked the first rogue, then,
“And I will tell you in eight words, or ten,
What we must do, and how bring it about.”
“Agreed,” replied the other, “Never doubt,
That, on my word, I nothing will betray.”(210)
“Now,” said the first, “we’re two, and I dare say
The two of us are stronger than is one.
Watch when he sits, and soon as that is done
Arise and make as if with him to play;
And I will thrust him through the two sides, yea,(215)
The while you romp with him as in a game,
And with your dagger see you do the same;
And then shall all this gold divided be,
My right dear friend, just between you and me;
Then may we both our every wish fulfill(220)
And play at dice all at our own sweet will.”
And thus agreed were these two rogues, that day,
To slay the third, as you have heard me say.
This youngest rogue who’d gone into the town,
Often in fancy rolled he up and down(225)
The beauty of those florins new and bright.
“O Lord,” thought he, “if so be that I might
Have all this treasure to myself alone,
There is no man who lives beneath the throne
Of God that should be then so merry as I.”(230)
And at the last the Fiend, our enemy,
Put in his thought that he should poison buy
With which he might kill both his fellows; aye,
The Devil found him in such wicked state,
He had full leave his grief to consummate;(235)
For it was utterly the man’s intent
To kill them both and never to repent.
And on he strode, no longer would he tarry,
Into the town, to an apothecary,
And prayed of him that he’d prepare and sell(240)
Thus restless I my wretched way must make
But, sirs, in you it is no courtesy
To speak to an old man despitefully,
Unless in word he trespass or in deed.(130)
In holy writ you may, yourselves, well read
‘Before an old man, hoar upon the head,
You should arise.’ Which I advise you read,
Nor to an old man any injury do
More than you would that men should do to you(135)
In age, if you so long time shall abide;
And God be with you, whether you walk or ride.
I must pass on now where I have to go.”
“Nay, ancient churl, by God it sha’n’t be so,”
Cried out this other hazarder, anon;(140)
“You sha’n’t depart so easily, by Saint John!
You spoke just now of that same traitor Death,
Who in this country stops our good friends’ breath
Hear my true word, since you are his own spy,
Tell where he is or you shall rue it, aye(145)
By God and by the holy Sacrament!
Indeed you must be, with this Death, intent
To slay all us young people, you false thief.”
“Now, sirs,” said he, “if you’re so keen, in brief,
to find out Death, turn up this crooked way,(150)
For in that grove I left him, by my fay,
Under a tree, and there he will abide;
Nor for your boasts will he a moment hide.
See you that oak? Right there you shall him find.
God save you, Who redeemed all humankind,(155)
And mend your ways!”—thus said this ancient man.
And every one of these three roisterers ran
Till he came to that tree; and there they found,
Of florins of fine gold, new-minted, round,
Well-nigh eight bushels full, or so they thought.(160)
No longer, then, after this Death they sought,
But each of them so glad was of that sight,
Because the florins were so fair and bright,
That down they all sat by this precious hoard.
The worst of them was first to speak a word.(165)
“Brothers,” said he, “take heed to what I say;
My wits are keen, although I mock and play.
This treasure here Fortune to us has given
That mirth and jollity our lives may liven,
And easily as it’s come, so will we spend.(170)
But might this gold be carried from this place
Home to my house, or if you will, to yours—
For well we know that all this gold is ours—
Then were we all in high felicity.
But certainly by day this may not be;(175)
For men would say that we were robbers strong,
And we’d, for our own treasure, hang ere long.
This treasure must be carried home by night
All prudently and slyly, out of sight.
So I propose that cuts among us all(180)
Be drawn, and let’s see where the cut will fall;
And he that gets the short cut, blithe of heart
Shall run to town at once, and to the mart,
And fetch us bread and wine here, privately.
And two of us shall guard, right cunningly,(185)
This treasure well; and if he does not tarry,
When it is night we’ll all the treasure carry
Where, by agreement, we may think it best.”
That one of them the cuts brought in his fist
And bade them draw to see where it might fall;(190)
And it fell on the youngest of them all;
And so, forth toward the town he went anon.
And just as soon as he had turned and gone,
That one of them spoke thus unto the other:
“You know well that you are my own sworn brother,(195)
So to your profit I will speak anon.
You know well how our comrade is just gone;
And here is gold, and that in great plenty,
That’s to be parted here among us three.
Nevertheless, if I can shape it so(200)
That it be parted only by us two,
Shall I not do a turn that is friendly?”
The other said: “Well, now, how can that be?
He knows well that the gold is with us two.
What shall we say to him? What shall we do?”(205)
“Shall it be secret?” asked the first rogue, then,
“And I will tell you in eight words, or ten,
What we must do, and how bring it about.”
“Agreed,” replied the other, “Never doubt,
That, on my word, I nothing will betray.”(210)
“Now,” said the first, “we’re two, and I dare say
The two of us are stronger than is one.
Watch when he sits, and soon as that is done
Arise and make as if with him to play;
And I will thrust him through the two sides, yea,(215)
The while you romp with him as in a game,
And with your dagger see you do the same;
And then shall all this gold divided be,
My right dear friend, just between you and me;
Then may we both our every wish fulfill(220)
And play at dice all at our own sweet will.”
And thus agreed were these two rogues, that day,
To slay the third, as you have heard me say.
This youngest rogue who’d gone into the town,
Often in fancy rolled he up and down(225)
The beauty of those florins new and bright.
“O Lord,” thought he, “if so be that I might
Have all this treasure to myself alone,
There is no man who lives beneath the throne
Of God that should be then so merry as I.”(230)
And at the last the Fiend, our enemy,
Put in his thought that he should poison buy
With which he might kill both his fellows; aye,
The Devil found him in such wicked state,
He had full leave his grief to consummate;(235)
For it was utterly the man’s intent
To kill them both and never to repent.
And on he strode, no longer would he tarry,
Into the town, to an apothecary,
And prayed of him that he’d prepare and sell(240)
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