The Caliph in a rage has him off to prison.
Bauduin becomes very ill, and has to sell his horse and arms. His disease
is so offensive that he is thrust out of his hostel, and in his
wretchedness sitting on a stone he still avows his faith, and confesses
that even then he has not received his deserts. He goes to beg in the
Christian quarter, and no one gives to him; but still his faith and love
to God hold out:
"Ensement Bauduins chelle rue cherqua,
Tant qu'a .j. chavetier Bauduins s'arresta,
Qui chavates cousoit; son pain en garigna:
Jones fu et plaisans, apertement ouvra.
Bauduins le regarde, c'onques mot ne parla." P. 334.
The cobler is charitable, gives him bread, shoes, and a grey coat that was
a foot too short. He then asks Bauduin if he will not learn his trade; but
that is too much for the knightly stomach:
"Et Bauduins respont, li preus et li membrus:
J'ameroie trop miex que je fuisse pendus!" P. 335.
The Caliph now in his Council expresses his vexation about the miracle,
and says he does not know how to disprove the faith of the Christians. A
very sage old Saracen who knew Hebrew, and Latin, and some thirty
languages, makes a suggestion, which is, in fact, that about the moving of
the Mountain, as related by Marco Polo.[22] Master Thomas is sent for
again, and told that they must transport the high mountain of Thir to
the valley of Joaquin, which lies to the westward. He goes away in new
despair and causes his clerk to sonner le clocke for his people. Whilst
they are weeping and wailing in the church, a voice is heard desiring them
to seek a certain holy man who is at the good cobler's, and to do him
honour. God at his prayer will do a miracle. They go in procession to
Bauduin, who thinks they are mocking him. They treat him as a saint, and
strive to touch his old coat. At last he consents to pray along with the
whole congregation.
The Caliph is in his palace with his princes, taking his ease at a window.
Suddenly he starts up exclaiming:
"'Seignour, par Mahoumet que j'aoure et tieng chier,
Le Mont de Thir enportent le deable d'enfeir!'
Li Califes s'ecrie: 'Seignour, franc palasin,
Voies le Mont de Thir qui ch'est mis au chemin!
Ves-le-la tout en air, par mon Dieu Apolin;
Ja bientost le verrons ens ou val Joaquin!'" P. 345.
The Caliph is converted, releases Polibans, and is baptised, taking the
name of Bauduin, to whom he expresses his fear of the Viex de la Montagne
with his Hauts-Assis, telling anew the story of the Assassin's Paradise,
and so enlarges on the beauty of Ivorine that Bauduin is smitten, and his
love heals his malady. Toleration is not learned however:
"Bauduins, li Califes, fist baptisier sa gent,
Et qui ne voilt Dieu crore, li teste on li pourfent!" P. 350.
The Caliph gives up his kingdom to Bauduin, proposing to follow him to the
Wars of Syria. And Bauduin presents the Kingdom to the Cobler.
Bauduin, the Caliph, and Prince Polibans then proceed to visit the
Mountain of the Old Man. The Caliph professes to him that they want help
against Godfrey of Bouillon. The Viex says he does not give a bouton for
Godfrey; he will send one of his Hauts-Assis straight to his tent, and
give him a great knife of steel between fie et poumon!
After dinner they go out and witness the feat of devotion which we have
quoted elsewhere.[23] They then see the Paradise and the lovely Ivorine,
with whose beauty Bauduin is struck dumb. The lady had never smiled
before; now she declares that he for whom she had long waited was come.
Bauduin exclaims:
"'Madame, fu-jou chou qui sui le vous soubgis?'
Quant la puchelle l'ot, lors li geta. j. ris;
Et li dist: 'Bauduins, vous estes mes amis!'" Pp. 362-363.
The Old One is vexed, but speaks pleasantly to his daughter, who replies
with frightfully bad language, and declares herself to be a Christian. The
father calls out to the Caliph to kill her. The Caliph pulls out a big
knife and gives him a blow that nearly cuts him in two. The amiable
Ivorine says she will go with Bauduin:
"'Se mes peres est mors, n'en donne. j. paresis!'" P. 364.
We need not follow the story further, as I did not trace beyond this point
any distinct derivation from our Traveller, with the exception of that
allusion to the incombustible covering of the napkin of St. Veronica,
which I have quoted at p. 216 of this volume. But including this, here are
at least seven different themes borrowed from Marco Polo's book, on which
to be sure his poetical contemporary plays the most extraordinary
variations.
[Sidenote: Chaucer and Marco Polo.]
[78 bis. - In the third volume of The Complete Works of Geoffrey
Chaucer, Oxford, 1894, the Rev. Walter W. Skeat gives (pp. 372 seqq.) an
Account of the Sources of the Canterbury Tales. Regarding The Squieres
Tales, he says that one of his sources was the Travels of Marco; Mr.
Keighley in his Tales and Popular Fictions, published in 1834, at p. 76,
distinctly derives Chaucer's Tale from the travels of Marco Polo. (Skeat,
l. c., p. 463, note.) I cannot quote all the arguments given by the Rev.
W. W. Skeat to support his theory, pp. 463-477.
Regarding the opinion of Professor Skeat of Chaucer's indebtedness to
Marco Polo, cf. Marco Polo and the Squire's Tale, by Professor John
Matthews Manly, vol. xi. of the Publications of the Modern Language
Association of America, 1896, pp.
