The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Liber Tertius/Fable 9
¶ The nynthe fable is of the knyght and of the wydowe
He woman whiche lyueth in this
world without reproche or blame
is worthely to be gretely preysed /
Wherof Esope reherceth suche a
fable of a man and of a woman /
whiche loued moche eche other / It happed thenne
by the effors of Atropos or dethe / the whiche
we al must suffer that the sayd man deyde /
And as men wold haue borne hym in to his
graue / whiche was withoute the toune there to
be buryed / his wyf made grete sorowe and wepte
pyteously / And whanne he was buryed / she wold
abyde stylle vpon the graue / and lete do make a
lytyll lodge or hows therupon / and oute of this
lodge she wold neuer departe for no prayer ne
fayr word / neyther for ony yeftes ne for menaces
of her parents Now it befell in the toun that a mysdoer
was condampned to be hanged / ¶ And to
thende that he shold not be taken fro the gallows /
hit was thenne commaunded that a knyght shold
kepe hym / And as the knyght kepte hym / grete
thurste took hym / And as he perceyued the lodge of the sayd woman he wente to her / and prayd
her to gyue hym somme drynke / And she with
good herte gaf hym to drynke / And the knyght
dranke with grete appetyte / as he that had grete
thurste / & whan he had dronke / he torned ageyne
to the galhows ward / This knight came another
tyme to the woman for to comforte her/ And
thre tymes he dyd soo / And as he was thus goyng
and comynge / doubtynge hym of nobody / his
hanged man was taken and had fro the galhows /
And whanne the knyght was come ageyne to
the galhows & sawe that he had loste his dede
man / he was gretely abasshed & not withoute
cause For hit was charged to hym vpon peyne
to be hanged / yf he were take awey / This
knyght thenne seynge his Judgement / tourned
and went ageyne to the sayd woman / & cast
hym at her feete / and laye before her as he
had be dede / And she demaūded of hym / My
frend / what wylt thow that I doo for the / Allas
sayd he/ I praye the that thow socoure and
counceylle me now at my grete nede / For by
cause I haue not kept wel my theef / whiche
men haue rauysshed fro me/ the kynge shalle
make me to be put to dethe / And the woman
sayd / Haue no drede my frend / For well I shalle
fynde the manere wherby thow shalt be delyuerd /
For we shall take my husbond / and shalle hange hym in stede of thy theef / ¶ Thenne
beganne she to delue / and tooke out of the erthe
her husbond / and at nyȝt she hanged hym at
the galhows in stede of the other / and sayd to
the knyght / My ryght dere frend I pray the
that this be kept well secrete / For we doo hit
theefly / and thus the dede men haue somme /
whiche make sorowe for them / but that sorowe
is sone gone and passyd / And they whiche ben
on lyue haue some whiche drede them / but
theyr drede wantith and faylleth whan they ben
dede