From Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales", The Reeve's Tale, lines 133-169

From The Canterbury Tales:
The Reeve's Tale
lines 133-169: The two clerks go to the miller

	Greet sokene hath his millere, out of doute,
	With whete and malt of al the land aboute;
135	And nameliche ther was a greet collegge
	Men clepen the Soler Halle at Cantebregge;
	Ther was hir whete and eek hir malt ygrounde.
	And on a day it happed, in a stounde,
	Sik lay the maunciple on a maladye;
140	Men wenden wisly that he sholde dye.
	For which this millere stal bothe mele and corn
	And hundred tyme moore than biforn;
	For therbiforn he stal but curteisly,
	But now he was a theef outrageously,
145	For which the wardeyn chidde and made fare.
	But therof sette the millere nat a tare;
	He cracketh boost, and swoor it was nat so.
	Thanne were ther yonge povre scolers two,
	That dwelten in this halle, of which I seye.
150	Testif they were, and lusty for to pleye,
	And oonly for hire myrthe and revelrye,
	Upon the wardeyn bisily they crye
	To yeve hem leve, but a litel stounde,
	To goon to mille and seen hir corn ygrounde;
155	And hardily they dorste leye hir nekke
	The millere sholde not stele hem half a pekke
	Of corn by sleighte, ne by force hem reve;
	And at the laste the wardeyn yaf hem leve.
	John highte that oon, and Aleyn highte that oother;
160	Of o toun were they born, that highte Strother,
	Fer in the north, I kan nat telle where.

	Large tolls this miller took, beyond a doubt,
	With wheat and malt from all the lands about;
135	Of which I'd specify among them all
	A Cambridge college known as Soler Hall;
	He ground their wheat and all their malt he ground.
	And on a day it happened, as they found,
	Their manciple lay very sick in bed
140	That all men surely thought he would be dead.
	Whereon this miller stole both wheat and flour
	A hundredfold more than he used to cheat before;
	For theretofore he stole but cautiously,
	But now he was a thief outrageously,
145	At which the warden scolded and raised hell;
	The miller snapped his fingers, truth to tell,
	And bluffed and boosted and denied it all.
	There were two poor young students, from this hall,
	That dwelt within this college whereof I say.
150	Willful they were and lusty, full of play,
	And, all for amusement as if a hobby,
	After the warden eagerly did they lobby
	To give them leave, at least for this one round,
	To go to mill and see their grain ground;
155	And boldly they proclaimed they'd bet their neck
	The miller should not steal one half a peck
	Of grain, by trick, nor yet by force should thieve;
	And at the last the warden gave them leave.
	John was the one and Alain was that other;
160	In one town were they born, a town called Strother,
	Far in the north, I cannot tell you where.

	This Aleyn maketh redy al his gere,
	And on an hors the sak he caste anon.
	Forth goth Aleyn the clerk, and also John,
165	With good swerd and with bokeler by hir syde.
	John knew the wey, - hem nedede no gyde, -
	And at the mille the sak adoun he layth.
	Aleyn spak first, "Al hayl, Symond, y-fayth!
	Hou fares thy faire doghter and thy wyf?"

	This Alain, he made ready all his gear,
	And on a horse loaded the sack anon.
	Forth went Alain the clerk, and also John,
165	With good sword and with buckler at their side.
	John knew the way, - they didn't need a guide, -
	And at the mill he dropped the sack of grain.
	"Ah, Simon, hail, good day," first spoke Alain.
	"How is it with your fair daughter and your wife?"