[The glosses appear in italics; Furnivall's characteristically enthusiastic summary is printed in boldface.]
1 | Men may leve all gamys | You leave all fun behind you | |||
That saylen to Seynt Jamys, | when you sail to St. James! | ||||
For many a man hit gramys, | (annoys, bothers) | ||||
When they begyn to sayle. | |||||
For when they have take the see | Directly you get | ||||
At Sandwyche or at Wynchylsee, | on board | ||||
At Brystow, or where that hit bee, | |||||
Theyr hertes begyn to fayle. | your heart fails. | ||||
Anone the mastyr commaundeth fast | |||||
10 | To hys shypmen in all the hast | The shipmen make ready, | |||
To dresse hem sone about the mast, | |||||
Theyr takelyng to make. | |||||
With "Howe! Hissa!" then they cry. | halloo, | ||||
What, howe, mate, thow stondyst too ny, | order you out | ||||
Thy felow may nat hale thee by, | of their way | ||||
Thus they begyn to crake. | (speak, shout) | ||||
A boy or tweyn anone upstyen | |||||
And overthwart the sayle-yerde lyen. | (climb up) | ||||
Y-how, taylia! the remenaunt cryen, | |||||
20 | And pull with all theyr myght. | and haul at the sails | |||
Bestowe the boote, boteswayne, anon, | Put the boat ready; | ||||
That our pylgryms may pley theron; | our Pilgirms | ||||
For som ar lyke to cowgh and grone | will groan | ||||
Or hit be full mydnyght. | ere night | ||||
Hale the bowelyne! Now, ware the shete! | Haul up the bowline! | ||||
Cooke, make redy anoon our mete | |||||
Our pylgryms have no lust to ete, | |||||
I pray god yeve hem rest. | Storm's coming. | ||||
Go to the helm! What, howe! No nere! | |||||
30 | Steward, felow, a pot of bere! | Steward, a pot of beer! | |||
"Ye shall have, sir, with good chere | |||||
Anon all of the best." | |||||
Y-howe, trussa! Hale In the brayles! | |||||
Thow halyst nat, by God, thow fayles! | |||||
O, se howe well oure good shyp sayles!" | |||||
And thus they say among. | |||||
Hale In the wartake! "Hit shal be done." | |||||
"Steward, cover the boorde anon | Steward, lay the cloth | ||||
And set bred and salt therone, | Give them bread and salt | ||||
40 | And tary nat too long!" | ||||
Then cometh oone and seyth: "Be mery, | |||||
Ye shall have a storme or a pery." | Storm's coming | ||||
Holde thow thy pese! Thow canst no whery, | |||||
Thow medlyst wondyr sore. | |||||
Thys menewhyle the pylgryms ly, | The poor Pilgrims | ||||
And have theyr bowles fast theym by, | have they're bowle | ||||
And cry aftyr hot malvesy | And cry out for hot Malmsey | ||||
To helpe for to restore. | |||||
And som wold have a saltyd tost, | they can eat neither | ||||
50 | For they myght ete neyther sode ne rost. | boiled nor roast. | |||
A man myght sone pay for theyr cost | |||||
As for oo day or twayne. | |||||
Som layde theyr bookys on theyr kne | |||||
And red so long they myght nat se. | |||||
Allas, myne hede woll cleve on thre, | My head will split in three, says one. |
||||
Thus seyth another certayne. | |||||
Then commeth oure owner lyke a lorde, | The shipowner comes | ||||
And speketh many a royall worde, | |||||
60 | And dresseth hym to the hygh borde | ||||
To see all thyng be well. | to see that all's right | ||||
Anone he calleth a carpentere, | |||||
And byddyth hym bryng with hym hys gere | |||||
And make the cabans here and there | The cabins are | ||||
With many a febyll cell. | made ready. | ||||
A sak of strawe were there ryght good, | |||||
For som must lye theym in theyr hood. | |||||
I had as lefe be in the wood | (just as soon) | ||||
Withoute mete or drynk. | |||||
70 | For when that we shall go to bedde, | ||||
The pumpe was nygh oure beddes hede; | And the pump, | ||||
A man were as good to be dede | my goodness, | ||||
As smell therof the stynk. | stinks enough to kill you! |
- The text, here slightly regularized and glossed, is from the edition by F.J. Furnivall, The stacions of Rome and The pilgrims' sea voyage, with Clene maydenhod. A supplement to "Political, religious, and love poems," and "Hali meidenhad," Early English Text Society, vol. 25, 1867.