Thy horse is unruly and wild,i-wis;
Aye skipping here and there."--
"What boot wilt thou have?"our king replied;
"Now tell me in this stound."--
"No pence,nor halfpence,by my fay,But a noble in gold so round."--
"Here's twenty groats of white mon-ey,Sith thou wilt have it of me."--
"I would have sworn now,"quoth the tanner,"Thou hadst not had one penni-e.
"But since we two have made a change,A change we must abide;
Although thou hast gotten Brock my mare,Thou gettest not my cow-hide."--
"I will not have it,"said the king,"I swear,so mote I thee;
Thy foul cow-hide I would not bear,If thou wouldst give it to me."
The tanner he took his good cow-hide That of the cow was hilt;
And threw it upon the king's sad-elle,That was so fairly gilt.
"Now help me up,thou fine fell-ow,'Tis time that I were gone:
When I come home to Gyllian my wife,She'll say I am a gentilmon."
When the tanner he was in the king's sad-elle,And his foot in the stirrup was;
He marvelled greatly in his mind,Whether it were gold or brass.
But when his steed saw the cow's tail wag,And eke the black cow-horn;
He stamped,and stared,and away he ran,As the devil had him borne.
The tanner he pulled,the tanner he sweat,And held by the pummel fast:
At length the tanner came tumbling down;
His neck he had well-nigh brast.
"Take thy horse again with a vengeance!"he said,"With me he shall not bide!"--
"My horse would have borne thee well enough,But he knew not of thy cow-hide.
"Yet if again thou fain wouldst change,As change full well may we,By the faith of my body,thou jolly tann-er,I will have some boot of thee."--