| | He coude whan he sholde telle a tale | |
| | Ther was in al this worlde non nyghtyngale | |
| | Ne coude be an hundrid thousand deel | |
| | Synge so wonderly merily and weel | |
| 35 | Now hadde this Phebus in his hous a wyf | |
| | Whiche that he loued more than his lif | |
| | And nyght and day did euer his diligence | |
| | Here forto plese and do her reuerence | |
| | Saue only the soth yf I shal sayn | |
| 40 | Ielous he was and wolde haue kept her feyn | |
| | For hym were loth iapid forto be | |
| | And so is euery wight in suche degre | |
| | But al for nought for it auaylid nought | |
| | A good wyf that is cleen of werk and thought | |
| 45 | Sholde not be kept in non awe certeyn | |
| | And trewly the more it is in veyn | |
| | To kepe a shrewe for it wol nat be | |
| | This holde I for a very nycete | |
| | To spille labour forto kepe wyuys | |
| 50 | Thus writen olde clerkis in her lyuys | |
| | But now to purpos as I first began | |
| | This worthy Phebus doth al that he can | |
| | To plesen her wenyng thorow suche plesaunce | |
| | And for his manhood & for his gouernaunce | |
| 55 | That noman sholde put hym from hir grace | |
| | But god it woot ther may noman enbrace | |
| | As to distreyne a thing whiche that nature | |
| | Hath naturelly set in a creature | |
| | Take ony brid and put hym in a Cage | |
