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Apollonius of Tyre
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270The Story of Appolinus of Tyre
From Confessio Amantis, Book VIII, by John Gower.
[Hic loquitur adhuc contra incestuosos amantum coitus. Et narrat mirabile exemplum de magno Rege Antiocho, qui vxore mortua propriam filiam violauit: et quia filie Matrimonium penes alios impedire voluit, tale ab eo exiit edictum, quod si quis eam in vxorem peteret, nisi ipse prius quoddam problema questionis, quam ipse Rex proposuerat, veraciter solueret, capitali sentencia puniretur. Super quo veniens tandem discretus iuuenis princeps Tyri Appolinus questionem soluit; nec tamen filiam habere potuit, sed Rex indignatus ipsum propter hoc in mortis odium recollegit. Vnde Appolinus a facie Regis fugiens, quamplura, prout inferius intitulantur, propter amorem pericla passus est.]
Now he [the Confessor in Gower's poem] speaks against incestuous unions of lovers, and gives a marvelous example of the Great King Antiochus, who after his wife's death raped his own daughter; and because he wished to prevent others from possessing her in marriage, he issued an edict to the effect that if anyone sought her as a wife he would suffer a sentence of death unless he first correctly solved a certain riddle posed by the King himself. At last there came Appolinus, a discerning young prince of Tyre, and solved the riddle; but he did not receive the daughter; rather the enraged king conceived a mortal hatred for him. And fleeing away from the notice of the King, Appolinus suffered many perils on account of love, as is rehearsed below.
271 Of a Cronique in daies gon,
272The which is cleped Pantheon,
273In loves cause I rede thus,
274Hou that the grete Antiochus,
275Of whom that Antioche tok
276His ferste name, as seith the bok,
277Was coupled to a noble queene,
278And hadde a dowhter hem betwene:
279Bot such fortune cam to honde,
280That deth, which no king mai withstonde,
281Bot every lif it mote obeie,
282This worthi queene tok aweie.
283The king, which made mochel mone,
284Tho stod, as who seith, al him one
285Withoute wif, bot natheles
286His doghter, which was piereles
287Of beaute, duelte aboute him stille.
288Bot whanne a man hath welthe at wille,
289The fleissh is frele and falleth ofte,
290And that this maide tendre and softe,
291Which in hire fadres chambres duelte,
292Withinne a time wiste and felte:
293For likinge and concupiscence
294Withoute insihte of conscience
295The fader so with lustes blente,
296That he caste al his hole entente
297His oghne doghter forto spille.
298This king hath leisir at his wille
299With strengthe, and whanne he time sih,
300This yonge maiden he forlih:
301And sche was tendre and full of drede,
302Sche couthe noght hir Maidenhede
303Defende, and thus sche hath forlore
304The flour which sche hath longe bore.
305It helpeth noght althogh sche wepe,
306For thei that scholde hir bodi kepe
307Of wommen were absent as thanne;
308And thus this maiden goth to manne,
309The wylde fader thus devoureth
310His oghne fleissh, which non socoureth,
311And that was cause of mochel care.
312Bot after this unkinde fare
313Out of the chambre goth the king,
314And sche lay stille, and of this thing,
315Withinne hirself such sorghe made,
316Ther was no wiht that mihte hir glade,
317For feere of thilke horrible vice.
318With that cam inne the Norrice
319Which fro childhode hire hadde kept,
320And axeth if sche hadde slept,
321And why hire chiere was unglad.
322Bot sche, which hath ben overlad
323Of that sche myhte noght be wreke,
324For schame couthe unethes speke;
325And natheles mercy sche preide
326With wepende yhe and thus sche seide:
327"Helas, mi Soster, waileway,
328That evere I sih this ilke day!
329Thing which mi bodi ferst begat
330Into this world, onliche that
331Mi worldes worschipe hath bereft."
332With that sche swouneth now and eft,
333And evere wissheth after deth,
334So that welnyh hire lacketh breth.
335That other, which hire wordes herde,
336In confortinge of hire ansuerde,
337To lette hire fadres fol desir
338Sche wiste no recoverir:
339Whan thing is do, ther is no bote,
340So suffren thei that suffre mote;
341Ther was non other which it wiste.
342Thus hath this king al that him liste
343Of his likinge and his plesance,
344And laste in such continuance,
345And such delit he tok therinne,
346Him thoghte that it was no Sinne;
347And sche dorste him nothing withseie.
348 Bot fame, which goth every weie,
349To sondry regnes al aboute
350The grete beaute telleth oute
351Of such a maide of hih parage:
352So that for love of mariage
353The worthi Princes come and sende,
354As thei the whiche al honour wende,
355And knewe nothing hou it stod.
356The fader, whanne he understod,
357That thei his dowhter thus besoghte,
358With al his wit he caste and thoghte
359Hou that he myhte finde a lette;
360And such a Statut thanne he sette,
361And in this wise his lawe he taxeth,
362That what man that his doghter axeth,
363Bot if he couthe his question
364Assoile upon suggestion
365Of certein thinges that befelle,
366The whiche he wolde unto him telle,
367He scholde in certein lese his hed.
368And thus ther weren manye ded,
369Here hevedes stondende on the gate,
370Till ate laste longe and late,
371For lacke of ansuere in the wise,
372The remenant that weren wise
373Eschuieden to make assay.